Location: The Eastern Region – The Ruins of the Heavenly Sword Sect
Time: Three Days Later
The wind howled through the broken peaks of the Heavenly Sword Mountain.
Weeks ago, this place had been a paradise of floating islands and golden temples. Now, it was a graveyard of floating rubble. The massive iron chains that once held the islands together dangled uselessly into the abyss below. The white marble palaces were shattered, overgrown with dark, creeping vines that thrived on the lingering resentment of the dead.
Aris stood on the edge of the main crater—the spot where he had stolen the Heart of the Star.
He was no longer the desperate boy who had raided this place. He stood tall, clad in the Void-Walker's Mantle, which rippled like liquid smoke in the wind. On his back hung the Shadow Sword, and in his pocket rested three Divine Seals.
[Status Check]
[Host: Aris Thorne]
[Level: 61 (Nascent Soul - Peak)]
[Seals Collected: 3/4 (Tortoise, Tiger, Phoenix)]
"It feels different here," Aris murmured.
Nox, now fully recovered and bristling with energy, paced nervously around the crater. The Eclipse Hound sniffed the air and whined. He didn't smell the dead disciples. He smelled something much older.
"The Dragon isn't sleeping," Aris realized, looking down into the darkness of the crater. "The other beasts were dormant or trapped. But the Azure Dragon... he has been awake the whole time."
The Preparation
Aris sat down on a broken pillar. He needed to prepare. The Azure Dragon was the leader of the Four Beasts. It governed Wood, Weather, and Authority.
"System. Open Abyssal Forge."
Aris pulled out the three seals he had collected.
* The Seal of the North (Blue): A hexagonal scale.
* The Seal of the West (White): A jagged fang.
* The Seal of the South (Red): A burning feather.
They floated in the air before him, humming with resonance.
"I cannot fight the Dragon with just my own power," Aris analyzed. "He is likely Level 80 or higher. A Dao Severing existence. If I walk in there as I am, he will crush me with pure spiritual pressure."
He looked at the three runes.
"I need to synchronize them. I need to walk in there not as a challenger, but as a Commander."
Aris began to chant. It wasn't a spell; it was a sequence of System Commands.
"Link: Hydro-Core. Link: Metal-Frame. Link: Pyro-Engine. Fuse."
He poured his violet Abyssal Qi into the three hovering runes. They resisted at first—Fire fighting Water, Metal fighting Fire—but the Abyssal energy acted as a universal adapter, forcing them to cooperate.
HUMMM.
The three runes spun, creating a triangle of light. A barrier of tri-colored energy expanded around Aris.
[New Ability Unlocked: The Tri-Guard Aura]
[Effect: Grants immunity to 'Dragon Fear'. Increases Elemental Resistance by 80%.]
"Better," Aris said, standing up. "Now I won't freeze up when he looks at me."
The Descent
Aris walked to the edge of the crater.
"Nox. Stay here. Guard the exit."
Nox barked, relieved. He had no desire to go underground again.
Aris jumped.
He plummeted into the darkness of the mountain's hollow core. This was where the Heart of the Star used to be. Now, it was just a vertical shaft leading deep into the earth's crust.
He fell for two minutes.
Finally, his feet touched solid ground.
He was in a cavern. But it wasn't a natural cave. The walls were lined with Spirit-Wood Roots—roots so thick they looked like the veins of the planet. They pulsed with a soft, green light.
In the center of the cavern lay a massive underground lake. The water was crystal clear, reflecting the glowing roots above.
And in the center of the lake, coiled around a massive pillar of emerald crystal, was the Azure Dragon.
[Entity Identified]
[Name: Qinglong (The Azure Dragon)]
[Rank: Divine Beast (Lord of the East)]
[Level: 85 (Dao Severing - Early Stage)]
[Status: Waiting.]
It was magnificent.
Its scales were the color of a stormy ocean, shimmering with iridescence. Its antlers looked like branches of ancient coral. Its mane flowed like underwater grass. It was easily ten times the size of the White Tiger.
It wasn't looking at Aris. It was looking at a floating chessboard made of light in front of it.
"YOU ARE LATE," the Dragon spoke.
The voice was not loud. It was calm, cultured, and carried the weight of a mountain. It sounded less like a monster and more like an Emperor.
Aris walked to the edge of the lake. "You were expecting me?"
The Dragon moved a piece on the chessboard with a telekinetic nudge.
"I HAVE WATCHED YOU SINCE YOU ARRIVED IN THIS SECTOR," the Dragon said, turning its massive head to look at Aris. Its eyes were vertically slit, glowing with pure golden wisdom. "YOU ARE THE ANOMALY. THE GLITCH."
"And yet, you didn't stop me," Aris countered. "I destroyed the Sect that lived on your back. I killed thousands."
"PARASITES," the Dragon dismissed. "THE HEAVENLY SWORD SECT BECAME ARROGANT. THEY THOUGHT THEY OWNED MY POWER. THEIR DEATH WAS... INEVITABLE."
The Dragon lowered its head until it was level with Aris.
"YOU HAVE COLLECTED MY BROTHERS AND SISTER. YOU HEALED THE BIRD. YOU FREED THE TORTOISE. YOU ENTERTAINED THE TIGER."
The Dragon's whiskers twitched.
"BUT NOW YOU STAND BEFORE THE KING. WHAT DO YOU WANT, LITTLE GLITCH?"
The Conversation
Aris stepped onto the water. His Void-Walker's Mantle allowed him to stand on the surface without sinking.
"I want the Seal of the East," Aris said plainly. "I am building a defense system. The Middle Realm is coming."
The Dragon laughed. A low, rumbling chuckle.
"THE MYRIAD BEASTS MOUNTAIN," the Dragon nodded. "YES. I KNOW THEM. THEY CLAIM TO BE MASTERS OF BEASTS. IN TRUTH, THEY ARE SLAVERS."
The Dragon uncoiled from the pillar. It swam through the air, circling Aris.
"I DO NOT WISH TO BE A SLAVE. BUT I ALSO DO NOT WISH TO BE A WEAPON FOR A CHILD."
The Dragon stopped.
"PROVE TO ME THAT YOU ARE NOT JUST ANOTHER TYRANT. PROVE TO ME THAT YOU CAN LEAD."
"How?" Aris asked. "Do you want to fight?"
"NO. FIGHTING IS FOR THE TIGER. I AM THE ADMINISTRATOR."
The Dragon gestured to the chessboard.
"THIS IS THE 'BOARD OF FATE'. IT SIMULATES THE FUTURE."
The board expanded, filling the room with a holographic projection of the continent.
"SHOW ME YOUR PLAN," the Dragon commanded. "IF THE MIDDLE REALM FLEET ARRIVES TOMORROW WITH TEN DAO SEVERING ELDERS AND A STAR-CLASS WARSHIP... HOW DO YOU WIN?"
The Simulation
Aris looked at the map.
Ten Level 85+ enemies. A massive warship.
His current forces:
* Aris (Level 61).
* Lin Chen (Level 50).
* Black Jade Army (Level 30s).
* Three Divine Beasts.
"If we fight head-on," Aris analyzed, moving the holographic pieces, "we lose. The Tiger can kill one Elder. The Tortoise can tank the ship's laser for maybe an hour. The Bird can heal the army once. But eventually, the level gap crushes us."
"CORRECT," the Dragon said. "SO, DO YOU SURRENDER?"
"No."
Aris swept his hand across the board.
"I don't fight them on the ground."
He pointed to the sky.
"I use the World Tree."
Aris began to manipulate the simulation.
"I have the Key to the Underworld installed in the Root. I have the Soul Warden's Core. Instead of using the World Tree to defend... I overload it."
The Dragon's eyes narrowed. "EXPLAIN."
"The World Tree is a server antenna," Aris said, his eyes glowing violet. "If I reverse the polarity using Abyssal Qi, I can turn the entire planet's atmospheric shield into a 'Void-Mirror'."
He tapped the holographic warship.
"When they fire their main cannon... the planetary shield won't block it. It will reflect it."
The simulation played out. The massive beam hit the shield, bounced back, and vaporized the enemy fleet.
"BUT," the Dragon interjected, "DOING SO WOULD DRAIN THE PLANET'S QI FOR A CENTURY. THE MORTALS WOULD STARVE. THE CROPS WOULD DIE."
"Yes," Aris admitted. "It's a scorched earth tactic. But we survive. And then we rebuild using the resources from their wreckage."
The Dragon stared at the simulation. Then it looked at Aris.
"RUTHLESS. EFFICIENT. AND DEVOID OF SENTIMENTALITY."
The Dragon smiled.
"YOU ARE NOT A HERO. YOU ARE A KING."
The Agreement
The Dragon bowed its head.
"THE HEROES OF THE PAST FAILED BECAUSE THEY TRIED TO SAVE EVERYONE. THEY HESITATED. YOU DO NOT HESITATE."
A green scale detached from the Dragon's forehead. It floated down to Aris.
[Item Acquired: The Seal of the East (4/4)]
[Effect: Grants authority over Wood and Lightning.]
[Passive: 'Emperor's Voice' – Commands lower-level beasts absolutely.]
[Summon: Can summon the Azure Dragon to manipulate weather/storms.]
"TAKE IT," the Dragon said. "BUT KNOW THIS. BY UNITING THE FOUR SEALS... YOU WILL TRIGGER THE BEACON."
"The Beacon?" Aris asked, grabbing the scale.
"THE WORLD TREE WILL EVOLVE. IT WILL SEND A SIGNAL TO THE UPPER HEAVENS THAT THIS SECTOR HAS PRODUCED A 'WORLD MASTER'. THE DYING GOD WILL SEE YOU. BUT SO WILL HIS ENEMIES."
Aris clenched the four seals in his hand.
"Let them look," Aris smiled. "I like an audience."
The Skyfall
Suddenly, the cavern shook.
This wasn't the Dragon moving. This was an earthquake coming from above.
[System Warning: Atmospheric Breach Detected.]
[Location: High Orbit.]
[Entity: Void-Class Warship detected.]
Aris looked up.
"They're here," he whispered. "Lady Yun's friends."
The Dragon uncoiled, its body glowing with lightning.
"THEN LET US NOT KEEP THEM WAITING."
The Dragon roared. It smashed through the ceiling of the cavern, boring a tunnel straight to the surface.
Aris grabbed onto the Dragon's mane.
"Up," Aris commanded.
They shot up through the rock, bursting out of the crater and into the sky.
Above them, the violet clouds were burning. A massive, golden spaceship—shaped like a pagoda—was descending from the stars. It was so large it blocked out the sun.
[Enemy Identified: The Flagship 'Beast-Tamer'.]
[Faction: Myriad Beasts Mountain.]
Aris stood on the Dragon's head, the Four Seals orbiting him like satellites.
"Welcome to the Boss Level," Aris said.