The ruins of the Deep Tide Dominion lay silent beneath the black waters of the Eastern Abyss.
Collapsed spires, shattered coral towers, and broken ward pylons marked the scars of an ancient war that had never truly ended.
Vexar stood before the colossal coils of the Dominion's sovereign, recounting everything that had happened at Chentang Pass from beginning to end.
When he finished, the great dragon remained motionless for a long time.
"This situation," the Dragon King said at last, his voice rumbling through the cavern, "is unstable."
Vexar lowered his head slightly.
"I know. But at the time… there was no better option."
They both understood the danger.
The core swap was no longer known only to Solarian and Pyros's family.
Too many mortals had witnessed fragments of the truth.
If even a whisper reached the High Architect, the Dominion's hopes of recovery would evaporate overnight.
Worse still, authority within Solarian's faction was currently overseen by senior proxies rather than the High Architect himself.
Some of those figures would happily seize any excuse to erase the dragon clans entirely.
Before either could speak again, the magma lake beneath the throne began to churn.
Three enormous dragons, bound in glowing chains, rose slowly from the molten depths.
The foremost was a sleek, multi-hued female dragon whose horns branched like crystalline coral.
She smiled.
"Brother," she said smoothly, "I have a solution."
The Dragon King's gaze hardened.
"Speak."
He never forgot who she was.
Auranthra.
His sister.
The former Western Sea Sovereign.
Cunning.
Brilliant.
And filled with hatred toward him.
Auranthra raised one claw.
Space split open beside her, forming a jagged rift.
Vexar inhaled sharply.
The Dragon King spoke the name for him.
"Voidrend Claw."
Auranthra's signature ability.
A spatial severance technique that ignored distance.
Once, it had given the Dominion unmatched mobility.
Until it had been crippled by supreme artifacts during the ancient war.
"If you give this claw to Vexar," Auranthra said, snapping off one of her talons, "he can open a rift directly to my position."
"The abyssal legions can pass through."
"We surround Chentang Pass."
"Erase it."
The Dragon King did not hesitate.
"I will not sanction that."
Auranthra's smile did not fade.
"Then isolate it."
"Seal the city."
"Let no one leave."
"Secrets die when mouths are trapped."
The Dragon King's eyes burned.
"Containment invites attention."
"Time only makes discovery inevitable."
Auranthra tilted her head.
"So we add a layer."
"Send Glacien to undergo ascension trials under Solarian's faction."
"Once he succeeds, he becomes an acknowledged celestial heir."
"After that, no one will dare dig into his origins."
Silence fell.
Vexar's thoughts raced.
Glacien would pass such trials easily.
Once recognized as an ascendant candidate carrying an Aether Core, he would become politically untouchable.
Even if inconsistencies surfaced later, they would be quietly buried.
The Dominion would gain legitimacy.
Vexar would gain leverage.
And the entire mess would slowly disappear.
"This… could work," Vexar said.
The Dragon King studied Auranthra carefully.
"You're not doing this out of kindness."
Auranthra chuckled.
"The chains burn," she said lightly.
"Ease the heat in this prison."
"That is all I ask."
The Dragon King understood.
She wasn't asking for freedom.
Not yet.
But even minor concessions weakened the system.
After a long pause, he nodded.
"I will consider it."
Auranthra lowered her head in mock obedience.
Inside, her thoughts were anything but loyal.
She did not believe her brother would ever truly release her.
She did not intend to wait forever.
If Glacien's rise failed to create an opening…
Then she would create chaos herself.
And drag everyone down with her.