Pov: Noah
One of those skills is a blood contract. This technique, once mastered, can even make the whole bloodline of the target loyal to you through a contract. So, as the last heir, I had control over every retainer family, which is a total of 7 families; among those families, three are the ones who have Body refining cultivators or ancestors, so technically my family was still a giant of the Western continent with even having much power.
But everything changed because of my one idiotic mistake, because I, in my foolishness, underestimated my enemy and let doom fall on me and my family.
It wasn't a grand demon invasion that destroyed my standing. It wasn't an army of corrupt Alliance officers or a secret shadow syndicate.
My downfall was caused by my own utter, pathetic foolishness—and a girl named Ruby.
As the last heir of the Bloodborn family, the old elders of our seven retainer families practically begged me every single day to take dozens of wives and sire as many bloodline descendants as possible before the age-30 curse caught up to me. But I was twenty, arrogant, and filled with ridiculous romantic notions. I wanted to believe in true love.
Then I met Ruby—a poor, timid bastard child from our weakest retainer family.
When I first showed interest in her, she panicked. But slowly, she began accepting my presence. I thought I was living out a fairytale. That was until a year ago, when Ruby suddenly changed overnight. It was as if an entirely different soul had taken over her body. She stopped cowering, her eyes grew unnaturally sharp, and her entire aura shifted.
Terrified that a malevolent spirit or demon had possessed her, I put her through every ancient soul-testing array in our family vault. Every single test came back completely clear. It was her body, her soul.
From that day on, her luck became terrifyingly absurd. She stumbled upon ancient supreme inheritances, rare heaven-grade herbs, and forgotten manuals one after another. In just a few months, her cultivation skyrocketed to the peak of the Foundation Establishment realm. But as she grew stronger, she grew ice-cold.
Whenever I tried to get close to her or brought up marriage, she rejected me without a second thought. She looked at me—and everyone else around us—like we were mere bugs, trash beneath her feet. She constantly muttered that her only goal in this life was to "reach the absolute top of the universe" or something like "trash of lower realms".
Driven mad by my infatuation, I tried one last time to propose. She told me she would only consider it if I freed her and her immediate line from the ancient blood contract my ancestors had forged.
Blindly in love, I actually did it. I used our family's sacred blood-unbinding technique for her.
That was the biggest mistake of my life.
The moment the contract broke, Ruby didn't marry me. Instead, she mastered the unbinding technique simply by watching me perform it once! Within weeks, she used it to free the elders of the seven retainer families, manipulating them with incredible high-tier techniques and promises of supreme cultivation manuals she had "discovered." Before I even realized what was happening, all seven retainer families—the very families sworn to my bloodline for generations—turned their allegiance completely to her!
Furious, humiliated, and backed into a corner, I tried to force her to marry me using my authority and strength as a Soul Formation expert.
She just looked at me with pure disdain and proposed a duel.
"If I win," she had said coldly, "you pack your things and crawl as far away from my sight as possible. If you win, I'll do whatever you want."
Blinded by rage, I accepted. I was a Soul Formation monster! She was just a Foundation Establishment cultivator! How could I lose?
I was wrong. Dead wrong.
During that duel, she unleashed a terrifying, unheard-of barrage of divine trump cards, secret domain techniques, and battle intent that defied the very laws of cultivation. She didn't cheat. She didn't use underhanded tricks. She dismantled my Soul Formation cultivation fair and square, leaving me battered, broken, and crippled on the arena floor.
Defeated, abandoned by my retainers, and stripped of everything, I had no choice but to fulfill my promise. I ran away like a whipped dog, ending up on that continental cruiser where Luther—seeing my pathetic state—decided to take his own cheap shot at me.
My eyes fluttered open.
The stench of engine grease was replaced by the clean, sterile scent of fresh air. I sat up abruptly, gasping as I clutched my chest. I expected to feel the agonizing burn of my shattered meridians, but... there was nothing. No pain. My Dantian was encased in a warm, pristine emerald energy, completely stabilized.
"You're awake," a calm voice called out.
I snapped my head around. I was inside a sleek, high-tech metallic room, deep underwater judging by the thick glass viewport showing the blue ocean rushing past.
Sitting on a floating leather chair was the white-haired man, his sharp yellow eyes fixed on me. On his shoulder, a black cat—Pushpa—stretched lazily, giving me an unimpressed glance. His three disciples stood nearby, while a bound, gagged Luther lay unconscious in a corner.
Remembering everything that had happened, I scrambled off the couch and immediately dropped to my knees, bowing deeply.
"Senior!" I rasped out, shame and gratitude warring in my chest. "Thank you... thank you for saving my pathetic life!"
"Get up, kid," Vik said, leaning back and resting his chin on his hand. "I don't like people kneeling in my submarine. I stabilized your core and fixed your physical body using Prana energy, but your Soul Formation cultivation is still sealed for now. You'll have to recover the rest yourself."
"Prana energy...?" I whispered, my mind reeling. To use such a legendary force so casually... who was this man?
Vik smirked slightly, crossing his legs. "So, Noah. While you were unconscious, you were mumbling in your sleep. Something about being beaten up by a girl, losing your family's loyalty, and running away. Care to explain?"
My face flushed bright red. The absolute humiliation of my truth being laid bare in front of these powerful strangers made me want to dig a hole and hide forever.
"I... I brought shame upon my ancestors, Senior," I confessed, my voice trembling as I squeezed my fists. "I was arrogant. I thought I was a genius, but I got completely played. She didn't just beat me... she stripped me of my family, my retainers, and my dignity using pure, terrifying talent. I ran away because I couldn't face what I had become."
Lu Xiaoran, who was leaning against a console, let out a loud whistle. "Damn. A Soul Formation cultivator getting trounced by a girl? She must have possessed some insane reincarnated cheat code!"
"Quiet, Xiaoran," Vik said, though his own eyes flickered with deep amusement. He looked back at me. "So, what now? Are you going to keep crying or are you going to stand up?"
I lifted my head, my jaw clenching as a dark, cold fire ignited in my eyes.
"I don't care about love anymore, Senior," I said, every word dripping with bitter resolve. "I don't care about anything. But the Bloodborn name was built on blood and war, not pathetic simp behavior. I will rebuild my strength, reclaim my family's heritage, and show those turncoat retainer families what happens when they abandon the true bloodline!"
Vik let out a soft chuckle, stroking Pushpa's fur as the cat let out an approving purr.
"Good," Vik said, a sharp grin spreading across his face. "A man who learns from his absolute rock-bottom idiocy is much more interesting to keep around. Stay on my sub, recover your strength, and watch closely. We're heading straight for the Western Continent anyway."
"So while we are traveling, start telling me your story from the start."