Chapter 165: The Birth of the Black Dragon Empire

The Birth of the Black Dragon Empire

There was no fear in them.

Only a quiet determination.

What followed was simple.

The ruler was dead.

The nation had no leader.

The loyal ministers and generals who had once held the Azure Sovereign Kingdom together had all fallen in battle.

Those who remained were kneeling inside the palace.

Their bodies trembled.

Their faces were pale.

They lowered their heads so deeply that their foreheads nearly touched the cold floor.

At this moment, none of them dared to think about resistance.

The mighty empire that had once seemed untouchable had collapsed in a single night.

Victor led Dominic into the throne room.

The great hall was still magnificent.

Golden pillars rose toward the ceiling.

Jade tiles stretched across the floor.

Yet the grandeur of the place could no longer conceal the smell of blood hanging in the air.

Victor stopped before the throne.

He raised one hand.

His finger pointed toward the high seat of power.

"Go. That is the path you have chosen. Show me how far you can walk it."

His voice was neither loud nor harsh.

But to Dominic, those words carried more weight than any decree.

This was his opportunity.

His destiny.

Dominic looked toward the throne.

For a moment, he simply stood there.

Then he walked.

His footsteps echoed through the silent hall.

Step.

Step.

Step.

He reached the throne.

And sat.

The instant his body touched the seat, an invisible pressure spread outward.

The ministers below instinctively lowered their heads even further.

Dominic’s black hair shifted across his shoulders.

His black eyes swept across the hall.

The hesitation that had once existed within them was gone.

"From this day forward, I am your ruler. Does anyone object?!"

His voice was cold.

Yet beneath that coldness was an unmistakable imperial authority.

The kneeling ministers exchanged nervous glances.

No one dared to be the first to speak.

Then, as though they had reached the same conclusion at the exact same moment, they lowered their heads.

"Long live the Emperor! Ten thousand years without end!!"

The voices echoed throughout the throne room.

Dominic listened without expression.

These men did not matter to him.

They were spineless creatures who had bent their knees because the sword was above their heads.

For now, they could be used.

In the future?

They would become nothing more than bones buried beneath the foundations of the new empire.

Dominic turned away from them.

His reverent gaze settled upon Victor.

He stood from the throne and bowed deeply.

"I, Dominic, humbly request the Patriarch to bestow a name upon this nation, whose ruler is me, but whose great heavenly source and true emperor is you!"

The words were spoken with complete sincerity.

Victor looked at Dominic.

A faint flicker of satisfaction crossed his handsome face.

The young man understood.

He understood that the throne was his.

But the foundation beneath that throne belonged to the Salvatore Family.

And above that foundation stood Victor.

At this moment, the emperor stood like a lone crane in the great hall, asking his Patriarch to give his newborn nation a name.

Victor’s golden eyes slowly moved across the throne room.

Then toward the city beyond it.

Then toward the vast lands stretching beyond the capital.

His voice finally rang out.

"Our Salvatore Family’s black dragons rise from the depths of the abyss to the heights of heaven. So name it..."

He paused.

The hall became completely silent.

Victor’s gaze sharpened.

"BLACK DRAGON EMPIRE!!"

The words thundered through the palace.

And then—

The heavens answered. ℯℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

A magnificent, boundless voice swept across the entire Azure Sovereign Kingdom.

"From this day forth, Azure Sovereign Kingdom is no more!"

The sound rolled across mountains and rivers.

" A new nation rises!"

The voice grew heavier.

"Its name shall be..."

"BLACK DRAGON EMPIRE!!!"

ROOOAAAR!!

The Dragonlord’s Serpent Legion threw back its countless heads and howled.

The roar shook the earth.

Blood-colored clouds exploded across the night sky.

Ten thousand serpentine dragons writhed through the heavens, their enormous bodies illuminated by crimson moonlight.

They were celebrating.

Not the fall of an empire.

But the birth of a new one.

Throughout the former Azure Sovereign Kingdom, countless citizens stepped out of their homes.

Some stood frozen.

Some trembled.

Some cried.

Others simply stared toward the capital, unable to comprehend how quickly the world had changed.

Then they knelt.

One after another.

Household after household.

Village after village.

City after city.

They lowered themselves toward the capital and welcomed their new ruler.

Sect masters and clan elders were no different.

Beneath the gaze of that blood-moon eye hanging above the heavens, they bowed deeply toward the capital.

Some pressed their foreheads against the ground.

No one dared to resist.

No one dared to question what had happened.

The old empire was dead.

A new one had risen.

And above it stood the Salvatore Family.

[Ding!! A clan member has established a nation and claimed the throne! Achievement unlocked: One Clan, One Nation!]

[Congratulations, Host! Reward obtained: All clansmen comprehension +10!]

[Congratulations, Host! Reward obtained: Saint Body birth rate +5%!]

[Congratulations, Host! Reward obtained: Divine Body birth rate +2%!]

The familiar mechanical voice rang inside Victor’s mind.

Only he could hear it.

Only he could see the translucent notifications appearing before his eyes.

The Eternal Legacy System remained completely invisible to everyone else.

Victor’s golden eyes flickered slightly.

The rewards were better than expected.

His lips curved into a faint smile.

At the same time, figures appeared on the horizon.

They were rushing toward the newly established Black Dragon Empire.

A vast group of cultivators tore through the night sky.

Their banners fluttered behind them.

"The Dawn Empire congratulates the Black Dragon Empire on its founding!"

The leading envoy raised his voice.

"Gifts: One thousand mana mines, one hundred great medicines, one thousand Heavenly Mountain spirit stones..."

The figure at the front was none other than Rafael Bluestone, ruler of the Dawn Empire.

He approached with his ministers.

Then he bowed deeply.