MTL - Cultivating to Become a Great Celestial - Chapter 20 : Old injury

Driven by his need for revenge, Lazarus, the Lore’s most ruthless vampire, plots to seize the throne of Wilyra and rule it along with his betrothed, the fae goddess Maeve who thrives in a borrowed body.

Lazarus has a perfect plan—until he finds Emmalyn, a young mortal who is the daughter of the rebel leader of blood vassals in his kingdom and an integral part of his plan. He captures the young girl to cast her soul out for Maeve.

Emmalyn yearns for a better life to escape from her stepmother and an indifferent father. She never imagined that they would sell her to the royals to save her brother’s life.

But there’s only one problem. Emmalyn tempts Lazarus beyond reason. As the time to cast her soul out draws closer, he must choose between his lust for the throne or his irresistible mortal.

Will Lazarus succumb to lust for power and crown? Or will he risk it all to have a future with her?

In humanity’s final war against the Demon Lord, the strongest heroes fell—not by the enemy’s hand, but by their own, twisted into madness by a cruel illusion. Betrayal. Bloodshed. Despair… and then, silence.Only one person remained: Riley—the weakest warrior of them all. Powerless. Ignored. Forgotten.But he saw through the Demon Lord’s deception. The tyrant was on the brink of death—so weak even a fly could’ve finished him off.And Riley did just that, drawing every last ounce of strength to bite off the demon’s head.Victory? Not quite. A final, desperate strike from the Demon Lord pierced him from behind, killing him instantly.But fate wasn’t done with him yet.Riley awoke ten years in the past—when the online game [Apocalypse] was launched. Before demons descended. Before monsters overran the world.And this time, he wasn’t starting from nothing. He had a decade of experience—and a second chance.Even more shocking, he didn’t awaken his old D-rank Strength Boost talent. This time, he received something far more terrifying: an SSS-Rank Gluttony talent!He could now devour anything—monsters, items, talents, even traits—and gain their power.Ding![You have devoured: Iron Fang Wolf][Acquired: +4 Strength, +2 Agility, Skill: Bite (F-rank)][You have devoured: Goblin ShamanAcquired: +8 Intelligence, Skill: Mana Bolt (E-rank), Talent: Minor Spellcasting Efficiency][You have devoured: Flaming Salamander Drake][Acquired: +22 Endurance, Trait: Dragon’s Resilience, Skill: Flame Breath (C-rank)]Now, there is no demon, no god, no monster who will stand in his way. He will devour everything—and save the world.But the power of Gluttony was a double edged sword. If he wasn’t careful… he could be the one getting consumed.

The call of the nightmare realm cannot be denied, the woven fate is inevitable.

His ability to travel to the nightmare realm granted him immortality but also pit him with an unfamiliar world, curses and magics unseen before in the real world.

Monsters of unknown origin, macabre beasts and horrors beyond the ken of man have taken the place of old inhabitants of a once glorious civilization.

Now under the light of the Clairvoyant Moon the nightmare realm is on the verge of destruction. Here you will find dishonorable knights, mad sorcerers, twisted alchemist, the malformed Lost Ones and the vestiges of old gods all converging in a dead world.

But there are also those who seek to undo the curse, to restore the world. There are scavengers that only want to survive, the seekers of truth that seek the secrets of old.

And then there’s Aldrich who plans to exploit the resources and powers of the nightmare realm to achieve his own goals.

The epic tale of struggle against impossible odds and enemies bigger than life.

What Aldrich will find outside his little village will not just test the limits of his will, but also his sanity.

****

Aldrich, is a fifteen year old boy, living in a small village called Wakefield, he dreams of being a Crestmaster.

On the day Aldrich awakens his Crest, Wakefield is attacked and burned.

He is the only survivor, barely making it out with a mysterious gift, a heavy mission and dire warnings to never turn back.

He is then told to forget about what he saw and the innocent villagers that died, to never ask questions. All things Aldrich could never do.

One day he will uncover the forces behind the massacre and take his revenge. But for now he will lower his head and pretend that nothing has happened.

For now.

Mature content:‘You are not my craving my dear, you are my obsession.’“ She was our light and we were her darkness—- and just like every opposites we were obsessed with the idea of having her.”The Evil Empress, the one whose life was filled with debauchery and betrayal to her mates was supposed to die tonight. Being the Empress of the Dragniere Empire and the mother to all dragons, she was supposed to live a life where she lived for her people and the country, her exquisite powers were alone enough to make her the ruler of the entire continent and with her face that was as beautiful as a shining pearl in the moonlight, with hair as fine as Pima, and her curves so luscious that any man would have died of desire with just one glimpse.With powers that were beyond humans, shrouded with the air of aristocracy and with a personality that was as cruel as Medusa, The Evil Empress continued to rule over the people of her Empire with her tyranny.Brianna Cage, nicknamed ‘ Bree, The hellion’ for the convenience of her acquaintances was a rowdy young woman. She had a fierce sense of justice, she was dependable and despite not being the most beautiful woman in her department, she was sought out by a lot of men because of her alluring nature, she rejected them all because in truth she was in love with —— all the Daddies in the comic books she has read. Behind her aloof and dependable persona resided a Weeb who was always cheering on the characters of her favourite books.One day she came upon the book ‘ The Maid’s route of survival of the fittest’ and decided to read it just for the heck of it since the Empress shared the same name as her. But soon Bree found out that the Empress was the Villainess, she even betrayed her mates one by one and what was even more gut-wrenching she was killed by her mates!All for the sake of the maid who reincarnated into the book with a system to help her.Bree though angry decided to throw the book at the back of her head but oddly enough the book vanished and Bree found herself waking up in the room of the Evil Empress just three weeks before she was executed by her mates!Startled but not having the time to freak out, Bree started to take care of everything that the Evil Empress has done wrong. She thought that she would be able to live a peaceful life away from her bloodthirsty mates who didn’t seem too fond of her.But unfortunately, things didn’t go as she planned as five sets of eyes fell on her despite all the precautions she has taken against them. And once those eyes locked on her, they refused to let go of their possessiveness.The Evil Empress was theirs, to begin with who dares take her away?