The next morning, Ruri and the whale returned peacefully to the camp. Ruri held their hands while silently absorbing all the dense information that had been revealed to her. She didn’t utter a word or judge, even knowing that her master was far from being someone good and pure.
He had taken the lives of so many people that she would have difficulty finding an equivalent throughout her entire existence. She had heard him say this to Almin when they left, but it was challenging to truly comprehend. But after they told her in such detail, she finally understood... an entire universe was completely massacred by them...
However, she quickly understood that the past could not be changed. Currently, they were committed to saving lives and building a different path. Ruri could clearly feel the pain of guilt haunting them, but she was convinced that one day they would redeem their sins.
She believed it blindly, and Alm and Bruno sighed, realizing this unwavering faith in her. At the same time, they felt a weight dissipate from their shoulders. It was different to have people supporting them, even if it seemed irrational. In that moment, they felt that trying something new was worth it, even if they hadn’t been led to it.
That night, Ruri also underwent a significant internal transformation. Her view towards those who enslaved her people underwent a profound change. Their greed deserved punishment, yet she decided that this punishment should not be fueled by hatred. Even her master, an individual who committed unforgivable acts, she considered worthy of a chance for a fresh start.
Ruri’s understanding of the complexity of human beings led her to a more compassionate perspective. She acknowledged the importance of punishing wrongdoing, but sending them into the cycle of rebirth could offer a genuine chance. This couldn’t affect who she was.
Thus, the days passed peacefully. Alm and Bruno were relieved to see that Ruri now behaved like a caring woman without attacking them. Her maturity and calmness became evident. Quickly, Ruri saw the distance between them diminish, returning to what it was in the past.
However, both Alm and Bruno became strangely more unsettled than before. Her change in attitude slowly made them stop considering her just a child, and quickly, they began to think of her as something more.
The situation between Ruri and them was at a strange point. She was no longer a child, and her attitudes had matured as well. They no longer needed to teach her things. Soon, they questioned why they wanted to keep her by their side and why they didn’t consider leaving. All this conflict didn’t escape Ruri’s eyes, and internally, she was becoming more excited each day.
During these months, Fyclea and Lokar gradually became more integrated. Corin and Loeus even requested to add them to the training formation, but, despite seeming reliable, they had two clans behind them, and Alm and Bruno couldn’t trust those clans so easily.
The fact that Ruri was mastering one of the sect’s runes was a secret that could put them in mortal danger. However, once they joined the central sect and infiltrated the clans, they could have a broader judgment.
Thus, the sixth month within the inner sect finally came to an end. The test for the older disciples to enter the inner sect would happen soon.
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The whale received several messages through Nimfle from the old men of the Central Institute. Surely, they would find a way to prevent him from taking the test for the Central Forge Institute. So, he would simply continue as before, participating in the disciples’ test.
As they arrived at the large gathering of inner sect disciples, everyone turned to the three factions as usual. No one would expect the newcomers to be crazy enough to take the test.
They took calm steps toward a figure of powerful cultivation, who was the central elder in charge of the test. However, to their surprise, the elder, upon seeing the whale and his group approaching, just smiled and waved.
Alm and Bruno felt something was wrong. That smile didn’t convey disdain; it wasn’t from someone planning mischief. It seemed they were being looked at... with some tenderness?
They all approached and stopped, then the elder introduced himself casually, looking at the whale.
"Hello, Denil; I’m Derek."
He waited for some reaction, but the whale just stared at him indifferently. The surprised reaction came from the young woman beside the whale, who was stunned.
"Derek! He... he’s your father, master!" Ruri spoke, putting her hand over her mouth, and everyone around looked at the elder in astonishment.
Derek smiled in response. "Yes, I’m Derek Divinestone; I finally found you again, Denil. By higher order, as soon as I left you in our clan, I could never leave the sect. The clan leader never knew that I became a central elder; when I returned and learned that you were expelled, he regretted bitterly."
The whale felt a half-sincerity coming from him. Then, Bruno recalled the memories of Denil that he received as soon as he entered the body. He was surprised; Denil had no memories of his father or mother. In fact, he didn’t even know his father’s name. Ruri should know, as she was a slave of the leader and had no risk of leaking information.
Both Bruno and Alm became a bit serious. The whale replied dryly, "Sorry, but I have no father. You were just someone who helped give me life but never raised me or was present. The fact that I was expelled only makes that more evident. I grew with my own strength; don’t come now wanting to be my father."
Everyone heard and also felt the tension in those words in silence. Derek just sighed, strangely not showing nervousness or anger, which intrigued Alm and Bruno.
"You will understand soon. I made a promise, where I cannot break it. And only when you become a central disciple will you be considered a true adult man, then I can tell you everything," Derek spoke without much emotion. "I knew you would come for this test, so I made sure to be the examiner. Soon, I can ’deliver’ everything to you."
He emphasized the "deliver," which made Alm and Bruno realize. Something seemed off, and a gleam passed through the whale’s eyes in a millisecond. Alm used his divine soul to confirm an idea.
Derek felt something subtly invade him, and his eyes skipped. It was very quick, but he, who was at the ninth level of the Elemental Condensation Realm, had no resistance to it. So, he just sighed, seeming to understand what transpired.
It lasted a second, and Alm confirmed. ’It’s quite simple: he has a soul seal, a silence contract. It seems someone forced him to do all this.’
’Well, we’ll find out soon. He said he would deliver something to us.’ Bruno replied.
Soon, all the disciples of the three factions stepped forward and registered. Everyone looked at the central elder, now with an unusual respect, which made him feel a little strange. What kind of strange worship was this about the whale? He wondered.
When it was the whale’s turn, Derek just smiled awkwardly. "The forging institute didn’t bring any members for the central test. I also find that very strange... anyway, you did the internal test with the disciples before, right? It shouldn’t make a difference now."
The whale just nodded and registered for the test. From his words, it seemed they knew all his steps; but if he was his father, the Divinestone clan must have said they entered the sect, and he must have kept an eye on them.
Once the registration was over, Derek waved to everyone. "Let’s start the central test now."
Then, space distorted, and a green, open field appeared in the background. This was already inside the central sect, and one could already feel a great influence of the Yang seal subtly radiating life in the area.
Everyone entered calmly, and the elder spoke lightly. "The test doesn’t involve battles like the internal disciples, but rather understanding and willpower. It will be a faction-based test, obviously. Everyone must go through it together, or everyone will fail."
The disciples sensed an unprecedented level of difficulty. Fighting was something simple, either you won or lost. However, understanding and willpower were hard to measure or even train; all those disciples had spent all their resources improving their powers... but now, everything seemed to crumble.
"Eight factions registered for this test, where there should have been only five initially. In the central sect, there’s a rule that a maximum number of disciples is approved. Now, the competition has become much larger, exceptionally. Only five factions can pass, no matter if everyone succeeds. So, the first five."
Everyone looked around. As in the previous test, there were five factions representing the five major clans. Usually, all five are approved, but with the three factions of new disciples; the limit of the rule was triggered.
"Well, let’s begin," Derek spoke and took a step back, distancing himself about a kilometer.
Under watchful eyes, he smiled and took something out of a spatial ring. Then, a small yellowed box appeared. Intense earth runes covered the box, making it clear that it was a seal.
"The test is simple," Derek spoke lightly, making a move and removing the runes. "Here, there is something of extreme importance to the sect and its central disciples. And for you to be approved, you must have the minimum compatibility and be accepted."
He opened the box, and a tiny, one-centimeter bone that looked like a tiny fragment emerged. Then, in a second, that bone started to glow... a light bringing a strange sensation sprouted like a tiny star.
Suddenly, everyone felt a hammer drop on their shoulders, and almost everyone there fell to the green ground as if their bodies weighed tons.
"You must walk to me. To do that, you must understand this power and resist it. You have twenty-four hours, the first ones will be approved. If time runs out, everyone who remains will fail." The elder concluded, making the little solar star float and sat calmly attentive to everyone.
’This is the law we found. But a bone was supposed to represent death, how can something so close to Yang come from it...’ Bruno commented mentally, curious.