2026-10-21 15:11:27“Get away from him!”
Ethan's warning emerged as nothing more than a frightened infant's cry, yet Professor Nathaniel Hayes reacted as though he had understood every word. The elderly scholar stumbled backward, clutching his chest while the unfamiliar voice inside him released a chilling laugh.
“Did you really believe you could hide the journal from me, Nathaniel?”
Silver veins spread beneath Nathaniel's skin, branching from his chest toward his neck as his spectacles slipped from his face and shattered against the floor. Above the desk, the leather-bound journal floated in the air, its pages fluttering violently despite the absence of wind.
Ethan recognized the energy immediately. It was Si, but unlike the controlled energy used in ordinary cultivation techniques, this strange force possessed a clear purpose. It was searching through Nathaniel's memories, tearing through decades of accumulated knowledge to locate something buried deep within his mind.
It's looking for my research.
Ethan struggled to sit up, but his weak body barely responded. Frustration burned hotter than his fear because, in his previous life, he had confronted impossible equations and endured years of failure without surrendering. Now he could not even crawl across a nursery without assistance.
Nathaniel dropped to one knee, fighting desperately against the force controlling him.
“Your Highness, do not let it—”
His voice broke as the silver veins reached his jaw, turning his eyes completely white.
“Found you,” the intruding voice whispered.
Before Ethan could react, the nursery door exploded inward, and Emperor William Cole charged inside with six imperial guards behind him. Golden energy surged around his arms, forming two enormous spectral blades that illuminated the room.
“Release the professor!”
William attacked without hesitation, sending both blades across the chamber. Their golden edges sliced through the silver threads connecting Nathaniel to the floating journal, shattering the windows and scattering glass across the floor.
Nathaniel collapsed as the emperor caught the falling journal with one hand.
For a moment, Ethan believed the danger had passed. However, the remaining silver energy gathered above his cradle, forming a trembling sphere that slowly turned toward him.
“Original researcher confirmed,” it announced.
William stepped between the sphere and his son, raising his glowing blades.
“What are you?”
The sphere ignored the emperor and continued speaking.
“Memory restoration remains prohibited. Erasure protocol suspended pending heavenly authorization.”
Its surface cracked, revealing a black symbol that Ethan remembered from his final experiment. The marking pulsed once before Nathaniel suddenly gasped, his silver veins disappearing as he collapsed onto his side and struggled to breathe.
The sphere dissolved into glittering particles, but its final whisper reached Ethan's mind.
“You cannot remain hidden forever, Shen Yu.”
William immediately ordered his guards to seal the palace and question every servant, scholar, and cultivator who had entered the nursery. After directing the imperial physician to examine Nathaniel, he finally approached his son's cradle.
His expression softened, although fear remained visible in his eyes.
“Whatever you are, little prince, I will not allow the heavens to take you from me.”
For the first time since his reincarnation, Ethan felt something beyond anger and suspicion. William was a powerful emperor, but he was also a father who had just watched an unknown force threaten his child.
Ethan desperately wanted to explain everything about Si, his stolen research, and the intelligence that recognized him by his former name. Unfortunately, his infant body could not produce the words he needed.
Instead, he reached toward William with one tiny hand, and the emperor gently wrapped his fingers around it.
Neither noticed the black symbol slowly forming beneath William's sleeve.
Three days later, the imperial court assembled for Ethan's first official heavenly assessment.
The ceremony had originally been arranged after royal astrologers witnessed the extraordinary gathering of laws surrounding the palace at his birth. Following the nursery incident, however, Emperor William demanded that the examination take place under the protection of the empire's strongest cultivators.
The assessment chamber stood beneath the eastern palace, surrounded by twelve pillars engraved with ancient cultivation inscriptions. At its center rested the Heavenly Recognition Crystal, a massive transparent stone believed to reveal a person's affinity, cultivation potential, and connection to the laws governing heaven and earth.
Hundreds of officials and nobles filled the observation galleries, eager to witness the supposed birth of a future supreme cultivator.
Queen Victoria held Ethan while watching the assembled court with growing suspicion. She had spent three days investigating the nursery incident, but the witnesses offered conflicting explanations, and every surviving record appeared suspiciously incomplete.
Someone had erased the truth.
“Are you certain this examination is necessary?” she asked her husband.
William stood beside the crystal in ceremonial robes embroidered with golden dragons.
“If the court believes Ethan is a heavenly blessing, refusing the assessment will only encourage rumors.”
“And if the crystal reveals something dangerous?”
William glanced at his son before answering firmly.
“Then the court will learn that some truths are not theirs to discuss.”
Victoria understood the danger. A prince whose potential surpassed the crown prince's could easily become the center of a succession struggle, regardless of whether he desired the throne.
Alexander Cole, the eldest prince, watched from among the nobles. He had already heard rumors that his younger brother would surpass every living cultivator, while others claimed the strange circumstances surrounding Ethan's birth foretold disaster.
He intended to discover which explanation was correct.
The chief royal examiner raised his staff and addressed the assembly.
“Bring forth the second prince. May the heavens reveal his affinity, capacity, and recognized laws.”
Victoria carefully placed Ethan on the padded platform before the crystal, and the examiner touched its surface with his staff.
A golden ring appeared inside the stone, followed by a second and then a third. As the rings multiplied, radiant light flooded the chamber, drawing astonished gasps from the assembled nobles.
“Seven recognized laws!” someone shouted.
The examiner staggered backward as another ring appeared.
“Eight... nine!”
Suddenly, the crystal cracked.
Every golden ring collapsed into a single black point, extinguishing the chamber's lights and releasing a crushing pressure that forced several cultivators to their knees. The twelve pillars began vibrating as their inscriptions changed from gold to silver, as though an invisible hand were rewriting the laws carved into them.
Ethan felt the familiar presence pressing against his mind.
Not again.
Before he could pull away, a silver thread emerged from the crystal and wrapped around his wrist. Strange symbols flashed before his eyes.
SUBJECT: SHEN YU.
STATUS: ORIGINAL RESEARCHER.
MEMORY RECOVERY: 0.7%.
Ethan's blood seemed to freeze.
The crystal was not measuring his talent; it was scanning his memories.
He struggled to free himself as the thread tightened, dragging forgotten fragments of his former life into consciousness. His laboratory appeared before him, followed by equations he had not remembered since his death.
Then the shadow from his final experiment emerged from the darkness.
This time, the figure turned toward him, revealing a face identical to his own.
“You finally understand,” the shadow said. “You were never trying to create a new path to cultivation.”
Ethan desperately tried to comprehend the revelation, but before he could find an answer, the crystal flashed another warning.
FORBIDDEN MEMORY DETECTED.
A thunderous crack shook the chamber as William lunged forward and severed the silver thread with his golden blade. The connection snapped, allowing Ethan to fall safely into his mother's arms while the crystal went dark.
The chief examiner collapsed nearby, blood streaming from his nose.
William raised his weapon toward the ceiling.
“Whoever is responsible for this attack has declared war on the Great Zhou Empire!”
The heavens offered no reply. Instead, a final message appeared across the shattered crystal.
THE SECOND PRINCE MUST NOT BE ALLOWED TO REMEMBER THE FINAL EXPERIMENT.
Victoria's face turned pale, while Alexander stared at his younger brother with undisguised alarm.
Far above the imperial palace, beyond mortal perception, the Heavenly Registrar opened a sealed record that had remained untouched for ten thousand years.
A new command appeared across its surface.
TARGET CONFIRMED: ETHAN COLE.
ELIMINATION AUTHORIZATION REQUESTED.
The Registrar paused before receiving an unexpected response from something older than the heavens themselves.
DENIED.
HE BELONGS TO ME.
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Chapter 10: The Mother Who Ordered My Death
“Your Majesty, we must return to the palace immediately!”Alexander’s warning echoed through the collapsing archive, but Emperor William barely seemed to hear him. His attention remained fixed on the message hovering above the transparent floor, which identified Queen Victoria Cole as the external controller behind Ethan’s interrupted reconstruction.After several tense seconds, William turned toward Nathaniel and raised his sword until its tip rested against the professor’s throat.“Tell me this is another lie.”Nathaniel stood perfectly still. “I wish I could tell you that.”“Victoria has protected Ethan since the day he was born.”“And perhaps she has,” Nathaniel replied cautiously. “However, protecting someone and controlling their existence are not necessarily the same thing.”William’s expression darkened as the silver mark on his burned hand continued spreading toward his wrist. Alexander quickly stepped between them before his father could strike.“We are wasting time,” the cr
Chapter 9: The Man Laughing Inside Me
“Get away from him!”Alexander lunged toward Nathaniel just as the unfinished eye on Ethan’s arm opened wider, releasing a thin beam of silver light. His sword flashed through the darkness, aimed directly at the professor’s chest, but Nathaniel twisted aside with surprising speed. The blade struck the stone floor, scattering sparks across the archive.“Stop!” Emperor William commanded.Alexander ignored him and raised his sword again. “He activated something inside my brother! You expect me to stand here and watch?”Nathaniel clutched the silver device against his chest, his expression caught between fear and determination. “If you strike me, you might destroy the only thing preventing his consciousness from being overwritten.”“Then explain what you have done!”“I don't have time!”A sharp laugh interrupted their argument.Everyone turned toward Ethan, who lay in William’s arms with his tiny fingers curled around his father’s robe. Although his infant face remained unchanged, the bla
Chapter 8: The Fifth Attempt
The paper caught fire before Ethan could understand why his father had reached for it.Emperor William Cole snatched the message from beneath the shattered crystal, and golden spiritual energy curled around his fingers. The parchment blackened instantly, its mysterious writing disappearing beneath the flames. However, as the final letter vanished, the black mark on Ethan’s arm erupted with unbearable heat.William staggered, and Alexander rushed forward to catch him before he struck the stone floor.“Father!”The golden energy surrounding William’s hand turned silver, then crawled toward his wrist like a nest of living insects. Although pain tightened the emperor’s expression, he refused to cry out. Instead, he stared at Ethan with an expression the infant had never seen on him before.Fear.William was not afraid of an enemy standing before him or the Heavenly Registrar watching from above. He was afraid of his own son.Ethan’s tiny body trembled in his father’s arms as the black mar
Chapter 7: The First Cultivator Who Feared Si
“Put the prince down, William!”Professor Nathaniel Hayes shouted as the black crystal in Ethan’s hand began to pulse. Silver light spread across the chamber floor, forming thin lines that crept toward Emperor William Cole’s boots.William tightened his hold on his son and stepped backward. “Everyone, stay away from him!”His warning came too late. The silver lines reached the emperor’s feet, and his remaining spiritual energy vanished with a sharp crack. William staggered, nearly dropping Ethan before Alexander caught his father’s arm.“What is that thing doing?” Alexander demanded.Nathaniel stared at the crystal with undisguised terror. “It is attempting to reconnect with the archive.”Ethan examined the object in his hand. Although the crystal was no larger than his palm, the symbols shifting beneath its surface resembled equations from his previous life. The markings rearranged themselves every few seconds, forming patterns he almost understood, but something about the final sequ
Chapter 6: The Secret Beneath Si
“Get away from the floor!”Professor Nathaniel Hayes grabbed Queen Victoria’s arm just as a black crack tore through the tiles beneath Ethan’s cradle. The violent impact sent the scholar crashing into a cabinet, scattering ancient scrolls across the chamber while Victoria clutched her son and stumbled toward the opposite wall.“What is happening?” she demanded.Nathaniel struggled to his feet, his gaze fixed on the widening fracture. “The seal beneath the palace is breaking.”Another tremor rocked the room. Dust drifted from the ceiling, and the protective formations carved into the walls flickered before fading one after another. From somewhere deep underground came the grinding sound of metal straining against metal.Then the mysterious voice returned.“Mother?”Ethan’s tiny body stiffened in Victoria’s arms. Although the voice sounded like a child’s, its familiarity sent a chill through him, as if someone were speaking from a memory that had been deliberately erased.“I’ve been wai
Chapter 5: The Scholar Who Recognized a Dead Man
“Destroy the entrance! Whatever is beneath this palace must never reach my sons!”Emperor William Cole's command shook the chamber, but before his guards could obey, a child's laughter echoed from beneath the floor. Ethan lay in Queen Victoria's arms, staring at the spot where Lord Marcus Vale had dissolved into silver particles while the minister's final words continued to haunt his thoughts.Ask your father what happened to the first prince.William had reacted to the name Thomas as though someone had plunged a blade into his chest. Now he stood motionless, his sword trembling in his hand as the black symbol beneath his sleeve spread toward his wrist.“Father,” Alexander said cautiously, “who was Thomas?”William turned toward his eldest son with a frightening expression.“You will not ask that question again.”Alexander's jaw tightened. “Someone tried to erase our younger brother's memories, and a dying man mentioned another prince whose existence we apparently know nothing about.
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