Grand Ancestral Bloodlines

The central spatial pocket of the Martial Gods wasn't the same as the one the Tatsuya Clan had called home. With much of the Shrine Plane sealed, that location was closed off to the Martial Gods. As such, they could only choose a different location. Ryu wasn't very surprised to find that this chosen location was where the former Ventus Clan called home. 

Ryu had quite some history with the Ventus Clan. During his thousandth birthday party, it was Gale Ventus—the young man Mistress Holy Wing had chosen to be Elena's first 'partner'—that had challenged him to a match. 

Thanks to this, Ryu had been able to gain the Northern Heavenly Wind Embryo while also putting Gale in his place. 

At this moment, Ryu stood a step behind the Overseer who had basically forced him beneath his wing. Apparently, this old man went by the name of Overseer Eudo. 

Harsh winds whipped about all around, carrying a slight greenish hue to them. In the distance, a castle without windows stood, presenting the open concept of the Wind Shrine Clans. They always treated their homes almost like the instruments of nature. Depending on the time of day, and if the wind hit just the right speed, a low melody would begin to play. 

When all the openings of these castles resonated as one, a delicate harmony would begin. This harmony would gather up the qi in the surroundings an make cultivating produce double the result with half the effort. It was a beautiful concept, indeed. It was no wonder the Martial Gods hadn't chosen to change much about it. 

Ryu couldn't help but think about Gale. With that man's talent, there was no doubt that he was an absolute powerhouse. After all, how could a wielder of a pair of Heavenly Pupils not be? 

Ryu wasn't under the illusion that Gale was useless even though he had defeated him in one aspect previously. Not to mention the fact it hadn't been a competition of combat, just the fact Gale had a pair of Heavenly Pupils was enough for Ryu to take him with the utmost seriousness. Though, it didn't really matter considering he was dead now. 

If there was anything his battle with Sarriel had taught him, it was that such individuals were not to be underestimated. 

Against most individuals, Ryu could fight through an entire large barrier of cultivation, crossing the Immortal Ring and Path Extinction Realm to put up a fight against Dao Pedestal Realm experts. And yet, Sarriel had been in the Immortal Ring Realm just like him and pushed him to the brink. This alone was enough to paint a proper picture. 

Ryu was lost in his own thoughts, completely ignoring the World Sea Realm expert to his side. The only reason he was standing a half step behind was in respect to his seniority and not much else. Plus, it help him not to attract too much trouble. Other than that, thought, he wasn't thinking about this old man much at all. 

Overseer Eudo couldn't help but look toward Ryu from time to time. He didn't know how a brat like him could be so casual in the face of a World Sea Realm expert. 

Truthfully, he was questioning his own decision. For some reason, his intuition told him that Ryu was dangerous, but that didn't make any sense. What could an ant in the…

Now that the old man thought about it, he had no idea what cultivation realm Ryu was in. He had manifested Immortal Rings, so he had to be in either the Immortal Ring or Path Extinction Realm… Right? But how had a Path Extinction Realm defeat an absolute genius of the Lower Dao Pedestal Realm? 

That brat from the Scarlet Sparrow Clan wasn't just anybody. And yet, Ryu hadn't just defeated him, he made short work of him. 

This made the old man believe that Ryu cultivated a special technique that allowed him to keep his Immortal Rings after the Path Extinction Realm. This would also explain why he couldn't see through Ryu's cultivation. 

After all, reading cultivations wasn't an exact science and often relied on experience. The more unconventional the technique, plus factoring in Ryu's ridiculous combat prowess, the harder it would be to see through. 

'This old man seems very interested in you, Little Ryu,' Ailsa giggled. 

For the sake of convenience, Ailsa had entered her Faerie form and sat upon Ryu's shoulder. If she appeared in her true form, it would be too obvious that she was a Faerie. Then, things might become troublesome depending on how the Martial Gods dealt with it. So, for now, Ailsa sat on his shoulder while Yaana was within the Incubator. 

'Let him be interested.' Ryu shrugged. 'At this point, he's just a convenient ticket into this place. It would have been more of a hassle if not for him, especially since Isemeine can't be here to get me in.'

Originally, Ryu had planned to just force his way in with Isemeine, but with her being part of this important so-called ritual, she couldn't be by his side any longer. If before he had been annoyed by the old man strong arming him into representing him, now he felt it was a good thing that this old man had appeared or he would have been helplessly stuck on the outside. 

Well, either that, or he would have had to sell his precious body to Isemeine's mother. 

Ailsa snorted. 'As if you would be lamenting such a thing.'

Ryu smiled beside himself. 'Wrong. I'm more interested in tasting my precious Ailsa again.'

'Humph, you still need to defeat the phantoms of at least a hundred more of my suitors before you can do such a thing.'

'Yes, ma'am!'

Ailsa, who had been trying to feign anger, couldn't help but burst into a fit of giggles toward Ryu's eagerness. She really did like this version of her Life Partner much better. 

"Eudo, is this the brat you've chosen?"

At that moment, amidst the sparse crowd slowly making its way toward the Ventus Clan's castle, one stood out and appeared beside Ryu and the Overseer with a young man following by his side.