Master of the System

Grandpa Vremya was pleasantly surprised. Originally, he thought he was doing well already in terms of cultivation. However, after obtaining four phoegons, he found they gave more benefits than just being bodyguards. Just by being near them, his absorption rate of spiritual energy was greater than when he was in an energy-gathering formation. Not only that, but whenever he watched the phoegons go about their daily lives, his nascent soul stirred. His soul seed was beginning to form. It was only a matter of time, but he didn’t expect it to happen so soon. As long as the phoegons stuck around, he’d become a soul-seed cultivator in a matter of months. Luckily, he had enough titan flesh to satisfy their appetites; they’d probably leave if he couldn’t feed them any longer.

The sound of a door opening drew Grandpa Vremya’s attention away from the napping phoegons. He turned his head towards the sound. Azalea had walked out of the bathroom, wearing a set of new clothes. There was something different about her, and even someone as uncaring about the details as Grandpa Vremya could tell. Her hulking figure had slimmed down, the bulging muscles on her body having vanished. She sauntered over to the couch and plopped down by Grandpa Vremya’s side. “Well?” she asked, staring into his eyes. “You’re not going to say anything?”

“Congratulations on breaking through to the soul-seed stage,” Grandpa Vremya said after a moment. “How was it?”

Azalea rolled her eyes and turned her head away. “I don’t remember much,” she said. A bitter expression appeared on her face. She had placed the unfertilized egg in a wooden bath tub, opened up the egg from the top by removing a portion of the shell, and climbed inside. Once she was enveloped in the fluid, it soaked through her skin and into her body, piercing straight through to her nascent soul. After that, she lost consciousness, and when she woke up, the muscles on her body had reverted to before she had eaten titan flesh, and a soul-seed was planted in her body. “But I feel great. It feels like I have the whole world at my fingertips, ready to give me its energy.”

“You’re not eager to test out your new strength?” Grandpa Vremya asked, raising an eyebrow.

“There isn’t enough time for that,” Azalea said. “The sect is making its move now that the Bread Games are over. We don’t know where Ancestor Rachel is, but with your golems, we’re still the strongest force within the federation.”

“Is there anything I have to do?” Grandpa Vremya asked.

“Nope,” Azalea said. “You’ve contributed enough.”

Grandpa Vremya stroked his beard. “I have, haven’t I?” he asked. He nodded and met Azalea’s gaze. “From your previous words, I suppose you’re going?”

Azalea nodded. “I’ve learned a lot about the federation by living here. I’m the best person to spearhead this offensive. Becoming a soul-seed cultivator has only boosted my confidence, and I think it’s about time I contributed back to the sect.” She climbed to her feet. “This shouldn’t take very long, a few months at most.”

Grandpa Vremya nodded. “In that case, take me with you,” he said and gestured towards the phoegons. “I was planning on entering seclusion, but the four of them won’t be very happy about that. It won’t be any good for their development if they stay in this small apartment with me. I’ll enter seclusion on one of my whale golems, and you can drive it around while occasionally letting the phoegons out to play.”

Azalea’s expression darkened. Although she wasn’t planning on using the conquering of the federation as an excuse to avoid the phoegons, it was a really big bonus. She should’ve been as strong as the phoegons now, but there were four of them. Two arms were no match for sixteen claws and four tails. However, how could she decline Grandpa Vremya? If he was going to enter closed seclusion, then someone had to take care of the phoegons. In the end, Grandpa Vremya was responsible for less than a day. As she expected, the responsibility of taking care of the phoegons had fallen onto her. After thinking about it for a while longer, she decided she’d treat it as payment for the phoegon egg. If anyone else was offered the chance at becoming a soul-seed cultivator in exchange for taking care of some phoegons, they’d jump at the chance. There was no point in her being ungrateful now.

***

Istoriya tapped his fingers on his desk. The first part of his plan was complete. Vremya was trapped in a black hole, and Gravitat was holding back the titans. Two of the three primordial gods he feared were occupied. The only one left was Kosmos. Istoriya had made a deal with Gravitat. The god of gravity would help him trap Vremya, and in return, Istoriya would rob Kosmos of her divinity and give it to the god of gravity. However, why would he do that? From the moment he was born, he had witnessed Kosmos, Vremya, and Gravitat dominate the titans, carving out a path in the darkness to create a space fit for living in. He, who was born at the same time as them, was helpless against the titans. He was envious of their power, and he always dreamed that they would one day be his. Now, he was so close to attaining his dream. He just had to figure out how to kill Kosmos. She might’ve been a primordial god, but he knew her weakness: she was obsessed with Vremya.

In a contest of strength, Istoriya didn’t stand a chance. He might be able to summon scenes from the past, but Kosmos could open her portal and leave whenever she wanted. As such, Istoriya needed an incentive for her to stay, and what better way to make her stay than to give her what she wanted? With the help of the god of illusions, it wouldn’t be too difficult for him to create the perfect scenario for Kosmos’ downfall. As the god of history, he had witnessed billions of strong individuals being defeated by those weaker than them. All of those different instances in history would be his strength. He could use them as references to forge the perfect trap to take the god of space’s divinity.

However, Kosmos wasn’t moving as Istoriya expected her to. Why did she end up in his warehouse? According to his sources, she wasn’t at her usual place either. It seemed like she had noticed something was off. If that were the case, he could wait a few years for her to settle down and drop her guard. It wasn’t like Vremya was escaping from his trap anytime soon.