The Delphians empowered by Li Ao’s Spiritual Power enchantment were encircling and wiping out the scattered black mist.
Their mood had initially been high-spirited. The moment they received the infusion of Spiritual Power, their dormant weapons hummed deafeningly, their battle intent surging. Blades sliced through the black mist, severing those pollutants that were nearly unsolvable for humans, splitting them in two.
But before the joy of victory could fully sweep through their hearts, someone noticed something wrong. The severed black mist didn’t dissipate; instead, like an earthworm regrowing its tail, it turned into two portions and surged back with renewed vigor. They multiplied exponentially, growing more numerous and denser with every cut.
“Sun.” Shen Que’s tang dao gleamed with a layer of golden glow from Li Ao’s enchantment. “Unenchanted weapons can’t cut them, but now that they can… what do we do?”
They had fallen into a trap.
Isiris lowered his eyelashes, thinking that Paimon, this old fox who had lived for hundreds of years, indeed had a backup plan. Over these years, Isiris had tacitly allowed Paimon to stay by Ryan’s side—one, to avoid alerting the enemy and rooting out the forces behind him; two, to test Ryan. He never imagined that the Paimon who stayed behind to lure him, who had his head severed by Isiris, was merely a clone. Paimon’s true body had likely slipped away long before he returned to Delphi.
Paimon had calculated that Li Ao’s Spiritual Power could enchant weapons, and that enchanted humans could harm the pollutants—that was all part of his scheme. Lucien Paimon’s elaborate efforts to extract Isiris’s Crystal of Delphi and pollute him were a feint; his true goal was to destroy the empire’s two young cubs. He knew Ryan’s inner demon and what kind of personality Leo had.
“Li Ao, this has nothing to do with you.” Isiris said to the little cat in his arms, who looked like he’d done something wrong. “You’ve already done very well.”
“I-I shouldn’t have released my Spiritual Power toward you all? I-I should have controlled them myself.” Li Ao clutched at the man’s clothes anxiously. “Don’t bother cutting them; I can handle the bad stuff myself—”
“No.” Isiris gently kissed his head. “That wasn’t a mistake, nor is it something you need to do. What you need to do now is rest well. Leave the rest to me.”
This cat was always like this—his sense of responsibility was so heavy it hurt the heart. Even if Isiris told him a thousand times that he didn’t need to shoulder the world, he would instinctively carry it all on his slender shoulders.
Whether planting fruits or awakening planetary consciousness, those intangible expectations from all directions always weighed on his shoulders. He needed to learn to relax, and to rely on his father a bit more.
“Just watch me.” Isiris pressed him against his exposed chest, bared due to his tattered clothes.
The powerful heartbeat transmitted through the skin into Li Ao’s chest. Thump, thump—one beat after another striking the little cat’s heart. This rhythm and cadence, reliable and steady, made Li Ao unconsciously relax, no longer panicking.
The little cat raised his head slightly, the panic in his eyes gradually replaced by dependence. He gazed at the man’s sharply defined jawline, high nose bridge, and deep-set eyes. Though he couldn’t see his movements, he sensed an extremely domineering Spiritual Power surging forth, firmly locking the scattered pollutants together.
Admittedly, Isiris couldn’t destroy it, but he could trap it. The world cleared up as people saw an invisible barrier isolating the black mist, squeezing it, compressing it bit by bit into an extremely confined space—like an octopus stuffed into a glass bottle, unable to escape.
Li Ao stared blankly at the wriggling, struggling mass of pollutants. His previously downturned, dejected mouth suddenly curved into a smile, and a snot bubble popped out. “Bad stuff, you can’t run now.”
Isiris chuckled softly. “Got it? Next time you encounter this, know what to do?”
The little cat froze for a moment, then looked up at those golden eyes, uncertainly saying, “…Trap it first?”
“Exactly.” Isiris’s tone carried praise. “You said it perfectly. Since eliminating and controlling it at the same time is too taxing, better to just trap it first, then destroy it slowly.”
He watched enlightenment dawn in the little cat’s eyes, his lips curving slightly. “You can kick it like a ball.” He gently set the little cat down, then waved his hand, tossing the firmly suppressed pollutant ball in front of him. “Play.”
Something so dangerous was merely a toy for the cat in this man’s mouth.
Li Ao blinked, hesitantly extending a paw to pat the mass. The instant it touched, the black mist shrank violently, trembling like it was electrocuted. The little cat’s eyes lit up instantly. He raised his paw, grabbed the wriggling black mist, and slammed it viciously to the ground.
The pollutant deformed from the smash, bouncing back and forth inside the transparent barrier, seeking a gap to break through. But the moment it found a way to overflow the boundary, Isiris’s Spiritual Power would lock it and press it back into the barrier.
Like prey half-killed by a lion, struggling feebly to escape on the brink of death, only to be swatted back in front of the cub by the lion’s paw.
“…” Reniya watched the scene with complex emotions, wanting to remind her brother—could he please pay attention to his nephew whose fate was uncertain.
As she wished, the golden-haired Monarch finally turned his compassionate gaze to the ritual gate. “Reniya.”
The silver-haired princess shivered inexplicably. “Yes.”
“When Ryan comes out, I order him to lead the legion to support the Abyss Frontline.” Isiris slanted a glance at her. “You should head to the border to temper yourself too.”
One after another, weak to the point of being unbearable. Did they need the facts laid bare before their eyes to understand?
Reniya opened her mouth, glanced at the cat kicking the ball, wanted to say something, then shut it.
“Bro—” Lian returned dragging his sword, but before he could speak, Isiris dismissed him equally. “You too.”
If only they had thought in the first moment to use Spiritual Power to contain the pollutants and hand them to the little cat, the cat wouldn’t have been so exhausted.
The two big lions lost all face under the little cat’s curious, innocent gaze. Zane came over laughing to defuse the situation, only to be equally scorned by the golden-haired Monarch.
Li Ao got tired of playing and sprawled on the pollutant ball, idly sharpening his claws now and then. With his movements, the black mist slowly dissipated strand by strand.
“Little Lion…” The little cat yawned, looking at the ritual gate. “Why hasn’t he come out yet?”
With the pollutants glaring hungrily from afar, isolated by Li Ao’s Spiritual Power, Ryan sat in the center of the array, picking up the dagger and slicing his palm.
Blood dripped down, and the Crystal of Delphi in the array lit up with a faint glow. The blood and crystal slowly fused, slithering like snakes along the meridians through the youth’s body, searching for the most suitable fusion point.
His left ankle suddenly burned hot, as if licked by blazing flames. Ryan’s hand flashed with the knife, unflinchingly slicing open flesh and pressing the crystal forcibly into his body.
Almost simultaneously, excruciating pain bit into his nerves like a venomous snake. His body convulsed violently; fingers dug viciously into the ground, back arching into an unnatural curve. His throat was choked, unable to make a sound, only his bloodshot eyes bulging, pupils trembling wildly.
This pain tempered bones and seared sinews; every vein was flayed alive and reforged. He barely restrained himself from grabbing the dagger to end the torment by suicide. His throat swallowed constantly as blood seeped from his entire body, flowing through the Crystal of Delphi and back into him, reforged. Gradually, a light cluster formed in the void—that was his companion weapon.
Ryan tremblingly raised his hand, the weapon symbolizing power reflected in his eyes. He strained to extend his fingertip; as long as he touched it, Ryan Regalis would truly descend upon the world.
But in the instant he was about to grasp it, a thick black mist erupted from his body, slamming him to the ground. He crashed heavily, pinned and unable to rise.
It was the pollutant Paimon had planted in him long ago. How could that old fox prepare only one move?
The Crystal of Delphi met obstruction, unable to continue fusing. The two forces rampaged through Ryan’s body; even though the host’s will held a slight edge, his flesh couldn’t bear the energy clash.
The yet-to-form companion weapon began to crack and scatter. Ryan’s eyes nearly split open, pupils contracting violently, able only to watch helplessly as the light that belonged to him dissipated into smoke in the void.
“Ryan, remember, you are a Regalis.” The golden-haired Monarch’s cold words echoed in his ears. “Hero’s blood flows in your veins. You must hold on.”
Can’t do it? Can’t do it? Ryan roared in unwillingness, limbs pushing as he struggled to crawl up. This unyielding fury snapped the Spiritual Power confronting the pollutants outside the array back to awareness.
Golden light flashed, turning into a little cat that fiercely pounced on the black mist suppressing Ryan.
“Leo…” Blood seeped from Ryan’s seven orifices, yet he let out a low laugh. “You’re saving me again…”
Spiritual Power couldn’t reply, only diligently waving its paws to scratch nonstop. Ryan took a deep breath, staggered to his feet, and step by step approached the recondensing light cluster. More and more black mist gathered around his legs, sinking them like in mud, unable to advance—he unhesitatingly severed his knees. Dragging his still-bleeding stumps, using his hands, he crawled inch by inch toward his destined weapon.
That was his fate.
He used his last bit of strength to grasp it in his palm.
The pitch-black scythe suddenly manifested. Without needing its master to swing it, the blade rotated on its own, whistling as it sliced through all the surging black mist.
The little cat formed from Spiritual Power lost its attack target and revealed a hint of bewilderment, just like its owner. Then it trotted over to Ryan’s side with dainty steps, pawed at Ryan’s leg, grinned foolishly at him, fulfilled its mission, and dispersed.
Ryan wanted to hold it back but grasped at empty air. Only then did he realize his legs were completely unharmed—everything from before had been an illusion.
In this life-or-death gamble, he had won.
The youth took a deep breath and slowly straightened his body. The sunlight from the dome tilted with the passage of time, finally slanting into the room. It pierced through the floating dust and silence, landing on his disheveled silver-white long hair.
Power surged through his limbs. The scythe in his hand was so black it could devour light, yet its blade glimmered with a faint black-blue sheen under the sunlight.
Later generations would call this weapon the “Black Grim Reaper”—a scythe symbolizing destruction.
And its master was the newest War God in the empire’s history—Ryan Regalis.
The ritual gate slowly opened. The little cat that had been about to fall asleep jolted awake and looked up toward the source of the sound.
“Ryan—” Reneiya clasped her hands over her lips, tears streaming as she gazed at her child.
With the pitch-black scythe slung over his shoulder, Ryan revealed a relieved, reborn smile to the crowd awaiting him. “Rejoice from this day forth, people of Delphi.”
No longer just the frail one who could only watch the cheers from the back of the crowd, the unwanted birth. He could finally tell the world that he was a Regalis in name and truth.
“His Highness Ryan—” Countless people cried out in surprise. “He succeeded! He obtained his own natal weapon!”
The difficulty of the Chimera Ritual escalates sharply with the host’s innate power. For ordinary Delphi folk, it’s already a trial of life and death. For a Regalis bearing royal blood, it was nothing but razor edges at every step, no path of retreat.
As the Delphi people cheered, they trembled in fear. That little cat whose Spiritual Power had long surpassed human limits—how could it pass this trial? Of course, he could have chosen not to implant the Crystal of Delphi. But they knew him. With his stubborn, naive, and deeply responsible nature, how could he bear to stand by once grown?
He would walk in. He would walk in on his own.
Just thinking of the agony he would endure broke the Delphi people’s hearts. They could only watch with hot tears as the little cat was cradled in the Monarch’s arms, grinning foolishly while holding up that pollution orb it was devouring.
Don’t grow up, they prayed in their hearts. Stay like this, don’t grow up. Leave the wars to your father, brothers, uncles—your subjects and servants. Don’t mature. Stay innocent forever.
But how could that be possible?
Yet, there was no need to worry, for in this instant, they witnessed a miracle.
“Aliya?!”
The crowd erupted in incredulous shouts toward the back.
The empire’s only two hero statues: one was Regalis I, the Kingdom Consciousness guarding the land’s center; the other was Aliya, protector of the ritual grand hall.
This mightiest martial god in imperial history had a statue matching her personality—stone sword at her side, seated boldly atop the grand hall’s dome.
Li Ao was truly dazed, his strained spirits unloading the moment he saw Ryan emerge safely. His cat head bobbed sleepily, and in his hazy vision, he saw that massive stone sword crumbling bit by bit.
All Delphi people—royals and machines alike, save Isiris and the little cat in his arms—had knelt. The black dragon stood by the statue, rearing back with a heaven-shaking roar.
Li Ao woke a little, watching as layers of stone flaked off the sword, revealing its silver-white blade.
A Delphi person’s natal weapon vanishes with its owner’s death—save for two exceptions.
One was Regalis I’s Sun God Sword. A millennium later, part fused into his descendant Isiris’s body, becoming his natal weapon, while the rest remained gripped by the hero statue, judging the souls of outsiders.
The other was Aliya’s Moon God Sword. None understood why it didn’t vanish with its master, so they cast it into the stone beside the statue to guard the ritual hall. And now, it hummed, appearing before the little cat.
A millennium of vigil, all for this moment.
Without guidance, the little cat reached out with both paws and hugged the silver-white longsword to his chest.
The sword shrank automatically, merging with the cat. Without implanting the Crystal of Delphi, this little cat had gained his own natal weapon—a gift from his smiling ancestor a thousand years ago.
“Hope you like it, little guy.” The little cat slept soundly, vaguely recalling that armored, not-so-soft embrace.
“Thank you, Aliya…” the little cat murmured in its dreams.
