The pillar of spirit particles and the rain of spiritual power came as quickly as they went.
When everyone present looked up, their pupils couldn't help but widen!
"Hiss, what kind of monster is he!"
The moment the light dissipated, Lucian reappeared, completely transformed.
His ten-year-old body had fully matured. He now stood at over one meter and eighty centimeters tall.
He had taken on the appearance of a man of about twenty, remarkably handsome and extraordinary!
His long black hair flowed in the wind, and he wore a white Quincy uniform with a deep red and black cape, naturally exuding a kingly aura.
Even more astonishingly,
Lucian stood suspended dozens of meters in the air, looking down upon the earth like a god, exuding an immense sense of pressure.
"Evolution requires fear."
"Especially the fear of facing death, of being annihilated into dust!"
"Interestingly, I succeeded!"
"And congratulations..."
Standing high in the sky, Lucian's voice, carried by the spirit particles, spread throughout all of Konoha.
"For witnessing the birth of a King!"
What!
His death had instead promoted his evolution?
Many people's worldviews shattered. With hindsight, they finally understood why Lucian had sought death just now.
It was not for the laughable reason of saving two little girls.
He had used the crisis of death to force his own evolution. How on earth did he do it?!
Orochimaru gave a subtle smile. The truth had not disappeared; instead, it had become even more mysterious. Good.
"Impossible!"
"Absolutely impossible!"
Danzo, who had been excited just moments before, was on the verge of collapse. He had experienced too many highs and lows in such a short time. He screamed like a madman.
"A genjutsu! It must be a damn genjutsu!"
"Damn it! It's fake! It's all fake!"
"There are always villains trying to harm me! I don't believe it! You should all die! Die, aaargh!"
"..."
He's gone mad!
Sarutobi's face was full of bitterness.
Danzo had gone from hope to despair, then from despair back to hope, and now from hope to despair again. Coupled with his crippled body, the blow was too great.
With all five limbs crippled, who wouldn't break down!
SWISH!
Lucian flashed to the ground, and in an instant, many ninja couldn't help but retreat.
In their hearts, Lucian could no longer be called "human."
If someone called him a demon, or even an evil god, people would believe it. It was all too incredible.
Especially with Hiruzen Sarutobi remaining silent, no one dared to make a move.
"Thank you, Hōgyoku."
The process had seemed smooth, but what Lucian had done could only be described as insane.
To grow strong quickly, Lucian had only one path: to use the properties of the Hōgyoku to complete his own evolution.
What was the Hōgyoku?
The Hōgyoku can absorb the desires from the hearts of those around it and manifest them.
It can also protect its host's body, making it immortal.
When the host's abilities reach their limit or their life is threatened, the Hōgyoku can cause the host to evolve to the next stage.
And so, Lucian's plan began.
He used his not-so-powerful spiritual energy to launch an all-out attack, disregarding the cost to give Konoha the greatest shock, thereby pushing himself to a certain critical point.
Then, he found the right opportunity to complete his evolution in a fatal or death-like crisis.
But this was all predicated on... the Hōgyoku being perfect!
The Hōgyoku needed to sense Lucian's earnest desires, it needed to absorb the desires of those around him, and it needed to have the ability to make Lucian evolve in this world. Various conditions had to be met.
In other words, Lucian had done this without fully understanding his golden finger.
"I admit, I was gambling."
"But I won the bet."
One cannot achieve greatness without a touch of madness. Lucian was also learning from Aizen.
That time Gin Ichimaru assassinated him, Aizen didn't dodge Kamishini no Yari. Aizen, who should have died, instead completed an evolution thanks to the Hōgyoku.
"What in the world are you!"
Sarutobi now understood. Lucian was definitely not human in the conventional sense.
The investigation report clearly stated he was an infant, three months old.
Which family's infant becomes an adult in the blink of an eye?
Everyone looked at Lucian with a mix of emotions—awe, fear, resentment, excitement—as if he were the center of the world.
Am I human?
Lucian was silent.
Since transmigrating here, he had experienced the darkness of infancy, the terror of Danzo, the recovery of his power, ruthless slaughter, and then self-evolution...
His path was gradually becoming clear from the initial confusion!
It seemed it was time to establish a goal.
"I am Lucian, King of the Invisible Empire!"
At this moment, Lucian's ambition was fully reawakened.
Others may like a simple, ordinary life, but if one has the ability, no one is content with being ordinary.
He would unite the ninja world, he would continue to evolve, he would break the barriers between dimensions.
Authority, power, beautiful women, I want it all!
Reborn into a new life, he would live it with vigor and grandeur!
"Since this world is without a master, then I shall be its King!"
These two declarations shook all of Konoha. Carried by the spirit particles, they spread out in all directions, seemingly intended to reach every corner of the Land of Fire, and the entire ninja world.
At the same time, powerful beings all over the world looked towards Konoha, as if a great terror had been born there.
The Three Great Sage Regions!
The White Snake Sage in Ryuchi Cave awoke, and the Slug Sage in Shikkotsu Forest trembled.
In Mount Myoboku, the Great Toad Sage... coughed up a mouthful of blood.
"Pfft!!"
The sleeping Gamamaru was suddenly jolted awake from his dream, coughing up blood, his eyes filled with shock and terror!
Before the two Sage Toads, Fukasaku and Shima, could react, Gamamaru fainted again, leaving behind only one sentence.
"Konoha is in trouble, the ninja world faces a great change... recall Jiraiya."
Fukasaku and Shima looked at each other in dismay.
What was going on?