Three days passed in a quiet routine.
The library had become their temporary world—breathing, cultivating, reading, and refining. Nie Li's progress was steady, controlled. Du Zhe and the others followed closely behind, each immersed in their own cultivation paths.
Only one presence remained absent.
On the afternoon of the third day, footsteps echoed softly at the library entrance.
Nie Li opened his eyes.
…He's back.
The door slid open.
Karma stepped inside.
He looked the same as always—calm, relaxed, almost lazy—but something about him felt… settled. Like a blade returned to its sheath after being drawn for too long.
"Wow," Karma said lightly, glancing around. "You guys look serious. Did I miss something fun?"
Every head snapped toward him.
Lu Piao stared like he'd seen a ghost.
Du Zhe swallowed.
Wei Nan and the others instinctively straightened.
Nie Li's eyes sharpened.
"You're late," Nie Li said.
Lu Piao nearly jumped to his feet. "Oi! You're alive!" he blurted out. "You disappeared for three whole days!"
Wei Nan frowned. "You missed everything."
Du Zhe studied Karma closely, his brows knitting for a brief moment.
"…You're late," he said simply.
Karma shrugged, walking over and dropping into an empty spot as if nothing had happened. "Had to take care of some business matters," he replied casually.
"Business?" Lu Piao echoed. "What kind of business makes someone vanish for three days?"
"Family business," Karma said, tone light.
Karma shrugged. "Got held up. Clan stuff. Boring meetings. You know how it is."
That shut Lu Piao up immediately.
Nie Li watched him quietly.
Karma met his gaze and smiled faintly. "What? Miss me?"
Nie Li exhaled slowly and shook his head. He said. "Sit."
Karma blinked. "What's with that look, are you testing people?"
"Yes," Nie Li replied. "You're next."
The room grew quiet.
Lu Piao leaned forward instinctively.
Du Zhe's grip tightened on his own crystal.
Karma tilted his head, mildly amused. "Sure. Why not."
He stepped forward and accepted the crystal from Nie Li.
The room grew quiet.
And for the first time since arriving in this life, Nie Li prepared to look directly into the soul realm of someone whose destiny even he had once failed to fully understand.
The moment Karma's fingers closed around it—
The air shifted.
Not violently.
Not explosively.
But wrong.
The spirit lamps flickered.
The dust motes suspended in the sunlight stopped drifting—as if gravity itself had forgotten what it was supposed to do.
Nie Li's pupils contracted.
…This feeling.
"Karma" Nie Li said carefully, "focus inward. Just like the others."
Karma nodded and closed his eyes.
The soul crystal did not glow.
Instead—
It fell silent.
Then—
Crack.
A soundless fracture rippled through perception itself.
Nie li who was trying to look inside the crystal got his consciousness pulled inside karma's soul realm.
Not into light.
But into vastness.
Nie Li stood in a boundless void.
No sky.
No ground.
At the center of existence itself stood a jade throne.
Ancient.
Unmoving.
Absolute.
Around it, countless universes drifted—fully formed worlds, stars being born and dying, laws weaving themselves into reality like threads on a loom.
They didn't orbit the throne.
They answered to it.
Nie Li's breath caught.
This wasn't a soul sea.
This wasn't a soul realm.
This was—
"…Authority" he whispered.
The fundamental forces themselves—gravity, motion, cohesion, decay—bent and restructured around the throne, not as techniques, not as cultivation…
But as obedience.
Nie Li staggered back mentally.
This wasn't power gained through cultivation.
This was power that existed first—and reality learned to accommodate it later.
The vision collapsed.
Nie Li snapped back to the library.
His hand trembled.
The soul crystal in Karma's grasp had turned completely transparent—no color, no attribute, no measurable output.
As if it had failed.
Or more accurately—
As if it had refused.
"Karma," Nie Li said slowly, voice tight, "how have you been cultivating until now?"
Karma opened one eye. "Cultivating?"
He frowned slightly, then shrugged.
"My clan gave me a lot of techniques over the years," he said casually.
"Breathing methods. Circulation formulas. Some fancy stuff."
Nie Li listened carefully.
"But honestly?" Karma continued. "They felt… restrictive. Like trying to pour the ocean into a cup."
The others froze.
"So I stopped using them," Karma said. "I just… focus. When I look inward, it feels like there's a lot inside. Endless, almost."
He scratched his cheek.
"I don't train to get stronger. I just… explore. Understand. Adjust."
Nie Li closed his eyes briefly.
…As I thought.
"You were never cultivating," Nie Li said softly.
Karma blinked. "I wasn't?"
"No," Nie Li replied. "You were discovering yourself."
The room was dead silent.
Lu Piao swallowed hard.
"Nie Li… what are you saying?"
Nie Li opened his eyes.
"Karma doesn't need a demon spirit," he said firmly.
"He can't merge with one—even if he tried."
Karma frowned. "Why not?"
"Because your soul realm would reject it," Nie Li replied without hesitation.
"A demon spirit is an external existence."
He looked straight at Karma, his expression serious.
"Your soul will never accept something weaker than itself."
Karma scratched his head, clearly puzzled.
"…But why?" he asked.
Nie Li shrugged casually, like he was explaining something obvious.
"Think of it like this," he said.
"Why would a king let a servant move into his throne room?"
Karma blinked once.
Then twice.
"…Hey," he said flatly. "That's kinda rude."
Nie Li's lips curved into a small, amused smile.
"Yeah," he replied.
"But it fits perfectly."
Karma opened his mouth to argue—then paused.
"…Huh."
He leaned back, arms crossed, staring at the ceiling.
"…That explains a lot, actually."
Nie Li took a steady breath.
"Your power doesn't need to be cultivated," he said.
"It needs to be regulated."
Everyone listened.
"I'm not teaching you how to grow stronger," Nie Li continued.
"I'm teaching you how to survive your own authority."
The words landed like thunder.
Karma went quiet.
He closed his eyes.
At first, there was nothing—just the familiar darkness behind his eyelids.
Then—
Space unfolded.
It was as if a curtain had been pulled aside.
Karma found himself standing in a vast, silent expanse. No ground beneath his feet, no sky above—only endless distance filled with drifting stars. Worlds formed far away, lived out their brief existences, and faded, all without sound.
He stared, stunned.
"…So this is what's been there all along?"
At the very center of that boundless space—
A jade throne.
It didn't radiate any pressure pressure.
It simply existed.
Like something ancient and unmoving.
As if it had been waiting since the beginning of time.
Karma felt it instantly.
This wasn't something foreign.
This wasn't something given.
This was him.
He took a slow step forward.
The stars did not move—but their paths subtly aligned.
The space itself seemed to quiet, as though listening.
Karma looked at the throne and scratched the back of his head.
"…So it was you, huh."
There was no voice in response.
No reaction.
And yet—
He felt it.
Acknowledgment.
Karma smiled faintly, something rare and sincere.
"All that strength," he said quietly.
"All those weird talents… the things people keep calling gifts."
He let out a soft breath.
"…Guess I never really thanked you."
He simply stood there, relaxed, hands in his pockets.
"But hey," he continued lightly,
"let's take this slow, yeah?"
The jade throne did not answer.
It didn't need to.
The moment Karma accepted it—hr accepted himself—
Something clicked.
A soft click echoed—not in the room, but within existence itself. Like a lock recognizing its rightful key.
Nie Li felt it first.
His breath caught.
"That—!"
A pressure surged outward, subtle but absolute. Not violent. Not explosive. It didn't ripple—it settled, like reality adjusting itself around a fixed point.
The spirit lamps flickered.
Dust motes froze midair.
Then—
Boom.
An invisible barrier shattered.
Karma's aura shifted.
Bronze Rank.
The breakthrough was complete.
Silently.
Effortlessly.
Karma opened his eyes.
"…Huh," he said, blinking once.
"That felt… good."
The room was frozen.
Lu Piao's mouth hung open.
Du Zhe stared as if his worldview had just collapsed.
Wei Nan felt his scalp prickle.
Zhang Ming forgot how to breathe.
Zhu Yu Jun looking shocked.
Even Nie Li stood stunned.
…Instant breakthrough?
No circulation.
No chanting.
No resistance.
Just understanding.
Nie Li exhaled slowly, forcing his racing thoughts into order.
"…You broke through," he said quietly.
Karma glanced at his hands, flexed his fingers slightly, then looked up with a faint grin.
"So I did."
Lu Piao finally exploded.
"ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!" he shouted.
"You just stood there!"
Du Zhe swallowed hard.
"Bronze Rank… just like that?"
Nie Li's expression hardened.
Karma, meanwhile, felt… good.
Too good.
He rolled his shoulders once, then twice, letting out a small breath. His body felt light—unnaturally light. The faint heaviness he had always carried, something he had never quite been able to name, seemed to have loosened.
"Huh," he muttered. "That was… refreshing."
Nie Li, who had been watching him closely, frowned.
Something was off.
"Karma," Nie Li said carefully, "how do you feel?"
Karma tilted his head, thinking for a moment.
"Clear," he replied. "Like… a fog lifted. My soul realm feels more settled than before."
As he spoke, he subconsciously pressed a hand against his chest.
The movement was small.
Almost unnoticeable.
Nie Li's pupils shrank.
"…Your chest," Nie Li said quietly. "Why did you do that?"
Karma blinked, clearly surprised by the question.
"Did I?" He glanced down at his hand, then shrugged. "Guess it's a habit. Sometimes it feels a little tight there."
Nie Li's heart sank.
Tight.
That word alone sent a chill down his spine.
"Does it hurt?" Nie Li asked immediately.
Karma waved it off.
"Not really. More like… pressure. Comes and goes. I've had it for years."
Years.
Nie Li clenched his fist.
In his previous life, Karma had never spoken about it either.
It wasn't a pain.
Not yet.
It was a warning.
Nie Li stepped closer, lowering his voice so only Karma could hear.
"Does it happen more often when you focus on your soul realm?"
Karma paused.
"…Yeah," he admitted after a moment. "When I look deeper inside, it feels like something is pulling inward. Like everything wants to collapse into one point."
Nie Li's blood ran cold.
That wasn't normal cultivation backlash.
That was his bloodline reacting.
The awakening didn't just unlock power—it stirred the seal.
"Listen to me carefully," Nie Li said, his tone suddenly serious enough that Karma straightened without thinking.
"For now, do not probe too deeply into your soul realm," Nie Li continued.
"Explore slowly. Observe—but don't force anything."
Karma frowned.
"Why? I feel like there's a lot more in there."
"I know," Nie Li said softly.
"That's exactly why you need to stop."
The others noticed the change in atmosphere.
Lu Piao leaned over.
"Oi… why do you two suddenly look like someone died?"
Nie Li didn't answer him.
"Listen to me carefully," he said.
"Your growth rate will be terrifying. But growth doesn't matter."
He stepped closer.
"Understanding does. Control does. Foundation does."
Karma nodded slowly.
"I get it," he said. "If I rush… I'll break something."
"…Or everything," Nie Li replied.
Behind them—
Du Zhe, Lu Piao, Wei Nan, Zhang Ming, and Zhu You Jun stood frozen.
They had already been shocked.
Now they were terrified.
Nie Li turned to them.
"What you heard today," he said calmly, "does not leave this room."
His gaze sharpened.
"Not to classmates. Not to instructors. Not to family."
He looked at Karma.
"And you," Nie Li added. "Especially you. Don't reveal this to anyone."
Karma smiled faintly. "Wasn't planning to."
Nie Li nodded.
"…Good."
He paused, his expression turning thoughtful.
"A power like this has never been recorded,"
Nie Li murmured.
"No technique. No classification."
He lifted his gaze and met Karma's eyes again—this time with unmistakable certainty.
"It needs a name."
Karma raised an eyebrow, the corner of his mouth twitching. "You seem to understand my power better than I do," he said lightly. "So go ahead—name it."
Nie Li let out a soft chuckle. "Yes," he replied.
"Because one day, the entire world will know about this power. So it should be ."
His voice was calm, but each word carried weight.
"Emperor's Authority."
The room seemed to still around those words, as if even the air was listening.
Karma blinked, then tilted his head. "…That's a bit dramatic, isn't it?"
Nie Li smiled faintly, a smile that carried both certainty and inevitability. "You'll understand," he said quietly.
"In the future."
…Still," he said, "breaking through Bronze Rank just by aligning your soul realm…"
He shook his head softly.
"That's ridiculous."
Lu Piao laughed weakly.
"Ridiculous doesn't even cover it."
Du Zhe stepped forward and bowed his head slightly.
"Congratulations, Karma."
The others followed, voices overlapping.
"Congratulations!"
"That was insane!"
"I don't even know what I just saw!"
Karma rubbed the back of his head, clearly embarrassed.
"…You guys are making this weird."
Nie Li looked at him—really looked at him.
In his previous life, Karma had stood beside him at the end of the world.
Back then, he had only seen the result.
Now—
He was witnessing the beginning.
And for the first time since his rebirth, Nie Li felt something close to awe.
So this is how it starts, he thought.
Not with ambition.
Not with hunger.
But with understanding.