Divine Dragon Realm. The Celestial Palace.
Jiang Chen sat on his throne, watching the holographic screens displaying the chaos of the Hellfire Protocol. Under Elder Xing's brutal supervision, the disciples were suffering, but they were also evolving. The complaints had stopped—mostly because anyone who complained was currently running laps in 5x gravity until they passed out.
"Discipline is handled," Jiang Chen muttered, tapping his armrest. "But efficiency is still garbage."
He looked at the reports from the other Halls.
Sword Hall: Sect Leader Jian was teaching sword forms, but he was too traditional. He spent hours on "meditation" and "etiquette." Jiang Chen didn't want gentlemen; he wanted killers.
Alchemy Hall: Grandma Venom was brewing poisons effectively, but her pill refining rate was abysmal. She had a 40% failure rate. That was a waste of resources.
Logistics Hall: The Ye Clan was efficient at hoarding, but terrible at distribution. They were counting stones by hand.
"The natives are too slow," Jiang Chen sighed. "They are stuck in the mindset of the Southern Region. I need professionals."
He opened the [Hall of Valor] interface again. [Current Balance: 7,500,000 Sect Points.]
"I spent 2.5 million on Xing. I have plenty left." "System. I need a management team."
[Summoning Request Initiated.] [Target: 4x Tier 1 Elders (Spirit Severing).] [Cost: 500,000 x 4 = 2,000,000 Points.]
"Do it," Jiang Chen ordered. "Specializations: Sword Combat, Alchemy Production, Defensive Arrays, and Administration."
RUMBLE.
The entire palace shook. Four pillars of light descended into the throne room—White, Green, Blue, and Gold. The pressure was immense. In the Southern Region, a Spirit Severing expert was an Ancestor, a legend who only appeared once every hundred years. Now, four of them were appearing at once.
Old Sky (The Butler) stood in the corner, holding a tea tray. He didn't flinch this time. He was getting used to his Master pulling armies out of thin air. "More mouths to feed," Old Sky grumbled, dusting a vase.
The light faded. Four figures stood before the throne. They knelt in perfect unison.
The Sword Instructor A man with grey hair and eyes like polished steel. He wore no armor, only a rough hemp robe. But his body radiated a Sword Intent so sharp it cut the dust particles in the air. [Name: Elder Blade.] [Cultivation: Spirit Severing (Peak).] [Role: Head Sword Instructor.]
The Alchemy Grandmaster A woman with hair made of green flames. Her skin was pale, and she smelled of medicinal herbs and sulfur. Her eyes were constantly analyzing the chemical composition of the air. [Name: Elder Cauldron.] [Cultivation: Spirit Severing (Late).] [Role: Head of Production.]
The Formation Architect A young-looking man holding a golden compass. Runes floated around his head like a halo. He wasn't looking at Jiang Chen; he was looking at the palace's structural integrity with critical eyes. [Name: Elder Glyph.] [Cultivation: Spirit Severing (Mid).] [Role: Head of Defense.]
The Administrator An old man with a hunched back, carrying a massive abacus made of jade. His eyes were fast, darting around like a hawk. He radiated the aura of a ruthless bureaucrat. [Name: Elder Ledger.] [Cultivation: Spirit Severing (Peak).] [Role: Head of Logistics.]
"We greet the Patriarch!" The four voices echoed in the hall.
Jiang Chen smiled. "Rise." "Welcome to the Divine Dragon Sect. We are currently understaffed and over-ambitious. Your job is to fix that."
The Assembly of Demotion
An hour later. The Great Hall was packed. The former Sect Leaders—Sect Leader Jian, Grandma Venom, and Ye Tian—stood in the front row. Behind them were the minor Elders of the merged sects.
They looked nervous. They had felt the four massive energy spikes descending from the palace.
"Patriarch," Sect Leader Jian bowed. "You summoned us?"
Jiang Chen sat on the throne, flanked by his new Council of Monsters. On his left: Elder Xing (Void Treading). On his right: The Four New Elders (Spirit Severing).
The pressure radiating from the podium was suffocating. Sect Leader Jian (Spirit Severing Level 9) realized with horror that the grey-haired man standing next to Jiang Chen (Elder Blade) had a Sword Intent stronger than his own.
"I have reviewed your performance over the last week," Jiang Chen spoke calmly. "It is... adequate. For a mortal sect." "But we are preparing for a war against the Central Continent. Adequate is not enough."
Jiang Chen pointed to the four new figures. "These are the new Head Elders."
"Sect Leader Jian," Jiang Chen looked at the old swordsman. "You have led the Heavenly Sword Sect for 200 years. You are tired. You deserve a rest." "From today, you are demoted to Vice-Hall Master of the Sword Hall. You will answer to Elder Blade."
Jian's face turned pale. "Patriarch... I..." He looked at Elder Blade. The grey-haired man stared back with eyes that felt like needles. Jian swallowed his pride. He knew he couldn't win a duel against this man. "I... obey."
"Grandma Venom," Jiang Chen continued. "Your pill yield is embarrassing. You burn 30% of our herbs. From today, you are Vice-Hall Master of Alchemy. You will assist Elder Cauldron."
Elder Cauldron sniffed the air near Grandma Venom. "You smell of burnt star-flower. Amateur," she scoffed. Grandma Venom trembled with rage, but she bowed. "I obey."
"Ye Tian," Jiang Chen looked at the man in the wheelchair. "Your accounting is slow. Elder Ledger will take over the finances. You are now his assistant."
Elder Ledger clicked his abacus aggressively. "I have already found forty discrepancies in your ledger, boy. We will be having a long talk." Ye Tian sweated. "I obey."
"And finally," Jiang Chen pointed to Su Ling. "Su Ling is a genius, but she cannot build the walls alone. Elder Glyph will take over the construction of the Grand Defense Array."
The power dynamic in the room shifted instantly. The former "Overlords" of the Southern Region realized they were no longer partners. They were employees. And they had just been replaced by superior workers.
"Now that leadership is established," Jiang Chen stood up. "Here are your new orders."
Mass Production. "Elder Cauldron," Jiang Chen ordered. "I don't want artisanal pills. I want industrial production. Set up an assembly line. Low-grade healing pills, stamina pills, berserk pills. I want 10,000 units a day." "Understood," Elder Cauldron nodded. "I will convert the geothermal vents into a factory."
The Sword Army. "Elder Blade," Jiang Chen ordered. "Forget the fancy forms. Teach them the [Three-Strike Kill]. Block, Parry, Decapitate. I want an army of butchers, not dancers." "As you wish," Elder Blade touched his hilt. "I will strip them of their bad habits."
The Fortress. "Elder Glyph," Jiang Chen ordered. "The Star-Steel Wall is just a physical barrier. I want you to engrave it with Gravity Runes and Lightning Reflection Arrays. Make it so that anyone who touches the wall gets fried." "A simple task," Elder Glyph spun his compass.
The Budget. "Elder Ledger," Jiang Chen ordered. "Audit everything. If a single Spirit Stone is wasted, find the culprit and send them to Elder Xing for 'correction'." "I will squeeze every coin," Elder Ledger grinned toothlessly.
Jiang Chen looked at the terrified Southern cultivators. "Do not feel discouraged," Jiang Chen said benevolently. "You are still valuable. You are the Vice-Commanders. Learn from the Elders. If you improve, maybe I will give you your jobs back." "(Unlikely)," Jiang Chen added in his head.
"Dismissed."
The Hatching of the Abyss
The hall emptied. The new Elders went to work immediately, their terrifying efficiency already causing panic in the lower districts.
Jiang Chen remained on the throne. "System. Status of the Egg?"
[Status: Hatching Imminent.] [Progress: 99.9%.] [Energy Saturation: Critical.]
"Finally." Jiang Chen stood up. "Old Sky. Let's go to the Incubator."
They walked deep into the Celestial Palace, into a sealed chamber protected by ten layers of barriers. In the center of the room sat the Guardian Beast Egg. It was black. Not just dark, but void black. It absorbed the light of the spirit lamps around it. It was pulsing like a heart. THUMP... THUMP...
Jiang Chen had fed this egg 10 Million Spirit Stones worth of energy. He had fed it Dragon Blood. He had fed it Star-Steel essence.
CRACK.
A fissure appeared on the shell. Purple light spilled out. A sound echoed from the egg—not a roar, but a giggle. A hungry, deep, terrifying giggle.
CRACK. SMASH. The shell shattered.
Jiang Chen leaned in, expecting a majestic Dragon or a Phoenix. What sat in the center of the broken shell was... a small, round ball of black fur. It was about the size of a basketball. It had two large, glowing purple eyes and a mouth that seemed... too wide.
It looked cute. Like a soot sprite.
"A... furball?" Old Sky blinked. "We spent 10 million stones on a furball?"
The creature looked at Old Sky. Its eyes narrowed. It opened its mouth. The mouth didn't stop opening. It unhinged, revealing rows of serrated, void-teeth that spiraled down into an endless throat.
CHOMP.
It bit the empty air in Old Sky's direction. A chunk of Old Sky's Soul Body—his literal spectral arm—vanished. It didn't cut it off. It ate the space where the arm existed.
"AHHHH!" Old Sky screamed, clutching his stump. "IT ATE MY SOUL! IT ATE THE VOID!"
The creature chewed happily. Gulp. It burped a small cloud of purple smoke. Then it looked at Jiang Chen. It closed its mouth, returning to its cute "furball" appearance. It hopped onto Jiang Chen's shoulder and nuzzled his cheek. "Kyu!"
[System Alert: Guardian Beast Hatched.] [Name: Void Glutton (Larva Form).] [Species: Primordial Chaos Beast.] [Diet: Everything (Energy, Matter, Souls, Space, Time).] [Current Ability: Space Eater. Can consume attacks and barriers.]
Jiang Chen patted the terrifying furball. "It eats space," Jiang Chen grinned. "And it eats attacks."
He looked at Old Sky, who was regenerating his arm with a horrified expression. "Old Sky, meet 'Little Black'." "Our new garbage disposal."
Old Sky trembled. "Master... that thing is not a beast. It is a calamity."
"Exactly," Jiang Chen walked out of the chamber, the Glutton perched on his shoulder. "The Central Continent is bringing ships? Good." "Little Black looks hungry."