Zane nodded and multiple screens began opening and closing in front of him before a singular one opened.
[You've earned 10,000 species for your contributions!]
[You've earned a core vestige of ?? tale!]
[You've….]
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'Why was she thanking him?'
[
Zane bit down on his lip. What… What did she mean by that? He knew the watchers who belonged to the Bureau were responsible for most of the overseeing and management. For example, The Contract Administrator was one of the watchers of her position in the bureau who dealt with contracts... ah, it could be her side gig in that case. With her constant messages, she should be someone mid-ranked.
Zane exhaled quietly.
[Personal stigma, ␣␣ is triggered!]
[Memory recollection: 3.9%]
[Remaining memories are waiting to be reminisced]
Foremost, he had to somehow get himself to figure out what terms he'd signed with the arbiter. Or what his original contract even entailed, because he wasn't sure a memory wipe was a part of it.
Yet, the only thing he knew he had to do was reach the 'end' with no casualties. But he couldn't help but feel something was 'missing'. Like an integral part of his brain was somehow ceasing to remember.
"Zane?" Asha asked.
Zane glanced at her and she pointed towards the screen she was seeing.
[Main Trial 13: Broken Faith
* You can see the trial description after a cooldown period of '15 hrs.']
* You cannot participate in the current trial if your level within the system has not already crossed
Seriously? Zane checked his stats. Most of them were still censored, but he caught sight of what he wanted to see.
Thus, to partake in this trial, he had to bump himself up to at least
"What level are you?"
"Eight," Zane replied. "What about you?"
"… seven."
Zane sat upright and stretched his hands over his head. "Well, that sums it up. You have to complete more veiled or auxiliary trials to push yourself up to ten."
Asha grumbled. "I really wanted to attend the Astral Concord."
"See what the trial entails once the fifteen-hour period is over."
"What are you going to do now?"
"I have to talk to someone once, I think he's been bitten enough by Li Feng."
When Zane stepped back into the room where Rhian had been a while back, he was surprised to see a couple of servants cleaning it. When they noticed Zane, they just stared.
'Nevermind,' Zane thought as he turned on his heel and began heading towards the other room.
"Zane," a woman's voice called out. Zane turned around to see Hua Anhe walking towards him.
"Good afternoon," Zane replied. "Do you know where Rhian is?"
"Probably being yelled at by all the leaders," Hua Anhe muttered.
"Was what he did such a grave mistake?"
She shrugged. "No, but Sect Leader Hua is furious that he interfered with natural order."
"I don't reckon the girl being imprisoned there, most likely due to some sacrificial ritual, was a natural order." Zane followed her as she began walking.
"If I could say something, I would," Hua Anhe replied. "Yet, I would rather not be stuck in between them. Those people are terrifying."
"Sect Leader Lu mentioned he had a proposition."
"We'll find out how accurate that is only after the imperial palace passes it."
Zane tilted his head. "What's the purpose of the imperial palace? I heard there's an emperor, but it's acting more like a court that seems to govern the Sects."
"That's undoubtedly what it is," Hua Anhe said solemnly. "But as expected, they have very little power. The Emperor isn't all that powerful, you see. At least, in comparison to the Clan Heads."
"Yet…"
"It was placed there because Xiaoluo's Autonomy was a threat to the neighboring nations, where there almost always was a secondary party that judged any Leader's choices."
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"So you put a weak guy on the throne to shut them up?"
"It was Shu Meiying's idea, believe it or not." Hua Anhe stopped walking. "Listen to them."
Zane needed a moment of silence before he could hear the yelling again. "Shouldn't you take him out of there? He technically did save the child's life."
"If you want to argue with them for his sake, be my guest. But I'm going to stand right here. Hua Huiliang might protect his image for you, but he won't hesitate to chew through my head."
Zane hesitated.
[
'Of course you do,' Zane thought inwardly. He glanced at Hua Anhe who gave him an awkward salute. He turned back towards the sliding door and knocked on it. Likewise, he opened it and immediately bristled under the attention.
The inclination to slam the door back closed was very, very tempting. But when he looked in the room, he noticed Hua Huilliang was sitting up on a bed, covered in an obnoxious number of bandages. Li Feng seemed to be healing him with mana while Lu Huan was checking something rather invisible.
Sect Leader Xue, who was yelling at Rhian, stopped the moment she noticed Zane. 'Great, they're all staring at me.'
"I, uh," Zane began.
[
[1000 species have been sponsored for entertainment!]
"I need Rhian for a moment," Zane said.
He noticed Esmeray giving him a look, so Zane just grabbed Rhian by the back of the collar and began dragging him out. "I'll return him in a while, I promise!" Zane said, then dragged Rhian out and slammed the door shut. They moved away until they were in the courtyard.
Rhian stared at him before sighing heavily and flopping to sit on the ground. "Thank you, they've been at it for the past four hours!"
"You kind of deserved it."
"Shut up," Rhian huffed and ran a hand through his hair, "You would have done the same."
Zane chose not to answer for now. Instead, he shook his head and looked back to check if anyone had come after them. When there was no one there, Zane sat down next to Rhian.
"What happened to your father?"
"Don't call him my father," Rhian grumbled. "It makes it weird."
Zane raised his brows.
"He broke most of his bones trying to get the half back. If it wasn't for Sect Leader Xue, that old bastard would've died a nice painful death."
"Right…"
"Sect Leader Lu Huan was speaking quite highly of you, he said that some foreign child saved his life."
"… Does he call everyone 'child'?"
Rhian snorted. "That's how he speaks. How old are you, anyway?"
"Twenty-two."
Rhian blinked at him and then turned to face him. "Are you sure?"
"What? How old did you take me?" Zane asked, folding his hands. He didn't look that old, did he? He was technically thirty-two, but his body had to be twenty-two.
"I don't know," Rhian said defensively. "I thought you were older…"
"Do I look old?"
"You act old."
"Oh."
Rhian laughed lightly. "I didn't think I was older than you."
"Does it matter? I'm not a minor."
[
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"Do you have to phrase it like that?" Rhian grumbled. "I'm twenty-seven, I can't believe I made you carry me… twice."
"I wouldn't if I didn't want to."
"You wanted to carry me?"
Zane forced a laugh and looked away. "The first time you fainted was because of septic wounds. Second time… because of mana loss."
Rhian didn't say anything else. Instead he nudged Zane's shoulder. "Thank you."
"For what?"
"Everything," Rhian said sincerely. "From getting me out of the Celestium to helping me get the sword."
Zane couldn't help but smile in embarrassment. "It's fine. I would have ditched you had you not gotten out of the prison cell."
"Hey!" Rhian shoved at him lightly.
Zane caught him back. "I did save you, have some respect for your savior!"
They bickered for a while before someone clearing their throat made them turn around. Hua Yi stood there looking as though she'd interrupted something. "Sorry to bother you two," she began, then cleared her throat again. "The kid, she woke up."
"Right," Rhian said, moving to stand. When he began walking towards the medical ward, he paused and turned around to see Zane was still sitting. "You aren't coming?"
"Am I supposed to?" Zane asked.
Rhian sighed, walked back, grabbed Zane by his nape and hauled him up before dragging him towards the ward.
As they walked, Zane couldn't help but ask. "Did you know her?"
"Kind of," Rhian replied. "I bought hair swords from her."
"Hair swords?"
Rhian pointed at Hua Yi's hair. "That thing. I don't even know how it exactly works, but it's used like that. That child, she was selling them by the bridge, and I happened to buy them from her."
"And how long ago was that?"
"Let's see…" Rhian huffed. "I was framed when I was twenty-two and was arrested around twenty-three. So definitely before that."
Zane paused mentally. It was slowly getting more and more apparent as to how Rhian must've ended up walking down that bloody path in his previous life. The Hua Huiliaing Zane knew at the moment was also quite different from the person who'd tortured him in the future.
Which could only mean one thing, the battle must've gone terribly sideways. Which could've led to many unnecessary deaths. In fact, Zane did not recall seeing Esmeray in the future at all. Plus, he could only imagine how much the abuse in the Celestium could have fucked with Rhian's head, and to get out and see half his homeland wiped out?
"That's… a long time."
"The Celestium really dulls your perception of time," Rhian mumbled, waving him off. "Plus, I haven't particularly aged much after being trapped there either."
"Gege," Hua Yi said, and Zane watched Rhian divert his attention to her. She opened the door and stepped inside, allowing Zane and Rhian to enter.
The room was quite spacious, and the man who'd helped unlock Zane's core was also there, sitting next to the girl. When her eyes flitted up to see Rhian, they welled up almost instantly. "Gege!" she said, standing up and stumbling forward until she was colliding with Rhian's leg.
"Xiaoshi," Hua Yao said pleasantly. "We need to talk."
Rhian idly patted the girl's head before he sat down and glared at Zane when he stood there standing awkwardly. Zane sat down next to him.
"Her name is Xu Zhi, she's the daughter of Sect Leader's Mei's second cousin," Hua Yao said, watching as Xu Zhi sat next to Rhian. She still seemed in some sort of daze, as if she was still half conscious. "She's around eleven years old currently, but we can't be certain, given the Temple's different time perception has stunted her growth."
"After you placed the Fei Resurrection within her, it got rid of most of the diabolic energy within her by absorbing it, and the other piece," Hua Yi said hesitantly. "The one you earned from Huang Delan has permanently embedded the amulet piece within her."
"Is that why she has healed completely?" Rhian asked.
"She hasn't healed completely," Zane mumbled without meaning to. "I mean, I don't think she's caught up mentally, at least. How had she ended up there, anyway?"
"It could be because, while the Jade Palace wasn't built, something was there. And it seems whatever 'spirit' was there, it was pretty hostile. And to keep it calm, the villagers offered up goods." Hua Yi theorized, ruffling the girl's hair when she came towards her. "And given that this child's parents have abandoned her, she must've been passing through there. Since she wasn't of anyone's blood in the village, they must've sacrificed her to the Temple Lord, which led to the formation of the Auxiliary Trial."
"I should have said something when I first saw her selling those accessories, she was hardly seven years old." Rhian glanced at her then at his hands.
"Well, you didn't," Hua Yao said matter-of-factly. "You can't wish to change that now. But… now that you've decided to go and embed the amulet. You've made her a highly sought target of power."
Rhian sighed softly. "Who all know about it?"
"What?"
"Who all knows about the amulet?"
"The three clan heads and a few of their members," Hua Yi replied. "Why?"
"Because, if this news doesn't reach the imperial palace, it shouldn't be that huge of a problem, right? If we train her within these three clans and lie to the palace about losing the Fei resurrection…"
"You want to lie?" Hua Yao asked.
"It's a proposal for everyone's safety. We know the emperor has been feeling… inadequate about himself, he'd ask to take her in himself."
They kept saying emperor, but Zane simply couldn't wrap his head around a 'useless' emperor. He bit his lip to prevent himself from asking any stupid questions. But he snapped out of his reverie when small hands patted his cheeks. "Gege," Xu Zhi said, tilting her head to the side. "Your eyes are so pretty."
Zane felt awkward at the sudden attention. "Thank you," he said softly. He patted her head. "So are yours."
[
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"They're like mini forests!" she said again.
"That's enough, A-Zhi," Hua Yi said, gently pulling Xu Zhi back. "Don't trouble our guest now, okay?"
Zane waved his hands lightly. "I don't mind, I'm used to it. I have a younger sister too."
"You do radiate older brother vibes," Rhian said thoughtfully.
Hua Yi smacked the back of Rhian's head. "Maybe learn something from him! You act like a brat in front of me and jiejie."
Rhian rolled his eyes and rubbed the back of his head. "Whatever… that being said, can you bring up this idea to Hua Huiliang? I don't think I can stand in front of him without feeling like he wants to light me on fire."
"You did betray him numerous times," Hua Yao pointed. "Your father grew quite grim when you weren't there. And when he found out you were being imprisoned… there, he did try many unconventional tactics to get you out. After you escaped, he even sent Li Feng to kill the person who was transferring money to keep you there."
Zane watched as Rhian steeled his expression. "Right."
"You should talk to him before you decide to leave again," Hua Yi suggested. "I know you intend to do something like that."
Rhian clamped his mouth shut. "Yeah," he mumbled. But it sounded half-hearted. "After he cools down."
Hua Yi shook her head in annoyance. "Where are you going now?"
"I have to bump my level up to at least ten before the next trial starts."
Hua Yi pointed at him triumphantly. "Haha, I'm already level twenty!"
"You registered into the system before me, it's expected!"
"But—"
"Hua Yi," Zane interjected. "Are there any veiled trials around here?"
Hua Yao and Hua Yi exchanged looks. "Yes… but…"