Chapter 403: Melting
But Vale didn't think it was that. After all, if it was, they would have found him suspicious. Then maybe they didn't know what they were even looking for? That's also possible. Vale needed to know what they were looking for. It might be related to him and might spell danger!
At the same time, something flashed through Vale's mind. '....this Hinterlands is mine, and if they are indeed looking for something in my territory, then shouldn't it be mine as well...'
Just then, Vale had the feeling of someone watching him too intently, as if they were trying to burn his expression into their memory. He looked up swiftly, unconsciously using essence to enhance his speed, and he saw the expression on Timmons' face.
The man was studying his expression! Vale understood some matters then. Some people other than the Hollow Grave must have an idea of what's going on, maybe some of the High Clans as well, and how could Vale not look suspicious?
In all of the Hinterlands at the moment, he's the most suspicious as an Errant Knight for killing Master Knights!
'....so the Gem Organization is a way of probing me? Or am I reading too much into all of this....'
Vale paused as something else occurred to him. '...what if it is another Forbidden Knight? And they are here for the Shard of Infernal that I have?...'
It was something Vale had already thought about, and he knew a day would come when he would start having to look over his shoulder for things like that. But at the moment, Vale was using the Old Man as a shield, and there was also the fact that he still wasn't powerful enough to provide a suitable meal for any Forbidden Knight.
'...either way, I can't escape the attention of people. Worse, I have to start drawing that attention personally.....'
Vale looked at Timmons deeply. "I too am interested in what they are looking for in the Hinterlands."
Timmons showed a bitter smile, his previous expression long hidden as he shook his head. "My Lord, I truly know nothing apart from that, and if there are any clues regarding such information, then I don't have the clearance for it. Maybe only the leaders of my organization are in the know."
Vale found that reasonable.
Timmons hesitated. "My Lord, maybe you could indeed exchange information with the organization. Or provide tasks for them."
"What type of information?" Vale asked casually. Knowing the type of questions others sought about him would help him narrow down their intentions somewhat.
Timmons said bluntly, "Everyone in the Hinterlands is curious about your new source of power. Is it an Artifact? Did you make a deal with some entities? Are you secretly a powerhouse who's been pretending to be a weakling all along? And a famous question: are you even the real Vale Athrimir?"
Vale couldn't help but blink long and hard when he heard the last part. But he soon realized that it indeed made some sense. He maintained a slight smile as he replied, "I won't be exchanging any information for now."
Timmons nodded as if he expected no less. "As you wish, My Lord."
"You said none of the High Clans would attempt to absorb the Hinterlands until now. Your answer did provide information that cleared up some things. But you still haven't touched on why my Clan is hated.
"But before that, I'm still curious about what could make the High Clans unite on matters concerning the Hinterlands by appointing an overseer to look over it every fifty years. It must have something to do with my Clan and the recent rise of the Tachibana Clan."
"You are right, My Lord. It is because of the barrier breaker."
Vale's eyes darkened immediately. "Barrier breaker?"
"Yes."
The so-called barrier breaker was just the fancy name given to anything that might make it possible to help Knights advance to the next rank. Vale felt something stir within him, and he already began to have a bad feeling.
"Human refinement."
Timmons nodded solemnly. "Yes, My Lord. Specifically, the one that helps with advancement to the Grandmaster rank."
Vale's eyes flickered as he connected the dots, a grim expression appearing on his face. "So, my family harvests Master Knights for the High Clans."
It wasn't a question, but Timmons nodded.
"Yes. Nobody really knew when it started, but eventually, too many missing Master Knights over too long a period drew attention, and the mystery was solved. Your family had the highest number of Knights then, both because they weren't refined and because Knights went to them for fear of getting kidnapped and taken.
"This was the method that made you dominate for so long, and no Clan dared to stand up to your family, especially since you always had an overseer at the Grandmaster rank looking over things. That's why you are rich; they buy your goods at far higher rates."
Timmons continued, "The thing is, the High Clans need the barrier breakers. They need them if they want any hope of growing their Master Knights into Grandmasters. As we all know, essence is the way we advance ourselves, evolving our cores with the essence we absorb from monsters and turning our core into something else. At the Grandmaster rank, we need to fuse this core into our very being, our self becoming the vessel of power instead of storing it in the core. This process is called Melting, and it requires a massive amount of the special aspect you are attuned to."
Vale and the others listened intently even though they'd heard some versions of the information before. With Vale now a Clan leader, some information was now easy for him to obtain.
"You must melt the core completely without leaving a single trace behind. Unfortunately, the vast majority of Grandmasters don't achieve this pure Melting, as it all depends on the Melting Ritual you use."
Tiber asked a question, his eyes shining. "Melting Ritual?"
"Yes. Once you are sure you want to take the step into the Grandmaster rank, your aspect and the technique you've been cultivating will have an impact on the type of Melting method you use. These methods are called Melting Rituals. As I said, some will melt the core completely. The purer the Melting Ritual, the better for the new Grandmaster.
"The Melting Ritual is different for each person and each technique. And the more superior your Melting Ritual, the stronger your True Form will eventually be. Some Melting Rituals can achieve eighty percent purity, which is already considered good. But anything below sixty percent is considered trash, and the Grandmaster has absolutely no hope of advancing after that. Such Grandmasters are weak and are known as quasi-Grandmasters."
"Anything above a ninety-percent Melting Ritual is controlled only by prestigious Clans; not even the High Clans qualify. The Knight Assembly also has these rituals. Don't forget that the better the Melting Ritual, the stronger the True Form and future potential, so it's a very important thing. Very important, and nobody wants anything to go wrong during the process. And that's where the barrier breaker comes into effect."
"Every ritual is different. But they share something similar."