Chapter 9: The Crimson Pact

  The sun hadn’t yet touched the shattered skyline of Neo-Terra when Kai stood atop the ruins of what was once the Jade Fangs’ headquarters. His crimson cloak, woven with blood-thread and stitched with his mark, billowed in the wind.

  His gaze swept across the streets below—streets that now pulsed with power that answered to him. Every inch he conquered whispered to his soul, feeding his strength.

  “Report,” Kai said, his voice deep, absolute.

  Rai, his first turned vampire general, knelt before him. “The Crimson Council has sent envoys. They offer negotiations.”

  Kai smirked. “They’re afraid.”

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  “Yes, Sovereign. They’re gathering at Redpoint Cathedral.”

  He turned his eyes toward the east. “Good. Let’s remind them who owns this city.”

  At Redpoint Cathedral

  The Crimson Council waited with smug faces, all dressed in old-world finery—robes of obsidian silk and silvered armor. They sat like judges, blind to their own doom.

  Kai entered alone. No guards. No army. Just the cold echo of his steps.

  “Blood Sovereign,” one of them greeted mockingly. “So bold. So young.”

  Kai’s smile was patient. “So dead.”

  He activated the Territory System.

  [Skill Activated: Domain Suppression]

  [Blood Pact: Triggered]

  The floor cracked. Red mist flooded the chamber. Every Council member gasped as the air thickened with Kai’s will.

  “You ruled through fear,” Kai said. “But now, your blood belongs to me.”

  The mist became chains, the chains latched to throats.

  “Submit,” he said, voice divine.

  They tried to resist—but the Net of Unity, his domain-wide magic web, had already infiltrated the minds of the citizens. The Council’s power was hollow.

  One by one, they bent the knee.

  Outside the Cathedral

  Rai approached. “It’s done?”

  Kai stepped out, crimson-eyed and shining with victory. “Neo-Terra is mine. The Blood Era begins now.”

  A system notification chimed.

  [Neo-Terra: 100% Integrated]

  [New Title Acquired: Blood King of Neo-Terra]

  [Sub-System Unlocked: Net of Unity]

  And in that moment, Kai wasn’t just a ruler.

  He was the Sovereign of a city that bled for him—and loved him for it.