Grand Ancestral Bloodlines

Ryu wasn't surprised in the slightest. In fact, the moment Hope suddenly called out like she had, he knew what had happened. He had put too much effort into bringing Black Worm away and dealing with the other threats for one of them to suddenly sneak up behind him, whether they were far more powerful Sky Gods or not.

From the moment he met Old Wan he understood what kind of person he was. He didn't believe that there was anyone so morally righteous and good that they would leave him be. Other than his eyes, there probably wasn't a single secret on Ryu's body that Old Wan wasn't aware of... of course, that wasn't taking into account new talents that he had formed since he met him.

Back then, Ryu had completely passed out due to the backlash of forming a Hegemonic Dao and it was Old Wan that saved him. There might have been a part of Old Wan back then that felt that his talents were useless to him, not just because he was already a Dao Lord, but also because the "stench" of Sacrum was thick around Ryu. Ultimately, without being upgraded first, stealing Ryu's talents back then would only weaken Old Wan rather than strengthen him. Ryu had likely started as a casual gamble that cost Old Wan nothing.

It seemed odd to be thinking about talent stealing when Old Wan didn't do that at all. Rather, he chose to kill Ryu directly instead.

It could be said that most of this was, indeed, just baseless speculation on Ryu's part. What wasn't baseless, though... was their game of Domain.

Domain was one of the four Arts for a reason. Much like the first three, Painting, Calligraphy and Music, they were a gateway into the heart and soul of a person.

Old Wan never realized just how much of him Ryu had forced to lay bare during their simplified game, or maybe he had and that was the very reason he had never tried to play Ryu again despite being upset about his loss.

Old Wan's character was clear in Ryu's mind. He was a man who was almost fiercely patient, he acted without hesitation and he took gambles without cowardice. He moved only with a perfect understanding of those around him, and that was the very reason why he was shocked when Hope suddenly appeared from within Ryu's ring.

First it was Isemeine, then it was Eska. Old Wan had never thought that Ryu would actually have a third Sky God around him, at least not one strong enough to react to his strike.

But more importantly than all of that, he was a person who did whatever he had to for victory.

'I can't wait to kill you.'

Those were the words Ryu's eyes had conveyed to the Dao Lord. Old Wan probably knew that he wasn't dead, at least not yet. He wasn't the kind of man who would take something on Fate. If it wasn't for the fact that Old Wan had no easy method of finding him right now, Ryu was certain that there would be a follow up assault.

Ryu's main worry, aside from his own life, was that of Selheira and Eska.

Eska was highly intelligent, but in this situation it would be nothing more than a detriment. The moment she pretended that he was dead and played along after rightfully feeling that something was off, she would be marked by Old Wan as a person to take note of, and even if her life wasn't in any immediate danger, it would be soon.

The rage in Ryu's heart burned like a smoldering fire, and if others could read his thoughts they'd think he was a madman... mostly because this moment wasn't the time for him to be thinking about such things at all.

The instant Hope collided with him, Ryu had changed tactics. Even if his body was in tiptop condition, there was no way he could make it out, and that was disregarding the fact Old Wan would have never allowed it.

Entering the void wasn't possible. The blast would definitely be stronger than a Transcendent Sky God's strike, and thus definitely be capable of piercing into the void. Although the Seventh Heaven was made of stronger stuff, even a Dao Lord wouldn't dare to be in the radius of such a blast.

So, there was only one answer, and that was to make it out via some other means.

He entered a spatial tear, his mind flickering with calculations as he read and reacted to the volatile qi in around him. The half-dead Hope was barely holding onto her life as he moved, but his mind was already on the next challenge.

There was only one place this spatial tear would lead to, and that was the Eighth Heaven.

Under normal circumstances, he might have a chance to live. The gateway had been dormant for so long that there might not even be guards on the Eighth Heaven side. Even if there were guards, they would likely be on the weaker side and essentially be glorified messengers.

However, with the change to the Planes, Ryu had little doubt that there was at least something watching the gateways to make sure that no one would try to take advantage of it and now Ryu was about to be plopped right in the middle of that with a body that was about to give way.

Hope had blocked more than 99% of the strike, and yet the few fractions of a percent she couldn't caused her to fly back with enough force to leave his organs in a complete mess. The gap between himself and a Dao Lord was actually so large, and it only made his fury all the deeper.

While Ryu was focused on trying to figure out what he would do once he got to the other side, another person would have felt that their life was in shambles right this very moment. That was because the mere act of making it through his minefield of volatile space was dangerous in and of itself. Especially when...

BOOM!

The gateway shattered, exploding outward with so much force that everything went white.

Ryu had already traveled a considerable distance within the spatial tunnel, and yet the blast seemed to reach him in an instant.

It felt like he was stuck in a vehicle swimming through a raging storm. His eyes flashed like lightning, taking into account every small change and reacting to it first. At the same time, his Spacetime Soul Nature was like a lighthouse in the midst of a deep night, illuminating his path forward. There was no combination of space that he couldn't see through.

He could feel the Eighth Heaven getting closer and closer and yet he was no closer to coming up with a plan. It felt like all his "innovation" had already fled far from him. No amount of thinking was giving him any better solutions.

It abruptly came to an end.

Ryu landed heavily, back first, onto a cold surface. His mouth spurted with blood he had kept down with nothing but sheer rage and he almost immediately felt several auras lock onto him.

His [Third Perspective] caught sight of three separate groups, each one filled with five Sky Gods at a minimum, with the weakest being at the Perfect Sky God Realm and each one having at least one Transcendent Sky God.

As he rose to his feet, his gaze was frighteningly cold, almost as though the air before his face had suddenly frozen over.

He didn't have much time, if it could even be considered time at all. The three groups seemed to be from different factions, and as such, while they were all guarding the gateway, they had also kept their distance, causing them to be quite spread apart.

Even so, it would only take seconds for them to close in the distance.

Ryu closed his eyes and took a breath. His smoldering rage became a calm flame and his mind settled down.

This was for the best. He didn't do well in Sects and he was much better on his own. As much as he wanted to put Old Wan's head on a pike, his rage was using up too much of his mental space. A dead man wasn't worth so much of his thoughts.

His eyes flashed opened and he suddenly moved.

A pill came out from the Golden Moon World, and if Hope had been conscious, she would have probably blushed down to her collarbone. This pill was none other than the very same pill she would have to take to get pregnant with Ryu's child.

Of course, it wouldn't be instant. The pill worked by sensing when a female cultivator was likely to conceive and pulsing out her Dao Companion's Yang Essence over a long period of time.

Hope had long since collected what she needed, Ryu had dual cultivated with his women on more than one occasion in her presence. She was just, quite frankly, much too shy to actually go through with it.

Ryu never cared to press her on the matter because his lifespan was counted in millennia at worst by now, and he also wasn't ready to have any children.

But at this moment, it was the only way out.

The moment his Yang Essence took root in Hope, it was as though a part of his Primordial Yang was in her, the complete reverse of how taking a wife worked. It was an odd feeling, but it was precisely the feeling he needed to latch onto.

The three groups suddenly appeared around him and Ryu's eyes suddenly shone like the stars in the skies.

"[Fate Reversal]!"

His voice boomed like thunder and in that instant, Hope's injuries were washed away and thrust onto the approaching parties.

One after another, they fell from the skies, dead.