As the Lord of Frenzied Blood disappeared into the distance, heading back towards Glory City, Bill Daoist wiped a bead of sweat from his brow.


    He stood at the foot of Psychic Sanctuary Mountain, his gaze fixed on the spot where the rogue cultivator had vanished.


    "Heavens above," he muttered, his voice hushed with awe and a hint of trepidation.


    "What manner of monster has ckwood taken in? Could he be... one of the Ancient Blood, a descendant of the primordial demons?"


    The Ancient Blood. Creatures of pure, unadulterated power, their lineage stretching back to the dawn of time.


    They were incredibly rare, their numbers dwindling with each passing millennium.


    Most lived in seclusion, their existence shrouded in myth and legend.


    "How ckwood manages to control such a being is beyond me," Bill Daoist mused.


    "But it''s for the best, I suppose. Better he channels his power for their cause than unleashes it upon the world."


    ...


    High in the mountains, miles from the border, Dannyy broken and bleeding.


    His limbs, severed at the joints,y scattered around him like discarded twigs.


    He coughed up a mouthful of blood, his eyes filled with terror and regret.


    "Why?" he gasped, his voice a ragged whisper.


    "Why me?"


    Fate, it seemed, had conspired against him this day.


    Humiliated and robbed blind by ckwood, he had barely escaped with his life.


    And then, just when he thought his luck couldn''t get any worse, he had stumbled upon that rogue cultivator... a ckwood agent!


    If not for the desperate gamble he had made, burning half his life force to activate the Kylin Mountain''s secret escape technique, the Kirin''s Shroud, he would be dead.


    "Elder Danny, are you alright?"


    Victor, hisst remainingpanion, hovered anxiously by his side.


    The young man''s face was pale, his voice trembling with fear and barely suppressed anger.


    "Your energy channels... they''re shattered! You''re..."


    "Silence, you fool!" Danny roared, his voiceced with pain and fury.


    "This is all your fault! If you hadn''t provoked them..."


    But even in his rage, Danny knew he couldn''t me Victor entirely.


    He had let his anger cloud his judgment, underestimating both ckwood''s ruthlessness and their reach.


    "Victor," he gasped, his voice weak.


    "Take me back... to the family. We must make them pay... for what they''ve done."


    "But Elder Danny..." Victor stammered, his eyes wide with fear.


    "They''re too powerful! We can''t..."


    "Fool!" Danny spat, his voice regaining some of its former strength.


    "Do you think I''ve survived this long by being weak? ckwood may have won this battle, but the war is far from over."


    A cunning glint entered his eyes.


    "We''ve been visiting Azure Cloud for the past two years, haven''t we? Did you not notice the movements near Martinez Pass, where Starlight County borders Cloudview County?"


    Victor frowned, confused.


    "I... I don''t understand."


    "They''re nning something," Danny hissed, his voice a conspiratorial whisper.


    "ckwood... they''re not content with just defending Azure Cloud. They want to retake Starlight County for Duke Jon. And they''re nning a surprise attack!"


    Victor''s eyes widened.


    "But... how can we use that to our advantage?"


    "We''ll use their arrogance against them," Danny said, a cruel smile spreading across his lips.


    "Take me back to the family. We''ll inform the patriarch. He''ll contact the Druids in Starlight County, have themy an ambush."


    "When ckwood walks into that trap," he continued, his voice filled with venomous glee, "they''ll be ughtered. Owen and Bill Daoist will be forced to abandon Azure Cloud, leaving ckwood vulnerable and alone."


    "Their precious artifacts, the Death Coffin, the Shapeshifting Divine Tree, their soul-controlling techniques... all of it will be ours for the taking."


    He turned to Victor, his eyes burning with avarice.


    "You''ll be rewarded handsomely for your loyalty, Victor. I''ll even grant you the ultimate prize... the chance to im ckwood Amelia''s body as your own! Her Nine-Nine Heavenly Tribtion-tempered physique... imagine the power!"


    Victor''s breath hitched.


    The thought of possessing Amelia, a prodigy whose talent was spoken of in hushed whispers, sent a thrill of excitement through him.


    But he wasn''t a fool. He had seen Danny''s true colors.


    "Swear it," he said, his voice surprisingly steady.


    "Swear a blood oath that you''ll fulfill your promise."


    Danny hesitated, his eyes narrowed.


    But he was desperate.


    "Very well," he hissed.


    "I, Danny of the Kylin Mountain Roberts, swear upon my blood and my lineage..."


    ...


    With the Roberts family dealt with, a strange calm settled over Azure Cloud.


    News of Danny''s fate spread like wildfire, serving as a stark warning to any who dared to underestimate ckwood''s resolve.


    ckwood, however, wasn''t resting on itsurels.


    They knew the Roberts family wouldn''t forgive or forget this humiliation.


    They prepared for retaliation, reinforcing their defenses and strengthening their alliances.


    Even Bill Daoist and Owen, disgusted by Sunshine Mansion''s greed and treachery, pledged their support.


    Stay updated through mvl


    If the Roberts family dared to retaliate, they would face the full might of ckwood and its allies.


    "Those Roberts fools," Owen had scoffed, his hand resting on the hilt of his warhammer, an heirloom weapon that pulsed with restrained power.


    "They have but one measly Basic Mastery cultivator to their name. If not for the risk of escting the conflict, I''d pay them a visit myself and teach them some manners."


    Five years passed.


    Life in Cloudview County settled into a new rhythm.


    The border remained a shpoint, skirmishes erupting with predictable regrity.


    But ckwood stood firm, their defenses bolstered by Ethan''s guidance and the growing strength of their allies.


    [Congrattions! Under Daniel''s leadership and Jessica''s tactical brilliance, your family has in over three hundred thousand Druids in the past five years. You have sessfully annexed former Druid territory into Cloudview County, achieving remarkable victories. You have gained 5 Family Willpower.]


    Ethan tallied his gains.


    Between the family''s aplishments and his careful management, his Family Willpower had reached an impressive 53 points.


    On the battlefield, both Jessica and Daniel had flourished.


    [Your descendant, Jessica, has in over ten thousand enemies in battle. She attempted to establish peaceful coexistence with the Druids, but their ideologies proved irreconcble.


    After a group of Druid captives coborated with their brethren tounch a surprise attack on Azure Cloud''s forces, your descendant spent six months constructing awork of killing grounds, utilizing both natural formations and psychic formations to eliminate over a million Druids.]


    [Trait: Druid yer – Having in over a million Druids, Jessica can now withstand the Six-Nine Heavenly Tribtion.]


    d in crimson armor, Jessica stood atop Border Town''s wall, her gaze sweeping across the endless expanse of the Endless Forest.


    Her expression was calm, her grip on her twin swords steady.


    Below her, the soldiers of the Azure Cloud army stood in disciplined ranks, eighty thousand strong.


    If not for the constant attrition of war, their numbers would have easily swelled to two hundred thousand.


    Each soldier wore crimson armor, their movements synchronized and precise.


    The armor... it was eerily reminiscent of the ck Iron Blood Armor Julian had crafted all those years ago.


    And indeed, it was Julian who had gifted the design to Cloudview County''s enchanters.


    His armor, while incredibly potent, was also rtively simple to craft, perfect for outfitting arge army on short notice.


    Each suit was a masterpiece of psychic engineering, forged from metal and tempered in the blood of in Druids for forty-nine days.


    The results were... unpredictable, to say the least.


    But each suit amplified the wearer''s psychic powers, allowing them to channel their energy into devastating formations.


    Jessica smiled, a hint of pride flickering in her eyes.


    Half of the Azure Cloud army now answered to hermand.


    Another three hundred thousand Psychics stood ready to answer her call, their ranks swelling with each passing year as a new generation came of age, eager to prove themselves in battle.


    And all of it, this formidable force, was but a single cog in the machine her uncle Daniel had built.


    "Jessica, your tribtion approaches."


    Daniel materialized beside her, his keen senses detecting the telltale signs of an impending tribtion gathering in the sky above her.


    It crackled with raw power, tinged with the bloodlust and resentment of countless in Druids.


    "The Six-Nine Heavenly Tribtion," he said, a hint of pride in his voice.


    "Most impressive. Your aunt has been hard at work, crafting a new batch of seventh-grade elixirs. And the family''s alchemists have prepared a dozen high-grade healing pills. Your uncle Julian even crafted you a new weapon. It''s time to prepare for your breakthrough."