The rain was the only sound that dared to interrupt the silence of death. It wasn't cleansing; it was merely washing the thick, metallic scent of blood from the pristine white stones of the Celestial Guard Headquarters. Even the lightning that occasionally tore across the midnight sky seemed to offer only brief, flickering glimpses of the devastation.
Kael, once a proud Sword Master and now just a disgraced shadow, stumbled through the courtyard. His tattered grey tunic was sodden, clinging to the scars earned during his exile. He hadn't fought here. He had only returned to this sacred place to witness the impossible: the utter, clean sweep of humanity's greatest defense. He passed bodies frozen in their final, defensive stances—the elite of the Guard, reduced to silent statues. None had survived. His survival felt like the final, cruel joke played by the heavens. I resented them for casting me out, Kael thought, his voice choked with rain and grief. But their punishment saved me, only to force me to bear witness.
He found him beneath the shattered dome of the Grand Hall: Master Jian, the Commander who had signed his exile order. Jian hadn't fallen in a heroic charge; he had been pinned to the marble floor by a vicious, crystalline growth—a signature of the Blood-Devouring Creatures. As Kael dropped to his knees, his hands trembled. Jian's eyes were open, but his grip was still fierce around a small, dark object Kael recognized as the Seal of the Ancestral Guard.
"Master," Kael whispered. With a final, terrible effort, Jian's fingers relaxed. Kael gently pried the Seal free. As it passed from the Master's hand to Kael's, a brilliant, terrifying light erupted, encompassing him entirely. A sharp, unbearable pain lanced through his skull. When the light faded, the Seal crumbled to dust, and before Kael's tear-filled eyes, a translucent blue screen materialized.
It was an impossible sight, a piece of otherworldly technology floating against the backdrop of destruction. Kael could read the text perfectly, though he knew no mortal hand had written it.
[Apex Sword Cultivation System Initiating... Transferring Legacy Data... Error: User Rank DETACHED. Initiating Survival Protocol.]
[Host Detected: Kael (Last Sentinel Legacy)]
Kael stared, confusion battling his sorrow. He focused on the text, and the screen shifted, displaying his raw data: his Mortal Foundation (Level 1), his meager stats (STR: 10, AGI: 8, STA: 12), and next to his ultimate destiny, the Apex Sword Cultivation, was the damning word: LOCKED.
The screen flashed again, forcing a new message into the center of his view:
[WARNING: Blood-Devouring Creature detected nearby. Host is in immediate danger.]
[Urgent Quest: Blood Price. Slay 1 Low-Grade Blood-Devouring Creature. Reward: Unlock Apex Sword Cultivation (Level 1).]
Kael barely had time to process the commands before a low, guttural snarl echoed from the shadows of the collapsed eastern wall. A Low-Grade Creature shuffled into the light—a grotesque, hunched thing with skin like dried leather and long, needle-like fangs. It smelled the blood, and its eyes, glowing a sickly red, fixed on Kael.
Kael drew his sword—a plain, slightly rusted blade he'd carried during his exile. He charged, fueled by rage, using the same basic, flawed technique that had led to his downfall years ago. The creature was faster. Its claws raked across Kael's shoulder before he could even raise his guard. Pain exploded across his back, and he fell backward, dropping his sword into the mud. I'm going to die here. Alone. For nothing.
As the monster lunged for the kill, Kael's eyes locked onto the glowing System screen. It promised power—the very thing he needed to survive. "Unlock it!" Kael screamed, his voice raw. "I accept! Give me the power!"
At that instant, the System responded:
[Terms Accepted. Initiating Emergency Protocol: Blood Sacrifice.]
[Transferring 50% of Host's current Vitality to activate Temporal Boost... Current Vitality: -50%]
A wave of crushing weakness hit Kael, but it was immediately replaced by a surge of icy focus. He saw the precise moment the creature's guard dropped. With a superhuman effort powered by borrowed life force, Kael snatched his sword from the mud and thrust upward. The plain steel met bone and sinew. The creature shrieked and then, with a puff of black, acrid smoke, dissolved entirely.
Kael slumped back, breathing raggedly. He had won. The screen flashed triumphantly:
[Quest: Blood Price COMPLETE! Reward Received: Unlock Apex Sword Cultivation (Level 1)!]
He was alive, he was armed with a cheat, and he was the last. He looked out over the desolate headquarters, his shame and grief now fused with a cold, relentless resolve. "The Celestial Guard is dead," Kael whispered, the rain masking the tears on his face. "But the Sentinel's work has just begun."