Paragon of Sin

Deeply pleased by Liu Suyin's agreement, Wei Wuyin fixed a stare at the chasm of time and chaos churning about endlessly at the edge. With every heavy throb of his heart, he resisted the urge to leap into this abyss. An act that brought Kratos a bellyful of roaring discontent. 

'It's only because of those seniors' scathing rants and raging frustrations that I can twist this to my favor, otherwise, I'd have made a huge misstep.' While evading this laid-out bait might have seemed easy at a glance, merely revealing a bit of fear and the Guardian's reaction was swift and decisive, it was anything but.

The Time Vortex was a place written about in many personal scrolls detailing the journeys of seniors who've left this world. Most of them described the giant Guardian of the Vortex in great detail, including no small number of those who had their opportunities revoked due to displaying fear for the briefest of time, decided in a few seconds, and no begging gave them this opportunity again. 

According to those records, the guardian was a special status that existed on par with the City Lords of the Three Cities, and even Liu Yinlan herself can't do more than assign certain cultivators the right to enter the vortex. His jurisdictional authority exceeded theirs here, and there have been times when he'd outright banned certain cultivators from entering the vortex, occupying one of the limited numbers of Protective Flowshells. 

The man himself was strict and concise, acting instantly and treasuring every second of his time. To those who wasted their time in their refusal to seize this opportunity now, then it'll only result in forever losing this opportunity. If Wei Wuyin was unaware of this personality trait, he might've simply directly rejected the opportunity outright after hearing about the academy and been banned for life, rather than show a quivering fearful expression and shaking heart for the guardian to see, only delaying his entry rather than the depressing alternative. 

Essentially, he used the words 'not ready' initially to garner this result. It showed self-awareness, and the guardian was known to provide leeway to those who weren't ready and aware of this. A senior had detailed in his journal how she was given a few months to think it over after proclaiming her preparations weren't enough, and then fearful after almost being forced to do so. 

It led to this exact result. 

Liu Suyin and Wei Wuyin left the Time Vortex and entered another Skyship in a nearby docking area. During this, Liu Suyin's expression was impassive and she remained silent. Despite her act, the glimmer of curious light would flicker from time to time within her eyes.

After they found their seating yet again, Liu Suyin flatly admonished: "You almost lost a rare, heavenly opportunity with that stunt of yours." Her words were backed by her understanding of the guardian and his strict attitude. It seemed she wanted to say this earlier but hadn't due to being fearful of the guardian overhearing. 

Wei Wuyin faintly smiled at her consideration. He stared out at the window as the Skyship was preparing to take off, changing the topic: "Is the Voyage Academy of Myriad Transformations the only academy in the City of Guardians?" 

Liu Suyin gave Wei Wuyin a long look, an urge to pelt him with rebukes surged in her heart, but observing his handsome side profile stifled that desire in its cradle. "No, but it's the only academy for Creationists within the World Between the Fold. At least, the one strictly regulated and given certain permissions."

"Permissions? Like access to higher-grade alchemic information?" Wei Wuyin probed.

Liu Suyin slightly nodded, "there are other organizations and clans established in the World Between the Fold, especially amongst the three cities. The overall situation is far too complex to explain in one sitting. In a way, it's a cultivation society fully functioning in its own right with its own set of laws. These organizations and clans established their legacies, but eventually, these legacies will be seized, copied, and regulated."

"That seems tyrannical," Wei Wuyin commented. The City Lords seized legacies and restricted what can and can not be trained in, known, or cultivated. But considering their mission, it might be to prevent threats from erupting without any oversight or security in place. 

"Are the Sealed Regions under similar regulations?" Wei Wuyin asked. The Sealed Regions were overseen by the City of Endless and the Void Voyage Sect, and it was clear they were its warden, but they've never involved themselves openly in the development or history of the Sealed Region. At least, Wei Wuyin hadn't found any records yet. 

"No, not similar or the same. The Sealed Regions have certain restrictions, yes, but these are more so guidelines of how the World Between the Fold and the Sealed Regions should conduct themselves, and we don't extend ourselves in their affairs unless it's absolutely needed." At the end of her words, her eyes flickered and she added: "At least Destined, Seekers, and assigned members of the sect don't."

"So, you're saying that alchemic information is unregulated in the Sealed Regions? And that those like the Firstborns can interfere freely?" Wei Wuyin's mind stirred. 

"It's not, but under certain circumstances, the World Between the Fold will involve themselves to ensure the stability of the Sealed Regions. And yes, the Firstborns can act freely, but their knowledge is restrained by oaths to prevent unnecessary dissemination and induce widespread panic." 

"Panic or rebellion?" Wei Wuyin inwardly sneered. If cultivators knew they were locked in against their will, the first instinct would be to escape, and if they were aware that they were encaged with a beast capable of threatening the safety of the world beyond, they'll struggle in their fear. 

"Both." Liu Suyin didn't deny it. She was, however, stunned by Wei Wuyin's swift understanding of the situation. 

"These restrictions, do they involve the existence of Worldly Saints or Worldly Saint Alchemists?" Wei Wuyin was curious about quite a few things, and there had always been a few suspicions in his heart after hearing about how the King of Everlore had escaped the Sealed Regions, leaving shortly after becoming a Worldly Saint Alchemist. It was abrupt, and not a single one of his entourage was brought with him.

Wu Yu had remarked on the King of Everlore's heartlessness, and Wei Wuyin had the belief that it was due to the innate flaws of his first investments, seeing them as failures, but now knowing about the World Between the Folds and the truth about the Sealed Regions, the story no longer made sense.

Liu Suyin knew that Wei Wuyin was referring to that legendary figure that shook the entire Sealed Regions, the King of Everlore, and she didn't shy away from answering. "Yes, they do."

"So they're expelled? Allowed freedom outside the Sealed Regions?"

"Worldly Saint Alchemists are," Liu Suyin blandly stated. Wei Wuyin's eyes shone slightly, asking: "And those who reach Worldly Saints?"

"Not possible," Liu Suyin shook her head. Shockingly, she didn't elaborate on this despite him constantly seeking out answers. Despite her silence, likely the result of it involving core secrets, he wasn't too dim to not understand the bread crumbs: there was something about the Sealed Regions, likely relating to the Sealing Array, that prevented Worldly Saints from rising. If so, what about the Aeternal Sky Divine Emperor? For the longest time, Wei Wuyin had the suspicion that the Sealed Regions believed that the Imperial Clan's Emperor was a Worldly Saint.

Why?

Because he was listed as the 'strongest' expert but not within the top three of the Earthly Saints. The top three were the Soul Saint King of the Ninestar Starfield, the Imperial Advisor of the Imperial Clan, and the Boundless Martial High King of the Boundless Martial Sect. If Liu Suyin was adamant that Worldly Saints weren't possible within the Sealed Region, then what was this? 

Yet again, Wei Wuyin found himself confronted by a wall of distorted mystery. This trip to the World Between the Fold had answered many, many questions, but also added far more to his heart. 

"..." Liu Suyin saw Wei Wuyin's question spree had ended and her indifference gave way to interest. Before long, she slid a question regarding spatial energies his way, and they once again began discussing this profound topic. 

Within Wei Wuyin's Sea of Consciousness, he manifested a mental incarnation with his primary mind, arriving at the base of Eden's roots that were enveloping the Heavenly War Spirit's egg. He had a few things to ask.

-----

Three days passed before Wei Wuyin and Liu Suyin left the Skyship. When they exited, Wei Wuyin's eyes widened uncontrollably, besieged by shock as a burst of familiarity surged through his mind. The Academy was a magnificent silver tower that was heaven-reaching! While there were countless buildings of lesser grandness surrounding it, the tower was clearly its center.

'The Myriad Tower of the Seven Paths?!' Wei Wuyin's heart fiercely shook as the Alchemist Association's true headquarters in the Everlore Starfield overlapped with this tower in his mind. Not only did it resemble it exactly in design, it gave off a similar aura of prestige and purpose, but the size and intensity of this aura were a thousand-fold! 

Liu Suyin gave Wei Wuyin a sneaky sidelong glance, seeing his shock and awe gave her a sense of pleasure and satisfaction, a strange feeling for her. It even led to a slight, faint smile that was as rare as a supernova, and as swiftly vanishing as smoke in a hurricane. 

"The Voyage Academy of Myriad Transformations," she introduced.