The Central Domain of Earth had become a chessboard.
And Su Chen had already flipped three kings off it.
South—Ignis, allied through dominance.
West—the Hive, eradicated down to its genetic root.
North—the Lich King, dethroned and repurposed.
Only the East remained.
As the Black Dragon Fortress crossed the meridian line, the world changed tone—not violently, but deliberately.
The oppressive gravity remained—one hundred times standard—but the storms vanished. The sky cleared into a piercing, impossible blue. Clouds drifted in slow, elegant spirals, each rimmed with faint golden light as if brushed by divinity.
Below, the land rejected common sense.
Mountains floated.
Not through crude technology or raw power, but through Spirit Arrays woven so seamlessly into the terrain they felt natural. Entire peaks hovered in midair, anchored to the ground by massive iron chains engraved with flowing runes. Waterfalls flowed upward, drawn into serene celestial lakes that reflected the sky like polished mirrors.
It was beautiful.
It was fake.
Inside the command bridge, the contrast was almost offensive. The Black Dragon Fortress was steel, bone, void-organic plating, and abyssal machinery. Against the Dao-painted paradise outside, it looked like a smear of oil across a sacred mural.
"It's pretty," Jiang Rou admitted, eyes glued to the view. "Like something out of a movie."
"It's staged," Saya Takagi replied without looking up, fingers dancing across her console. The Electric Eel neural interface hummed faintly along her temples. "Atmospheric composition is being actively regulated. Elevated oxygen, hallucinogenic pollen traces, emotional stabilizers mixed into the airflow."
She glanced up.
"Someone is curating this place. A garden designed to make people feel small and grateful."
Su Chen sat unmoving on his throne, eyes closed.
He wasn't looking.
He was listening.
[Mind Authority] stretched outward, brushing against layered formations, ego-heavy wills, and—finally—one presence that stood above the rest like a candle pretending to be a sun.
"I see him," Su Chen said, opening his eyes. "The owner."
High above the highest floating peak, seated upon a lotus throne carved from flawless white jade, sat a young man.
He wore flowing white robes embroidered with golden dragons. A longsword rested horizontally across his knees. His posture was relaxed, confident—someone who had never once questioned whether the world might refuse him.
Handsome. Noble.
And absolutely convinced of his own narrative.
[Target Identified: Lin Feng — The Human Saint]
[Identity: Reincarnator / System User]
[Cultivation: Golden Core Peak (Approaching Nascent Soul)]
[System: Supreme Sword God System]
[Talent: Son of Heaven's Luck (S-Rank)]
"A System user," Su Chen murmured, amused. "I was wondering when one of you would show up."
The Shell Around the Saint
As the fortress advanced, reality thickened.
A golden shimmer flared into existence, expanding outward until it formed a massive dome that swallowed the entire Eastern Territory. Runes the size of buildings rotated slowly along its surface, layered upon layered, reinforcing one another.
[Grand Array of the Nine Heavens]
[Defense Rating: Nuclear-Class]
"Halt!"
The command rang out, amplified by Qi.
Dozens of cultivators rose into the air on flying swords, their blue robes marking them as disciples of the Celestial Palace.
"This is the domain of the Saint!" the lead disciple shouted. "Demonic vessel, retreat at once or be cleansed by Heavenly Fire!"
Su Chen stood.
"Esdeath. Albedo. Zagara."
The three generals stepped forward without hesitation.
"Lin Feng is breaking into Nascent Soul," Su Chen said, staring at the barrier. "This shell is so he won't be disturbed."
He smiled faintly.
"Let's knock."
No cannon charged.
No spell circle formed.
Su Chen inhaled.
His Gold Body expanded, lungs drawing in air that warped and compressed under the pressure of authority. Dragon Souls stirred within him—ancient, violent, absolute.
"JOOR… ZAH… FRUL!"
(Dragonrend — Mortality)
Reality flinched.
"FUS… RO… DAH!"
(Unrelenting Force)
The Shouts overlapped.
Dragonrend forced the array—something that styled itself as eternal—to acknowledge limitation. Unrelenting Force delivered the consequence.
The impact was silent for half a second.
Then—
CRACK.
The sky shattered.
Not cracked—shattered, the golden dome disintegrating like sugar glass under a hammer. The backlash ripped through the cultivators mid-flight. Their swords lost coherence, Qi collapsing as they screamed and fell.
Su Chen stepped out into open air.
"Knock knock."
The Descent
"Zagara," Su Chen said calmly. "Release the new strain."
The fortress opened.
Organic drop sacs launched—pulsing, alive.
They burst mid-air.
Void Blademasters descended.
Humanoid. Sleek. Black chrome chitin layered over adaptive muscle. But their arms—
Their forearms were gone.
In their place, Frostmourne Replicas had been fused directly into bone and nerve. Twin cursed blades, alive with stolen screams.
[Unit Designation: Void Blademaster]
[Level: 45 (Elite)]
[Armament: Integrated Soul-Eater Blades]
Ten thousand fell upon the floating islands.
The Celestial Palace disciples tried to respond.
"Form the Sword Array!"
Too slow.
The Blademasters moved with Terra Formar speed, blurring through formations. Qi shields shattered under cursed steel. Wherever a blade cut, a soul was ripped free—dragged screaming into the weapon.
The Blademasters' eyes burned brighter with every kill.
"They're eating souls!"
Panic spread.
Albedo descended like judgment, bardiche cleaving through a Stone Golem summoned by an Elder.
"This is your Dao?" she laughed. "Sluggish. Over-reliant. Pathetic."
Esdeath froze an entire upward-flowing waterfall, turning it into a crystalline ramp. She slid down, impaling three cultivators in one clean motion.
"Too dependent on ambient mana," she observed coolly. "Remove it, and they collapse."
Protagonist Meets Error Message
At the highest peak, Lin Feng's eyes snapped open.
Pain twisted through his core—his breakthrough interrupted—but the System suppressed the backlash instantly.
Warning: Intruder Detected
Threat Level: Fatal
Quest Triggered: Defeat the Demon Lord
Reward: Immortal Ascension Token
"Demon Lord?" Lin Feng rose, grasping his sword. "I am the protagonist of this era."
He looked up.
Su Chen was descending toward him—no sword, no wings. Just standing on gravity itself.
"Lin Feng," Su Chen said, landing lightly on jade. "Nice place. A bit heavy on the gold."
"You destroyed my array," Lin Feng snarled, aura flaring as a golden dragon manifested behind him. "Devil Cultivator."
"I'm a collector," Su Chen replied. "And I want your Sword Bone."
Lin Feng sneered. "I have the protection of Heaven!"
He swung.
"Heavenly Sword Art: Nine Dragons Slash!"
Nine golden dragons tore through space toward Su Chen.
Su Chen raised one hand.
[Space Authority: Mirror Dimension]
The dragons struck—
—and turned around.
Lin Feng's eyes widened as his own attack slammed back into him. A defensive talisman barely saved his life.
"How—?!"
"I own the space," Su Chen said.
Lightning followed.
Su Chen ate it.
Fear finally took root.
"Who are you?!"
"I break systems."
Su Chen appeared in front of him and lifted him by the throat.
[Copying Initiated]
Sword Bone.
Heaven's Luck.
System Inventory.
Lin Feng screamed as his cheat was ripped out.
Su Chen dropped him.
"I usually spare protagonists," Su Chen said thoughtfully. "They tend to attract inconvenient ancestors."
He paused.
Then crushed Lin Feng's heart.
No monologue.
No miracle.
Death.
Aftermath
The Gate appeared.
Not Lin Feng's.
Su Chen's.
[Dimensional Gate: Perfect World — Eight Domains]
Su Chen smiled.
"Babata. Recall the troops."
He looked at the sky.
"We're ascending."