All eyes focused on the frail cloaked figure, one they all instinctively knew all too well.
A figure from ancient times, who isolated himself within a very strange, mysterious temple in order to unravel its secrets.
They all knew this because of how powerful and influential he was back in the old days before he gave all of it up.
Garbo, a prominent Meremen race member, a man who once governed all rivers that ran across Pangea.
His raspy voice seeped into the air, darkening the atmosphere. "I have spent all my life studying the Seven Sins Temple..."
The moment he called that name, everyone’s heart seemed to skip a beat, their eyes flashing in realization.
So that’s what it was... ancient tales, stories that lived long before the ancient races themselves came to be, spoken of in the Seven Sins Temple.
A place where one could acquire boundless power and riches, if specific unknown requirements lost to time were met.
Subconsciously, figures sat up, eyes lit with greed, ears perked up as someone asked,
"Did you unlock its secrets?"
Eyes glowed rich with curiosity and greed, boring down on the frail frame of the former river deity Garbo.
But the hood of Garbo’s ragged cloak shook. "No... I spent all my life trying to unravel its secrets, but it remains elusive and inert... Until..."
Everyone seemed to hold their breaths, steep silence pervading the room, their eyes glowing as they stared down at him in suspense...
"Until the aura of a human caused it to react!"
The silence held long following Garbo’s shocking revelation.
A figure donned in majestic eastern imperial dragon robes rose to his feet. His skin glowed with soft lights of otherworldly transcendence, standing at a height of at least 8 feet, with all other features of his bearing starkly resembling an eastern human male.
A leader of the race the humans of the east once called Immortals.
The supreme Jade Emperor, some might know him as...
Eyes glowing with otherworldly lights, the figure glared down at Garbo, asking in a cold, commanding tone... "Are you sure it was a human... Are you sure it reacted?"
The head beneath the ragged cloak nodded. "I can’t be more certain..."
At his words, everyone visibly reacted, but the hall still remained starkly silent...
Neptune turned to the stunned Jade Emperor, whose eyes seemed to carry hints of fearful light...
"If I remember clearly, last time something like that happened, your dynasty was the one to bear the brunt of the Pride Incarnate..."
Recalling the event, the luminescent skin of the Jade Emperor seemed to turn cold, as traumatic images of a forbidden being laughing hysterically as they rampaged across the Jade Palace flashed in his mind in haunting frames.
The Emperor remained silent, teeth clenched, unwilling to relay anything about the shameful event. The Emperor’s fist tightened beneath his robes.
His cold voice echoed through the hall with a deadbeat, ice-cold seriousness. "If what the River King says is true and a human truly caused a reaction from that cursed temple, I say we have only very little time before they mature and claim an authority from one of the Seven Sins."
Pausing for a second, he added, "If that were to happen, this war would be over before it even begun."
No one knew why he was so apprehensive, but they were all well acquainted with the prowess of the Immortal race. Anything that could make the king of these beings so fearful was definitely worth their caution.
Neptune nodded, seeing the subtle change in demeanour. Even the prideful Ra seemed to now carry a hint of caution in his eyes.
Stomping his staff to gather everyone’s attention... "As long as we unite against the humans, our chances of victory would be irrefutably high...."
"But for that to happen you all have to abandon your differences, so we can all face the humans. Once we get rid of them, our alliance dies, and we can all duke it out for the hegemony title... What say you, old friends?"
Everyone remained silent. Honestly, even while getting more cautious about the humans, the deep-rooted superiority complex still persisted, and most still believed banding together against such an inferior species was overkill.
But... they weren’t stupid. Neptune wasn’t a fool, neither was the Jade Emperor, and these two were so frightened about the Authority of the Seven for a reason.
They might not know why... but surely, it wouldn’t hurt to cooperate for now...
Everyone nodded in silent agreement, eyes glowing. Neptune’s eyes shone with a mix of relief and delight.
"Good! Now here’s the plan...."
.....
Days passed...
Seth stretched as he rose from his bed, heading straight to the shower. He slid into the bathtub and let the water run, closing his eyes to enjoy the refreshing flow of chilled water.
It’s been five days since he helped Lara’s team and the ironbloods to ascend to the Origin Realm.
Since then, he had had to help three other batches ascend also.
During the process, he found out that each time he exercised his will to pull off the complex bind to the Origin Realm, he found it less and less taxing.
His will manipulation seemed to have also benefited a great deal. Right now, he even felt casting Chronostasis definitely wouldn’t be as taxing as before.
This new way of training his will opened his eyes, so every morning since his discovery, Seth enjoyed a soaking bath while also finely releasing his will into the atmosphere in fine strands.
Before, fifty hair-thin strands was the best his mind could manipulate at once, but now it had increased to a whopping 96!
A development that made Seth proud. This improvement was only possible due to the helpful regeneration factor of his World Saint title.
Allowing him to repeat the practice while escaping the backlash of exhaustion and pain to his skull that was meant to follow and persist for days.
A few minutes passed and he felt a stinging pang pulse in his head, his consciousness recoiled, almost flickering. He quickly took the cue and retracted his will.
If not for the bath, he’d be a soaking mess of sweat. Sinking deeper into the tub, Seth panted, exhausted, as a quick refreshing kick set in, alleviating the persistent migraine.
Opening his eyes, he swiped at the void, staring at the screen, a smile gracing his lips...
"Three flash sales in one day... now that’s rare."