It was the end of the day in a modest location within the inner sect, where about fifteen thousand disciples were moving various wooden houses and setting up several tents. They were precisely in the center of three hills; each of them was supposed to serve as housing for the three factions. However, the leaders decided to choose this specific location to gather all factions together. To outsiders, they were three, but among themselves, there was only one unit.
All disciples from the three factions performed this simple service; it was something only humble workers did, considered humiliating for any other disciple. However, none of them showed any sign of displeasure; on the contrary, only determination and gratitude were visible in their gazes.
With the arrival of the night, a rudimentary camp was set up for everyone. Then, the three leaders watched their disciples with eyes full of expectations. They were nervous, but they recalled all the teachings they received from the whale.
The training started gently and, within two hours, became fervent. After five intense hours, the three leaders were exhausted, and the ground began to turn red. When the sun returned for a new dawn, the once lively disciples were completely red, pleading for mercy.
The whale’s expectations were immense. The three leaders aimed to match them equally. So, they needed to eliminate any trace of fragility and weakness that still lingered in these cultivators.
Three days passed, and the factions began to organize. Each had around five thousand cultivators. Ruri’s faction was called ’Death Horn.’ Aware of her defensive limitations, Ruri opted for total attack. The human men, who formed the majority, were ruthlessly trained to learn to fight head-on. The feys, in turn, were given bows and arrows, using their bloodline and elements to attack.
Loeus’s faction was called ’Life Horn.’ The elves and most women used laws of nature, like wood, to heal and provide support; therefore, they were trained to survive ruthlessly. Loeus attacked them in their weak points and made them fight until they could escape. The men and some human women who fought head-on learned techniques in areas of fire and lightning to defend the healers and control the area.
Corin registered his faction as ’Earthbound Horn.’ It was the most diverse group, with dark elves, common elves, orcs, and humans, all mixed between men and women. Dark elves were agile and fast, orcs were natural physical fighters, elves were skilled with healing and longbows, and humans had even more varied talents. They could adapt to any situation or focus on a specific style. Corin faced more difficulties teaching them to concentrate on various techniques.
They chose their faction names based on Ruri’s suggestion, referencing the behemoth legends in books she had read: it has three horns representing life, death, and earthly terrain.
Everyone knew the story of the behemoth told during their stay in the dwarven realm. Thus, as the whale was the leader and its descendant, the chosen names for the factions represented their weapons. The three united factions called themselves the ’Primal Beast Legion.’ Despite each having distinct characteristics, they would operate together to face any situation.
The three leaders were experiencing something as beneficial as their subordinates. The whale had previously said, "Teaching is always an exchange that benefits both parties."
When skill levels reach a high plateau, the initial fundamentals are often partially forgotten. It’s like learning a technique at level 1 and, when raising it to level 50, no longer having a clear memory of how it was at the beginning. However, the importance of fundamentals remains for all higher levels. Ruri, Loeus, and Corin had to revisit the basics meticulously to play the role of mentors. This process not only strengthened their own understanding but also significantly elevated their skill levels.
Inside the internal forging institute, in the central forge, Alm and Bruno arrived after reading and studying everything about the inner region. About 100 institute members silently awaited the young leader who summoned them.
The whale moved to the front of everyone, observing calmly before calling out a name. "Nimfle, who is it?"
Quickly, a small figure with golden hair stepped forward. It was a simple-looking, slender elf, her eyes trembling as they met the whale’s.
"You can come, stay behind," the whale said calmly, reassuring her. "Which of you learned and lived in the realm of the dwarves?"
Everyone looked at the whale, and nine human figures stepped forward. "You too, stay. Everyone else can go."
It was a strange and quick meeting; everyone was urgently summoned, and some were outside the sect. They lost days returning and, consequently, resources they could be collecting and forging... all for this? Everyone judged the young leader angrily.
So, everyone left, and only ten of them remained. The elf, two human women and eight human men. The whale then approached them, speaking.
"I am recruiting you because I deem you trustworthy for the job. From today on, I, as the leader, will need your services in particular."
A human spoke. "Young Leader, I am losing resources here. You..."
"It doesn’t matter; I guarantee your gains will be hundreds of times greater. For now, receive an advance for the first month." The whale cut in and threw ten spatial rings. Everyone grabbed them and saw two million spiritual crystals in each of the rings.
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"This amount is just symbolic; you will earn much more. First, Nimfle." The whale spoke and turned to the elf. "I know you as Liumi; you are good at forging with wood, just like her. But your true skills lie in selling, not forging."
The elf’s eyes immediately welled up. The news of Liumi’s death had spread to everyone, and the elf spent two days completely devastated; she was a close friend of the young Grassrunner. Alm and Bruno heard from Liumi herself about many personal things in the forest; that young one had no fear of speaking.
The whale sighed, feeling the elf’s sadness, but continued. "You will be in charge of sales." They threw another ring at her. "Sell all of this for the highest price you can get; you have two days. Then, use everything you earn and organize an auction. Use your contacts and make it as sumptuous and flashy as possible. Spare no expense; five days later, I want everything ready."
She was confused and then looked inside the ring... her heart pounded fiercely. Everyone looked at her how she was startled; this elf was older than all of them, so what was in the ring must be indescribable. There were only twenty weapons, but each emitted something mystical and powerful. She had never seen anything like it. The value of that must be astronomical.
Seeing that she understood, the whale turned to all nine of them. "As for you, I trust the judgment of the dwarves. I will use you in the forge and personally guide you; we will forge day and night. Everyone will get 30% of the profit; you will soon realize it’s not unfair at all. Let’s get started."
Quickly, the whale dismissed Nimfle, who ran off with a smile on her face; this was her first mission. Then, the whale moved to the forge, and everyone watched him with doubtful and disdainful eyes.
But exactly two hours later, all nine were catatonic, unable to speak or move. It was something out of this world... literally. Forget receiving part of the profit, they would pay instead just to keep watching and learning from the whale.
The days passed with the whale working hard, teaching the basics to the nine. Alm and Bruno had a lot to do and couldn’t stay in the forge forever, so they were strict in teaching the nine until they could forge something they deemed acceptable.
Thus, using all their remaining resources, they acquired simple ores from the sect to forge. Then, they applied heavenly refinement, resulting in various +2 or +3 ores. The superior weapons were forged by themselves, while the others were distributed among the nine so they could learn by doing.
Although their work was only mediocre, about a dozen top-level weapons emerged. The whale applied the enchantment seal, inserting laws of the earth and a trace of the behemoth bloodline. This was done for security measures, ensuring that, regardless of the cultivator’s level, they could control the weapon and retrieve it.
By the end of the second day, Nimfle returned panting. However, her aura radiated a strange joy. She had sold everything at a much higher price than the whale imagined. Soon, news about an auction of top-level weapons spread throughout the inner sect. Nimfle’s contacts disseminated the information so widely that even the central elders heard about it and became interested.
On the auction day, the whale gave the orders after delivering the weapons. "This is just the first; every fifteen days, we’ll have another auction. Start the bidding with an initial price of half a million. Next, three million. Then, jump to 10 million immediately and keep doubling."
The elf was startled by these numbers, but looking at the weapons, she realized that most should already be sold for about 5 million in the first auction, after all, the richest in the sect wouldn’t be among the buyers. These weapons existed nowhere else, and all of them radiated a power of the earth; something the largest clan specialized in. By the third time, when the value reached 10 million, they would be present in force and wouldn’t care about the price to buy it. They would engage in a fierce competition, and the profits would be...
The elf began to contort strangely at the thought...
"Initially, no one will have faith. In the second auction, the audience will double; in the third, our rush will arrive. Collect every crystal they can offer. Create demand, stating that we use a new and hard-to-forge ore, so we were selling gradually, but it will all end soon." The whale concluded calmly.
Nimfle was stunned for a few seconds, and the whale could almost see the image of the crystals reflecting in her eyes. As Liumi had told, this elf learned to forge only because she loved having crystals. And now she was happily working, moving mountains of spiritual crystals.
The whale didn’t bother going to the auction. Everything unfolded, profoundly shocking everyone present. Quickly, the elf returned with almost 500 million spiritual crystals. They paid all ten workers, who seemed to be in a dream. And the wheel began to turn.
Now, they bought higher-level metals, letting the forgers work after refining everything. They only needed to come back every week to put the seals, and the elf worked preparing the sales.
So, after ten days since their arrival in the inner sect, they finally headed to the factions, pockets full. ’Having so many mouths to feed is troublesome.’ Bruno commented lightly.