Titan King: Ascension of the Giant

Chapter 1431: Stoneheart Baptism

To the North, within the walls of Blackstone City.

The Bonfire Festival had long since burned down to embers. By all logic, the throngs of travelers who had come for the spectacle should have dispersed. Yet, the bustle within Blackstone City did not wane. Instead, the crowds swelled as more clansmen poured in from the surrounding territories.

The shift was most visible in the Inner City. The high-ranking officers of the Horde, along with their scions, were making frequent appearances. The clever ones had already caught the scent of something shifting in the wind.

On the faces of many, expectation was hardening into a palpable hunger.

Moonshadow Valley, the Underground Plaza.

Orion stood before the gathering, his gaze sweeping over the thousand souls assembled before him.

Among them were Rolan, Rendall, Thundar, Dace, Ursa, Drakthul, Brom, James... and their descendants. This thousand-strong cohort was the first wave selected for the Inter-realm Teleportation Circle.

In a sense, they were the faction of the Giant race most loyal to Orion—the ones most worthy of his absolute trust. Every single one of them hailed from the Giant bloodlines. And soon, they would be the first to undergo the transformation into Stoneheart Titans.

"I have only one instruction," Orion’s voice rumbled, deep and resonant. "For the adult Giants: stay within the Stoneheart Temple for as long as you can endure. The longer you remain, the greater the power you will seize."

He paused, his eyes softening slightly as they fell upon the younger generation. "As for the whelps, they will undergo their conversion in a separate sector."

Facing his people, Orion did not speak with the distant authority of an Archlord or the King of Giants, but with the care of a patriarch looking after his kin.

"Your will be done, patriarch!"

"Patriarch, we follow your command!"

Orion could feel the distinct emotional currents in the air. From the adults, waves of fanaticism and reverence. From the children, pure worship and longing.

He said no more. Stepping forward, he personally activated the teleportation array. Energy surged, and in a flash of light, he sent his kinsmen directly into the Divine Kingdom, into the heart of the Stoneheart Temple.

"You are merely the beginning," Orion murmured, watching the void energy dissipate.

These were the first of his people to be strengthened before the coming convergence of worlds. He found himself looking forward to the result.

Outside, overlooking Blackstone City.

Night had fallen, but the city—both the Inner and Outer districts—was ablaze with light. Beyond the patrolling soldiers, the taverns and entertainment halls remained packed with citizens unwilling to return home. Since the Stoneheart Horde had unified the Black Forest, curfews had become a thing of the past.

Standing atop the mountain ridge to the east, the view was breathtaking—a vantage point that made the world below feel small.

"Prophet, Blackstone City is livelier than before. More prosperous, more beautiful."

Rockwell and Onyx stood shoulder to shoulder, gazing down at the sprawling lights. This view was the exclusive glory of the Obsidian Golems. Long ago, Orion had granted this ridge to their race. Even though they had conquered vast new territories in the South and the Abyssal World, the Golems still took pride in this mountain, treating it as their ancestral ground and sanctuary.

"Heh. It wasn’t always this loud," a voice rumbled from behind them. "Years ago, it was usually just Rockwell standing here, watching the raw recruits drilling in Moonshadow Valley."

Onyx hadn’t spoken, but one of the two figures standing behind him had cut in.

It was Magmus. He was the most brilliant Obsidian Golem of his generation—barely an adult, yet already an Alpha-rank combatant. Beside him stood Gort, who had succeeded Rockwell as Chieftain some years prior.

The four most critical pillars of the Obsidian Golem race were gathered here, and certainly not just to admire the scenery.

"I have confirmed it with My Lord," Onyx said, his eyes still fixed on the city lights, ignoring the banter behind him. He relayed the intelligence he had received from Orion with absolute precision. "If I enter the Stoneheart Temple to accept the baptism, the Obsidian Golem bloodline will not vanish. However, the probability is high that it will condense into a singular ability—a vassal trait to the Titan form."

Rockwell was the past. Gort was the present. Magmus was the future.

These four held the fate of their race in their hands. Onyx was laying out the path he was about to walk. It was a statement of intent, but also a test case. Onyx’s experience would be the primary evidence Rockwell and the others would use to decide the future of the entire Obsidian Golem race.

Onyx didn’t know what the others would choose, but his mind was made up. He would enter the Stoneheart Temple. He would complete the transformation into a Stoneheart Titan.

He didn’t care how much of the Golem bloodline remained. His will to ascend to the Legendary realm was unshakable. This was his stance, and a message to his kin.

Silence descended.

Rockwell, Gort, and Magmus looked down at the glittering city, saying nothing.

Time passed, marked only by the shifting moonlight that began to illuminate the crags of the ridge.

"If I speak for the past of the Obsidian Golems," Rockwell said, his stone-hewn features bathed in moonlight, "I vote for the entire race to undergo the blood conversion. We must elevate the tribe’s collective strength, talent, and potential. However... if there are those who are unwilling, we cannot force them."

He was the former chief—a symbol of history. No one would oppose him, for his time had passed.

"If I speak for the present," Gort said, following his predecessor, "my opinion aligns with Chief Rockwell. If a warrior is unwilling, I will not force him."

Now, only Magmus remained.

"Chiefs," the young warrior began, his voice hard. "In truth, there is no ’Obsidian Golem Race’ anymore. There is only the Stoneheart Horde. We are members of one great family."

"I don’t care about the title of Golem Patriarch. The other young ones don’t care either." Magmus stepped forward, his eyes burning. "What we care about is not falling behind the whelps of the other tribes."

"The heights that others can reach, we must reach as well."

Onyx, Rockwell, and Gort turned, surprised by the ferocity in the young Golem’s voice.

"The power of the Princess and the Prince is plain for all to see," Magmus continued. "The Prince is a Legendary-rank entity—that is an indisputable fact. And rumors say the Princess has inherited My Lord’s bloodline and is now a powerhouse at the Archlord level."

Though it was hearsay, given Elara’s terrifying capabilities, the rumors were likely true. In the eyes of the younger generation, the extent of Pallas’s fear of Elara was the only measuring stick they needed to know her true strength.

They viewed the world through a different lens than their elders.

"Prophet, Chiefs," Magmus looked at them. "Your generations were defined by how desperately you craved to advance to the next rank."

"My generation is defined by how desperately we crave not to be left in the dust."

"Let us convert," Magmus declared. "Let the Obsidian Golems integrate completely into the Stoneheart Horde. Let us share a blood connection with the Horde."

"Let us become a true family."