Grand Ancestral Bloodlines

Pillars of dark light fell from the skies. It was as though the Heavens were intent on wiping the Shrine Plane out of existence.

Ryu stood amidst it all, large swaths of dark gold fire flooding into him like a tide. His mental state reached a peak, a will to vent shaking him to the very depths of his core.

For a moment, the eight geniuses were shocked silent. It wasn't that they couldn't defeat the Heaven's Warriors earlier, it was rather that they were trying to do so while conserving as much stamina as they could. This was nothing more than the first round and they were well aware of it. In fact, they found Ryu foolish for going all out, clearly having no idea that not only had Ryu barely used much of his strength, but even if he had, with the Southern Heavenly Wind … What did he have to worry about stamina for?

A pressure that was easily ten times what had descended before suddenly pressed down onto Ryu's shoulders. A fury that shook the canopy of the skies and splintered to shreds pervaded the region. And yet, Ryu's carefree attitude hadn't diminished in the slightest.

This fury the Heavens were aiming toward him, that vitriol and sadistic will to have him bleeding and dying… How could it match up to even a percent of what was in his heart right now?

The youth in Ryu's hand suddenly exploded. The strength of the pressure that descended onto Ryu's shoulders directly impacted him as well, and was far too much for him to handle. Let alone surging toward Ryu to execute Galkos' commands, even getting close to him felt impossible.

Ryu felt no sort of remorse about the death of the boy. Had it not been for the pressure of the Heavens, he would have killed him personally not long later.

The World Sea Realm experts, however, felt far different about this change of events. This wasn't because they had a vested interest in the boy. The moment the boy died, he was completely forgotten by them all. There was no rage because there was no one to feel rage. This was almost the same for Ryu himself, but something within him clicked that made him frown in realization.

Rather than this, though, the World Sea Realm experts were panicking as the pressure the Heavens were bringing down was far beyond their expectations. It was becoming more and more difficult for them to maintain the seals.

One had to remember that even Ailsa could not talk to Ryu without being implicated by this punishment. That meant that for them to be able to use their strength to seal much of this punishment's strength away, they had to go through several roundabout methods.

The result of all of this effort was like the reverse concept of a lever and pulley system. Rather than making things easier, the World Sea Realm experts needed to exert thousands of times the effort to execute what would usually only take them one unit of strength.

Now that the Heavens were so enraged, they were pouring everything they could into the seals, but they were quickly losing control.

…

Ryu watched as the ash fell from his hands. He had just been holding the boy up by his wrist but now he was gone. Not only was he dead, but he was effectively erased. If not for this, there was no way that the others wouldn't have already acted in rage.

'Why can I remember… I feel it tugging at me as though I'm the last… The Origin Flame?'

This was the only explanation that Ryu could think of as he stood amidst the pressure. Glares bore down on him from all sides, but if mere looks could kill him, he would have died a very long time ago.

They were fearful. The pressure around Ryu right this moment was so palpable that they felt a threat to their right to live just feeling it. They had no way of understanding how it was that Ryu seemed to have become so unaffected.

Just a moment ago, they had sensed his fear. It was there. But in the blink of an eye, it vanished like a puff of smoke as though he had finally reached the mountain peak and was now gliding down its decline.

The confidence Ryu exuded was so palpable that the pressure didn't seem to touch him at all. As though a thin film hung around him.

Tybalt was the only one who stared toward Ryu with a gaze different from fear or rage. It was an undisguised fascination… However it didn't feel like he was looking at a human, it was more like he was gazing upon a priceless treasure that had to be his.

Galkos' gaze was narrowed. It still wasn't time for him to take action. If he moved recklessly, since he was the target of this punishment to begin with, he would have to bear much of the pressure.

'Do I really have to let him act as he pleases for now? Even if he takes it all for himself, once the punishment has weakened enough I can still take action. His cultivation is too low to understand that flame and there are some methods to extract it after all this is over though it is a bit dangerous…'

When Galkos thought to this point, he began to regulate his breathing and control his temper.

The skies had long since been shattered, a swirling mass of black clouds weighing down from above. But, even after several moments, nothing had descended. The suspense hung people out to dry, the fury growing more and more inflamed as though it would continue on forever…

But, it was at exactly that moment that it happened.

Two hands the size of worlds gripped the edges of the void and tore it in two.

Ryu's gaze narrowed, his heart beating steady and strong. He had a feeling that these hands were here for no one else but himself. And very soon, he was proven correct.

One hand reached out a finger that dwarfed a mountain. It flexed slightly and then released.

An unholy qi pierced down from the void, prepared to tear everything to shreds.

Ryu had said to come. And the Heavens had heard him.