That voice, like a demon's whisper, along with that trace of warm breath, slowly faded from Hinata's ear.
Hyuga Xiao's figure, like ink dissolving into water, silently retreated into the deepest shadows, as though he had never appeared.
He took away that suffocating sense of control, but left behind a mad, scorching command, branded into the deepest part of Hinata's soul.
The next instant!
Buzz—!
The pause button pressed down by an invisible hand was forcefully released!
The entire world broke free from absolute stagnation!
The crackling candle flames resumed flickering, and dim yellow shadows swayed wildly across the walls. Hyuga Hiashi's hand, frozen in midair, carried the wind force suppressed to its limit and the cold will of the Main House's head as it slammed heavily onto the stone platform at the formation's core!
The sound of wind, bursting candle flames, and humming chakra flooded back into Hinata's ears at that moment.
Everything had returned.
Hell had returned too.
But this time, Hinata did not let out another wail.
She obediently closed her eyes. Her long lashes trembled slightly, glittering tears clinging to them. Her pale little face perfectly portrayed all the despair and tragic beauty a sacrifice about to have all hope devoured should possess.
She could even feel how the icy chakra flowing from her father's palm brutally pried open the ancient formation beneath the Ancestral Shrine!
"In my name, as head of the Hyuga Clan, I command!"
Hyuga Hiashi's voice echoed through the empty Ancestral Shrine, carrying unquestionable authority and fervor.
"Sacrifice the purest Byakugan and awaken the slumbering ancestors!"
"Open!"
With his furious shout, the intricate formation patterns beneath their feet suddenly lit up!
Strands of ghostly blue light, like awakened venomous snakes, spread wildly along the grooves carved into the ground, instantly illuminating the