Elaine reluctantly left the void chamber with Dante.
He was insane, and she felt sick listening to his nonsense. But It wasn't often that she was allowed access to the void chamber, which was one of the only places she could get access to a substantial amount of void Qi to cultivate with. While they talked, she had been cycling the abundant void Qi in the chamber throughout her body and filling her Soul Core.
If only I could cultivate like this without the help of an array. Dante may believe our affinity is superior to everyone else, but that's because he can ignore the massive downside I have to live with daily. The scarcity of naturally occurring void Qi made reaching even the first stage of the Soul Fire Realm at 25 years old a struggle.
Elaine sighed as her steps echoed through the corridor with pulsing silver lines interwoven in the walls. They all led back to the void chamber fed by an enormous and expensive array throughout the manor.
It took weeks for the chamber to accumulate void Qi, so its use was restricted to those in the family that the Grand Elder had deemed worthy. People like Jasper, the Elder, and maybe others from her family that are attending the Academy.
Not her. Elaine had been cut off from the family's resources due to her supposed lack of talent—which she now realized was a translation for having an impure spirit root. Ever since taking the truffles from the Patriarch, her mind and body felt in perfect harmony and clean from impurities making cultivation a breeze.
If only I could have unlimited access to a void chamber like my brother. Maybe then I could reach the Star Core Realm like he has.
"Do you have any idea why they are here?" Dante asked Clive, who was walking quickly beside them.
"The Redclaws said that Elaine was expected at an important meeting," Clive replied, "Although they refused to mention what for."
Clive's words helped bring Elaine's thoughts back to the present. Now that she thought about it, why would the Redclaws be here? She hardly ever interacted with them, and she had no planned meetings as far as she knew.
Even from behind his tall figure, Elaine could hear Dante grinding his teeth in annoyance. "Vile scum, coming in here as if they own the place," he muttered under his breath as they continued through the manor.
"My Lord, please remember to keep your composure," Clive mentioned, which surprised Elaine. "Your Father expects results. Which includes spreading the wonders of the alchemy technique you have been practicing."
Dante snorted, "We could achieve that without attending their little tournament. I don't know what Father is thinking—"
"My Lord, did he not inform you about the Silverspires?"
Dante paused mid-stride causing all three of them to come to a halt. He looked down and glared at Clive, "Come again?"
"The alchemy tournament is being sponsored by the Silverspire family," Clive explained, "Rumours are that the Silverspire Grand Elder's children have entered some type of competition where they compete for profits. One of them has settled here in Darklight City and decided to pour their money into the tournament."
"Doesn't this hamper our plans? If we mess with the Silverspires, we risk angering the Nightrose family."
Elaine could barely contain a smile. Seeing Dante in such distress over the Silverspires while she had the image of the 7th son in her mind made the whole thing rather comical.
"Fret not. We had informants learn that the heir to grace Darklight City was the 7th son."
"Since when was there a 7th?" Dante asked.
"He's only a few years old, so he was likely birthed during your closed-door cultivation," Clive replied as they began walking again, "And since he's so young, we doubt that the Silverspire family expects much from him, nor does he hold much power over the Silverspire's forces."
"I see..." Dante mulled as he stroked his chin, "So I must still attend the tournament to show face and not mess with the Silverspire brat's investment. But once the tournament has finished, we can get away with taking over the city?"
Clive nodded, "That's the current plan, although we will continue intel-gathering operations in the meantime. There is always the possibility that we may need to postpone our invasion until after the Silverspire scion has left."
"What a waste of my precious time," Dante cursed, and the trio continued in silence until they reached the entrance hall. Waiting in the middle of the hall was a woman with crimson hair and a stern expression.
"Elder Margret, sorry for the wait." Clive switched his tone to that of a friendly host. "Lady Elaine was in discussions with Lord Dante."
"Sorry to interrupt then." Elder Marget replied while studying their faces with her sharp gaze, "However, Elaine had previously agreed to a meeting, and it would disgrace the Voidmind name to break promises with fellow cultivators. Wouldn't you agree, Dante Voidmind?"
Elaine saw the corner of Dante's eye twitch, his hand clench, and then unclench at his side. It was clear the way a Redclaw was speaking to him in his own home was angering him, but the gentlemanly demeanor he had honed over the decades won out—much to Elaine's relief.
"That is quite right, Elder Margret," Dante replied with a fake smile, "Elaine failed to inform me of such an arrangement, so please pardon my actions resulting in you having to waste your precious time coming to retrieve her."
Elaine stood in silence, but her brain was whirling the entire time, trying to decipher what this meeting could be about. Had she truly agreed upon a meeting and forgotten about it?
I said I would meet Douglas for lunch, but I doubt that warrants an Elder to collect me. So what is Elder Margret on about?
"Well then, we will leave without delay then." Elder Margret gestured for Elaine to follow as she began to walk toward the ajar obsidian doors.
"Wait a minute," Dante said, pausing her steps.
"Yes?" Elder Margret had a blank face.
"What is the meeting for?" Dante glanced down at Elaine, "I have yet to conclude my conversation. So I hope she will be returning soon."
"Elaine is on the planning committee for the Alchemy tournament," Elder Margret declared, and Elaine managed to hide her surprise.
Planning committee? What nonsense is this... unless...
Elaine began to connect the dots. The Redclaws worked for the Ashfallen Sect, so they may be here on the orders of the Patriarch. Did he want information out of her or something?
Other than that, all she could think was they had come to save her. But even that felt far-fetched. Her brother may be a creep and a bit insane, but he would never go too far against her as they shared the same parents... right?
Elaine bit her lip as she watched Dante and the Elder face off. Now that she thought about it more, maybe she should seize every opportunity to escape from her brother. If not for the allure of the void chamber, she would have tried to leave herself the moment their conversation had concluded.
Locking eyes with Elder Margret, Elaine finally broke her silence, "Oh, how foolish of me! I was on the way to the meeting when I was informed that my brother was arriving, so it completely slipped my mind."
Dante glanced at her with a look of doubt.
Elaine brushed off his gaze and stepped forward, leaving his side. "I will see you later, brother. We can talk some other time."
"I will come with you," His cold voice sent a shiver down her spine. "You have yet to show me around, so this is a good opportunity."
Elaine barely contained a frustrated groan.
Why did I have to eat that darn truffle? If I hadn't, he would have treated me worse than a maid and demanded I leave his sight.
"That would be rather inconvenient, as I assume you are here to participate in the tournament?" Elder Margret's words gave Elaine a glimmer of hope, "Participants shouldn't be seen dabbling with the organizers. Otherwise, you may be accused by the other participating families of foul play."
"Where is the meeting being held?" Dante asked.
"The Academy." Elder Margret replied after a brief pause.
"Perfect." Dante's smile grew wider, "The Academies across the Blood Lotus Sect are fully open to scions."
Elder Margrets frowned, "Fine, you can come with us, but you must remain outside the meeting."
Elaine began to feel anxious. How were they supposed to conduct a meeting for a society that didn't even exist while Dante was waiting outside?
Trying to ignore those thoughts, she followed Elder Margret outside, surprised to discover it was late evening. A substantial amount of time had passed since she met her brother at the airship station.
Her gaze then lowered and paused on the tall blonde-haired girl wearing a black mask standing at the end of the pathway, being eyed cautiously by the manor guards.
"Who is this?" Dante asked Elder Margret.
"This is a cultivator hired by the Silverspire family to help the committee members get around." Elder Margret effortlessly lied straight to her brother's face, "Darklight City is one of the biggest cities in the Blood Lotus Sect in terms of size, and the Redclaws are a small family, so we required some assistance to keep everything running."
"Right... that makes sense." Dante nonchalantly replied, "And how does she plan to assist us exactly?"
Stella clicked her finger, and a portal manifested right behind her. Through its distorted view was the Academy that Elaine was very familiar with.
"A Star Core spatial cultivator," Dante muttered beside her, and Elaine could feel the mixture of awe and terror in his voice, "The Silverspire family never fails to impress me."
"The portal can only take one at a time," Stella said, gesturing for Dante to step forward, "Why don't you and Elder Margret go first?"
Elder Margret stepped through with a pop of air, and her distorted body became visible on the other side.
Dante followed suit, giving the portal a dubious look before stepping through.
"Elaine, are you okay?" Stella quickly asked. Clearly, she was using Qi to mask her voice, as none of the nearby guards reacted.
Elaine gave a slight nod.
"Phew, that's a relief. You had us all worried that your family would do something to you," Stella gestured for Elaine to go through the portal but kept speaking, "The meeting is entirely made up and was just a chance for us to catch up. If you want to say anything, just write it out in ancient runes on the table, and we will pretend you are our runic expert. Also, we are considering conducting the meeting in the dining room with Douglas so Dante can see that you are involved with us."
Elaine gave another slight nod as she felt warmth in her heart. It was nice to hear they had been looking out for her.
And their idea of doing it out in the open could be good. Dante will see me as even more valuable for making his invasion work as he can use me to gather insider information.
A thin smile appeared on Elaine's lips as she stepped through the portal and felt the sudden change in environment from the quite noble streets to the bustling noise of the Academy campus.
If I can orchestrate this perfectly, I might be able to seize the leftovers of my family for the Ashfallen Sect.
***
Moments later, the eye-catching group was strolling through the Academy grounds. Men and women of indecipherable ages, due to cultivation slowing down the aging process, walked by while chatting with one another. As Darklight City was one of the less desirable locations where mainly delinquents and talentless heirs were sent, there was a more casual air about the place, which Elaine appreciated but Dante seemed to despise.
His gaze roamed the groups with a look of disgust deepening on his face. One group consisting of three women returned his glare, but the presence of Elder Margret, a cultivator hailing from the current ruling family, helped to defuse the situation before someone got killed.
Death on Academy grounds was rare, as the perpetrator was often kicked out and then denied the cultivation resources provided at the Academy, which was, in turn, a death sentence. Not to mention the Academy grounds were also treated as politically neutral grounds where students from all families could unite and further the strength of the Blood Lotus Sect.
Elaine glanced up at the white stone buildings bathed in the late evening sun surrounding her. Atop their roofs were cultivators hired by the Academy to ensure the security of the students while also there if someone tried to steal cultivation resources.
All their eyes were glued on their group, and Elaine couldn't blame them for the looks Dante gave all the students that passed by.
Is he just glaring at them because he feels superior, or is he doing that to protect me?
Elaine did feel numerous people staring at her specifically, but they all shifted their gazes when Dante caught sight of them.
As they approached the dining hall, which wasn't so far from the massive oval building that served as the library, Elaine caught sight of a familiar black-haired man running toward them.
"Dante, is that you?" Jasper shouted down the hallway. "I went to the airship station, but you were already gone! I hear you created quite the scene, though..."
"Jasper... so we meet again," Dante replied without a hint of warmth at seeing his childhood friend.
While the two talked, Elaine took the opportunity to sneak ahead into the dining hall with Elder Margret and Stella. Glancing around, she saw Douglas sitting in the corner alone at a table and picking idly at his food with a fork.
Joining the queue, she grabbed some food for herself from the self-service area as she felt a little hungry even after eating a sandwich this morning. She didn't have to eat, but there was a lack of food options on Red Vine Peak, so she planned to make the most of the food available here in the Academy.
The Ashfallen Sect really needs to hire some chefs...
Making her way over to the table and desperately trying to ignore the stares and whispers, she finally placed her tray on the table, causing Douglas to jolt from his trance.
"Elaine?" He glanced at her and smiled, "Glad to see you could make it. How's your brother?"
"He's fine..." Elaine's eyes darted to the doorway as she saw him wander in, half ignoring Jasper, who was hounding him with questions.
I can't talk about anything here. Dante's spiritual sense will easily pick it up. Oh yea... Stella said I could pretend to be a formation expert and draw out runes.
Elaine pulled back the chair and sat down. Stella did the same and sat beside her. Her tray surprisingly had food on it, and Elaine wondered how she planned to eat the small mound of purple meat sausages and dark yellow potatoes.
Her answer came in the form of Stella picking up a sausage and then summoning a small rift that led inside her mouth behind the mask and passing the sausage through.
I should have seen that coming. Elaine sighed as she noticed Elder Margret gesturing for Dante and Jasper to sit a few tables away before she took the final seat at the table.
"Right, on behalf of the organizer who fell asleep by the tree," Elder Margret said, and Elaine immediately picked up on the fact she was referring to the Patriarch, "Could you please draw out a runic formation for preserving the ingredients for the contestants?"
Elder Margret's spatial ring flashed with power, and a parchment, ink pot, and quill appeared beside Elaine on the table.
Without hesitation, she picked up the quill, dipped it in ink, and wrote out in the ancient runic language, which she only had a week of practice with:
End of the tournament, Voidmind invasion. Brother is the leader.
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