Chapter 108: The Shadow of the General, the Empty Throne, and the Weapons of Fate
I. The Child Who Looked into the Abyss
The dawn over the Dragon Bone Desert was not golden, but a coppery violet, filtered through the atmospheric barrier that Samael's awakening had permanently altered.
On the highest terrace of the Patriarch's Tower, the wind blew fiercely, yet it stopped abruptly a meter from the railing, crashing against an invisible wall of Qi. Samael Morningstar, dressed in black robes embroidered with dark gold threads, watched the horizon. In his arms, he held Celeste. At two years old, the clan's heiress was no longer a helpless infant. She had her mother's liquid silver hair, falling in soft curls, and her eyes were the signature of her impossible existence: one neon violet, deep as the void, and the other a mixture of ice blue and destiny red.
—"Daddy, look," Celeste babbled, pointing at a distant cloud with her chubby finger. —"It breaks."
Samael followed her gaze. Miles away, a Transcendence-level sand vulture was circling. Suddenly, the bird disintegrated in mid-air, consumed by a residual pocket of void that Samael had inadvertently let slip during his advancement. The child showed no fear. She laughed, a crystalline sound that made the tower's runes vibrate. —"It breaks," she repeated, clapping.
—"Yes, little star. Everything breaks if it isn't strong enough," Samael whispered, kissing her head.
—"She has your destructive nature, but my curiosity," a soft voice said behind him. Seraphina appeared, ethereal, with the Frost Crown floating dimly above her head. Her presence was that of an absolute Empress, gradually reclaiming the majesty of her past lives.
—"And she also has a guardian who has been waiting in the dark for two years," Samael added. He stepped back and looked toward the shadow cast by the main tower. —"Show yourself. Your silent vigil is over."
The air turned cold. Not a frost of ice like Seraphina's, but a cold of the grave, of the absence of life. The shadow on the ground began to bubble like boiling tar and rose. First emerged a matte black helm with a closed visor and horns curving backward. Then, heavy plate armor that seemed to absorb sunlight, refusing to reflect it. A tattered, ancient red cloak billowed in a wind that did not exist. It was a tower of metal and death nearly three meters tall.
The Eternal General of the Crimson Void.
The entity, a mythical reward obtained at Celeste's birth and fused with the citadel's core, stepped forward. The sound was like a mountain moving. He knelt. The balcony stone cracked under his knee. —"Sovereign," his voice was not human; it was the sound of stones grinding in a deep cavern. —"The Cradle is safe. The blood has been preserved. My blade awaits judgment."
Celeste, far from being scared, squirmed in Samael's arms. —"Big!" she exclaimed, reaching her arms toward the metal monster. The Eternal General froze. Slowly, with an impossible delicacy for his size, he tilted his giant helm until Celeste's tiny hand touched the cold metal. A warm, protective red spark glowed in the helmet's visor. He had sworn loyalty to Samael, but his existence belonged to the child.
—"Rise, General," Samael ordered. —"Today we stop hiding. Today we arm the empire."
II. The Assembly of the Dragons
An hour later, the double doors of the Great War Hall burst open. The room, carved from obsidian and dragon bone, was lit by green and blue alchemical torches. In the center, the Table of the Ten Pillars dominated the space.
Samael entered, his Stage 3 Saint Realm aura completely retracted, which paradoxically made him more terrifying. He looked like a mortal, but everyone in the room felt that if they blinked, they could be erased from existence. He sat on the head throne. Seraphina took the seat to his right, her blue gaze sweeping the room with imperial authority. The Eternal General stood behind Samael's throne, an unmoving statue of darkness—invisible to untrained eyes, but a suffocating pressure for experts.
The Council of Elders (Lilith, Marcus, Livia, and Sela) sat to the left. The Sequences (the golden generation) occupied the right. Samael observed them one by one. They had changed. The desert, survival, and training had forged them into weapons.
—"I see you differently," Samael said. —"You are no longer refugees." —"We are hunters, brother," Kael replied, his voice deep and raspy.
Samael nodded and looked at the primary seats.
Kael (Sequence 1): The Vanguard General. His dark red hair was tied in a warrior's ponytail. His Magma Fang rested against his chair, radiating heat.
Violeta (Sequence 2): The Lady of Space. Her silver-white hair fell straight. Her heterochromia was hypnotic. She radiated an unnatural calm.
Eris (Sequence 3): The Destroyer. Bright red hair with golden highlights. She drummed her fingers on the table, unconsciously charring the wood.
Cedric (Sequence 5): The Architect. Messy silver hair, calculating gray eyes, surrounded by scrolls.
Xylia (Sequence 6): The Empress of Thunder. Samael paused his gaze on her a second longer than necessary.
[System: Patriarch's Eye Active] [Target: Xylia Morningstar] [Status: Partially Awakened Reincarnation.] [Secret Note: Ancient Empress of a Higher Realm betrayed by her court. She remembers fragments of how to rule and conquer.]
Samael kept his face expressionless. No one else knew the truth. To them, Xylia was simply a lightning genius with an unusually regal bearing. But Samael saw the straight posture, the innate elegance. She knows how to rule, Samael thought. I will use that fire.
Finally, the gaze of everyone fell on the end of the table. The Seat of Sequence 10 was empty. —"That seat," Samael said, pointing to it, "will remain empty. It is a reminder. There is always room for someone stronger. Or for someone we lost. Let it serve as a warning: no one's position is guaranteed forever. Saira is gone, and the seat waits for a new monster."
III. The Great Investment: The Deluge of Steel and Blood
Samael stood up. The shadow of the Eternal General seemed to grow behind him. —"During my sleep, I have accessed the heritage of our ancestors. A king does not hoard gold while his soldiers bleed with rusted iron."
He raised his hand. The air tore open.
[Activating Inventory. Function: Massive Investment and Refund - READY.] [Patriarch's Return Multiplier: x100 ACTIVE.]
The sound was deafening. Hundreds of weapons, armors, vials, and manuals fell into the open space of the hall. This was not scrap. The purple and gold glow indicated High Origin and Earth Grade. —"Marcus," Samael called the Elder Blacksmith. —"There you have meteorite steel and Phantom Legion armor. I want every soldier of the clan equipped by tomorrow." Marcus, weeping at the sight of the divine materials, nodded frantically.
Then, Samael focused on his pillars. It was time to play with destiny.
For Cedric (The Brain): —"Cedric. Your mind is our wall, but your tools are primitive." Samael tossed him an object pulsing with dim light: a Saint Grade Array Core (Damaged). —"Use it. Not just to defend, but to understand the structure of the world."
[REFUND SUCCESSFUL! You have obtained: "Defensive Formation Blueprint: Aegis of the Twelve Golden Dragons" and "Architectural Eye of Truth".]
For Elowen (The Life): He handed her a Mist Tiger Root and a batch of 500-year-old Spiritual Herbs.
[REFUND SUCCESSFUL! (x80). You have obtained: "Green Jade Cauldron of Life and Death" and "Recipe: Dragon Ascension Pill".]
For Xylia (The Hidden Empress): Samael pulled out a Lightning Scepter (Origin Grade). Xylia looked at it, and for a second, her electric violet eyes showed a flash of disdain. A toy, she thought. Samael smirked internally. Exactly. You deserve more. He tossed it to her.
[CRITICAL INVESTMENT SYSTEM BY SOUL AFFINITY! The "Betrayed Empress" has accepted the gift. REFUND SUCCESSFUL! You have obtained: "Whip of Heavenly Punishment: INDRA" (Low Saint Grade).]
IV. The Twin's Change: More than Steel
Finally, Samael looked at his sisters. —"You have relied on your innate talents for too long. But raw talent is like water: it disperses. You need a channel."
He opened his right hand. The air frosted instantly. A Longsword (Jian) appeared, its blade so thin it was nearly invisible, made of translucent crystal. [Weapon: Silent Winter Blade (Peak Origin Grade).]
—"Violeta," Samael said, handing her the sword. —"Leave the daggers. I am not giving you a sword to learn physical fencing. This is not for clashing steel against steel." Violeta took the sword. Instantly, the blade ceased to be solid and seemed to become mist in her hand. —"You are the mistress of Space and Ice. This blade is your brush. Use it to trace lines in reality. Do not cut the enemy; cut the space where the enemy stands. Channel your blinks through the edge. Make your attack appear where you are not." Violeta made a soft movement. There was no sound of a cut. Simply, the corner of the obsidian table three meters away separated and fell to the ground, frozen. Her heterochromatic eyes sparkled. —"I understand... it is not a weapon. It is a coordinate."
Samael then opened his left hand. The heat in the room spiked. A Heavy Black Metal Spear fell into his palm, its tip a double-edged red blade pulsing like a furious heart. [Weapon: Solar Cataclysm Spear (Peak Origin Grade).]
—"Eris," Samael tossed her the heavy spear. Eris caught it, and the floor beneath her feet cracked from the immense weight. —"It weighs a mountain!" she complained, though her eyes shone with excitement.
—"Because it is not a stick for hitting heads," Samael explained. —"It is a conductor. Your fire, your Ruin, is explosive and chaotic. Until now, you have only burned the air around your enemies." He approached and touched the spear's tip. —"With this, you will compress all that explosion into a single point. Do not throw the fire; inject it. Use the spear to penetrate the defense and then detonate your Ruin from within. Turn your body into the cannon and the spear into the projectile." Eris spun the spear. The air didn't burn; it distorted from the concentrated heat. —"Pierce... and then explode," Eris murmured, a wild smile crossing her face. —"I like it."
V. Elara: The Shadow of the Patriarch
Samael returned to the throne. From the shadows, Elara, his First Disciple, materialized. —"Master," she said, bowing. —"You receive no weapons today, Elara. You receive a mission."
Samael deployed the map. —"The Bronze Citadel. Violeta, you and Elara will be the vanguard. Use the Silent Winter Blade to cut through the barriers of their vaults. Elara, I want you to mark every officer, every escape route, and every gold warehouse. If you are discovered, Violeta pulls you out."
—"Kael," Samael looked at his brother. —"You and I will enter through the front gate." —"By force?" Kael asked, stroking his Magma Fang. —"No. For the auction." Samael smiled. —"We are going to enter as wealthy buyers. We will humiliate Lord Cassian with money before we kill him with steel."
VI. Epilogue: The Preparation of Hell
Samael looked through the windows. —"You have your weapons. You have your resources. The clan is rich, armed, and has a mythical guardian." He pointed to the Eternal General, who stood like a gargoyle beside Celeste, now sleeping peacefully on Seraphina's lap.
—"But your bodies are still weak. Your martial arts with these new weapons are clumsy." Samael walked toward the exit. —"Tomorrow at dawn, I will activate the Primordial Dragon's Gravity Chamber at 500%." He paused at the threshold. —"The Hellish Training begins. You have 24 hours to say goodbye to your comfort. Whoever does not break their limit in the chamber will not march to war. Understood?"
—"YES, PATRIARCA!" the unison roar shook the dust from the beams.
Samael walked out, his cloak billowing. The war had already begun in his mind. The Bronze Citadel had no idea they had just signed their death warrant by charging a toll to the Dragon.