Apex Technique

Author: Caleb Morgan

Chapter 1: A Drop of Heavenly Phoenix Blood for Three Hundred Years of Family Prosperity

Words : 2901 Updated : Mar 19th, 2026

"Benson Santee, you're a child of the Santee family. It's time you contributed." "The young sect master of the Tenji Sword Sect needs the drop of Heavenly Phoenix Blood in your body to forge a Sacred Body. Hand it over, and the Tenji Sword Sect will shelter our family for three hundred years." "Don't struggle for nothing. For the family, what does a tiny sacrifice like yours amount to? Heh, heh, heh." "Trading one Benson Santee to fulfill the whole family is a blessing you couldn't beg for, hahaha!" "Men. Take his blood." "Hiss!" "…" "No!" A blade of ice-cold steel drove into his spine. The pain, sharp enough to pierce the soul, ripped Benson Santee out of sleep. "Hah!" He jolted upright, drenched in sweat, gulping air as if he'd been dragged out of deep water. "Again… that dream." His hands clenched until his nails bit into his palms. In his eyes, hatred and fury churned like flame. Three years had passed. Yet that night from three years ago still clung to him like a curse he could never shake. Benson Santee had been born into the Santee family of Moon City. On the day he was born, strange signs had appeared in the heavens. A red-gold aura had coiled around his tiny body, and when the elders examined him, they discovered a drop of "Sacred Blood" within him. With the power of that blood, he had outshone his peers. His talent had been dazzling. Once, he had been the number one genius in all of Moon City. Then, three years ago… The Tenji Sword Sect and the Santee family had struck a deal. The sect wanted Benson's "Heavenly Phoenix Blood" transferred to their young sect master to help him cultivate a thousand-year Sacred Body. In exchange, the Tenji Sword Sect had offered terms so rich they made people's mouths go dry. They had even made a promise: as long as the Heavenly Phoenix Blood was handed over, the Tenji Sword Sect would protect the Santee family for three hundred years. The Tenji Sword Sect was one of Eastos's seven great holy lands of cultivation, a behemoth in the eyes of the world. With its protection, the Santee family's rise would be inevitable. And because of that promise, the head of the Santee family had ordered men to forcibly take the drop of "Heavenly Phoenix Blood" from Benson Santee. The Tenji Sword Sect got what it wanted, and it kept its word. It granted the Santee family immense benefits, and it even accepted the Santee family's younger generation into the sect to cultivate. Over the past few years, the Santee family had expanded at a frightening pace, leaping into the top three families of Moon City. But Benson Santee, robbed of his Heavenly Phoenix Blood, suffered a devastating blow to his cultivation foundation. Overnight, he fell from the heights into the abyss. Praise at his ears vanished into nothing. The crowds that once surrounded him turned into cold stares. Grief. Rage. Humiliation. Despair. Step by step, they shoved him toward a pit with no bottom. He had tried to demand an explanation from the Tenji Sword Sect. The result was always the same: turned away at the gates, driven off by force, sometimes even beaten out with clubs. Not long ago, the Santee family's upper ranks, desperate not to offend the Tenji Sword Sect, had expelled him outright. They had even struck his name from the family register. Which meant that Benson Santee, in truth, no longer even deserved to be called by that name. "You climbed over my corpse. You treated me like dirt beneath your feet. The Santee family, the Tenji Sword Sect… I'll make you pay this blood debt. I swear I will…" His knuckles cracked under the pressure of his grip. His gaze sharpened into something thornlike, ready to pierce. He exhaled slowly, forcing the heat in his chest down, and stood. He was in a dangerous mountain range. Blackpeak. He had come to Blackpeak to search for medicinal herbs to mend his shattered cultivation foundation. Earlier, he had rested beneath a tree, exhausted enough to fall asleep. When his Heavenly Phoenix Blood had been taken three years ago, it had left him with a lingering affliction. His cultivation had not advanced at all since. And none of the benefits the Tenji Sword Sect had given the Santee family had ever reached him, not even a scrap. So he had been forced to scrape together resources on his own. "I'm getting close to Blackpeak's inner region…" He muttered to himself and slung the herb basket onto his back. Blackpeak teemed with danger. In the distance, the mountain ridges resembled ancient dragons sprawled across the earth. The dense forest looked like a black sea. The central region was a place Benson dared not enter. The path of cultivation could be divided into: Body Refinement, Foundation Building, Qi Control, Spirit Communion, Marquis, King, Grandmaster, Emperor… Each realm had nine levels. One was the lowest. Nine was the peak. Benson Santee was only at the fourth level of the Body Refinement Realm. He could handle only low-grade minor beasts. Fortunately, this was not his first time in Blackpeak. He knew the routes well enough to avoid many threats. "Still… Blackpeak seems quieter than before." Every previous visit, the depths had been loud, filled with the roars of ferocious creatures rising and falling without end. But that day, it was unnaturally silent. He pressed on, intending to leave before nightfall. Not long after, he realized he had gotten lost. "I don't think I've ever come this way…" He frowned, scanning his surroundings with unease. He had entered a dim forest whose tangled layout resembled a gigantic nest. He felt like an ant dropped into its center, unable to tell east from west. Each time he came to Blackpeak, he left marks and trail signs. Yet he couldn't find a single one. "This makes no sense. I shouldn't have gone that far…" He lifted his head, instinctively checking the sky. Above Blackpeak, dark clouds blanketed the heavens. Spiraling star-like currents gathered together, as if a dreadful demon dragon had coiled overhead. "Is the weather turning? I need to find my way back…" He quickened his pace. A moment later, an ancient altar appeared before him. "This is…?" A chill crawled up his spine. The altar looked abandoned for who knew how long. Its structure was circular, ring within ring, interlocking in a way that radiated an eerie sense of mystery. Towering stone pillars stood upon it, along with an ancient statue. Its upper body rose dozens of meters high. Its lower half seemed fused with the altar itself. Behind it floated a massive halo-like ring. One hand was raised as if supporting the heavens, the other extended forward with an open palm, like an old god reaching toward the world. Wind and rain had gnawed at the altar for countless years, leaving its surface pitted and scarred. Yet the statue remained solemn and intact. "The altar from the rumors…" Benson whispered, eyes wide. He had heard stories about Blackpeak's altar. Long ago, word had spread that a mysterious divine altar existed within Blackpeak, and that people occasionally stumbled upon it. There were even rumors that someone had obtained a powerful treasure from the altar. Others claimed they had witnessed miracles in the sky above it. And some said anything of value had been stripped long ago, leaving only an empty shell behind. Rumors were always half truth and half lie. But finding the altar at all was a matter of chance. Benson stepped onto the altar and approached the statue. "If there truly is a god here," he murmured, "please don't blame me. I wandered in by accident. I didn't mean to disturb you." He pressed his palms together and bowed in respect. He didn't believe in gods, but he could still offer reverence. Then- "Hiss!" A piercing sound tore through the air. Pain flooded his entire body in an instant. His eyes flew open as he looked down and saw a cold arrow piercing straight through his chest. Blood sprayed outward. Behind him, a smug, twisted laugh rang out. "Hahahaha! Praying to a god? Even if you pray, it won't save your life…" Benson spun around. Three young figures stood there, faces lit with cruel satisfaction. "It's you…" Benson recognized them at once. They were descendants of the Santee family. The one in front was George Santee. George tilted his head, smiling with open contempt. "Senior Brother Luca Santee sent the three of us to take your worthless life." Luca Santee. The moment Benson heard that name, his gaze turned razor-sharp. Luca was the youngest son of the Santee family head, nearly the same age as Benson. Back when Benson still had his Heavenly Phoenix Blood, Luca had been jealous. After the blood was taken, Luca had only kicked harder while Benson lay in the dirt. "I'm already like this," Benson snarled, clutching the bleeding wound in his chest. "He still won't leave me alone?" "Heh." The youth beside George, bow in hand, grinned strangely. "A stray dog. A low-class cripple. Honestly, you're not worth our attention. But three days from now, Senior Brother Luca Santee will officially enter the Tenji Sword Sect to cultivate. If we deal with you first, it'll be a nice little gift. Might even bring him closer to the young sect master…" Benson's blood boiled. The Tenji Sword Sect and the Santee family had already stolen his Heavenly Phoenix Blood. They still wanted his life? George chimed in, voice dripping with mockery. "These past few years, you've gone to the Tenji Sword Sect to make trouble every other day. The sect wouldn't even bother with an ant like you, not for someone's pride or reputation. But you never learned your place. To keep your stupidity from affecting the relationship between the family and the Tenji Sword Sect, you should really… disappear." The instant the last word fell, George lunged forward and struck with his palm. Benson raised his own hand to meet it. Boom! Palm force collided. The air burst with the impact. Already injured, Benson staggered back and spat blood into the air. George was Luca's lapdog. With the resources the Tenji Sword Sect had granted the Santee family, George had naturally benefited. His cultivation was a full level above Benson's: fifth level of the Body Refinement Realm. Benson's internal and external injuries flared together. The spray of blood splattered across the altar stones. Rage burned in his eyes. George laughed loudly. "Heh. A genius turned into a dog. Pathetic." The other two stepped onto the altar as well. "Stop wasting time. Kill him and go back to report." "Exactly." Benson trembled as he faced the three of them, vicious and merciless. Hatred and grief twisted together in his chest until it felt like his heart would tear. "Am I really going to die here? I hate this. I won't accept it. I haven't taken back what I lost. I haven't gotten justice. I won't accept it… I hate you…" His eyes reddened as he threw his head back and roared at the heavens. Sorrow swallowed him whole. Just as the three moved to finish him, the skies above Ninos erupted with wind and thunder. Clang! George and the others jolted in shock. Behind Benson, the ancient statue's eyes suddenly flared with light. The blood that had splashed onto the altar transformed into hundreds, then thousands, of eerie runes and talismans. They lit up like a massive activated formation, spiraling as they enclosed Benson within. Rumble! Space shuddered. The ground shook. In that instant, the ancient statue seemed to come alive. Two pillars of light shot from its eyes, overlapped, and engulfed Benson. In the next heartbeat, Benson vanished from the altar. Boom! Thunder roared without end as he plunged into boundless darkness. Then chaos unfolded before him, a world not yet divided, like a cosmic river stretching through the universe. At the center of countless swirling star-vortices, a colossal tower appeared in his sight, ancient and majestic, blazing with golden radiance. "A fated one," a voice said. "Welcome to… Apex Tower!"

Apex Technique

Chapter 1: A Drop of Heavenly Phoenix Blood for Three Hundred Years of Family Prosperity

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