Birth of the Demonic Sword

The cultivator's words left Noah and King Elbas shocked. Heaven and Earth were already aware of their plan to steal energy from the worlds connected to the higher plane. Their grand strategy had already met a massive hindrance.

"Did you think Heaven and Earth weren't aware of that?" The cultivator asked while giving voice to his youthful laugh. "You might live in lands that they can't reach, but some words will always spread in the whiteness."

Noah and King Elbas couldn't help but exchange a glance. They didn't know why the cultivator was revealing so much, but it was clear that they had a problem.

"Don't look at me like that!" The cultivator laughed. "Heaven and Earth won't act until you hurt them, so the first part of your mission should go fine. You will only have to deal with these forgotten creatures."

"I didn't think Heaven and Earth could have traitors," Noah eventually exclaimed.

The cultivator's level was hard to discern since his power was immense, but Noah could sense that his law belonged to Heaven and Earth. The expert was part of the rulers' system, but his actions seemed to go against them.

"I'm not betraying anyone!" The cultivator shouted while interrupting his laugh for the first time. "I serve Heaven and Earth loyally. We only have different opinions on the path ahead."

"Can you even have different opinions?" Noah mocked the expert.

"I know you think of Heaven and Earth as monsters," The cultivator announced, "But they aren't different from other existences. They do what's best for their path. You all just happen to be on it, which is the very reason behind my different opinion."

The two experts remained silent at that point. It didn't matter if the cultivator was crazy or his words actually had knowledge backing them. They silently decided to listen to him and postpone their many questions.

"The hero's journey requires a quest, trusted friends, and, most importantly, an enemy," The cultivator explained. "The quest is pretty much done, and Heaven and Earth even had armies of trusted friends. What they lack is a proper enemy that can make them go past their limits."

"Is that why you are helping us?" Noah snorted. "Do you want to elevate our position to sworn enemies to help Heaven and Earth?"

"I don't know if it will be one of you," The cultivator replied while giving voice to his laugh. "I think that you are the best candidate, but who knows? Maybe one of your descendants will provide a proper opponent. I'm pretty sure this figure will appear in your organization. I just don't know when."

"We won't join your little plan," King Elbas scoffed. "Our path doesn't belong to any system. We are variables in a world that seeks control over everything. How can we even end up on this journey after your warning?"

"You are already on it," The cultivator laughed. "Your existences won't even allow you to stop. You are cursed to play your role, but I must make sure that Heaven and Earth don't kick you out until you are ripe."

"How would they even kick us out?" Noah asked. "They must abide by their fairness."

"The sky contains armies who have prepared for eras," The cultivator announced as his smile froze. "I acknowledge your power, but you have no idea how strong your opponent is. Heaven and Earth can't unleash their arsenal on you yet, but you'll eventually reach the ninth rank, and that will remove almost every limitation."

A threatening aura started to flow out of the cultivator. Noah and King Elbas saw the world in their vision transforming into a spectacle of intense lights that almost left them blind.

"You will grow," The cultivator eventually exclaimed while retracting his light, "You will seize a few victories, but you'll eventually lose. I need you strong to make that defeat an important event for Heaven and Earth. You will open the path to the tenth rank. It doesn't matter if you want it or not."

The cultivator turned toward the sky at that point, and his figure began to merge with the white material.

"Don't fear the beings hidden inside the darkness," The cultivator warned. "They are peculiar failures of old systems. They will be your opponents for this mission, but you can handle them."

The arms of the cultivator almost completely entered the sky during his final speech.

"You shouldn't use this hole," The expert continued. "Heaven and Earth have found their last valuable world on the other side. That alone should give you a target."

The cultivator continued to enter the sky. The white material had begun to absorb his legs by then.

"Heaven and Earth will send something after the theft," The cultivator added, "But you can handle it. It will be hard, and some of you might die, but those who survive will set the foundation for a rebellious higher plane."

The sky absorbed even his waist and started to drag the rest of his torso. Noah didn't know if the cultivator had any power over that procedure, but he studied it with great interest nonetheless.

"Do a good job and create a proper base for your breakthroughs," The cultivator ordered. "You need enough to survive until the ninth rank, so travel past the sky multiple times. The whiteness contains many worlds that Heaven and Earth use as sources of power. You won't lack targets."

Only the head of the expert remained outside of the sky by then. The cultivator's aura had also almost vanished.

"Prepare as much as you can," The cultivator ordered. "Grow strong and put up a decent fight once you meet the rulers. Try your best, and make your lives matter, at least in front of Heaven and Earth's eyes. Become the necessary stepping stone for the last breakthrough."

The cultivator was about to disappear inside the sky, but Noah promptly stepped forward.

"What's your name?" Noah asked as a cold smile appeared on his face.

The cultivator's mouth was already halfway through the sky, but he still managed to give voice to a single word, "Caesar."

The cultivator vanished completely at that point, and even his aura disappeared from the area. Only Noah and King Elbas remained slightly past the edges of the hole, but they both remained stuck in their position to review the recent events.

Everything had happened too quickly. The immense number of revelations had left them speechless, and they needed some time to accept the cultivator's words.

Heaven and Earth's awareness about the plan past the sky was a tragic event, but the duo couldn't do much about it. The rulers knew that Noah's organization would explore the void, but the latter wouldn't let that feature discourage them.

The void contained the existences discarded by Heaven and Earth throughout the eras. Those cursed by the rulers even attracted them, so Noah's team would definitely meet them during the mission.

However, Noah's organization had two powerful sword masters who could take care of those creatures. Issues would arrive if those strange existences had developed different abilities, but the team could only test that on the field.

Caesar had a special mission in mind, and Noah and King Elbas didn't mind playing along if that brought them benefits. They had yet to test that the holes on the other side could feature valuable targets, but part of them instinctively believed in the cultivator's words.

"Xavier then," Noah eventually mocked his companion. "I thought your first name was King for a period."