Three weeks passed in the blink of an eye, and every day in the Mansion was a day of training, learning, and practicing. Tulip only came back from her former magic school yesterday, and from what I managed to get out of her, she enjoyed her time fully with friends, just as my clone was enjoying his time with mine.
I was glad that she was back, mainly because now we could endure Pangu's consistent blabbering together, as giving him permission to talk proved to be a fatal mistake. Thankfully, he was considerate enough to let me sleep at night.
The result of that training got me to the peak of the Late-Third Divinity stage in all of my laws, and I could feel that I could enter the ranks of the Sovereign any day now. Furthermore, my fighting skills improved very well, as Farbauti saw it fit that the sparring sessions should be doubled, which left me almost no time to read in the library.
Alas, it was finally time for us to leave to continue on our quest to find the remaining pieces of Pangu's blade. I would have liked to rest for a few days and spend some time with Tulip before resuming, but Pangu seemed restless to be completed, even though he wouldn't admit it.
Richard teleported us to the front of the Immortal Sun Sect. We still need the map that Senior Brother Sun promised to prepare before moving on. Before entering the Sect area, I whispered to Tulip, "Remember, don't trust anyone, not even the Emperor. Let's just get this map without any problems."
She slightly nodded in response, and we entered through the gate. We met some familiar faces along the way to the Emperor's main hall, although we didn't stop to catch up and were simply satisfied with a passing greeting.
Finally, Senior Brother Sun's hall was in our sights. Once we entered, he stood up from his throne and approached to greet us. Involuntarily, I took a step back when he got near me. I don't think he noticed that, and if he did, he didn't show it.
"My dear Junior Brother and Sister, welcome back to the Immortal Sun Sect. I apologize for making you wait until the task was complete. However, your map is ready now," he said and handed me a scroll.
Tulip smiled and replied, "Thank you, Senior Brother. We won't forget this favor."
I tried not to wince and added, "Tulip speaks for both of us. Now, if you will excuse us, we have to be on our way."
"It pains me that I won't be able to host you for a few more days, but I understand the urgency of your quest. I hope the winds of luck will blow your way on your journey."
As we were about to finally exit the Sect, an elder approached with two horses and offered them to us on behalf of the Emperor. We thanked him and left the Immortal Sun Sect on our mounts. Once we were far enough, Tulip asked me, "Why does Richard not trust Senior Brother Sun?"
I looked at her and answered calmly, "Richard has reasons to believe that the Emperor is part of the Grey Lotus. As for those reasons, he refused to tell me. But Richard is also not completely sure about his suspicions, so it's best that we distance ourselves until we are certain."
"But what would raise those suspicions in the first place?"
"Well... We were all under suspicion in the first place. I don't know how, but Richard seemed to confirm that we are not part of the cult."
"And I suppose we cannot help?"
"No, he was clear that we couldn't do anything right now. Don't you hate that feeling?"
"The feeling of being useless? I do. I hate that we can't even help."
"Then let's focus on getting stronger and getting the remaining seven pieces of the blade. Who knows what we might have to endure, other than the blabbering of course, after Pangu is whole once again?"
"Hey!" Pangu protested, "If you haven't noticed, I haven't opened my mouth ever since we left Richy's Mansion."
"Do you even have a mouth?"
"Have you heard of metaphors?"
I rolled my eyes and asked him, "How much distance do we need to cover to reach our destination?"
"Not a lot. Some miles at most." As if to prove what he said, a high mountain covered with a dense forest appeared before us.
Tulip looked at the map and said, "Here we are, Mount Evergreen."
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Updated on 24/4/2025
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