Chapter 12: The Sovereign's Territory
Location: Jiang Estate – Dining Hall
The morning sun streamed through the floor-to-ceiling windows of the Jiang Estate, illuminating a breakfast scene that would have given a normal person a heart attack.
"More!" Feng Xi slammed her empty plate onto the table. "The solar energy in this 'pancake' is negligible, but the syrup is divine! Another stack, Uncle Li!"
"Yes, Young Madam," Uncle Li beamed, his hands blurring as he used A-Rank Earth Magic to telekinetically float a dozen plates of pancakes from the kitchen.
On the other side of the table, Mo You sat sipping black coffee. She wasn't eating food; she was eating a literal diamond. She crunched on the S-Rank gem like it was a sugar cube, looking bored.
"Barbarian," Mo You muttered, eyeing Feng Xi's syrup-covered face. "You are staining the Sovereign's table."
"You're just jealous because you can't taste sugar!" Feng Xi stuck out her tongue.
At the head of the table, Jiang Chen sat reading a holographic news tablet.
[BREAKING NEWS: The Three Great Families Dissolved!]
[Warlord Jiang Declares Martial Law over Neo-Shanghai.]
[Global Alliance Stock Market Crashes as Luo and Bai Assets are Seized.]
"Peaceful morning," Jiang Chen commented, taking a sip of tea.
"Peaceful?" Jiang Wu walked into the room. The EX-Rank patriarch wasn't wearing his armor today; he was wearing a "World's Best Dad" apron over a casual shirt. But even in an apron, the air around him shimmered with godlike pressure.
"The phone hasn't stopped ringing, Son," Jiang Wu sighed, sitting down. "The Alliance President wants a meeting. The European Hunter Association wants a treaty. And the Luo Clan sent a gift basket."
"A gift basket?" Jiang Chen raised an eyebrow.
"It contained a surrender letter and the head of the Elder who organized the ambush on Purgatory Island," Jiang Wu said casually, grabbing a piece of toast. "They are terrified. They know if they twitch, I'll vaporize their headquarters."
"What about Luo Tian?"
"He's alive. Barely," Jiang Wu shrugged. "His father, Luo Zhen, has locked himself in his study. He refuses to speak to anyone. He's grieving the loss of his 'genius'."
Jiang Chen's eyes narrowed slightly. A cornered rat was dangerous. A cornered rat with the resources of a former Great Family was a ticking time bomb.
[System Notification]
[Quest Updated: Survive the First Wave.]
[Warning: The Void Gaze is active. Territory defenses are insufficient.]
Jiang Chen stood up. "Dad, I need access to the Estate's Core Array."
"The Core?" Jiang Wu looked surprised. "That controls the defensive barriers for the whole mountain. Why?"
"Because," Jiang Chen's eyes glowed purple. "I have a feeling we're going to have visitors soon. And the current walls... are made of paper."
Location: The Estate Core Room
Deep beneath the mansion lay the heart of the Jiang Clan's defenses—a massive, spinning crystal of blue mana that powered the shields.
Jiang Chen stood before it, flanked by Mo You and Feng Xi.
"System," Jiang Chen commanded. "Open Territory Building."
[Grandmist Territory Interface Open.]
[Current Territory: Jiang Estate (Rank B)]
[Available Resources: 10,000,000 Void Points (Granted from EX-Rank Resonance).]
[Upgrade Options:]
* Grandmist Barrier (S-Rank): Blocks all non-physical attacks below S-Rank.
* Spirit Vein Evolution (SS-Rank): Transforms the land into a Cultivation Holy Land.
* Guardian Statues: Automaton defense units.
"We take it all," Jiang Chen said. "Upgrade the Core."
He placed his hand on the blue crystal.
[Initiating Grandmist Infusion.]
Purple energy flooded from Jiang Chen's hand into the crystal. The blue light turned a deep, royal violet.
RUMBLE.
The entire mountain shook.
Above ground, the grass turned a vibrant, glowing emerald. The trees grew ten meters in seconds, their bark turning into iron-wood. The air became thick with mana—so thick that breathing it was equivalent to drinking a mana potion.
[Upgrade Complete.]
[Territory Rank: B -> SS (Pseudo-Divine)]
[Effect: Anyone with hostile intent entering the domain will be suppressed by 50%.]
"Better," Mo You noted, sensing the shift. "The shadows here... they feel deeper. I can move freely now."
"And the sunlight is tastier!" Feng Xi twirled, absorbing the ambient mana.
"This is just the foundation," Jiang Chen muttered. "If the Void is coming, we need an army."
Location: The Luo Clan Manor
While the Jiang Estate flourished, the Luo Manor was a tomb.
Servants had fled. The lights were dim.
In the master study, Luo Zhen, the Patriarch of the Luo Clan (SS-Rank), sat in the dark. In front of him lay his son, Luo Tian.
Luo Tian was awake, but his eyes were dead. He was in a wheelchair, his legs cast in plaster, his dantian destroyed. He was drooling slightly, his mind broken by the trauma of Jiang Chen's torture.
"My son..." Luo Zhen whispered, tears streaming down his face. "My genius... look what they did to you."
"J-Jiang..." Luo Tian mumbled, flinching at shadows. "Don't... don't hit me..."
Luo Zhen's grief turned to black, oozing hatred.
"Jiang Wu..." Luo Zhen growled. "You think because you are EX-Rank, you have won? You took everything from me."
Hiss.
A sound came from the corner of the room.
"Despair is a powerful fuel," a distorted voice whispered.
Luo Zhen spun around, mana flaring. "Who's there?!"
A grey, hooded figure stepped out of the shadows. It had no face, only a vertical slit where an eye should be.
"I am a friend," the figure hissed. "I bring a gift."
"I don't need friends," Luo Zhen prepared a spell. "I need power. Power to kill a God."
"Exactly," the figure extended a bony hand. In its palm lay a throbbing, black fleshy seed. It looked like a beating heart made of cancer.
"The Jiang family has touched the Taboo," the figure said. "They have bonded with the Origin. The Universe wants them dead. If you eat this... you will have the power to destroy them."
"What is it?"
"A Void Seed. It will grant you power beyond EX-Rank. But... the price is your humanity."
Luo Zhen looked at the seed. He looked at his broken, drooling son.
"I have no humanity left," Luo Zhen whispered.
He grabbed the seed and swallowed it.
SQUELCH.
Luo Zhen's body convulsed. His skin turned grey. His eyes split vertically. Black tentacles burst from his back, tearing his expensive suit.
[Entity: Luo Zhen]
[Status: Corrupted.]
[Rank: ??? (Void Abomination)]
"Yes..." Luo Zhen's voice changed, becoming a multi-layered screech. "I see it now. The hunger."
"Go," the hooded figure commanded. "Gather your clan. Feed them the seeds. Tonight, the Luo Clan dies... and the Void Army rises."
Location: Jiang Estate – That Night
Jiang Chen was on the balcony, enjoying the upgraded mana density.
Suddenly, the sky to the East turned purple.
Not the noble purple of the Grandmist. A sick, bruised purple.
WEE-OOO WEE-OOO.
The city's air raid sirens began to wail.
[System Alert!]
[First Wave Detected.]
[Enemy Type: Void Corrupted (Human Variant).]
[Number: 5,000.]
Jiang Wu flew up from the garden, hovering in the air, his golden aura illuminating the night. Lin Xi joined him, ice forming at her feet.
"Son!" Jiang Wu shouted. "We have movement! The Luo Clan estate... it just exploded. Something is coming out of the crater!"
Jiang Chen looked through his Grandmist Perception.
He saw them.
Thousands of twisted monsters rushing through the streets of Neo-Shanghai. They looked like humans stretched like taffy, with blades for limbs and empty faces. Leading them was a massive, twenty-meter tall giant made of grey flesh and tentacles.
It was Luo Zhen.
"They aren't human anymore," Jiang Chen said grimly.
He turned to the bedroom.
"Wives! Wake up!"
Mo You materialized from the shadows, fully armored. "I smell rot."
Feng Xi kicked the blanket off, summoning her staff. "I hate rot! Let's burn it!"
Jiang Chen drew Nightfall. The blade hummed, hungry for the new enemy.
"Dad! Mom!" Jiang Chen projected his voice. "Don't let them reach the city center! These things are infectious!"
"Understood," Jiang Wu cracked his knuckles, the sound like a cannon shot. "I've been itching to test this EX-Rank power."
"I will freeze the perimeter," Lin Xi commanded. "No one gets out."
Jiang Chen looked at the horde approaching his territory.
"System," Jiang Chen whispered. "Activate Territory Defense: Guardian Statues."
RUMBLE.
Along the walls of the Jiang Estate, twelve massive stone gargoyles' eyes lit up with purple fire. They broke free from the stone, spreading granite wings.
"Let's go," Jiang Chen jumped off the balcony.
"Tonight, we cancel the Luo bloodline."