The day the first Master rank cultivator appeared on the Blue Planet was not celebrated.
It was remembered with fear.
That day, the King of Neptarion stepped into the Master realm, and history twisted around his name.
When the combined armies of five kingdoms forced open the chamber where he had secluded himself, they did not find a man still breaking through.
They found a Master.
His aura poured out like a collapsing sky.
Stronger than any king they had known.
Heavier than anything the generals could endure.
Even Disciple rank generals fell to their knees before it.
And then the slaughter began.
No king had come in person.
Only soldiers sent to hunt him down.
That mistake cost them everything.
The King moved through them without mercy, cutting down commanders and elites alike. When it was over, he looked upon his capital and saw ruin.
His city burned.
His people lay dead.
Others had been taken away in chains.
Something inside him shattered.
He wiped out every remaining army within the city, freed the survivors, then marched onward. Nothing stopped him.
Not weapons.
Not techniques.
Not pleas.
Not fear.
He killed with a single purpose, and with each life taken, he drifted further from what he once was.
Then the impossible happened.
Blood rose.
Enemy blood.Civilian blood.
Even blood spilt long ago.
It moved against nature itself, flowing like a living thing, answering his will. It danced through the battlefield, slicing and crushing alongside him.
That was when the terror of a Master truly revealed itself.
The enemy kingdoms called him a Transcendent Being.
One who commanded the law of blood.
Months ago, he had been human.
Now, a single thought could make bodies rupture or vanish.
Those spared by his hand became the only witnesses.
They spread the myth of the Bloody King.
His hunt did not stop. Each day, his power deepened. Stories claimed he grew stronger by absorbing blood itself. Some called him a Forbidden Taboo User, one who defied life and death.
By the time he reached the city where all five kings had gathered, he no longer looked old.
They said he looked eighteen.
The trap prepared for him was flawless.
Except for one flaw.
They misjudged him.
Walls, formations, and defences crumbled under his fist like toys. The city fell faster than anyone believed possible.
So fast that, generations later, it was dismissed as a bedtime story meant to scare children.
No one knows what truly happened next.
Only that the war ended.
The remaining kings surrendered. Their crowns and lands were handed over without resistance.
The King of Neptarion rose as Emperor.
The one and only Blood Emperor.
Years into his reign, he vanished.
No body.
No trace.
His descendants ruled in his place, and none dared rebel. Even after generations passed, the fear remained.
Some whispered that the Emperor still lived, watching from the shadows.
Rey had once asked his mother about those times.
She only smiled faintly and said, "You're not old enough to know."
As he grew, the curiosity faded beneath daily life. He believed she would tell him someday.
Lost in thought, Rey snapped back to reality as the news continued playing.
The anchor's voice grew excited.
"Major developments from the Empire's capital. A new university for martial artists and cultivators is being established."
Rey glanced at the screen.
"While institutions already exist, this one is different. It is directly supported by the Royal Family. As a result, clans and noble houses are racing to secure positions for their heirs."
Images of a massive campus flashed across the screen.
"Even the Five Duke families have confirmed participation."
The anchor continued without pause.
"The director has also clarified that this university is not limited to nobility. Any talented youth may take the entrance exam. The top ten thousand will be selected."
Ten thousand.
"Successful candidates may even earn a chance to meet the Royal Family and receive a single wish."
The name appeared in bold letters.
Noctis Arcanum.
Rey scoffed quietly.
"What an exaggeration…"
His fingers tightened around the cloth in his hand.
"But what if she gets in…"
He shook his head.
"No. We can't afford that. A normal university is fine."
Another thought slipped in.
"What if she goes with someone else…"
He stretched the cloth without realising it, trying to push the feeling away.
Just as he reached for the remote—
"Rey."
His entire body froze.
That voice.
Slowly, he turned around.
'Did she hear that…?'
What he saw made his blood run cold.
"Ahhhhhh—!"