The night was long, cloaked in silence and the faint stench of blood. Flickering embers from dying fires illuminated the shattered remains of the Crimson Lotus Pavilion, now reduced to rubble and ash. Amid the carnage, Murong Chen stood still as a mountain, his eyes fixed on the scorched horizon, where dawn's first light had yet to pierce the darkness.
Around him, the survivors of his loyal force moved quietly, tending to the wounded, gathering weapons, burning enemy corpses. The battle had been brutal, the price high, but it was their victory—a symbol of Murong Chen's unyielding vengeance.
Yet Murong Chen's heart was far from still. The Ashen Blade pulsed at his side, its hilt warm with latent energy, almost as if it too awaited what was to come.
Then it happened.
A sudden pulse of force surged through his body, not from the outside, but from deep within. Murong Chen staggered, clutching his chest as searing light filled his mind. It wasn't pain—it was power. Overwhelming, raw, primordial.
Words—no, commands—burned into his consciousness.
[Sect System Detected]
Initializing…
Host: Murong Chen
Title: Abyssal Reaver
Sect Founding Conditions: Fulfilled.
Do you wish to establish a Sect? [Yes/No]
Murong Chen's breath slowed. Sect? The highest form of power consolidation in the cultivation world. It was how clans rose to empires, how forgotten names became eternal.
His hands tightened into fists. He would no longer be a tool of the great sects. He would become a sovereign force.
A new empire, born in the abyss.
His voice was cold and resolute. "Yes."
[Sect Founding Acknowledged.]
Input Sect Name:
Murong Chen's gaze hardened, voice like steel drawn in the night.
"Abyssal Sect."
[Abyssal Sect Established.]
Sect Rank: Mortal Tier I
Territory: None.
Core Members: 0
Resources: 0
Reputation: Feared (Localized)
Unique Trait: Abyssal Heritage – All members gain increased resistance to spiritual suppression and mental intrusion.
Assign Initial Roles:
→ Sect Leader: Murong Chen
→ Deputy Leader: [Available]
→ Grand Elder: [Available]
→ Head of External Affairs: [Available]
→ Master of Intelligence: [Available]
Murong Chen inhaled slowly, the power rooting itself into his soul. He could feel it—the budding presence of a force that would shake the cultivation world.
He turned, calling out into the dim light of dawn. "Lin Yue. Bai Qingshan. Come."
Within moments, they arrived. Lin Yue, blood-streaked but steady, her eyes sharp as a blade. Bai Qingshan, towering and calm, his halberd stained with battle.
"I have established a Sect," Murong Chen said, his voice low yet thunderous in weight. "Not for show. Not for status. For conquest. For revenge. For the birth of a power that will never be betrayed again."
They exchanged brief glances, then knelt.
"We follow you, Sect Leader," Lin Yue said, eyes alight with determination.
[Roles Assigned.]
→ Deputy Leader: Lin Yue – All Sect Affairs, Internal Administration.
→ Grand Elder: Bai Qingshan – Military Oversight, Training, Discipline.
Passive Bonus Activated: All Core Members gain 10% increased cultivation speed when within 100 li of the Sect Leader.
Sect Task System Activated.
Murong Chen felt the energy solidify, the Sect System now fully bound to him. His mind surged with possibilities. Territory. Resources. Recruits. Influence. He would take everything that had been denied to him.
Yet first, he needed a home.