The moment Ezekiel left the Exelcrest Clan, he set his sights on his next objective: Gina Westlake, his former lover. Their relationship had been brutally suppressed due to his lack of talent and the bitter rivalry between the Exelcrest and Westlake Clans. Today, he returned as the chancellor of a new empire.

Ezekiel headed straight toward the Westlake Clan estate. He did not ask for permission; he announced his arrival with a chilling blast of refined spiritual energy, casting a pall of frost over the entire compound.

His audacious arrival instantly drew the attention of the Clan's guards and warriors.

"Ezekiel! You dare show your face here after being rejected?" roared one of the guards.

The Westlake warriors attacked him ruthlessly, their Earth Grade arts clumsy and slow compared to his newfound speed.

Ezekiel met their aggression with calm ferocity. He executed the newly acquired Saint-Grade Ice Arts, learned under Vahn's guidance from the Divine Treasury's immense repository. His profound execution and overwhelming power immediately turned their courtyard into a blistering battlefield of ice and shattered stone.

The whole of Oslan had only ever seen Earth Grade Arts. So, Ezekiel's technique, power, and terrifying control of the elements immediately made the Westlake Clan warriors scared and speechless.

Standing amidst the groaning warriors, his aura shimmering with authority, Ezekiel domineeringly called out to his lover.

"Gina! Come out and witness the man they told you was unworthy!"

"Ezekiel?! "

Gina Westlake rushed out of the main hall. She loved him genuinely. The sight of Ezekiel so strong, standing victorious against her entire clan, made her incredibly proud. But the sight of her humiliated clansmen compelled her to act first.

Kneeling instantly, she asked for forgiveness from Ezekiel on their behalf.

"Ezekiel! Please, I beg you! Spare my family! They were only protecting the Clan."

Ezekiel's gaze softened only for her. He forgave them, but immediately put forth a condition: the entire Westlake Clan had to submit to King Vahn under the Necrotic Dynasty, who sought to unite all of Oslan one day.

The Westlake Clan leaders, witnessing Ezekiel's rapid, impossible growth, quickly connected his newfound power with this King Vahn. The idea of getting higher-tier Arts and Cultivation Resources by submitting wasn't so bad; it was a desperate necessity to survive in the coming unified Oslan.

"Haha..."

Golka, Gina's father and the Clan Leader, immediately laughed. It was a booming, hearty sound replacing his initial fear. He rushed forward, embracing Ezekiel like a long-lost son.

"My boy! My Chancellor! You are truly my son-in-law!" Golka exclaimed, his eyes gleaming with ambition. "Tell me, where can we meet this mighty King Vahn?"

Ezekiel smiled, the first genuine, happy smile since his return. He had secured two major clans in a single day.

"You can't meet the King yet," Ezekiel replied, leading Golka away from the frozen courtyard. "But you will send your most loyal and talented warriors to the Misty Valley. They will be the first beneficiaries of the Necrotic Dynasty's resources and the first members of His Majesty's new Royal Guard."

Golka and his men, though excited by the prospect of power, were struck by sudden apprehension as they realized the full implications of the move.

​"Misty Valley? Did you say Misty Valley?" Golka asked, his face draining of color. "Isn't that place a paradise for the Ghost Soldiers that terrorize the mightiest barbarians and clans? Doesn't your King fear them?"

​"Tch. If His Majesty were scared by a few dead souls, then he might just forget his ambition to conquer all of Oslan altogether," Ezekiel replied dismissively.

​"Is your Clan also going to join?" Golka pressed on.

​"They haven't given confirmation yet. But they will most probably agree very soon," Ezekiel replied, confident in the strength of his humiliation and Vahn's offer.

​"I see... Then, tell your King that we agree." Golka's response was swift and efficient; the promise of protection and power outweighed the local fears.

​"Very good. Then follow me. I will show you the Kingdom we're about to build."

Afterward, dozens of formidable warriors and talented youths from both clans gathered together, setting off on their journey toward Misty Valley under Ezekiel's leadership.

Along the way, the clansmen frequently resorted to physical brawls and heated arguments, yet Ezekiel's power and authority as Chancellor swiftly silenced them.

Meanwhile, Vahn, Seraphina, Lilith, and little Eterna were battling the innumerable Ghost Soldiers that had just appeared.

The Ghost Soldiers were fierce and moved with unified precision, just like true soldiers. Their ghostly figures shook the very Royal Palace Vahn had built, and their eerie howls were enough to make even the bravest warrior shiver in fear.

However, when Seraphina unleashed her Holy Light Aura to its fullest extent, all the ghosts began dissolving like mist under sunlight, leaving behind a lone ghost wearing a crown.

He was the Ghost King.

Yet against the overwhelming holy power, he had no choice but to kneel.

"No... please do not obliterate this king. This king has many unfulfilled wishes. Please, I beg you, Saintesses."

"You recognize the Saintesses?" Vahn asked, looking both curious and suspicious.

The Ghost King's knowledge suggested a connection to the high-level politics or history of the larger continent, a history Vahn was meant to be escaping.

The Ghost King trembled beneath Seraphina's purifying Light. "Y-yes, Your Grace! Who in the higher realms wouldn't know the Holy Light Saintess? But you… you are different. That power... it exceeds the legends!"

​He quickly added, nodding toward Lilith, "And the Darkness Saintess—your aura are known across the lower realms to spirits like me!"

​Vahn's suspicion deepened. "Why would a ghost in a backwater place like Oslan know the identities of the Holy Land's Saintesses?"

​The Ghost King raised his spectral head, his crown slightly askew.

​"This King was once a vassal of the Great Central Empire," the Ghost King revealed, his voice regaining some dignity. "I was a low-level Duke who displeased the Emperor's court. I was exiled here and assassinated by a rival before I could take control of the duchy. My soul was bound to this valley by the very Emperor who feared my power, forcing me to command a legion of the dead forever. That happened centuries ago."

​He looked directly at Vahn and Seraphina with desperate hope.

​"My unfulfilled wish is simple: to take revenge on the descendants of the Emperor who condemned me, and to see my lineage restored. If the Saintess can remove this ancient curse binding me to this valley, I swear eternal allegiance to you!"

​The Ghost King has offered his allegiance and revealed a history connecting him to the wider Imperial politics Vahn sought to learn.

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