Lucien stepped out of the Abyssal portal and into the heart of his empire.
But he did not return the same man.
[System Sync: Dimensional Reintegration Successful. Forbidden Authority Stable at 92%]
The skies above the Thorn Palace shimmered. Crimson moons reflected in pools of desire. Thousands gathered — disciples, loyal sect leaders, Thorn Maidens — all kneeling in absolute silence.
Then came the roar.
One voice became hundreds. Hundreds became thousands.
"CROWN!" "CROWN!"
Lucien didn't raise his arms. Didn't speak yet. He walked. Straight through the crowd. Straight to the throne.
The vines parted for him like loyal beasts.
Vyre stood waiting, her gown of black petals trailing behind her, eyes wide with awe.
"You returned... stronger," she whispered.
Lucien leaned in. Whispered against her lips.
"No, Vyre. I returned complete."
He sat. And the Court of Thorns bloomed anew.
Eternal Court Chamber
Lucien convened his council. Kaelara. Solenne. Vyre. Naeva. Selis. Lira. And now, new Abyssal envoys bound to his mark.
A map hovered in the air — glowing, shifting. Not just of one realm. But of several.
[System Expansion: Dimensional Bloom Map Active]
Kaelara's voice was hard.
"Your enemies have moved. The Withered Bloom remnants formed an alliance with a rogue Flame Sect."
Selis added, "Other worlds feel your tremor. A celestial envoy crossed the skies of the Eastern Realm."
Lucien studied the map. Touched a glowing region labeled 'Eternal Garden.'
"Then it's time," he said softly. "Time to build the Eternal Court."
The women exchanged glances. Lira grinned. "You mean—?"
Lucien stood. Power radiated off him like heat.
"No more hiding. No more playing warlord in shadows. We crown a realm. We call the powerful. And we show them..."
He extended a hand.
"...what it means to kneel to pleasure incarnate."
[System Quest Unlocked: Eternal Court Summit – Objective: Seduce, Subjugate, or Slay Every Major Realm Power]
Lucien smiled. The kind of smile kings don't wear. The kind gods fear.
"Summon them all."
Vyre stood beside Lucien in the Eternal Court chamber, clutching a scroll bound in gold and black silk.
"Ready to send the first batch?" she asked, voice reverent.
Lucien nodded. "Send it to every sect that dares still breathe independently. And mark them with my seal."
[System Update: Realm-Wide Communication Channel Engaged] [Eternal Court Invitations Broadcast Initiated]
Golden light pulsed from Lucien's palm, scattering shards of his aura through the skies, across portals, through shadows, and into dreams.
In the Northern Ice Cliffs, a frozen empress woke screaming. In the Shrouded Sky Islands, a three-breasted siren queen moaned in her sleep. In the Bone-Spire Temple, a thousand-year-old lich opened a sealed scroll and bled from his eyes.
All read the same message:
"The Crown blooms eternal. Kneel or bloom beside it. Refuse… and rot."
Inner Chambers — Thorn Council Strategy
Kaelara leaned over the dimensional map.
"Many will come. Some for power. Others for blood. A few to test you."
Lucien smirked. "I hope they try. The throne needs more bodies beneath it."
Selis tapped an eastern border.
"The Lustless Sect won't come. They've declared spiritual war against what you represent."
Lira licked her lips. "Then let's burn their robes off and reintroduce them to pleasure."
Vyre chuckled. "They'll come. Eventually. On their knees."
Lucien waved his hand. The map zoomed in on a glowing mountain range where twin red stars blinked ominously.
"The Eternal Court will be held here," he said.
"A place ancient enough to matter. Sacred enough to offend. And broken enough to rebuild in my image."
[System Objective Updated: Secure Eternal Mount – Establish Ritual Summit Grounds]
Solenne finally spoke.
"And if they try to kill you?"
Lucien's smile was sharp as his aura.
"Then they'll find out the hard way — you can't kill what makes you come alive."
The Eternal Mount loomed ahead — a jagged, ancient peak kissed by twin moons and wrapped in storms.
Lucien's ship soared toward it, cloaked in swirling black mist and shimmering threads of aura silk.
Vyre, Kaelara, Solenne, and Lira stood behind him as they descended toward the summit.
[System Alert: Territory Scan – Eternal Mount: Unclaimed. Danger Level – High. Ancient Ritual Site Active.]
Kaelara drew her blade.
"Reports say this place was once where gods sacrificed each other."
Lucien stepped forward. Eyes calm. Voice sharper.
"Perfect place to crown a new kind of divinity."
They landed.
The moment Lucien's boots touched the obsidian platform at the summit's peak, the wind screamed.
A pulse echoed through the stone. Old. Hungry. Watching.
Then came the ambush.
[System Alert: Hostile Signatures Detected – Six Unknown Cultivators Incoming]
Figures emerged from the mist — armored in bone and wrapped in bloodstained cloth.
The Lustless Sect.
The leader stepped forward — a tall, gaunt figure with silver eyes that dripped poison.
"You will not taint this peak with your perversions," he spat. "We come to cleanse."
Lucien didn't blink. Didn't speak.
He walked forward — alone. Aura building. Rising.
His voice, when it came, was low and final.
"You should've come wet."
The Lustless lunged.
Lucien moved.
[System Skill Activated: Pleasure Chains – Aura Infusion Mode: Invasive Strike]
He didn't fight with fists. He fought with touch. With dominion. With command.
Each strike fed desire into his enemies until their rigid discipline cracked into trembling shame.
Kaelara joined him — slicing through limbs. Vyre's vines erupted — binding, feeding, seducing. Lira laughed as she snapped bones with orgasmic bursts of aura.
Ten seconds. That's all it took.
The Lustless were on their knees. Writhing. Weeping.
Lucien stepped over their leader. Pressed a hand to his chest. And whispered:
"You came to cleanse? Now you'll serve clean... from the inside."
[Lustless Sect Subjugated – Aura Corruption Complete. Summit Claimed.] [System Notice: Eternal Court Ritual Grounds Established]
Lucien turned to the horizon.
"Now," he said.
"Let the real rulers come."
The Eternal Mount had changed.
Where once there was barren obsidian and forgotten god-blood, now stood a living hall grown from thorns, obsidian vines, and blooming desire.
Lucien sat atop a throne carved from entwined bodies of lust and victory.
Behind him stood Kaelara, Vyre, Solenne, and Lira — his first Pillars.
Before him: the first arrivals.
[System Alert: Eternal Court Convergence Initiated – Presence Detected: 4 Realm Powers]
The air thickened as four portals opened simultaneously.
From the south: the Flame Widow of the Blazing Silk Sect — veiled in fire, with six husbands bound behind her by collar and chain.
From the north: the Bone Prince of the Lamented Peaks — draped in necrotic armor and trailing ghosts.
From the east: the Jade Mistress of the Verdant Bloom Clan — wrapped in leaves, lust, and ancient pride.
From the west: the Silent Sovereign — no face, no voice, just pressure.
They stood before Lucien. Stared. Waited.
The Flame Widow spoke first.
"You made quite the mess, Crown."
Lucien smirked.
"I don't make messes. I make kingdoms."
The Bone Prince sneered.
"You invite us to kneel or burn?"
Lucien's aura flared. Gold and black. Blooming and bleeding.
"I invite you to join something bigger than yourselves," he said.
"Or yes—kneel… or burn."
The Jade Mistress tilted her head. Then smiled faintly.
"And if we bed instead?"
Lucien grinned.
"Then you'll understand what it means to rule beside me."
[System Event: Eternal Court Conclave Begins – Status: Active] [Court Influence Spreading: Initial Realm Reactions Logged]
Lucien leaned forward. His crown pulsed.
"Let the Conclave begin."
And the Court… was now in session.
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Next Chapter: Court of Pleasure and Blades — Seduce or Be Severed [18+]
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