Moyo waited in front of the tele hub reserved for the top brass of the clan, hands folded in front of him, Ashira by his side and the sentinels who shadowed his every moment despite their large frames making it almost impossible for them to be subtle in whatever they did. He had protested the need of iron ranked protectors, calling it useless, for that was what it was. Mrs. Martha however pointed out that they weren’t there to protect him, they were there to dissuade any would be idiot from disturbing him by challenging him to a duel or the likes.

After the majority of advocates worldwide had ascended to expert rank, the power that filled their minds had made them drunk, thinking they could take on almost any odds. It had led to quite a majority of them meeting their ends in dungeons, most going after bronze ranked dungeons even as newly minted irons. The clan had decreed the rule of rank per dungeon at that point, no ascender could delve a dungeon higher than their rank and within five levels higher than their level. It had led to a lot of protests, ascensions coming to a crawl, but it had preserved the lives of the valuable experts of the continent, and even they couldn’t argue with that.

The return of Moyo had seen numerous ascenders hoping to test their mettle against him, hoping to catch the patriarch of the clan whenever he went on a journey or the likes. They had been brutally put down by the forces dedicated to protecting the titan blade, the unseen protectors of which the sentinels were the only ones he was familiar with. He had seen the signs though, the brazen experts that usually paraded the streets with their mantles on full display unusually calm and reserved whenever there was news of his coming and going. He himself preferred to move through Bastion shrouded and disguised, observing the happenings even as he hopped from one domain to the other, taking in just how large and advanced Asa had become.

The hub glowed, spitting out a Julius dressed in immaculate blue robes, arms folded behind him and an innocent looking red haired youth with a fierce but defeated look on his face. The young ascender of bronze rank looked worse for wear, bearing scorch marks all over his body, Moyo glanced at Julius who bowed to him,

“Lord patriarch, as requested, one of those who supposedly follows your path, Hajin of the lightning eater” he said,

“Was he a bit of trouble?” Moyo asked,

Julius glanced at the ascender who averted his gaze sullenly, somewhat embarrassed to look defeated in front of the titan blade,

“He was mostly all explosions without an iota of sense” Julius judged harshly,

Hajin squeezed his hands in reflex, red lightning dancing in his fists, Moyo nodded solemnly. He had wanted to go recruit the top fifty of the movement Mrs. Martha had dubbed the cult of the titan much to his distaste. However, he had been made aware of his current position as a master, he had underlings to do his bidding and according to Mrs. D, it would be a great stain on his reputation if a master was seen going after mere bronze rankers. Masters were meant to be heard and not seen; they were this mythical height of power that mere mortals could only aspire to glimpse just a shadow of.

Moyo silently realized just how fortunate he had been during his rise to master, to be trained by a diamond as a fledgling, then by multiple masters as a mere iron ranker. However, he knew well enough that for his world to be a cut above the rest, he would have to step in personally to oversee training. Mrs. D pointed out to him that his mere presence on the world was slowly evolving it into a level 4 world, a world with master ranked aether and when that happened, the rate of ascension would triple in speed as well as the caliber of ascenders produced by Gaia.

While that may be as well true, Moyo knew well enough that mere power was simply not an excuse for true hard work and training. So, he relented on going after the top fifty himself, he would let the clan bring them to him while he prepared for his trip to the continent of Lumia and the citadel of light. Another frustrating issue was he not simply being able to open a pathway to the citadel of light, Mrs. Martha had protested him not following protocol. Moyo pointed out to her that he was the titan blade and he could do as he liked, not like there was anyone on the planet barring whatever disguised master that was hiding within the many hidden corners of the Luminian theocracy.

That had led to him contacting Atreus to clarify the issue, the master ranked brigade overseer had narrowed his eyes at the news, again frustrated that something of such magnitude had slipped through his notice. Atreus had glanced at him as he spoke,

“You draw a certain kind of problem to yourself titan, wherever you go, you don’t deal with typical ascender problems. You deal with issues way above your level” he had said, eyes flicking Moyo all over,

“Now I get a level 1 clearance from Xerxes himself telling me to stay clear of your business, you could as well be the overseer of this galaxy and not me” he grumbled,

Moyo had simply raised an eyebrow at that piece of information, Atreus snorted,

“Nothing works as it should be around you Moyo, your rate of ascension rivals the primordials themselves, you could almost be one” he said,

That cleared the fact that not even Atreus knew he was a pseudo primordial, apparently the news was being kept silent by the higher echelons to avoid drawing attention to him. Atreus glanced at Gaia,

“Even now, a world barely done with its calamity is about to get master ranked aether infused into it, nothing makes sense when it comes to you. Soon enough we’ll be seeing ascenders breaking through to silver in a year or two, assuming you don’t nudge things like you did before the landing, helping them all ascend faster” Atreus said, glancing at Moyo who shook his head,

“I don’t intend with messing the natural order of things in the archailect, not much, perhaps just the main powers of my clan” he said,

Atreus nodded,

“Thereby widening the gap between your clan and other factions on the planet, already thinking like a true master I see. My advice, nothing more than gold, not if you don’t want inquisitive eyes on you” Atreus said,

Moyo nodded, Atreus shook his hand,

“I’ll lay the barrier around the continent as soon as I see signs of foul play, whatever happens next is left to you titan blade, although I can only advise you not to go up against a primordial yourself, petition house Kairos, I hear you’re close to them now” he said,

Moyo gave a little smile,

“Pretty sure I can handle myself” he responded,

Atreus shrugged,

“Suit yourself, just realize that there are more lives at stake than your ego” he warned,

“you’re acting really caring, it’s getting spooky” Moyo observed,

Atreus smiled,

“we’re on the cusp of the biggest war the archailect would ever see or know and my guts tell me you’ll be smack dab in the middle of it all, I simply don’t want you dead” he said with a smile that had Moyo frowning.

Moyo had left the overseer who was eager for war, showing him the true face of the powers of the archailect. They weren’t trying to prevent this war from coming, they were just as eager to go to battle as to see numerous worlds burn up in the inferno. He spoke to masters Killian and Ajax next, catching up with them n what happened since his hurried exit from Altera. Kenuran had seen his core broken, his overtaxing of the aspect laden authority of Azar had seen his core crack and his ascension halted at diamond.

House Dracon had retreated immediately after that back to their galaxy, shutting off all communications with the wider galaxy as they attempted to heal their scion. News however leaked from the self-isolating galaxy that it was a hopeless case and Anala red jaw had gone on a sojourn to find a way to heal her child, petitioning almost all the great houses and notable clans. It was coming up bleak, for house Dracon had made an enemy of most of the great houses during the time Azar had been awake as the ruler of the house, much to the ire of Hagan herself who was now awake and had taken over from the scorching claw.

A bit of Moyo felt pity for the dragon, but a majority of him wished the core had shattered completely, ending the vile existence that was Kenuran red jaw, but he dismissed it. The dragon got what he deserved and he’d leave it to fate to handle the rest, he had bigger things to do, like Hajin who was bowed in front of him, Ashira stifling a laugh at what was happening,

“Great titan” Hajin started as Moyo groaned and Julius stifled a smile, Ashira giggling,

“I apologize for the state in which you have found me, I’m not worthy of following your steps, end my miserable existence, it is all the honor I ask” Hajin said,

Moyo rolled his eyes,

“you’re from the continent of the glorious empire, right?’ he asked,

“They call it Taiyang now lord” Julius interjected,

Moyo nodded as Hajin spoke up,

“Indeed, oh great one, however I have stripped myself of such claim, for the evil one known as the golden sun sought to end you oh great one” he said,

“That reminds me, do we still have that…thing locked away?” he asked,

Julius nodded,

“The hands have him locked somewhere on Trellis, no idea” Julius said shrugging,

Hajin looked up, awe in his eyes,

“praise the titan blade!, for he has-“ was all he said before a pathway opened up beneath him, sending him falling into what looked a room made from black bricks before closing up, Ashira laughing,

“I grow weary of these behavior” Moyo said,

“The sect leaders banned the outright worship of you on the continent lord, its all we can do, but we’ve heard of pockets of cult groups that have sprung up in the wake of your return, the hands are also investigating such” Julius noted as Moyo nodded,

“Is that the last of the fifty?” he asked,

“Josh and Charles are……. escorting the ones known as the steel champion and the piercing spear to Bastion, they were found in the black zone” Julius said,

“And what about the one known as the golden staff?” he asked curiously,

He and Ashira had found one of the ten bared a striking resembling path to that of the great sage, a most powerful ascender. Moyo theorized the ascender was somehow tapping into the authority of the sage, albeit a very miniscule and watered-down version and on calling the sage for clarification, the sage explained.

“When you become a primordial, your very aspect begins to influence the creation of new paths, slowly and gradually of course, but for a being as old as I am, most times I see five or ten a year who tap into my very nature and authority” he said,

“And what happens to them?” Moyo had asked,

The sage shrugged,

“Most die on the path of ascension, hardly any make it to gold and those that do sooner or later evolve their paths into one that resonates genuinely with their nature” he explained,

“However, a gesture of my thanks to protecting my goddaughter, I have sent you a gift for the one known as the golden staff” he said,

A golden staff appeared at that moment,

“Forged from strands of my loose hair, they pack quite the power, gold rank or diamond at best, I’ll leave it to you to decide if the ascender truly deserves such a gift” the sage had said cutting the call,

“Already taken by Jide, he is currently with the rest,

“Good, let them stew there for a while, I have other things to deal with” he said

**********************

The fifty ascenders who found themselves a while later in a barely lit room knew each other faintly, for they bore no ties with each other both they followed the same road, the road to strength like that of the titan. The golden-haired ascender known as the golden staff glanced at a holographic display that came to life, an image of the titan blade appearing as they all bowed,

“You all are gathered here because you thought it would be wise to worship or adore me rather than forge your own paths without my influence, a situation I distaste” he said,

The golden staff frowned, had they offended the great one?, did they in some way or form not match up to his expectations?, they were only bronze after all. The hologram continued,

“However, since you have decided to follow my path, I would reveal to you just how terrifying it is, and why I had to carry the burden” he said,

Immediately a pressure crashed unto them, driving them to the ground flat as they couldn’t groan,

“That was the kind of pressure I was fighting off as a bronze, a peak silver and gold aura” the titan continued,

“Should you manage to make it to the door that would appear in the next 10 minutes, then I will consider you worthy of my training. Note that at the end of the day, I simply require ten of you to lead a small organization I intend to use in the coming years, the rest of you would serve under these ten, let that spur you on not to be underlings for those you once called peers” the titan warned,

The eyes of the golden staff glowed as bronze ranked power filled his body, groaning to merely raising his head up,

He wouldn’t fail, not when the titan required of him his services,

“Goodluck, and I will see the remaining forty of you in the next stage” he said as the hologram winked out, leaving them to struggle under the weight of the aura,

The golden staff, a predominantly body aura user grinned even as he felt his body being pounded under the mere shrouded aura of the titan, this was what he had always wanted, this was the path to power, and he’d be damned if he lost out on it. The golden staff twitched one hand and raised it.

**************************

Moyo opened a pathway straight into his council room at dominion, stepping out into the gathered room where all sect leaders were seated. Ashira had excused herself earlier, going to investigate the master ranked dungeon in the black zone for him and seeing if they could access it earlier than expected. Making his way to his throne, keenly aware of Annika watching his every move, he sat down,

“report” he said,

Mrs. Martha nodded and tapped her pair of fate weavers on the ground, a hand appearing at her side with a brown crystal,

“This is all we have about the theocracy currently, they’ve been quite closed up for a while now, not even the other factions have been able to penetrate deep enough to get near the citadel of light” she explained,

“I’m guessing you’ve been able to though?” he asked,

She nodded with a smile,

“Coincidentally, a few of our construct ships going to the continent of Albion, that’s the continent of king William who by the way says hi and you haven’t checked up on” she accused,

Moyo waved his hands,

“One thing at a time, I’ll check in on him soon enough” he replied,

He had too many things on his plate right now and he knew he still needed to convey a meeting of the great powers of Gaia, informing them of the storm that was coming. Currently he had a primordial and his emissary to kick off his world and the faster he did that the better. She nodded and continued,

A holographic display of the entire continent of Lumia coming into sight, the shot taken at night showed the brilliant night lights of the continent shining,

“The continent is protected by a system known as the holy net, a bronze forged net of golden power that only activates when there’s a genuine threat to the continent, warding off any imminent attacks” she started,

“There are three kingdoms on the continent, all under the control of each of the three archbishops of the theocracy”

“Any ascender we saw at the tournament held here?" he asked,

“No, come to think of it, none of the former powers of the theocracy have been seen in a while, not even the pontiff himself” Idris said, conquerors might, the gauntlet and greaves adorning his body as they had seemingly bonded with him,

Moyo pondered on that piece of disturbing information,

“Then how do we even know if Matthew still lives?” he asked,

“We don’t, but there has been rumors that he frequently makes appearances to his followers” she said,

“I don’t get, are we going as an invasion force or a simple diplomatic mission?” Annika asked, finally speaking up, Moyo glanced at her,

“You and Ayo are going as a diplomatic force; I and Idris are going to…. find some things out” he replied, Idris grinning,

Annika nodded,

“I’m not just sure taking actions on foreign soil is the best option at this point” she said,

“we’re going to settle issues, Moyo and Idris are the ones making moves, best we don’t know what they are” Ayo noted as Moyo smiled approvingly,

“On that note, we are ready, what happens to your…ah...cult members?” Mrs. Martha asked with a gleam in her eyes,

“I’m seeing what they’re made off, literally” Moyo replied with an impish grin as Annika, Idris, Ayo and Samantha stood up,

“Are you sure this is a good idea?” Samantha asked,

Moyo sighed, rolling his eyes,

“Just trust me for once you lot” he grumbled,

“Oh we trust you, we just don’t trust your sadistic training methods” Annika replied,

With a nod, he opened a pathway into a building where a large screen showed the ascenders struggling to move. The design had been that of Mr. Boyle, infusing the crystal with a bit of his aura, it had begun replicating the effects, even able to reduce the pure power running from it that seemingly crushed the ascenders. Thirty of them had made it to the door, finally passing through and collapsing inside the next room, panting. One of the thirty punched the wall, a hulky looking ascender who no doubt followed a body aura path, Moyo noticed the majority of them were body aura users, which was weird seeing as he was a swordsman.

Then again Moyo was sure that to the average ascender he looked like a body aura user wielding a sword so he guessed it was understandable to a degree. The ascender who punched the wall suddenly had his wrist crushed as he roared in pain,

“What in heavens’ name are those walls made up of?” Annika asked,

“they’re coated with my authority” Moyo said offhandedly,

The bronze rankers wouldn’t be able to sense it and those that eventually do would probably feel an otherworldly pressure they wouldn’t be able to explain bearing down on them with all the wrath of a deity. They all turned to him,

“What sort of crazy training do you have in mind for them?” Ayo asked,

Moyo smiled,

“Idris, gather the ten left behind once the last ten have passed through the door, run them through the drills” he ordered,

“Already working on it” Idris replied,

**************************

Yemi, an ascender who had been taken along with the fifty who dedicated themselves to the path of the titan was a rune brawler, his skin filled with the intricate tattoos of his path. One he had gotten at the inception of the archailect, it revolved around using his lean muscular body to channel mana at first, then on his ascension to expert, he had unlocked the runic part of his path, coating his body in runes that added extra fire power to his kickboxing style.

When Josh steel sentinel who was formerly of the path of the titans’ sentinel had come for him at the orders of the titan blade himself, he had been too shocked to even think of putting up a fight. And now he was in a room filled with more than thirty ascenders who had passed the first test of the titan blade, he couldn’t be more thrilled in his life. Sure, the pressure of the silver ranked aura he was sure belonged to the titan had almost snuffed out his willpower and authority, the battle spirit he had been cultivating however wouldn’t let him disgrace the expectations of the titan blade.

Even as he glanced at the other ascenders who were the backbone of the movement dedicated to following the path of the titan, he wondered how many of them truly venerated the path of the titan. The golden staff was a renowned beast in dungeons, always going to battle when the dungeons were close to breaking open, willing to put his life on the edge to push himself to the limit. the lightning eater was another who was known to sometimes immerse himself in dungeons, soloing bronze ranked dungeons in a bid to hone his abilities.

Each of them had a style of fighting, Yemi preferring to go straight for the dungeon boss, taking his time to wear it down in battle rather than instantly raging on it, he chose to embody the resilience and fortitude of the titan rather the overwhelming brutal strength he also possessed. The room became illuminated by another holographic image of the titan,

“Good, all forty of you are gathered, welcome to the next stage of which thirty of you will mode forward, this stage is simple, you have only one thing to overcome, my silver ranked authority, now KNEEL” the titan commanded as the command echoed through the room,

Yemi didn’t have time to even wonder how a simple holographic image had the power to crush bronze ranked ascenders to the ground. His body crashed to the ground for a second time, raging to himself at how he had been driven to the ground in front of his mentor. He felt his willpower and authority grinded to dust, his latent authority he had just merged with his willpower now shattered like fragile glass in the presence of a mere echo of the titans’ command.

He ground his teeth as he roared, his eyes flicking to the side to see the golden staff grunting as his body shook, trying to overcome the command of the titan,

“Your willpower and authority merged would go a long way in helping you fight it, as long as you can manage to do that under my authority of course. Again, I need only thirty of you for this round, good luck, the rest of you who lag behind would either be given the chance to go your way, swearing to the archailect not to venerate me in any way, form or manner ever again, or to serve under those that surpassed this stage, again, good luck” the hologram said before winking away,

Yemi smiled, lose?, give up?, almost laughable, not when he had come this far. With determination and rage born of shame and thrill at eventually meeting the titan blade, his eyes glowed as he felt his authority and willpower slowly fusing back together under the command of the titan blade. His legs twitched, his muscles bulged and Yemi grinned,

“NO” he growled