The truth he had known all his life was a lie, and today, he paid the heavy price of living that lie. “How…how could you?!” Adrian's sobs filled the air as he hung up there and the pillars drained him off his energy. “Every nice thing I've ever done for you was just to make sure the bloodline grew properly. And honestly, you should be happy to serve this purpose,” he chuckled with a cold stare. “It is for the good of the realm and we must serve the realm whenever the need arises, no matter the consequences,” he stated firmly, like he was some noble protector of the realms. The crowd reacted somewhat differently. Some stayed quiet, too scared to challenge Thomas' authority, some looked excited but there were a few sad looks, but they didn't make a single move to help Adrian. But the best was yet to come. A young lad stepped out from the crowd, with silver hair and beauty that was rare in all the realms. She exuded ethereal confidence and energy as she stepped forward, her face a

The eerie chanting intensified as the flames burned fiercely on Adrian's skin. The extraction process was gruesome and a torture for both Adrian who was almost in pieces and the poor old elders who had been pouring out their energy for nearly an hour. The horrified crowd watched in fear as they drained the life force out of the powerless boy. Some thought it was a cowardice behavior, while some felt it was simply service to the realm and for the good of the realm. Adrian's skin fell off like bread crumbs, piece by piece, as if about to dissipate into the air. But deep inside him was a fiery flame, slowly picking up the pace and gathering momentum, warming up to explode. He stared into the crowd, his eyes fixed on Thomas who simply smiled with an evil grin and cheered with a bottle of wine in hand. Slowly, Adrian raised his head up, his strength finding its place back to him but in a thousand fold this time. The ground and walls shook violently as a loud roar from nowhere struck th

Adrian’s head throbbed with a violent, rhythmic ache as the morning sunlight pierced through the window. He pushed himself up, grinning as he rubbed his temples. He remembered the meditation chamber. He remembered the flames, the scythe, the triumph of hitting the seventh level. But after Thomas told him to wash up? After dark? Nothing. Just a blurred, static haze and the foul taste of blood in his mouth. A Qi deviation. He must have pushed his new core too hard and blacked out, that was the only explanation to this sudden memory loss. But if it was just exhaustion, why did his stomach twist with a rather suffocating dread? His vision was blurred for a while as he dodged the blinding light sipping from the window, rolling over to the other side of the bed. Yuki was by his side, moving around in circles, swaying her tales and whining endlessly. “What's the matter?” Adrian raised an eyebrow at the white beast, but her response was rather dazzling. “You can't attend the ceremo

The spiritual energy inside the meditation chamber of the Ashford’s didn't just flow, it roared like the flames of the sun, pouring down and melting anything that came in its path. Adrian Kane grit his teeth, sweat stinging his eyes as the violent torrent of Qi hammered against his meridians. He was close, so close to the seventh level of Core Formation and he didn't want to let it go, he couldn't let it slip this time. Beside him, Yuki let out a trilling, anxious cry. The snow white spirit fox paced the edge of the summoning circle, her two tails moving in rhythm with Adrian’s ragged breathing. “Steady, Adrian,” Yuki’s voice echoed directly into his mind, her eyes closed and connected to his, peeking through his at the massive energy burst of the ancient bloodline surging through his veins. “The beast core is stabilizing. Push through!” She encouraged him, energy burning his skin. Adrian's eyes burned with flames, his body glowed with power and his core shook. “I can't do it

The smell of medicine and herbs filled the air. The cold and tiny pricks from the needles on his skin and the hushed mutterings from the healers standing over him were barely noticeable to the weakened Adrian. His breath was ragged as he struggled on the bed, panting unconsciously as he was being observed. The endless dreams were taking a toll on him and draining him off his energy. His veins glowed with a golden hue making it even more difficult for the healers. The Supreme Beast Sovereign Physique was trying to heal him, but it was a slow process, a tormenting one. The endless scribbles of pens on notes from the healers filled the air and disturbed the silence of the room. The door flung open all of sudden and Elder White walked in, her face grim. “What's the progress report now?” She asked, her voice stern and her brows raised. One of them handed a note to her and took a bow with a low whisper. “Your Grace.” She ran her eyes through it, and nodded softly, her eyes narrowed