From Secret Clan to the Divine Dynasty

Duke Black Iron of the Romann family.

He and Cyart King had fought side by side more than a hundred years ago to establish the country known today, and no one on the Eastern Four Kingdoms was oblivious to the renown of Duke Black Iron.

As a top-tier power at the mid-level Monarch rank, Duke Black Iron was already famous before Cyart's rise, having once joined forces with Cyart King to fight against a high-level Monarch from Lorne. Though defeated but still honorable, they successfully lured the enemy, escaped, and achieved a significant strategic goal, much to the lifelong shame of that high-level Monarch.

That old man was also the beginning of the Fischer family's ascendancy into the noble hierarchy.

Owing to Lucius's heroic sacrifice, he granted the Fischer family an official entry ticket into the aristocracy.

Byrne calmly opened the black envelope, and as he read the contents, he couldn't help but frown.

He could be certain that the letter was indeed from Duke Black Iron himself and not forged by anyone else.

Because on the letter was a powerful aura specifically affixed by a Monarch Level power, it could only come from Duke Black Iron, like wrought iron, weapons, blades, cold to the bone.

It seemed as if nothing in the world could soften it, everything would be penetrated by its firm and mighty aura.

"Only a strong person at the mid-level Monarch rank could retain their aura for so long without it dissipating..."

Byrne took a deep breath and then continued to read the letter, his eyes gradually revealing a tremendous shock.

He hastily gripped the envelope tight, his brow furrowing deeply.

"This matter is too significant, perhaps it will require a vote by family members to decide..."

His face showed disbelief, but he soon engaged in serious contemplation.

"Perhaps this matter does not even need a vote, because we must do it. However, if the Fischer family follows the instructions in the letter, we will be taking a significant risk. Although I can defy Ariel Romann, the Fischer family simply cannot defy Duke Black Iron..."

"Especially now that I have seen the contents of this letter, there's no way for the Fischer family to refuse."

Byrne closed his eyes, his brow tightly knitted.

Duke Black Iron hoped that the Fischer family would help them transport a special product from the Aphotic Sea, "Ashes of Death."

The product looks like black ash and upon contact, it manifests cries of fear and despair. It comes from the corpses of residents of the Aphotic Sea and is widely used in various evil cult rituals.

Basically, those large-scale heretical rituals require "Ashes of Death" to be completed.

All True Gods Churches strictly prohibit the sale of "Ashes of Death," and anyone involved in selling it is treated as colluding with heretical cults, with very severe consequences.

"With this letter slapped in my face like this, the Fischer family has absolutely no room to refuse."

Byrne let out a long sigh. If not for the influence of the Romann family, the Lion clan would not have obtained the East Coast Province so easily, and it would not have been so simple for the Fischer family to acquire the Four Towns.

"Since the Fischer family enjoys the protection of taking sides, without a doubt, we also have to assume the corresponding risks."

Tasks assigned by true powerhouses must be done, and they must be done well, there's no choice!

Furthermore, as long as the Fischer family does this, they will be deeply bound to the Romann family in the future, just like the various tests they have always given to the Daybreakers.

"Regarding the issue of the Romann family's heir, such matters must be carefully sided with, and it's best to find a way to know the personal stance of Duke Black Iron."

Byrne opened his eyes, filled with contemplation. He was well aware of the severe consequences of internal siding, and with that risk came high rewards.

"The good news is that with Chris's presence, at least the Fischer family now has the privilege of taking sides among the bigwigs. The bad news, however, is that siding also means high-risk gambling; the traditionally cautious Fischer family must also take risks."

The impending death of Duke Black Iron would doubtlessly be an event that could cause turmoil throughout all of Cyart, and it's unpredictable how the Romann family would respond. Should the Romann family fall into internal strife once more, the consequences would be unimaginable.

The allure of this matter would definitely not be small; at worst, it could even lead to the downfall of Cyart.

Byrne shook his head and finally decided to take part in tonight's sacrifice to the Great Lord of the Lost.

"It seems we need a vote with the Scales of Faith again."

In the sacrificial chamber on the second underground level of Fischer Manor, everyone was waiting eagerly, and each member of the Dawn Church watched the new Great Priest with respect.

Shortly after Byrne arrived, the sacrifice officially began.

Lilian had rehearsed countless times, able to remember each sacrificial procedure specified by Irene, with all her motions thoroughly conforming to the rules.

They were sacrificing two top-tier Mysterious rare artifacts, "Rupture" and "Pure White Glove," to express gratitude to the great Lord of the Lost for bestowing miracles once again.

"Great Lord of the Lost, please accept our sincere offerings..."

Lilian murmured with her eyes closed, her face unabashedly devout.

Karl gazed at the Fischer family's new Priest, Byrne's daughter Lilian.

She had returned years later, seemingly more radical in thought than Irene. Besides, Lilian had also become excellent companions with the Spiritual Dragon.

"A Spiritual Dragon, eh?"

The Spiritual Dragon grew slowly; it remained a little "young dragon" even after many years, and it likely wouldn't mature even when Lilian's generation had mostly passed away.

"That creature, although it's called a dragon, it actually isn't one,"

Karl had long known that the Spiritual Dragon was a type of extraordinary mysterious creature.

It absorbed Spiritual Power to grow, but in fact, it wasn't a real dragon, just as whales from his homeland appeared to be fish but were actually mammals.

"Dragon is just the form it imitates; its liquid form is probably closer to its true body."

Indeed, after Irene's death, a significant amount of Spiritual Power returned, and with the addition of two top-tier Treasure class mysterious rare artifacts, Karl could clearly feel the fourth seal beginning to loosen.

"However, to completely break it, there's still a long way to go."

To break through each seal, substantially more Spiritual Power was needed than for the previous one, and starting from the third seal, Karl also noticed that the quality of the Spiritual Power became a requirement to completely break the seals.

"Spirit-returning Tree..."

Without hesitation, Karl bestowed the rune power of the "Spirit-returning Tree" to Lilian.

Lilian's tears flowed freely as she could not control her emotions, feeling as if from this moment on, she represented a legacy that belonged to the Priesthood.

Following that, Karl gave a new Destiny's Trajectory to Lilian.

Since she originally lacked any special Destiny's Trajectory, Karl began to manipulate Destiny's Trajectory, clearly seeing those strings of fate tremble slightly.

The first manipulation!

Somewhere in the world, certain causes and effects began to change discreetly!

A new destiny's trajectory appeared.

"Final Madman"

The person with the destiny's trajectory "Final Madman" would become increasingly insane, unable to distinguish between reality and illusion, gradually misunderstood by the world and unable to make sense of the world itself.

However, they could make the real world shift little by little towards their understanding, causing all things to change abruptly based on their thoughts, turning the abstract into reality.

"Isn't this just like the heart..."

Karl could genuinely feel that this was a potent destiny's trajectory.

However, it was incredibly unstable, especially since Lilian, as a Priest of the Fischer family, might inadvertently doom the entire family if she went mad.

"Moreover, its effects are surely limited, the benefits won't be excessive, and the costs and risks are too great... better forget about it..."

He had no choice but to manipulate Destiny's Trajectory a second time!

The next destiny's trajectory had emerged.

"Bone-Piercing Saber"

A battle-type destiny's trajectory, and those with it would find it easier to break through an enemy's defenses during combat.

Uninteresting.

"Really too common, let's try one last time!"

Not satisfied with his luck, he manipulated Destiny's Trajectory for a third time, but the result wasn't much better.

"Bizarre News"

Those who possess the destiny's trajectory "Bizarre News" will detect many things unnoticed by ordinary people, and often, they will find themselves in unique situations, encountering more dangers and opportunities.

Karl silently fell into thought.

"If it only brought opportunities, that would be fine, but its bearer will also face risks, and they seem to cancel each other out, making this destiny's trajectory less than great."

Each manipulation of Destiny's Trajectory consumed a great deal of Spiritual Power, and Karl's restoration of Spiritual Power had always been very slow.

He also needed to reserve enough Spiritual Power for potential situations, so ultimately he did not manipulate Destiny's Trajectory again and decided to keep the "Bizarre News" trajectory for Lilian.

As for the mysterious rare artifacts "Rupture" and "Pure White Glove" that had turned into runes.

Karl pondered for a moment and tried to bestow the rune power of "Rupture" to Darren from a great distance.

It was successful.

Although the distance was too great for him to perceive the specific details of Darren's condition, perhaps because he could touch upon destiny, he vaguely sensed that something was amiss.

So he knew that Darren Fischer was in some kind of life-threatening crisis.

"Darren Fischer, find a way to survive! I will give you some help, but whether you can make it will still require your own efforts!"

He then upgraded the rune power of "Rupture" and evolved it into the spirit rune "Destruction."

"Rupture" could shatter defenses and weapons at close range, but "Destruction" took it a step further, able to directly annihilate anything the bearer focused on within a near-medium range of ten meters!