NOVEL ONLINE FREE Chapter 23: Chapter 23 The Ninth Chain Wakes
Recap:
After stepping into the Abyss of Origin, Tianyu confronted alternate versions of himself, battled the flame-shadow born from his repressed trauma, and unlocked the Monarch's Core Lightan origin flame, now free from his system's constraints. With the Crown of the Unseen Flame in hand and the ability to erase the strongest attack from reality once per battle, Tianyu emerged transformed. But the Vault has taken notice. Across distant realms, ancient heirs are beginning to awaken, and deep within the Vault's core, the Ninth Chain stirs.
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The skies above the world began to change.
Tianyu stood quietly at the edge of the Glacier Citadel ruins, his eyes fixed on the heavens. His system interface flickered back to life, no longer muted but enhanced. Quicker. Deeper. And now, crowned.
> [System Update: Crowned Core Activated]
> Title Obtained: Origin Monarch Flame Above Flame
> Passive Ability: Null Memory Flame - Erase the enemy's strongest memory-infused technique once per battle
Long Shen approached, his demeanor cautious.
"You returned from the Abyss, but you're not the same."
Qin Yao stepped closer, curiosity in her eyes. "What did you lose in there?"
Tianyu looked down at his hands. "Everything I didn't need."
---
Meanwhile, across the continent, in the Vault's underground sanctum, alarms blared—not with sound, but with a sense of spiritual violation.
The elders convened.
"The Fifth Chain has fallen."
"The Abyss has been triggered."
"And worst of all, the Ninth Chain is reacting."
In a circular chamber protected by 81 layers of elemental walls, a final seal pulsed—a seal crafted from voidstone, ancient soul ice, and draconic marrow.
The Ninth Chain.
It had never stirred.
Until now.
---
> [Global Status Update: Ninth Chain Partial Awakening Detected]
> Estimated Containment Breach: 72 hours
> Warning: Hostile Entity Awakening Imminent
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Back at Tianyu's location, the system interface flared up once more.
> [Emergency Quest Triggered: Convergence of the Chains]
> Objective: Gather the six flame-born chainbreakers before the Ninth Chain shatters
> Bonus Objective: Locate the Wielder of the Forgotten Fire
Tianyu frowned.
"There are others like me?"
Long Shen nodded, his expression serious.
"Not exactly like you.
But there are those who have broken chains. Some did it by signing in, some by sheer luck, and others through sacrifice. All of them are marked."
---
Now, let's shift to distant lands.
In the volcanic ravines of Liyang, a woman surrounded by phoenix fire clutched a broken talisman and whispered, "The Monarch rises."
In the Silent Sands, a blind monk knelt beneath a floating crystal chain and murmured, "He carries the Null Flame."
In the sea-buried ruins of an ancient empire, a child no older than ten summoned a blade forged from nothingness.
His eyes glowed.
"Brother," he said, "you're late."
---
Back to Tianyu.
He turned.
"I'll gather them."
Qin Yao blinked in surprise. "How?"
Tianyu smiled.
"By signing in where the world doesn't even know it can."
---
> [Special Access Granted: Sovereign Path Map Six Hidden Realms Unlocked]
Each realm corresponded to a different memory of the chains—a fragment of the Vault's past, hidden away in realms lost to time and chaos.
At the center of it all lies the Ninth Chain.
> [Ninth Chain Status: Bound to Entity 'The One Sealed Before Fire']
Long Shen whispered, "The one even Jilung feared."
---
Tianyu stepped forward.
Behind him, the court buzzed with activity. New allies were arriving, and fresh powers were awakening.
But most importantly, the world started to remember him—not as an exile, not just as an inheritor.
But as a Monarch without a master.
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Teaser for Chapter 24:
As Tianyu embarks on the Sovereign Path, the Sixth Flame Chainbreaker is revealed—a rogue beast-tamer from the Howling Sky Peaks who claims the dragons are now under her command. Yet, in the shadows, the bearer of the Ninth Chain opens one eye and catches sight of Tianyu.