ACCR Chapter 11 Crossroads


    The nascent soul, consciousness and divine sense were the trio body enigmas of the current age. All of them were made up of, or harnessed a type of energy that couldn''t be quantified by anything.


    All three energies could interact with matter and spiritual energy yet, no one had managed to find out how, so far.


    "Your theory... Have you managed to test it out?" asked Nikolai.


    "Not yet... Because only someone at the very peak of the Nascent Soul stage can test it out. I believe anyone short of that will be unsuccessful."


    "Why?“


    "Because the heavens, the omni-present will of the spiritual energy in the universe won''t allow it."


    That answer brought a lull to the conversation, with us continuing our walk, bringing us to the end of the corridor, where it fed into a large spacious room. A woman, with a mid-30s look, was waiting for us with a warm smile upon her face, which became even warmer upon falling on me.


    She was dressed in a black cardigan with a long brown skirt that reached her ankles. Her brown eyes lit up the moment I entered.


    Long strides were taken, crossing the distance near instantaneously, only to feel myself enveloped in warmth as she hugged me.


    "I had thought that it would be a long while before we saw each other again."


    "How could I have delayed a visit to you, Aunt Camy?"


    "I missed you, my dear. Are you okay? Are you mentally sound. I know seclusion can wear down even the most steadfast of minds."


    "Am okay. On the contrary, I love being alone." I pulled away from her.


    She chuckled. "I know."


    After that she pulled my hand, leading me to sit down beside her on the couch, while Nikolai plopped down on another seat, his expression conveying a lot of dissatisfaction.


    "How are Marlon and Jeanne?"


    "Those brats love traveling the world. They barely visit or even contact us! Your invention made it such that they can''t stick around here at home for even a single second!"


    "Sorry."


    "I am not blaming you for anything dear. It''s just that I miss them dearly."


    "I too, would love to catch up with them some day."


    "Come on, Camilla! Don''t lie to the poor boy! Last week, Jeanne stopped by, and the week before that, Marlon contacted us."


    "Nikolai! I want my kids here with me every single day! Five days have elapsed since Jeanne came!"


    "There is no need to argue, Aunt Camy. If I get a glimpse of them somewhere, I will tie them up and bring them to you."


    "Hey! Brat! I don''t want those troublemakers here! I have been enjoying a quiet few months with Camilla. I wouldn''t want them to ruin it!"


    "Aren''t you the one who makes me stay in the bed every morning, wanting to create another little one? Wouldn''t that be counter productive?"


    I considered cutting off every other sense to the outside world at those words.


    "Nah! At our cultivation stages, it won''t be so easy to get another. Oh! Are you blushing, brat?" smirked Nikolai.


    "Don''t tease the boy, old fellow. Sorry about that, Reed. Since you have come all the way here, make yourself comfortable. I am going to come back with your favourite after a few minutes. You boys can chat for as long as you like."If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    She stood up and walked away, leaving us in the room.


    "So, have you finally found a way to handle Zeus?"


    I shook my head.


    "I wish I could help you. But many eyes are resting upon me, and that bastard Taylor specifically warned me to not get involved without concrete justification"


    "Right now, there is a tenuous balance with the sects that needs to be maintained. A war with them wouldn''t be good for anyone. We have finally managed to leap out of the dark ages."


    My face darkened at his words. He was right, that I knew. Yet, I couldn''t let go of the grudge within my chest. I was actually in the same predicament as Nikolai, considering that I was one of the top three richest people in the world. It was the entire reason I couldn''t blatantly act.


    If I had been as powerful as the Golden Merchant, then I would have simply attacked without caring about the Federation as a whole.


    "I know how much you want this... Hell, even I want this as badly as you. But we have to be patient. I have been doing a little digging of my own and found out some stuff."


    "I also have some things to share."


    "Madam Livia has taken over as the new sect master of the Radiance sect, and for some reason, there has been a tussle with the other sects in the dark."


    "What do you mean?" I asked with a frown.


    Though, the memory of a well endowed curvaceous woman, with white pupils and white hair, akin to white light itself, appeared within my mind.


    She was an ambitious person. Though, it was still surprising that she had managed to take over such a sect, considering their patriarchical views.


    "Through my informants, I have found out that the sects, the great three, purchase a collection of rare materials at certain intervals. If it was just one sect, it wouldn''t matter. But the intervals are too close together to not be suspicious. There must be a connection between them."


    "That connection is also something I would love to speak with you about."


    The subsequent conversation took a few minutes before Aunt Camy came back with a variety of dishes, floating behind her, on clouds, a manifestation of her spiritual energy attribute.


    "Food is ready. Though I must say that I most definitely outdid myself. You might even find a few surprises within." She said, her face alight with the glow of happiness.


    Gently, the dishes were placed upon the table, with the aroma alone tickling my nostrils, birthing within me the desire to sample the taste.


    -----


    FAY 437,2nd Month, Day 11, 10:21 AM


    Most people see us, the clan leaders, Partriarchs, sect masters, and Presidents, as people to admire. That what we mostly do in our positions is delegation, thereby making ourselves, work free.


    That''s why kids have such delusional dreams of wanting to become leaders in society. I used to be like that when young. After all, my mother had always made time for us even though she had been the clan leader.


    But now that I had managed to climb to the same level of power, the delusion had wore off.


    ''Transportation costs have increased by 10%. Waste disposal has also become costlier. Someone is most definitely behind this. Someone with enough power to know of Zeus'' interest in me. Do they want to gain his favor? That''s a foolish endeavor. Unless they are geographically close to the state of Greece, that''s pointless. But if it''s a competitor...''


    Many faces and forces drifted into my mind at that particular trail of thought.


    A sigh escaped my lips while I dragged my attention away from the data within my retinas to the window, outside of which, were clear skies with little cloud cover.


    With a thought command, the chair dissolved and I stood up. The window was a door to the magnificent rice plants down below. It was a sea of green that always brought immense satisfaction to my mind, though, a particular thought ruined the view.


    A few days ago Mumaso Reed had made me an offer, one even now, I didn''t want to accept. But Zeus''s hands were covering everything, even when it was unintentional.


    The door silently slid to the side, though not before sending me an alert that made it to my brain. It''s amazing how we could create ways that could allow communication through divine sense without even truly knowing it''s composition.


    "Lily! How are you doing? How''s the office? Are you enjoying life?"


    "What''s up with the weird questions?" I turned towards my little sister, who had literally bounced into the room.


    "Nothing, nothing. How did it go with my idol?"


    "As expected... I told you that there was nothing much to speak of."


    "That''s a lie. I know you like the back of my hand, sister. There is something that you must be hiding."


    "Nothing exciting happened. I just had a chat with them. Then told them that I need a couple of days to get my things in order." I explained as calmly as I could.


    "The omnipresent aura around your body says otherwise. The fluctuations are minute, meaning you can fool everyone else. But not me!"


    "What happened? Can''t you trust even I, your sister!?"


    "The things I can''t tell you are company secrets. If I do, those people will bring up a lawsuit. You wouldn''t want the clan to be burdened with that, right?"


    "Sister! You shouldn''t lie to your cute little sister like this! What really happened? Tell me. Tell me. Tell me."


    "Can you just let it go! Please! Mawar!"


    "Okay. But not before you promise to tell me someday."


    "Okay, I promise!" ''Provided I am still alive.''


    "So, what really brought you to my office?"


    "That trashy guy, the one with the full-blown arrogance, Jidoshi. He blatantly told me that in the future, I am going to become his wife!"


    Disgust welled up within me at the mention of the man. He was one of the products caused by this Era of fast cultivation.


    "He''s just a Foundation Establishment brat. The only way he would utter that to your face with no fear is if his family divulged something to him." I analyzed.


    "It looks like every Tom, Dick and Harry is getting to know the predicament of our clan. How many days before my idol takes us in?" Mawar asked with those bright pink pupils of hers leaking anticipation in spades.


    An urge to sigh was stifled. Did I really want to go back to be used as a pawn? Absolutely not! But it seemed that my options hadn''t been diverse in the first place.


    -----


    Once again, I was alone in the office after chatting with Mawar for a few minutes, pondering on how to become the ultimate pawn that could overturn the board.


    Power.


    Since time immemorial, it has been a symbol of status, and also the only way to prevent someone from stepping upon you. Whether it be political or personal, power was something that was needed if you wanted to survive in this world.


    After becoming the matriarch of the clan, I had thought that maybe, even those Nascent Soul cultivators would have qualms about crossing me, thinking that since I was part of the larger Federation, I was somewhat safe, plus the people I was protecting.


    How naive I had been! Just a slight interest from Zeus, and the dogs were at the door, dripping with saliva, waiting to pick up the scraps left behind.


    I needed power! Now was not the time to have qualms about being used as a pawn! I needed to protect Mawar, the aunts and uncles that had raised me, and the family business, one which had taken several generations to reach where it was now.


    A pawn! I will be one! But I won''t let myself be insulted, or used only to be discarded. I needed to become valuable.


    What did it mean to become valuable? To hold critical information yearned for by the other party, or to make myself a valuable pawn in the grand game, one whose mere manipulation can cause a shift in the entire game itself!


    The question was how was I going to achieve that?


    I stood up, dissolving both the desk and chair back into the floor with a thought, giving myself space to pace around the room, with my brain working in overdrive to come up with multiple paths and ways.


    My choice had already been made for me the moment I had met with that emerald eyed man. Now, I just had to find a way to sweeten my end of the deal.