Grand Ancestral Bloodlines
chapter-1957

The world spun around Ryu and he took a deep breath of what could only be described as death. Though it at least didn't smell like it, it definitely had a certain chilling cold to it that was more piercing than normal ice would be.

Ryu had realized that a lot on the way here. The cold was soul-deep, making it feel different.

But there really was no reason why his normal ice couldn't be that way. It was just that the type of Ice Affinity he had tended much more toward Defense.

It was said that the Ice Phoenix had among the strongest defenses of all the Ancestral Beasts, while the Dark Phoenix had the strongest offense.

When you put things into perspective like that, it only made sense that the Dark Phoenix's death would be able to attack the soul.

'It's no wonder their fusion together works so well. Hm… I guess I should have my Dao Heart and Perfect Blackbody Soul start working on some soul techniques.'

He had gotten into the habit of thinking of his clones like a pair of rascals. They did what they wanted and they were incredibly arrogant, believing that their way was the only way.

But at the same time, they seemed to be aware of one another's existence. Due to that, of the over hundred techniques his Dao Heart had created, not a single one of them was a Soul attacking technique, which was a shame considering the flexibility of his Perfect Blackbody.

By the same token, when his Perfect Blackbody Soul streamlined these techniques, it tended to go out of its way to knock his Dao Heart down a peg, taking pride in being able to keep the same power through a much simpler process as though it was a slap to his Dao Heart's face.

However, there was only one true master here, and now that Ryu had a rare moment of enlightenment, the creation of the technique should be even faster.

He gave them solid parameters to follow, so he bet that within a few hours, to a few days at most, he would have a perfected technique.

'A death ice soul technique… I wonder what I should name you…'

Ryu looked up to the skies with a slight smile. He was feeling a little bit better these days, and it was ironically because of his battle against the Heavens. He had been able to unleash in a way he hadn't been able to in a long while.

Of course, escaping from all of those Lords, Sovereigns, and that Dao God was certainly a helper as well.

When a Holy World appeared, it was considered to be a distortion in the world's Spacetime. As such, most wouldn't even dare to rip into the void or teleport near it for fear of what might happen. That was even more true when your cultivation was above the Holy World.

If you accidentally stepped on the wrong node, you could be shredded apart by the world's pressure if your cultivation was above the bounds of the Holy World.

However, likewise, if you stepped on the wrong node on purpose…

You would be able to enter the Holy World without even being all that close to the portal.

Ryu's control over Spacetime, even without having absorbed a Spacetime Holy World just yet, was still among his strongest comprehensions. At the very least, his talent for it was ridiculous.

'Now… let's have a bit of fun.'

The world around him was as dark and dreary as one might imagine, with hardly much of a difference between the foggy ground and dense black clouds above.

The only points of light were curves of silver that followed the outline of the clouds above, almost as though they were hiding a silver moon's shine behind them.

Because Ryu hadn't entered the Holy World through normal means, he was randomly teleported and he wasn't sure exactly where he was, whether that be human or Fiend territory.

Of course, he had no intention of relying on the humans here. For one, the Human Race was weak from all the oppression it faced, and even if they weren't, he preferred to work alone one way or another.

Now… if he was in the Fiend Race's territory.

'Well, I guess that's my answer.'

Ryu looked in a certain direction and already felt several auras raging toward him. However, he was calm and indifferent.

This might be a Lord Grade World. But… his eyes were still almost invincible here nonetheless.

The Fiends inside must have already gotten information about what happened in the outside world and were on an all-out manhunt.

Ryu laughed into the skies. It had truly been too long since he had had so much fun.

…

Deep within Fiend territory, a young woman sat on a Throne. Well, if you could call it that.

She had one foot on the seat as her other dangled, unable to reach the floor due to her shortness. She must have been barely five feet tall and she didn't seem to be wearing any clothing at all. Instead, her breasts and lower half were covered by a dense array of solid carbon-like earth, exuding an eerie blackness.

Her hair, however, was a flowing river of water that seemed incapable of spilling even a single drop.

What was odd about this little genius woman, though… was that her eyes seemed to contain a completely different pairing of elements. One was bronzed and shimmered like polished brass, and her other eye was an icy blue, emitting a frigid air.

In the Fiend Race, this was known as Metamorphosis.

She was born as a Childe of Earth and Water. But through her cultivation, she gained Metal and Ice. It was an evolution, a step up, and unlike her counterparts, it didn't clash with her current body at all…

It only made her several times stronger.

She took another chunk out of the enormous beast leg she was eating.

"Press me down?" Her voice almost came out in a growl.

Of course, this woman could only be Aria Moon.