Myriad Rivers to the Sea

After a full night of peaceful rest Li Yu, woke up in his luxurious guest quarters. The bed was made from soft woven silk and other materials that felt lighter than air and the ambient arrays in the room kept the temperature perfect.

He stepped out of his quarters and found a dedicated group of elite guides waiting for him. Emperor Xerxis had kept his promise. He assigned his most trusted people to show the young master around the grand capital.

The capital city of the Hive Empire was a sprawling city. Li Yu walked out onto a massive balcony and looked over the city. The entire metropolis was built using a perfect hexagonal structure. Towering spires of golden amber and dark stone locked together like the cells of a colossal honeycomb. The streets below were paved with a smooth, translucent resin that glowed with a warm yellow light.

Above the city the sky was filled with constant movement. Flying insect beasts carried heavily armored troops and cargo between the towering spires. The air smelled of sweet nectar and the faint metallic tang of forged weapons.

Li Yu turned to his designated guides. There were three of them and they radiated terrifying amounts of power.

The lead guide was a tall, slender being with the bladed arms of a praying mantis and a humanoid face covered in fine green scales. To his left stood a hulking brute with the thick plated shell of a scarab beetle. To his right was a woman who possessed the delicate iridescent wings of a dragonfly and eyes that sparkled with intense spiritual energy.

As they walked through the golden amber streets, Li Yu casually probed their cultivation levels.

He was genuinely surprised by the results. The mantis commander was at the Law Seed realm. The hulking scarab brute and the dragonfly woman were both in the Law Integration realm. These were absolute powerhouses of the empire. They were beings who could easily wipe out entire continents in the demonic world he had just left.

The fact that Xerxis assigned people of this incredibly high caliber to simply act as tour guides showed how much care was being given to Li Yu. But with their strength also came questions. Li Yu did not see any people this strong back during the invasion of the Demonic realm.

Li Yu asked them about this and found out that they were too strong to come over originally. By the time the rift was strong and stable enough for them to cross over, it could already also support Xerxis coming over. So Xerxis just went himself since he liked to do things that way.

Earlier in the morning, Xerxis had strictly ordered them to tell the young master absolutely anything he wanted to know. Since it seemed like they were holding nothing back, Li Yu asked them endless questions. He asked about the history of the city, the specific functions of the hexagonal spires and the structure of their military.

Through their detailed and incredibly polite answers, Li Yu finally confirmed the absolute peak of the Emperor's power. Xerxis was indeed a Domain King expert. He stood at a level of authority that completely dwarfed the Kings of the realm he was at recently with Malos.

They spent the entire day walking through the bustling markets, observing the artisan forges and watching elite troops run through complex aerial drills. Li Yu found the culture fascinating. It was a brutal and militaristic society but it operated with a flawless and collective harmony that was truly beautiful to witness.

As evening approached, the three elite guides escorted Li Yu back to the central royal hive.

A grand banquet had been arranged in his honor. The dining hall was a cavernous room located near the very top of the central spire. The walls were lined with thousands of glowing nectar crystals that bathed the room in a rich warm light. Hundreds of high ranking nobles, generals and court officials were already gathered around long stone tables.

Li Yu walked into the hall and took his seat at the head table and was entirely alone.

Garrick had been completely missing all day. Li Yu had not seen the giant brawler since they arrived at the capital. But right before the grand feast officially began, the heavy doors to the dining hall swung open.

Garrick finally made his appearance.

The Great Sage walked into the hall and was still surrounded by a throng of women with exotic beetle features. He had a massive grin on his face and one of the women was actively feeding him a glowing fruit while he walked. He had entirely forgotten about his duty to guard Li Yu. He was completely lost in his own personal paradise.

Li Yu watched Garrick sit down a few tables away and was laughing loudly. He pulled two women onto his lap. Li Yu could only shake his head. He did not really judge him though. Garrick was his own person and this was something the large man clearly enjoyed and who was Li Yu to say anything about it. Garrick could do what he wanted as long as he wasn’t wantonly killing or harming others.

A moment later, Emperor Xerxis entered the hall and was accompanied by a stunningly powerful woman.

She possessed the lower abdomen of a majestic queen bee, entirely covered in sleek black and gold chitin. Her upper torso had sharp, regal features and a crown of dark horns curving back from her forehead.

She radiated a terrifying aura that washed over the dining hall. Li Yu recognized the pressure. She was most likely around the Law Seed or Law Integration stage. She felt significantly stronger than the King stage which he was intimately familiar with since that was exactly where Sovereign Morven, Ignis and Malos stood.

Xerxis walked up to the head table and proudly introduced her.

"Young master." Xerxis smiled broadly. "Please allow me to introduce my main wife Queen Teress."

Teress offered Li Yu a deep and respectful bow, perfectly mimicking her husband's tone.

Li Yu found the specific title interesting. Xerxis called her his main wife, implying there were many others. Teress did not seem bothered by this title at all. She carried herself with supreme confidence, clearly used to the complex social dynamics of the royal court.

The banquet officially began.

Servants poured endless cups of sweet glowing wine and brought out platters of perfectly roasted meats. The atmosphere in the hall was incredibly lively but Li Yu could feel the weight of hundreds of eyes resting on him.

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Many of the gathered nobles and generals openly wondered exactly who this young human was.

He clearly possessed a foundation that was much too weak to warrant this level of royal treatment. When Garrick had walked in surrounded by women and radiating his ancient power, most of the nobles made the immediate mistake of thinking the giant brute was the actual guest of honor.

But they quickly learned the truth. It was indeed the weak human boy who commanded the respect of their Emperor.

They all had their own private thoughts and skeptical theories but absolutely none of them dared to disrespect him or speak out of turn. They all knew he held Emperor Xerxis's main personal token. Holding that dark metal token meant his word carried the exact same weight as if Xerxis was standing there speaking himself. They ate their food and offered polite toasts, terrified of stepping out of line.

After the lavish dinner concluded Xerxis leaned over the table.

"Young master." Xerxis whispered. "If you are not too tired I would be honored to show you something truly spectacular. Something very few outsiders have ever witnessed."

Li Yu agreed, completely curious about what Xerxis was talking about.

Xerxis led Li Yu away from the dining hall and took him much deeper into the palace. They walked down a series of spiraling ramps that descended directly into the very heart of the central spire. The temperature grew significantly warmer with every step and the air became thick with the incredibly rich scent of royal jelly.

They finally arrived at a set of massive and heavily guarded doors. Xerxis waved his hand and the guards pulled the heavy stone slabs open.

Li Yu stepped through the doors and his breath was completely taken away.

They stood on a wide observation balcony looking down into a cavernous birthing chamber that was easily the size of a small valley. The chamber was filled with massive glowing amber pools and thousands of busy worker drones moving with frantic efficiency.

But the most shocking sight was the beings resting in the center of the chamber.

There were dozens of them. They were Xerxis's other wives but they were in a completely different form than the Emperor or Queen Teress. They were literal giant queen bees. They were colossal creatures each the size of a small warship. Their massive abdomens pulsing rhythmically as they deposited glowing eggs into the amber pools below.

"My species for the most part spawns this way," Xerxis explained while standing next to Li Yu and looking down at the massive queens with absolute pride and there was also some love in his eyes.

"I am their father seed." Xerxis continued proudly with his voice echoing softly over the buzzing chamber. "These glorious queens produce the subjects. There is a massive and endless lineage of all kinds of people in my empire that were born exactly this way."

Xerxis let out a booming laugh. "I often joke that I am the actual literal father of millions but it is an absolute fact. A good one eighth of my entire empire are my direct sons and daughters."

Li Yu stared down at the massive operation in complete awe. It was a biological marvel.

"Having a massive army and an unbreakable support crew is simply the way of my people." Xerxis explained while leaning against the stone railing. "It is how we conquer and how we survive."

Li Yu was genuinely surprised that Xerxis would willingly show him all of this. This birthing chamber was the vulnerable heart of the empire.

Xerxis only smiled, noticing the shock on the young wanderer's face. "I thought you would be highly interested in such things, young master. Since you are out traveling the cosmos to see the world, I assumed you probably never saw something exactly like this before."

"You are absolutely right." Li Yu agreed and was completely mesmerized by the sheer scale of the hive. "I have never seen anything like this. It is incredible."

Xerxis smiled widely, his mandibles clicking with satisfaction. He thought internally that he had finally won over some true favor with the hidden experts. He had successfully shown the young master something completely new and breathtaking. This was absolutely great for him and the future of his empire.

The night eventually ended and Li Yu was escorted back to his luxurious quarters. He closed the heavy doors and sat down on his silk bed. He was taking a deep breath to process the wildly eventful day. As he relaxed his mind he suddenly sensed a familiar presence deep within his soul.

Li Yu closed his eyes and immediately sent his consciousness into his Koi Sanctuary. Khaos was where he always was besides that one time recently. However, he was not in his usual crab form. He was currently in his human form.

As Li Yu walked closer he studied the ancient warrior's face.

Li Yu noted how remarkably similar Khaos looked to Patriarch Karkin. The sharp jawline, the imposing posture and the deep dark eyes were an almost perfect match. Li Yu formed a solid theory in his head, believing that Khaos must be a lost family member of the Patriarch but he kept the thought to himself and did not say it out loud.

"You are back." Li Yu greeted him with a bright smile. "Where exactly have you been? You completely missed a crazy few days."

Khaos turned his back to Li Yu and began staring out at the gentle waves.

"Some very old friends of mine desperately needed my help." Khaos replied. "I had to leave to assist them."

"That is unfortunate," Li Yu said as he was walking up to stand beside him. "You really missed out. Let me tell you what happened."

Li Yu began to explain everything. He told Khaos about falling through the shattered rift and ending up in a realm. He talked about meeting a brilliant young prodigy named Muten and his beautiful Special Elder Kaia.

Khaos kept his back slightly turned but as Li Yu spoke about his younger self and the woman he loved, a soft and incredibly warm smile broke across the ancient warrior's face.

Li Yu then explained the breakthrough of Patriarch Karkin.

"I finally concluded the trip when Patriarch Karkin came to see me." Li Yu finished his story while reaching into his robes. "He gave me a token and he was incredibly specific about it. He told me to make absolutely sure that my teacher saw it."

Li Yu took out the metal token and held it out. Khaos slowly turned around. He looked down at the token resting in Li Yu's palm. The ancient warrior's eyes softened and lost its cold cosmic edge. Khaos gently reached out and took the token.

"I can learn many things from studying this specific token," Khaos said, his voice dropping to a quiet emotional whisper. "Could I possibly keep it for a while?"

"Of course you can." Li Yu agreed instantly. He was happy to help his friend. He was thinking about maybe telling Khaos his thoughts about his family but decided that it wasn’t his place. He couldn’t get back there now anyways, it wouldn’t do Khaos any good to think there was family out there for him and he couldn’t get there.

Li Yu took a step back and was preparing to leave the sanctuary.

"It is really good to have you back Khaos" Li Yu said sincerely as he offered a polite bow before his consciousness faded from the beach.

Khaos stood entirely alone in the quiet sanctuary.

He looked down at the metal token in his hand. His fingers traced the familiar carving of the petrified crab shell. He took a deep, trembling breath and slowly pushed his own refined Void Qi into the ancient metal.

The reaction was exactly the same as when Karkin had tested Star Crusher. A brilliant beam of light shot out of the token and struck Khaos directly in the chest.

The heavy imposing voice of Patriarch Karkin could then be heard. It was a voice Khaos had not heard spoken with such deep affection in thousands of agonizing years.

"I love you too, son."

Khaos closed his eyes and was completely overwhelmed by the sheer weight of the words. A single tear slipped down his weathered cheek. The message continued carrying the warmth of a father reaching across the impossible expanse of time.

"You weren’t the only one that didn’t say it enough. Know that you always have been and always will be my greatest pride, the reason for my arrogance. Even before I knew what you would become."

Khaos stood there holding the token tightly to his chest as the rest of the message continued to be played out.