Tevera Empire. Imperial Palace. Royal Altar.
Edicius is facing the altar of a white statue robed regally with a hood. The statue is completely white, seated on a grand throne chair of gold. Below the altar, there are around 30 candles lit with white flames. Edicius is praying. Then suddenly, the light turns red. He opens his eyes. A man enters the Royal Altar.
The Royal Altar contains 36 other statues before the statue of the previous ancestor—36 statues of angels, each with different appearances, carrying different weapons, and exuding distinct auras and expressions. They stand in the hallway, 18 on the right and 18 on the left.
Edicius: What is it?
Minister Tredes: Your Highness. The spies we sent to the eastern and western nations were killed in action. After that, the horde that comes out of nowhere is now rampaging again across all nations in the north, and some in the eastern and western regions. Protests from civilians against the empire have also started throughout Tevera. The plan to sweep out most major forces in Tevera has been revealed to the masses, not just the big clans. Revolution is imminent.
Edicius: Send some people to quell these issues.
Minister Tredes: That would be impossible, my lord. Another rumor is spreading throughout Tevera—that the empire is the one responsible for the hordes. The help we sent to the eastern and western regions clashed with major clans here—all of them were wiped out.
Edicius: Annihilate them all.
Minister Tredes: But Your Highness, this will prove that all those rumors and accusations they're throwing at us are true.
Edicius: The time has come. The harvest shall be done.
(Suddenly, a white orb manifests within the altar.)
All throughout Tevera, an unseen force begins to gather the energy of the dead across the continent. Everything is being siphoned from the land into the white orb; the more the orb absorbs, the more golden its color becomes.
Minister Tredes: This... (Witnessing such divinity at play, the minister falls to his knees as the pressure of divinity permeates the Royal Altar. The statues of the 36 angels also begin to exude auras.)
Yes, Your Highness. (He bows and kneels.)
---
Meanwhile, deep within the empire—a black prison.
A man is hanging from hundreds of crimson red-gold chains, imprisoned in this deep black quarter. Archeidis, the Refiner of Tevera Continent and the only Divine Realm powerhouse of Tevera—the Guardian of the Continent.
Archeidis: Damn angels. (Sensing the presence of divinity again, and the aura of those same angels that trapped him here—to become a vessel to extract the essence of the continent.)
Ahhh... (He tries to break free from the chains, but they only tighten further, like snakes coiling around his body.)
Suddenly, one of the angel statues moves. It looks at his suffering and smiles—a creepy and horrifying expression. In the black prison where he is held captive, there are 24 pillars. Each pillar is bound with red and gold chains that suspend him in the air. Every pillar is guarded by one angel statue.
Arkan: Stop your resistance, Archeidis. You will never be freed from our chains.
Archeidis: Ahh... (He resists again, but the chains only worsen, tightening even more.)
Arkan: Stop, everyone. He will die if you tighten it any further.
Archeidis: It's only a matter of time. My lifespan is already at its end. And once that happens, all of you will be sucked back into that place again.
Haha. (The angel statues laugh at him.)
Arkan: And once you die, you will become one of us and be imprisoned in that place along with us. Hahaha! (The angels laugh.)
Archeidis: What do you mean? (This is the first time he's heard such information in thousands of years of captivity.)
---
Archeidis is the Refiner of Tevera Continent. He was a rogue powerhouse from overseas who dreamed of founding his own empire and refining a continent of his own—gaining power over all its lands. Ruling not just by title, but as the true owner of the continent—its Refiner.
He discovered the core of the continent—not located on the land of Tevera, but inside Tevera. It lies in a spatial realm within the continent itself. If we view Tevera as a living organism, the whole land is its body. To conquer it, he had to find its soul and spirit to refine. That's why he searched the void inside the continent and entered that concealed realm.
After years of searching, he eventually saw a light from within Tevera and entered the realm—a realm of clouds and golden brilliance. A lush land filled with majestic trees of varying colors, and many angel statues scattered around.
He found an altar with a core of rainbow-colored crystal levitating upon it. He tried to touch it, but it was ethereal—untouchable by physical means. This indicated that he had truly found the core of Tevera. He hurriedly refined it, but failed to notice that the angel statues around him were now smiling—horrifically and maliciously.
At that moment, Archeidis truly refined the Tevera Continent, and ruled for a thousand years as its emperor. But after founding the Tevera Empire, the angel statues moved and apprehended him, imprisoning him. He became the reason why the angel statues emerged from that realm.
These angel statues did not interfere in Tevera initially, but they harvested the souls across the land. All deaths throughout Tevera—every soul—was refined into a golden orb they called a "fruit." This was the food of the angel statues. It took a thousand years before they could act, as they were originally frozen in petrified stone form. But after constantly absorbing souls—thanks to Archeidis refining the core of the continent—they were able to move freely. That was when he was imprisoned.
Then a religion was founded centered on the leader of these angel statues—the white statue. He was called the Moonlight Sovereign by the other angel statues. Through their manipulation, they controlled Archeidis' descendants and established a religion called The Church of Moonlit Radiance. This religion's faith is centered on the Moonlight Sovereign.
But this white statue had never moved in over a thousand years. However, it constantly created white orbs to produce fruits. To the angel statues, this is their god who has remained in this state ever since the ancient war—but they are privy to this truth.
He was held captive because he refused to cooperate with them—mainly due to the soul harvesting that turned all the dead into fruits. He saw this insidious method of survival, feeding on souls, as monstrous. But all these statues were Divine Realm powerhouses; he alone couldn't contend against the 65 statues—and there was still their Sovereign in a statue-like state.
Their Sovereign was unlike them. He fed on fate through the Church of Evernight.
The true owner of the core of Tevera is the Moonlight Sovereign. When Archeidis became the Refiner of the continent, he unknowingly became the vessel of their recovery. This was a failsafe device set by the Moonlight Sovereign for their eventual return in the future. Archeidis became the reason they were saved.
All those who refine the core eventually become his pawn. But Archeidis wanted to break free from their control. He had tried to escape countless times, but after discovering these truths, he now simply wanted to die—so that they would all be sucked back into the core realm of Tevera. They were bound to it, so if it closed upon his death, they would be returned to that place, even if they didn't want to be.
But now, another secret was about to be revealed.
Arkan: You refined the core of the continent, which our master had refined long ago in ancient times. And all those who refined the core after him became like us. Do you see that inside the core realm there are still many angel statues? All of those statues are vessels—vessels for the Refiners to become like us.
Archeidis: This… No...
Arkan: Now… are you willing to cooperate with us?
Archeidis: Never! (He shatters his soul and spirit inside his body. He had tried to kill himself many times before, but he was never willing to destroy his inner being—holding onto the belief that all those who die will be reincarnated. But now, hearing these things from the angel statue, he was pushed to the edge. He shattered his soul and spirit, killing himself from within.)
Then an explosion of aura erupted from within Archeidis' body. His body became lifeless.
Arkan: Noooo! (The angels' faces turned grim.)
Then, multiple void corridors manifested around them, pulling them back into the core realm.
In the altar, the same thing was happening. The statues began to move, trying to resist the sucking force of the void. Even the statue of the Moonlight Sovereign was dragged into the core realm.
Edicius: (He rushed back to the altar, sensing the multiple spatial forces. But when he arrived, all the statues were gone.)
What happened? (He is holding the golden orb in his hand.)
Hmmm… (Then he notices that the aura of his ancestor, Archeidis, has vanished.)
So… the old man has finally kicked the bucket. With this… (holding the golden orb called fruit) I will become a Divine Realm powerhouse and refine this continent.
Hahaha!
---
Culvary Nation. Council of Eighth. One Month Later.
Ulysses: So… who will be the representative that will go to the Empire?
Ulysses was asking the council which of them would act as a representative for the sudden Summit of Nations in Tevera, held by the Empire.
A week ago, they had received a summons to attend the summit. And clearly, this was no ordinary summit. Whoever might attend it could very well lose their lives.
All forces of the Empire had been recalled. Despite their continued secret deployment of beast hordes across the north, east, west, and the Empire region, the Empire no longer supported its forces in those afflicted nations. But the Council of Eighth had no plans to stop the hordes—so even now, they continued sending beast hordes.
Wilson: Let's not attend this summit. How about we use some of our people in the Empire—those who know nothing about this mess—to attend the gathering as our representatives? (He looks at Ulysses.)
Belerick: Indeed. (He also looks at Ulysses. Now, everyone is staring at him.)
Vander: One of your executives is managing one of your major branches in the Empire. How about using them? All they need to do is obey the Empire's bidding and agree to everything—no matter what.
Ulysses: Hayz… Then so be it.
Wing.
A sound from the communication stone as it materializes an illusion call from an elder.
Demeter: Elder Zouge.
Zouge: Patriarch, we've already found the core of the continent. But the abyssal hole leading to the void entrance deep beneath the earth is guarded by a colossal-sized dragon—and it's a Divine Beast.
Zouge: We need someone to infiltrate and enter the realm without the dragon noticing. Most Mythical Rank powerhouses have slipped past it, but any Ancestral Lord level cannot get near. Mythical Realm powerhouses report that refining the source is impossible.
A projection of the core of the continent appears—colossal in size, suspended in the void.
Zouge: This abyssal cave that leads to the void where the core lies seems to have been created by this dragon. It is using the core to draw out the energy of the continent to cultivate. Our chances of refining the core are near zero. But if we tame this beast, we can definitely refine the source of the continent.
All Mythical Rank powerhouses can reach the location and even step on the dragon's body. It views anyone below Ancestral Lord rank as insects and doesn't care about their presence. But none of our forces here can tame it. We need someone capable of seizing its soul and taming it from the inside. Yet all soul-related powerhouses here are unable to approach the dragon.
We will also stop sending spatial stones for beast hordes. Now, all forces must focus on refining this continent. The ancestors of all clans and sects are requesting more Mythical Rank and lower members to be sent to the new lands.
The communication stone falls, and the illusion vanishes.
Rebecca: It seems the future of our united front will lie in the hands of the young ones.
Escobar: Let's stop harassing the Empire and now focus on evacuating all our forces to the new lands. Once we finish, we'll destroy the array connections after the migration.
Belerick: Then so be it. But remember this: we, the Eight Forces of Culvary, formed a pact to cooperate for a thousand years—no matter who refines the continent. I hope the clan that eventually refines the source will honor this pact.
Everyone agreed.
Sebastian: But we still lack Essence Stones for cross-direction spatial travel, which the array requires. This massive migration will take a year before we can fully depart for the new lands.
Teleportation to the new lands required a lot of resources—just like it did 50 years ago—when all major powerhouses of Culvary were sent to the new lands.
Rebecca: Vander, one of your concubines—Veronica, who died a decade ago—could harness the array and travel with a few people. Can such skills still be used?
Vander: Unfortunately, no. Only Veronica knew how to do that. And that first voyage she took was just an experiment, with her life on the line, using that array.
Escobar: Hmm. But doesn't she still have that uncle—that terrifying man? And the Ventouso are skilled in spatial manipulation. Plus, the pact between him and the Empire only applies within this continent. So if he travels to the new lands with others, he won't be bound by that pact.
Vander: Indeed. But his whereabouts are unknown. Ever since Veronica became my concubine, that man vanished from the sight of all major forces in Tevera. Only Veronica knew where he was.
Rebecca: That's unfortunate.
Belerick: Hmm. But maybe your son with Veronica can harness it.
Vander: That would be impossible. Lyrus was never taught anything about the Ventouso's ancient powers, nor was he groomed by the Eisien Clan.
Belerick: Yes, we all know that. None of your concubines were taught anything, nor were they supported with cultivation resources. But my son Liam, and one of my elders, Forgo, were on a mission in the Wildlands. Through their investigation, your son was involved. The young man they encountered in the Wildlands—fighting alongside his beasts against the Margorio, the Bahamut—was your son, Lyrus. The battle left a massive crater, which has now become a great lake under a newly founded sect called AVALON, which your son, Lyrus, co-founded. These findings prompted me to have Forgo investigate the events in the Wildlands, especially after they acquired the Bahamut dragon egg.
Belerick: And it seems Thomas's uncle is also part of this new sect. (He hands over documents.)
Everyone looks at the files.
Belerick: Your son, Lyrus, has been continuously increasing his strength over the past few months. He now has 41 bonded beasts—and all of them are currently Mythical Beasts. This dramatic boost in power is overwhelming. If my son and Forgo hadn't provided this information, I wouldn't have looked further into it. But it seems this discovery has led us to something significant. We've now found Thomas. And it appears he's involved in all of this. While he cannot break the pact, by teaching Lyrus and others, his descendants won't be bound by the oath he made to the Empire.
Vander: This… (He was completely unaware of what Lyrus had been doing in the Wildlands. All he knew was that Lyrus was training and taming more beasts. But he never imagined his son had already gathered such power in just a few months.)
Demeter: 41 bonded beasts—and all at Mythical Rank?
Rebecca: How strong is his soul to bond with that many beasts? (She looks at Vander.) You've bred a monster with monstrous capabilities, and yet he's not even supported by the Eisien Clan. Haha! How about I propose a marriage? My descendants aren't bad either.
Ulysses: Well, at least we have a lead with Thomas. But we've got another problem—what if he goes against us once we reach the new lands? He's a Divine Realm powerhouse. Even though he's at Mythical Rank now, he's still a major figure of Asteria. And he has that terrifying beast—even though it's injured and recovering in his beast realm, it's still a Divine Beast.
Wilson: We need to summon Avalon to the Council and form a new pact.
Vander: He won't do that. He's already an old man in decline. He might only step forward for the sake of Lyrus—his only blood relative left after Veronica.
Escobar: Even so, we still need his cooperation. How about offering the revival of the Ventouso? He's still a man full of vitality, and with new scientific methods these days, all we need is semen and some artificial insemination and voilà!—you can make thousands of women pregnant. Haha!
Rebecca: But in doing that, we'll be at odds with the Asteria Continent. We haven't even refined that continent yet.
Escobar: They don't have to carry the Ventouso surname. And this new land is much farther than the Black Ocean—we might even be on the other side. We'll need more forces to tame that continent; it's teeming with dangerous beasts.
Vander: Then so be it. After all, the Empire seems to be planning something. We must hurry. Human deaths in Tevera have reached terrifying numbers—we're approaching a billion casualties. I don't want to see more bloodshed or the deaths of innocent civilians. I will send my grandmother to speak with Lyrus and Thomas. But for now, let's focus on amassing massive quantities of Essence Stones for cross-direction spatial travel.