The valley looked like it had been clawed apart by something that didn't know when to stop. The ground was split open in long jagged lines, trees had been uprooted and thrown aside like they weighed nothing, and the air still carried a faint, restless pressure that hadn't settled even after the fight ended. It wasn't quiet in a peaceful way, but in that uncomfortable, waiting kind of silence that follows something violent.
At the centre of it all lay the body of a Vajra Scaled White Dragon, massive even in death, its long frame stretched across the cracked earth as if the land itself had failed to hold it. Its scales, once bright like polished diamonds, were now dull and fractured, some broken clean off, while others were darkened with blood and dust. One wing was twisted at an unnatural angle, half-buried into the ground, while the other lay spread out like a fallen banner.
Even without moving, it felt dangerous.
That lingering aura hadn't faded yet, pressing down on the surroundings with the kind of weight only a hundred-thousand-year spirit beast could leave behind. If a weaker spirit beast wandered anywhere near this place, it would probably turn and run before it even understood why.
Above the corpse, a crimson spirit ring hovered in the air.
It rotated slowly, almost lazily, but the energy within it told a completely different story. The deep red glow pulsed unevenly, like a heartbeat that refused to calm down, and now and then the air around it distorted slightly, as if space itself wasn't entirely comfortable with its presence.
There was resistance in it.
Not just power, but remanent will.
And right beneath that ring—
Wang Luan sat cross-legged, completely still.
His breathing was steady, as if the chaos around him didn't exist at all. His long black hair swayed in the gentle wind as eight spirit rings revolved around him in a smooth, practised rhythm, their colours layered in a way that told the story of his cultivation more clearly than any words could.
Yellow, yellow, purple, purple, black, black, black, black.
The crimson ring began to descend.
When it finally touched him, the calm broke.
A violent surge of energy exploded outward, the ground cracking further as if it had been waiting for an excuse to give way. The air shook, dust lifting and scattering in all directions, and even the corpse beneath him trembled slightly as the remaining essence inside it was dragged out forcefully.
Wang Luan's body tensed for a brief moment.
Not dramatically, not like he was losing control, but enough to show that even for him, this wasn't something trivial. The pressure of a 100,000-year spirit ring wasn't something anyone could just ignore, no matter how prepared they were.
Behind him, something appeared.
A sword.
There was no summoning circle, no flash of light, no dramatic entrance. It was just there, as if it had always been there.
The blade was straight and refined, with a faint silver-gold sheen that caught the light in a quiet, understated way. It didn't look oversized or exaggerated, nor did it carry any obvious decoration. If anything, it looked simple.
But the feeling it gave off was anything but.
It was sharp.
Not just physically, but in a way that made the space around it feel slightly… thinner.
The Celestial Sword.
Above Wang Luan, the crimson ring trembled.
Within his Mind Sea, a roar echoed.
A massive phantom burst into existence, its form causing waves in his Mind Sea, formed entirely from condensed spirit energy and lingering will. Its eyes burned with anger and unwillingness, its body twisting as it let out a roar that echoed across his Mind Sea.
It wasn't ready to disappear.
It lunged downward.
The movement was sudden and aggressive, filled with the last remnants of its pride. If it had to be absorbed, then it would at least resist until the very end.
Wang Luan didn't move.
He didn't need to.
The sword behind him simply quivered, while remaining where it was.
And somehow—
That was enough.
The moment the phantom came close, its movement slowed.
Not because it chose to.
Because it had to.
It was like running into something invisible, something that didn't push back but simply… refused to allow it forward. The dragon's roar weakened, turning from anger into something closer to frustration, then into something quieter.
Something resigned.
Slowly, its massive head lowered.
Submission.
The red ring stopped trembling.
The energy settled.
The violent surge that had filled the valley moments ago began to fade, replaced by a steady, controlled flow that no longer threatened to break free. What had been chaotic and resistant was now part of something larger.
The ninth ring locked into place.
Everything went still.
Wang Luan opened his eyes.
For a brief moment, there was a faint metallic glint in those dark eyes, something sharp and precise that disappeared almost as quickly as it appeared. He let out a slow breath, his shoulders relaxing slightly as the last traces of tension left his body.
Then he stood up.
No stumble.
No sign of exhaustion.
Just a smooth, controlled motion, as if nothing particularly difficult had just happened.
The nine spirit rings revolved around him quietly, their presence no longer overwhelming, but undeniable.
Level ninety.
Titled Douluo.
He looked down at the dragon.
For a second, he just stared at it, like he was replaying parts of the fight in his head. Then he let out a small breath, tilting his head slightly.
"...You really didn't make that easy."
His tone wasn't bitter, just mildly annoyed, like someone commenting on a task that took longer than expected.
"Could've wrapped that up faster if you cooperated."
A pause.
"…Not that you had much reason to."
The Celestial Sword hovered faintly at his side, unmoving but present.
Wang Luan stretched his shoulders a little, testing how his body felt now that everything had settled. There was a difference, subtle but clear, like stepping into a slightly larger space after being confined for too long.
"Level ninety," he muttered, more to confirm it than anything else.
Then—
Something flickered in front of him.
He stopped.
A faint cyan glow appeared in the air, forming into a semi-transparent panel that hovered right at eye level. It didn't come with any noticeable energy fluctuation, no warning, no buildup.
It just… appeared.
Wang Luan blinked once.
Then again.
"…Alright," he said quietly. "That's definitely not normal."
He raised his hand and waved it through the panel.
Nothing. No resistance. No reaction.
His fingers passed straight through, as if the panel wasn't even there.
He tried again. Same result.
"…Okay," he added after a second. "That's even less normal."
[Ding! Detected that the Host has reached the Titled Douluo Realm.]
[Minimum requirement has been fulfilled!]
[Binding Divine Chaos System with Host's consciousness.]
[10%]
[20%]
[30%]
[40%]
Wang Luan stared at it.
[50%]
The percentage ticked upward, slow and steady.
[60%]
He crossed his arms, watching it like someone observing something mildly suspicious but not immediately dangerous.
"After all these years," he said. " This is when my system decides to download?"
[70%]
[80%]
The bar slowly climbed, as if it were just teasing him.
[90%]
[92%]
[96%]
[99%]
Then-
[100%]
[Binding of Divine Chaos System Complete!]
"Took you long enough," he said, with an annoyed look.
The panel flickered briefly, then text began to appear:
[System Initialisation Complete!]
[Host Confirmed: Wang Luan]
[Initialising System Core...]
A sudden pressure hit his mind.
It wasn't pain, not exactly, but it wasn't comfortable either. It felt like something was reaching in, not physically, but somewhere deeper, somewhere he couldn't block or push away.
His vision blurred.
"…Yeah," he muttered faintly, his balance shifting just a little. "Definitely not the best feeling."
The final line appeared:
[Initialisation Successful!]
[Entering Dormant Synchronisation State...]
The cyan glow flickered once, then disappeared.
The panel vanished completely, leaving no trace behind, as if it had never been there in the first place.
The valley returned to silence. Wang Luan stood there for a second longer, his thoughts trying to catch up with what had just happened.
"…You know," he said slowly, "I was really hoping for at least a few quiet days after breaking through."
No response. Of course.
He exhaled lightly.
"Guess that was too much to ask."
The world tilted.
His vision darkened rapidly, the edges fading first before everything else followed. The ground felt strangely distant for a brief moment, like he wasn't entirely connected to it anymore.
"…Right after a breakthrough, too," he added faintly. "Great timing."
His body gave out.
Wang Luan collapsed onto the fractured ground beside the dragon's corpse, his spirit rings fading as consciousness slipped away completely.
The valley remained still.
But far beyond it, something had already begun.