Free Web NovelChapter 14: First Lesson
"Well, some of you have already met my Darling. Let me formally introduce you to him." Her voice carried a cold edge as she spoke. "He is my husband, the husband of Seraphina Drax."
She mouthed each word slowly, deliberately, her eyes cold and unwavering as she scanned the elders’ faces.
The elders felt as if thunder had struck them.
Her words sounded like the biggest lie they had ever heard.
"Hahaha," Kelvin couldn’t hold himself back from laughing due to disbelief.
"Don’t you all find this hilarious? Whatever this is, it looks really realistic. How can the Empress behave like this?"
He laughed, but he saw the others weren’t laughing with him. Instead, they were giving him urgent eye signals.
That was when he realized what he had heard might actually be true. How was that possible?
In his thoughts, he felt an oppressive feeling descend on him, making him shiver.
Seraphina’s eyes were colder than glass as she spoke. "You sure do joke a lot, Kelvin."
Her chilly words made Kelvin sweat, realizing he had dipped his entire body into another hell of trouble.
The others shook their heads, familiar with his behaviour. He was famed for having a loose tongue and had been punished many times before.
"Empress..." He called out in fear, but only received a triple portion of the pressure and killing intent.
"Young Miss..." Under the pressure, he gritted his teeth and forced out the words. This was when the pressure was reduced by a small portion, enough to let him breathe.
Lucien watched this scene and shook his head.
He glanced at Seraphina and saw she was looking at him. "Don’t mind him. Sometimes he spouts out rubbish."
Lucien just smiled and nodded. He wasn’t dumb enough not to realize what was going on.
Even though he had been awakening his talent, he had heard every word and conversation.
Also now, he felt the subtle change in the atmosphere when Kelvin talked. This made him curious about who Seraphina really was.
Which Empress was she?
It couldn’t be the Dragon Race or the Phoenix Race, could it? Also, why was she hiding it?
He looked at the beautiful golden-haired young lady and realized she had a veil around her that concealed most of her from the world.
Ding!
[You have proved yourself to your wife that you aren’t trash, stunning and surprising her. You are rewarded with 1000 Eternal Devotion Tokens and 5 Random Gacha Tickets.]
Lucien’s lips unconsciously curled up into a smirk.
"What happened?" Seraphina asked, noticing his smirk.
She startled Lucien, who smiled and said, "Nothing."
---
In the training ground, Ignis stood before Lucien, both of them shirtless.
The training ground was a vast circular chamber, its stone floor worn smooth by countless footsteps. Faint traces of Originat still lingered in the air, remnants of past spars. Weapon racks lined the walls, but today they remained untouched.
Ignis took a stance, his palm open and ready to welcome Lucien’s fist. His feet were planted firmly, shoulder-width apart, his knees slightly bent.
His breathing was slow and controlled, a calm before the storm.
"Hit me with your strongest punch," Ignis said, his voice steady and unwavering. His eyes locked onto Lucien, watching every shift in his posture, every twitch of his muscles.
Lucien didn’t hesitate. He drew his arm back, his fist clenched tight, and threw a punch with everything he had.
His fist shot forward, cutting through the air with a sharp whistle. The impact against Ignis’s palm was solid, a loud crack echoing through the training ground.
But Ignis didn’t move. His hand barely shifted, absorbing the force like a stone wall receiving a pebble. His expression remained unchanged, calm and unreadable.
Lucien’s fist throbbed from the impact. He gritted his teeth, shaking out his hand.
Ignis’s eyes narrowed slightly, a hint of approval flickering in them. "Not bad. Your form is decent, but your footwork is sloppy. You’re putting all your power into your arm, but a true strike comes from the ground, through your legs, into your hips, and then into your fist."
He stepped back, resetting his stance. "Again."
Lucien charged forward. His stance shifted, his feet spreading wider, his knees bending slightly to lower his center of gravity. His body began emitting an aura, faint but growing, wrapping around his frame like an invisible flame. His gaze was focused, sharp, locked onto his target with unwavering intensity.
Even though Lucien had been considered trash, he had watched others train over the years, and he had absorbed one or two things from them. He had seen how they positioned their feet, how they twisted their hips, how they channeled their energy through their limbs.
He calmed his mind. His perspective widened, sharpened by his increased stats. He began to control every fiber and vein of his body, feeling the flow of energy beneath his skin, the Originat surging through his muscles, coiling in his core, waiting to be released.
Lucien didn’t even realize he had partially activated the Primordial Anchor Body.
His aura shifted, feeling like a being born for destruction, heavy and oppressive, ancient. The air around him thickened, as if the very space was acknowledging his presence.
Ignis, who had been expecting to simply receive Lucien’s punch, felt the subtle change in Lucien’s aura.
His eyes narrowed, a flicker of surprise passing through them. He adjusted his stance slightly, bracing himself for something unexpected.
Before he could fully comprehend what was happening, Lucien’s figure blurred. He had used all of his agility in that single burst of speed. His legs exploded beneath him, propelling him forward like a released arrow.
He appeared before Ignis in an instant. His right fist drew back, then shot forward, every muscle in his arm, his shoulder, his back, and his hips working in perfect sync. The power traveled from the ground, through his legs, twisting his torso, and finally exploding through his knuckles. The fist burned with raw power as it burst through the air, landing squarely against Ignis’s palm.
The impact was solid, a loud, resonating crack that echoed through the training ground.
This caught Ignis off guard. His hand, which had been stationary, moved backward slightly. A fraction of an inch. The first time it had shifted at all since the training began.
It had been more than five hours since they had started training. Lucien had expected Kelvin to be his first training partner, but it turned out to be Ignis, who was meant to train him in weapons.
According to Ignis, one’s best weapon is your body. There is no greater weapon than it.
And this was how the training began.
From teaching Lucien stances, to how to control his body, to how to bring out his entire physical strength in battle.
Luckily, Lucien was able to absorb knowledge that could have taken days, and that impressed Ignis.
"What is your cultivation?" Ignis asked, finally noticing the abnormal physical strength of Lucien.
He had tried to check Lucien’s cultivation, but it ended in failure. All he felt was as if Lucien was an ordinary mortal, yet his physical strength proved otherwise.
Lucien didn’t hide anything, removing the concealment of the Primordial Anchor Body.
"Impossible..." Ignis opened his mouth wide, unable to believe what he was sensing. His eyes widened, his breath catching in his throat.
