Contorted

[The Legacy of a Sky God is not so easily attained. The next few chapters will be just as difficult to read. Whether or not you have the fortitude to make it through and watch Ryu rise... well maybe only you have the answer to that]

The matters of the Shrine Plane became a blip in history. However, this wasn't because Ryu was too insignificant, but was simply due to the fact that the occurrences after his death were simply far too tragic. An event the likes of which hadn't been seen since the Great Ancient Beast War ravaged the Shrine Plane...

In the face of such a reality, the death of a mortal man who had only lived to his thousandth birthday was inconsequential. While his death was absolutely devastating to a minority, in the grand scheme, he became yet another forgotten hero.

These matters would remain unchanged for nine cycles of one hundred million years.

**

The wail of a woman shook a grandly decorated Imperial Harem. One couldn't help but be shocked at the power hidden in her lungs. Who would have thought that a woman without much cultivation to speak of could make such a sound?

Three middle-aged doulas sprinted as fast as their chubby and short legs could carry them, rushing to and from the woman's bed side. One carried buckets of water, another brought fresh and replaced worn towels, while the last massaged the protruding belly of the wailing woman, her palms glowing as she muttered under her breath.

It was clear by the expressions of the three doulas that they had never dealt with such a severe labor period. It had already been three days since First Concubine Leilani had been appropriately dilated to begin actively pushing. Yet, in all this time, there had been no real progress.

This was supposed to be a happy occasion. The King's favorite concubine was finally giving birth after more than a decade of failure. If they were on duty and became responsible for the King's loss of a son, execution would be the least of their worries.

Who didn't know how much the King treasured his heirs? There was a long stretch of time, decades, in fact, where the King only had two daughters to speak of. Although this had changed in just the last four or so years, the King still retained some of that latent anxiety.

They couldn't afford to fail!

**

In the largest courtyard of the Imperial Harem grounds, a beautiful young woman leisurely reclined as though the wails of First Concubine Leilani were nothing but music to her ears. It was at that moment that a shadow flashed into the room, appearing behind the woman silently.

"Why have you come?" The young woman's eyes flashed coldly.

"There's been a problem."

"A problem?" Her eyes narrowed, clearly unhappy with these words.

"Although Imperial Doula Miriam is an insignificant creature, her skill in childbirth and rearing is unmatched in our Tor Kingdom. With her pride, if the child had died, even if it meant her death, she would have announced as much."

"Are you trying to tell me that a mere unborn child could survive such a poison?" The young woman sneered. It was obvious what she was implying. There was not a chance in hell such a thing was possible. If there was a failure, it was human. Meaning whoever administered the poison was the one responsible. And the one who was tasked with this was none other than the shadow that stood to her back.

The shadow didn't know how to respond. His life and death rested on a mere word from this Queen. If she truly decided to blame him, there wasn't a place in the entire Plane he could hide.

Wiping away his cold sweat, the shadow immediately explained himself. "Queen Tor, please understand. I am certain that I've done my job appropriately. If the child has survived the Meridian Severing Poison as an unborn, this simply means that he is, or rather, was, an astounding talent. Whether he is born or not, he will no longer be a threat."

The young woman remained quiet for a long time. To the shadow, it felt like an eternity, but in truth, it was no more than a handful of minutes.

"Return to the Clan and give yourself ten lashes of the punishment rod. I'll forgive this matter for now… Indeed, watching her crumble due to having birthed a useless son will be far more gratifying…" The young woman laughed to herself as the shadow bowed and disappeared. No one noticed that fact a man who wasn't a eunuch had entered where he shouldn't have.

**

First Concubine Leilani pushed with what remaining strength she had. In all honesty, she had long since wanted to give up. Why was she of all people given the trial of such a difficult labor? She had been pampered her whole life, nothing had ever been difficult, but suddenly an impossible to scale mountain had landed directly before her.

She wanted to sleep and rest. She wanted to take a bath and wipe this crusted sweat from her body. But, this old hag kept applying pressure on her womb. Why wouldn't she just stop? Let me just lie here! She screamed in her mind.

It was then that the cry of a child sounded throughout the Imperial Harem. It seemed that this child inherited his vocal cords from his mother.

His loud bellowing was followed by the abrupt opening of the courtyard's doors. A man of imposing aura and will rushed into the room, ignoring all ceremony to reach the bedside of the now collapsed First Concubine Leilani.

"Your Majesty, it isn't the right time for you to enter. The poor boy still needs to be cleaned and prepped." Imperial Doula Miriam tried to explain. This wasn't the first time the King had had a child. He should know these things by now!

Usually, King Tor would have awkwardly scratched his head at the berating of this older, middle-aged woman. Yet, at the moment, his face had contorted at the sight of his son.

Imperial Doula Miriam panicked, looking at the baby in her harms to see if he had any obvious defects, but her only conclusion was confusion. Why did such a healthy baby evoke such a reaction?