Rex landed with a heavy impact on the main square of the ruinous Sky City.

He threw the crippled Rezar away like trash and looked ahead.

There, at the center of the main square, stood Varya. She was drawing something with her hand on the cream-colored marble floor.

Blood is her ink.

It looked to be a formation, and it was so massive that it went beyond the main square.

All around, placed a meter away from each other, were the corpses of the Sky City people. Thousands upon thousands of them were placed on the street facing the Blood Moon. Some were still alive—and breathing, but crippled. Some of the fresher dead were still bleeding.

Even the leaking blood stopped spilling out of the formation, pooling at the border.

Swarms of black serpents worked like dutiful slaves, bringing more corpses from other corners and placing them neatly. Once there’s no more space, the corpses were simply stacked at the heart until it turned into a mound of bodies.

Rex made a deal with Dorn to show mercy.

He did. But only to the ground Dorn was protecting, not the remaining survivors.

Cruel. But then again, nobody would even bat an eye if he came begging to get Devo back.

Now that he’s on top, there’s no reason for him to show restraints.

Rex scanned the formation and was surprised to see that this formation was actually better.

…

<Original Rite of Kaiser>

Description: It’s the first version of the Rite of Kaiser before being toned down to minimize the strong backlash from the Blood Moon. This formation will yield twenty percent more energy compared to the normal formation.

…

Standing outside the formation were the Shade Crawlers.

A restless audience to the magnificent spectacle.

A few of them couldn’t contain their feral excitement, watching the gathered prey that were going to be used as sacrifices. Some even burst into guttural howls to vent out their thrill, but that quickly devolved into a quarrel.

The Blood Moon is still shining. A simple accidental push led to a bloodied battle.

However, a single, cold look from Rex cut through the chaos. And the quarrel died instantly.

It was replaced by a watchful, cowed silence.

No time for that.

Now is the time for him to take advantage of the situation.

Rex scanned the formation when Varya finished for good measure and pointed at the edge.

“You missed one rune there,” He said flatly. “Fix it.”

Varya was surprised to know that Rex could even check the formation she made, but that only made her even more devoted to his reign. “Yes, Your Highness,” She quickly repaired her neglect. “It has been a long time since I made this formation. I apologize.”

<Scanning….>

<Notice: the Original Rite of Kaiser formation is 100% completed!>

<Due to the presence of the Blood Moon, the rite’s efficiency would be doubled!>

Rex stepped into the formation and stood in his designated place.

Almost instantly, the formation hummed to activation. A dark crimson shade coated the entire pile of corpses, the neatly placed corpses, and also Rex. He watched the bodies dissipating into a mist of blood. Just like the first time, Rex still couldn’t grasp the energy it produced.

His acute senses couldn’t pick it up.

But he reckoned this energy should be a higher form of energy tied to his Divinity.

Once his divinity reached high enough, he would be able to sense this energy.

And he awaited that day to come.

People screamed as their bodies were crushed and turned into a mist of blood.

The blood mist swirled around the formation upward like a coiling snake, with Rex spreading his arms to the side. Kaiser had made him angry, from going as low as helping a Half-Angel to kill him. Now, it is time for payback.

Splash—!

Once the blood mist brooded above into a swirling storm, it detonated with a splashing sound.

A low laugh escaped Rex. Compared to his first, crude attempt at this rite, the scale now was beyond his expectations. The resulting splash of power was so violent it altered the very nature of the pouring Black Rain, transmuting the falling ink-black droplets into crimson tears.

And at the epicenter of this splash, floating amid the bloody tempest, are many crimson crystals.

Each one throbbed with immense, captive power.

Ninety of them, to be exact.

Among them, three larger, darker crystals loomed with a strength that dwarfed the rest.

Rex’s eyes widened ecstatically, “Don’t mind if I do.”

Blood Moon Crystals.

A special crystal that was an excellent source for divine strands.

Flunra warned him the first time that this rite basically forced Kaiser to bestow him power in response to the sacrifices. Used mainly in desperate measure. Nobody was capable of enduring a Lunirich God’s wrath directly.

Thus, nobody dared to use this ritual the second time. At least not until the lesser version was created.

Only the Origin can use this original ritual several times, but even he couldn’t abuse this rite.

Its boost is tantalizing, but the repercussions were also severe.

But Rex has the System. And in his super-charged condition, the backlash would be nothing.

Moreover, he doesn’t need to worry about offending Kaiser.

Between them, bad blood already existed. A divine vendetta was present the moment Rex accepted to be Nivellen’s champion. It became personal when the Lunirich Gods decided that his existence should go by their permission.

So, why should he feared of offending a God he already offended? He shouldn’t.

Varya looked up. She watched the Blood Moon intently, waiting for it to strike Rex with its might. It would be a catastrophic backlash. Most of the corpses are Eternal Spirits, with some being above that, as this was the Sky City.

The average strength is abnormal in this place.

Instinctively, Varya even went further back to give more distance between her and Rex.

However, to her surprise, the Blood Moon only flickered.

’The Blood Moon Lunirich God did not attack him? How…?’ Varya stared at the sky in disbelief. ’Not even the Origin was free from its backlash. What happened in the Mortal Realm? What is the situation of our race?’

“Better get used to this,” A shadow climbed out of the ground—Linthia. “He’s always full of surprises,” She looked at Rex like looking at her idol. “You made the right choice of accepting him as your Alpha. He’s overtly protective of those under him, so mind your position from now on.

“Or else…” She gestured towards the bloodbath all around them. “Many people are going to die.”

“Overtly protective?” Varya raised a brow.

“Yes. Possessive.” Linthia’s lips curled into a smile. “And in this world full of dangers, who wouldn’t want safety? Had you been on the other side, you’d be on the ground right now. Sacrificed. You elders have a really great intuition.”

Varya chuckled lightly.

She didn’t know what or who Linthia was, or what she was to Rex. She carried no scent of being one of the children of the moon. But intention has its own scent, and Linthia’s radiated nothing but goodwill. Her words settled like a vow.

In that moment, any lingering doubt dissolved.

Joining Rex hadn’t been a choice—it had been the only path to a good ending.

It has always been the trait of the survivor to know when to pick the right side.

Other than personal strength, intuition is equally important.

“Elders?” Varya frowned. “Is there another elder in the pack? I can’t sense the others properly. Only the Luna.”

“Flunra is in the pack,” Linthia shrugged. Then paused, realizing her mistake. “I meant Arnulf.”

Varya was initially confused, but hearing the name caught her off guard. She was pleasantly surprised. “Arnulf the Special?” She repeated, and then exhaled in relief while shaking her head. “If he’s with the Silverstar Pack, then I can rest assured. That old man is beloved by luck. There are some Betas back in the day who followed him throughout a battle, and managed to remain unscathed.”

It was a ridiculous story.

At first, when Varya listened to the story for the first time, she thought it was only an exaggeration.

How can following someone guarantee survival? It’s ridiculous.

But it’s not an exaggeration.

Even she had experienced it herself. Spells and weapons avoided the area where Arnulf was.

“Any attack veered away. It’s like the Black Omicron was protecting him. He’s really special.”

“That, I do not doubt.”

Only when the Sudden Quest time limit went under two minutes did the rite finally stop. From start to finish, the onlookers could only marvel and take in the sight. It was haunting for the enemies to watch Rex sacrificing thousands to the Blood Moon.

People who got lucky and were shown mercy retained their lives, but they carried a deep trauma with them.

One that couldn’t be forgotten.

Just like Mirza, who made the Spirit Realm wary of the figures that came from the Mortal Realm, Rex solidified his visit with blood. Now, the Spirit Realm would fear the Mortal Realm. It wasn’t part of his plan from the start, but it ended up like this anyway.

He tried blending in, but the Spirit Realm chose to sacrifice him.

And this is the consequence.

Rex leaped onto the highest point closest to him. It was a tower with cracks along its length. The dome that should’ve crowned it was shattered, leaving a flat ground to stand on. He faced the Blood Moon and unleashed a triumphant growl.

It was a domination and thunderous growl.

His tongue danced. His muscles bulged. His claws flared open. And his eyes glowed crimson.

A declaration of victory. Not only to the Blood Moon, but also to the Highseat of Invincibility.

And the roar reached far and wide.

Under the Sky City, also touched by the ruinous hand of chaos, the royal bubble was in peril. People could be seen running around in a frantic manner, being chased by the voidal monsters that managed to slip into their sanctuary.

Some preached that it was the end of the world.

That the Angels’ protection could only protect them this far.

Legions of the empire are also scattered. Confused whether they should be protecting the people or trying to save their lives. Nobody was there to direct them. How could there be, when the nobles were struck the hardest?

Emperor Dominar held the gala to celebrate their victory against the usurper.

It was a sword that would eliminate all parties who supported Rex.

However, that very sword stabbed him in the heart instead of stabbing the opposite side.

Most of the high-ranking nobles who had not fallen were gravely wounded; their retinues dragged them from the carnage to secluded places to stanch the wounds and salvage what remains of their lives. Only Emperor Dominar remained in the royal bubble.

He returned to the heart of his power.

Like a tired immortal, he sat upon his throne. Around him, the silence was deafening, broken only by the distant echo of his own measured breath. Everything was still grand and pompous as it had always been for millennia.

Golden chandeliers. Silk carpets. Imposing walls. Artifacts. Riches.

But the castle was now empty. No sign of guards or maids that usually crowd the halls and corridors.

To think that this was caused by one person was truly devastating. A culture that survived thousands of years. An empire that protected its people against countless monsters. Power that could survive against the pressure from the world. It was destroyed by one person.

Emperor Dominar didn’t know how to feel right now.

His insides were empty.

Slowly, he lifted his trembling right hand, facing its palm towards his face.

A grunt escaped his thin lips as the Reap and Sow Echo manifested, hovering above his palm. For one second, he recalled the first time he got the Echo, and how it was still beautiful and powerful even now. But in the next, purple corruption wiped the Echo’s manifestation.

Emperor Dominar coughed a mouthful of blood as his right hand throbbed with excruciating pain.

Many would curse him for bringing this upon the empire.

But he and a few others knew the truth. He simply doesn’t have any other choice.