The Crown's influence spread like wildfire.
From the ruined monasteries of the Eastern Peaks to the shattered sects of the Silent Dunes, Lucien's name was whispered with fear, lust, and awe.
But not everyone knelt willingly.
Some plotted. Some sharpened blades in the dark. And some… sent invitations.
[System Alert: Royal Summons Received – Abyssal Throne Council Convening]
Kaelara stood beside Lucien on the balcony of the Thorn Palace, reading the scroll aloud.
"To the Crown of Lust, Bearer of the Forbidden Bloom, Scourge of the Old Orders—
The Abyss acknowledges your rise. The Crimson Pact demands your presence. Come alone. Come unguarded. Or not at all."
She lowered the scroll. Eyes narrowed.
"It smells like a trap."
Lucien smiled faintly.
"All good things do."
Solenne stepped forward. "You can't go alone. Let me—"
Lucien cut her off gently.
"No."
He looked out over the provinces now stitched together by his pleasure and power.
"If the Abyss wants to parley, it won't respect anything less than absolute submission to their terms."
He turned. His aura flaring slightly—gold streaked with threads of shadow.
"Besides," he said, smirking, "I don't lose."
Kaelara and Solenne exchanged glances. Neither liked it. But neither argued.
Lucien summoned Vyre.
The former Defiled Priestess knelt immediately.
"Guard the Crown in my absence," he commanded. "Let no old world whispers take root."
Vyre pressed her forehead to the ground.
"As you command, my King."
[System Quest Accepted: Journey to the Abyssal Throne – Objective: Secure Crimson Pact or Seize It by Force]
Lucien donned his black-gold battle robes, the living vines weaving into a crown around his hair.
He didn't take an army. He didn't take a weapon.
He was the weapon.
He stepped into the portal woven from abyssal mist.
And disappeared.
Lucien emerged into a new world.
The Abyss.
Endless. Silent. Suffocating.
He stood atop a massive black platform floating on a sea of writhing darkness. Towers of bone and blood-etched crystal spiraled into the sky, each one crowned with shifting symbols of fallen dynasties.
And before him:
The Abyssal Throne.
Massive. Shaped from the corpses of extinct gods. Pulsing faintly with forbidden life.
[System Alert: Dimensional Integrity Stable – Host Aura Auto-Shielding Enabled]
Upon the throne lounged a figure.
Tall. Cloaked in robes of living shadow. Eyes burning silver through the gloom.
The King of the Abyssal Courts.
And around him — dozens of other lesser lords and ladies of darkness. Demons, broken gods, corrupt cultivators — each a monster carved from legend.
Lucien strode forward without hesitation.
The Court watched. Whispered. Trembled.
Because even here, even among monsters… Lucien did not kneel.
The Abyssal King's voice rolled across the platform like distant thunder.
"Crown of Lust... You spread like a virus among the dying dynasties."
Lucien smiled coldly.
"I don't spread. I bloom."
A ripple of amusement—half-mocking, half-respectful—passed through the Court.
The King gestured lazily. A chalice appeared before Lucien, floating in the air.
"Drink," he commanded. "If you would seal the Crimson Pact."
Lucien studied the chalice. The liquid inside swirled — black and red, alive with whispering faces.
[System Alert: Crimson Pact Bloodwine – Drinking Will Forge Abyssal Link and Grant Forbidden Evolution Options] [Warning: Resistance Required. Total Submission Will Result in Hostile Takeover.]
Lucien reached out. Gripped the chalice.
He met the Abyssal King's gaze. Smirked.
And drank.
The bloodwine was fire and ice. Pain and ecstasy. Death and rebirth.
Lucien threw back his head. Roared as the Abyss poured into him.
[System Battle Engaged: Host vs. Abyssal Infiltration]
The Court leaned forward. Hungry. Expectant.
Would the Crown break? Would the Prince fall?
Or would he rise...
The darkness clawed at Lucien's mind.
Visions crashed over him—desire twisted into decay, power into madness.
In one breath, he sat atop a harem of broken souls. In another, he lay chained at the feet of forgotten kings.
[System Alert: Abyssal Infiltration Level 78% — Core Defense Critical]
Lucien gritted his teeth. Focused.
"I am not yours," he growled into the chaos.
But the Abyss whispered back.
You are nothing but hunger. Nothing but lust given form. Serve us. Complete yourself.
Lucien's core flickered. His golden aura choked under the tidal wave of shadow.
Kaelara's voice echoed faintly from his memories. You're stronger than temptation, Lucien.
Solenne's words followed. We chose you because you never bowed.
Naeva's whisper burned inside him. Bloom. Don't break.
Lucien roared, forcing his soul to blaze with golden-white fire.
[Countermeasure Activated: Crown of Self] [Host Core Igniting... Abyssal Taint Purge Sequence Engaged]
The visions shattered. The chains melted.
Lucien stood alone before a mirror of himself—darker, hungrier, unchained.
His Abyssal Self sneered.
"You could have had it all. Endless pleasure. Endless dominion."
Lucien smiled back. Sharp. Unforgiving.
"I don't want endless," he said. "I want everything real."
He stepped forward. Drove his hand into his own reflection.
It screamed. Shattered. Dissolved into light and ash.
[Abyssal Corruption Purged – 93% Core Stability Achieved] [New Trait Acquired: Abyssal Sovereign – Authority Over Corrupted Energies]
Lucien opened his eyes. The chalice fell from his hand, empty.
The Abyssal Throne Court stared. Silent. Shocked.
The King of the Abyss leaned back on his throne. Grinned slowly.
"You drank," he said. "And you did not drown."
Lucien flexed his fingers. Shadow and gold flickered between them.
"No," Lucien said softly.
"I learned to breathe underwater."
The black sea beneath the Abyssal Throne roared.
But not in rebellion. In reverence.
Lucien stood tall, his body wrapped in swirling gold and black flames.
The King of the Abyss rose from his throne. His court followed — dozens of dark lords, succubi queens, demon scholars, and corrupted saints kneeling one by one.
Lucien had not just survived. He had conquered the Crimson Pact.
[System Update: Abyssal Pact Secured – Host Granted Forbidden Authority Over Tier-Three Abyssal Energies] [New Title Acquired: Crown of the Depthless Bloom]
The Abyssal King spoke, voice carrying the weight of fallen worlds.
"By drinking the blood of the pact and surviving the storm within, you have proven what we feared... and hoped."
He unsheathed a blade made of black starlight. Kneeling, he offered it hilt-first.
"Take this," he intoned. "Take the mark of the Abyss. Rule above it. Rule below it. Rule beyond it."
Lucien stepped forward. Gripped the blade.
Darkness and light fused along his skin. A living tattoo — thorned vines and blooming crowns — crawled up his arm, wrapping across his chest.
[Artifact Obtained: Blade of the Eternal Thorn]
The court chanted. Low. Resonant. Terrifying.
Lucien raised the blade. And with it, claimed not just survival.
But dominance.
[System Alert: Abyssal Throne Pact – Lesser Lords Bound Under Host Name]
The world around him shifted. The black sea calmed. The towers of bone and blood bowed toward him.
He had become more than a Crown Prince. He was now a kingmaker among monsters.
Lucien sheathed the blade at his back. Smiled darkly.
And turned toward the portal home.
[System Notification: New Region Access Granted – Abyssal Bloom Territories Available for Conquest]
He stepped through the veil.
And the mortal realms shuddered at his return.
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Next Chapter: Bloom of the Eternal Court — Where Lust, Blood, and Power Collide [18+]
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