Return of the Mythic Bloodline

’Too shameful! Too shameful! Too shameful!’ Evangeline cried inwardly, her eyes squeezed shut as she felt completely exposed to Maximilian now that he had her hands pinned above her head.

Realising she was on the verge of tears from embarrassment, Maximilian let go of her hands. The moment he did, she instantly jumped into the hot spring like a startled fish, submerging herself until only her eyes remained above the surface, glaring sharply at him.

"D-did I go too far?" Maximilian mumbled, rubbing the back of his head.

Evangeline’s cheeks puffed out in anger as she snapped her head to the side. "Hmph!"

He also stepped into the pond. "Vivi, I—When did you get over there?"

Evangeline was floating at the opposite side of the pond, still with only her eyes above the water, glaring at Maximilian.

She raised her face just enough for her lips to emerge. "I hate you." Then she dipped beneath the surface again.

’S-so adorable!’ Maximilian gasped, his mouth hanging open.

"Vivi, could you come a little closer?" he requested, a faint blush spreading across his cheeks. "I won’t do anything."

"Say that after wiping the drool off your face," Evangeline muttered, moving farther away. Maximilian’s crimson face was not fooling anyone. Although he truly meant it when he said he would not do anything, he was not even sure whether he could keep his hands to himself if she came any closer.

He took a deep breath, calming himself. "I’m sorry, Vivi. But it isn’t my fault. You’re so attractive that I just couldn’t keep my hands off you."

Evangeline slipped completely beneath the water. Her hand covered her brightly smiling face. She wasn’t sure whether it was the hot spring or his words that were making her whole body burn.

’I... I also want you to never keep your hands off me, My Lord,’ she screamed inwardly. ’But all of this is too sudden for me. I want you too, but I can’t bear this embarrassment.’

After a few seconds, she emerged from the water again and declared, "I will let what you did slide. But you must keep yourself under control."

Maximilian immediately nodded. "It’s difficult, but I’ll try."

"Until I am ready..." Evangeline said softly, lowering her blue eyes.

"Could you repeat that?" Maximilian asked, his eyes widening. "I think I just misheard something."

Evangeline only whined. She did not want to repeat those shameful words. "Wait until I get used to these things."

They spent over an hour in the hot spring, relaxing their muscles. It was not just ordinary water. The herbs mixed into the pond helped the duo stabilise the cultivation base they had gained after breaking through to a new realm.

Naturally, Maximilian was forced to leave the pond first since Evangeline did not want him to see her bare. Not yet, at least.

"My Lord," Evangeline called, tying the belt of her robe beside the pond. Maximilian stood a few metres in front of her with his back turned.

"Yes."

"After six months, the six clans will come looking for us," she said in a serious tone. "If the Divine Dragons arrive as well, they will find us even if we move more than ten thousand kilometres deeper."

She walked over to him, now fully dressed, and asked, "How deep can you explore the Riftlands with your current realm?"

"Around six thousand kilometres," Maximilian replied. "I need to reach the Celestial Realm within these six months."

His fist tightened at his side as the weight of their predicament pressed down on his shoulders. Normally, it took at least a hundred years for a dragon to reach the Celestial Realm from the Level Nine Transcendent Realm, and that was only if they received the necessary insights. One could cultivate for thousands of years and still fail to break through.

Reaching that stage in just six months was like trying to catch the moon’s reflection in water.

"Don’t worry, My Lord," Evangeline said, taking his hand in both of hers. She gave him a reassuring smile before continuing, "I don’t mind even if we’re found. We’ll stay away from worldly affairs for another ten years. And I’ll have you all to myself for ten more years."

"Forget about ten years," Maximilian replied, gently patting Evangeline’s head. "Just say the word, and I’m ready to spend eternity with you. However..."

His voice turned cold, and his jaw tightened.

"The stain on your dignity will not go unanswered. The dragons will pay!"

---

After resting for a few hours, the duo left the pagoda. Now that Evangeline had broken through, she could travel around five hundred kilometres deeper without having her vitality drained by the surrounding Death Energy.

She decided to eliminate the monsters in the area so their home would remain safe. There was no end to the monsters in the Riftlands. No matter how many they killed, new ones would form from the concentrated Death Energy within a week or two. Maximilian had to return every week from the deeper regions just to eliminate them while Evangeline remained in closed door cultivation. But now that she could hold her own, he decided to explore the deeper lands.

After a month of continuous, relentless battles, Maximilian reached five thousand kilometres away than his home. The number of monsters here was lower since only Rank Six and above death demons could survive the dense Death Energy. Although he could travel even farther, he was no match for Rank Seven death demons.

"Simply killing monsters won’t get me anywhere," Maximilian sighed as his eyes swept across the dark, shattered valleys.

A rippling wave of energy suddenly crashed against his body, sending his hair fluttering backward. The vertical slit of his pupils narrowed as he focused on the source of the disturbance.

A few kilometres ahead, two Rank Six death demons were engaged in a fierce battle.

"The death demons with cores usually stay within their own territories," Maximilian murmured, his eyebrows rising in surprise. "I haven’t even seen Rank Five death demons fight among themselves. What could have caused these two to clash like this?"

One of the death demons was a gigantic bird, roughly the same size as Maximilian’s transformed state. It possessed four feathered wings on its back and two long necks, each ending in a separate head. Its long, hornbill-like beaks unleashed torrents of death fire with every breath at the another Rank Six beast below.

The other was a giant gorilla with four arms, three eyes, and two long tusks. It was twice the size of the bird. Every swing of its arms sent ripples across the entire battlefield.

"Fire Eating Ashwing and Soul Devouring Ape," Maximilian murmured, recognising the two death demons.

The Soul Devouring Ape possessed the ability to consume weaker souls to strengthen itself. Meanwhile, the Fire Eating Ashwing had the terrifying ability to convert Death Energy into dark flames capable of burning almost anything they touched.

Its flames were so deadly that even Rank Seven death demons rarely dared to provoke it.

By all logical reasoning, the Soul Devouring Ape should have stood no chance against it.

However...

"T-this ape is different," Maximilian murmured, his eyes widening with intrigue.

The moment the dark flames released by the Ashwing reached the ape, it opened its jaws wide and began devouring the flames.

"The Soul Devouring Ape can only devour weaker souls," Maximilian muttered, recalling what was written about them in the scriptures. "They cannot even devour Rank Four death demons. So how is this ape devouring flames that are above its own level?"

The Ashwing released a sharp screech, furious that its deadliest attack had proven ineffective.

With its massive claws, it slashed across the ape’s torso, forcing it to skid back several feet. The ground trembled beneath the heavy impact of its footsteps.

"GRAWR!!"

The ape roared as dark blood seeped from the wounds carved by the Ashwing’s claws.

The bird soared into the air before diving once more, its beak piercing the ape’s face and gouging out one of its eyes.

Instead of retreating, the ape grabbed the bird by one of its heads and unleashed a relentless barrage of punches at its neck.

The Ashwing’s other head spewed dark flames, but the ape devoured them once again.

"GRAWR!!!"

The ape roared as it gripped the head with both hands and tore it clean off.

The Ashwing’s remaining head trembled in agony as its wings beat frantically in an attempt to take flight.

Sensing its intention to flee, the ape leapt onto its back, seized its wings, and ripped them apart. The Ashwing released several more blasts of dark flames, but they only served to feed the ape.

The ape clasped both of its massive hands together and repeatedly slammed them down upon the bird. Every strike split the ground beneath them and unleashed powerful shockwaves that Maximilian could feel even from several kilometres away.

Stomp!

Stomp!

Stomp!

Stomp!

It did not stop until the Ashwing’s body had been reduced to a mangled mass of dark flesh.

What happened next left Maximilian completely stunned.

The ape sat beside the Ashwing’s corpse and formed a series of hand seals. A layer of dark energy enveloped its silhouette before rising into the shape of a black dragon.

The dragon opened its jaws and began devouring the Ashwing’s corpse.

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