Time flowed like sand through an hourglass.
In the blink of an eye, six months had passed in the Ryuzaki Domain.
For the disciples of the clan, the terrifying fluctuations of Mana erupting from the Ten-no-Kura (Heavenly Emperor Palace) had become as routine as the sunrise. Every few weeks, a sonic boom would shake the floating islands, signaling yet another breakthrough by the Divine Son.
"His Highness broke through again?" "I stopped counting after the twentieth time. He is a monster."
Indeed, Ryuzaki Haruto was defying common sense. At the age of eight and a half, he had shattered twenty-eight cultivation realms in total.
But while the clan celebrated their prodigy, a pitiful figure remained frozen outside the palace gates.
Princess Suzaku was still kneeling.
Six months of exposure to the elements had taken their toll. Her once-glowing skin was pale and sallow. Her fiery hair was matted with dust. Her phoenix-feather dress, once a symbol of royalty, was tattered and faded.
She was a cultivator, so she wouldn't starve, but her spirit was withering.
Where was the haughty princess who demanded favors? Gone. Replaced by a hollow shell of regret.
During these months, Haruto had walked past her countless times. He never looked at her. He never spoke. To him, she was less than the stone statues guarding the gate.
Suzaku would only smile self-deprecatingly.
'I deserve this,' she told herself, biting her cracked lips. 'My arrogance killed my father. This suffering is my penance.'
The Ninth Palace
Inside the Ten-no-Kura, the atmosphere was charged with golden lightning.
Haruto sat in the center of a spirit array, his body humming with power.
BOOM!
A final barrier shattered within his soul. His aura expanded, filling the chamber with the pressure of a descending god.
"I've done it," Haruto opened his eyes, golden light piercing the gloom. "Ninth Stage of the Divine Palace."
If one counted from the beginning—Five Body Realms, Five Treasury Realms, Nine Spirit Sea Realms, and now Nine Palace Realms—he was moving at a speed that would make ancient emperors weep with envy.
"But it's not enough," Haruto muttered, clenching his fist. "By my Tenth Birthday Banquet, I must reach the True Spirit Realm."
His intuition, sharpened by the Chaos Spirit-Grinding Visualization, warned him that his debut banquet would not be peaceful. The enemies of the Ryuzaki Clan were moving in the shadows.
"Also... it's time to deal with the Vermilion Bird Kingdom."
He transmitted his voice mentally. A moment later, Ryuzaki Reika entered, bowing gracefully.
Haruto flipped his hand. A radiant purple light filled the room. Hovering above his palm was a root shaped like a mythical Kirin, pulsing with life energy.
The Kirin Immortal Elixir.
Reika gasped. If this were thrown into the mortal world, entire sects would slaughter each other for a single leaf.
"Your Highness?" Reika asked, her eyes wide.
"Take this to the Vermilion Bird Kingdom," Haruto commanded, tossing the priceless treasure to her as if it were an apple. "Tell the King: if he submits to me—and only me—this elixir is his."
"I understand," Reika nodded. "I will tell Suzaku immediately. It will end her suffering."
"No," Haruto raised a hand. His eyes were cold.
"Don't tell her. Let her kneel."
Reika froze. "Your Highness?"
"I want her to kneel for a full year," Haruto explained calmly. "Just when she is about to collapse from despair, she will receive news that her father has been miraculously cured by an anonymous benefactor. Then, when she discovers it was me all along... imagine her loyalty."
"She will worship you as a savior," Reika whispered, realizing the depth of his manipulation.
"Exactly," Haruto smirked. "Am I becoming a villain? Ah, well."
Reika looked at him with admiration. A genius with only strength was a brute. A genius with strength and strategy was a ruler.
"I will depart immediately," Reika bowed.
She left the palace and summoned her Dao Protector, Granny Hana. The old woman looked at Reika with pity.
"Miss," Granny Hana sighed. "Is it worth it? Running errands for a child who treats you like a maid?"
"Grandma, please," Reika smiled serenely. "You haven't seen the future I have seen. Serving the Divine Son... is the greatest honor of my life."
The Azure Dragon Prince
Thousands of miles away, in the Azure Province (Ao-no-Kuni).
This land was ruled by the Azure Dragon Ancient Kingdom (Seiryu-no-Kuni), the strongest of the Four Symbols. Unlike its declining neighbor, the Azure Dragon was thriving.
Inside the Royal Palace, a young man knelt on the cold floor.
He was handsome, about sixteen, with sharp features and an aura of righteousness. He wore robes embroidered with a four-clawed dragon. This was Prince Seiryu (formerly Xiao Chen).
His eyes were bloodshot, filled with suppressed rage.
"Father!" Seiryu pleaded, looking up at the figure on the throne. "Please! Grant me an Immortal Elixir to save the Vermilion Bird King!"
On the throne sat the Azure Dragon King, his presence vast and imposing.
"My son," the King said coldly. "Our kingdom has only one Azure Dragon Elixir. It is our lifeline. Why would I give it to a dying kingdom?"
"But Suzaku is kneeling!" Seiryu slammed his fist into the floor, drawing blood. "She is kneeling outside the Ryuzaki palace like a beggar! The whole world is laughing at us! How can I, her fiancé, swallow this insult?"
News had traveled fast. The story of the proud Princess kneeling for six months had become the joke of the tea houses in the Azure Province.
"That Ryuzaki Divine Son..." Seiryu gritted his teeth. "He bullies others just because of his background! He humiliates a woman! Is he even human?"
In Seiryu's mind, Suzaku could do no wrong. It was all Haruto's fault. It was the arrogance of the Great Clans.
"Silence!" The King frowned. "Do not speak ill of the Ryuzaki Clan. We cannot afford to offend them. Step down."
Seiryu trembled. He stood up, turning his back on his father, and stormed out of the hall.
"Cowards," Seiryu spat as he walked into the palace gardens. "Everyone is afraid of the Ryuzaki name."
He stopped by a lotus pond, his breathing ragged. He looked down at his hand.
On his finger was a plain, tarnished ring. A Dragon Ring.
It was a keepsake from his late mother. Years ago, it had awakened, transmitting powerful techniques and pure Mana into his body. It was his secret. His "cheat."
"What is so great about the Divine Son?" Seiryu whispered, rubbing the ring. "He was born with everything. I earned my power."
A mysterious confidence swelled in his chest. He believed he was the protagonist of this story—the underdog who would overthrow the arrogant young master.
"Just you wait, Ryuzaki Haruto," Seiryu vowed, his eyes burning with determination. "Once I master the [Nine-Transformation Dragon Art] from this ring... I will march into the Ryuzaki Domain. I will rescue Suzaku, and I will trample you under my feet!"
Unaware that he was just an ant plotting to bite a god, the Prince of the Azure Dragon began his training, fueled by the delusion of destiny.