My body floated several meters above the ground, legs folded beneath me.
I closed my eyes and began circulating the Primordial Azure Beast Scripture.
The response was immediate.
Energy from every direction surged toward me, flooding my body and sinking deep into my lower abdomen.
My energy sea churned.
My meridians pulsed.
My acupoints opened like starving mouths.
I could feel everything — blood flow, bone structure, spiritual pathways — every part of me revealed as if my body had become transparent to my senses.
My Dantian formed rapidly.
Absurdly fast.
This level of energy was nothing to my body.
My Spirit Sea trembled as divine laws poured in — not violent, but heavy… ancient… overwhelming.
It felt as though the very laws of nature were pressing themselves into my being.
Something deep within me responded.
The space where the beast inside me slumbered… stirred.
Energy flowed like rivers into a bottomless abyss.
And yet… it felt like pouring a cup of water into an ocean.
Still, I continued.
A strange force seeped into my flesh, slowly changing something fundamental.
The natural energy here felt strangely familiar — sharper, closer, almost… eager.
I didn't question it.
Not now.
---
Time passed — I couldn't tell how long.
When I finally opened my eyes…
The world was barren.
What was once lush and alive had become a cracked wasteland.
Dry ground stretched in all directions like an ancient battlefield long forgotten.
"What happened?"
> Master absorbed all the available energy.
My eyes narrowed.
"I have to be careful when I go back… will the same happen there?"
> No. This space had no regenerative cycle. Your clan world does.
Good.
I descended slowly, landing on the cracked ground.
Only the sky remained untouched.
There was no sign of the portal.
No doorway.
No exit.
"…How do I leave?"
The moment the thought crossed my mind —
Space tore open in front of me.
A black rift formed, expanding rapidly.
I narrowed my eyes, senses sharpened.
"…Demonic energy?"
From the center of the rift, red light pulsed outward like a heartbeat.
Then — a figure stepped through.
One foot first.
Then the rest.
A man emerged.
His body was covered in deep red fur like a battle cloak.
His torso bore black stripes, muscles defined and hardened like carved obsidian.
A tail swayed behind him with controlled precision.
His presence was divine.
And dark.
His eyes were blood-red.
His hair spiked wildly, giving him a dangerous, untamed presence.
He wore obsidian gauntlets etched with glowing runes — cracked and worn from countless battles.
His armor, also fractured, pulsed faintly with red energy.
The scent of fresh blood lingered around him.
Not old.
Fresh.
He stared at me without speaking.
I stared back.
Neither of us moved.
Neither of us blinked.
Time dragged.
Seconds stretched.
Tension thickened.
His face felt… familiar.
But I couldn't place why.
---
[Analysis: Unknown Being]
Name: Nyxarion
Race: Red-Eyed Red Tiger (Vorzarion)
Realm: Apex God — Final Divine State
Path: Slaughter / Soul Ascension
Laws: Devouring Flames, Abyssal Gravity, Void Pressure, Chaos, Authority (1%)
Title: Abyssal Heaven-Devouring Beast
Bloodline Purity: 30%
---
He finally spoke.
"You are the Pure One."
His tone held neither respect nor contempt — only certainty.
I said nothing.
He continued.
"I am Nyxarion… Demon God of the Red Tiger Clan… from Neraphyx."
Neraphyx…
The Land of Slaughter.
My body tensed.
He watched me closely.
"I came to confirm something."
Before I could respond—
Something inside me snapped.
My vision blurred.
Then sharpened.
My pupils split vertically.
Not human.
Not fully beast.
Something deeper.
And then—
A voice spoke.
Not from my throat.
But from my very being.
---
"I am Velzahar…"
---
The world trembled.
---
"The Burning Roar of the Heavens."
---
Space bent.
---
"Sovereign of the Azure Flame."
---
The words echoed.
Not as sound—
But as law.
Reality itself acknowledged it.
Nyxarion smiled — not mockingly, but as if a long wait had ended.
When control returned to me, my guard went up instantly.
He lowered his head slightly.
"I pay respect to the Pure One."
Pure One?
My tail flicked sharply.
Lightning surged around me.
Prime Instinct activated.
He watched me calmly.
"You wish to understand Authority, don't you?"
I froze.
Then slowly nodded.
A grin spread across his face.
"Good."
He turned toward the desolate land around us.
"I cultivated this place myself… long ago."
His voice carried faint nostalgia.
"I wanted to see what the world on your side looked like."
A pause.
"You rarely see trees in Neraphyx."
He glanced at the cracked ground.
"But now… this place has returned to what it was meant to be."
Before I could ask what he meant—
"Come find me in Neraphyx when you're ready."
He stepped back into the portal.
It closed.
Silence returned.
I stood still for a moment.
Then—
Lightning exploded around me.
I shifted into my primal form and struck the air.
BOOM—!
Space tore open.
The world began to collapse.
And I stepped through the rift—
Returning home.