The rain came unnaturally fast.
One moment, Yunjing Realm's sky was clear—stars orbiting within spirit circuits and artificial moons humming gently.
The next moment, all of it shattered.
The constellations blinked out, and from the rupture above came a descending figure wrapped in silver flame, cloaked in strands of law-bound logic and systemic authority.
It wasn't flying.
It was falling with purpose.
---
> [Multiverse System Alert: Arbitration Protocol #A-783-A Initiated]
Subject: ZHEN [Ranker ID: 00008B]
Violation: Emergence of Unstable Domain-Class Skill Outside Tier-Approval
Action: Lockdown – Skill Suppression – Identity Scan – Viability Execution
Arbiter Class: Lucid Class IV | Enforcer Codename: Seraph VI
Zhen stood atop the cliffs outside Nine-Dao's inner range, feeling the pressure descend like planetary weight.
The sky tore open.
Through the breach emerged the Arbiter.
It wasn't human.
It had six wings made of quantum code, each etched with rotating laws of existence. Its face was featureless, except for a glowing triangle—the universal symbol of Ranker Judgment.
Zhen's system screamed in warning.
> [Warning: Incoming System-Level Override Detected]
Temporary Shutdown of: Hybrid Domain, Shop Access, Map Interface
Combat Capability: −50%
Energy Flow: Chaotic
He stepped back, but couldn't run.
Arbiters weren't bound by space. They didn't chase prey—they simply appeared wherever certainty was needed.
The Arbiter's voice echoed like metal scraping across collapsing dimensions:
> "You are Zhen, holder of the Umbra Bloom prototype domain."
Zhen's mouth was dry, but he stood firm.
"That's me."
"You have accessed a Domain-Class Evolution without permission. This act risks multiversal rupture. Submit. Or be erased."
A pause.
Then Zhen smiled faintly. "I'd rather rewrite the permission system."
The Arbiter did not hesitate.
---
▣ Judgment Commences
With a gesture, the Arbiter launched a volley of Judgment Beams—threads of cosmic law that could slice through planes.
Zhen dodged, barely, using Phase Step. The cliff behind him disintegrated into void light.
> [Skill Suppressed: Phase Step Stability Reduced – Cooldown Doubled]
His blade struck the Arbiter's field—and bounced back, energy warped.
He was outmatched.
And then—
---
▣ Interference: Ji Yuyan
A surge of moonlight descended like a sword from the heavens.
Ji Yuyan appeared in a lotus bloom, her Dao Signature fully unleashed.
> [Ji Yuyan – Spirit Affinity: 94% | Cultivation: Harmony Core Tier 5]
Her fan opened, unleashing a Nine-Sequence Seal Array, chaining the Arbiter's left wings for an instant.
She turned to Zhen without looking. "You're not facing this alone."
Another pulse struck from the east—lightning wrapped in geometric code.
Shen Lian emerged, her Pulse Bands glowing red-hot, tech-runes cascading across her arms.
"Guess we're both in too deep now," she said. "Don't die until I finish figuring you out."
The Arbiter paused mid-air, analyzing.
> "Unauthorized interference detected. Protocol escalation authorized."
Its wings unfolded fully.
---
▣ Three Versus One
The battlefield cracked as all four clashed.
Zhen focused on disruption, weaving what remained of his Umbra Bloom into Shen Lian's tech grid.
> [Fusion Attempt: Umbra Bloom + Pulse Grid – Partial Synchronization Achieved]
Result: Shadow-Tech Cascade (Temporary Link Skill)
Black petals laced with data-spikes spun out in every direction, shielding Ji Yuyan as she summoned Ethereal Lotus Blades.
The Arbiter moved like inevitability—each motion bound by unbreakable law.
Zhen bled, his energy fraying. But something inside him was beginning to stir.
Something older than the system.
> [Emergency Trigger: System Override – Core Awakening Request Detected]
Do you wish to proceed? Warning: This action may alert hidden protocol architects.]
Zhen gritted his teeth.
"Yes. Proceed."
---
▣ The Core Unseals
Time froze.
In the space between seconds, Zhen's consciousness was dragged into a void. A lone terminal blinked before him, old and dust-covered. It had one label:
> [ROOT PERMISSION: RUNEBORN SYSTEM SEED DETECTED]
A whisper came—not from the System, but from within.
"You are not meant to be ranked."
"You are meant to rank the worlds themselves."
> [Activating: System Mode – Origin Protocol: Runeborn Authority (Fragment)]
Effect: Immune to Arbitration Interference – for 3 minutes
Skill Limiter Lifted – All Class Prototypes Temporarily Unlocked
Back in reality, Zhen's eyes opened—burning with twin symbols: Ranker and Ruler.
The Arbiter recoiled for the first time.
Zhen's voice was soft, but absolute. "Now you're in my domain."
He slashed the air.
And the world obeyed.
---
> [New Domain Activated: Umbra Bloom – Sovereign Layer]
Effect: Suppresses foreign system enforcement within area. Cancels arbitration beam. Warps combat causality.]
Duration: 180 seconds. Use wisely.
The Arbiter's wings shattered, one by one, under the collapse of his sovereignty.
Zhen stepped forward—body torn, but eyes full of will.
"You want to erase me?" he said coldly. "Try again in a world you control."
With one final strike, he collapsed the Arbiter into a null-seal spiral, locking it in a recursive logic trap.
---
▣ After the Fall
The battle was over.
Ji Yuyan was kneeling, blood in her sleeve. Shen Lian stood beside Zhen, breathing hard, eyes unreadable.
Above them, the sky slowly healed.
But the message had already gone out.
---
> [System Broadcast: Arbitration Protocol Failed – Subject Zhen Ineligible for Standard Enforcement]
[Subject Status Changed: "Monitored Anomaly" → "World-Class Sovereign Candidate"]
[Global Rank Increase: 3912 → 2138]
[Universal System Directive: Investigate Ranker Zhen's Origin – Hidden Seed Protocol Suspected]
---
Far away, across dimensions, a hooded figure watched from a vault of moving timelines.
"He's awakened too soon," the figure muttered.
Another voice replied from the dark: "Then the Multiverse itself… must now respond."
---