World Setting: Otherworldly Blue Star
This is a world where the strong reign supreme, where cultivators ascend through martial mastery and laws of nature, striving for ultimate power to defy fate and shatter the heavens!
However, this world is far from free. It is but a lower realm, a breeding ground controlled by the celestial gods of the upper realm. Mortals and cultivators alike are mere pawns on the cosmic chessboard, doomed to perish in endless cycles of tribulation, their essence sacrificed to sustain the lofty beings above.
It is said that once every millennium, Blue Star suffers an apocalyptic catastrophe. Billions perish, and the most talented cultivators are offered as tributes to the gods. Any who dare to resist this predestined fate are branded as "Heaven's Forsaken"—hunted, erased, and condemned to oblivion.
But now, the course of destiny is about to be rewritten. A lone youth will defy the cycle, setting forth on a path that will shake the heavens themselves.
Nine Burials Begin—The Heavens Weep!
[Archaeological Site: A Turning Point in Fate]
"Everyone, evacuate immediately! The magnetic field is shifting at an alarming rate!"
The wind howled under the darkened sky, sweeping across the ruins of an ancient battlefield. Archaeological floodlights cast faint beams over the desolate expanse, illuminating the frightened faces of dozens of researchers scrambling to retreat.
At the rear of the group, a young man in a black jacket stood frozen, his gaze locked onto a half-buried bronze artifact, his breath hitching in his throat.
Zang Jiugé.
An ordinary modern-day student, who, by a twist of fate, had joined this excavation team to uncover the secrets of a lost civilization.
This site was once the heart of Blue Star's greatest empire, a land that had birthed countless mighty cultivators. Now, it lay in ruin—shattered stone tablets, crumbling temples, and endless skeletal remains told the tale of its tragic demise a thousand years prior.
Yet, in this moment, Jiugé's attention was wholly captured by an ancient bronze coffin, half-buried beneath moss and dust.
"Nine Burials Inscription?"
Intricate carvings covered the coffin's surface, and at its very center, three archaic characters gleamed faintly—
九葬铭 (Nine Burials Inscription).
The instant his eyes met those words, his heartbeat surged. A strange force seemed to call out to him from beyond time and space.
Almost involuntarily, Zang Jiugé reached out, his fingertips brushing against the coffin's icy surface—
BOOM!
The heavens trembled. A raging storm erupted!
An irresistible force engulfed Jiugé's consciousness, swallowing him whole.
[System Awakens: The Nine Burials Unsealed]
Darkness. An abyss devoid of time and space.
How long had passed? A voice, ancient and commanding, echoed through Jiugé's mind—
"Compatible host detected. 'Nine Burials Arcane System' initiating binding!"
[Ding! The host has awakened the 'Nine Burials Arcane System.' Access granted!]
[Nine Burials Arcana: Ascend the divine path through nine burial rites. With each burial, master a universal law and become its embodiment!]
[Initial Unlock: First Burial—"Burial of Mortals."]
[First Burial - Burial of Mortals: Strips the target of their life essence, causing them to wither into dust within moments. Range and potency scale with user strength.]
[Drawback: Burns the user's lifespan. Excessive use may result in premature aging or death.]
[Reminder: The host must comprehend the Burials through personal experience. Direct knowledge transfer is unavailable.]
Burial Rites—powers that could not simply be inherited, but had to be earned, mastered through trials of life and death!
Zang Jiugé's consciousness trembled. The words reverberating in his mind felt like an unshackling of fate itself.
"Nine Burials Arcana? Becoming the embodiment of universal laws?"
What was meant to be a simple archaeological expedition had instead thrust him into the depths of an unknown and forbidden power.
But before he could process it all, his vision blurred, and reality came crashing back.
[Bloodstained Altar: His Sister's Sacrifice]
BOOM!
A gale of crimson wind howled through the land!
Zang Jiugé's eyes snapped open, his senses assaulted by the sight before him—
A desolate and eerie realm stretched around him, its sky awash with blood-red clouds, swirling with ominous black mist.
In the distance, atop a colossal black altar, a dark ritual was unfolding. Hooded figures in pitch-black robes stood in formation, chanting in an unknown tongue.
And at the heart of the altar—
A bound young girl sobbed, her tear-streaked face filled with sheer terror.
His sister!
"Brother! Help me!"
Her desperate cry pierced the air like a dagger through Jiugé's soul.
His pupils shrank, his breath caught. A suffocating rage surged through him!
"Bastards!" He roared, blood boiling in his veins.
But in his current state, he was just a mortal—no strength, no cultivation. Against these robed figures, he was utterly powerless.
Just then—
[Ding! Host is facing imminent mortal danger. 'First Burial - Burial of Mortals' activating!]
[Would you like to use it?]
A cold prompt echoed in his mind. Jiugé didn't hesitate—his voice roared with fury—
"ACTIVATE BURIAL OF MORTALS!"
BOOM!!!
A wave of apocalyptic energy erupted from within him!
The sky split apart, and a crimson downpour rained from above.
A terrifying force surged through his body, consuming his vitality like an insatiable beast! His black hair turned stark white in an instant, and nine blood-red burial sigils ignited across his forehead. His entire presence transformed into something… monstrous.
Jiugé slowly raised his hand, fingers parting as he whispered three words—
"Bury. All. Life."
BOOM!!!
Blood-red light flooded the altar. The laws of heaven and earth trembled!
The hooded figures dissolved into dust, annihilated before they could even scream.
The First Burial - Burial of Mortals had been enacted.
Amid the fading carnage, Jiugé stepped through pools of blood, kneeling before his trembling sister. Gently, he wiped away her tears, his voice low and resolute—
"You have nothing to fear. From now on, no one will ever harm you again."
Nine Burials Begin. The Celestial Cycle Must Fall.
From this moment on, Jiugé would wield the Nine Burials Arcana to defy destiny, shatter the heavens, and reclaim the freedom stolen from the lower realms!