The Path of Ascension

Chapter 325

Impossible.

Once again, Long Zhiyuan watched as Ascender Titan simply punched through a shield he had raised. Across his other simulations, fourteen other clones experienced similar fates, their own defenses overwhelmed summarily, and he could do naught but restart the fights.

His clones darted forward within his spirit, each taking a different approach to dodge the implacable black blade.

One clone went in for a strike on the abdomen where some previous battle damage created a weakness. His form was immaculate, pushing through the repulsion which Titan’s body constantly emanated and, with a non-negligible effort even with his Plan working in perfect harmony, struck the weakness and widened it. But Titan cared little for his perfected stance, moving so quickly that it was all that Long Zhiyuan could manage to simply hold his blade against the Master’s side. And then, the black blade swept down implacably, cutting through his attempted teleportation and cleaving him in half.

Another clone had utilized the [Implacable Tears of Damnation], ink-black jade teardrops drawing upon his very life embedding themselves into his armor. He began to capitalize upon the advantage with his [Lamentations of the Doomed], only for his clone to be slammed with enough lightning to instantly kill him.

That ended the fight of that clone, and he turned his attention to the others. While he got a measure of feedback from each of the clones and he could theoretically just lounge around like Gan Le, Maven, Jai Meng, or Jai Xilu that would be inefficient. Analyzing them himself could increase his understanding exponentially, and he felt like he was so close.

He must have made a noise as Jai Meng looked over to him from the massive sunflower he was sitting on. “Anything interesting Long Zhiyuan?”

Long Zhiyuan would have preferred to be alone in his room but with the death of Saziel in their last fight Maven had proposed they all meditate upon the tactics required to counter the Masters they faced. Not that the others were meditating. Instead, they deigned to chatter and gossip, frittering their precious time away with inane conversation.

Not wanting to let them know exactly what he was working on, he turned to another topic that he knew would distract them.

Gan Le snorted before trying and failing to cover the sound with a groan. As if the Tier 24 servant, massaging his body, spirit, and ego could hurt him any more than he allowed. Long Zhiyuan would bet that the man was spending more attention to the servant feeding him fruit than the physical stimulus.

Not one to let such an incident go unchallenged, Long Zhiyuan looked at their tank. “Something to add, Gan Le?”

“Are you ever going to dismiss your task as futile, Long Zhiyuan? Whatever it is, if it’s not exactly what it looks like, the Empire has gone to such incredible lengths to conceal it that none of us could ever determine it. You’re attempting to build a mountain of dust. Besides It has been far too long since you properly relaxed. You’re tenser than the time the C-listers didn’t have their mommy ask about their progress.”

Long Zhiyuan almost smiled at the memory of their long training but resisted the unsightly urge, though the twins weren’t so restrained.

“Remember Clarisse’s face when she found out her mommy didn’t ask about them? It looked like someone had slain her puppy. She was shattered.” In a deliberately bad impersonation of the healer Jai Xilu continued, “But she said she would be asking about us. We worked so hard to make her happy.”

Jai Meng chortled at his brother's impersonation and fell over onto Gan Le, using him as a prop for his continued performance. “Mommy! Nooooo! I—”

Long Zhiyuan thought he had successfully distracted everyone when Maven cracked her neck loud enough to gather everyone's attention. “So what is truly consuming your mind, little Zhiyuan? Tell Aunty Maven and my wisdom may illuminate you.”

Long Zhiyuan suppressed a sigh. Working with the same individuals for nigh upon a half-century was the degree to which he understood them all, and could utilize them all the better within his Plans. Unfortunately, he was not the only one capable of learning of the others, as their attention meant they knew him as well.

Nonetheless, he deigned to provide them a degree of truth in regards to his true thoughts. His fears that the Jai twins could see within his simulations had been unfounded, insofar as he could tell, yet he remained hesitant in exposing the true degree of his strength to those who were best equipped to fight him, should their respective Sects come to blows. Yet they knew of him as a planner, and that was an avenue wherein he could present his findings safely.

“My plans to best predict the ways in which Ascender Titan will act are most accurate when I assume that he has unlimited, unconditional mana to utilize all of his techniques. Yet no matter what I do, I can never find the source of that mana. In our last battle, I utilized multiple techniques which I believed could interfere with his mana source, and yet… I do not believe he so much as noticed my efforts. Thus, I have returned to my initial models of merely unconditional infinite mana, which is… bothersome to me. Starting a model with such a glaring inaccuracy results in everything the model creates to be mired in doubt.”

Maven nodded. “There is always some limiter to such things. Undoubtedly, it is something which could be fairly easily exploited were it known, hence the Empire’s efforts to obscure it. Nothing is truly unlimited, as we can see with poor Gan Le’s spirit, practically in tatters.”

The cultivator in question didn’t look in particularly bad shape as he tried to nip at the fingers of the woman feeding him a grape.

Before Long Zhiyuan could make a comment to that effect Gan Le spoke up around the grape he was chewing. “I do not see why it couldn’t simply be unlimited mana.”

Everyone turned to give Gan Le an odd look, even the two spies pretending to be servants. Long Zhiyuan was no exception.

Gan Le seemed unbothered. “What, is it truly so impossible that not even a Master could accomplish it? The honored mother of the twins is said to manifest the nightmares of her victims as curses and that she lives within their terror. The Golden Master of Fortune made a fool out of the Unyielding Anvil with her own spear, the Drowner fights up something akin to twenty Tiers, the Master of All could utilize any technique he wished with perfect ease. Compared to them, is unlimited mana truly so impossible? It sounds down right plausible to me.”

Jai Xilu snickered as Gan Le spoke, though didn’t elaborate. As Long Zhiyuan prepared to give his own rebuttal, Jai Meng started first and Long Zhiyuan graciously provided him the opportunity to speak. “Our mother has always said that to be a Master is to look at the impossible and scoff. I do—”

His brother dismissed him with a flick of the hand. “Even the impossible has its own limits, though they are oft invisible. What is suggested is simply impossible. Think of a newly awakened, their spirit attempting to simply create millions of mana each minute. It would collapse under its own weight and destroy itself within seconds.”

“Obviously he wouldn’t have that capability as a newly Awakened. It would be his second Talent, and thus grow with each passing Tier. Are you capable of thinking, let alone before you speak? Growth Talents grow. Truly, this is a revolutionary concept which you could never—”

Jai Xilu sneered right back. “I am impressed that you have managed to exceed my expectations for stupidity once again. It is clearly the man’s Domain which provides such strength. Look at Master Waters, at Lady Shadow, and at The Master of the Single Step Behind. For all of them, it is their Revelations which give them such incredible strength. Or do you think it is simply a coincidence that the Empire began producing such exceptional warriors once they allied themselves with the Guilds, and their secrets of refining Revelations? Titan is well-known to have a First Revelation which grants him mana, and his final floor in Minkalla was Mind Over Matter. Whatever means the Empire has found to refine and further empower Revelations, from what the Guilds have told them, clearly is potent. Not everything must be a Talent.”

“Mind Over Matter does not improve efficacy, and it is impossible for him to have enhanced his Revelation’s strength so much in so short a time.”

Maven, with a small grin, interjected. “All that he would need is some means to stockpile the mana beforehand. Perhaps some form of ability to create mana crystals? If only we knew that Titan possessed some sort of ability with that nature. Then, he could continuously stockpile mana, perhaps accelerating his abilities through any number of means, and spending it with each fight.”

Jai Xilu put a finger into his brother's face and barked a laugh. “Ha! Two to one. It's possible.”

“Possible doesn't mean likely. What you suggest would result in a fighting style akin to The Master of the Everlasting Galaxy, which is certainly not what we see. Therefore, it’s more likely to be a Talent with a more direct effect.”

“Says who?”

“Jai Meng, Synoid of the Blinding Eclipse sect.”

“And now you are an authority on Talents?”

“Such as it may occur, I am.”

Pot sufficiently stirred, Maven laid back down, having snagged a bundle of sasa berries from the pile that was being fed to Gan Le and Long Zhiyuan took the opportunity to go back to his testing.

When a few moments later a pulse went through the ship, he briefly considered if it was the twins getting into a fight. But a shipwide alert blasted out, overriding every mute Long Zhiyuan had set up.

The five of them got up as one and were moving through the halls of the massive ship in blurs. Just seconds later, they arrived at their gathering point, near the center of the ship where the generals were.

Long Zhiyuan expected to be informed of what was occurring immediately, only to be subsequently un-informed as to what was happening for several agonizingly long minutes.

Finally Supreme General Alicia Fortan came out and her sunken eyes swept over them. She held herself with her usual poise which took the edge off the urgency happening in the ship around them.

Her words, however, were not so calming. “The Ascenders went on the offensive.”

Long Zhiyuan didn’t know what was so surprising about that except the time. It had been only hours since they had fought them last.

Fortan’s next words almost didn’t register with Long Zhiyuan. “They have already killed four pinnacle elites in the last ten minutes, and reports are flooding in from all of our Great Powers. We aren’t sure exactly what is going on but we are closing ranks and all elites are retreating to us or the backlines depending on what is closer. Prepare yourselves for an engagement as we try to intercept them. If we can engage them, it's a fight to the death one way or another.”

Valentina wagged a finger, requesting permission to ask a question, but Fortan vanished into the situation room.

They didn’t need to be told to prepare for a fight, and they gathered near one of the loading bays of the ship. This one was equipped with a corporation mercenary deployment method that could slingshot a group of people thousands of miles even through spatial locks and they had trained to use it should they need to engage when they weren’t able to pick the engagements.

Long Zhiyuan expected something to happen, but little did. At least little that directly affected them.

The ship went dim three times as the power of the ship was focused on the dowsing formation which was unusual. Sora certainly was not their only dowser, but she was the best. If they had needed to pull up the backups it didn’t bode well for what the dowsers saw.

That was confirmed just minutes later when the ship rumbled and twisted.

Long Zhiyuan felt the world stretch for a moment before the feeling subsided as the Talented pilots worked in unison to move the massive ship faster than should have been possible.

An hour later they intercepted a handful of elites comprised of individuals from each Great Power who each took umbrage with the fact they were ordered to retreat.

They were even less happy when they were ordered to gather with Long Zhiyuan and the others but seeing the members of the Harmony Accords most of them quieted down.

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There was a small altercation between Dao Child Radiant Shimmer and the thus-far sole Federation Archwarrior, but a single whispered word from Jai Meng calmed Radiant Shimmer and ended the fight.

Tensions continued to rise as they gathered more elites, each one attempting to assert their position and face within the greater group.

That all came to a head as they got news from the generals.

There was but one group of pinnacle elites left and they were racing to pick them up before they could be taken out like the others.

Long Zhiyuan mentally scoffed. Was this truly the extent of the might of the Dao Children? Coddled and spoiled brats, the lot of them, that they would be eliminated so quickly? There were but five Dao Children aboard this ship, less than half of the number he knew had reached Tier 25. Perhaps Maven’s shameful performance against the Masters was typical for such an illustrious position.

Though, it ought to be never said that Long Zhiyuan lacked the capability for self-reflection. His own best efforts, aided by Jai Meng and Jai Xilu himself… had likewise been insufficient. And now, those same forces had eliminated how many of the Sect’s shining children?

A chill ran down his spine.

This was the strength of Masters. Long Zhiyuan had an excellent grasp over his own capabilities, as that was a requirement for his Plans to function. Yet when he examined his own mind now, he found nothing but arrogance. Had the whispers of his projected strength truly deluded himself so much? His trick to develop his Second Revelation at Tier 17 had been designed to echo the accomplishments of The Drowner and convince those around him that he too could one day rise to the strength of Masters.

Yet until this moment, that lie had deluded him just as surely. He had been thinking that there was simply some trick to the strength of the Masters they faced, that the proper plan would spell their doom just as surely as his old sectmaster.

But this?

Killing or capturing over half of the pinnacle elites in the war in the span of a day? Out matching the very best of the Sects in a lightning campaign this vicious? That was impossible.

Except was it really impossible anymore if someone was doing it?

Long Zhiyuan wasn’t able to consider the etymology of a word as they entered within range for the ship's sensors to pick up the last group of elites.

The members of the Harmony Accords stood and prepared themselves to get launched across space which sent a stir across the other gathered elites but before they were within range the sensors picked up another ship.

The Ascenders’ ship.

There was only a brief flicker upon the displays as it dove out from the untamed space between lanes, the illusions depicting it shuddering and warping from residual chaos. Yet before they could sense anything more than its presence, it vanished.

And reappeared directly above the final craft, like a tiger pouncing upon its prey. The ship fired back with impressive speed, yet it was all for naught. Legion interrupted their propulsion, Titan tore his way into the ship, and the Masters descended into the ship.

It was mere seconds later that the massive flagship’s teleportation formations activated, pulling the remaining elites free. It was less than half what had been reported as being on the ship, mere minutes before.

Their cannons fired on the Master’s craft, yet it vanished before it could strike home and annihilate them.

Long Zhiyuan felt as the ship stretched before snapping back into a normal configuration just in time for them to drift next to the wreckage of the elite’s ship. The corrosive energies of chaotic space were already destroying what was left but Long Zhiyuan hardly noticed.

He had redirected his clones to simulating the war the moment he had gotten word about the attacks but he still couldn't believe what had happened. It almost seemed impossible.

Impossible.

That word was once more whispering in his ear and he shook his head to clear it from the negative thoughts and started up his clones testing everything he could.

He wasn’t sure what was about to happen, but he knew that the war had just escalated and he needed to be ready.

***

Colton removed his pistol, spun it around his trigger finger, before quickly holstering the weapon. Then he did it again. Then again. And… again.

It was the best way to pass time. Literally.

Something happened, and he holstered his pistol without re-drawing it. Around him, the world tinted amber and came to a nearly complete standstill, giving him plenty of time to assess the new event. Ah. It was just one of the scribblekids getting into an argument with one of his countrymen. Nothing he needed to concern himself with.

The pistol spun again, allowing the altercation to… play out.

His Talent was a precious thing, giving him plenty of time to eye out anything surprising before he needed, or even could act. Plenty of time to mull over the thoughts ricocheting around between the brims of his hat. It let him be the levelheaded, evenhanded one any time something buckwild crazy happened nearby.

Such as, to take a shot in the dark, watching or experiencing a ship chock-full of the best ‘n brightest across three Great Powers be absolutely obliterated by five hooligans on the threshold of safety.

Around him, helplessness, anger, sadness, distress, fear, anxiety, worry, and determination vied for attention across all his posse. Oh to be sure, plenty of ‘em hid it well, but there was no hiding from his keen eyes. Not when he could watch it all happen moment by moment.

As for him. He was feelin lots ‘o things. Not just determination for victory but determination to live, to… survive.

Nobody had said this adventure would be easy, and Colton hadn’t expected it to be. Battlefields were a wild frontier, with monsters hiding under every shrub, lurking in every stream. But that was the truth of the wilderness. You struck gold and went home rich… or you struck out, and went home in a box.

From what he was hearin, though, plenty of the losers were lucky. The box they’d been stuck in would be one they’d be gettin’ out of real soon. He of all people knew just how quickly fortunes could change, and the winds weren’t blowin with them today.

If’n he’d been out there, he’d be in a box for sure. He’d dueled Gladiators plenty, these past few months, to know he was no match for ‘em. You could fight monsters. You couldn’t fight the wilderness. You couldn’t fight a dust storm, nor a wildfire. Not with a pair of pistols. All you could do was survive it, take your shots and count each day you went home as a good one.

He got a message, and he cut his spinning short the instant it came through. The world turned golden, and he read the message in the space between two moments.

Lorlael was wantin to meet, apparently, with all their countrymen. She wanted to make plans, which was at least a good idea in theory, even if their plans never lasted long in their actual fights. But with a full dozen pinnacle elites joining the Harmony Accords, it would be important to make sure they were all hauling in the same direction. With five of their countrymen in that number, they’d more’n doubled their presence.

That brought… opportunity.

Colton liked to think of himself as a simple man, with simple pleasures. He spoke rarely not because he had nothin to say, but because he thought better of sayin it. Anyone who would listen wouldn’t be needing you to say nothing and anyone who needed you to say somethin wouldn’t be doin nothin even if you did say it.

But he still had a duty, to his country and his countrymen. Here, on this foreign ship surrounded by foreigners, they could make sure they came back from the wilderness, on the other side of the storm, if not unscathed, then at least better off than any o’ the others.

The higher ups were surely already making their own plans but as the blades in the fight they could… and should, make their own plans.

Letting himself enjoy the silence for a moment Colton stepped and watched as time stretched around him, not quite able to keep up. That let him reach the door and open it for everyone else as they retreated to the Republic portion of the ship.

He didn’t want to be here for what was sure to be happenin next.

Outta sight was outta mind.

***

Supreme General Alicia Fortan stood at attention as she reported her failure to her President.

Even through the hologram, President Janet’s glare felt like it was capable of killing her.

“And please explain to me how you had no advanced warning about this maneuver. Explain it like I’m the idiot you must take me for.”

Talking to someone twice her Tier was never a good thing but after the last twenty four hours Alicia just hoped she’d make it through the conversation alive.

She had no doubt there were spies loyal to the Tier 50 integrated into her command who could remove her should she fail to appease President Janet.

“I suspect that the orders were only issued moments before they were acted upon. Empire High Command is locked in a bunker as securely warded as anything we can create. As for how they were able to track our elites? We have some theories, a few captured spies, and we are fairly certain it isn’t reproducible.”

For the first time Janet looked something other than angry and Alicia jumped to explain without seeming like an over eager lieutenant.

“If they had the ability to permanently track so many elites, they would have never given it away with such a devastating alpha strike. They would have slowly and carefully picked off an elite or two, making it seem like a good chance as the Ascenders ran into them. That they moved all at once says this was a once in a lifetime opportunity.”

Alicia might have pushed the boundaries there at the end but she didn’t exaggerate or lie. It was incredibly likely the Empire had burned a number of spies to gather the locations of so many elites.

Janet drummed her fingers so quickly it looked like a blur which made Alicia even more nervous as it lasted entire seconds. Seconds would be days if not months subjective for a Tier 50. Just what was she contemplating that took that much time?

A cold sweat ran down Alicia back but she didn’t even dare to wipe it away with a spell or her Domain.

Finally Janet spoke. “I’m tempted to just write off the entire Tier 25 battlefront, but that would worsen the substantial morale loss we’re already suffering from. What are you going to do to fix this?”

Alicia was about to speak when Janet’s eyes turned into slits and she leaned slightly forward. “Before you answer, let me explain something to you. You are getting one chance to countermand your and your fellow Generals' mistakes. With the deaths of four of our pinnacle elites we have just permanently lost thirty percent of our top level fighters in the Tier 25 bracket. I have already talked to the Clans, The Collective, and the Corporation. They are all circling us and preparing to declare war on us now that we are weakened.”

Janet's face twisted into a sneer as she said, “They’re being generous enough to allow us to finish the war with the Empire before they jump on us, because they are offering to allow us to pay them off out of our spoils of war. A war chest which will be greatly reduced if we can’t secure victories in all three major brackets. So tell me, how are you going to fix this?”

Alicia’s mind raced as she pondered her and the other General’s earlier plans. Ultimately, she decided that they hadn’t changed and explained.

“From the reports and scans we got of the Ascender team they are in awful conditions. That means they will need years of recovery. Even with the ability to teleport back to The Sophron Imperium Maginex, where the best healers will be, my specialists are estimating a recovery time measured in decades at minimum. On account of these being Gladiators, we’ll be conservative and assume that is one decade. To continue being conservative, we can assume that they have and will use a hospital stationed in a Tier 35 rift, cutting their recovery time down to just over a year. The Harmony Accords are close enough to the Tier 35 frontlines that, with their new influx of more army-oriented elites, they can cut an additional access channel to the assault on the Citadel. That will bring nearly a dozen additional Tier 35 armies within striking distance of those lines. Given historical trends for how Aiden Waters fights, even if the man survives or somehow wins against our combined forces, he will nonetheless be forced into a recovery period of his own, at which point we may bring our additional armies to bear, capture the Citadel, and open up a number of undefended Tier 25 battlefields for the Harmony Accords to continue pushing through. Once that happens we can rage through the Empire's interior without challenge. The damage alone will offset any losses in territory on the frontlines.”

The drop of sweat which was just about to reach her lower back seemed to turn into a block of ice as Janet’s eyes refocused onto her.

It looked like she had just eaten a lemon as Janet said. “An acceptable plan. Do not disappoint me, Supreme General. We can not afford any more mistakes. I’ve bartered for a few of the captured elites’ immediate return and they will be back to the frontlines as soon as we can ensure they haven’t been tampered with. No more deaths, no more captures. We can afford neither. Do you understand?”

Before Alicia could say anything the signal cut out and she let out a sigh. Still, just in case the Tier 50 was watching somehow Alicia bowed slightly. “As is your will, madam President.”

It felt like an impossible task.

She wanted to complain but knew it would do no good in changing the past or the present. But really, how was anyone to know Ascender Shadow could teleport such massive distances? By the time the Ascenders moved, it was too late for both the Republic's faculties and the elites.

The elites who should have been safe due to the million and one wards on them.

Scanning through her rosters, she connected with Generals Chu Fung and Hitomi. Hearing her suggestion they instantly agreed having just gotten done with similar calls from their respective Tier 50s.

They most certainly had spies among their midsts, and as the peak fighting force in all three Great Powers they had a fairly broad access to information. While direct elite locations wasn’t part of that information, they were tied into the logistic networks, and any decent spy could infer a lot from resource allocation, no matter how much it was obscured.

Mana pulsed as the active shielding came to life. Not shields for damage, but shields to isolate them from the realm itself. They would need to drop them to dowse any possible futures but their dowsers would be down for at least the next three months so that wasn’t too much of an issue. If they needed supplies they could always just connect to the in between and be resupplied without breaking their lockdown.

The logistics said it was possible.

The larger issue was their pilots who had already pushed their Talents to the limit in moving their ship across the war front that normally took months to travel in a matter of hours. They would be out of commission for at least a few months even with them being shoved into an accelerated time chamber.

Still, the ship was fast in its own right. That combined with having nearly every peak and pinnacle elite from three Great Powers gave them an unprecedented level of power.

Before today she would have called it enough power to kill even Ascenders but she didn’t even want to think of such a heretical thought at this time.

Not after what the Empire had done.

Everything depended upon the fight at the Citadel. But, with the proper backup, it wouldn’t matter how impossibly strong the Empire’s Ascenders were, the planet would fall. They just had to open up paths for reinforcements to travel along. And to do that, there were two options. Assault the frontlines directly, or slip behind them and begin attacking their supply lines, trusting the armies in their wake to crush the thus-weakened defenders.

Assaulting the frontlines directly… it would work. There were enough elites on their ship who specialized in dealing with armies, rather than other elites, that they could punch through the frontlines, the Harmony Accords at the vanguard. But it would be slow, and they had only a year of nearly-assured safety before the Ascenders would be back in action. If they took longer than that… the battlefront was done.

No, it was better to race ahead, take advantage of what time they could muster to deal as much damage to the backlines as possible. That way, even if they became tied up in dealing with the Ascenders once again, the armies behind them would have at least a chance of breaking through the frontlines, and cutting an access channel to the Citadel front.

No doubt, the supply depots behind the frontlines would be somewhat reinforced, but the Empire had been stretched so thin, and their ship represented what was possibly the single greatest concentration of power in history. They would crush the resistance found there, take the worlds, take the Citadel, take the Empire.

It wouldn’t be easy. But it was possible.

Alicia hadn’t reached her level without taking risks and what was one more?

Sending a message to the other two Generals, she waited.

It was time to do or die.

***

Ari Kai left the meeting room after he got the all clear from President Olga. He didn’t bother to put away his knife though.

If Alicia wanted to put the ship in lock down she was allowed too but the good President had ordered he take that opportunity to do a little cleansing for their party and they had the perfect scapegoats.

All in a day's work.