Titan King: Ascension of the Giant

Chapter 1603: Moonlit Genesis

Moments later, a figure scrambled onto The Bastion Wall and threw himself into a deep prostration, his forehead pressed flat against the stone in a display of absolute reverence.

"Dirtclaw pays his respects to the great Chieftain!"

"Dirtclaw greets My lord!"

"Dirtclaw honors the greatest Giant King of the Stoneheart Horde!"

"May the wise Chieftain live eternally and guide the Horde to unprecedented glory!"

"May My lord ascend to even higher realms! Wherever your blade points, Dirtclaw shall conquer!"

"May the greatest Giant King—"

Orion was slightly surprised to see his resident sycophant here. It wasn’t that he couldn’t sense Dirtclaw; he just hadn’t bothered to split his focus to check.

"Get up. What are you doing out here?" Orion asked. He was used to the gnoll’s groveling by now. When facing anyone in the Horde stronger than him, Dirtclaw was the picture of humility. But flip the script—put him in front of someone weaker, especially an outsider—and he turned into a rabid dog. He would butcher, slaughter, and commit any atrocity without a second thought. Dirtclaw was a ruthless, goal-oriented weapon that had finally matured. For the Stoneheart Horde, he was their sharpest, most convenient blade.

"Chieftain, upon awakening, I received orders from Lady Lorelia to lead a swarm of spiderlings and scout in this direction," Dirtclaw reported, dusting himself off. "We’ve been establishing relay nests at set intervals along the route. Every piece of intel we’ve gathered has already been transmitted back to Blackstone City."

Orion looked at him with mild approval. For an Arch Lord to personally lead a scouting run into unknown territory took guts. Checking Dirtclaw’s aura, Orion noticed his bloodline talent had leveled up again after waking from the Return to Ruin. He was now sitting comfortably at the mid-tier Arch Lord level. Coupled with the divine calling buff Orion had bestowed upon him, Dirtclaw was no pushover. In the coming war, he had more than enough power to survive clashes with other Arch Lords.

"Stay here and await further orders," Orion commanded. "Beyond The Bastion Wall lies The Lifeless Expanse. It’s crawling with malignant entities. Do not make a move unless absolutely necessary."

It was both a warning and a reminder. Compared to The Swarming Continent, the forces in The Lifeless Expanse utilized far more bizarre and treacherous methods. One wrong move, and you were dead. That was exactly why Orion had stationed Alexander here—Blade Hall’s assassins were uniquely equipped to adapt to the lethal environment and underhanded tactics of The Lifeless Expanse.

"Additionally," Orion continued, "you may select a territory within the Titan Continent as your own. You and your Gnoll Race have earned this glory."

It was a reward, but also a strategic investment. Orion needed the other races in the Stoneheart Horde to see Hope. Right now, the Gnoll Race was their benchmark for what loyalty could achieve. Granting Dirtclaw a fiefdom would accelerate his growth. If he could push into the High Arch Lord tier, or even hit the peak, he would become a major pillar for the Horde. It would serve as a shining example for his own people, and a stark deterrent to their enemies.

"Thank you, My lord!" Dirtclaw immediately dropped to his knees again. "Your glory illuminates Dirtclaw’s world and the very future of the Gnoll Race!"

"Enough." Orion waved him off before the gnoll could launch into another barrage of flattery.

Right now, Dirtclaw was the Stoneheart Horde’s most vicious poster boy, and Orion was pushing him to the front lines for a reason. How best to utilize that poster boy, however, would be up to Lilith.

The Titan Continent. Staghelm City.

The lands stretching beyond Staghelm City were vast and temperate, an idyllic expanse bordering tropical zones. Fields of golden rye swayed against the rich, dark red soil. Even the breeze blowing into the city carried the heavy, sweet scent of magical herbs.

"Mother, look at the lush forests, the herds of wild horses, the grain filling the valleys... The land is teeming with life. It’s as vibrant as the stars," Isilra, the Moon Elf, said, standing on the city walls and gazing out at the unfamiliar territory.

It was her territory now. A ten-thousand-mile radius had been gifted to her by Orion.

"This place... it’s truly different," The Demigod of the Moonwell murmured. But unlike her daughter, she wasn’t looking at the scenery. She was sensing the dense origin energy and the fundamental laws saturating the world. To a demigod, origin was the core of all existence.

"I can feel it... it’s inviting me," she whispered, staring into the sky. In her eyes, the stars shifted, revealing the intricate tapestry of the world’s laws. For a fleeting second, her vision blanked out. When it returned, she saw a colossal World Tree, its roots anchored in primordial chaos, its branches piercing through multiple dimensions.

An immense leaf detached from the void and drifted down until it hovered right before her eyes. Epiphany struck her like lightning. The Pocket Dimension housing Staghelm City descended, landing squarely on the leaf, fusing perfectly with the World Tree.

Instantly, countless starlight runes flared to life across the leaf’s surface, and veins of pure moonlight pulsed from its core.

"Isilra, do not resist," The Demigod of the Moonwell commanded softly.

Before the Moon Elf could even react, a blessing directly from the Titanion Realm’s World Tree enveloped her. Isilra drifted into the air as a massive, silver full moon materialized above Staghelm City.

Moonlight poured down like water, and the legendary Emperor’s Dew rained upon the land. But the true spectacle had just begun. As Isilra ascended higher, the silver moon she embodied blazed with the intensity of a sun, radiating its power across her newly acquired territory.

Where the silver light touched, the world reacted. In the forests, wolf packs howled, their alphas shedding their skin and sprouting moonlight-infused horns. In the lakes, schools of fish breached the surface, their spirits igniting with silver brilliance. On the plains, white deer raised their heads, their silver antlers resonating with the moonlight. With harmonious calls, massive herds began migrating toward Staghelm City.

Miles away, camped on the open savanna, the bard Cloudsong and the Grand Magus Rhazuun rushed out of their tent, staring at the sky in absolute shock.

"What is that?" Rhazuun rasped, sensing the suffocating density of the moonlight. "It feels like magic, but... different."

Cloudsong stared at the full moon, frantically muttering to himself. "Year 48 of the Stoneheart Calendar. A colossal city descends upon the Titan Continent. Shortly after, a silver moon rises within the city, bathing the land in its light. That night, magical beasts mutated, and vegetation grew wild..."

The Central Continent. Stoneheart City.

The world’s sudden expansion had brought an avalanche of administrative nightmares to the Stoneheart Horde. Lilith was only one woman; she was drowning in the paperwork. Desperate for help, she recalled the wise Onyx to the capital.

Inside a side hall of the Horde Hall, Lilith and Onyx sat behind a massive desk buried in documents, working furiously to clear the backlog.

"The Titan Continent has expanded exponentially," Onyx noted, reviewing a report. "Our established cities are now scattered. The wilderness has shifted, spawning new monsters and even new races, completely severing the trade routes between settlements. Lady Lilith, we need to re-establish the roads, and quickly."

He set down the leather scroll. It was a dispatch from Rockwell’s obsidian golem territory, detailing the bizarre geographic changes in his sector.

Lilith didn’t answer his suggestion immediately. Instead, she dropped a completely unrelated piece of information. "Elara, Caelus, and Pallas have all reestablished contact. They’re on their way back."

Onyx’s calm demeanor cracked, a flicker of genuine excitement crossing his face. "Are Their Highnesses unharmed?"

Lilith nodded, then shook her head, letting out a long, exhausted sigh. She had received a full intelligence report detailing exactly what Pallas had been up to in the Platinum Realm.

Forget Caelus, who had been carving a bloody path through the Platinum Realm, fighting Arch Lords like it was a casual stroll. Forget Elara, who had perfectly managed her territory and drilled a highly lethal combat legion. Even Kaelen, fighting desperately against the insectoid swarms on the Horde’s home turf, put Pallas to shame.

Lilith rubbed her temples, visions of Orion’s other children flashing through her mind.

"Caelus has peerless talent. He inherited Orion’s bearing," Lilith said, dropping her pen. She had nothing but the highest praise for him.

"Elara is frighteningly intelligent and ambitious. She’s destined to rule a world of her own," Lilith continued, deeply respecting the Horde’s eldest daughter.

"Kronos was exiled to foreign lands as a child, yet his willpower is unbreakable. Now, he’s conquering the Abyssal World alongside Rolan. He inherited Orion’s martial prowess." Kronos was the child Lilith envied the most. Born before Pallas, he was the spitting image of Orion in his early days.

"And Kaelen carved his way out of absolute despair. He carries the weight of his entire Race, and with the Horde backing him now, his potential is limitless." She didn’t even mention the innate advantages he possessed as an Insect King.

"And then there’s Pallas..." Lilith’s voice dripped with frustration. "Obsessed with women, slacking off, watching his brother fight for his life without lifting a finger... He lacks talent, he lacks drive, he lacks courage..."

Talking about her own son felt like a crushing defeat. The Succubus Race was one of the premier factions within the Stoneheart Horde, churning out prodigies left and right. How had she managed to produce a slacker like Pallas?

Onyx chuckled, completely unbothered by her venting. "My Lady, times have changed. The Stoneheart Horde is overflowing with combat prodigies. We aren’t hurting for one more."

"What the Horde actually lacks right now is a bridge—someone who can navigate the high command and still connect with the common folk. Prince Pallas’s natural charisma makes him the absolute perfect candidate to act as the Horde’s public face and our chief diplomat."

Onyx wasn’t just coddling the boy. He had watched Pallas grow up. He was the child the Horde’s old guard understood best and pampered the most. For a very long time, Pallas had represented the future of the Stoneheart Horde.

"My Lady, we have a massive influx of foreign races and factions requesting audiences," Onyx pointed out. "I believe Prince Pallas is the ideal candidate to handle the preliminary negotiations. The other Highnesses are far too steeped in killing intent to handle diplomacy."