Shadow Over the Heavenly Throne

Warm morning sunlight streamed through the massive, gilded windows of the royal chamber, bathing the room in a soft glow. A cool, featherlight touch on my cheek made me furrow my brows. Moments later, a gentle, melodic voice pulled me from my drowsy haze.

"Princess, it’s time to wake up."

I opened my eyes, and the first thing I saw was the slender figure of Selene leaning over me. As always, she looked almost inhumanly beautiful. I rubbed my face and pushed myself up slightly, resting on my delicate hands. Not that it surprised me. High-level cultivators always had an ethereal allure. Honestly, it felt like some kind of genetic cheat code.

Selene’s long, silky violet hair shimmered even in the dim morning light. Her deep violet eyes seemed to pierce through a person’s very soul, and her delicate features made her appear as if she belonged to another world. She was tall and graceful, her every movement flowing effortlessly, as if she glided rather than walked. And to top it all off… she had truly impressive Big boobs. Seriously, did every high-ranking cultivator have to look so perfect? It felt downright unfair.

She was my mother’s personal attendant, the only person she trusted unconditionally. Everyone in the palace knew that Selene’s loyalty was unwavering. And yet, to me, she remained an enigma. For the past few years, she had been my caretaker, yet I still couldn’t read even a flicker of emotion on her face.

With a sigh, I pushed the blanket aside and hopped off the bed with ease. Despite my young age, my body was already strong and agile thanks to daily cultivation. My feet barely made a sound against the polished floor as I straightened up, ready to face another day.

My gaze landed on the mirror.

Every day, I looked more and more like my mother. My short, silver hair glowed under the morning light, and my blue eyes gleamed with a mysterious brilliance. I wondered how I would look once my hair grew longer. I couldn’t wait to see myself with long locks—would I be as breathtaking as my mother? My skin was flawless, and my features were delicate and perfectly balanced.

Selene stepped closer, holding out my prepared robes. I let her dress me, feeling the soft caress of silk against my skin. After three years of being treated like royalty, I had mostly come to terms with my new life as a girl. Over time, even my thoughts had begun to adjust—I found myself thinking of myself as a girl more often than not.

I looked at my reflection once more, running my eyes over my form. I was three years old. But the girl staring back at me in the mirror looked at least six.

I shouldn’t have been surprised. Thanks to daily cultivation, my body had been developing far faster than that of a normal child. By the time I was one, I could already walk, run, and jump. When my body had been too weak to do anything else, I had devoted all my energy to absorbing Qi. And now, the results were undeniable.

Not only was I stronger and more agile than other children my age, but I also… knew that in the future, I would grow into a great beauty. I had my mother to thank for that.

Good genes were a form of power, too.

"Princess, should I prepare a bath for you?" Selene stood beside me, her voice as serene and melodic as ever.

I glanced at her over my shoulder.

"Yes. And bring me one of the historical texts—I feel like studying."

Selene nodded gracefully and left the chamber without a sound, leaving me alone with my thoughts.

The history of this world…

Over the past two years, I had spent an enormous amount of time learning to read. To the absolute shock of everyone in the palace, by the age of three, I could already read fluently and analyze texts. Though honestly, the fact that I even had to learn to read irritated me. Really. I could understand the spoken language of this world instantly, but the letters? No, those I had to learn like any other child. What nonsense.

But at least now, I could read historical texts and uncover the past of this world. And what I learned surprised me more than I cared to admit…

A thousand years ago, this world was ruled by monsters. Literally.

Gigantic creatures whose bodies were so powerful that even the greatest cultivators of that time couldn’t harm them. Cultivators were nothing more than prey in a world of beasts, and for centuries, humanity struggled to avoid complete annihilation.

Only the great war changed everything. Humanity emerged victorious. But that didn’t mean those creatures had disappeared completely. The monsters had not vanished—they had simply lost their dominion.

And honestly… it was terrifying to think about. I tried to imagine those times—a world where humanity was nothing more than fragile, helpless beings living in the shadows of colossal monsters. Cities reduced to rubble with a single swipe of a claw, entire clans erased from existence by a lone beast, and the skies darkened by the wings of titanic creatures. Humans forced to hide in underground caves and ruins, fighting for every single day of survival, while monsters ruled as the true lords of the world. The mere thought of it sent shivers down my spine.

But now, monsters were mere shadows of their former selves. They were no longer the rulers of this world. They were bred by humans, kept alive only as training dummies for cultivators. At least, that’s what the books claimed.

One thing didn’t add up—how did humanity, after struggling for centuries without being able to match the beasts, suddenly gain enough power to defeat them? It felt like something had been deliberately concealed. Something didn’t fit, as if a crucial piece of history was missing.

But what intrigued me the most was the legend of the Abyssal King.

He was a being so powerful that even the strongest entities of that era feared him. The embodiment of destruction and chaos, his shadow loomed over the entire world, and his wrath was like a storm that consumed entire civilizations. The Abyssal King had no equal—his power could erase entire cities with a single gesture, and those who stood against him vanished, leaving behind only memories and scorched ruins. His presence distorted reality itself, and a darkness so dense surrounded him that it devoured even the light.

In the end, humanity managed to defeat him, but even then, his essence shattered into eleven black cores, which kept him sealed away. No one had been able to destroy them—they were nearly indestructible, as if his will still lingered in this world, leaving an unerasable mark of his power.

Each of the nine Super Sects possessed one core, treating it both as a symbol of prestige and as a key to maintaining the world’s current balance. The Royal Family held the tenth, regarded as the crown jewel of their power, a constant reminder of who truly ruled the kingdom. And the eleventh… that was the true anomaly, an enigmatic piece of the puzzle that no one spoke of openly, yet everyone knew existed. The eleventh core belonged to "him." He was the last guardian of the seal, the final bastion, ensuring that to resurrect the Abyssal King, one would first have to defeat him and take the core from his hands.

I tried to uncover his name, but the only thing I learned was that he was the strongest cultivator in the world. He was the main reason my royal family had dominated this world for the past two hundred years and still stood at the pinnacle of cultivation, deterring any attempts to overthrow our dynasty.

Whoever he was… I couldn’t help but wonder just how powerful he had to be for no one to dare challenge him in over two centuries.

If someone ever tried to resurrect the Abyssal King, it would be a real problem. The thought of such a being returning to the world sent shivers down my spine.

I sighed, stretching lazily. Well, that wasn’t my problem for now.

For now, I had other goals.

I needed to make my body even stronger.

If I was to live in this world, in this royal family, I had to prove my talent and uniqueness as much as possible—to show that I was someone worthy of respect and protection, ensuring that I wouldn’t become just another pawn sacrificed for the family’s benefit.