[A/N: There will be perhaps another two or three Chapters before Ash returns.]
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Two hundred years flew by, marking a full thousand since Ash had vanished from the scene.
In that time, the multiverse settled into a calmer stateâwell, except for one clan. The legend of the Originat only grew stronger as their tally of conquered universes climbed to fifteen.
Since Ashâs departure, they hadnât really focused on much.
Whether it was seizing new worlds or simply wandering the endless realms, everything was done on a whim. And ever since the Convergence, the Originat hadnât launched a full-scale clan assault.
It had simply been two people in specific having âfunâ.
The twins, despite being over 1,000 years old, were still very much the same as ever. They loved to fight and make people bleedâit was as simple as that.
Since Ash wasnât around and whenever boredom struck, theyâd just go add another universe to their tally. In just 200 years, they had conquered five universes on their own, never once calling upon their army.
Still, they werenât careless enough to go after the older universes, avoiding anything numbered below 60. The lower the number, the older and more powerful the universe.
While the Originat sat at the peak of the Lower Dimension, the Multiverse was vast, and "peak" power was all a matter of perspective.
To them, it might mean standing above the progenitors and everyone else.
But for someone like Ashâalso from the Lower Dimensionâhis power far surpassed that "peak."
So, while confident, they werenât foolish.
Also, during this time there was a certain Master who had finally took upon his role of being the Lord of the Abyss.
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An endless frozen lake of souls stretched across the whole Lower Dimension, its surface a massive, cracked sheet of ice streaked with faint crimson veins.
Beneath, pale shadowy figures reached upward in eternal silence, their voiceless screams suspended forever in the frozen depths.
The air hung silent and cold enough to break weaker beings, broken only by the faint, endless crackle of ice shifting under an unseen weight.
At the center stood Kaelthyrâthe new Lord of the Abyssâhis long black hair spilling like liquid shadow, eyes twin voids that revealed nothing yet saw all, his tall frame draped in robes of abyssal night that swallowed light whole.
His presence was a steady conduit, drawing in every drop of resentment, hatred, and despair from the Lower Dimension, feeding him in ceaseless, dark surges.
Before him knelt Kyronâhis second disciple, his âsonâ in all but blood.
Kyron embodied the Abyssâs resentment and darknessâtall and lean, his skin as black as the void, traced with crimson veins.
Short black hair framed his face, while his faintly glowing red eyes smoldered with controlled fury. In his grip was a sword of pure abyssal ice, its blade humming with contained power.
Kaelthyrâs voice was low and resonant, carrying like the toll of a distant bell.
"Again. Feel the resentment. Channel it. Donât let it control youâbe it."
Kyron rose, his sword lifting in one smooth, fluid motion.
He struck.
His sword aura, now at Level 9, burst forth in a devastating surge, sending waves of dark resentment slashing outward and cracking the frozen lake into spiderwebs of crimson light.
But Kaelthyr shook his head.
"Not enough. Go deeper. The Abyss isnât just angerâitâs a shadow of inevitability, the final end that comes for us all."
Thatâs right, for the past millennium Kaelthyr and Kyron hadnât been in the Original Haven at all. Theyâd been in The Abyss for a few reasonsâmainly because of Nia, who, as everyone knew, absolutely hated vampires.
After the battle at the Convergence, she went straight to him.
Long story short, Nia gave him a good beating and sent him packing. She didnât ban him for good, but since he refused to become a Primavus, she told him to come back only when he could give her a real fight.
âTsk, does nonsense run in their damn bloodline?â Kaelthyr thought.
Even as a Nocturne Vampire, heâd helped wipe out the Nocturnes! He was obviously on their side, but Nia just wasnât having it.
Sheâd promised herself no vampire would live in her presence, yet here she was, breaking that vow by letting him go. Still, he was Ashâs master and sparing him felt like the least she could offer.
While Kaelthyr was lost in thought, Kyron shut his eyes, breathing in the heavy tide of negativity flowing from both his master and himself.
Then, he struck again.
HUMMMMM!!!
Max Sword Aura manifested fully.
The blade hummedâa deep, resonant note that seemed to echo from the very heart of the Abyss. Darkness burst forth, not with icy chill, but with a searing, hellish heat.
The two found themselves within his manifested aura....
It was the abyss itself, but the frozen lake lay shatteredâice bursting into geysers of crimson flame, the souls below crying out as they emerged into blazing forms.
Above, the sky split apart, unveiling a hellscape of fiery voids and rivers of molten resentment surging upward, the air alive with the roar of endless torment.
The Abyss had changedâdark, infernal, a realm of searing despair and relentless fury, where resentment took shape.
Kyron stood at the center, sword lowered, his aura blazing yet perfectly contained.
Kaelthyrâs lips curved, a rare flicker of pride glinting in his void-dark eyes.
"Well done, my son. Youâve reached Level 10, but thereâs still a long road ahead. Next, weâll focus on intent."
As he spoke, a system prompt bloomed before him.
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[Congrats, Host, on leading your disciple to achieve Sword Aura Level 10 Manifestation.
Reward: Bloodline Enhancement Elixir (???)]
---
"After you rest... Yes, once youâve rested, weâll focus on intent," Kaelthyr said with a smile as he accepted the reward.
Kyron nodded, then looked up and asked, "Father... why have I never met your first disciple?"
Kaelthyr raised an eyebrow at the mention, a wry smile tugging at his lips. He truly had no idea where Ash was or what he was up to, but since thereâd been no recent trouble, he figured the kid was off training.
"The bratâs out there somewhere, getting stronger. Keep at it, Kyron. One day... haha, youâll surpass him."
Kyron gave a faint smile, slid his sword back into its sheath, and soared into the sky.
"Well, Iâm taking a break for a while, Father... just let me know when the next sessionâs ready."
He had nothing in particular lined up, but he knew that look on his fatherâs face all too well.
For reasons he never quite understood, whenever Kaelthyr received a reward over the past millennium, he would send Kyron away with the widest grin.
"Oh, the boy is learning. Good, good," he said, settling into a cross-legged seat.
Since becoming the Lord of the Abyss and merging with the First Soul... well, it wouldnât be wrong to say Kaelthyr was the Abyss itself.
Though not fully present, he held absolute control over it and could channel its power from anywhere. From the First Soul, he had also become perhaps the finest swordsman in the lower dimensionâsave for a select few.
On top of that, he gained Authority over both the Abyss and Souls.
As mentioned before, Authority meant a comprehension of concepts surpassing 100%, yet still beneath those of true Conceptual Existences.
As he sat there, he uncorked the vial and downed the elixir in one swift motion. He had braced himself for some pain, but it all went down smoothly without a hitch.
He felt his bloodline boiling slightly as his vampiric essence began twisting, enhancing and ascending. Before he had already held a Paragon ranked bloodline, that was only beneath one Vampire in all of the Lower Dimension...
The Vampire Progenitor one of the other True Progenitors.
His skin grew even paler as his veins blazed crimson-black and his eyes darkened further.
Once the transformation was complete, he rose to his feet and summoned his sword.
There was no need to test his newfound strength; he had been preparing for this moment for a long time. After all, his sole ambition had always been to see how far he could push vampirism.
But how could he do that without surpassing the Progenitor?
Well, not in the usual way, at least... so the next best choice was to become the Progenitor himself.