The morning mist clung to the floating islands of the Ryuzaki Clan, creating a scene of ethereal beauty. In the private garden of the Divine Son, Ryuzaki Haruto sat at a table carved from a single block of Spirit Jade, slowly swirling a cup of tea.
The tea leaves were Seven-Colored Enlightenment Leaves, a treasure that outside Sect Masters would bankrupt themselves to taste. To Haruto, it was merely a morning beverage.
"The Southern Province?" Haruto asked, his voice calm, cutting through the serene silence.
"Yes, Divine Son," Ryuzaki Kenji reported, standing with his head bowed respectfully. His aura had grown sharper since mastering the [Undying Sword Body], but before Haruto, he was as tame as a kitten. "The scouts have confirmed the energy fluctuations. The entrance to the Celestial Void Secret Realm has manifested in the skies above the Southern Province."
Kenji's face was flushed with suppressed excitement. He had held a Celestial Token for years, waiting for this specific Secret Realm to open. It was the legacy of the ancient Void Supreme, a being who had touched the laws of space itself.
"Excellent," Haruto took a sip of tea. "The timing is perfect. I need to stretch my legs."
"Divine Son," Kenji hesitated, shifting his weight. "Regarding the clan's delegation... there are four of us who possess tokens."
"Four?" Haruto raised an eyebrow. "I assume it is you, me, and Ryuzaki Yukino (Sequence 7). Who is the fourth?"
"It is Ryuzaki Raijin," Kenji said, his expression darkening slightly. "Sequence Five."
Haruto paused. He searched his memory. Ryuzaki Raijin. The one with the Thunder Spirit Body. A loud, brash youth who had been in seclusion during the Birthday Banquet, supposedly refining a quasi-saint weapon.
"Raijin has always been... ambitious," Kenji warned carefully. "He believes that since he is older, he should lead the team. He has been quite vocal about his dissatisfaction with the clan focusing all resources on you."
"Dissatisfaction?" Haruto chuckled. He placed the teacup down with a soft clink.
"Let him come," Haruto waved his hand dismissively, as if swatting away a fly. "The Secret Realm is dangerous. If he behaves, he can have some scraps I leave behind. If he doesn't... well, tragic accidents happen in unexplored dimensions every day."
Kenji shivered. The temperature in the garden seemed to drop ten degrees. He knew that "accident" in Haruto's vocabulary meant dismemberment.
"Understood. I will prepare the Voidship."
Kenji turned to leave, but Haruto suddenly froze.
Thump.
A heavy, rhythmic beat echoed in Haruto's chest. It wasn't pain. It was a magnetic pull, a vibration that hummed in his very marrow. The Ancient Sacred Body began to circulate its golden blood on its own, faster and hotter.
Haruto stood up abruptly, walking to the edge of the terrace. He looked toward the west—toward the territory of the Minamoto Clan.
He felt it. The resonance.
It was faint, but undeniable. Like a radio frequency tuning in. Somewhere, miles away, the Congenital Dao Embryo was moving.
'She is going too,' Haruto realized, a strange smile curling his lips. 'Minamoto Sayaka has a token.'
The sensation was intoxicating. Just sensing her presence from this distance made his Mana recovery rate double. It was as if the Heavens were whispering that they belonged together.
"Interesting," Haruto murmured, clutching his chest. "The Ancestor called it a tribulation. I call it a portable battery pack."
"Kenji!" Haruto called out. "Make sure the Minamoto Clan knows we are departing. We might... coordinate our travel."
Kenji looked confused but nodded. "As you wish, Divine Son."
Haruto looked at his hand, which was glowing faintly with golden light. The slow burn of this connection was becoming a wildfire. He looked forward to seeing just what would happen when they stood side by side in the Secret Realm.
The Protagonist's Vow
Province of Kun, The Edge of the Wastelands.
The wind howled across the red sands of the Kun Province, carrying the scent of dust and ancient decay. At the border of the civilization, two figures stood silhouetted against the setting sun.
Prince Seiryu looked at the woman before him with eyes full of tenderness and reluctance.
"Kaguya," Seiryu said softly, his voice roughened by the desert air. "Come with me to the Southern Province. We can explore the Secret Realm together. With my strength, I can protect you."
Over the past few weeks, their journey through the wastelands had forged a bond between them. They hadn't crossed any physical lines, but the emotional intimacy was palpable. Seiryu felt he was on the precipice of capturing her heart completely.
Princess Kaguya stood in her pristine white dress, looking like a lotus flower blooming in purgatory. She shook her head sadly, her veil fluttering in the wind.
"I cannot, Seiryu," she said, her voice tinged with regret. "The Celestial Void Secret Realm attracts all the major powers. The Four Great Dynasties will be there. If I show my face, the Imperial Guards of my father will capture me instantly."
Seiryu's face darkened. He clenched his fists until his knuckles turned white.
Weakness.
It was always weakness. If he were strong enough—if he were a Supreme—he wouldn't care about Imperial Guards. He could take her wherever he pleased.
"Kaguya," Seiryu suddenly stepped forward and grabbed her hands. His grip was firm, desperate. "Listen to me."
He looked into her eyes, his gaze burning with the intensity of a protagonist making a solemn vow.
"I know I am currently nothing but a fallen Prince of a destroyed Kingdom. I know the gap between us seems impossible."
"But one day, I will come to the Panwu Divine Dynasty. I will walk through the front gates, defeat all your suitors, suppress the Imperial Guards, and marry you with the entire world watching!"
Kaguya's heart skipped a beat. Her face flushed a deep crimson under her veil.
"Seiryu... you..."
It was a reckless, arrogant, impossible promise. A Prince of a minor kingdom marrying the Eldest Princess of an Immortal Dynasty? It was a joke.
But Seiryu's eyes... they were clear. Honest. Burning with a determination that defied logic.
"I promise," Seiryu grinned, his smile radiant and infectious. "I never go back on my word. Thirty years east, thirty years west. Don't look down on a young man's poverty."
Kaguya felt her defenses crumbling. This sincerity was something she had never found in the royal court.
"Okay," Kaguya whispered, squeezing his hands back. "I will wait for you."
Seiryu nodded, satisfied. He released her hands, turned around, and summoned his Mana. He flew toward the south, his back straight, carrying the weight of his destiny.
Kaguya watched him disappear over the horizon until he was nothing but a speck.
Her gentle expression slowly hardened. The naive girl vanished, replaced by the imposing aura of an Imperial Princess.
"I cannot go openly," she murmured to the wind. "But I can follow in the shadows."
"Seiryu is too kind. He is too honest. He doesn't know how cruel the Cultivation World is. He doesn't know how terrifying Ryuzaki Haruto is."
"I must protect him. If the Ryuzaki Divine Son tries to harm him... I will use the full power of the Panwu Dynasty to crush him."
She performed a hand seal. Her body shimmered and vanished into the void, using a secret Imperial Art to mask her presence completely.
The Dragon Maiden and the Lost Legacy
Province of Rainbows, The Ancestral Dragon Nest.
This was a forbidden zone for humans. Massive mountains shaped like dragon spines pierced the clouds. The air was thick with Dragon Qi, heavy enough to crush a mortal's lungs.
Deep within a valley filled with mist, a majestic, ancient voice boomed from a cave.
"Ryuu Bichi."
The mist parted. A woman stepped out.
She was tall, standing over six feet, with a body honed for war. She wore armor crafted from blue dragon scales that hugged her athletic figure. Her most striking features were the two elegant, crystalline blue horns protruding from her long, jet-black hair, and her eyes, which were vertical slits of glowing sapphire.
This was Ryuu Bichi , the Dragon Maiden.
Unlike the late Ryuu Haotian, who relied on brute force, Bichi possessed a trace of the bloodline of the Ancient Emperor Azure Dragon (Seiryu-Tei). She was royalty among royalty.
"Ancestor," Bichi bowed, her voice crisp, cold, and militaristic.
"The Secret Realm has opened," the Ancient Voice commanded. "Eons ago, the Celestial Void Supreme stole several Ancient Dragon Bones from our burial grounds. Go retrieve them."
"Yes, Ancestor. I will not fail."
"And be careful," the voice warned, the tone dropping an octave. "The Ryuzaki Divine Son will likely be there. He killed Haotian. He killed Elder Nether. He is an anomaly. Do not underestimate him."
Bichi frowned. Her tail, hidden beneath her armor, twitched with irritation.
"Haotian was a fool," Bichi scoffed. "He relied on a single Dragon Pearl and neglected his technique. I have refined two Dragon Pearls. My bloodline is purer. If I meet Ryuzaki Haruto, I will show him the difference between a lizard and a True Dragon."
"Confidence is good, but arrogance is what killed Haotian," the voice sighed, sounding weary. "Go."
Bichi turned and leaped into the sky, transforming into a beam of blue light that tore through the clouds.
After she left, the ancient voice murmured to itself in the empty valley, a sound filled with eons of regret.
"Alas... if only our True Princess hadn't been lost."
"A direct descendant of Emperor Azure Dragon... sealed in Divine Amber to escape the Great Calamity. She disappeared along with the complete [Azure Dragon Transformation Technique]."
"The technique Haotian used was incomplete. The technique Bichi uses is flawed. Only the True Princess held the key."
"If we could find her... if she and Ryuu Tatsuya united... the Ancestral Dragon Nest would rule the world again."
The voice faded into silence, the Ancient Elder sinking back into slumber.
He was unaware of the supreme irony.
The "True Princess"—or rather, the legacy she guarded—had already been found. It was currently in the hands of a certain "green-hat-wearing" protagonist named Seiryu.
And the supreme, world-shaking technique of the Dragon Emperor?
At this very moment, Prince Seiryu was using the [Azure Dragon Fire] to perfectly roast a chicken drumstick for his lunch.