Daoist Competition - Chapter 3 - 1: Reincarnated as a Human, Cultivating Truth at Xuanmen_

In a world where Lycans and werewolves are sworn enemies, Eve Valmont is a werewolf cursed by a prophecy and framed. Betrayed by her own pack and imprisoned for years, her fate takes a darker twist when she is offered to the Lycan King, Hades Stavros—a ruler feared for his ruthless conquests and deadly prowess. Bound by an ancient prophecy and haunted by the ghosts of her past, Eve is now at the mercy of the one being she should hate and fear the most—The Hand of Death himself.Hades, a king carved from blood and his own soul's decay, determined to avenge his family's slaughter and rid his people of the werewolves. He believes Eve is the key to his victory. To him, she is nothing but weapon foretold by prophecy, a tool he will wield to destroy the opposing forces threatening his pack. Yet, he finds himself craving this powerful yet broken woman. Leaving him questioning if she is truly his weapon or the one destined to unravel his carefully laid plans.***He stalked toward me, a predator closing in on its prey, his eyes dark and unreadable. “So, you laugh?” His voice was low, dangerously soft, making the hairs on the back of my neck stand up.I swallowed hard, suddenly aware of how difficult it had become to breathe. “Hades, I—”“But you only laugh at other men's jokes,” he interrupted, his gaze piercing, devoid of any humor. “Not your husband's.” The accusation in his tone was sharp, slicing through the air between us.A nervous chuckle escaped me. “You can't be serious... He’s your beta, for Goddess’ sake.”In an instant, he closed the distance between us, so fast it left me breathless. His hands gripped my waist, pulling me flush against his body, the heat of him making my skin tingle. I gasped, but before I could say a word, his lips crashed onto mine, claiming my mouth with a force that sent shockwaves through me. The kiss was punishing, hungry—I couldn't breathe, couldn't think.When he finally pulled back, I was trembling, my chest heaving as I struggled to regain my breath. His eyes, dark and stormy, searched mine with a possessive intensity. “You can’t laugh at my jokes...” he whispered, his voice a dangerous rasp as his fingers trailed lower, sending a shiver down my spine, “but you’ll come with my fingers.”I shivered, heat pooling low in my belly at his words, his touch. The world around us blurred, fading into nothing as his hand slipped lower, drawing a ragged gasp from my lips. The look in his eyes told me he knew exactly what he was doing to me, and there was no denying the primal connection between us in that moment.“I don’t need your laughter,” he murmured against my skin, his breath hot on my neck. “I’ll have every other part of you instead.”

Damien reveals an ugly truth.His sister and only family, Ahara, leaves the house every midnight whilst he's asleep—a time that he soon discovers is when man-eating beasts named Rouges start hunting for prey.Unable to question her directly, he decides to investigate her and quickly figures that Ahara isn't human but rather, a vampire hero who saves them from beings like herself coming from a world she calls Gibbous—a place where entities like vampires, wizards, and beast shifters alike reside. What’s more, he also learns that the real reason behind his parents' death was the leader of the Rogues, who's rumored to have escaped after Damien’s father almost killed him.A series of fateful events lead to Damien’s long-lost power reawakening in him, and he finds himself with no choice but to return to Gibbous, a strange world where power means survival, and weakness leads to death. As such, Damien enrolls in an academy to train his newfound abilities with one thing in mind...Becoming more powerful.However, he soon discovers that the path to power is one filled with troubles and pain, and he isn’t alone in this lust for more at the academy. It’s a bloody competition against time and formidable opponents, and only those willing to sacrifice their comfort are the ones who can attain it.With a deadly foe lurking in the shadows somewhere and a strong desire to protect his sister, Damein has no choice but to fight.The only way is up, and he is going to be standing at the top of them all, ready to counter any enemy.

This is a time of great powers: The vast Persia, Sparta that is founded by force, Athens with its trade and business, Thebes the rising star, The ambitious Macedonia, The twin heroes of the Western Mediterranean, The rising Rome and so on.

This is an era of brilliant stars: Agesilaus II – the last king of Sparta, Epaminondas – the Rising General of Thebes, Philip II – the founder of Macedonian hegemon, Dionysius – the tyrant of Syracuse, Camillus – the Roman dictator and savior…

This is an era of contention among a hundred schools of thought: Plato – the great philosopher, Antisthenes – founder of cynicism, Pythagoras – school of number, Democritus – the encyclopedia scholar, Hippocrates – the father of western medicine, Aristophanes – the great dramatist…

What will the hero bring to the world when he comes to this age as a humble mercenary through rebirth?

- Description from Novelupdates