The council chamber of the Azure Vault was a place of high ceilings and ancient tapestries, where the air was usually thick with the scent of burning sandalwood and the quiet, scholarly murmurs of the Academy's elite. Now, it was a tomb of silence. The heavy iron doors that Blake had shoved open hung slightly off their hinges, a testament to the raw, unrefined strength that now pulsed within his lean frame.
Blake stood in the center of the hall, his boots caked in the grey, necrotic ash of the Hive. To the Elders sitting on their elevated daises, he didn't look like a disciple anymore. He looked like a calamity.
"The promotion," Blake said again, his voice cutting through the stagnation of the room. It was not a request; it was an ultimatum.
Elder Vane, the Master of the Martial Hall, was the first to move. He stood up, his 7th-layer aura flaring briefly before he suppressed it. A hint of approval flickered in his turbid eyes, a look that only a warrior could give to another who had seen the mouth of hell and spat in its eye. He could clearly sense how strong Blake had become. This was no longer just a 2nd-layer foundation; it was a physical and spiritual monolith that defied the traditional laws of cultivation.
"Blake Harrison," Vane began, his voice echoing. "You have achieved what was deemed impossible. The Iron-Gate Pass is a graveyard of many geniuses, yet you return not just alive, but transformed."
"Murderer!" a voice shrieked from the left.
Elder Wei of the Shadow-White Sect rose, his face contorted in a mask of fury. His sect's top Enforcer had just been turned into a heap of broken bones in the plaza outside. "He has slaughtered our disciples at the very gate of our home! He has disregarded the laws of the Academy! Vane, you cannot seriously consider rewarding this stray for his crimes!"
Blake looked at Elder Wei with a sarcastic expression. "Your disciples were weak," he said simply. "They relied on their names and their robes rather than their fists. In the Iron-Gate, weakness is a death sentence. I simply brought the Iron-Gate to them."
Upon hearing this, many of the other Elders gasped. The sheer arrogance of a 2nd-layer youth speaking such words to an Elder of the Council was beyond their comprehension.
"You insolent brat!" Wei roared. He suddenly stepped towards Blake's location, his 7th-layer energy erupting in a wave of ghostly white light. He struck out with a palm print, the power of which was meant to flatten Blake and humiliate him in front of the council.
Faced with this terrifying attack from an Elder, Blake seemed completely unconcerned.
The next moment, the crowd of Elders heard a terrifying rumbling sound. Blake didn't even shift his stance. He unleashed a punch, his fist meeting Wei's palm print with a precision that was unbelievable.
The power contained in this punch was indescribable. The two forces collided instantly, and under the effect of Blake's destructive intent, the ghostly white light of Elder Wei was shattered into nothingness. The destructive force was simply too strong; it traveled up Wei's arm, shattering his muscles and bones in a short time.
Wei was sent flying backward, slamming into his own throne of jade. He coughed up a mouthful of blood, his face turning ashen as he realized that his 7th-layer cultivation had been utterly bypassed by a single, casual strike.
The Council Chamber froze. Many Elders trembled involuntarily, their gazes towards Blake revealing intense disbelief. It seems no one expected that Blake would possess the strength to suppress an Elder with a single blow.
"Not only is he not dead, but his strength is vastly different from what it once was," Vane whispered, his heart trembling.
Blake ignored the fallen Elder. He looked at Vane. "The promotion. And the access to the Restricted Archives. I believe that was the deal."
Vane nodded slowly, his expression one of grim acceptance. "The deal stands. As of this moment, Blake Harrison is promoted to the Inner Sect. He is granted the rank of 'Sovereign Disciple'—a title not held in this Academy for three generations."
The promotion was a shock to everyone present. They hadn't expected Vane to grant such a high rank to a "stray." But as they looked at the youth whose aura was now chilling the very air in the room, none dared to object.
Blake turned and led his presence out of the chamber, each step causing the hearts of the Elders to vibrate. His expression remained unchanged. He had no interest in their politics; he only had interest in the path to the "Great Warrior."
As Blake left the Martial Hall, the news of his promotion and the defeat of Elder Wei spread like a thunderclap. The entire Academy was in an uproar. The three top forces—the Shadow-White Sect, the Arcade Drake Sect, and the Numen Star Sect—were now in a state of crisis. Their authority had been challenged, their Enforcers killed, and their Elder humiliated.
"This cannot be allowed to stand," a voice murmured in the dark depths of the Shadow-White Palace.
Guar, the peak 7th-layer prodigy, stood before a group of hooded figures. His eyes flashed with a cold, murderous light. He had heard of Blake's return and his victory over the Elders, but he remained arrogant. In his opinion, the news was just something the disciples had boasted about, and it was nothing to be surprised about.
"I will go," Guar said, his voice carrying an astonishing destructive power. "He is but a 2nd-layer stray who has found a few tricks in the dirt. I will kill him as easily as cutting melons and vegetables."
As Guar spoke, he stepped towards the exit, his aura erupting with a ghostly power that caused the stone walls to crack. He was confident enough to easily kill Blake.
Meanwhile, Blake had arrived at the Restricted Archives—a massive tower made of ancient, spirit-conductive stone. He didn't wait for the guards to open the door; he simply pushed, and the heavy seals of the archive shattered under his palm.
Inside, the air was filled with a powerful sword aura and the resonance of thousands of years of martial knowledge. Blake ignored the lower floors and directly walked toward the upper levels. His current cultivation was unfathomable to the librarians, who tried to use their divine sense to investigate him, only to have their senses repelled by a cold, sharp barrier.
He reached the highest floor, where a single jade scroll floated in a void of blue light. This was the "Sovereign Core Manual", a text that was said to contain the secret of the mid-stage Soul Realm.
Blake reached out and grasped the scroll.
The next moment, everyone in the vicinity heard a terrifying, resounding tremor. The power of the archives seemed to converge on Blake's body, his Martial Intent reacting to the ancient wisdom within the jade. A dazzling light erupted from his pupils, carrying a hint of disdain for the limitations of his current rank.
Thump! Thump! Thump!
His heart beat like a war drum, echoing through the tower. He could feel his 2nd-layer foundation beginning to vibrate, ready to break through once more.
But he was interrupted.
"You have quite the appetite for knowledge, Blake," a voice said, dripping with sarcasm.
Guar stood at the entrance of the chamber, his silver longsword drawn. The sword flashed with a cold light, its speed unbelievable. Beside him were three other peak 7th-layer experts from the Numen Star and Arcade Drake sects.
Their auras erupted, seemingly converging in the void, and together they pressed down on Blake's body. Many of the librarians fled in terror; even though they were far apart, they could still feel the pressure.
Blake Harrison, however, remained unconcerned. He tucked the jade scroll into his belt and turned to face them. His expression remained unchanged, even as he faced four of the Academy's strongest disciples.
"You should consider yourself honored to die by my hand," Guar said, his aura reaching its peak. He suddenly stepped towards Blake, his sword light threatening to slit Blake's throat.
Blake looked at his opponent with a sarcastic expression. Just as the sword light was about to land, he unleashed a punch.
The power contained in this punch was indescribable and arrived in a short time. Under Blake's fist strike, the sword light was shattered and destroyed, turning into nothingness.
Guar let out a scream, his body blasted away, his face turning ashen as he landed on the stone floor. He coughed up mouthfuls of blood, his body completely enveloped by the destructive power at that moment.
"How terrifying! Guar... even Guar was suppressed with a single punch!" the remaining three experts uttered in disbelief.
They hadn't expected that Blake's strength would far exceed their imagination. Those who had never witnessed his return were especially shocked.
Blake continued to step forward, each step causing the earth—and the hearts of the three experts—to tremble. He remained completely calm, as if it were all as it should be.
"Let's attack together!" the Numen Star expert roared, his long spear flashing with murderous intent.
The three of them launched an attack together, their powers creating a chaotic domain in the void. Wherever they went, space itself was pierced through. Their timing was perfect; any other expert would have had a hard time dodging.
However, Blake didn't need to dodge at all.
Just as their attacks were about to land, a cold glint flashed in his pupils. An astonishing domain power erupted from his body—the "Void-Sovereign Domain".
The attack instantly enveloped the bodies of the three warriors. Sensing the terrifying power of Blake's domain, their attacks were completely swallowed up. A terrifying cold light suddenly flashed within the domain, constantly tearing and shredding.
"No, we don't want to die..." a peak-level expert uttered a sound of despair.
The next moment, the crowd heard continuous hissing sounds as the three experts were gradually being crushed and swallowed up by the domain power. They turned into puffs of blood mist and dissipated with the wind!
The space returned to calm. The ground was littered with the remnants of their weapons. The air was thick with the stench of blood.
Blake ignored everything else and directly walked out of the Restricted Archives, the jade scroll firmly in his possession. Many people's eyes were fixed on his back as he stepped out into the golden sunlight of the plaza. Their hearts were still trembling from the shock of the battle.
"He killed the prodigies," one disciple whispered in a trembling voice. "The three top forces will definitely not let him go. It won't be long before they send their Ancestors."
Indeed, after Blake left, the commotion spread to every corner of the Academy. Almost everyone heard about it. Many were shocked; they never dreamed that the young man who once dominated the entry trials would return with such a powerful presence.
In the deepest sanctums of the three sects, the news reached the "Hidden Ancestors"—men and women who had achieved the 8th Layer and beyond. Their eyes flashed with a cold, murderous intent.
"Jack... Blake... whoever he is," a voice echoed from a mountain peak. "His return ends today."
But Blake continued to walk forward, each step reverberating in the hearts of the Academy. He had destroyed the balance. He had annihilated the arrogant. And as he looked toward the horizon, he knew that the true war was only just beginning.
His sensational actions continued to reverberate throughout the Academy, and as he lead his path toward his next goal, the world seemed to hold its breath. The "Sovereign Disciple" had arrived, and his strength was as unfathomable as the void itself.