Garou was dead. This sent a fresh wave of shock through the present cultivators sitting there. But the most shocking thing was none other than—Alzerath Vulcarion.

"That technique...what are those? Even the purest of bloodlines couldn’t come close to those abilities."

Alzerath stood and walked towards the window; thousands of thoughts passed through his mind, but he focused his attention on Emperal.

Who, despite all the fighting, aside from a bit of uneven breathing and Verth exhaustion, seemed really fine. Even that scratch on his shoulder was gone.

Turning his head, he looked at Seraveth...who was breathing heavily. His eyes flashed, under the stunned gaze of Elder Blazefang, who had returned a few seconds ago.

Slap!

A slap echoed throughout the room, as Seraveth’s head buzzed. For a second, she felt a wave of dizziness surround her mind, until she was pulled back by Alzerath’s words.

"You foolish girl, why didn’t you tell me earlier about this man? And how dare you antagonize him at the tournament?"

He spoke words that...directly hammered Seraveth’s core consciousness.

"Father...what are you—?"

Seraveth was stunned when she heard her father’s words; his words hurt more than the slap she had just received.

Alzerath sighed when he heard her words. "It seems I thought way too highly of you and your intelligence. And turned a blind eye to such a...gold mine."

Seraveth trembled further, but she didn’t answer. Several veins were already popping on her forehead. But Alzerath paid her no mind. Shifting his eyes, he saw Soleine’s smiling face. His brows couldn’t help but twitch.

"That woman...played us all."

He spoke, the meaning behind his words unclear even to Elder Blazefang.

...

"Sir...this—that blood."

One of the Elves behind Zeratheil spoke, his voice cracking slightly.

"I...have noticed. But his purity, it seems...Even I cannot read it."

The moment his words echoed, the two Elves standing behind Zeratheil almost stumbled.

"M-My Lord...you?"

"I am not joking. He indeed has Elven blood flowing through him. But it seems the blood within his body is not responding to him. How fascinating...this is the first time I have seen such a creature."

His ashed grey eyes, for the first time in centuries, flashed with a new light. He suddenly stood up, surprising his two subordinates.

Zeratheil’s figure vanished as if he never existed in the first place.

Down below, Emperal exhaled lightly as he saw the man die. The audience thought he would mock and sneer at the princess. But he did nothing.

His face returned to its usual cold expression, without even looking back at the man or the princess. He turned around, intending to leave.

Just as he was about to jump off the stage, he froze. Standing behind him, he felt an ancient and overwhelming will observing him.

"Who!?"

He snapped his head back, only to see Zeratheil standing there with his hands behind his back. Although confused, Emperal still cupped his hands.

"I greet the Elven Emperor."

The two subordinates shouted about him not showing respect and kneeling, but Emperal ignored them and looked at the man.

"I saw your fight, and your swordsmanship is indeed decent alongside your draconic abilities," He said, his grey eyes eerily shining. Just as Emperal was about to reply, Zeratheil questioned.

"I’m curious, why didn’t you use your Elven abilities? If you had used those, I’m sure this fight wouldn’t have taken such a long time"

The arrogance in his voice made not just Alzerath tremble, but even...

"This man...Emperal, he is asking for a Kraeth’sol."

The Infernal Dragon spoke in an annoyed tone. Emperal immediately noticed the Dragon’s tone. Looking at Zeratheil, he smiled humbly.

"First, it’s not that I do not want to use my Elven abilities, the thing is—I cannot. And the second thing is, the Draconic side is more compatible with me."

Zeratheil chuckled when he heard that. "That is because you haven’t yet learned the depth of the Elven abilities and their...unimaginably vast powers."

"What do you mean—!!!"

Emperal froze before he could speak anything further, his eyes widened in absolute horror as he observed that the space and time around him had halted. It was just him and Zeratheil; the rest were all frozen, including Soleine.

"Y-You, Infernal Dragon!? Are you there? Don’t fuck with me, answer me!"

Emperal screamed inwardly as he desperately tried to keep a straight face. But to his cold realization, there was no Infernal Dragon to answer.

Zeratheil chuckled when he saw Emperal’s face. "Don’t be afraid. I won’t do anything to you...yet. The Draconic abilities that you are so proud of, I am sure none are as powerful as this one."

Zeratheil’s words sent a fresh wave of calmness through Emperal’s mind. His dark eyes reflected the Elven King as he finally calmed down.

"If he wanted to harm me, he would have already done so. No point in struggling, I might as well learn something from him."

"The Elven Emperor, I do not know what caught your eye in me aside from me being half-blood. Can you tell me what you need from me?"

Emperal asked directly, not mincing his words nor talking in circles.

Zeratheil looked at Emperal closely for a few seconds before nodding his head.

"To keep talking with me and standing in this dome without a single side effect. Yes, I was right. The blood flowing inside you must at least be Royal Blood."

Although he said that out loud, his expression suggested he was talking to himself rather than saying it to Emperal.

"...Royal Blood?" Emperal snorted in his mind. ’I might as well be his son in that sense. Of course, he spoke this in his mind.

"As for your previous question, I have an offer for you."

Just as Emperal was wondering, Zeratheil once again spoke.

"What is it?"

"Become my sole disciple, and I will awaken your blood and teach you everything that could be taught."

Zeratheil smiled, his hands still behind his back.

"...Say what?"

Emperal took a few deep breaths. He felt that his mind was playing some sort of game with him.

"Become your disciple?" He asked once again, just to be sure.

"Indeed, become my disciple."