The Oracle Paths

942 Beginning Of The End

The news struck the audience like a nuclear bomb, obliterating their composure and poise with the unstoppable force of a shockwave. For a long moment, many Oracle Overseers present were left speechless, gasping for breath before slowly returning to normal.

As the initial shock wore off, panicked and stunned reactions erupted throughout the room. Some remained seated, gripping their chairs and gritting their teeth to resist the vertigo that made their heads spin. Others, refusing to believe it, leaped from their seats and vehemently objected.

"Impossible! No Ancient Designer has ever been killed in battle before!" A highly respected and well-known Rank 4 Oracle Overseer roared in disbelief. A trace of anger could be detected in the tremor of his deep voice, as if he had just been the butt of a tasteless joke.

He was an alien standing at least 10 meters tall, with a relatively humanoid appearance.Muscular, barefoot, and wearing a long robe, his skin was covered in onyx-black scales, horns, and spikes. He could have been the final evolution of a civilization that developed from a carnivorous dinosaur or reptilian species.

Xantheo, known for his intolerance of disrespect, remained calm against all odds, allowing the furious alien to exhaust himself. This was because the spittle-flying creature was in charge of all the A Planets in System ZZ831.

Only one rank separated them, and apart from this disrespectful alien, there was one other recently promoted Rank 4 Oracle Overseer he had to handle carefully: the one in charge of the B Planets.

Speak of the devil, she couldn't let her rival steal the show without reacting, and a rather raspy, chilling feminine voice suddenly cut in, "Are you done whining, Viser?" A brunette woman who might have been considered attractive, if not for the hundreds of purple eyes covering her face, blinked irritably in his direction.

Her voluptuous chest was concealed by a formfitting combat suit, her appearance undoubtedly appealing to human males - from the back, at least. Or from the front, if they had no issue with trypophobia. The real problem lay below the waist: one leg, two legs, three legs... far too many hairy legs and a massive, glowing orange abdomen.

Unhappy with the interruption, Viser bared his teeth but settled for disdainfully picking at them with his claw, "A little Silk Spinner managing only 848 Planets is hardly qualified to criticize me. Yao, come back when you manage at least 1000 like any self-respecting Rank 4 Overseer. I know Rank 3 Overseers who supervise more planets than y 11 A silk projectile splashed across his face, silencing him mid-sentence. The little Silk Spinner apparently didn't appreciate being prodded where it hurt, her ego unexpectedly fragile.

Seeing her so easily resort to violence, Viser tsked condescendingly, even though his face was still covered in her webbing. Clearly, this wasn't their first clash. And not his first victory either.

Once provoked, Viser would never hold back, to the point where he had amassed countless enemies. Despite a physique predisposing him to violence, appearances could be deceiving. His mind worked just fine; otherwise, he wouldn't have climbed the ranks to his current position.

When one reach their level and have lived as long as they have, there isn't much left in life to motivate them. His squabbles and bickering with his new colleague and rival brightened his days, and she was one of the few reasons he got up every morning.

Xantheo and the other Oracle Overseers found themselves riveted to their seats as they witnessed an exchange of barbs and insults that grew increasingly crass, until one of their guards, unable to bear it any longer, reminded them that there were more pressing matters at hand. Yet, their quarrel had not been wholly negative, as it had afforded the other Overseers and Guardians present a chance to recover from the devastating news.

During the squabble, another insignificant Rank 1 Oracle Overseer and his accomplice engaged in a telepathic discussion when the death of the Ancient Designer Lure was announced.

"Garos, pay close attention to the reactions of everyone present," Oros ordered immediately after Xantheo's shocking revelation.

Baffled by the unusual command, the Oracle Guardian Captain momentarily forgot his astonishment and stammered, "B-boss, you think there are traitors among us?"

"Sigh... Is there a single System where there arent?" The small alien retorted somberly.

Hearing his superior's gloomy comment, Garos grew serious and began to scrutinize the Oracle Overseers around him with extreme attention, gauging each of their micro-expressions. He knew it was probably already too late to detect anything, but he did his best to follow Oros's instruction. Because he knew it was an informal way of training him.

Why was it already too late? Because a being of an Oracle Overseer's level had excellent control over their body and emotions. It didn't mean they didnt feel anything—quite the opposite. Proportional to their intelligence, their emotions were sometimes, depending on the species, millions of times more intense than those of ordinary mortals. However, their reaction time and self-control were also an unfathomable number of times higher.

If there were any micro-expressions in response to an emotion, they had to be captured within a timescale shorter than a microsecond, especially if the person in question was trying to suppress them. That was why Garos thought his boss's order had come too late. All those flashy Overseers were probably just putting on a show or loved to make a spectacle of themselves.

"Whom should I be wary of?" He asked solemnly nonetheless.

"Anyone whose reaction is too theatrical, whether it's fear, disbelief, or anger. If it lasts longer than half a second, they're definitely suspicious," Oros lectured patiently.

Garos nodded in agreement, but the alien serving as his boss wasn't finished yet.

"...You must also be wary of those who haven't reacted at all. They may have already known."

Seeing his superior's faceless visage, the Oracle Guardian grimaced bitterly in his mind, You didn't move at all and have no face... If I follow your advice, aren't you the most suspicious of all?

Of course, he had enough functional neurons not to verbalize his opinion. Holding his tongue, he continued to listen dutifully to the small alien's wise counsel.

Those who have suppressed a microexpression of jubilation, mockery, or contempt must also be on your radar. But don't be fooled by those who quickly suppress slight signs of sadness or surprise either. The best liars can also simulate these false emotions to mislead us. In that case, you must observe their Aetheric, spiritual, hormonal, blood, and hormonal fluctuations. And don't forget to..."

Garos took note of all his boss's tips, knowing full well that they were for a future occasion. Ironically, he, who had been tasked by Oros to watch the reactions of those in the room, did not notice the change in atmosphere around his superior.

As the Oracle Guardian hearkened with rapt attention, the aura of the diminutive alien swelled, becoming as keen as a sword's edge poised to be unsheathed. While he educated his subordinate, he had marked 36 Oracle Overseers and their accompanying guards. These treacherous souls fancied themselves cunning, yet their ploys fell short, unable to slip past his vigilant scrutiny.

But there was always a better actor than oneself. A few platforms above them, the recently appointed Oracle Overseer of B847 slowly opened his eyelids, revealing two cold, silver eyes.

If anyone could see the lengthy list of suspects mentally compiled by Oros, they would have discovered that this Oracle Overseer was not among them.

The torrent of insults between the two Rank 4 Oracle Overseers came to an end more or less at the same time, and Xantheo resumed speaking, this time with extreme gravity in his voice, "For those of you who are unaware of what Lure's death means for us and the Mirror Universe, allow me to enlighten you. Lure is known as the Ancient Designer of Energy. She is an Aetheric life form nearly as old as the Mirror Universe itself, and she has devised and maintained the Aether networks that the Oracle System uses to transmit energy and support the various technologies and services it provides. For those who knew her, or rather knew of her, she had another nickname: the Heart of the Mirror Universe.

"Her death... will have numerous consequences, and you must prepare yourselves. The first consequence will be..."

This time, no utterly fake theatrical reactions pierced the silence, and no one interrupted Xantheo for the remainder of his speech.

And yet, Garos, who had just started to apply the lesson from his boss, detected uncontrollable fluctuations in their auras all along. If an average Sixth or Seventh-Ordeal Evolver had stood among them, they would have undoubtedly imploded on the spot.

For of all the possible deaths of Ancient Designers, Lure's demise most closely resembled the beginning of the end. If their Mirror Universe had been teetering on the edge of a precipice up until now, it had just been shoved into the abyss.