The morning air was crisp, carrying the faint scent of spirit herbs from the gardens as Xin and his siblings gathered quietly in the great hall where their father was waiting.
Today was not an ordinary day.
Today was the beginning of the Grand Expedition.
The children stood neatly lined before Dugu Bo, the morning light casting long, sharp shadows behind them.
Each carried a quiet determination in their eyes, their earlier uncertainties now hardened into resolve.
Xin stepped forward first, bowing respectfully before beginning to explain.
One by one, he introduced his siblings, explaining the nature of each of their Spirits and the cultivation paths they had chosen:
Alix, with his Ebony Shield, destined for the Defense system — solid, unyielding.
Xue, with her Halo Spirit, firmly within the Auxiliary system — a protector and enhancer of others.
Hoi, whose Ice Cheetah Spirit naturally made him a rising star of the Agility system.
Then Mei, who had deliberated and chosen the Power Attack system for her Passion Flower, seeking overwhelming strength and direct dominance.
And finally Gho, whose mysterious Spirit, Lucifer, could walk any path — had chosen Defense as his foundation, desiring to protect while still delivering crushing blows when needed.
Dugu Bo listened quietly, his sharp jade-green eyes flickering with approval at their decisiveness.
He offered few words, and what he said was simple and powerful:
"Stay true to the paths you have chosen," he said, his voice like a low, steady drumbeat.
"And no one will ever chain your futures again."
The words struck deep, more precious to the young ones than any lavish blessing.
Breakfast was a surprisingly peaceful affair afterward, simple dishes of steamed buns, marinated spirit beast meat, and strong tea shared among family.
There was laughter — brief, soft, but real — a moment of warmth stolen before the journey ahead.
When they finished, they rose together, dressed in traveling robes stitched with the serpent sigil of the Dugu Clan, and made their way toward the front Gate.
There, an awe-inspiring sight awaited them.
The full convoy assembled, stretching across the main road like a river of strength and determination.
Hundreds of members — representatives of every subsidiary clan, each line proudly bearing their banners — all stood ready.
At the very front were the core forces: The Elders and promising juniors alike, armored lightly for the journey but each carrying the heavy dignity of representing the Dugu name.
But perhaps the most surprising group among them were the newest clan: the Shu Pu Clan.
Formed from the Dugu Clan's servants — cooks, cleaners, blacksmiths, stewards — they numbered 767 strong.
Old men with trembling hands, women with strong backs and lined faces, and children just barely past their seventh year — all had gathered under one banner.
They were no longer merely servants.
They were cultivators now, if only just at the threshold.
The Bloodline Awakening had been conducted through an experiment using the Milk Mangrove's bloodline power — a common spirit beast but found only in the Moonveil Marshes.
The results had been modest — most barely touching Rank 10 — but it was enough.
Enough to open the door to cultivation where before there had been only labor and eventual death.
Some of the older servants — those who had already been Spirit Masters in their youth but had withered into obscurity — felt a resurgence, their spirits revived, their bodies strengthening.
And leading them proudly was Lei Shu Pu, a sturdy man in his early seventies, standing at the front of the Shu Pu Clan with quiet, unwavering pride and a calm smile.
A Rank 33 Spirit Elder — modest by noble standards, but a beacon of hope for his people.
His spirits — the Landle and Milk Mangrove — spoke of earth, resilience, and healing.
Under his leadership, the Shu Pu Clan was becoming not merely an appendage of the Dugu Clan — they were the roots. The bedrock upon which future generations could build.
Xin stood with his siblings and father at the head of the procession, surveying the vast array of people gathered under their banner.
It was not the largest force on Aurellan.
It was not the most famous.
But it was theirs.
As the convoy began moving, the banners of the Dugu Clan fluttering proudly in the crisp morning breeze, Xin sat silently beside his father.
Outwardly, he was calm, his steps even and composed.
But within his mind, thoughts churned like a deep river.
The optimal spirit ring composition Father spoke of a few days ago... Xin mused, his sharp gaze flickering over the lines of the gathered clans,
was never the true end goal.
He was surprised his father took his words seriously.
The proposed setup — two 1,000-year rings, five 10,000-year rings, and two 100,000-year rings for the subsidiary clans — was not because it was ideal.
It was because, right now, they lacked the strength to aim higher.
In truth, Dugu Xin's real ambition was far more audacious.
The vision was for every member of the subsidiary clans to bear seven 10,000-year Spirit Rings and two 100,000-year spirit rings at their peak— forging foundations of steel, capable of battling across realms.
And for the main branch to ascend even higher.
A monstrous composition.
A lineage designed to dominate the world without peer.
Xin's hand curled into a loose fist at his side, hidden beneath his robes.
Such a goal... would terrify the world if they understood even a fraction of it.
But for now, they had to adapt.
They had no choice.
They possessed only three Spirit Douluo at present — Dugu Bo himself and the two uncles.
Spirit Ring Destruction and Reforging required overwhelming, delicate Spirit Power to stabilize the soul during the process.
If they demanded too much too soon, it would cripple their forces rather than strengthen them.
Hence, the compromise:
Two 1,000-year Spirit Rings — relatively easy to obtain.
Five 10,000-year Spirit Rings — hard, but achievable with the environment of Moonveil Marshes and careful planning.
And two 100,000-year Spirit Rings — a terrifying prize that would still demand pain, blood, and strategy to earn.
But — importantly — this setup allowed Spirit Kings, not just Spirit Douluo, to assist in stabilization during the Ring transitions in the beginning stages as the clan grew they could shift to the stronger system.
This way, the burden could be shared.
The system could be sustained.
It was, Xin realized, a masterstroke of pragmatism hidden beneath layers of ambition.
His father's methods were never reckless.
They were patient. Calculating. Relentless.
Just like the clan itself must become.
Cike Zixuan moved efficiently among the ranks of Spirit Trainees under his charge, a keen eye constantly assessing, noting, directing.
As one of the Spirit Kings assigned to oversee the expedition, Zixuan took his task seriously — not merely treating it as a duty, but as a sacred trust.
With meticulous care, he documented each trainee's Spirit and the specific traits they desired to strengthen with their first Spirit Ring.
Control, defense, speed, power, healing — every wish carefully recorded in his mind before selecting the appropriate Spirit Beast for each.
His efforts bore swift fruit.
Already, he had successfully assisted thirteen members of the newly formed Shu Pu Clan and ten members of his own Cike Clan in obtaining their first Spirit Rings.
The process was slow, yes — the sheer size of the expedition made rapid movement impossible — but it was deliberate. Methodical.
And, most importantly, effective.
Step by step, the future strength of the Dugu Clan was being built.
One Spirit Ring at a time.
However, far beyond the careful, methodical work of the expedition, another game was unfolding.
A shadow, once lurking in the Dugu territories, had already slipped away.
Before they had even fully left the outskirts of Viremoor keep, a spy — one loyal to Crown Prince Vaelen — had fled, moving through the night as swiftly as a serpent.
He had seen enough.
And the news he carried was enough to ignite fury and fear in the heart of Aurellan's ruling elite.
Now, you may wonder:
Why would the Crown Prince, heir to the Golden Phoenix Lotus Throne, be so obsessed — so consumed — with the movements of the Dugu Clan?
The answer lay buried in blood and forgotten history.
Centuries ago, during a time when the Doku Swamp was still open and wild, Dugu Bo's great-grandfather — a man of immense strength and cunning — had twin daughters.
Both women, renowned for their beauty, intelligence, and rare Spirit talents, caught the attention of the King of Aurellan.
They entered the palace not as mere concubines, but as High Royal Consorts — favored, influential, and dangerously beloved.
Both bore multiple children for the King, intertwining Dugu blood with the royal line itself.
It should have been the beginning of an unstoppable rise for the Dugu family.
But fate — and the wild rage of the Doku Swamp — had other plans.
One of the swamp's great beasts, a monstrous entity of unspeakable strength, surged north in a rampage of destruction.
It tore through towns and cities, reaching all the way to the Royal Capital.
The aftermath was catastrophic.
Royal properties were annihilated.
Members of the royal household, once living embodiments of power and pride, were slaughtered.
The two Dugu Consorts were among the dead.
Only a single servant girl — loyal beyond reason — managed to escape the chaos, carrying with her the surviving children of the Grand Royal Consorts.
Fleeing south, she reached Viremoor Keep — the ancestral heart of the Dugu family.
There, under heavy secrecy and protection, the bloodline survived.
Those children grew, hidden from the court.
One of them was the father of Dugu Bo.
all of them carried a right to the throne that had never been officially revoked.
Thus, the Dugu Clan were more than just nobles.
More than just a powerful family tied to poison and isolation.
They were royals.
With a claim — ancient, bloody, and dangerous — to the Golden Phoenix Lotus Throne itself.
And that, above all else, was why Crown Prince Vaelen could not allow the Dugu Clan to rise.
Because if they rose — if they gathered enough strength, enough alliances, enough Spirit Masters — they could challenge his rule.
Not through rebellion.
Not through brute force.
But through legitimacy.
Through blood older and purer than his own.
And Vaelen, for all his power, knew:
The blood of dragons and phoenixes ran deep.
But the blood of the Dugu Serpent was deeper still — and far more patient.
Crown Prince Vaelen was, by birth but not by favor, the natural heir to the Golden Phoenix Lotus Throne.
He was one of many children born to the current Queen Regnant of Aurellan — the Glorious Sovereign, the living avatar of the nation's will, The Radiant Phoenix Douluo.
His mother, brilliant and ruthless, had borne many heirs through political alliances, each child a thread woven into the intricate tapestry of Aurellan's future.
But Vaelen's bloodline was... complicated.
He was the son of the Queen and the Glowing Feather Douluo — a figure of immense power within the Spirit Hall.
A fact that, though it granted him strength, also cursed him with suspicion.
The Spirit Hall, for all its prestige, was never fully trusted by Aurellan's Royalty.
Their influence was vast. Their ambitions even greater.
And any child bearing Spirit Hall blood was seen not as a blessing — but as a potential usurper.
A puppet king in waiting.
Thus, while tradition demanded that the firstborn son be named Crown Prince, Vaelen's position was tenuous at best.
He was not favored.
He was watched.
Tolerated, for now — protected only by the thin shield of custom and ceremony.
Every smile in court hid a dagger aimed at his back.
Every ally was a wolf in waiting.
It was this precarious balance that fueled Vaelen's obsession with the Dugu Clan.
Because he understood, more than most, how easily the throne could be taken.
He had lived his entire life knowing that one misstep — one rebellion, one noble rising too high — could see him discarded, forgotten, replaced.
And now, the Dugu Clan — hidden royals by blood, rising like a stormcloud over the horizon — threatened everything he had clawed to hold onto.
If Dugu Bo's strength continued to grow unchecked...
If Dugu Xin and his generation reached their full potential...
If the alliances whispered about in secret halls became reality...
Vaelen would not merely lose his crown.
He would lose his life.
And perhaps far worse: he would be erased from history altogether.
The Golden Phoenix Lotus Throne was not a seat of comfort.
It was a seat built on blood, sacrifice, and unyielding strength.
And Vaelen — son of the Queen, scion of Spirit Hall — would not give it up without a fight.