Chapter 24 #2
Lao Tie paled. “Tang, an act of treachery that heinous… for those stakes…”—he sighed, before giving a rueful chuckle—“is something absolutely any clan head would do in a heartbeat, for the sake of his extended family, his people. Even if, in all other ways, save for that singular betrayal, he might live his life as an honorable man.”
Linnea nodded. “The only other option is that we declare to the world our glorious find! So that the entire academy and then the entire caldera are alive with the wondrous tales of our feats that would spread like wildfire! The furthest thing from anything that sect elders would be able to spin or control. Elders who would no doubt urge us to keep things discreet before scooting us aside to give us our reward, and a Gold-tier Water core and a guaranteed thousand years of a filled caldera lake and the wondrous prosperity that would ensue are utterly beyond their ability to match… so they would just give us death instead!”
“And then we’d have to worry about the Red Prince catching wind of our incredible find and making it impossible to plant that core into the ritual site,” Ya Ling warned her sometimes still-impulsive friend.
“And then the soft conquest of influence and enticement would instantly become a hard, bitter siege, assuming they didn’t break through in record time with the help of those Silver-tier assassins you told us about, Alex. ”
Tang gave a pained shake of his head. “Damn if I don’t feel like we’ve all grabbed the Fox’s tale and are just trying to figure out how to let go in time.”
Lao Tie glared at his abashed friend, who shrugged.
“It’s just an expression, Lao.”
“Of course. Which is why the path we’ve chosen makes so much sense!
Your idea for cover is exactly what we’ll use.
We don’t hesitate to show our bright-eyed excitement with the speckled hybrid cores, and most especially the shattered core with so much Ice and shards that can at least provide a season or so of much needed water for all.
That’s the source of our triumph, and we’ll have good cause to celebrate.
But when we head out, after ensuring that our friends are either fully mended or on the road to recovery, that’s when we make our way to the palace. ”
Alex nodded, more relieved than he cared to admit that they had made it back to the rift entrance without any hostile encounters at all, having kept on the lookout for anything above or below as his friends shivered before the increasingly biting winter winds.
It was a bitter pill to realize that perhaps this was, in effect, a countdown of sorts.
That daring to find a way into that maze had catalyzed a timer unlocking a priceless font of knowledge and fortuitous encounters, and far from racing to unlock those wondrous secrets, he had fled the maze and the mysterious tower locked within entirely.
Because some things were far more important than unlocking one more esoteric secret that might or might not enhance his potential.
What was certain was that his friends were unlikely to survive any further encounters, and with a Gold Water core that, according to Nili, might ensure upward of a thousand years of water and prosperity for this city-sized oasis in the desert sands upon which so many lives counted upon, how could he not do whatever was needed to see this through?
Because even if his friends had found a priceless treasure of pristine Bronze Ice that would secure them for a decade, the treasure he had plucked free from the tiger that could have so easily killed them all would keep Wanshi safe for centuries.
And, perhaps just as importantly, if a fresh Water or Ice core of any strength could renew Wanshi’s protective wards that Alex still understood too little of, what boons would a Gold-tier-enhanced caldera allow for?
Would it be enough to push back even Dongfang Hong’s hidden elites and ensure Wanshi’s prosperity, or at least its independence and self-sufficiency, no matter how savage an empire the Red Prince tried to forge within these deserts?
On a happier note, just how sweet and profitable would the delves be, then? Could this be a first tiny step to unlocking paths that might one day see an entire desert brought back to rich, fecund life once more?
He swallowed a pained lump in his throat, humbled by just how much he had to atone for…
in a life he still had only the faintest inklings of.
Yet he refused to feel guilt for a past he had no control over, after having suffered travesties so great that he and those closest to him had actually felt vindicated in doing whatever it was they had done.
No. Best not to think about it and risk ripping open old scabs to bleed anew.
Better to take solace in creating a beautiful future for as many souls as he could, even as he walked ever closer to the cusp of his own wondrous ascension.
He flashed a smile filled with hope for his friends.
They had a plan. They knew exactly how to handle what would no doubt be both a polite and exceedingly interested Spring sect staff. Even Sun La, should earlier ire have returned, would have cause to think well of him now.
“Are we ready, guys?” Alex asked as he stood before the shimmering gate between worlds.
Lao Tie nodded. “I believe we’ve covered all our bases, Alex. Come. Let’s go through. With luck, we’ll be at the palace by sunset, and no one will be the wiser.”
Alex forced a nod even as his heart began to pound, his body flush with heat and energy despite the howling winds causing everyone else to freeze. Because a peaceful end to this tale after such a miraculous find was the last thing he would ever expect. And if trouble was coming…
He flashed a hard smile, preparing himself for whatever was beyond that gate as he touched it and stepped through.