Elder Boatman grabbed a gum worm between two fingers, slurping it in. Jack cringed. The worm disappeared down the vampireâs throat, dead the moment he touched it.
âYou have achieved great merit, Jack,â Elder Boatman said. âNews of your breakthrough have spread far and wide. The failing morale of our army has temporarily recovered. Youâve given our cultivators a source of inspiration, and our enemies one of fear. Youâve also made me proud. Good job.â
âThanks, Master,â Jack replied, trying to keep his mind away from how the Elder was still eating worms.
âOf course, everything has consequences,â the vampire continued. âThe Immortals are aware of your existence, and theyâll do anything they can to exterminate you. Donât be surprised when they send A-Grades to personally hunt you down.â
Jack stood straight. âI can handle it.â
âI know. But we canât. My starship houses tens of millions of people, and Iâd rather not invite the enemyâs full attention to my doorstep. Besides, if they really do find us, I may not be able to protect you. You will leave the Death Boat in a few hours and head towards the New Cathedral, our current headquarters. The Arch Priestess herself wants to see you. She may accept you as a disciple, so I suggest making a good impression. Maybe even wear a shirt.â
âWhat?â Jack said. âHold on, Iâll be leaving? But I just arrived.â
âIâm sad too, my disciple,â Elder Boatman replied. âHowever, even if I hadnât received direct orders, it would be irresponsible of me to keep you here. Protecting you is my duty as your master, but I have to accept I may not be able to. Itâs a shame.â
âYou saved my life,â Jack replied. âAnd Brockâs. We are extremely grateful.â
âIt was nothing,â he replied, waving a pale hand. âNow, as I said, youâll be transferring to the New Cathedral for training. Brock will join you, and I will also separate a small part of my soul to follow you and keep instructing you on the Dao of Death.â
âPart of your soul?â
âItâs called a clone. I believe youâre familiar with the concept. One soul simultaneously inhabiting multiple bodies. Itâs the basis of all our communication systems, but thatâs besides the point.â
Jack opened his mouth and closed it again. This was a little too much information. Had Elder Boatman mentioned he might be apprenticed to the Arch Priestess? The head of the Black Hole Church, who was most probably an Archon?
He shook his head to clear it.
âAnd I guess,â he said, motioning towards the Spoon Squad who were idling nearby, âtheyâll be the ones taking me there.â
âSovereign Heavenly Spoon and his squad are needed at the front lines. Theyâve already wasted precious time here,â Elder Boatman said, striking the sovereign with a glare. The other man didnât even pause eating. âYou will be escorted by a different vessel. We wonât reveal the details until the final moment for security reasons. However, Envoy Starhair has also been recalled to the New Cathedral, so he will be joining you.â
Oh, fuck me.
Jack and Starhair locked eyes. The Envoy smiled grimly.
Wait. Iâm also an Envoy now. Nice.
âI donât know whatâs going on between you two, nor do I care,â the Elder said. âWe are fighting a losing war. We cannot afford infighting. I expect you to act as responsible individuals and put your differences aside.â
Jack raised his head. âYes, Master.â
âYes, Elder,â Starhair replied at the same time. He sounded earnest. Jack didnât believe him in the slightest.
âGood,â Elder Boatman replied. âMeet me at the throne room in three hours.â He reached into his plate, grasping no gum worms. Heâd run out. âOh,â he said. Ten of them teleported from the bowl to his paper plate, then he abruptly disappeared. The bowl was now empty.
Sovereign Heavenly Spoon hissed. âI wanted those!â he said, then sighed in displeasure. He grabbed a large cup of tea and swirled it with the silver spoon which also doubled as his planet-eating weapon.
Jack swept his gaze over his fellow Envoys. Min Ling was the first to meet him. âWe still have a date, cowboy,â she said. âYou promised to spar with me when you reached the B-Grade. Iâm right here.â
He grinned at her. âDo you really think you stand a chance?â
âOnly one way to find out.â
Jack laughed. âGood! I look forward to testing out my powers, too.â
âWe can do it now.â
âSure. Just give me a moment.â He turned his gaze to another person. âHey, Sage. Think I could talk to you alone for a minute?â
The homeless-looking man looked up. Just like every other time, he showed no surprise. The extent and nature of his powers remained a mystery to Jack.
***
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Jack and the Sage stood alone in a different room. There was another large window here, but no table, only a set of chairs at the back. The two men stood next to the window, gazing out.
âDo you remember what you told me once upon a time?â Jack asked.
âIâve told you many things.â
âThat your soul resonated with Enas. That you could use that connection to share in the godâs Dao and reach the B-Grade with basically no bottleneck. That the whole reason Earth was Integrated was because the Church wanted to find you.â
The Sage nodded. âThat is correct.â
âBut is it the whole truth?â
A pause. âWhy do you ask?â
âI was stranded at a strange place for a yearâa place called the Black Hole World,â Jack said. âIt was occupied by the descendants of an old Archon, trapped there since the first Crusade a billion years ago. They had a stone tablet about that event. It portrayed the Old Gods and the Immortals, as well as their armies.â
Jack turned towards the Sage, then continued. âThere was a person there, in the army following the Old Gods. A person who looked just like you.â
The Sage smiled. âIt was a stone tablet. How accurate could they make the face of a small figure?â
âDonât dodge the question, Sage. It was carved in great detail. That person had your likeness. Whatâs going on?â
The Sage remained silent for a moment. Finally, he sighed. âYou shouldnât have seen that,â he said. Jack instinctively raised his guard, but there was no attack coming, only words. âThis isnât really a secret. Itâs just something weâd rather not share to the common cultivator.â
âAm I a common cultivator?â
âYou were, last time we talked about this.â
Jack frowned. âKeep talking.â
The Sage sighed. âThe truth is, I am not just a human whose soul vibrates with that of Enas. When he was trapped in the black hole, he was not content to remain there for eternity. Enas embodies the Dao of Life, whose core tenant is survival. Soon after his imprisonment, Enas split his soul in two, then shattered one half into innumerable tiny pieces. Those pieces were nothing but soul-infused collections of Life Dao particles. Over time, they slowly seeped out of the black hole, making their way through the universe and looking for suitable bodies. Of course, that was an extremely unlikely process, which was why Enas had created so many of them. There needed to be someone with a compatible soul, which was already extremely rare, and then there also needed to be a soul piece very close-by when that person was born. The fusion could only be carried out shortly after birth.
âA billion years later, those coincidences finally occurred. One of those innumerable tiny soul pieces happened to land on Earth, where it fused into a compatible baby. And thus, I was born. A human with a tiny, tiny part of a god inside me. However, even that part of a godâs soul is stronger than a mortalâs, so the fusion wasnât perfect. I spent thirty-three years on Earth being insane as the two sides warred inside me. I had flashes and visions of things no mortal could witness. It was only when the Integration happened that an agent of the Church arrived at our planet, helped the divine part of my soul overwhelm the other, and made me into who I am today.â
Jack gave him a suspicious glance. âSo youâre, like, a clone of Enas?â
âIn the wider sense of the word. I possess my own personality and almost none of the godâs powers. What I do have is random visions, as well as an extreme affinity towards the Dao of Life. Specifically, divination.â
âExtreme affinity? Really? Nobody has mentioned your B-Grade breakthrough as anything outstanding.â
âDao affinity doesnât always translate into a deeper cultivation. In any case, itâs a good thing my breakthrough was low-key. It helped me avoid attention. My cultivation and combat strengthâwhich has always been shitâare secondary. The real purpose of my existence is to remain alive, so the Church can use me as the key to summon the true soul of Enas outside the black hole.â
âWhat!?â
The Sage smiled, showing yellow teeth. âI am to be sacrificed. Thanks to me, the remainder of Enasâs soul and body will escape their eternal prison, reclaiming his rightful position as god king of the universe.â
âWait. So the Second Crusade is happening to stop that?â
âNo. The Immortals suspect some things, but they know nothing. The Second Crusade coinciding with my appearance is a humongous, terrible coincidence.â
â...How is that possible?â
âThe Heavenly Dao works in mysterious ways, my friend,â the Sage replied with a sad smile. He put a hand on Jackâs shoulder. âThe person in the tablet was another clone of Enas. Before his imprisonment, he was experimenting with infusing his soul into cultivators and controlling them. His fellow gods betrayed him before those experiments bore fruit.â
Jack wasnât really listening. Various puzzle pieces clicked into place in his mind. âIs that why you wanted the Life Drop in Trial Planet?â he asked. âBecause it was kind of your blood to begin with?â
âThatâs right. I would be able to resonate with it and use it much more effectively than anyone else, including youâŠbut, as I said, my combat strength is secondary. It was average back then, and itâs even worse now. A fragmented soul like me could never reach the A-Grade. I was supposed to take the Life Drop to the Church and help it find a suitable candidate, but I deemed you good enough.â
âHmm,â Jack said. He frowned, saying nothing for a moment. He then changed the subject. âStill, man⊠You only exist to be sacrificed? Thatâs fucking sad.â
The Sage shrugged. âItâs not as bad as it sounds. I will reunite with my whole like a tributary flowing into the river. The person I am now will die, but my soul will live on.â
â...Oh.â
âIs that all you wanted to ask me?â
Jack looked at the Sage. This homeless-looking, yellow-toothed, rag-wearing man had always been an enigma. The more he learned, the more questions he hadâsome of which he felt were better left unasked.
Something wasnât right about the Sageâs story. There was still something missing. He just couldnât place a finger on what.
âYeah, thatâs all,â he finally said.
âGood. Then, let me give you a piece of advice before you go fight that little girl,â the Sage said, leaning closer. âDo you know why the Heavenly Dao sent that tribulation for you? During your latest breakthrough?â
Jack was immediately transfixed. âBecause itâs an asshole?â
âBecause you took a single step outside the lines. That by itself isnât much, but defiance is a plague. It spreads from person to person, and one step turns into ten, which turn into a stampede. What starts slow can turn exponentially fast, and before the universe knows it, it might lose control of you cultivators. So, remember this, Jack. That was neither your first nor last tribulation. The universe will keep trying to take you down. If you do survive, however, then your defiance will become a superpower. You and Brock can spread that shit and change the world. Even the Gods are afraid. Donât sleep on it.â
Jack stared into the Sageâs eyes, finding them glowing with a fierce, excited light. The next moment, it was gone. The Sage stood back to his full height, which wasnât much. âWell, that was my advice, anyway.â
âDo you want to elaborate? That was cryptic as fuck.â
âYou will understand when the time comes. Now go have fun out there. I believe your date is waiting.â