Chapter 97 - One Star Advancement
Atop the Great Wall, the watchers on duty stared at the lonely figure of the general marquis gazing into the Wildlands, sometimes lost, sometimes deep in thought. They couldn't figure what was weighing on the general marquis's mind, but it must have something to do with the events of the past days.
As the general marquis, Hendrick Graham stood at the apex of the military hierarchy and oversaw the entire operations of the western frontier. It was a grand and lofty position but came with an equally heavy responsibility that only those who stood in his position would understand the crushing weight bearing down on his shoulders.
Even with the Great Wall and increasingly sophisticated weaponry the soldiers were equipped with, defending the wall was no easy task. Each command given could result in the death of many good soldiers. The general marquis had to ensure every course of action the made were the best there was and the long years of serving the western frontier had drained him.
The news of no war was like heavenly hymns to the troops stationed on the western frontier. The stress, anxiety and fears were like water vapors that disappeared into the air. The mood was naturally a light and relaxed one after the beast army left the words to stay out of each other's way.
However, the general marquis felt the atmosphere of the western frontier was wrong. It would indeed be no problem if what the transcendent beast said was true. But if it was a lie, their complacency would be the downfall of humanity. They shouldn't be lowering their guard.
But on another note, they would not be able to stop the beast army with the Transcendent beast around anyway. The Hero King, whom was the first to ever Transcendent to appear in the history of mankind should have enjoyed a long life that transcended mortality, but the Transcendent disappeared without a trace. Without a Transcendent of their own, any resistance was futile should the beasts choose to invade.
With that thought in mind, although he was conflicted, he had no choice but accept things as the way they are.
The general marquis felt the weight being lifted off his shoulders and entered a special state of deep relaxation. It was like he had just been released from a long-time suppression. All his pores opened in sync with his breathing and the wind in the world was greedily sucked into his body, invoking a whirlwind with himself at the center.
He had long hit the peak 9th step and the quantity of his wind essence would not increase. The wind failed enter his body and started to circulate outside his body instead.
"What's happening to the general marquis?"
"How is the general marquis able to gather so much wind to himself?"
The watchers were surprised. Even the nearby garrison were attracted to the scene.
Hendrick's body was lifted off his feet and rose into the skies. In a state of emptiness, he felt he was one with the wind and able to comprehend its profundities. The wind circulated into a dense sphere of wind and created a vacuum.
The wind essence inside his wind seed also mimicked the outside phenomena and started compressing itself. Compression created room and the wind essence outside was channeled inside.
The garrisons were awed by the scene.
"Is the general marquis transcending?"
Someone suddenly thought. The eyes of the listeners lit up. That could be the case! Even if a transcendent could not turn the western frontier in humanity's favor, at least they would not be as helpless like fish on the chopping board.
"No! not right. A Transcendent was said to have at least tenfold the strength of a peak 9th step awakener!"
"You're right! But you can't deny that force generating by the general marquis has already exceeded the peak 9th step!"
Inside an air vacuum, one could not breathe. As such, the general marquis, whom had been inside for a while had hit his limit. His face was red like a tomato. The lack of oxygen broke his state of emptiness and he willed for the sphere of wind to disperse in all direction.
His body slowly descended back on the wall.
"Congratulations on transcendence, General!"
The soldiers shouted congratulations with fist-palm salutations.
"This wasn't transcendence."
Hendrick Graham shook his head at his men's comment. He did no transcended. At most, he had entered the transitioning step to Transcendence. Transcendence was not achieved in a single step.
"So, in order to advance beyond the 9th step, one had to compress energy and not gather them."
Hendrick mused. He had been enlightened on the way to transcendence. He was not disappointed
Although he had not transcended, his discovery had pried opened the door to transcendence.
The general marquis did not keep his discovery a secret and shared his experience and knowledge with the soldiers.
The road to transcendence had finally been opened!- was what the soldiers all thought.
The events of today will bring forth the booming era of cultivation. No matter how much the royal family had suppressed the secret and kept it to themselves in the past, it would not stop the era from coming. What is bound to come, will eventually but without a doubt, come.
After settling matters at the Great Wall, Hendrick decided to visit his son and check on his recovery.
…
Royal hospital, private ward.
"Young master."
A middle-aged man in butler attire entire the ward and greeted the young man laying on the hospital bed.
"Have you procured the information I inquire, Enzo?" Rowan Graham asked.
Enzo was the servant of the Graham House; Hendrick had sent to tend to his son's daily needs.
"Yes, young master. Here are my findings." Enzo handed over a piece of paper filled with information pertaining to patient at the hospital.
Several days ago, while Rowan was resting in bed, he was able to overhear some interesting gossips among the passing nurses and doctors outside of his flawed sound insulated private ward.
They talked about witnessing a divine miracle, where an ordinary patient had practically full recovered overnight after suffering a serious wound that required 6 months to recover. It had caused quite a sensation in the hospital and the gossip about the patient did not cease for days.
The news had immediately caught Rowan's interest. He figured such fast recovery could only be due to some miracle elixir refined by an esteemed alchemist. He had inquired about this patient's identity but had unfortunately be denied by the hospital nurses and doctors.
The Royal hospital followed a strict confidentiality policy and would not diverge their patient credentials to outsiders. Only immediate family members had the right to have a look. Being refused so flatly, Rowan had no choice but to send Enzo to investigate and acquire the information he desired, either by hook or by crook.
Indeed, there's no walls you can't get around. Everyone had some selfishness in their heart. Enzo just had to find the right person and offer the right price, and he would be able to get the information he wanted. The hospital had strict policy, but it didn't mean everyone would abide by it. There were always bad eggs mixed among good ones.
Rowan read through information on the patient and immediately creased his brows.
The report read as follows;
Name: Brian Bradford
Gender: Male Age: 42
Status: Commoner, normal.
Occupation: N/A
Address: N/A
There wasn't much he could gain out of the piece of paper on hand, but what he did gain, made him suspicious to the authenticity of the information.
"Enzo, is this information accurate? How can a commoner afford the operation fees charged by the Royal hospital? A commoner also has a family name? This person must at least be from an aristocrat family, right? But I haven't heard of any Bradford Aristocrat family living in the Upper District."
"The information is correct, young master. I have scoured the Upper District and there is indeed no such family by that name. However, there is one in the Lower District. Unfortunately, no one was home when I visited. It felt like the home was abandoned. There were also some traces of battles outside their home." Enzo answered patiently, without withholding any information from Rowan.
"So, the person truly was a commoner?" Rowan had disappointment written over his face.
How can a commoner be acquainted with the respectable alchemists in the kingdom? Rowan's hope of finding the esteemed alchemist capable of refining divine healing pills through the patient was dashed. If he could move with his own limbs again, why would he still need to practice his wind control? Where could this missing commoner have gone?
"Sigh…"
"Tell me more about this battle scene. Had there been any big waves in the city recently? "Rowan said with furrowed brows.
"Yes, in fact, it's the main reason I returned earlier than planned. The Grey, Weld, Esmond and Acker family have banded together and tried to ambush the Lancaster family. No big fights broke after, but the four families have been acting very suspicious. For your safety, we should leave the capital immediately, young master."
"The four families banded together attack the Duke's family…? Have they gone mad!?"
Rowan roared in shocked at the news. That's the Duke's family, they are talking about! Someone who dares to fight the Duke's family was either a complete fool or confident in taking on the Duke's wrath!
Whatever it is they want to achieve, he wanted no part in it.
"Quickly get me the hell out of here!"