My Descendants Are My Power

"Scatter! Run!"

Brody roared, urging the other projections to flee in different directions.

Over the years, he had been blackmailed and threatened by Blackwood, but this… this was the first time he felt true terror.

Because this time, it wasn't just him who had lost.

It was Austin, back in Sunshine Mansion, as well.

They had always viewed Blackwood as insignificant, as mere annoyances.

Even when they had sensed a growing threat, they had dismissed them as nothing more than a nuisance.

But now…

He didn't know what the other projections were thinking, but Brody felt it deep in his core: Blackwood had become a venomous serpent, slithering out of the darkness and sinking its fangs into them.

Now, it was they, the projections of the Heavenly Path Venerable, who should be afraid.

Chuck's breakthrough, the explosion at Radiant Sky Grotto, the theft of the AI Bionic Robots, Azure Cloud's resistance, the attack on Kylin Mountain, the freed Rising Stars…

It was all part of a grand, terrifying plan, and they had walked right into Blackwood's trap.

"Fool!"

As he fled, Brody shot a venomous glare at Declan, who was kneeling on the ground, his tongue ripped out by Gary.

If it hadn't been for that arrogant, incompetent fool, Chuck wouldn't have gotten his hands on the treasures needed for his Basic Mastery breakthrough.

He wouldn't be in this mess!

And…

"Austin! You arrogant fool!"

That scheming manipulator, lurking in the shadows of Sunshine Mansion, looking down on the world, imprisoning Rising Stars…

Brody shuddered to think what horrors awaited them now.

He had been running for what felt like hours.

Finally, he slowed to a stop, staring down at the city below and the cultivators rushing towards him from all directions.

They were asking him what had happened, but Brody felt no relief, no joy at having survived.

He stared at the peaceful scene below, his gaze uncomprehending.

Slowly, he turned, looking back at the clear sky behind him, at the storm clouds in the distance… Blackwood… they weren't pursuing him.

They had… spared him?

"Why? Why would they spare me?"

Brody's eyes were vacant, his expression lost.

A cool breeze washed over him, and his form flickered, a sign of a projection nearing its end.

His power was growing, but his face grew paler, his heart colder.

He felt it now… the humiliation, the blatant, mocking humiliation inflicted by Blackwood.

"Damn them! Damn them all!"

He glared in the direction of Amber Hill, his veins throbbing with rage.

For the first time in his long existence, he felt like a failure, a laughingstock.

He could almost see them, the Blackwood clan, laughing at him, mocking him.

Just like they had all those years ago, when they had brazenly sent their AI Bionic Robots to ransack his treasury, their gazes filled with disdain.

…

High above, a mountain-like illusion clashed with a raging torrent of water.

It was Hudson, one of the Heavenly Path Venerable's Basic Mastery projections, locked in battle with Bill Daoist.

But now, even as his power surged, Hudson's face was ashen, darker than the storm clouds above.

"We've been played."

Though locked in combat, Hudson could still see through the eyes of the other projections.

He had seen what had transpired at Kylin Mountain, how Austin's bizarre obsession, cultivated over millennia, had led to this disaster.

He felt the sting of humiliation.

"To be outmaneuvered by these insects…"

He roared in frustration, but there was nothing he could do.

This time, they had been thoroughly outmatched by Blackwood.

And then there was Bill Daoist.

The old man, who should have been defeated and fleeing for his life by now, was actually laughing at him, his eyes filled with mockery.

Hudson took a deep breath, steeling himself.

He withdrew his psychic powers, preparing to make his escape.

But then, his expression shifted.

The thunder tribulation above Amber Hill had ended.

Through the dissipating arcs of lightning, he saw Chuck's eyes snap open.

And then, in the blink of an eye, a powerful aura, crackling with the energy of the storm, appeared beside him.

Standing between Hudson and escape was none other than Chuck, newly ascended to Basic Mastery.

"Hudson!"

Bill Daoist, who had been fighting a surprisingly tough battle against Hudson, who had clearly been hiding his true strength, laughed.

The death of the other projections had only served to empower the remaining ones.

But now, reinforcements had arrived.

"Young friend Chuck, join me! Let us finish him together!"

"Gladly!"

Chuck didn't waste words.

His Primordial Spirit emerged, taking the form of a colossal, primeval elephant that seemed to weigh down the very sky.

Hudson's eyes narrowed.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

He unleashed his torrent once more, knowing that these two, these insignificant ants, now blocked his path.

He would have to carve his way through if he wanted to survive.

His psychic powers surged, and he sneered at them.

"You think you can stop me? A mid-stage Basic Mastery, who crawled out from whatever hole he was hiding in, and a newly ascended one, still wet behind the ears?!"

"You honestly believe Blackwood's schemes can change anything?"

"Get out of my way, or die!"

Chuck, though weakened from his tribulation, merely smiled.

"Do you know why I broke through to the fourth level of Basic Mastery?"

Hudson frowned.

"I spent many years in Azure Cloud," Chuck continued, his voice soft but steady.

"I faced many challenges alongside Blackwood. We thought the Druid invasion was unstoppable, that without the Emerald Empire's help, we would never reclaim our homeland. But we did."

"I thought Basic Mastery experts were invincible. But at Azure Cloud's border town, I, alongside Blackwood, drove back three Druid elders."

"I thought the Heavenly Path Venerable was unbeatable. But during my tribulation, I saw…"

He looked down, his gaze piercing through the clouds, settling on the Azure Cloud forces below.

They had driven back or killed all the remaining Heavenly Path Venerable projections on the ground.

Just like in Azure Cloud, after repelling the Druids, they were calmly cleaning the battlefield, collecting the bodies of their fallen comrades.

As if sensing his gaze, the Azure Cloud forces looked up.

A cold wind whipped through the air, ruffling Chuck's hair.

They stood in silence, united in that single moment, even Hudson.

Finally, Chuck looked back at Hudson, a small smile playing on his lips.

"I learned something from Blackwood. We must all acknowledge our insignificance, especially when facing an enemy as terrifying as you."

"But we are willing to try. We, the insignificant ants, will fight until we can face you head-on!"

"And now, I will see if I can…"

"Shake… the… heavens!"

Bill Daoist finished, his voice echoing Chuck's words, his gaze hardening with resolve.

As the last word left his lips, the sky roared.

The pressure of their combined Basic Mastery power swept across the land, a raging tempest unleashed.