Chapter 56: When Fate Bleeds

Princess Vespera’s pace slowed to a crawl as the relentless, crushing gravity took its toll.

The specialized golden boots on her feet began to spark, fracture lines spiderwebbing across the magical runes as they reached their absolute limit. Realizing she couldn’t rely on them much longer, she reached into her spatial inventory and pulled out a rare, radiant artifact.

The moment she uncapped it, a brilliant, blinding golden light pierced through the dense white fog of the upper staircase, illuminating the cavernous ascent.

Behind her, Ethan blinked as the thick haze suddenly parted. He watched with a quiet, knowing smirk as Vespera revealed her hidden catalyst: a fragment of the **Golden Lotus Flame**.

Legend dictated that when the kingdom’s founding monarch—a peak Rank 6 Archmage—passed away, his absolute elemental core condensed into an eternal celestial relic. Holding even a minor shard of this legendary legacy was enough to violently stimulate a cultivator’s mana channels.

As the golden flame washed over her, Vespera’s body glowed with divine luminescence. A massive surge of raw energy flooded her veins, temporarily elevating her cultivation aura to the terrifying threshold of the sixth rank. Energized and empowered, she accelerated rapidly, pressing onward toward the apex.

Close behind, Kael’s eyes burned with fierce determination. Enveloped entirely by his sentient shadow suit, he pushed his physical body to its absolute maximum, driving forward with explosive speed.

Side by side, the two youths burst through the final layer of fog, arriving at the summit.

Before them lay a magnificent, open-air sanctum. At the center stood a colossal, sacred stone bed, framed by towering statues of a majestic Dragon and a Phoenix.

Inscribed in glowing gold across the archway above was the ancient prophecy:

*Those who unite in intimacy upon this sacred bed shall receive the dual blessings of the Dragon and Phoenix, awakening supreme elemental mastery regardless of their class.*

Vespera stared at the inscription, her breath hitching. She turned her head, her gaze locking onto Kael.

Kael’s heart hammered against his ribs, a triumphant, wicked grin spreading across his face. He could scarcely believe his incredible fortune. Glancing backward down the infinite marble steps, he could still see distant figures climbing—including the mysterious hooded man who had unlocked the Bronze Gate.

But a shimmering, gold-blue protective barrier had instantly materialized behind Kael and Vespera, sealing the upper platform off entirely and locking out any other contenders. Only the first two to arrive were granted this legendary opportunity.

Vespera hesitated, her expression complex. Though she felt no romantic affection for Kael, and vividly remembered he had just slaughtered her arrogant betrothed—a fact that secretly brought her immense, cold relief—she also recognized his terrifying growth potential. *He is destined for greatness,* she reasoned inwardly. *A future powerhouse.*

Kael stepped closer, his voice dropping to a smooth, persuasive whisper. "Princess Vespera... I promise you, if you share this blessing with me, I will rise to become a Rank 6 martial powerhouse. I swear I will protect and cherish you."

Vespera’s brow twitched in sudden annoyance. His words, though meant to flatter, sounded patronizing, as if he were already commanding her like a subordinate.

Sensing her irritation, Kael quickly backpedaled, his eyes locking onto her mesmerizing silhouette—her flowing white hair, immaculate skin, and the tight, elegant garments that traced her curves. A surge of raw desire coiled in his gut, though he kept his expression carefully restrained.

"I only mean that opportunities like this are once-in-a-lifetime. The Dragon and Phoenix are legendary Rank 8 beasts. Even the strongest figures in our entire empire only dream of a fraction of their power. Should we really let this slip away?"

Vespera turned her head away, biting her lip. She hated to admit it, but his logic was undeniable. With a reluctant, rigid nod, she whispered, "Fine... But if you ever breathe a single word of this to anyone outside these walls, I will hunt you to the ends of the earth."

She climbed onto the bed.

"Of course, Princess," Kael chuckled softly, stepping closer as Vespera walked stiffly toward the legendary bed. "No one can see us through this barrier anyway."

*BOOM!*

Suddenly, an earth-shattering explosion shook the sanctum.

The impenetrable gold-blue barrier protecting the platform violently cracked, shattering like fragile glass. Through the dissipating shockwave, a cloaked figure stepped casually onto the platform.

Kael’s blood ran cold. It was the mysterious, masked man who had arrived last at the Bronze Gate.

Enraged by the interruption, Kael drew his longsword from his spatial ring, stepping in front of Vespera with a furious snarl. "Halt right there! You dare intrude upon our trial and break the sacred seal?! Have you lost your mind?!"

The masked figure—Ethan—did not even deign to look at him. His piercing, cold eyes, glowing with a faint blue-and-gold hue beneath his hood, locked entirely onto Vespera.

Vespera, reacting with lethal combat instincts, whipped a heavy cross-bow from her inventory, instantly locking her fingers onto the trigger.

*Snap.*

With a flick of his wrist, Ethan silently channeled his spiritual mana. A bolt of blinding yellow light erupted from his fingertips, traveling with incomprehensible, god-like speed before Vespera could even press the trigger.

The light punched straight through Vespera’s forehead.

Her body instantly locked rigid, every muscle freezing mid-motion. Before her eyes could even widen in shock, Ethan casually curled his fingers into a fist.

*BOOM!*

Vespera’s entire physical form violently imploded, shattering into a horrific spray of blood, bone, and flesh that painted the sacred bed in a grisly crimson hue.

Kael dropped to his knees, his mind entirely shattering. The world spun out of focus.

Vespera—a prodigy whose strength rivaled his own, backed by royal prestige—had been obliterated in a single, effortless thought.

*Who... who is this monster?!* Kael thought, sheer terror clawing at his throat as tears and cold sweat poured down his face. *Does he prefer men?! Why else would he instantly slaughter a gorgeous princess?!*

Ethan spare him a cold, mocking glance, then waved his hand casually. A glowing blue spiritual orb materialized from his spatial ring and hurled straight toward Kael.

Kael tried desperately to raise his sword, but before the orb could even touch him, the sentient shadow creature hiding beneath his garments shrieked in primal terror.

The shadow violently ripped itself free from Kael’s skin, lunging frantically away, only to be sucked directly into the pulsing blue sphere.

With a flick of his telekinetic mana, Ethan yanked Kael into the air, tossing his paralyzed, screaming body unceremoniously onto the blood-soaked sacred bed.

"P-Please! Spare me! What do you want?!" Kael shrieked, thrashing uselessly as absolute despair gripped his soul.

Ignoring his pathetic cries, Ethan manipulated the captured shadow entity—now trapped inside the swirling blue-and-black sphere—and forced it to spread across the sacred bed like a living, viscous slime. The dark, sentient mass swallowed Kael whole, trembling limbs against the mattress.

At that exact moment, the dormant, residual divinity of the Dragon and Phoenix statues awakened, flooding the bed with torrential waves of primordial elemental energy.

One energy was red, while the other was blue.

However, the red energy contained traces of other colours, including yellow and green. Similarly, the blue energy contained shades of white, pink, and purple.

The two streams of energy began revolving around the bed, circling it as though they were searching for something.

Gradually, both energies started gathering in one place, drawing in similar energy from the surrounding area until a growing mass of energy began to accumulate around the bed.

The slimy shadow creature began absorbing the immense divine power, its color shifting erratically between blinding white, crimson red, azure blue, and flashing gold.

Soon, the shadow creature transformed into a spherical orb, with several distinct rings visible across its surface.

In a sense, Ethan had managed to seal the blessings of both the Dragon and the Phoenix inside this orb, which was now formed entirely from the shadow creature.

The orb floated through the air and slowly approached Ethan.

He examined it carefully, sensing the powerful auras of both the Dragon and the Phoenix contained within. Their blessings were unmistakable.

Anyone who consumed this orb would receive the blessings of both mythical beings.

More importantly, they would gain two separate talents—one from the Dragon’s blessing and another from the Phoenix’s blessing.

Both talents would be extraordinarily powerful, potentially reaching Rank 6 or even Rank 7 at the very least.

Ethan reached into his storage ring and withdrew one final item: a massive, foaming, muscular male orc, towering at over two meters tall, completely devoid of clothing.

With a casual telekinetic toss, Ethan dropped the monstrous, mindless beast directly on top of the trapped, panicking Kael.

Following that, Ethan utilized a specialized mind-control spell to force him into an intimate encounter with Keal.

Kael’s eyes bulged in pure, unadulterated horror as the heavy, reeking orc mounted him on the sacred bed.

Ethan turned on his heel, his dark cloak billowing as he strolled calmly down the marble staircase, leaving the platform behind.

However, before leaving, he glanced back and said, "Enjoy."

From the upper chamber, Kael’s agonizing, tearful shrieks echoed through the descent:

*"GET IT AWAY FROM ME! NO! PLEASE, GET IT AWAY FROM MEEEEE!"*

*My ASS!My ASSSSSS!AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!*