Titan King: Ascension of the Giant Chapter 1317 Echoes of the Titan

The initial wave of alarm among the guards within the barrier faded away quickly. As they identified the intruder, the wailing sirens were abruptly silenced.

"It is the Young Master! He has returned!"

Kaelen moved along the familiar path, nodding to the people he passed. His destination was the Butterfly Mother’s palace, situated at the very peak of Phoenix Butterfly Ridge.

He discovered his mother, Sophia, resting in a spacious, open-air pavilion. The air was filled with dancing butterflies, and the tables were piled high with platters of roasted meat.

"Mom."

During his childhood, he had followed the clan’s custom by calling her "Butterfly Mother." However, as his strength and age increased, he abandoned the formal title. To Kaelen, she was neither a queen nor a matriarch; she was simply Mom.

"My child, you have finally come home!"

Sophia stood on her tiptoes, reaching up to rest her hand on Kaelen’s massive shoulder.

Kaelen had developed into a true powerhouse, bolstered by the entire resource pool of the Dark Butterfly Race. Standing nearly fifteen feet tall with a frame of rippling muscle, he had at last achieved a breakthrough to the Legendary Tier.

Observing him, Sophia was reminded of Orion.

"If only I hadn't resorted to such... deceptive tactics to obtain his seed," Sophia murmured, her eyes clouded with a hint of remorse. "Perhaps then..."

Orion had not appeared for over a decade. Sophia had convinced herself that his absence was due to hatred. She believed an Over-tier powerhouse like him could easily navigate to the Chaos Continent, and thus, his silence was a clear rejection.

She was unaware of the reality: a demigod-level barrier sealed the Chaos Continent. Even an Arch-Lord could not simply walk through it.

Sophia was plagued by constant guilt. She felt her own selfishness was sabotaging Kaelen’s potential by depriving him of his father’s status and the backing of a powerful faction. Looking at her son—a genius whose talent far surpassed the Arch-Lord level she once envisioned—she felt like a weight holding him back.

"Mother, the situation beyond our borders has changed," Kaelen stated, his deep voice filled with urgency.

He had utilized his hybrid bloodline and upper-Legendary strength to scout and collect intelligence.

"The Arch-Lord who has been tormenting you is currently at war with the Silver-Eyed Tribe. His lands are being seized."

Existence within Phoenix Butterfly Ridge had become grueling. They were trapped behind their defenses while their supplies dwindled to dangerous levels. Kaelen had risked everything to find an escape.

"This is our opportunity, Mother. We must form an alliance with the Silver-Eyed Tribe," Kaelen urged. "The enemy of my enemy is my friend. They won't turn us away."

Sophia had raised him well, imparting thousands of years of Phoenix Butterfly Race wisdom. Yet, that very intelligence now caused her to hesitate.

"It is too risky." Sophia shook her head in disagreement. "The Silver-Eyed people are foreigners fighting for territory. If we step in, we are just another mouth trying to take their spoils. Furthermore, if Arch-Lord Emeric falls, the Silver-Eyed Tribe will likely target us next."

Her anxiety was obvious. "Both factions possess Arch-Lord combat power. We have none."

She preferred to hide in the Ridge and face slow starvation rather than gamble Kaelen’s life on an unwinnable war. She had no clue that the "Silver-Eyed Tribe" she dreaded were actually exiles—people cast out by Kaelen’s own father.

"Mother, we must take this chance," Kaelen insisted, dropping to one knee so she could reach his face. "If we stay in the Ridge, our kin will starve. More will succumb to the Deep Sleep. Our military strength fades with every passing day. Staying hidden is merely a slow death."

He met her gaze directly. "Do not be afraid. My strength exceeds your expectations."

WAAAGH!

Kaelen let out a roar as his body began to shift. His muscles expanded, his skin grew dense, and glowing mystical runes ignited across his body.

"Mother, even if I cannot slay an Arch-Lord, I can certainly make them bleed."

His aura surged violently, soaring past the upper-Legendary stage and touching the very limit of the Arch-Lord realm.

This was the Titan Form—the legacy of his father’s bloodline.

The change was momentary; he reverted quickly to save his energy, but the point was made.

"This..." Sophia gasped, her hand shaking. "An Over-tier powerhouse... just like his father?"

A thin, desperate thread of hope began to grow in her heart.

"Mother, we must depart from Phoenix Butterfly Ridge..."

Kaelen began to speak, but he was silenced by a sound that vibrated through his very soul.

WAAAGH!

It was a Titan’s Roar, vastly more potent than his own.

The sound did not come from the outside; it resonated from within. A wave of invisible energy surged through his Meridians, making his link to the Titan Form feel suddenly... effortless.

"Mother! Did you hear that?" Kaelen seized her shoulders, his eyes wide with shock. "That roar!"

"What roar?" Sophia asked, looking at him with confusion.

Kaelen hesitated. Was it a delusion? A consequence of the transformation?

"My child, how long are you able to sustain that form?" Sophia asked, regaining her composure.

"In a full-scale battle? Fifteen minutes at most."

Sophia went silent as she calculated. Fifteen minutes of Arch-Lord level power.

Kaelen was correct. Their food and crystals were gone. To stay was to die. But to leave was to wager Kaelen's life.

"Mother, have faith in me," Kaelen pleaded. "We can win a place for ourselves. And even if I cannot defeat an Arch-Lord... I possess a secret technique. I can draw power from Father."

He continued to press her, desperate to change her mind. "He is incredibly powerful, Mother. You know this. You must believe in him."

Kaelen was lying completely.

He possessed no such secret technique. His only interaction with Orion had been a brief spiritual message years ago when his father found the Spring of Life. Orion had merely provided a quick lesson on bloodline activation. Every achievement Kaelen had made since then was the result of his own Cultivation and grit.

However, he needed his mother to take action. He had to provide her with hope.

"You can truly... borrow power from him?" Sophia’s eyes shimmered. She looked up at her son, searching for any sign of a lie.

Kaelen didn't flinch. He gave a solemn nod.

"Yes."