Feng kept his promise.
Upon learning that Allen had obtained the Golden Titan Bloodline Essence, he took him back to the riverside cabin.
Agreeing to pick him up from retreat in thirty days, he quietly departed.
After seeing Feng off, Allen left the cabin and found himself beneath the vast, empty starry sky.
Adjusting the direction of gravity, he flew straight toward the Bloodline Galaxy.
The Bloodline Galaxy is the interface between reality and meditation.
Meditation by the river doubles efficiency.
The specific increase depends on proximity to the Bloodline Galaxy.
However, the closer one gets to the Bloodline Galaxy, the more intense the mental pressure from the billions of ancestral spirits within.
A slight negligence could lead to a breakdown of willpower, a return to ancestral demonic possession.
Allen relied on the seventh-level Soul-Calming Meditation technique to resist mental interference.
When he felt he was about to collapse, he decisively stopped.
Alan planned to cultivate by the river for thirty days, equivalent to five years of cultivation in the outside world!
During this period, he not only had to initially fuse with the Golden Titan bloodline, but also strive to reach the late sixth stage.
Concentrating his mind, Alan began to meditate.
Being by the river, he should have had many ancestral spirits to fuse with.
However, to his surprise, the Titan ancestral spirits Alan sensed were very rare.
Most of them were Bronze Titans.
Silver Titans were rare.
As for the Golden Titan, after searching for half an hour, he had only sensed a single ancestral spirit.
Alan vaguely realized that something was wrong!
Something was very wrong!
The Titans had a glorious history.
From the Golden Age to the Silver Age, and then to the Bronze Age, the Titans were active in all areas of the sorcerer world.
It wasn't until the end of the Bronze Age that the Titans, severely weakened in a decisive battle with the Dragons, were replaced by hybrid giants and finally left the stage of history.
For such an ancient race that had survived for countless centuries, millions of ancestral souls should have returned to the Bloodline Galaxy. Why couldn't he sense any?
Alan pondered, speculating on two possibilities.
First, the more powerful the ancestral spirits, the more likely they were to lurk deeper within the Bloodline Galaxy.
Inadequate sorcerers were unqualified to establish telepathic connection with them.
Second, souls could have other destinations besides the Bloodline Galaxy, such as the Divine Kingdom created by the gods.
Could the Titans, at some point, collectively convert to a single deity, their souls returning to the Divine Kingdom after death?
With this question in mind, Alan released a mental wave, merging with the single golden Titan ancestral spirit he could sense.
Entering the Bronze Age where the Titan ancestral spirit lived. ...
A handsome young Gold Titan, shirtless, his hands trembling as he gripped the adamantine axe.
The execution platform was surrounded by a crowd of onlookers.
Besides Titans, there were even more Giants of various skin colors.
In this era, the Titan race has declined.
Pure-blooded Titans, even Bronze Titans, are now rare.
Statistically, the Titan race has transformed into a race of Giants.
Atreus, the executioner, under everyone's gaze, had yet to realize...
He was the last naturally born Gold Titan.
After him, there were no more Gold Titans.
Atreus' parents and brother were all Silver Titans.
In his entire family, he was the only Gold Titan!
As a rare and prodigy, he was naturally eagerly anticipated by his tribe.
The expectations of the people had already put an unbearable strain on the young man.
Atreus's greatest fear was making a mistake or failing to perform well, thus disappointing his family and friends.
He always strived for perfection in everything he did.
Although he had long felt his abilities were failing him, he dared not utter a single discouraging word, fearing he would disappoint everyone.
However, he had never imagined that the elders would appoint him as the executioner, tasked with personally beheading his brother!
Atreus loathed the task from the bottom of his heart.
He did not want his hands to be stained with his brother's blood.
However, he dared not disobey the elders' orders.
Those arrogant and stubborn old men were merely Silver Titans, their bloodlines far less noble than his own.
Contrary to his tall and strong image, Atreus was actually an introverted, shy, and somewhat weak boy.
From childhood, he was accustomed to being an obedient child.
After his parents died in battle with a dragon, his older brother, Atlas, became his guardian.
Atreus habitually consulted his brother on everything.
Atlas, however, disliked his brother's timid nature and repeatedly encouraged him to follow his own heart.
Don't be led around like a donkey, and don't be afraid of others' glances and criticisms.
"But... what if I act on my own will and cause trouble?"
Atreus asked his brother anxiously.
"Everyone makes mistakes. You can't just refuse to drink water because you're afraid of choking, right?"
Atlas smiled and encouraged his brother.
"You must make a decision you believe in, Atreus. If you're proven wrong later, it's better to admit it like a man and face the consequences. That's better than regret!"
Atreus had always tried to follow his brother's teachings.
But he gradually realized that he was just a clumsy imitation of his brother. Could that really be considered a show of character?
Before he could resolve his doubts, his brother got into trouble and committed a capital crime!
According to the Titan code, only Gold Titans were authorized to execute Silver Titans who committed capital crimes.
As the only Gold Titan in the clan, Atreus was forced to take up the axe and execute his brother in public.
The executioner had already sounded the horn, urging him to act.
The crowd watching from the audience also waited for him to act.
Atreus' hands trembled.
He knew his brother had committed a capital crime.
But that was his own brother!
He couldn't bear to kill him!
Seeing him remain motionless for a long time, the crowd began to stir, whispering among themselves.
The elders' faces darkened.
They all understood the pain of fratricide.
However, Atreus, as the Golden Titan, the future leader of the Titans and giants, could not afford to be weak!
He must possess a will far stronger than any ordinary person, unwavering under any circumstances. Otherwise, how could he win the support of the people?
If he couldn't do this, he would be unworthy of his noble bloodline and the expectations of the people.
"Go ahead, Atreus."
On the execution platform, the shackled Atreus spoke.
"I don't consider myself guilty, but... my brother, you have no choice."
"When you see Barcelissa, remember to tell her for me... Although she never reciprocated my feelings, I never regretted falling in love with her... If possible, please take good care of her for me."
His brother's reassurance gave Atreus a reason to be weak.
As he had countless times before, he chose to go against his own will and obey the orders of others.
Because this way, regardless of the outcome, good or bad, he wouldn't have to bear the responsibility or consequences.
The axe fell, blood splattering.
Atreus seemed to have his energy drained away, and he dropped his bloodstained hands dejectedly.
The cheers from the crowd made him feel dizzy and nauseous.
He had finally killed his beloved brother with his own hands.
Of course, he could find any excuse to justify himself.
But deep down, he had to face self-blame and frustration.
The frustration, in particular, was stronger than ever.
His brother's death marked the complete failure of Atreus's efforts to become a responsible, individual man.
He had considered protecting his brother, regardless of the consequences, even at the cost of his own life.
But he ultimately gave in and retreated.
The world darkened from then on.
"What's the point of living for someone like me?"
Atreus thought dejectedly.
He even hated his noble golden bloodline.
If he weren't a Gold Titan, but just an ordinary Bronze Titan, or even a lower-ranking giant,
He wouldn't be the center of attention, the future leader they pinned their hopes on.
As an ordinary man, even if he was a coward, that was understandable.
Yet, his exceptional talent and noble lineage forbade any spiritual weaknesses.
To do so would be to squander the gifts bestowed upon him by Heaven.
Atreus disliked playing the role of a genius in the eyes of others.
In truth, he knew full well that he could not live up to people's exorbitant expectations.
But what could he do?
Before his brother's corpse, Atreus felt lost and overwhelmed.
Especially when the elders praised him for his selfless dedication and impartiality...
Finally, Atreus could no longer bear the intense nausea and vomited in public.
A hush fell around the execution ground.
As he vomited, Atreus had to fight back tears.
For a Gold Titan, vomiting in public was already humiliating.
To hold back his tears would be even more humiliating.
Exposing his true cowardice before everyone, he became a laughingstock.
Rather than living like this, I'd rather die!
Dark thoughts filled Atreus's mind.
At his lowest point, Allen's will took advantage of the situation and seized control of the Golden Titan's body.
"Ahem... Excuse me, I'm being rude."
Alen stopped vomiting and apologized to the crowd.
"I'd rather slay a thousand dragons than stain my hands with the blood of my loved ones."
"Killing people outside of battle, especially those of my own family, is truly disgusting to me!"
"Your Highness Atreus, we all understand your reluctance to execute your brother, but according to the code..."
An elder tried to lecture the young Golden Titan.
"Shut up!"
Alen snapped.
"I haven't finished speaking yet. Who allowed you to interrupt?"
The elder's face paled with astonishment.
"How dare the Silver Titan offend the Gold Titan? Is this in accordance with ancestral teachings? According to the code, what is the punishment?"
Alan's barrage of questions made the elder's forehead sweat.
Under pressure, he was forced to apologize publicly and bow his head in submission.
Alan used the old man as a punching bag, somewhat appeasing the ancestral spirit's anger.
Afterwards, he ordered his servants to collect Atlas's remains and give him a respectful burial.
After merging with the ancestral spirit, Alan shed his previous weak demeanor and focused on projecting a strong side.
He had finally overcome the negative impact of his public vomiting and solidified his position.
But Alan's heart was not at peace.
The tragedy of the ancestral spirit he had merged with, the Gold Titan Atreus, had just begun.
Today, Atreus was forced to behead his brother.
His brother's crime was that he had been bewitched and brainwashed by an evil dragon, spreading heresy and attempting to overthrow the ancestral caste system.
Who could have imagined that just a year later, Atreus himself would be condemned to the same fate.
…
The Titan ancestor, fused with Eren, lived in the so-called "Bronze Age."
In reality, the gods and the ancestors of sorcerers were the true protagonists of this era.
The war between the two sides has raged for a full century.
Mutual slaughter between the two opposing camps is commonplace.
The flames of war ravaged the world, and no one could stay out of it.
Even the self-proclaimed Titans and dragons were forced to choose sides.
The Titans and the Five-Colored Dragons were both proud of their bloodline and worshipped their founders.
Annan, the god of the Titans and Giants, and Tiamat, the goddess of the Five-Colored Dragons, though also hailed as gods, were primarily the progenitors of creation.
These highly humanized "ethnic gods" did not devise a specific religious theory, compose sacred texts, or establish churches or spread their teachings.
As gods, they were worshipped almost exclusively by their own people.
The Five-Colored Dragons worshipped Tiamat, the Dragon Mother, and the Giants worshipped Annan, the Giant Father. This wasn't out of ideological resonance.
They simply believed they were their ancestors, the source of their extraordinary power.
If they recognized their idols as saviors, then only their own family members were eligible for salvation.
As for universal gods that treated all believers equally, neither the Universal Church nor the Giants were interested.
It's conceivable that the Five-Colored Dragons and Titans were actually worshipping their ancestors, not gods in the religious sense.
This is essentially the same as the way sorcerers venerate the ancestor who bestowed their extraordinary bloodline.
Therefore, both the Five-Colored Dragons and the Titans are considered natural sorcerers.
During the war, these two sworn enemies were both assigned to the side of the ancestor.
Although they never fought side by side as allies,
However, in this era, the world is not solely dominated by Five-Colored Dragons.
The Metal Dragons are also a force to be reckoned with.
Unlike the Five-Colored Dragons, the Metal Dragons, with their kind nature, deeply detest the caste system espoused by the Five-Colored Dragons and the Titans.
They are proud of their dragon status, but do not discriminate against other species.
The Metal Dragons do not believe that only Metal Dragons are entitled to worship their creator, Bahamut, the "Platinum Dragon God."
Humans, dwarves, elves...any creature who identifies with the cause of justice can worship Bahamut, become a priest or even a paladin of the Platinum Dragon God, and earn the respect of the Metal Dragons.
It's obvious that the Metal Dragons, unlike the Five-Colored Dragons or the Giants, are more inclined toward universal faith.
Understandably, the Metal Dragons were grouped with the gods and became enemies of the Titans.
Alan's ancestral spirit, Atreus, was raised to hate the Dragons.
The elders warned him that the Five-Colored Dragons' evil was superficial; anyone could see that these dragons, bent on plundering and looting, were villains.
However, even more alarming were the Metal Dragons, hypocrites even more insidious than the Five-Colored Dragons!
On the surface, Metal Dragons pride themselves on being kind and upholding justice, rarely harming others without cause.
However, their minds have long been dominated by heresy, and they constantly seize every opportunity to indoctrinate others with perverse ideas. Trying to convince the warriors to yield to the weak, trying to degrade the nobility to the same status as the common people!
Unfortunately, Atreus's brother is a typical example of someone who has been poisoned by the ideology of the metallic dragon race.
Atlas fell in love with a woman named Basilisa.
Basilisa's public identity is the elven queen of the White Deer Forest.
In reality, she is a silver dragon disguised as an elf, a cleric of Bahamut.
The silver dragon race is truly despicable.
They are dragons of noble descent, yet they always prefer to transform into weak humans or elves, living among humans.
They even fall in love with humanoids, forming families, and having children.
The elders
They believed that the silver dragon's behavior could only be attributed to its inherent lust and its willingness to debase itself!
The young Atreus didn't understand the elders' intense reaction.
The Titans, nominally, did not intermarry with other races.
However, this ancestral precept had long since become defunct.
Otherwise, where did the world's first stone giants, frost giants, fire giants, cloud giants, and storm giants—including the hill giants the Titans preferred not to mention—come from?
The difference in size and appearance between Titan intermarriage partners wasn't as great as between silver dragons and humans or elves.
However, there seemed to be no fundamental difference.
As he grew older, Atreus gradually understood that Titans who intermarried believed they were forced to do so, and deep down they looked down on their intermarriage partners, feeling wronged.
He held the Titans, born of intermarriage, in deep contempt.
The caste system of giant society is a concentrated manifestation of this chain of contempt—the more Titan-like a giant is, the higher their caste.
Metal dragons, represented by silver dragons, don't intermarry with others out of charity or self-sacrifice.
They simply like each other.
Mixed-race children are not systematically discriminated against within the metal dragon clan.
Silver dragon Basilisa lived in the White Deer Forest for many years as an elf. With her immense magical power and prestige, she became the queen of this elven tribe and founded the Church of Bahamut.
Out of curiosity, Atreus's brother cast a spell to transform into an elf and attend Basilisa's sermons.
Not only was he captivated by Basilisa's stunning beauty, but his thoughts were also transformed by the silver dragon's influence.
Returning to the Titans, he harbored the mad ambition of abolishing the caste system!
Atlas's heretical ideas naturally failed to gain widespread acceptance among his tribe.
The elders, convinced he had been brainwashed by the evil dragon, publicly executed him for treason, ultimately costing him his life.
Atreus was also implicated by his brother.
A few days after personally executing Atlas, he received a commission from the elders.
They ordered him to travel to the White Deer Forest and capture Basilissa, the evil dragon who had bewitched Atlas, and execute her to avenge the shame she had brought upon the Titans!
With the strength of a Gold Titan, capturing an adult silver dragon alive should be easy.
However, Alan didn't believe it was an easy task.
Basilissa was not only a silver dragon, but also a priest of the Dragon God and the Queen of the Elves.
In addition to her dragon vein magic, she was also proficient in divine arts and surrounded by a large group of devout elven followers.
I doubted Basilissa would surrender, so don't expect a one-on-one duel with her.
So before leaving, Alan disguised himself.
The Titans are born with the ability to transform.
They can transform into humanoids or giants.
To keep a low profile, Alan transformed himself into an old sorcerer with gray hair and beard.
He wore a gray robe, a pointed hat, and wielded an oak staff.
In this state, calling himself a handsome man was no longer appropriate.
Alan gave himself the alias Gandalf.
After making his preparations, Alan bid farewell to his tribe and set out on his journey alone.
He patted his chest and promised the elders that he would capture the evil dragon and execute it within a month.
In reality, it was just talk.
Ellen's ancestral spirit, ordered to capture his brother's lover, struggled with feelings of ingratitude towards his brother's spirit.
If he showed mercy and let Basilisa go, he worried he would return empty-handed and be unable to report to the elders.
Thus, in real history, the ancestral spirit wandered outside for the better part of six months.
Most of that time, he secretly observed Basilisa, like a creepy stalker.
Whenever the Silver Dragon Lady encountered trouble, he would appear as an old sorcerer to help her out.
Over time, he and Basilisa became close friends, sharing everything they could talk about.
Naturally, he fell in love with this beautiful and kind dragoness.
Just like his brother Atlas.
From that moment on, his life was doomed to tragedy.
Ellen was no weak, shy Atreus.
Emotionally, he saw things more clearly than the ancestor.
If he wanted to make up for the ancestor's regrets and achieve perfect meditation, there was only one principle: boldly pursue Basilisa!
knew exactly what he wanted.
But he ultimately couldn't take this forbidden step.
Besides the enemy-to-enemy relationship and the prejudices instilled in him since childhood, more importantly, he couldn't overcome the inner barrier that he felt pursuing his brother's former lover was immoral.
Alan had no such scruples.
He didn't have a pretentious moral obsession.
He had no prejudice against the metal dragons.
In fact, as a time traveler, he admired the silver dragon Basilisa's tolerance towards weaker races more than the Titans, who advocated for bloodline theory and a caste system.
As for how to report this to the elders?
Allen paid no attention to this dilemma that had once troubled .
He could just make up some random lie, like, after he'd killed Basilisa, her body fell into the crater and burned to ash...
What elder didn't believe it? Just go into the crater and verify it themselves!
Even if the old men knew he was making it up, what could they do?
A Silver Titan dared to question the venerable Gold Titan?
He was the only, irreplaceable Gold Titan in the world!
This status guaranteed him the right to be a little willful.
Unfortunately, had never once in his life used his noble status to exercise his privileges and indulge in unbridled willfulness.
He was too thin-skinned and too concerned with what others thought.
He would rather compromise himself to please others.
Alan felt that greatest tragedy was the mismatch between his personality and his status. It's like a pure artist being thrust onto the throne—a fate neither for him nor for his subjects.
By the time Allen teleported to the White Deer Forest, night had fallen.
From the depths of the forest, flames shot skyward.
The sound of shouting and killing carried on the wind.
Allen frowned slightly, grasping his wooden staff and soaring into the air.
The Titans possessed the innate ability to ride the wind.
Soon, Allen floated above the chaotic battlefield.
The elves' village was under siege.
The attackers were a group of hideous, ferocious orcs.
They numbered no fewer than two or three hundred!
The elves guarding the village were far fewer in number.
Hiding in the burning house, desperately shooting arrows out the window.
Allen landed directly in the center of the blaze.
The level five fire resistance absorbed from the red dragon was more than enough to offset the blazing flames.
Alan waved his staff, pretending to cast a spell.
In reality, he was drawing on magic power to activate his ice-based martial arts.
Expanding Super Magic!
Shaping Super Magic!
Icy Soul Freezing Wave!
Swish!
A pale ring of ice radiated out, instantly extinguishing the flames.
The elves struggling to hold on within the fire were enclosed within the protective zone of the "Shaping Super Magic," unharmed by the cold.
At the edge of the fire, numerous orcs were frozen into blocks of ice.
Their expressions of astonishment were forever frozen in the ice sculptures.
A group of orcs on the periphery, alarmed by the disruption, cast spells to extinguish the fire and immediately surrounded them.
"You old man, you dare to meddle in my business? You're dead!"
The orc leader roared, brandishing his mace.
Alan turned and glanced at him indifferently.
His golden pupils flashed with brilliant lightning!
Crack!
Alan's gaze transformed into two bolts of lightning, striking the orc leader, instantly burning him to charcoal.
This wasn't the end.
From the orc leader's corpse, countless arcs of electricity shot out in all directions, like gleaming whips.
Crack!
Within a hundred feet, all the orcs were mercilessly whipped by the arcs, their screams echoing through the night sky.
One hundred orcs, instantly dead!