Whoosh—!
Gorlam suddenly appeared out of nowhere, his misty form trailing behind Lloyd like a lingering shadow.
"Young Master... it seems the relocation was faster than I anticipated," he said in a faint whisper, audible only to Lloyd.
Lloyd didn't turn back. He maintained his steady pace toward the depths, his eyes fixed ahead as if studying something far on the horizon. Then, in a calm yet questioning voice, he asked, "What is the story of this planet? And why the indirect invasion?"
"Even though I can see where this is leading, I would have preferred to have a foothold on Planet Aurora first rather than jumping to another world. Cloning? It drains my current limited resources. Especially this 'indirect invasion'—it's extremely expensive and inefficient at the moment."
Gorlam paused for a moment, as if weighing his response. Then, with a cautious steadiness, he said, "Eirasia... a Fledgling-tier planet. It has no single ruler, but it is home to small sects and isolated entities. Any direct intervention, no matter how minor, would provoke the Ascension Council of the Fledgling Planetary Belts, and subsequently the Middle ones. Your connection to the Amora legacy might be suspected, leading to dire consequences. Therefore, the Legacy decided that you should start by devouring a suitable identity and merging into it."
Lloyd looked at Gorlam intently, his tone sharpening. "So, it's a long-term plan? That's not what I had in mind. Since you realize the consequences of such moves, why can't I be more direct? Wouldn't it be better to crush everything from the start instead of this slow infiltration?"
Gorlam gave a faint, cryptic smile. "The direct method, as you know, can be more damaging than it appears. We don't know how the Ascension Council would react, and all efforts could be lost if we are exposed too early. Only after recruiting enough citizens into the Empire and awakening enough Tower Overseers can we afford to provoke them even slightly."
Lloyd looked pensive for a moment, then asked sharply, "And who shall I devour?"
Gorlam unfurled a strange, three-dimensional map, pointing to a distant spot on the Eastern Plateaus. The map pulsed with life, revealing details invisible to the naked eye.
"We found an entity named Ethan. The leader of a martial sect in the heart of a forest. Its members vanished one by one until he was the only one left after the former sect leader was executed for harassment. The sect is known as 'Breath of the Seal,' but it has been inactive for months. Ethan rarely leaves his quarters; he seems deeply depressed."
The journey began in profound silence, as if the forest itself chose to remain mute before what was about to unfold. Dry shrubs and cracked soil groaned under the weight of time, while crumbling trees had long since lost their life. No birds circled the sky, and no insects flew around the dead wood. Everything was parched and motionless, as if time had frozen in this forgotten place.
The silence was suffocating, like a shroud wrapping a corpse. The sun had vanished behind thick clouds, leaving the light dim. The only sun radiating warmth was Lloyd himself, slipping through the shadows with grace and caution.
The entrance was surrounded by stone rings engraved with ancient runes speaking of "Seals," "Blood," and "Martial Arts." Using his high physical stats, Lloyd concealed his presence entirely. He approached slowly until he caught sight of a body sitting in the center of a ritual circle—thin, almost like a skeleton, clad in a long black robe.
Ethan Dortmund.
The first victim of the [Chaos Cloning] ability!
Lloyd paused for a moment, an uneasy feeling taking root. There was something about this place—something dangerous, yet strangely lukewarm. Ethan was weak, drained of much of his power, intoxicated and sorrowful, yet he held something invisible... something behind the curtain.
As he contemplated, the voice of the Legacy System echoed in his mind, confirming his suspicions.
[Warning! The target entity contains remnants of an ancient seal!] [Warning! Traces of the Astral Seal Race bloodline detected (1.2%)] [As the current Vampire Progenitor and Lord of All Blood in all worlds, this bloodline can be devoured easily. However, please proceed with caution.]
Lloyd wore a dark smile, indicating that this tiny percentage posed no threat to him. Nothing could stop him.
With a sharp gaze, he plunged his dagger into Ethan's body. With that swift movement, blood erupted as if a fountain had suddenly been uncapped. The "Blood Devour" ability activated instantly, and Lloyd permeated the heart of the being lying before him. In an instant, he felt his own body contract and expand simultaneously, as if something internal was being torn apart.
Memories flooded his mind—some bizarre and unnaturally deep. These memories didn't belong to Ethan alone; they stretched back to times and places he had never experienced, thanks to the ancient bloodline. Unfamiliar voices, blurry images, and a strange sense of void—it felt as if reality itself was collapsing in that moment.
Lloyd's mind intertwined with these scattered memories, facing an unexpected challenge.
"A bloodline of a powerful race?"
Another voice whispered in his ear, coming from the dark depths of memory, as if something stronger than him was beginning to hijack his mind.
[You are now swallowing the Origin Records of "Ethan Dortmund"]
A scream from another world. A charred corpse. A child laughing atop a throne of skeletons. A snake writhing under his skin, watching him with wide eyes. These images manifested in Lloyd's mind like an endless nightmare. When he collapsed to the ground, blood thickening over his skin, he felt life itself seeping from his body.
What added to the horror was the discovery that the lineage flowing into his mind wasn't just any ancient bloodline—it belonged to an incredibly powerful race. A few minutes passed before that powerful voice echoed in his mind again, but this time, it sounded slightly fearful:
"A Royal Vampire?..."
The voice boomed in Lloyd's mind for a second, then vanished as quickly as it had appeared.
[Bloodline Devouring nearing completion...]
Then... silence.
Slowly, his body began to change. His features shifted, and new details took shape. Before him stood another Ethan, an exact duplicate of the man he had seen.
But something was different.
This new Ethan bore a sinister look, his crimson eyes burning like embers in the dark... though they quickly faded back to their natural color. He was a person... but he wasn't himself.
Lloyd turned and looked at the new version of Ethan, those gray eyes moving in the opposite direction of his own.
"Well, 'Me'... let the mischief begin."
[Chaos Cloning Activated – Version: Ethan]
[Control: Full]
[Character "Ethan Dortmund" has obtained the "Sub-Legacy"]
[Sub-System delivered successfully...]
[Activating Sub-System...]
[Naming System...]
[Name Confirmed: Strongest Sect System]
[Main Quest Obtained..]
[Main Quest: Reactivate the 'Breath of the Seal' Sect to make it the No.1 Sect on the planet currently being activated.]