Across the Cenotaph Wild Lands, a few thousand miles from the Kingdom of Neon, there was a stretch of terrain cleared of all beasts for over three hundred miles.
At its center stood a thriving, massive Colony Capital-one of the Thirteen Dynasties: the Thornveil Dynasty.
It looked like a wild, overgrown jungle city fused into colossal trees, vines wrapping around biopunk structures like living veins.
Elite soldiers clad in thorned armor and wielding living plant gauntlets pulsed with Evolutius Energy. The entire city pulsed with vitality and innovation- an extraordinary result of merging plant life with raw Evolutius Energy.
Above, green and purple vessels floated through the skies, their insect-like wings of verdant brilliance flapping rapidly, glowing as they moved in elegant synchrony.
From afar, this vast, 300-mile-wide metropolis shimmered like something pulled from the dreams of a mystical city.
And yet, at this moment.
Just fifty miles from the outskirts of the Capital City of Thorns under Thornveil control,
the earth cracked and splintered.
Massive earthquakes tore through the crust like thunderous cannonfire. The ground quaked as if resisting the rise of something it could no longer hold back.
From beneath the soil, ancient layers of the Evolutius Catacombs split open- not in collapse, but in release.
Something long buried was rising.
Something sealed away, bound with power meant to last beyond eras, was now breaking free.
The cracked ground gave way to towering formations, and from the torn earth, a city began to rise.
An Ancient Holy Land!
The tremors alone reshaped the landscape.
The air thickened with dread.
Dark gold clouds gathered in the skies above as a terrible, holy pressure rolled across the lands.
Even from the distant capital, the people of Thornveil could feel it.
Their city buzzed with frantic activity. Advanced humans, radiating terrifying power, soared into the skies at once.
Reports spread instantly through the city-through leaders, defenders, and commanders as everyone moved rapidly!
Never before had a city risen from the Cenotaph Wild Lands this fast.
And even more terrifying, within that city…were multiple rising auras of immense, ancient power that could be felt.
From Thornveil's capital, dozens of Advanced Humans of the Dharma Manifestation Realm launched skyward, standing on verdant, floating boards that hummed with green light.
They were followed by over a hundred Ethereal Physiology Masters, each riding their own luminous boards known as Verdant Sky Surfers.
This defense force was dispatched to assess what had emerged so close to their heartland.
And before they could even fully approach the looming city…a voice stepped out from it.
"Puny humans flying in the skies while this King still lies below? Have the centuries made you all so bold?"
A voice- deep, guttural, laced with ancient power- rolled out across the land like a shockwave.
It traveled for dozens of miles, reaching even the capital itself.
The moment it touched the air, its force slammed into the Advanced Humans like a falling mountain.
Pressure crushed down.
One by one, every single being, whether willing or not, was pulled downward by the sheer weight of its presence.
The Dharma Manifestation warriors roared in outrage.
The Ethereal Physiology Masters trembled in fear.
And in the distance, the rising city, the Ancient Holy Land…became clearer.
Obsidian-gold towers pierced the skies, still climbing higher, while titanic altars pulsed with a strange breath like they were alive.
Each was drenched in the auras of beings once sealed, now stirring after who-knows-how-many years.
From one of the towers, a being emerged.
A humanoid…no, a titan that was nearly ten meters tall, skin of obsidian shimmering with golden hues. Wings of pure gold burst from his back, wrapped in black flames that whispered of damnation. He hovered above the rising city like a King of Ancient Fire, looking down at the defenders from Thornveil.
His golden eyes blazed like singularities. His presence carried a Dharma Manifestation's intensity, and yet it was purer, stronger, and almost unreal.
It felt like he alone could rival a dozen of them, or someone even more powerful!
He rose calmly, his shadow casting across the sky-bound warriors as he spoke with a voice not like the one before, but this one was charismatic, measured, and royal.
"What a vibrant welcome party that was. But you need to know your place- it is not in the skies, but the ground below."
The voice was smooth, magnetic, and absolute.
A warning and a command all at once.
The obsidian gold titan smiled.
"You are witnessing the resurgence of Sanctarith Ultara. A Holy Land under the rule of none other than High Zenithar Malgorith, the Crowned Blasphemer, the Voice of the First Flame, the Shepherd of Subjugation."
His voice boomed with reverence, as though invoking an ancient idol!
Spreading his arms, he declared:
"I am a Saint of the Crowned Blasphemer, and I will carry his will to speak with you lesser creatures. Tell me, where is your leader?"
He pointed at one of the Dharma Manifestation warriors as he asked such a thing.
A bolt of golden primordial light struck the figure, and his eyes turned glazed gold.
He began to speak, voice hollow as if possessed.
"Our leader is the Thorn King, an Astral Core Ascension King named Thorndike the Protector. He resides at the heart of the Capital City of Thorns under our Thornveil Dynasty…one of the Thirteen Dynasties protecting countless humans within the Colony Cities…"
The information poured freely- too freely.
The obsidian titan snorted, golden wings flaring behind him as he looked toward the capital in the distance.
"That measly aura is what passes for Astral Core Ascension nowadays? Hah. My Brothers and Sisters- let us take this stronghold for the glory of the Crowned Blasphemer."
He turned toward Sanctarith Ultara, and in response…they emerged.
Multiple figures, each similar to him but distinct, erupted from the dark towers of the Holy Land.
Their presence bent the very skies as their power caused the land to tremble.
This…was the first change brought forth by the rising of Sanctarith Ultara.
Many more were unfolding!