Stone Clan, back mountain dungeon.

“Why, Father? Why would you do this to me?” A hoarse, hate-filled voice echoed from the dim, cold dungeon.

A boy, barely fifteen or sixteen, was shackled tightly to the ground, both wrists and ankles pierced through by iron hooks. His face was pale, and a gaping, bloody hole marred his abdomen.

That boy was Edward Stone—the proud prodigy of the Stone Clan.

He had tempered his body at ten, opened his meridians at twelve, and before turning fifteen, formed a Spirit Core. His talent was unmatched. He led the clan to seize many ore veins, bringing prosperity to the Stones. Injuries, broken bones, he endured them all without a word. After all, the clan had taken in him and his sister.

But just yesterday, Alaric Stone, the man he called father, summoned him to the back mountain, saying there was something important to discuss. Then, without warning, he struck—one blow, and Edward’s core was shattered, his cultivation destroyed. Now he lay imprisoned in this cell of darkness.

The betrayal hit harder than the iron shackles. Edward stared at Alaric, teeth clenched, veins bulging in his eyes, unable to understand how the man he trusted like a father could do this.

But Alaric’s face remained calm, voice cold and flat. “Why? There’s no 'why'. Ten years of planning—just for that Heaven-grade bloodline running in your veins.”

Edward’s body trembled violently.

“For… for my bloodline? Then that means…”

Ten years ago, his real clan had been wiped out by black-cloaked killers. Homes burned, people slain, blood everywhere. Then Alaric had shown up like a savior, pulling him from the flames. Edward had believed it a miracle. Now it all made sense. It had been a setup from the start.

Before he could think further, a cold female voice rang out from the dungeon’s entrance.

“You’re right. Father did it… for me.”

A woman in white stepped into view. Edward’s eyes widened. “Miranda…”

But before he could finish, disgust flashed on Miranda Stone’s face. A whip lashed out, striking across his face.

“Shut up! You filthy mongrel!”

Crack!

Blood splattered. A crimson gash split across Edward’s cheeks. He spat blood, breath weakening by the second.

His eyes... still full of disbelief.Was this the same timid girl who used to follow behind him, begging for sweets?

“So you’ve been lying to me all along!”

Edward Stone snapped back, fists clenched tight, his heart bleeding.

He wasn’t blind. That cold ruthlessness in Miranda Stone’s eyes cut deeper than any blade.

She let out a mocking snort. “Hmph! If it weren’t for the need to use your Flame Sun bloodline to balance my Frost Vein, do you think I’d ever let someone like you touch me?”

“To be honest, every time you transferred your power to me, I’d spend half an hour scrubbing my hands afterward.”

“All those years of being close to you? Just to coax you into willingly giving me your power to suppress my chill venom.”

Those words hit like a hammer.

Edward’s soul screamed in pain.

So it was all fake. Every smile, every word. A lie from the start.

Everyone praised how he’d tempered his body at ten, unlocked his veins at twelve, and formed his core before fifteen.

But they didn’t know—for ten long years, he’d poured half his cultivated strength into that woman, just to ease her pain, to help her endure her poison.

If not for that, with a Heaven-rank bloodline, how could his progress have been so slow?

He should’ve soared. He could’ve already broken limits.

And she... would’ve died years ago.

Miranda barely looked at him, then said coldly to Alaric Stone, “No need to waste time now, Father. Do it.”

“Do it?”

Edward’s voice turned low and rough. “Even if I die... I won’t let you two get what you want!”

He raised his head, trying to bite through his tongue.

“Edward, don’t you dare!”

“If you do, I’ll make sure you never see your sister again.”

Alaric’s voice was flat, but the threat slammed into Edward like a cold wind from the grave.

His body flinched back.

Valerie Stone—that was his bottom line. His only family. She was two years older and raised him like a mother. Protected him when no one else did.

Mess with him? Fine. Touch her? Not a chance.

“Don’t resist, Edward,” Miranda said, lips curling in sick delight. “Or I’ll let your sister live a life worse than death. You know Jason Avalon’s always had his eye on her.”

She laughed—twisted and cruel. As if she’d forgotten everything Valerie ever did for her. As if she were already family with Jason.

“Damn it!”

Edward roared to the sky. Fury burned in his eyes. Miranda’s cruel voice rang in his ears like poison, driving him mad.

“Miranda! After everything my sister and I did for you... this is how you repay us? You venomous snake!”

Jason Avalon... the worst of the Avalon scum—heartless, cruel to women, and stained by countless victims. And now, they wanted his sister in that man’s hands? The rage in Edward threatened to burn down the world.He stared at the pendant hanging from Miranda Stone’s neck, his eyes wild, voice hoarse with fury. “Even that pendant—it's mine! That was the only thing my real father left me before he vanished!”

Crack!

Miranda ripped it off and hurled it at Edward Stone’s face. “It's just a damn pendant!”

Then she glanced at Alaric Stone beside her. “Do it, Father.”

Alaric nodded slightly, his voice cold. “Didn’t need to explain so much to him.”

“It was necessary,” Miranda replied calmly, her tone distant. “This way, he’ll stop fighting back.”

She was done pretending.

Alaric said nothing more, stepped forward, and thrust a blade-shaped hand into Edward’s chest. With swift, practiced motions, he cast a complex set of hand seals, starting to pull out the heaven-tier bloodline from Edward’s body.

Pain hit like a thunderclap.

Edward’s vision darkened. He almost blacked out.

“Aaaargh!”

Agony beyond words. He wished he could just die then and there. But he couldn’t—not with his sister still out there.

Alaric didn’t even blink. His face was indifferent—if anything, he pressed harder.

Before long, a twisting dragon-shaped bloodline was yanked from Edward’s body.

Miranda’s eyes gleamed. If she could absorb it, she’d gain unimaginable power.

Even Alaric, known for his deep cunning, couldn’t hide his excitement.

“Good… very good. Ten years of planning, finally paying off.”

Miranda turned, expression icy. “Now hurry and marry his sister off to Jason Avalon from the Chen family.”

Edward, half-conscious, trembled violently at her words. His eyes burned red, his face twisted from rage and heartbreak. He let out a guttural roar, savage like a beast.

“Alaric Stone! Miranda Stone! I, Edward Stone, swear—someday, you two will die without a grave!”

They destroyed his clan.

Stole his bloodline.

Deceived him into calling a traitor ‘father’ for over a decade.

Used him like a pawn.

All unforgivable.

Then, blood oozing from his wounds trickled into the shattered pendant on the floor.

Crack!

The pendant shattered.

A thunderous voice boomed in his mind, ringing like a bronze bell echoing across the heavens.

“From destruction comes rebirth. Only through ruin can true strength rise!”

“Bury the heavens—bury the earth… Eternal Tomb of Silence!”