I looked from my father…
…to my grandfather…
…then to Elder Solryn.
---
Silence sat heavy in my chest.
---
For once—
I had no answer.
---
Demonic energy…
I understood it.
Everyone did.
---
When negative emotions fester long enough—
pain, hatred, obsession—
they begin to change.
---
They condense.
Corrupt.
Twist into power.
---
Demonic energy.
---
A force born not from harmony—
but from imbalance.
---
Left unchecked—
it devours its host.
Turns them into something less than human.
Something driven only by instinct.
By obsession.
By rage.
---
A mindless beast.
---
That was the known truth.
---
And the cure?
---
Simple.
Not easy—
but simple.
---
Remove the burden.
Heal the heart.
Break the obsession.
---
Or kill the host before it's too late.
---
But—
there were exceptions.
---
Some were born with it.
---
Those rare few could control it.
Master it.
Turn chaos into strength.
---
Even then—
it was dangerous.
Unstable.
Always one step from collapse.
---
But what I carried…
---
Was not that.
---
Demonic energy was one thing.
---
Demon God energy…
---
Was something else entirely.
---
To reach that level—
you needed overwhelming demonic energy…
Perfect control…
And the will to survive something that destroys you from the inside out.
---
One mistake—
and your existence shatters.
---
Gone.
---
So why—
---
Why was it in me?
---
I wasn't abused.
I wasn't broken.
---
My childhood…
was normal.
---
The clan didn't tolerate cruelty.
Weakness, yes.
But not injustice.
---
So this—
made no sense.
---
And that…
was what made it dangerous.
---
I said nothing.
---
Because even I didn't understand.
---
My grandfather shifted slightly.
Then looked toward Solryn.
---
A silent exchange passed between them.
---
Permission.
---
Then—
he spoke.
---
"Elder Solryn believes… you are one of the Pure Ones."
---
The words landed quietly.
---
But their weight—
was immense.
---
My father's gaze sharpened instantly.
---
Pure One.
---
Even I had heard the term before.
---
A myth.
A classification so rare it bordered on impossible.
---
Beings with perfect—or near perfect—bloodline purity.
---
Existences that stood outside the normal flow of cultivation.
---
Anomalies.
---
My grandfather continued.
---
"We have never sensed demonic energy from you before."
---
His eyes locked onto mine.
---
"Not once."
---
"That is impossible… unless it was never something that needed to be hidden."
---
The room grew colder.
---
"Even those born with demonic energy struggle to suppress it."
---
"Those who awaken it… cannot hide it at all."
---
A pause.
---
"But you…"
---
His voice lowered.
---
"…showed none."
---
Solryn finally spoke.
---
"Which means it is not something you possess…"
---
His gaze deepened.
---
"…but something you are connected to."
---
Silence.
---
My heartbeat slowed.
---
The sea.
The Sovereign.
---
You are remembering…
---
My grandfather exhaled.
Then—
his expression hardened.
---
"We have made a decision."
---
A pause.
---
Then—
---
"We are sending you to Neraphyx."
---
BOOM!!!!!
---
My father's aura exploded.
---
Blue flames surged around him like a star collapsing inward.
The air cracked.
Pressure crushed the room.
---
His eyes burned.
Blue—
split with white.
Predatory.
Furious.
---
"Absolutely not."
---
His voice was low.
But it shook the space.
---
My grandfather didn't react.
---
He simply looked at him.
---
Calm.
Unmoved.
---
"A being meant to rule…"
---
"…cannot be raised in safety."
---
The words were cold.
Absolute.
---
"This is not punishment."
---
"This is preparation."
---
The air trembled.
---
My father's aura flickered violently—
then—
collapsed inward.
---
Gone.
---
But his gaze…
remained locked.
---
Unyielding.
---
My grandfather continued.
---
"There is nothing left for the clan to teach him."
---
A pause.
---
"He has already stepped beyond us."
---
Silence.
---
That truth…
hurt more than any insult.
---
Because it was real.
---
Everyone in this room knew it.
---
My father closed his eyes briefly.
---
Then exhaled.
---
He understood.
---
Because he had been there.
---
Neraphyx.
---
The land of endless conflict.
Where survival was the only law.
Where power was tested not in training—
but in death.
---
He had survived it.
---
Now—
I was being sent there.
---
"As compensation," my grandfather added, "he will be given multiple survival kits."
---
My father gave a slight nod.
---
Not agreement.
---
Acceptance.
---
He stood.
---
Turned.
---
And began walking toward the door.
---
Each step heavier than the last.
---
Then—
---
"One month."
---
The voice stopped him.
---
Not my grandfather.
---
The Patriarch.
---
The authority in that voice—
was absolute.
---
"That is all I will give."
---
My father froze.
---
Then slowly turned back.
---
No anger now.
---
Only understanding.
---
A month.
---
To prepare.
---
To accept.
---
Or to resist.
---
Then—
he left.
---
BANG!!!
---
The door slammed shut.
---
BOOM!!!
---
His aura ignited outside—
blazing across the sky like a blue sun.
---
Gone.
---
Silence returned.
---
I remained seated.
---
Still.
---
Thinking.
---
Not about Neraphyx.
---
Not about danger.
---
Not about survival.
---
Because those didn't matter.
---
What mattered…
---
Was something else.
---
Elder Solryn spoke.
---
"You are stronger than anyone I have ever seen at your stage."
---
His voice was calm.
Warm.
---
"You will survive."
---
I didn't respond.
---
Because survival wasn't the question.
---
My thoughts drifted.
---
Pure One.
---
What did that really mean?
---
Was it a blessing?
---
Or a designation?
---
A role?
---
A correction?
---
My eyes darkened slightly.
---
A realization forming.
---
Slow.
Terrifying.
---
If Pure Ones exist…
---
Then there must be a standard.
---
A balance.
---
And anything outside that balance—
---
Becomes an anomaly.
---
A mistake.
---
Something that must be corrected.
---
My fingers tightened slightly.
---
"…Then there's only one."
---
My voice was quiet.
---
But it carried.
---
Both of them looked at me.
---
"The only true Pure One…"
---
A pause.
---
My mind echoed the voice from the void.
---
The presence beyond everything.
---
The one who said—
You are remembering.
---
I lifted my gaze.
---
"The Nameless Sovereign."
---
Silence.
---
Deep.
---
Heavy.
---
Because in that moment—
---
A truth began to take shape.
---
I wasn't just connected to it.
---
I wasn't just chosen.
---
I wasn't just a vessel.
---
Something far more dangerous was happening.
---
Something neither the clan…
nor the elders…
nor even I fully understood.
---
And if that truth was real—
---
Then Neraphyx wasn't a punishment.
---
It wasn't even preparation.
---
It was—
---
The beginning.