Grand Ancestral Bloodlines

The appearance of Galkos seemed to symbolize something. Right then, before he had even truly made himself known, large spatial fluctuations rocked the castle as large group after large group began to appear. If this atmosphere were to be described in just a few words… Those that were inferior simply had no right to stand in this place.

The first group to appear was shrouded in a deathly darkness. Their appearance alone made one feel as though one's life might be on the line, the lights dimming beneath their presence. It was quite obvious though that this supposed dimming was, in reality, a corruption of the lighter qi in the surroundings toward a much darker and much more sinister path.

They all wore black robes that shrouded much of their figures and half masks that covered the upper portion of their faces. This alone was enough to make their affiliations as clear as day… They were none other than the members of the Necromancy Guild.

While the Armament Guild was led by nine families, the Necromancy Guild was led by three. In fact, Ryu had already met one of their members in this lifetime already.

The Avangard family. The Delliard family. And, the Mophesta family.

Three of their members stood at the helm. If Ryu had cared to pay attention, he would have noticed the signature skull earrings of the Avagard family, the bone spur earrings of the Delliard family, and the neck tattoos of the Mophesta family. Each of these signs gave them a sinister look fit for the greatest Necromancers of this Era.

These three leading members all had cultivation within the Cosmic Seed Realm much like Godefride and the others of the Armament Guild had. At this point, it was clear that it was deliberate, and only became more clear when the next large group of individuals began to appear…

The Merchant Guild.

Unlike the other Guilds, the Merchant Guild wasn't so close knit nor did they have a defined hierarchy beyond the simplest of structures. There were, of course, factions and such, but much of these factions only existed to help pool resources toward the top. Essentially, it was a Guild where benefits were first and foremost while comradery and togetherness were all secondary.

As a result of this, those that came to represent the Merchant Guild didn't have a cohesive group like the Necromancy and Armament Guilds had. Instead, they simply sent forward a few talented Cosmic Seed Realm experts.

As for these talents, each and every one of them was within a Sky God's Faction, many of them even having Direct Descendant status much like Ryu's. Though, Ryu's status was more like a joke than anything else compared to these young men and women…

The Merchant Guild represented the rogue cultivators of the martial world. It was here those with talent but lacking foundation came together. And, in this coming together, that they built this foundation that they were lacking by relying on one another.

Among this group, though, there was a singular young man with flowing white hair and silver eyes that stood amidst the talents of the Merchant Guild. He exuded a pride that came from deep within his bones and even had a handsome air to him that approached Ryu.

It was clear that the Zu Clan's affiliations with the Merchant Guild weren't so shallow… And it also became clear at this moment that Ryu's conjecture that the Zu Clan was related to the Immortal Sakura Faction was highly likely to be true…

However, this was just the tip of the iceberg.

The moment the last of the Merchant Guild appeared, a sweeping, sinister aura took hold of the castle. The very foundations began to rock as the formations that maintain the stability began to shatter one after another. It didn't take a genius to comprehend that whatever group was appearing now was appearing from a distance so far away that the very structure of space had to be splintered to allow them to appear.

When the first of them began to appear, no small number of individuals sat up in their chairs, their backs arching and their gazes narrowing.

The clattering of horse hooves, the steps of giants, the whistling cold wind of spirits… One after another, they appeared without a care for the devastation they wrought to their surroundings.

The Wrath Knight. The Skeleton King. The Fire Giants. The Ice Queens. The Horned Devils. The Bone Serpents. The Shadows. The Ash Treants.

Eight of nine Demon King Clans had appeared all at once, each more menacing and dangerous than the last. In an unprecedented show of power, for the first time in any history Ryu had ever read or seen recorded, the Demon Kings had stepped onto the Real Plane not as a Summon, but as a governing body prepared to represent their Plane.

At that moment, Ryu finally opened his eyes.

Each and every one of the leading representatives of the Demon Kings was of the Ninth Order. They exuded powerful auras that demanded the center of attention, their strength standing on a plane all to their own. Their presence alone caused the qi in the surroundings to corrode and blacken… Their existences were, without a doubt, synonymous with death.

However, this wasn't why Ryu had opened his eyes at all. He could care less. As far as he was concerned, it was only a matter of time before he would have Demon Kings among his Summons. He wouldn't settle for anything less.

They might have been here to support the Martial Gods now, but one day they would be used to trample these very grounds…

No, the reason Ryu had opened his eyes was because yet another group was appearing and the momentum of their appearance was no less than that of the Demon Kings. However, Ryu wasn't blinded by the pomp and circumstance. He knew the reason the Demon Kings had caused such commotion wasn't because they were so supremely powerful, but rather because this was the energy it took to travel between Planes.

Now, it was happening again, a commotion just as great…

It was quite obvious where these people would be coming from. It seemed that Ryu's In-Laws would also be making an appearance.