"Pity…"
Mo Huyan's voice softened, the word slipping from her lips almost against her will. For a fleeting instant, an unfamiliar emotion flickered through her otherwise icy eyes. It was faint, fragile, and gone almost as soon as it appeared.
"Upon seeing your pointless struggle," she continued calmly, "my heart melted slightly. My instinct… my conscience… was unwilling to watch someone stumble like a headless chicken when I already possessed the means to show the correct path."
Her tone was even, measured, yet each word carried the quiet authority of one who had once stood at the summit of all realms. The faint golden radiance surrounding her pupils dimmed, as though memories long sealed away were surfacing.
"Thief Supreme," she added after a pause. "He was one of my most loyal aides."
Her gaze drifted, unfocused, fixed on something far beyond the cave walls.
