Ancestor Xue: And yes, I am also willing to offer paynt. One S-rank skill no, make that an SS-rank skill. A Dual Cultivation Sutra. On one condition.. I want to see you cook rice together with a Heavenly Beauty... and show it properly. From every angle.
Razeal stared at the floating ssages.
Silently.
For a long mont, his mind simply... stopped.
Not because of the reward.
An SS-rank Dual Cultivation Sutra was intresting. The kind of thing any protagonist would slaughter bloodlines over.
But the condition?
He slowly lifted a hand and pinched the bridge of his nose, letting out a quiet, tired sigh.
So this is how strears feel, huh.
When so rich person casually threw money on the table and asked for sothing utterly unnecessary, Razeal thought of how people used to pay strears to show their grandma’s nudes for no reason whatsoever.. Its almost sa too now.
Yeah, no.
Razeal wasn’t in the mood for this ragebait. Atleast for now.. Genuinely he didn’t know how to start... Not that he would admit.
Degenerated Bastard: Seems like the kid is still a virgin, Ancestor Xue. The task might be too hard for him.
Ancestor Xue: Such a disappointnt.
Razeal’s eyebrow twitched.
"Alright, stop it."
He shook his head, irritation seeping through his otherwise calm expression.
Before he could say more, another ssage slid into the chat
Lily: Hmm... I can sense two very strong beings staring at you, kid. Are they your enemies?
Razeal’s attention snapped away from the previous nonsense instantly.
He ignored the older ssages completely and focused on this one.
His eyes narrowed slightly.
"...You can sense that too?"
He didn’t say it out loud, but the surprise was obvious.
The live-stream cara wasn’t pointing anywhere else. It was focused only on him.
Yet sohow
They could still feel the gazes?
Degenerated Bastard: Yeah Obiously... We can feel it too. The way you’re "showing" your world isn’t limited to just sight. How do you think we sensed how totally unstable your world is?How it lacks dark powers and darm energies. From this floating screen alone, I can sense everything around you. The view is limited but that’s more than enough.
Razeal went quiet.
His expression didn’t change, but his mind moved fast.
So it’s not just a cara.
It’s a perception anchor also.
They wont just just watching him they can observing the environnt around him tkk. Sensing presences, power levels, distortions he might miss.
That...
That was useful.
Very useful.
A slow thought ford.
If beings like these were watching
They could warn him before danger reached him. Notice threats if he for so reasons was unable to sense it. Analyze enemies in real ti.
This feature is more broken than I thought.
Lily: Turn the screen to those two beings. They feel strong. One of them even feels... stronger than . Let see. Let seeee~
Razeal ignored thjs ssage completely.
He won’t be doing everything that villain’s ask him right? He needs to let them know how streaming works.. He won’t show them what they want until they pay him.. sothing instead.. Yeah stingey strear behaviour. Not that he was going to listen to everything they going to say.
Instead, he closed the stream panel halfway, muting the chat for the mont.
His attention shifted back to reality.
Why is she taking so long?
It had already been over ten minutes.
Neptunia had left to ask about participation, and she still hadn’t returned.
Razeal’s irritation previously dulled by the absurdity of the stream slowly crept back.
He hated waiting.
Especially when plans were already tight.. He was already in bad mood after seeing his mother and now this again
He was just about to turn and look for her himself when
Footsteps approached from the side.
Neptunia finally walked toward him.
Razeal felt the tension in his shoulders ease just a fraction.
"Did you find out where to participate?" he asked imdiately.
Neptunia stopped beside him.
She hesitated.
Just for a mont.
That was enough.
"...No."
She looked away slightly..
"Participation ti has already passed.
Participants had to register before the challenge started." She paused, then added more quietly "So... No we can’t join now. Amd no there is no other way i asked almost everyone wno is incharge to take participate in here."
Razeal stared at her.
He didn’t shout didn’t curse.. didn’t even sigh loudly as he usually will.
He just... stood there.
Processing.
She continued, clearly uncomfortable and even little Irritated herself.
"I know I suggested it. And I told you to hurry.
But we were already late. The journey took too long. The challenge started almost a week ago... So yeah cant do anything about that."
Razeal looked at her
For a brief mont, he wondered if he should feel angry.
Then he dismissed it.
What’s the point?
It wasn’t like yelling would rewind ti.
"So what now?" he asked calmly.
"I... don’t know." She said it honestly.
Razeal just sighed lightly seems like he himself have to think of sothing.. But just as he was thinking.
Lucifer: Hmmm... this yellow-haired girl.
She’s hiding her real appearance.
The ssage appeared suddenly in the stream chat.
Razeal Paused as his attention snapped back to the interface instantly.
"...Huh?"
He blinked genuinely caught off guard.
Zara: What? You can’t see it? You look surprised. Its so obious. So you have person around who is hiding there real ideanty and you aren’t even aware of that?
Razeal’s brows knitted together slowly.
"No.. that’s not it.," he thought, his gaze drifting back to Neptunia without him even realizing it.
He had always known sothing about her felt off. Not wrong. Just... concealed.
"I already suspected she was special. That she was hiding her identity," he admitted internally.
"But hiding her appearance too? That i really didn’t know?"
That was different.
This was very serious to him now.
"How... was I not able to see it?" he wondered, genuinely unsettled now.
He had vampire perception. Blood sense. Killing intent awareness. Flow sensitivity..
And yet
Nothing.
Lily: Not only that. She also has an extrely high-level bloodline. Honestly... so high that I’m surprised it even exists.. How you not able to sense sothing so.. Particular like yeah her strength and abilities are sealed but still.. Her precence is totally radiating with high level bloodline as if to say co look at . I am special.
Seeing Lily’s almost sarcastic words razeal’s eyes narrowed as he looked directly at Neptunia now.. really looked.. Trying to see and sense sothing.
She stood there quietly, hands at her sides, posture relaxed. No aura leaking. No pressure. No threat.
Just... normal.
Too normal.
"How special does a bloodline have to be," he thought, "for an SSS-rank Villain to say they’ve never seen sothing like it?" He thought to himself being serious as he should’ve been aware of it. It could be dangerous.. Who knows that bastard riven put her Besides him and just how unaware he was of this.
Razeal subtly activated every perception thod he had.. blood vision, Dark mana sense, killing sense, Flow sensing. Trying to find everything just fraction of sothing. abut still
Nothing.
Absolutely nothing.
It was like staring at an illusion that refused to crack.
His frown deepened.
"It’s one thing to hide your identity," he thought grimly. "It’s another thing when I can’t even perceive the disguise."
That was terrifying.
"Is she stronger than ?" Razeal asked directly in the stream. Straightforward no pride no denial.
If he couldn’t sense her, there were only two possibilities.
Either she had absurd protection put by soone stronger
Or she was simply far above him.
And honestly both were bad.
He hated not knowing.
He hated uncertainty even more.
At SS- rank, he had bled, sched, tortured, and clawed his way upward. He had crossed hells literal and figurative to get here. Even changed his race.. Literally.
The idea that soone looking only few years older than him could stand on an entirely different level
It was hard to accept.
No.
It didn’t make sense.
Zara: Obviously. Clear as day. She’s on a completely different level than you. She could kill you in a second.. right where you’re standing now.
The confirmation dropped like a guillotine.
Razeal went completely silent.
Not shocked screaming.
Not denial.
Just... still.
His eyes traced Neptunia from head to toe again, slower this ti.. like he was looking at an unknown species for the first ti.
"So that’s it.. Its her own strength not protection by soone above," he thought obviously beleiving in his Villains chat.
"At the very least... stronger than SS-." He thought to himself as looking at her.
That alone was absurd.
Unbelievable.
His grip tightened unconsciously.. He was feeling embaressed. It coulve been an enemy Besides him and he had no fucking idea what so ever.
Vampire Progenitor: I wouldn’t say he could be killed. He is a vampire now. But yes.. he would be defeated. Young Progenitor, you need to work on your strength. Do not be discouraged. You are still young. With an immortal lifespan, it is only a matter of ti before you surpass mortal beings like her.
Razeal exhaled slowly.
Defeated.
Not killed..
That distinction mattered.
Still
Being defeated without resistance wasn’t sothing he liked either.
Zara: A vampire? What is that?
Ancestor Xue: This girl’s bloodline is extrely unusual. It feels as though she was born directly from dao of elent itself. From A Concept. I have never seen anything like it. But I am certain of one thing.. She is not rely an elental user. She is closer to an elental existence or maybe is elental existence in itself.
"Huh?.. Born from dao of elental? Elental concept?" Razeal muttered under his breath, eyes narrowing slightly as the words settled in his head. "Is it sothing like the Dao of Killing?" He wasn’t clueless about this. he had picked up so fragnts of knowledge from Zenocide and that perverted old man. Dao of Killing. Dao of Flow. Concepts that weren’t just techniques, but laws themselves.
He glanced at the chat, waiting
Zenocide: Yes. Similar... but also different. You are currently training to touch and use a Dao of Killing. That is the normal path. But being born from a concept itself is another matter entirely.
Zenocide: I do not really know what it actually could be but If I had to put it simply... Imagine soone being born from the Dao of Killing itself. Not learning it. Not comprehending it. But existing as it. That is what this sounds like. I cannot fully grasp the advantages either because I have never seen such a case but it implies sothing frightening. Control.
Zenocide: Not borrowing a fragnt of a Dao like we do... Being it or Commanding it naturally.
Razeal went quiet again.
Born from a concept.
Not using or cultivating it.
But owning it.
"...So she’s special too," he thought, eyes drifting back to Neptunia... Like special like.. Celestia? Don’t know why but only that won apeared in his head.
Neptunia stood there the sa as before hands relaxed, posture casual, expression slightly tired. No aura. No pressure. No sign of power.
And yet now... every little thing about her felt wrong.
"So what concept is she born from?" Razeal asked in the stream, voice steady, even though his thoughts weren’t.
Ancestor Xue: Why should I no.. we answer so easily? Give more books that you gave who knows maybe I’ll tell you.
Razeal didn’t even blink.
"No need," he replied calmly. "Let guess."
His gaze flicked briefly to the endless blue surrounding them.
"...Water elent?"
Lily: How did you suddenly beco so smart so suddenly?
"I’m literally standing in the middle of a deep-sea world," he replied. "It doesn’t take a genius."
Ancestor Xue: Then why ask us at all?
"There’s a difference between guessing and confirmation," Razeal answered flatly.
Zara: Why are you ignoring my ssages? I asked what a vampire is. Answer , boy.
Her irritation was obvious now.
Razeal saw the ssage.
And ignored it anyway.
Not because he couldn’t answer ..But because his mind was already racing ahead, pieces clicking into place.
He stared at Neptunia again, this ti not even trying to hide it.
"What’s wrong with you?" Neptunia asked suddenly, breaking his thoughts. Her brows furrowed slightly as she noticed his gaze.
"You’ve been staring for a while. Are you okay?" She hesitated, then added honestly, "...Or are you just that disappointed you couldn’t join?"
Razeal didn’t answer imdiately.
He just looked at her.
Then
"Are you," he asked calmly, "by any chance... the Princess of Atlantis?"
Silence.
Neptunia froze.
"...Umm?" Her mouth opened slightly, then closed.
Neptunia, who had been quietly thinking he might ask sothing related to that, was completely dumbstruck by the suddenness of the question. her thoughts froze mid-sentence, her mind blanking out as surprise washed over her, leaving her staring in stunned silence.
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Man, I really need to learn how to keep so many interactions in check at once... so many voices, so many perspectives it’s honestly a bit overwhelming. Anyway, I was just thinking that our writing style might need to change a little from here on. If any of you have a better idea on how to handle this, please do share I’d genuinely appreciate it. And if you notice any mistakes in the upcoming Chapters, don’t hesitate to point them out. Maybe sothing could’ve been done in a better way, and I’d love to learn from that.
This is all pretty new to , so it might take a little ti to get used to. Thanks a lot for reading. Love you all.
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