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Chapter 17: The Rise of the Harem
—Temples, Blood, and Power—
Tian Mo stood at the center of his newly expanded domain, the House of Night Serpents. The once hidden, underground empire had now taken a more formalized structure, branching into several high-profile sectors, including spiritual cultivation, elite entertainment, and even political influence. All of this was orchestrated through the efforts of his devoted women—his harem, his instruments of control.
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Women of Power: The Pillars of His Empire
Each woman, carefully chosen for her beauty, intellect, and most importantly, her latent potential in cultivation, had now risen to her appointed position within Tian Mo's empire. They weren't mere slaves to his whims—they were his agents, his generals, his archangels of chaos.
Anna, with her unmatched beauty and charisma, became the public face of the House of Night Serpents. Her influence was felt at the highest levels of society, where she navigated the elite circles and played political games with the most powerful men and women in Earth's world of cultivation.
Yin Hua, once just a spy, was now a strategist, the mastermind behind Tian Mo's network of loyalists, spies, and assassins. She had nurtured a growing secret army, training them in the arts of infiltration, manipulation, and dual cultivation. Every recruit was bound by a soul-mark, a permanent connection to Tian Mo's will.
Then there was Luo Yanyue, his devoted temple mistress. Her powers were growing at an alarming rate, now in the Nascent Soul Realm (Early Stage). She had a reputation as the cruel mistress of the Sanguine Blossom Temple, a place where Tian Mo's followers came to worship and transcend their limits through dual cultivation, indulging in both pleasure and power.
But it was Seraphina who still held the most complicated role. Once a celestial being with pure intentions, her fall was slow and painful, yet inevitable. Tian Mo had cultivated her not only through the physical act of dual cultivation but through the destruction of her soul's purity, turning her into a vessel of his desires. She was still struggling, caught between her heavenly roots and the darkness Tian Mo had planted within her, but she was now a crucial pillar in his scheme to conquer Earth.
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The Cultivation Harem and Its Rituals
Under the guidance of the House of Night Serpents, the women underwent grueling cultivation rituals. But these weren't ordinary methods—they were designed to increase their power through the art of dual cultivation with Tian Mo. Each woman had a role to play, a place in his growing empire. Some served as his generals, others as agents of manipulation, while a select few became his personal consorts.
The rituals themselves were devious, blending pleasure with cultivation to accelerate the process of reaching new cultivation realms. In each of these rituals, Tian Mo's energy was intertwined with theirs, feeding off their desires, their souls, and their pain, strengthening his own power.
The Harem became an incubator, a breeding ground for power and influence. He carefully cultivated his women's strengths, shaping them into perfect weapons. Through these rituals, not only were they strengthened but their loyalty to him deepened.
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Public Expansion: The Temples of Temptation
The first step in Tian Mo's grand plan was to solidify his empire by creating public temples—places of both worship and pleasure. These temples were designed to attract powerful cultivators who could not resist the lure of dual cultivation and the promise of elevating their Qi through intimacy with the women of the House of Night Serpents.
Each temple was a hidden haven of power, where cultivators who entered would be forever changed, their minds and souls corrupted by the chaos Qi that Tian Mo had embedded in the walls and the women who resided there. Temples sprang up in several key cities across the world, each one designed to attract the powerful and the weak alike.
As Tian Mo's empire grew, so did the worshipers—and with them, the tribute. It wasn't just gold or resources that flowed into his coffers; it was the bloodlines, the Qi, the souls of his followers. Their devotion was both worship and sacrifice.
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The First Conquest: A Cultivator's Defeat
But as the temples flourished, Tian Mo's enemies began to take notice. A local sect leader, once an arrogant early-stage Nascent Soul cultivator, felt the sting of Tian Mo's expanding influence.
Wu Wei, the sect leader, was notorious for his rigid doctrines of purity. He viewed Tian Mo's harem-based empire as an abomination, a mockery of the spiritual path. Seeing Tian Mo's rise as a direct threat to his own influence, he planned to strike first.
But his arrogance was his downfall.
Tian Mo had anticipated this. His spies had already infiltrated the sect, feeding him information about their inner workings. Wu Wei's pride blinded him, and he underestimated Tian Mo's growing strength.
In the dead of night, Tian Mo's women infiltrated his compound, using their seduction and infiltration skills to dismantle his sect from within. In a swift, calculated attack, Wu Wei was defeated, his Nascent Soul Realm shattered by Tian Mo's chaos-infused Qi.
The man who had once preached purity now lay broken—his bloodline stolen, his Qi corrupted, and his mind twisted by Tian Mo's influence. His fall became a lesson to others: resistance was futile.
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Tian Mo's New Power
With the sect leader's fall came an influx of new cultivators, many of whom had once admired Wu Wei's teachings. They were now desperate for a new direction, and Tian Mo offered them a path.
His women, now leaders of their respective temples, became political figures, swaying powerful families, influential sects, and independent cultivators to join him. They used charms, manipulation, and cultivation techniques that made Tian Mo's influence irresistible. Those who once rejected his rule now sought his protection, his power, and his gifts.
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Status Update:
Tian Mo: Nascent Soul (Late Stage) | Chaos-Yin Hybrid Qi | Full Control of House of Night Serpents
Anna: Core Formation (Peak) | Cultivator Enchantress | Head of Public Expansion
Yin Hua: Core Formation (Peak) | Assassin Commander | Director of Internal Operations
Luo Yanyue: Nascent Soul (Early) | Temple Mistress | Advanced Dual Cultivator
Seraphina: Celestial Constitution | Slowly Giving In | Internal Struggle
Wu Wei: Defeated | Bloodline Taken | Cultivation Crushed
Empire Influence: Temples in Key Cities | Several Cultivators Converted
New Recruits: Numerous Disciples from Wu Wei's Sect Now Under Tian Mo's Control
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