Jack had decided to prioritize spending time with his family while on Earth, but there were still many people he wanted to meet. Therefore, he invited them all together.
A bottle of wine rested at the center of a table, while five people sat around it. They were Jack, Edgar, Dordok, Dorman, and Huali. Five people whose paths all led them to Earth.
âI cannot believe you destroyed the Animal Kingdom,â Huali said, raising her cup. âItâs like a dream.â
âAnd I canât believe Iâm sitting with the Grand Elder of the Exploding Sun,â Dordok joked. He was much larger than humans, being an ogre, so the cup in his hand seemed comically small.
âThere is nothing grand about me,â Huali replied, shaking her head. âThe Sun fell during my watch. I have shamed my ancestors.â
âSpeaking of that,â Jack said, âIâve wondered about something for a while. Didnât your faction have Supreme Ancestors like the Animal Kingdom? How did Eva Solvig manage to destroy you?â
Huali sighed. âShe didnât come alone. The peak B-Grade Envoy responsible for the Milky Way galaxy was alongside her. Before that man, our Supreme Ancestors collapsed like mortals⊠It was only afterward that he left for the Crusade.â
âI see. Sorry for the painful memories.â
âItâs fine. Iâve made my peace with what happened. With the Kingdom and the most powerful Envoys dead, I plan to leave this planet soon and try to re-establish the Exploding Sun. I know the hiding place of one of our Ancestorsâshe might be able to help.â
âAre you sure?â Jack asked. âThere are many B-Grades left in the galaxy. You could come under fire.â
âI am duty-bound to try. If fate wants my faction to die, then so be it. Thank you for letting me hide in your planet until now.â
Jack nodded, not insisting further.
Beside him, Edgar chuckled. âAnd here I thought I could convince you to stay as a professor at my academy. A peak C-Grade would have skyrocketed our prestige.â
âSorry to disappoint,â Huali said with a small smile. Edgar had been approaching her about this subject for months now. Though sheâd always maintained her neutral position, theyâd become friends by now.
âWhat about you, Dordok, Dorman?â Edgar asked. âAnyone willing to teach the new generations?â
âI might as well,â Dordok replied. âIâve spent my entire life traveling the galaxy on the Trampling Ram. Now that Iâve retired, I think a more stable life would do me good.â
âI wonât stay,â Dorman said. âIâm a cultivator of the Church. Now that Earth is safe, I want to join the war.â
âIâll ask the sovereign, but I donât think thereâs going to be a problem,â Jack replied. âIâm sure Edgar has many great professors already lined up.â
The wizard pouted. âWell, theyâre great, but not galaxy-level great, you know? I wanted to have every professor be a D-Grade or above, as well as a couple of C-Grades. Only then can my Academy stand at the highest level.â
âNo it canât,â everyone else replied at the same time, then laughed about it.
âYeah, laugh all you want. I gotta start from somewhere!â Edgar protested, laughing himself. âOh, yeah. Jack, Dorman, remember that old, Asian martial arts master from the Integration Tournament? The one who fell during the final battle?â
âLi Xiang?â Jack asked. âOf course I remember. What about him?â
âHis head disciple will come to the academy as a professor. You should see himâhe has a fourth tier Skill.â
âReally?â Dorman raised a brow. âThatâs more than me.â
âI only have one of those,â Jack said.
Huali scoffed. âYoungsters,â she commented, then shrunk back as everyone glared at her.
âOh yeah?â Jack asked. âHow many do you have?â
âWell, oneâŠbut Iâve had it for millennia!â
They laughed again. âHey,â Jack asked Huali, âhow hard is it to develop tier four or five skills?â
âVery,â she replied. âTier three is generally the limit. Only a few C-Grades manage to get a single skill at the fourth tier. B-Grades generally have one or two⊠But Iâve never heard of anyone getting a fifth tier skill. I just know itâs the limit.â
âHmm.â Jack frowned. âDoes that mean that me having a single fourth tier skill is behind the curve? I already have the combat strength of a late B-Grade.â
Huali shook her head. âThe curve on skill tiers isnât about power, but about time and talent. The only reason most B-Grades have fourth tier skills is because theyâve spent tens of thousands of years practicing them. If anything, achieving one at less than ten years of cultivation is a wonder. The same goes for that professor Edgar mentioned. It is absolutely not a common occurrence. Even if it was, what do you care? You can jump an entire Grade to fight. If that isnât special, I donât know what is.â
âJust curious,â Jack replied, shrugging.
Huali narrowed her eyes. âYouâre already itching to cultivate, arenât you?â
âOf course I am, but I am no fool to waste these days cultivating. My family takes precedence.â
She nodded. âAn admirable sentiment. If only more cultivators were like you.â
âThey arenât?â
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âOf course not. Having a long timespan can alter oneâs sense of purpose. Many people treat their families as one treats garden plantsâephemeral, unimportant, and replenishable.â
âThatâs terrible.â
âItâs a defense mechanism. You canât stand the endless loss otherwise.â Her eyes fell. âTime has a way to turn people into statues⊠But, donât let me get you down. Your family is talentedâIâm sure theyâll live for a really long time. Enjoy it, Jack.â
He scratched his head. âYou did bring me down a little, not gonna lie.â
âI have the solution,â Edgar said, raising the bottle. âMore wine.â
Everyone nodded. âMore wine!â
***
Jack remained at Earth for six days. In his bubble of accelerated time, that was eighteen daysâa full two and a half weeks.
The sovereign was supposed to arrive somewhere around that time, but he didnât. Jack assumed theyâd met some trouble on the way but didnât think about it further. Instead, he was thankful about the extra time.
Another three days passed outside. In Jackâs time bubble, that was a week and a half. Before he knew it, heâd already spent a month with his family.
During that month, he did not cultivate for even a second. He did not spare a thought towards his ninth Dao Fruit, which he was ready to develop. He didnât even investigate the spatial rings taken from Eva Solvig and the other Envoy. There would be time for all those laterânow was family time.
Every day was spent with his wife and daughter. His mother would be there sometimes, as would other friends. Brock visited rarely, choosing to spend most of the time with his father and the other brorillas. Harambe only appeared onceâhe was too overwhelmed with joy at the return of his son. Jack also visited the brorillas once, bonding with the family of his little brother.
At other times, their small family of three enjoyed time together in their house which overlooked the Forest of the Strong. The view was great. So was the weather. The days passed simply, easily, full of love. Jack and Vivi reignited their relationship. Jack and Ebele finally got to know each otherâlast time he was here, she could barely speak.
Warm, fuzzy feelings filled Jackâs heart. He completely forgot about the pain of war, the cruelty, the darkness, the loneliness. This was home. His hardened soul, which had been hammered in adversity, took this time to soften and complete his transformation into a new levelâhis mental and emotional ascent.
Jack felt like a new man. His heart was full of love. His mind was serene. These were some of the happiest moments of his life.
Of course, not all was perfect. Ericâs loss was something theyâd all had time to come to terms with, but it still hung over their heads sometimes, a thought nobody spoke about. Ebele was too young to truly feel the loss, but Vivi still cried at night sometimes. In those moments, Jack would hug her and keep her in his arms until she felt better again.
The three of them also held a small funeral for Eric. They buried his empty casket next to Jackâs father, on the newly named Rust island. The two Erics lay side by side. It was a necessary moment for closure, but also something that Jack preferred not to think aboutâhe focused on the bright times instead.
Losing a child was something that never truly went away. All they could do was strive to keep grief from ruining their livesâlearn to handle it, and learn to be happy again. So far, they were succeeding. The sun still hung in the skyâtheir days remained bright.
The month passed easily. Jack enjoyed time with his family, and though he wasnât full, he knew he never could be. He also saw everyone he wanted to see during this time. Even Gan Salin and Nauja visited every once in a while, though they spent most of their time touring Earth. Neither was particularly good at handling their emotions.
Finally, nine days in real time after Jack returned to Earth, the sky trembled. A sleek starship slipped out of the void, coming to rest over the Forest of the Strong. Jack had been playing with Ebele at that moment. He released a long sigh.
âDaddy needs to take a moment,â he said, teleporting before the ship. Five figures appeared before himâthree familiar, two strangers.
âOh,â Jack said. âI didnât expect you two.â
Min Ling smiled. âHow could I miss the chance to visit the home planet of the famous Jack Rust?â
âThis is my home as well.â The Sage shrugged. âHello, Jack. I see youâve built a wonderful life for yourself.â
Jack smiled back. âI have.â
âWhat a peaceful little place,â the Heavenly Spoon Sovereign said, looking around. âThis is how things should be. No war, no strife, no killing each other. Only living happily and cultivating to deepen oneâs connection to the world. Anyway. This is the Jack Rust youâve heard so much about. Jack, these are Envoys Bottomless and Starhair.â
âNice to meet you,â Jack said. The two strangers nodded back. One was a hooded figure wearing a rippling cloakâjust from looking at it, Jack could sense mighty fluctuations of spacetime.
âGood time bubble,â the figure said, gazing at the time distortion around the Forest of the Strong.
âThanks,â Jack replied.
As for the last person present, that was a man with long hair which seemed like the starry branches of a galaxyâthe so-called Envoy Starhair. He only replied with a tight nod to Jackâs greeting, as if dissatisfied with something or maybe constipated. Jack could already tell he wouldnât like this person.
âAre you ready to go?â the sovereign said. âIâm sorry to rush you like this, but weâve already delayed too much. We are needed at the front lines.â
Jack hesitated. The Sage spoke up, saying, âIâm sure we can afford an hour for Jack to say his goodbyes.â
Starhair stared at him, but the sovereign shrugged. âOf course. Is an hour okay with you, Jack?â
Jack nodded. âYes. Iâve already concluded my business in the Milky Way. I just need to speak with my family.â
âPerfect. Then, weâll wait.â
Jack flashed away. He hastily bid his goodbyes to the people he cared about, then spent most of the hour with Vivi and Ebele. They were heartbroken to see him leave again. As a matter of fact, so was heâbut there was no choice. His place wasnât here, but in the Crusade. There was no way around it. That was his life.
âBe good until I return, okay?â he said, planting a kiss on Ebeleâs forehead. âPractice hard, but not too hard. Donât forget to enjoy your childhood.â
âOkay,â she said, struggling not to cry. Jack then turned to Vivi, who fell into his arms.
âIâll miss you,â she whispered with a hot breath.
âMe tooâŠâ Jack replied, hugging and kissing her tightly. Ebele made a sound and looked awayâboth her parents laughed.
âIâll try to return as soon as possible, but I donât know when that will be,â Jack promised. âI love you both.â
âStay safe,â Vivi said. âDonât do anything stupid.â
Jack smiled. âYou know me.â
âThatâs exactly why Iâm saying it.â
He laughed. âI promise Iâll be careful. Iâll make you proud of me.â
âWe are already proud of you,â Vivi said, grasping his hand. âJust come home safe. Okay?â
He felt his heart relax. âOkay.â A final kiss later, he took a step back and said, âI love you.â
âWe love you too!â the two women responded. Jack gave them a final glance. He buried their image in his memory. While he cultivated bitterly and alone, fighting in the far reaches of the universe, this very image would be what gave him the strength to endure.
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âSee you,â he said, then flew away. He didnât look backânot sure he could hold his tears if he did.
Soon, he reached the sleek starship again, where the Spoon Squad awaited. Brock and Dorman were also present.
âAll ready?â the sovereign asked, and Jack nodded. âGood. Then, letâs board. Next stop, the Second Crusade!â
âOkay, bro,â Brock replied, following the rest into the starship. The last ones remaining outside were Jack and the Heavenly Spoon Sovereign.
âYour strength is growing rapidly,â said the sovereign, scanning Jack with his eyes. He then smiled. âItâs time to break into the B-Grade, isnât it?â
Jack nodded. âI guess it is.â