Chapter 15: The Grave of the First Sovereign
Location: The Forbidden Archives – Midnight
The Imperial University was silent under the moonlight, save for the low hum of the Spirit Barrier protecting the campus.
Jiang Chen stood before the Archives. It wasn't a building; it was a colossal tower of black stone that seemed to absorb the light around it. There were no windows, only a single massive iron door sealed with heavy chains.
"It smells like old paper and dead dreams," Mo You commented, standing by Jiang Chen's side. The night air didn't bother her; she wore the darkness like a second skin.
"And dust!" Feng Xi sneezed, creating a small spark of solar fire. "Why do old people love dust?"
"Stay close," Jiang Chen whispered. He held up the rusty token Li Qing had given him.
As he approached the door, the token pulsed with purple light.
CLANK. CLANK.
The heavy chains moved on their own, snake-like and rusted, retreating into the walls. The iron door groaned open, revealing a yawning abyss of darkness.
"Enter," a voice echoed from inside.
They stepped in.
The interior was impossibly large—a pocket dimension. Rows of bookshelves spiraled upward into an infinite ceiling, floating in a void of starlight.
Sitting on a floating wooden desk in the center was Li Qing. The janitor was drinking from his gourd, swinging his legs like a child.
"You brought the harem," Li Qing grinned, wiping wine from his chin. "Good. They need to hear this too."
"We are not a harem," Mo You narrowed her eyes, her hand drifting to her dagger. "We are the Queens of—"
"Yeah, yeah, Queens of the Apocalypse," Li Qing waved his hand dismissively. "Save the title drop for the freshmen. Sit."
He snapped his fingers. Three chairs materialized from the floor.
Jiang Chen sat down, looking at the old man. "You said my body would explode."
"It will," Li Qing's expression turned serious. "You have the Grandmist Sovereign Body. It is the vessel of the Origin. Currently, you are balancing the Dragon (Yin) and the Phoenix (Yang) inside you. It's a perfect equilibrium."
He leaned forward.
"But here is the problem: They are growing. Every time you fight, every time you cultivate, their bloodlines evolve. But your container—your human soul—does not evolve at the same speed. Eventually, the Dragon and Phoenix will become too big for the cage. And pop."
Li Qing mimed an explosion with his hands.
"You will turn into a supernova that wipes out this solar system."
Jiang Chen frowned. He felt the truth in the old man's words. Even now, after the fight on Purgatory Island, he felt a pressure in his chest. His wives were getting stronger, and his "Pseudo-SS" rank was struggling to contain them.
"So," Jiang Chen asked. "How do I upgrade the cage?"
"You don't upgrade the cage," Li Qing stood up and walked to a pedestal behind him. "You become the Jailer."
He pulled a dusty, grey book from the pedestal. It looked ancient, made of a material that wasn't skin or paper. It looked like solidified smoke.
"Fifty years ago," Li Qing whispered, caressing the book. "I found a ruin on the edge of the Galaxy. It wasn't human. It was... Pre-Creation. Inside, I found the corpse of a giant. A being that looked like you."
"Another Grandmist user?"
"The previous one," Li Qing looked at Jiang Chen. "He failed. He let the Yin and Yang consume him. But before he died, he wrote this."
He threw the book to Jiang Chen.
"The Chaos Sutra: Genesis Chapter."
Jiang Chen caught it. The moment his skin touched the cover, a jolt of electricity shot through his arm. His Grandmist energy roared, recognizing its own kind.
"This technique," Li Qing explained, "teaches you not to balance the forces, but to devour them. You don't coexist with the Dragon and Phoenix. You assimilate them. You turn their power into your power."
Mo You and Feng Xi stiffened.
"Assimilate us?" Feng Xi looked worried. "Will we disappear?"
"No," Li Qing shook his head. "But the bond will change. Right now, you are three separate entities linked by a chain. The Sutra will melt you down and forge you into a single alloy. You will be distinct minds, but one body, one will."
"Open it," Li Qing commanded Jiang Chen. "If your mind is weak, the book will burn your brain to ash. If you are the true Sovereign, it will submit."
Jiang Chen took a deep breath.
"Husband," Mo You placed a hand on his shoulder. "Do not hesitate. We are yours."
"I know," Jiang Chen smiled.
He opened the book.
Inside the Mindscape
The library vanished.
Jiang Chen was standing in a white void.
In front of him stood a Giant. The figure was a thousand feet tall, made of purple crystal. It sat on a throne of broken stars.
"WHO DISTURBS THE SILENCE?"
The voice crushed Jiang Chen's knees. It was pressure far beyond EX-Rank. This was... Divine.
Jiang Chen gritted his teeth, forcing himself to stand. "I am Jiang Chen. The new Sovereign."
The Giant looked down. Its face was a mirror. Jiang Chen saw his own reflection in it.
"A MORTAL VESSEL. WEAK. FRAGILE."
The Giant raised a hand.
"SUBMIT TO THE CHAOS. LET GO OF YOUR EGO. BECOME THE VOID."
A wave of purple fire swept over Jiang Chen. It wasn't burning his body; it was burning his memories. It tried to erase his name, his parents, his wives. It wanted him to become a blank slate of pure power.
'Let go... it's easier... just be power...'
The temptation was sweet. No more pain. No more struggle. Just infinite existence.
"No," Jiang Chen whispered.
He thought of his father's laugh. His mother's cooking. Feng Xi's obsession with pancakes. Mo You's possessive glare.
"I am not just power," Jiang Chen roared, stepping into the fire. "I am Jiang Chen! I am a Husband! I am a Son!"
He punched the wave of fire.
"I DON'T SUBMIT TO CHAOS! I RULE IT!"
The purple fire shattered.
The Giant on the throne paused. The mirror face cracked, revealing a smile beneath the glass.
"GOOD."
The Giant disintegrated, turning into millions of glowing runes that rushed into Jiang Chen's head.
The Archives - Reality
"GASP!"
Jiang Chen woke up, gasping for air. The grey book in his hands crumbled into dust.
[System Alert]
[Technique Acquired: The Chaos Sutra (Genesis Chapter).]
[cultivation Method Updated.]
[Grandmist Core: Forming...]
Inside his dantian, the amorphous cloud of purple energy began to spin. It condensed, growing denser and denser, until it formed a solid, spinning sphere.
A Star Core.
It was small, the size of a marble, but it held the mass of a planet.
The connection to Mo You and Feng Xi snapped—and then reformed, thicker and stronger. It wasn't a chain anymore. It was a fusion.
Mo You gasped. "My... my scales... they feel tougher."
Feng Xi blinked, her eyes glowing. "My fire... it's not just hot. It has... weight?"
Jiang Chen stood up. He felt heavy. Grounded.
"Rank?" Li Qing asked, leaning forward eagerly.
Jiang Chen checked.
[Rank: SS (Solidified).]
[Combat Power: Equivalent to EX (Early Stage).]
"SS-Rank," Jiang Chen clenched his fist. The air popped. "But it feels like I could crush my old self with one finger."
"You formed the Chaos Core," Li Qing nodded, satisfied. "You passed the first hurdle. You won't explode... for now."
Li Qing hopped off the desk.
"Now, get out. It's past my bedtime. And you have class in the morning. Professor Viper hates tardiness."
Jiang Chen bowed deeply to the old man. "Thank you, Senior Li. I owe you."
"You owe me a bottle of 'Dragon's Breath' wine," Li Qing grunted, shooing them away. "Now go."
Location: S-Class Lecture Hall – The Next Morning
The S-Class lecture hall was an amphitheater built to withstand high-tier spells.
Jiang Chen walked in, looking fresh despite the sleepless night. Mo You and Feng Xi followed, drawing stares from the twenty other students in the class. These were the monsters—the top scions of the Capital.
Jiang Chen spotted an empty seat in the back row and sat down.
"Is that him?"
"The Country Bumpkin who beat Gu Jian?"
"Shh, don't look at the black-haired woman. My cousin said she made Gu Jian wet himself."
Suddenly, the door slammed shut.
A woman walked to the podium.
She was tall, wearing a tight green lab coat. Her hair was a nest of actual, living snakes. Her eyes were yellow slits.
Professor Viper. (Rank: S-Rank Peak - Poison Master).
"Welcome to Monster Ecology," Viper hissed. Her voice sounded like dry leaves skittering on stone. "I assume you are all geniuses. The pride of your clans."
She smiled, revealing venomous fangs.
"In this class, geniuses die first."
She pressed a button on her podium.
The floor of the amphitheater opened up. A massive cage rose from the pit. Inside was a Thunder Ape (A-Rank Monster), foaming at the mouth, chained to the wall.
"Lesson One," Viper pointed a long fingernail at the class. "Fear."
She pressed another button. The chains on the Ape unlocked.
ROAR!
The Ape beat its chest and charged straight for the front row of students.
Panic erupted.
"A-Rank?! We aren't allowed to use weapons in class!"
"Barrier! Someone cast a barrier!"
The students scrambled. But one student didn't move.
Jiang Chen sat in the back, leaning his cheek on his hand, looking bored.
The Ape, sensing the strongest threat, ignored the screaming students and leaped over the desks, heading straight for Jiang Chen.
"Husband," Feng Xi asked, holding a half-eaten muffin. "Can I pet it?"
"It's filthy," Mo You wrinkled her nose.
The Ape was mid-air, its fist raised to crush Jiang Chen's skull.
Professor Viper watched with a cruel smirk. 'Let's see what the Freshman King is made of.'
Jiang Chen didn't stand up. He didn't summon a weapon.
He just looked at the Ape.
[Grandmist Art: Sovereign's Gaze.]
His pupils turned into vertical purple slits.
THUMP.
The Ape froze in mid-air—physics defyingly. Gravity seemed to grab it and slam it face-first into the floor at Jiang Chen's feet.
The monster whimpered. It curled into a ball, covering its head with its hands, shaking violently.
It was terrified. It had looked into the eyes of a predator that ate dragons for breakfast.
Jiang Chen reached out and patted the shivering Ape on the head.
"Good monkey," Jiang Chen said casually.
He looked up at the stunned Professor Viper.
"Is Lesson Two about grooming?" Jiang Chen asked politely. "Because he has fleas."
The class was dead silent.
Professor Viper's snakes hissed in agitation. She stared at Jiang Chen, her yellow eyes narrowing.
"Interesting," Viper licked her lips. "Very interesting."
Jiang Chen smiled.
School was in session. And he was already the Teacher's pet peeve.