The moment Evan Chu—Throne Chu—stepped into the Starry Abyss, the Dragon-Chen Legion erupted into action on the other front. Their movements were thunderous, shaking the entire battlefield, as if declaring to the world: Frostbane's edge has arrived!
The Five Dynasties had collapsed. Their legions scattered like desperate, beaten dogs—armor tossed aside, weapons abandoned, formations broken beyond repair. On every front, the Frostbane Dynasty’s banners surged forward, crushing any hope of resistance. The humiliation and chaos were absolute.
Nathan Star’s lightning raids struck them when they were already down—piling disaster atop disaster. And all the while, tens of thousands of Dragon-Chen elites lay in wait near the Flowing-Light Dynasty, eyes gleaming with hunger, ready to tear apart any enemy who dared approach.
That day, the battered remnants of the Red Lark Legion, led by Lydia Hong—the Red Lark Throne herself—attempted to retreat. But Nathan Yates, stationed here by Frostbane’s command, had only one order: wipe out every last force that dared oppose the dynasty. Ruthlessness and desperation hung heavy in the air.
Nathan Yates had barely revealed himself when he saw Lydia Hong—Red Lark Throne—standing before him. The shock hit him hard, a cold jolt straight to his heart.
"You?!"
Nathan Yates had once been vice-Throne of the Ink-Blood Legion under the Duskmire Dynasty. To see Lydia Hong, a fellow Throne from the same dynasty, was no surprise—they had fought side by side, shared countless battles, and understood each other’s strengths and scars all too well.
Lydia Hong let out a bitter laugh—half mocking, half defeated. "Heh, to think it would be you who finally drove the Red Lark Legion to the edge. Fate really knows how to twist the knife."
Her laugh was hollow, drained of all strength. After so many brutal battles, Lydia Hong was spent—her spirit battered, her body exhausted, and her remaining soldiers little more than shadows, too broken even to stand tall.
Across from her, the Dragon-Chen Legion’s warriors were the picture of discipline—rested, brimming with energy, their fighting spirit burning at its peak. With Nathan Yates holding the line, Lydia Hong knew: she and her legion were utterly outmatched, doomed before the fight even began.
Although I hate to say this, I have to apologize to you. We used to work together, but now my position is different. The Throne has ordered that no enemy from the past is to be spared.
I'm sorry... for you.
Nathan Yates apologized again. Although he bore no personal grudge against Lydia Hong during their time in the Duskmire Dynasty, in fact, they both hated the Duskmire Throne, and had a sense of camaraderie. When Nathan's sister-in-law was in trouble, Lydia Hong often spoke up to help.
But now, Evan Chu's order cannot be disobeyed, and Nathan Yates is powerless to change that.
I understand, you don't need to blame yourself. I won't hold it against you—this is fate. As a warrior, my only end is to die in battle. The dynasty has treated me well; I will fight for it with my life!
So, come at me!
Lydia Hong showed no fear, and Nathan Yates deeply admired her.
Nathan Yates betrayed the Duskmire Dynasty because of oppression and injustice. His brother died there, and he and many comrades suffered under the Duskmire Throne. He had no choice but to rebel; everything he achieved had nothing to do with the dynasty's cultivation, and all the harm he suffered came from its rulers.
Nathan Yates felt only hatred toward the Duskmire Dynasty.
But Lydia Hong was different. Her achievements were thanks to the dynasty's cultivation. Regardless of others' motives, the dynasty had been kind to her, and at this crucial moment, she could only die repaying that kindness.
I admire your courage! But my hatred for the Duskmire Dynasty is irreconcilable. From the moment Ink-Blood killed my brother, no—from the moment I killed Ink-Blood myself—that hatred was set in stone!
So I'll grant you true dignity—I'll kill you myself and give you a proper burial.
What? You mean—you personally killed Ink-Blood?
Of course. He murdered my brother, so I had to kill him myself!
Lydia Hong was stunned. She'd always thought it was Evan Chu who killed Ink-Blood, but it turned out to be Nathan Yates.
So it was you—thank you! From here on, I'll fight with everything I've got!
Nathan Yates knew Lydia Hong also hated Ink-Blood deeply, so he accepted her thanks. Star power erupted around him as he pushed his cultivation to its peak. Lydia, meanwhile, could barely muster forty percent of her strength—she couldn't even beat Nathan Star or Thunder Lord in her current state.
Nathan Yates! I've lived my life with a clear conscience, but there's something you should know: in all our battles, not a single one of my soldiers ever harmed a member of the Dragon-Chen Legion. You know why—that's my last token of gratitude. I'm not begging for mercy; I just ask, for the sake of our past camaraderie, that you spare my legion's women.
Nathan Yates was surprised—none of Red Lark's troops had ever fought against Dragon-Chen? Did that mean there was no real hatred between the two legions?
With that, new calculations started forming in Nathan Yates's mind.
Although Lydia Hong was currently weaker, her potential was hardly less than Nathan Yates’s. In terms of leadership, she might even surpass him. If only he could bring her into the Dragon-Chen Legion...
But that decision wasn’t his to make yet. Still, he was already planning.
Boom! The battle began, looking fierce but in truth soft and restrained. From the start, Nathan Yates never fought at full strength.
Meanwhile, far away in the endless stars, inside the Starry Abyss...
Evan Chu, following Desmond Mansfield, arrived in a world glowing with deep blue light. Star-like points floated everywhere, but none were true stars.
No one knows exactly how the Star-River Dominion was formed, nor how the Starry Abyss came to be. All that’s clear is that wherever the Dominion exists, the Abyss exists alongside it.
The Star-River Dominion produces stars; the Starry Abyss produces Star Cores.
Stars can be refined for power and combat, used for all sorts of things. But Star Cores—those can open Trial Worlds, found mighty dynasties, even Sacred Lands.
Not all Star Cores can create true Trial Worlds. Most are only good for opening Pseudo Trial Worlds—private training realms for clans or sects. These small worlds are called Pseudo Trial Worlds, and in the Dominion, plenty of clans and sects have them.
Strictly speaking, there are only three thousand true Trial Worlds—ancient and eternal, each corresponding to one of the Three Thousand Dynasties.
As for the so-called billion small worlds, those are what most Star Cores create. Of course, that doesn’t mean all Star Core worlds are inferior to the Three Thousand Great Worlds—there are always exceptions.
For example, the strongest Trial Worlds owned by the Five Sacred Lands were all opened from Star Cores!
Still, most Star Cores only produce Pseudo Trial Worlds—or even trash worlds too weak for any real trial. Such worlds are everywhere.
But this time, the Mansfield Family’s Star Core was clearly high-grade. According to their patriarch, it might even rival the Three Thousand Great Worlds!
Otherwise, the Mansfield Family wouldn’t have fought so desperately, spending so much to seize the Starry Void Sigil. If they really do open a world on par with the dynasties’ Trial Worlds, with their heritage, they could become a dynasty in no time!
But what the Mansfield Family doesn’t know is that the highest laws of Heaven have long set a limit: in the Star-River Dominion, there can only be Five Sacred Lands and Three Thousand Dynasties—no more, ever...
If anyone tries to force their way up, they’ll be defying Heaven itself. Their fate will be shattered—at best, the strong will fall; at worst, the entire clan will be destroyed. And even if someone does open a new, higher-level world, it’s fated not to belong to the Mansfield Family...
In the weave of destiny, there’s simply no chance for the Mansfield Family.
Standing in this deep-blue inner space, sensing the strange Star Core aura, Evan Chu was ready to judge the Mansfield Star Core’s true level—and decide just how much help to give them.