Legacy of Hatred

Liam kept smoking, staring at the true face of the man who had been behind one of the worst periods of his life. Several meters separated him from the undercover Elder, but that distance hardly had any meaning to a branching expert.

The Alchemy Elder might have told Liam to activate the Primal Urge and run in those encounters, but there was no safety to be found in the Evergreen Canyon.

With the alleged reinforcements crawling past the formation, Liam was virtually surrounded. Actually, everyone was, and the brown-haired woman had shown how even his fellow disciples could belong to the Divine Cult.

It turned out Liam’s assumption had been correct. That ploy wasn’t limited to the fake Elder. Chances were every Sect was compromised, leaving him no real way out.

Panic should have arisen. Anxiety and unwillingness would be normal responses to a threat that Liam had no power to oppose.

However, Liam felt strangely calm, utterly focused instead of distressed. That wasn’t his first time facing certain death, and he had made his peace with it.

Liam had done his best, leaving nothing to chance, pushing himself until his dantian, body, and mind were on the verge of breaking, even making that painful threshold his new normality.

If death truly came anyway, Liam would simply welcome it. He would still struggle to the bitter end, but he would accept whatever outcome followed, knowing that he had lived his life how he wanted, even preparing in ways no one else could have endured.

Actually, Liam would probably try to laugh, too. After all, that was what his Master had taught him he should do.

If anything, Liam felt glad the white-masked man hadn’t come earlier. At the very least, he had done something for Melissa in that potentially last moment.

With the crystal-clear flask and Simon dead, Melissa’s life was bound to improve. Liam had taken care of her, providing for her, abiding by an instinctive duty he had no name for.

"But I would have never expected you to possess the legendary nine spiritual roots," Elder Basil admitted, leaving the trunk to straighten himself. "To think such a prized seed had escaped the Divine Cult’s grasp."

Liam just kept smoking, blowing out poison until the pipe was empty.

"And you even possessed a poison core," Elder Basil commented, watching the black smoke disperse in the air. "I initially thought my underling had messed up, but I see now that everything has been your doing."

Liam calmly stored the pipe. His eyes never left the fake Elder, but his other senses kept updating him on his surroundings.

Movement happened everywhere, with some growing closer and more distinct. Liam could now confirm that the noise indeed belonged to footsteps. It seemed the Divine Cult had launched a full-scale invasion.

Yet, it was odd. Something at such a large scale would inevitably attract attention, and the Evergreen Canyon remained the Swallowing Forest Sect’s property.

The place also had another Elder, so someone must have noticed the chaos and reacted accordingly, but the white-masked man kept wasting time.

"Don’t bother, little beast," Elder Basil said when he spotted something in Liam’s face. "No one is coming for you. I’ve already sent word that the situation is under control."

That confirmed another of Liam’s assumptions, but the fake Elder pushed it even further.

"As for dear Elder Sherman," Elder Basil continued, waving his hand to materialize something in his palm. "I’m afraid he is indisposed."

A new stench of blood invaded the scene. The bleeding head of an elderly man with long white hair and beard rested in the fake Elder’s palm. Liam saw his first dead branching expert that day, the only one who might have salvaged the situation.

Still, as the fake Elder made the bleeding head disappear, dots clicked in Liam’s mind. If the white-masked man wanted him dead, he would be, and that detail matched the numbing poison from the hooded cultivators’ knives.

"Did you do all this to kidnap me again?" Liam asked, finally breaking his silence.

"You have a good brain inside that skull," The Elder praised. "But no. This isn’t to kidnap you. The plan is to kidnap everyone and refill the Divine Cult’s ranks."

A flicker ran through Liam’s feral look. It seemed the Divine Cult had stepped it up, targeting proper, trained disciples instead of random kids.

"Admittedly," Elder Basil added. "The plan was to wait a few more years, until the Divine Cult was rooted deeply into each Sect. However, I couldn’t risk letting you become even stronger."

It turned out Liam had been both right and wrong. The Divine Cult’s plan had nothing to do with him. The fake Elder had simply launched it ahead of time to ensure that Liam was among the kidnapped disciples.

"The Divine Cult can’t control me anymore," Liam declared.

"Should it?" Elder Basil wondered, smiling. "Little beast, Liam, you escaped on your own, leaving your fellow seeds to an unknown fate. You also fight as the Divine Cult taught you, and to murder your Senior Brother no less."

Elder Basil finally moved, taking a step forward, which was enough to intensify Liam’s feral expression. Liam didn’t act, but the entirety of his being was readier than ever for whatever could come in his direction.

"We are of the same ilk," Elder Basil said, his smile broadening at Liam’s reaction. "You don’t belong here. These Sects, these orthodox cultivators, they don’t think like us. They have rules, limits that we don’t even consider."

As correct as Elder Basil was, Liam didn’t waver. After all, Liam didn’t think in terms of orthodox or Demonic Sects. He only saw his life against the world.

"Just come with me," Elder Basil offered. "The Divine Cult will groom you like the Sects never could. It will make you a true champion who won’t need to fear and overcome the suppression of those who want to control you."

Elder Basil took another step forward, completing his offer. "Join the Divine Cult, and the Divine Cult will unleash you. There are no rules in this world, only strength, and we will enable you without the restraints of morals or laws."

The offer had a distinct appeal, albeit not for the benefits Elder Basil had listed. Being freed of the suppression of politics and internal ploys did sound good, but Liam saw a far greater advantage.

Liam’s very bloodline made him an enemy of the Dragon King and his Kingdom, and the Divine Cult wanted to destroy them, or at least shatter the latter.

In a way, Liam and that Demonic Sect were natural allies, joint against a common enemy. Yet, his mind remained firm.

"No," Liam refused for no other reason than that wasn’t the life he wanted to lead.

"How stubborn," Elder Basil sighed. "I had hoped some experience in the real world would have opened your eyes to its limits, but I forget how young you are."

Liam’s eyes were already open, so he didn’t really understand that part, but the fake Elder didn’t hesitate to reclaim his attention.

"But you are wrong," Elder Basil exclaimed. "You might have developed immunity to our drug, but there are other ways to control you. What was the name you uttered? Melissa?"

The hiss had never waned. It never had the opportunity to do so, but it intensified to levels that almost took over the entirety of Liam’s mind now, prompting words he had learned from a being far greater than him.

"If you do something to Melissa," Liam declared, his voice as chilling as his face, "I’ll swallow the Divine Cult whole."

The threat was obviously empty. Elder Basil knew that a foundation expert, no matter how promising, had no hope of harming the hidden, intricate monster that the Divine Cult was.

Nevertheless, something in Liam’s words forced the Elder to hesitate. While naive and stemming from ignorance, that sounded like a lifelong vow, one that Liam was ready to wager his life on.

That was a problem. The Divine Cult had plenty of brainwashing techniques that didn’t involve poison, but Liam was too precious to transform into a mindless weapon. Elder Basil craved Liam’s true power, and that could only come willingly.

"What a conundrum," Elder Basil commented. "Let’s see if it’s worth my time, shall we?"

Elder Basil lifted beckoned with his hand, almost stirring Liam into action, only for something else to arrive and keep him still.

The footsteps that had continued to grow closer finally converged into the area until five hooded foundation experts appeared among the trees around Liam, surrounding him.