On the distant moon of Vorexis, hidden in the shadow of a dying gas giant, a massive alien dreadnought drifted silently in the void.
The ship, known as the Eclipse Fang, was the command vessel of the Council's First Hunter Division, a specialised unit trained not just to destroy—but to erase.
Its purpose was simple: eliminate threats that had risen beyond the Council's calculations.
Today, it was no longer drifting.
It was moving.
---
Inside the ship's inner sanctum, thick with blue and green mist from the energy vents, four figures stood around a holographic projection of Ordis VII. One of them—a tall, horned being wrapped in bone armour—stepped forward.
"We have confirmation. The refinery has been destroyed. The human operatives used techniques that surpassed previous estimates."
The others were silent.
Then a voice, neither male nor female, rang out from the shadows. "And they left a message."
The horned alien nodded. "Yes, Commander."
The shadow shifted, revealing the leader of the Hunter Division: Erlith-Kha, a Spiritual Saint of the Elethar species—one of the Council's most feared warlords.
Erlith-Kha's skin shimmered like metal, its body humming with the presence of three Spiritual Domains: Time Dilation, Kinetic Reversal, and Fear Infusion.
It was a being whose presence could unravel weaker minds with a thought.
"I warned the Council not to delay," it hissed. "Now the humans believe they have the right to strike."
One of the other Hunters, a serpentine creature named Slith'zek, spoke up. "Shall we activate Protocol Requiem?"
Erlith-Kha turned slowly. "Yes. But we will not rush. Let them taste their victory. Let them draw attention to themselves."
It reached out and tapped the Ordis VII system on the projection.
"When they move again… we will follow."
Its eyes narrowed.
"And we will make them bleed."
---
Back on Earth, within the Valley of Ironfire, the top war smiths of humanity were hard at work. Sparks flew as molten metal clanged against enchanted anvils. Runes lit up in synchronized pulses, weaving arrays into armoured plating and weapon cores.
Here, humanity was awakening its ancient disciplines:
Alchemists, refining pills to enhance Qi circulation and spiritual density.
Blacksmiths, forging weapons that resonated with their wielder's elemental affinity.
Array Masters, embedding techniques into the very ground, air, and armour—forming traps, illusions, barriers, and amplifiers.
In the middle of the valley, Master Drolgar Flamevein, a peak-level Grade-3 Blacksmith at the Spiritual Saint stage, was assembling a battle gauntlet forged from Voidsteel, mixed with the bones of a fallen Spirit Beast—Sky-Crushing Titan.
Around him, several young cultivators assisted, passing him infused hammers, activating cooling arrays, and binding the item's core.
Drolgar muttered, "These humans will fight gods. I must make them weapons worthy of gods."
He raised the hammer, and with a final strike, the entire forge chamber trembled.
The gauntlet glowed red, then blue, then violet.
Then it stabilized.
A system message echoed in the forge.
[Item Created: Gauntlet of Endless Collapse] [Grade: Divine Relic] [Effect: Doubles user's kinetic output; collapses gravity on impact. Requires Spiritual King or higher.]
Drolgar grinned. "Now… who dares to wear it?"
---
Meanwhile, Rael had returned to Luna Prime, Earth's largest colony on the Moon, now turned into a massive cultivation city known as the Silver Dome Bastion.
He stood on its highest tower, overseeing the construction of the new orbital array—a planetary defense mechanism that could redirect Qi beams from ground-based cultivators into space.
Selene stood beside him, arms crossed. "Kaen's mission was a success. All five operatives returned alive. Their spirits are strong."
Rael nodded. "We'll need more missions like that. Strategic strikes that cripple supply chains. Disrupt their momentum before they can rally."
Selene gestured toward a platform below where hundreds of cultivators were sparring in unison. "Do you think we're ready?"
"No," Rael replied honestly. "But we will be."
He turned to her.
"Send word to the Sealed Sect on Mars. Tell Grandmaster Rei that it's time to unlock the Ancestral Beacon."
Selene blinked. "You're serious?"
Rael's expression didn't change. "We can't keep waiting. The Hunters will come. And when they do, I want our strongest awakened."
She hesitated, then nodded.
"I'll deliver the message myself."
---
A few hours later, inside the underground vaults of Mars' red plains, Grandmaster Rei stood before a massive crystal pillar embedded into the crust of the planet. It pulsed with faint golden light.
Around him were the leaders of Mars' hidden sects—ancient cultivators who had slumbered for centuries, waiting for the signs.
"It has been ten thousand years," Rei said softly, "since we last activated the Ancestral Beacon."
He stepped forward and pressed his hand to the crystal.
His Qi flowed, merging with the core, triggering dormant runes carved into the surrounding walls.
The beacon pulsed.
Once.
Twice.
And then it roared.
A beam of energy erupted from beneath the surface of Mars, stretching far into space, illuminating the night sky across multiple planets.
On Earth, cultivators paused and looked up.
On Jupiter's moons, spiritual beasts howled in instinctive reverence.
Even in deep space, Erlith-Kha opened its eyes. "So… they are summoning their ancient bloodlines."
Back on Mars, Rei whispered, "Awaken, children of the first war. The time has come."
From the caves, valleys, and deep chambers beneath Mars, sealed stasis pods began to open.
From them emerged warriors of a different era—armoured in styles long forgotten, with markings of clans that no longer existed, and Qi signatures thick with primal might.
Their eyes glowed.
And their hearts beat in unison.
Humanity's old cultivators had returned.
In the training fields of the Silver Dome Bastion, a low tremor rippled through the ground as hundreds of cultivators looked up to the lunar sky. From Earth to Mars, the pulse of the Ancestral Beacon echoed in every spiritual core.
Rael stood still, feeling the deep resonance humming within his chest.
He wasn't the only one.
All over the Solar System, cultivators experienced the same awakening—a ripple across bloodlines, calling to the long-buried instincts within their DNA, passed down since the last time humanity reached the pinnacle.
Dillian Voss, the head of the Lunar Lightning Sect, fell to his knees as his cultivation core burst through the late stages of Spiritual King and surged into the Spiritual Emperor realm.
"I had no bottleneck," he muttered. "This was… the Beacon's gift?"
All around him, others followed. Dozens. Then hundreds. Each one ignited with fresh energy, bloodlines trembling, talents surging upward without warning.
This wasn't just a message.
It was an inheritance.
And it was only the beginning.
---
On the Martian surface, Grandmaster Rei walked among the newly awakened ancient cultivators.
There were over ten thousand of them.
Some were missing limbs. Some were disoriented, blinking against a sky they hadn't seen in thousands of years. All bore unique spiritual brands—signs of having survived past cycles of extinction and battle.
A young warrior stepped forward, his armour gleaming with mirrored light. His Qi roared with raw pressure, like an ancient beast reborn.
"I am Taran Vos, survivor of the Sixth Purge," he said, voice deep like a drum. "Who calls us?"
Rei bowed slightly. "Humanity. The final generation. Your blood has been preserved for this day."
Taran narrowed his eyes. "The Council still lives?"
Rei nodded. "Worse. They delayed their arrival. And in that mistake… we found a window."
Another voice came from the back. A woman with long red war braids stepped forward. "Then it is time we repay our debt to our descendants."
Others raised their fists.
Taran's voice echoed.
"Let them come."
---
At the edge of the Solar System, near Pluto's frozen orbit, the Council's advance scout ships detected the Ancestral Beacon. The data went straight to Erlith-Kha aboard the Eclipse Fang.
Standing before the hologram, Erlith-Kha sneered.
"They dared awaken the Primordial Lineage."
One of the sub-commanders hissed, "But that is forbidden. The last time the Beacon rang, the Council lost three systems."
"They are beyond our designs now," Erlith-Kha growled. "No more observations. Send word to the main fleet. I want a blockade around Saturn's rings and total suppression operations on Mars. Begin planetary interdiction immediately."
"But the Stargates—"
Erlith-Kha raised its clawed hand, and the lieutenant froze mid-sentence as invisible Qi compressed his throat.
"I said now."
The command was relayed.
From the Andromeda Gate Nexus, six Council warfleets began jumping toward Saturn.
The war was no longer theoretical.
It had begun.
---
Back on Earth, Rael met with the core war council in the hidden command chambers beneath Mount Erebus, Antarctica.
Projected around the dark stone table were:
Grandmaster Rei of Mars,
Selene of Silver Dome,
Kaen and the Ordis Strike Team,
Taran Vos and five ancient warriors.
Rael pointed to a star map above the table. Red lines surged from deep space toward the Saturn orbital field.
"They'll arrive within nine days," he said. "Their first move will be to isolate Mars."
Rei nodded. "We've activated ancient planetary shields. They'll hold for five days, six at most."
Taran spoke, voice booming with confidence. "Then we meet them in space."
Selene raised a brow. "Do you think you can pierce their dreadnoughts?"
Taran smiled. "In our time, we didn't have luxury fleets. We were the weapons."
He activated his gauntlet. A spectral axe of Qi-solidified pressure formed in his hand. Its blade hummed with the memory of star-cores consumed and converted into spiritual fuel.
"We fly through the void. No need for shuttles. Just open the vacuum, and we go."
Rael's lips curved. "That's exactly what I wanted to hear."
He turned to Kaen.
"Gather one hundred of our best. We launch a preemptive strike on Saturn's relay gates. Destroy them before the Council can stabilize their arrival zone."
Kaen grinned, cracking his knuckles. "That's a suicide mission."
Rael handed him a jade scroll. "That's why you're leading it."
Kaen looked down at the scroll.
Inside was a technique sealed since the God Era—Void Swallowing Spear, a one-use technique capable of creating spatial implosions.
Kaen laughed. "Guess I'll need a new heart when this is over."
---
The next day, as the first wave of ancient cultivators marched through the Void Tunnels toward Mars, Earth began to glow with intense spiritual energy.
Across the continents, previously dormant Ley Lines—natural rivers of spiritual energy—flared up as Array Masters reactivated Earth's planetary defense grid.
Massive stone arrays, larger than cities, emerged from beneath the ocean floors and deserts. Each was carved with ancient runes, reacting to the Beacon's call.
In the skies, cultivators soared between cities and mountain fortresses, moving resources, arming allies, and preparing the civilian population.
Children who had never cultivated before found themselves pulled into the Awakening.
Hospitals turned into temporary core-infusion centers.
Humanity was not retreating.
It was rising.
---
And as the third day dawned, deep within the Spiritual Sea near Neptune, a tear in space opened.
A single ship exited, unlike anything in Council records.
It was alive.
Covered in crimson scales and surrounded by purple mist, the ship pulsed with life and Qi.
At its helm was Arcturus, the last Human-Origin Beast Monarch, a being who had transcended Spirit Beast classification and evolved into a Spiritual God-Formed Beast.
He had slept for ten thousand years.
But now, he opened his golden eyes and whispered, "Finally. I smell war."