When Tian had mentioned the appearance of an usurper, Novac knew the probability that it was from his family was high.
So, without hesitation, he rushed to his family's palace. It was the very same palace the rulers of the demi-human territory used; they hadn't bothered to build another for themselves.
Arriving in the throne room, he spread his senses through every nook and cracks of the palace.
He noticed dozens of divine senses spread across, but they were primarily concentrated in a room east of the palace, which caused him to pay close attention to it.
Immediately, he gritted his teeth in anger, seeing the situation within. He could already reduce what had happened there, so he moved, faster than light speed, appearing within the confines of the room instantly.
With his sharp senses, he couldn't help but recoil at the smell oozing from the room, but he quickly composed himself.
Seeing the corpses around, his eyes quickly locked on that of his nephew with an indifferent expression.
Not far from the naked dead boy was the unconscious culprit. Just glancing at the young man, he almost lost control of his anger.
He wasn't angry about the death of his nephew; he didn't care enough to lose control of his emotions, and he held no love for him. Instead, he was angry that this happened in his own home.
When his nephew had awakened as a blessed, he considered it a good thing, that is, until his flaws started to manifest.
After that, he predicted he wouldn't live very long. Every individual who was a target of his lust within these walls, whether successful or not, wished he were dead.
One has to consider that within the palace lived dozens of experts and their families, some of whom were targeted by him but had been brutally rejected. Just the thought of laying a finger on what was theirs is an insult to these prideful beings, blessed or not.
An usurper appearing here was an affront to his authority as leader of the family and region. Not to mention, usurpers are considered the natural enemies of every blessed in a generation; they always exhibit the urge to kill any chosen they come across to take away their blessings, thereby elevating their stolen blessings.
Just looking at the unconscious Modred, he could already tell he fulfilled the conditions to become an Usurper.
The conditions for being an usurper are as follows:
Condition 1. Realm Parity
Challengers may only engage the Blessed if both exist within similar realms or states of being. This ensures that competition remains fair and measurable.
Condition 2. Time Constraint
Once combat begins, the Blessed must be eliminated within five minutes. Failure to do so dissolves the challenger's claim.
Condition 3. Retaliation Clause
The Blessed must strike back at least once. If slain before acknowledgement, the challenger's victory is void. Even a blocked or dodged strike counts, so long as the intent is hostile.
Condition 4. Balance of Tactics
If the Blessed exists in a higher state, the challenger may employ underhanded means: poison, traps, or deceit. If both are equal, only direct combat is sanctioned.
Condition 5. Singular Duel
All engagements must remain one-on-one. Any outside interference, even unintentional, results in automatic failure.
Condition 6. Witness Requirement
A duel is not valid unless at least one impartial observer confirms the engagement. The witness serves as the living archive of truth.
Condition 7. Blessing Recoil
If a challenger fails, they lose their right to ever challenge a blessed ever again.
Condition 8. Legacy Mark
If a challenger defeats the Blessed but dies before the five minutes expire, the Blessing is left unclaimed and remains dormant until another rises.
Condition 9. No Resurrection Clause
The slain Blessed cannot be revived by natural or magical means until the Blessing has passed to another. Attempts to bypass would lead to severe backlash.
Condition 10. Lineage Immunity
Direct blood relatives of the Blessed are forbidden from challenging them. The system rejects familial betrayals as illegitimate.
Typically, fulfilling all conditions is a challenging task to accomplish, as the strongest of their cultivation level were blessed. Only a blessed or those extremely talented individuals could possibly defeat a blessed of the same level of cultivation.
Modred was exceedingly lucky to be able to sneak up on Kovac while he was busy with his usual activity. He has been so used to being left alone that he ignored his surroundings. His comfort led to his death.
'Fuck'
Nova commented helplessly.
Keeping an usurper would literally make the Ortenosse family an enemy to every organisation with a blessed individual, the only exception being the galactic human territory, as they had none. Well, that wouldn't be much of an exception considering their betrayal of the human territory.
Sighing, he quickly made a decision.
"Sliven!" he called out.
No one responded, but a fluctuation ran through the shadows around.
Sliven was a shadow entity embedded in the palace mansion itself. Its entire purpose of existence is to serve the owners.
It had served the previous royals and now served the Ortenosse family.
"Take the boy to Grand Medic Shun", he said to the shadow, which vibrated in response to his request. Then he watched as Modred slowly sank into the shadows.
He had decided to take the risk. He couldn't lose a blessed in his region at a time like this.
Sigh.
Usurpers are not as desirable as the blessed, though. The only advantage they had against a chosen one is the ability to increase the level of their blessings by killing other blessed, as they are no longer bound by conditions. It was an advantage that could not be considered as such, considering the amount of headache it would bring to their faction. Usurpers are considered heretics who need to be cut down, so they were constantly in danger of being hunted down.
One thing that also differentiates them from blessed was the fact that they don't have any innate techniques, which were a fundamental aspect of a blessed's power. After risking their lives fulfilling the conditions for becoming an usurper, they still cannot inherit their innate technique or gain one for themselves, no matter what.
They often have to find ways to close the gap between them and other blessed.
He would have to put a lid on the information if he wants the organisation to flourish.
The reason why most would risk having a blessing or even harbour the intention of keeping an ursuper is because each has a unique trait or talent that enables them to do some things that could be considered miracles.
Some awaken with innate techniques that are borderline conceptual in nature, while others awaken with innate cultivation techniques that are very powerful and well-suited for them.
While other practitioners cannot use said techniques as they will be unsuitable and could eventually lead to death, they could still be studied, and they could potentially create a version more suited to them.
Considering Modred's ancestor was proficient in time control, his dominant bloodline might have awakened due to the blessing and might have even gained some peculiarities. Only time would tell.
He is willing to give it a chance, though, seeing that such abilities could be worth studying. That's why he is willing to take the risk, hoping he won't be found out.
What he didn't know was that he might not have to worry about the emergence of an usurper in his territory. The other blessed were already exhibiting a similar response to one another in close proximity, as an usurper, his territory had only one blessed, so he wouldn't know that.
'To think my own subordinates would plot behind my back.' He ground his teeth with a force that almost shattered them.
Despite being the leader of the family, there were others with authority that eclipsed his.
He might be more powerful than they are, but they held more sway on the opinions of others in the family.
After becoming clan leader and subsequently ruler of the territory, he had decided to expand his authority within the family slowly, using mellow political methods; after all, they were his family.
But now...
'It seems I have to accelerate this further, even if I have to use some brutal methods.' He contemplated calmly, watching as the corpses in the room also disappeared, sinking into the shadows, clearly taken away by sliven.
He looked around the room again. Even to him, someone with a very potent incubi bloodline and driven by lust, he still found his nephew's flaw disgusting.
Without bothering with those thoughts, he warped into the throne room, trying his best to control his anger. He wanted to call out those senile ancestors of his and give a beating down, but he knew the outcome wouldn't be favourable to him. If anything, the whole family might turn against him.
He still wanted to call them, though, but was suddenly interrupted by a tremble in the space in front of him as a tear in space appeared.
From it came a parchment which floated directly in front of him. He frowned, examining it before opening it to view its content.
Seeing its content, he cursed.
'Fuck... There is no way he wouldn't know'
What was written was: PROJECT BLOOD PURIFICATION FAILED
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A/N: Please comment any thoughts, ideas, suggestions or even complaints you might have. They are invaluable.