Part 1: The Matriarch's Defense
The smoke of battle faded. Although the Blood Hunters were dead, reality struck the Morningstar Clan: their base was strong, but vulnerable if Samael was not present.
Lilith approached Samael, her tired face illuminated by the moon. Although she had reached Transcendence Stage 4, her Qi was still unstable, marked by years of poison and wear.
"Patriarch," she said in a hoarse voice. "I can defend the entrance against soldiers, but if they send an Elder of Stage 8 or 9... I won't be able to protect the twins or Lady Seraphina."
Samael nodded, calm. The System whispered in his mind:
[As long as the Host retains 1% of Primordial Blood, no enemy below the Origin Realm can threaten his life. Reinforced immunity protocols activated.]
He recalled his inventory; a perfect item awaited Lilith, the fruit of his investments.
"Extend your hand, Lilith."
Samael took out a pulsing sphere of violet and dark red. The heat distorted the air.
[Item: Purgatory Fire Seed (Grade 6)]
"This is for you. It will not only restore your foundation, but turn your Qi into something lethal. Use it to burn whoever dares cross our shadow."
Lilith took the seed reverently. "Thank you, Patriarch. I won't fail you."
[DING! Successful Investment Detected.
Loyalty and Potential Multiplier: x40.
Reimbursement!: "Void Flames Formation Core" (High Earth Grade).
Snowball Effect: Future investments +10% luck activation.]
Lilith, seated in lotus, absorbed the seed; her aura exploded, her skin rejuvenated, violet fire enveloped her. She broke through barriers: Stage 5… Stage 6… Stage 7 of Transcendence! Now her power could incinerate steel and stone.
[System: Lilith, linked as Matrix Guardian. Barrier: no entity below the Origin Realm can penetrate without burning.]
Part 2: The Call of Blood and the Double Threat
With the defense secured, Samael moved to the heart of the rock.
"System, activate resonance of the Rock. Use my blood."
He cut his hand over the dragon's fossil marrow.
[Activating Protocol: Ancestral Blood Resonance.
Consumption: 100 Beast Cores.
Extra Reimbursement! Clan Foundation Stone (Earth Grade).
All disciples gain growth bonus.]
As the Rock's vibration ceased, a cloud of dust appeared to the east. They were the remnants of the secondary branches: 300 survivors, the last Morningstar legacy.
But the desert does not forgive. Less than a kilometer away, the ground trembled unnaturally. Not one, but TWO presences erupted beneath the sand.
First, a familiar beast:
[ALERT! Hostile Entity: Sand King Worm (Transcendence Stage 9, Pinnacle).
Note: Does not represent a direct threat to the Host while his lineage is active.]
The sand exploded. A circular mouth of infinite teeth emerged, roaring to devour the refugees. Some screamed, "We're dead!"… but Samael remained unmoving, watching.
"Lilith. Try it."
The Great Elder, enveloped in violet fire, leapt from the summit.
"No one touches my blood!"
A lotus of fire fell upon the beast, which was incinerated instantly, turned to ash before 300 witnesses.
[DING! Bloodline Protection Event.
Reimbursement: Clan Foundation Stone.
Aura of fear and loyalty reinforced in all present.]
Before the dust settled, the earth rumbled even harder. The System shrieked in Samael's mind:
[MAX ALERT! Hostile Entity: Bone Path-Devourer.
Estimated Level: Peak+ Transcendence.
Status: HUNGRY.
Warning: Its roar can break formations and attract ancestral predators.]
A monstrous sand vortex opened next to the remains of the Sand King. From the rift emerged the titanic presence of the Path-Devourer: a circular bone mouth, decorated with ancient runes and a glowing blue eye. It was not just larger—it was a calamity, a predator of calamities.
The refugees knelt, paralyzed by terror. The disciples trembled, but Samael advanced, Eclipse Odachi in hand.
The System announced solemnly:
[Immunity activated. No attack can directly harm the Host. Expanded pressure: key subordinates protected in a 100-meter radius.
Legendary investment opportunity! If the Path-Devourer's core is acquired, a unique reward will be unlocked.]
Samael smiled coldly.
"Now you'll understand the difference between monsters and kings."
Part 3: The Judgment of the Colossi
The Path-Devourer attacked without warning. Bony appendages struck the barrier; the Purgatory Fire Matrix crackled, disintegrating tentacles and Qi waves. But the pressure was monstrous; the earth vibrated, the formation quaked.
Samael entered the field, the Odachi shining with ancestral might.
"Lilith, protect the survivors.
Kael, Violeta, Eris, with me!"
Kael, wind; Violeta, frost; Eris, fire: the three coordinated attacks to distract the secondary appendages. Samael advanced, and the Path-Devourer spat a void wave directly at him.
The attack simply… was absorbed. The System announced to the world:
[Absolute defense: Void Dragon Physique + Primordial Blood.
All attacks below Origin Realm nullified.]
Samael, invulnerable, leapt toward the exposed bone core.
"Sovereign Slash: Eclipse of the Void!"
A monumental slash.
The Path-Devourer's core shattered into a thousand fragments, releasing ancestral energy absorbed by the System.
[DING! Path-Devourer core obtained.
Legendary investment available.
Reward: "Blood Evolution Crystal" (allows increasing Primordial lineage percentage by 1% upon use).
Minor World Stone! (Allows creating a special training space within the base, with laws manipulable by the Patriarch).
All present disciples gain resistance to corrosive Qi and ancestral beast bone fragments.]
The silence after the battle was absolute.
The survivors looked at Samael with more than loyalty: it was faith and fear.
Lilith breathed a sigh of relief, swearing eternal loyalty in her heart.
Part 4: Oath and Promise
Samael raised the smoking core before the assembled clan.
"Today, Morningstar ceases to be prey. Now we hunt monsters and forge legends."
The System vibrated intensely:
[UPDATE! The clan is now marked as a "World-Class Emerging Force."
Luck and Potential Multiplier: x150.
The era of the Morningstar has begun!]
In the distance, the dunes trembled: the roar of the Path-Devourer had awakened even older horrors… and news of the feat was already traveling north, toward Valois ears.
End of Chapter