Chapter 266 Chapter 266 – Moving Out
"So, will I be moved out of the sect for my safety?"
"hah… We still need to decide on that. However, your opinion will have the most weight in the final decision. I'd like to repeat my thoughts; while I can't promise that there will be no additional assassination attempts, I think here's one of the safest places for you. Are you sure you want to move out of the sect's territory?"
Fernando sighed and asked. He disagreed with Ken's opinion regarding this, but since it was a decision about Ken's safety and his method was already proven not without risks, he wanted to consider Ken's opinion too.
"I'm sure. I will be much safer if the Four Seasons Sect cannot even find me. Once they get the news that I disappeared, they might even offer a truce and leave the sect's territory."
Ken explained his reasoning and Fernando nodded in understanding. He already knew all that, but he felt like Ken would be under the heaviest protection by remaining under the noses of many elders rather than by being hidden.
Being hidden was an all-or-nothing tactic; he'd be completely safe as long as they didn't find him, but once they did, he'd become no more than a helpless pig waiting to be slaughtered. Since he was the very target of the Four Seasons Sect, the rules of war that banned higher stages from attacking weaker cultivators did not apply to him. He'd be killed or captured by the enemy elders if found.
"Fine, I will bring it up to the rest of the elders and Dominic, and we will see what we can do."
"Thank you, Uncle."
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After Fernando promised Ken to consider his request, he went straight to the patriarch's mansion while taking an inscribed communication stone out of his storage ring.
"Brothers and Sisters, I have an urgent matter to discuss with you regarding the safety arrangements for Ken Sue. If you care, please come to the patriarch's mansion to participate."
Fernando placed the stone back in his ring. As one of the main elite clans of the sect, the Sue clan had dozens of elders, but he expected less than 10 of them to arrive. Ken was simply not important enough for most of these elders to care about his safety arrangements personally even if they thought he had a bright future ahead of him.
Indeed, other than the patriarch who appeared obediently and himself, only 3 more elders arrived.
"Brother Fernando, what is it you want to discuss?"
Fernando explained the situation including the current arrangement and the assassination attempts that had taken place earlier that day.
"So, it sounds like we have two options. We can either replace the dead bodyguard with a peak sixth-stage cultivator, maybe also the survivor as well, or we can listen to the kid's preference to go into hiding in a faraway place. Is that right?"
One elder asked out loud, playing with the tip of her hair with her fingers as she pondered on it.
"Yes. It might be worth mentioning that sixth-stage cultivators would not have changed anything with their presence in today's events, maybe except for the second battle. The first one tried to take Ken by surprise with a poisoned blade while Ken healed him, and a sixth-stage cultivator would not be able to prevent that."
Fernando paused for a moment to let the elders think about his words before he elaborated.
"The trap in our territory was done by setting bombs, so if Ken stepped on one of them, he'd die regardless of the stage of his bodyguards. As for the second assassination attempt, stronger bodyguards would fail to react on time to the first attack anyway, and it was Ken's suspicions that saved him."
"Stronger cultivators would only make a difference in the course of the rest of the battle after the first attack. While it's worth it, we can see it's not perfect," the female elder commented.
"Exactly, the most dangerous attack of an assassin is his ambush. As for the cons and pros of hiding, you know them already," Fernando said, referring to the all-or-nothing nature of this tactic.
"I vote for listening to the kid's opinion on the matter. Since his safety is involved and no solution is truly better than the other, we should listen to his preferences. He had seen through our advantage as Darkness Qi users, it'd be hard to find something we want to hide," The same elder that saved Ken from the third assassin spoke next.
"I agree. It makes sense to let the child decide for himself since we can't promise his safety unless one of the elders volunteers to accompany him all day long every day."
The woman expressed her opinion and the four elders exchanged wry smiles after hearing about it, knowing none of them planned to work as a bodyguard for a fourth-stage youngster. As for the elders who were not present, it was obvious they'd be unwilling.
"What do you think, Dominic?"
The patriarch remained silent throughout the conversation among the elders. In the end, his title as the patriarch was only meant to give him authority over those under the Supremacy Phase. In the cultivation world where power reigned supreme, no title could give humans authority over someone with absolute power.
"I agree with the elders. I've been doing my best to restore his trust in the clan during the past months, and showing him that we respect his choices can be a good gesture that might boost his sense of agency and control, prompting him to feel better about himself and the clan."
"Mm, I remember now why you were chosen as the patriarch, you truly are good at manipulating emotions, boy."
Most people would deem Dominic as too old to be called "boy", but elders of their age still saw him as a young man.
"Thank you for your compliment, but I prefer to think about it as the ability to pacify others and increase morale."
"Of course. Since we came to a conclusion, I shall take my leave."
The elders soon disappeared from the place, leaving Fernando and Dominic alone in the meeting hall.
"Uncle Fernando, is there anything else?" Dominic asked when he saw the elder remained.
"Yes. Ken wants only you and me to escort him. Hiya, this child is truly untrusting. When I asked him if he suspects his own family and pressured him with my mind, he still said yes without hesitation."
"Haha, you are right, Uncle. I did my best to get him some friends from the young generation of the clan, but everyone was either too immature and weak or too old to become his friend. He's a tough nut to crack. Since he seems to like his monk subordinate and the monk showed some great capabilities, I thought to marry him into our clan and get some influence over Ken indirectly."
In the cultivation world, monks did not abstain from love. They avoided sexual relationships that were meant for pure pleasure alone, but they did get married and had kids.
"That's a good plan. You can also work on it peacefully when Ken is not around; he might have a surprise waiting for him when he's back if you can find a bride for that monk. I'm just not sure if he'd consider it as a pleasant surprise or an unpleasant one."
"Those were indeed my intentions after hearing today's meeting. Anyway, does it mean you want me to accompany the two of you to the hiding spot?"
"Yes, just in case an elder of the Four Seasons Sect forces me away from Ken, you will be his last line of defense against sixth-stage cultivators or lower."
"I understand."
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Ken received the news they'd be moving out the next day. Apparently, he'd be moved to a safehouse of the Sue clan in the south, near their further border from the central zone. It meant that Ken would go back to living in an area with a lower Qi density.
'Everything will come to a conclusion soon,' Ken thought to himself. Everything was moving fast toward the end of his time at the Phoenix Feather Sect.
He went to sleep early that day and told Emrys to be ready to leave with him a few hours. He had to be in peak condition for what was to come.
At midnight, he woke up and found a hot bath prepared for him by his maid, as well as a delicious snack right after.
"Soleil, I'm leaving now, and I will not come back. You know what to do."
"Young Master, please have mercy on me! Please take me with you, I will serve you my whole life with no fail!" The maid kneeled and begged desperately.
"Don't speak about it anymore."
She still tried, but severe pain assaulted her mind, rendering her unable to continue. Tears began to roll from her eyes uncontrollably, but Ken simply ignored them and left the house toward the meeting spot he was given.
'I've been here nearly 3 years,' he thought to himself. He was almost 10 years old now, and except for the year he spent at the central zone, he had been in the main Phoenix Feather Sect ever since his sixth birthday when he was taken from his parents by Norman and Krone.
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After Ken left, Soleil cleaned her face and wore a calm expression despite the mess in her mind. She did not want to, but it was the only way to stop the excruciating pain that was filling her head.
"Jake, please come here. Young Master told me to pass some news to you."
She spoke into a communication stone and Jake entered a couple of minutes later. He was relieved from his duty once Ken left his house a few minutes ago, so he did not get far yet when the maid called him.
"What is it?"
"Let's talk about it over a cup of tea. Please, have some tea with me while I tell you about it." Soleil poured tea with a tempting aroma into two jade cups and served him one.
The two sat in front of each other, raised their cups, and took a long gulp, savoring the taste. Their eyes slowly closed as their bodies turned lump. They felt as if their throats turned into sand, losing the ability to speak. Their heads slowly fell and rested on the table, knocking the cups off. Trails of saliva could be seen coming out of their mouths.
Tears came out of Soleil's eyes while Jake's mainly showed confusion and disbelief. A few minutes later, a collar appeared on Soleil's neck and broke to pieces, eventually turning into dust by the runes that were designed for self-destruction. It signified that the slave was dead.
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