Chapter 149: Tier 5

Cassia gasped, pointing at the empty space. "The Boss is dead!"

Seraphina slapped a hand across her own forehead, exasperated. "Cassia, it was a projection. He is not dead."

She sighed. She was never going to live the *Celestial Harmony* incident down...

The two Ashford Elders exhaled a long, collective breath, their shoulders dropping three inches as the Sovereign’s oppressive presence finally vanished.

"Well," Elder Vane managed, looking at the two teenage girls who had just overseen the destruction of a noble house. "What are your plans now, young operatives?"

Cassia grinned, tossing her spatial ring into the air and catching it. "Senior Sister! Let’s go stay at the Ashford Sanctum for a few days!"

Seraphina adjusted her spectacles, her blush finally fading into a professional Syndicate smirk. "Agreed. Lead the way, Elders."

***

Within the Abyssal World-Forge, the newly planted Astral Enlightenment Tree had already taken root.

Because the World-Forge operated on accelerated time, the seed had sprouted into a towering, silver-barked canopy in mere weeks.

Beneath its branches, Liana sat at a wrought-iron table, calmly pouring a cup of spiced tea.

A few yards away, Theo reclined on a padded lounger, his eyes closed.

For the past hour, his breathing had been shallow, indicating his consciousness was currently piloting a Shadow-Clone hundreds of miles away.

Then, his chest rose in a deep breath. His eyes snapped open, and he stretched his arms above his head with a satisfying pop of his joints.

"Ah. That was profitable," he announced to the canopy.

"I take it House Rullus is no longer an issue?" Liana asked, offering him a fresh cup of tea without looking up from her book.

"Erased," Theo confirmed, accepting the cup. "Seraphina and Cassia are unharmed. Though I did have to have a brief conversation with the local Archons regarding proper compensation for our intervention."

"You extorted them."

"I provided an opportunity for voluntary philanthropy," Theo corrected smoothly.

He took a sip of the tea. The Enlightenment Tree’s proximity made the brew taste sharper, clearing the mind instantly.

"Though Seraphina did panic and use the *Celestial Harmony* technique to ignite my clone-hair. I believe she is currently wishing for a swift death from embarrassment."

Liana’s lips curved into a rare, genuine smile. "You are a terrible master."

He opened his system interface,

[Host: Theo]

[Class: Parasite (Tier 5 — World-Forge Sovereign)]

[Physique: Diamond Crucible Form]

[Active Cultivation: Great Sage Analytical Framework, Primeval Aurora Resonance]

[Syndicate Merit Points: 142,333]

[Operatives: Seraphina (Fourth Realm), Cassia (Third Realm)]

Theo nodded in satisfaction. A hundred and forty thousand points was a respectable baseline.

He had nearly bankrupted his reserves pushing his Aether-meridians to the Fifth Realm during the tournament, but the Syndicate’s expansion was finally paying dividends.

*Oh, right,* he thought, glancing at his inventory. He still had the Imperial Vanguard Seal... a token he had earned for Seraphina’s tournament performance. He would have to give it to her when she returned to the Capital.

"Great Sage," Theo mentally commanded. "Convert all non-essential assets seized from the Rullus vaults into raw Merit Points."

He did not need the physical artifacts. The Rullus family possessed nothing that could rival his Primeval-grade weapons, and the *Abyssal World-Forge* required pure energy for upgrades, not antique swords and tapestries.

[Processing conversion...]

[Exchanging 5 Provincial-grade artifacts... +100,000 Points.]

[Exchanging 35,000 high-grade Aether-crystals... +70,000 Points.]

[Exchanging miscellaneous treasury assets... +56,980 Points.]

Theo listened to the chimes with the deep, spiritual contentment of a merchant watching a fleet of spice ships dock at port.

To think that a single Provincial-grade artifact was worth twenty thousand points... the equivalent of hunting down a mid-tier Exarch. And the Archons had handed over three of them just for the privilege of walking away.

[Conversion complete. Total haul: 226,980 Points.]

[Current Balance: 369,313 Points.]

Theo exhaled a long breath. "Three hundred and sixty-nine thousand."

"You look entirely too pleased with yourself," Liana noted, turning a page of her book.

"I went from destitute to wealthy in the span of an afternoon," Theo said. "Though..."

He checked the upgrade tree for the Sixth Realm... the Exarch tier!

[Next Tier Advancement: 1,000,000 Points.]

Theo felt a bucket of metaphorical ice water pour over his head.

One million points. Even after wiping out a centuries-old noble house and extorting three provincial governors, he was barely a third of the way there. The scaling was becoming absurd...

Still, he reminded himself, it had been less than a year since he arrived in the Eternal Empire as a powerless blacksmith.

He was currently sitting in his own pocket dimension, possessing strength sufficient to threaten the Crown Prince, with three hundred thousand points in the bank.

"I wonder if Cassia and Seraphina can clear out another corrupt noble house before they return," Theo murmured thoughtfully. "If they manage two more, I could break through to Exarch."

Liana lowered her book. Her silver eyes leveled on him with a mixture of amusement and disbelief. "Your disciples are currently bleeding on the frontier to secure your territory, and you are sitting on a lounger drinking tea, wondering if they can work harder?" 𝘧𝓇ℯℴ𝓂

"Delegation is the hallmark of a successful enterprise," Theo said shamelessly.

He did feel a fleeting twinge of sympathy for the two girls doing the heavy lifting in the Eastern Marches.

But then a breeze drifted through the World-Forge, rustling the silver leaves of the Astral Enlightenment Tree, and the lounger was incredibly comfortable.

Theo set his teacup down, shifted his weight, and rested his head against Liana’s shoulder.

She stiffened for a fraction of a second before relaxing, adjusting her posture to accommodate him.

"You are incorrigible," she said softly.

"I am resting my eyes," Theo mumbled, already half-asleep. "If the Emperor calls, tell him I am busy meditating on the Dao."

Under the shade of the Enlightenment Tree, accompanied by the quiet rustle of silver leaves, the Abyssal Sword Sovereign went to sleep...

***

Above a secluded valley in the Eastern Marches.

"Gentlemen, you have been tailing this old cripple for quite some time. Is it not time to reveal yourselves?"

Old Man Corvus came to a halt, leaning heavily on his driftwood staff. A smile tugged at the corners of his mouth.

Behind him, the air rippled. The three Provincial Archons stepped out of the spatial distortion in unison, their expressions decidedly less terrified than they had been in the Rullus courtyard.

"Your generosity back there was truly awe-inspiring," the lead Archon said, resting a hand on the hilt of his broadsword. "However... the three of us suffered considerable losses at the hands of the Abyssal Sovereign. It would be inappropriate for you to leave the Eastern Marches so easily."

"We are not demanding much," the second Archon added "Five thousand high-grade Aether-crystals each. And one Provincial-grade artifact as compensation for our damaged pride. Agree, and we shall not hinder your journey."

The three Exarch-level cultivators fanned out, sealing the valley’s spatial coordinates.

Even though Corvus was technically at the Fifth Realm of the Exarch tier, the three Archons were at the Third Realm.

They were confident their numerical advantage granted them total superiority...

Corvus laughed. It started as a chuckle and evolved into a r full-chested guffaw, as if he had just heard the grandest joke of the century.