CHAPTER 166 — ERASMUS II
The silence that followed Erasmus' question stretched heavily across the Domain.
No one answered him.
Every elder present had already reached the same conclusion.
If a dead realm at the World Seed level evolved again..then whatever emerged afterward would no longer fit within anything the Houses understood.
The Marquis' expression hardened slightly.
"You speak as though the threat is already beyond containment."
Erasmus looked at her calmly.
"It is."
Several elders frowned immediately, but before anyone could speak, the Marquis raised her hand slightly.
The Domain responded instantly.
The endless sea of crimson fire surrounding them compressed inward as the authority of the realm descended fully for the first time since Erasmus arrived.
The pressure was immediate.
Absolute.
The surrounding elders stiffened as the flames around them became denser until even breathing felt difficult beneath the weight of the Domain.
Frigga felt her signature recoil instinctively.
The Marquis had stopped restraining herself.
"You will remain here," she said calmly, "until the higher Houses decide how this matter proceeds."
The flames beneath Erasmus' feet surged upward immediately.
Chains formed from condensed Domain fire wrapped around his limbs, torso, and neck before sinking directly into his flesh.
The surrounding elders relaxed slightly.
Of course.
A Domain Expansion cultivator suppressing someone below her realm should not have required effort.
Even Erasmus remained motionless as the chains tightened around him.
Then,the fire around the chains flickered strangely.
The Marquis noticed first.Her eyes narrowed slightly.
The chains remained connected.The suppression remained active.
Yet the flames touching Erasmus' skin had begun slowing down slightly.
Almost hesitating.
The surrounding elders noticed it moments later.
Confusion appeared across several faces.
Then the old woman's expression changed abruptly.Because she understood what they were witnessing.
The Domain's authority was being resisted.A faint distortion spread around Erasmus' body.Subtle at first.Like heated air bending light.
Then it deepened, the space around him began vibrating faintly as the surrounding flames lost their stability near his body.
The chains tightened immediately in response.
The distortion resisted.
Frigga's eyes widened beneath her blindfold.
Because the feeling coming from Erasmus had changed completely.
The atmosphere around him no longer felt restrained.
It felt heavy.Ancient.
Like someone who had spent too long standing inside battlefields where death had become ordinary.
Ash-colored heat seeped faintly from beneath his skin as the surrounding Domain continued pressing downward.
The crimson flames touched him..and slowed again.
Several elders stepped backward instinctively.
One of them spoke before he could stop himself.
"A pseudo-domain…"
The old woman's gaze sharpened instantly.
"No."
Her voice came out grave.
"Not quite one yet."
Silence settled again.
The distortion around Erasmus deepened slightly as blood leaked slowly from the corner of his mouth.
The Domain continued suppressing him.
Yet the surrounding flames still struggled to settle completely around his body.
The Marquis finally took a step forward.
The pressure throughout the Domain exploded upward.
The crimson flames surged violently as her authority descended directly onto Erasmus without restraint.
This time the distortion around him trembled violently.
Cracks spread across the air surrounding his body as the chains dug deeper into his flesh.
Blood spread slowly across his arms.
Yet he still stood there.Still resisting.
The gathered elders stared at him in disbelief because what they were witnessing should not have been possible.
A Soul Inscription cultivator was resisting a Domain Expansion ruler inside her own Domain.
He was nowhere near her equal.But his resistance was enough to matter.
That alone was monstrous.
The Marquis' eyes narrowed further.
"Interesting."
Her voice echoed softly across the Domain.
"It seems I underestimated you."
Erasmus said nothing.
He simply wiped the blood from his mouth before glancing at the chains embedded into his flesh.
"Battlefields are good teachers."
The flames surrounding him slowed once more.
The old woman felt her scalp turn numb.
Because she finally understood what made Erasmus terrifying.
His Soul Inscription had reached a level where his identity had already begun harmonizing with the surrounding environment instinctively.
That was why the Domain hesitated.
Not because he possessed authority equal to the Marquis but because reality itself had already started recognizing him.
And he had achieved that outside House supervision.
Outside lineage guidance.
Outside the established system entirely.
The Marquis clearly realized the same thing.
The pressure inside the Domain intensified again as the endless crimson flames above compressed downward with enough force to erase entire mountain ranges.
This time the distortion around Erasmus began collapsing rapidly.
The surrounding air stabilized again as the chains tightened further into his flesh.
Blood spread across his skin as the pressure continued descending without pause.
Frigga clenched her fists unconsciously.
The suppression was working.Slowly.Violently.But it was working.
The flames continued resisting slightly around Erasmus' body even as the distortion collapsed fully.
Like the Domain itself could not completely digest his presence.
Then finally..the surrounding air settled completely.
The chains tightened fully around him afterward.
The surrounding elders exhaled quietly.
The Marquis remained silent for several moments before speaking.
"You went too far."
Erasmus laughed weakly.
Blood still lingered at the edge of his lips.
"Not far enough."
The Marquis stared at him coldly.Then the Domain shifted again.
A throne formed behind her from condensed crimson flame as she sat down slowly, her gaze never leaving Erasmus for even a moment.
"You will remain confined until the higher Houses arrive."
The chains around Erasmus tightened once more.
This time..he did not resist.Yet the surrounding elders still felt uneasy.
Because although the suppression had succeeded,the flames around Erasmus' skin still slowed slightly before touching him.
And everyone present understood what that meant.
A Soul Inscription cultivator had refined himself to a level where even a Domain struggled to overwrite him completely.