I Refused To Be Reincarnated

The throne room shuddered with the sound of splintering wood—Adam's fists clenched, his knuckles blanched bone-white against the armrest. Veins writhed like serpents beneath his skin, his jaw locked, lips peeled back in a silent snarl.

This Xueyin, 'whatever blade,' boded nothing but trouble, especially when only a minute separated him from Yuehua Ji's glacial fury. He had to leave. Now.

As he controlled the flying fortress to move, however, Xueyin raised his palm like a blade.

"I've rewound the countdown to your death by years, yet you don't seem to appreciate my clemency. So be it. You'll wear the fate you've earned: collars and chains, beaten like the disobedient dog you are."

He swung his palm down.

Adam shuddered at the soul-chilling threat he picked up. Qi, boundless, matching Yuehua Ji's, erupted into a crimson arc. It cleaved through the wind, with a shriek that caused his remaining hair to stand on end as the light shot toward the fortress barrier.

CRACK

The barrier screamed as it resisted, qi fracturing into furious wisps against the layers of vibrations. A jagged arc of light ripped free, crashing on the barrier. Tremors rocked the fortress, ground splintering and mountains collapsing into rubble from the impact alone.

The magical gem fueling the barrier roared with mana, and Adam poured his own reserves until his heart ached from the strain.

His breath ragged, teeth grinding, he endured the painful throbs. But even then, he heard a section of the barrier crack. One more blow—and they were dead. He did not doubt it.

Without wasting a second, he swung his palm. A trickle of blood trailed down his nose, his body groaning in protest. Too much energy. Too fast. It was whispering about its own predicted collapse if he didn't stop. But he couldn't.

He tore space open into a jagged mouth opposite Xueyin, limiting the spatial disturbance to a minimum.

"Don't notice it," he hissed, his vision blurring at the edge as he drove the fortress toward it.

Outside, Xueyin's eyes darted between his palm and the cracked barrier. He raised a brow, letting out a sharp whistle. "I rarely saw a barrier withstand one of my blows. That's as startling as it is... vexing." The air thickened around him with murderous intent, a phantom scent of blood blanketing the sky. "Let's see how long it can endure, shall we?"

He swung again. Another crimson arc shrieked. And the barrier... collapsed in a glistening rain of broken mana. The arc continued on its path, slicing the edges of the palace's floating island. In a cacophony of shattered stones, it collapsed into the mountainous region below, crushing the red timber bridges that connected it. A pit like the impact of a meteor rewrote the landscape, making Adam's vision clear—only to turn red.

How many gardens filled with rare cultivation herbs did he lose from that single strike? The weight of the loss seared through his bones as he opened his mouth, then snapped it shut. Words were meaningless. Only escape counted. And it seemed Xueyin hadn't noticed, yet.

However, as if to mock his efforts, Yuehua Ji's voice rumbled like divine thunder. "You dare step into my territory uninvited, Xueyin? We'll settle that later. For now, help me destroy this magical aberration without delay!"

"NO!" Adam slammed his fist on his armrest, spit flying through his gritted teeth. He was so close—only a few meters. But she had to catch up and warn Xueyin. Now he would strike without holding back, giving her the last second she needed to reach him.

He had failed.

Meanwhile, Xueyin frowned, then smirked at her demand. "Come on. I know you hate mages, but don't you know what he used as the foundation of this fortress? I bet you'd never nail the answer." He grinned. "After fifty millennia forgotten, the void place has returned, and in a glorious form if you ask me."

Yuehua Ji's eyes widened slightly. It was indeed a piece of land she coveted. Yet, her gaze firmed the next moment. "Destroy it! I've seen him wield a demonic artifact as hateful as Adras' puppet. For the realm's safety, we can't afford to let him live!"

Xueyin's eyes sharpened instantly. Demonic artifacts weren't something she would use to hog wealth. And if it was true, even the legacy of the void emperor became irrelevant. He would not relieve the fears from fifty thousand years ago.

A hail of crimson qi blades shot from his back, condensing into a hulking figure clasping two long, single-edged swords. Reeking of the blood of millions of creatures, it raised its weapons, and a chorus of dead whispers trailed its movement. Yet, it froze for a moment as Xueyin sighed.

"A pity. Fortunately, he has nowhere to run."

"Strike!" She cut him off, her voice laden with urgency. "He has a spatial affinity!"

"Why didn't you start with that?!" His idol's blades flashed in two horizontal lines instantly.

SNAP

A golden disc spun into position from the blessed land's edge, intercepting his killing arcs. Xueyin almost laughed—did the fool think this trinket could stop him?

However, a blinding light drew his attention to the hole in its center, Tianlong's warning blaring in his memory: 'That cannon would've vaporised us all had it fired true.'

Inside the palace, Adam roared. "Begone from my land, old fools!"

BOOM

The gem exploded first in a thunderclap of shattering magic. Then came the light. Then the sound died.

Stolen dawnfire. Harvested typhoons. The very sky's breath. All unleashed in one annihilating beam. The modular ring dissolved into screaming plasma. The cannon's housing detonated—just as Xueyin's idol abandoned its killing arc. Twin blades crossed in a last-moment guard, steel crapping as the apocalyptic beam crashed on it.

But Adam didn't waste a second to observe the outcome. Rather, he knew, Xueyin wouldn't die. And even if he did, Yuehua Ji was almost upon him. Instead, he glared at the torn space as the blessed land's own shot propelled it faster.

A hundred meters.

Fifty.

Ten.

A frosty spear split the wind at this moment. His blood turned to ice. His fury burned hotter.

He soared through the palace's ceiling, his eyes locked on the weapon, the veins of his right arm squirming with spatial qi. The spear's killing cold kissed his face.

"I SAID LEAVE!"

He struck the air in front of him. Space fractured, and the same gaping hole formed over Yuehua Ji's pale blue hair. And the spear shot toward her wide eyes.

Spatial manipulators were tricky to deal with, but she had faced thousands during her long life. With a thought, the spear melted into a soft drizzle.

She snapped her face toward the fortress... and punched at the empty air. Gone! The space closed behind it. Adam had escaped two Dao integration realm overlords. It was a disgrace, but more than that, the realm-ending threat remained.

Her glare at Xueyin, who had sliced the beam into even parts, could have frozen hellfire. "West!" The word cracked the sky. "His portal showed a sea—move!"

Xueyin snarled in dissatisfaction, but followed her nonetheless.

As they took chase, Adam lay sprawled in a pit of his own shape. A fresh, salty breeze ruffled his nostrils and ruffled his robes. He survived! Even if he did his best not to think about his losses.

Now, all he needed was for the archipelago's guardian to smuggle him inside, and those old bastards could dream of catching him.

Beneath him, the sea glistened under the bright sun, far from the battlefield dust, frost, and demonic flames. Common fish swam without worries, and colossal magical sea beasts wrestled for food and territory. Yet, the tranquil seabed remained free of activities, as if they avoided it despite the bright coral formations and potent aquatic plants.

Something had already claimed it. None had ever seen it, but they trembled at its every breath. And when that something began to stir, the center of the western sea, the area most contested underwater, saw its residents flee without a glance back.

In front of a chain of mountains of the deep, two sky-blue eyes snapped open and gazed up. A long body uncoiled itself. Scales rustled after millennia of slumber, and fins unfolded like serrated battle standards, each spine etched with bioluminescent scars.

It moved, the entire chain of mountains following... or rather, it had been the mountains all along. Water splashed as it rose, its eyes locked on the blessed land. On Adam. On a mark in his soul. And its lips curled, letting forgotten, tower-sized fangs glisten under the sky.

Legends, so old that they were transmitted from mouth to ear and cave paintings from when men hunted with pointed sticks, portrayed this creature as the sea dominator, the horror of the depths—the strongest magical beast that has ever walked the lands. And it never woke up without reason.

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AN: Long extra chapter because you are all handsome and beautiful. Have a nice day. :)

AN2: The rift is far because of its size. The time it needs to stabilise equals the time he needs to reach it.