"So, that's the reason for his quick death." The man nodded as his emotions were affected.

"Yes, but despite his short rule, he's the greatest of all the Celestial Emperors." The Elder spoke with unshakable pride, "Despite being only a Celestial King, he managed to kill a Celestial Emperor from the Treka, grabbed its Akashic Crystal, and absorbed it to become a Celestial Emperor himself. And during his time, there were only four other Celestial Kings in our race. That was how the concept of the Four Great Clans came to exist."

"And during his two years of rule, the First Celestial Emperor and the four Celestial Kings shouldered the erosion of the entire history of the Treka. It was a volume beyond anyone could imagine, enough to flood our country with Treka Qi and still spill out in excess. And before their deaths, they still negated as much Treka Qi as possible and created a certain spell before their deaths." He sighed, "And that's the great curse plaguing the Royal Clan and the Four Great Clans."

"And the curse…" As the lady spoke, the Elder motioned for her to stop as he took in a deep breath.

He then spoke, "The Kalki wields the four elements of Lightning, Fire, Metal, and Water. So, in our lands, these four elements dominate nature. As for the other elements like Earth, Wood, and Wind that still exist in our lands, they are only a tenth of our four Elements that exist during the Day of Equity."

"Before this land came to become ours, it was a very hot and bright place that was abundant with Light Qi, Fire Qi, and Earth Qi, the elements wielded by the Treka. Only after the arrival of the First Celestial Emperor did the land change to what it is now. But even then, the region influenced by the First Celestial Emperor was only the current state of Mokshu."

"And, every time a Celestial King was born, they took root around the state of Mokshu and expanded our range, also increasing the range under the Celestial Emperor's control. So, both a Celestial King and a Celestial Emperor have to fight against the land's erosion. And, since the range of his influence spans our country, the Celestial Emperor has to resist the entire country's erosion."

"And, this erosion stems from the Treka that have lived on this land for many millennia. If suppose a Celestial King dies, the land under his rule immediately begins to revert back to the land of the Treka. After all, we have yet to eradicate all the Treka Qi in our land. Only after eradicating it completely and once we behind to fill in the land with Kalki Qi would this land truly become ours. And until then, and until all the Treka Qi in their Bhumic and Akashic Crystals are eradicated, our Celestials would continue to suffer. And because of it, they wouldn't even be able to fight properly, which would mean they would be killed by our enemies. And, it was here the curse of the First Celestial Emperor appears."

The Elder sighed as he spoke, "Once a Harmoniser from the Royal Clan and the four Great Clans approaches the final stage of their lives, they would enter what is called the suffering stage. This lasts for the final decade of their life. And during this time, using their Kalki Qi as a connection, the erosion suffered by their blood-related Celestials flow into them, causing them immense suffering."

"Moreover," The Elder expressed his dread, "When summoned using 100 units of Elemental Qi and 100 units of Kalki Qi, the Royal Clan's Pranic Avatar, the Yali would be summoned as a Divine Beast. It would be in reality for as long as its lifespan. And, its lifespan is double the amount the Harmoniser—Martial Master—had lived. And for the entire duration, it would stay alive while enduring the erosion. And this is a sacrifice every Royal Clan Elder takes voluntarily to protect our land and better our lives, all for our race's survival."

"And, the Pranic Avatars of the Four Great Clans could be considered to have been birthed by animating a part of the Yali. So, they are mysteriously connected." The Elder said, causing the mood of place to resemble a hell, "And, the pain experienced by the Yali is further transmitted to the Elders of the Four Great Clans. And only in such a manner are the Celestial Kings barely able to endure their erosion."

"That's why, the life of every single Harmoniser from the Royal Clan and the four Great Clans is valuable. Without them, our land is doomed. And, measures are placed in their Clans by the Celestial Kings to ensure this curse doesn't strike them early, as long as they grew up within their Clans. But, if their bloodline is leaked into the populace, imagine the consequences that would arise when the curse is triggered because of lacking protection. There is a chance the curse would use the Kalki as a channel to spread into the populace. Because of this, our entire race would be annihilated overnight."

With anger, the Elder said, "Even the Martial Masters and Celestial Kings are barely able to endure this. A Harmoniser or a regular citizen would die instantly. So, anyone that tries to kidnap someone from the Four Great Clans is a traitor that attempts to destroy our race. And, if they are grown outside their Clans, their defence against the curse vanishes, causing them prone to trigger it anytime. It would then spread like a disease everywhere and eventually cause our country to collapse."

Upon hearing it, the man and the woman kneeled on the floor, not begging for forgiveness, but to reap for the mistake they had caused.

Finally, the Elder asked them, "Who else had a hand in this?"

"Only the two of us," The man spoke, "The rest are innocent. A stern warning and a punishment would be enough for them."

"Alright, I won't kill them," The Elder gave his word and then faced the group of thirteen, bowing until his head slammed into the ground, "Lords, please forgive the sin my children have caused."

Even though they wished to live, upon hearing his words, they had resigned themselves to their fate. And among them, one of the oldest stepped forward, "Please, do it. I have been feeling something amiss in my body for the past few days. I now know the cause. Please don't delay any further."

"I failed as a parent and as an Elder. This sin, I'll bear it until my death." The Elder stood up as his hand condensed a Metal Qi sword, twice his height. Then, everyone stood before him in a straight file—the thirteen from the group and the man and the woman. The Elder swung the sword, cleanly beheading everyone.

He then used a couple of Fire Qi Hand Projections to burn their corpses into a crisp and erased all traces using a couple of Water Qi Hand Projections. After mourning for some time, he inspected the Settlement for anything amiss before heading towards the other Settlements.

His footsteps were heavy.

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Author Notes: There are 50 chapters to read on Privilege. The higher the Tier you get, the more chapter discounts you obtain. You'll also get rebates, WN rewards, some event gifts, etc. Don't forget to check them out~

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