210. Do Whatever You Want
I had originally intended to leave immediately, but a tall, elegant figure in a sharara suit entered the courtyard.
"Granny Chloe asked me to bring you the Phantom Carapace technique." Aisha Patani knocked gently on the door, only pushing it open and stepping inside after receiving a response.
"Thank you for bringing this," I accepted the manual of advanced aura-hiding technique from her.
"The body tempering technique and elixirs you mentioned earlier—I've had them prepared and sent to the address in your letter." Aisha Patani sat down beside me, her melodious voice flowing softly as her eyes conveyed a gentle warmth.
"I am truly grateful," I said with a nod of appreciation.
With my current achievements at H.A.R.M., I needed only to say the word and they would unlock their Treasury, retrieving the finest techniques and elixirs to send to my friend.
Leaking to the martial world would not be a problem. Even if Butcher Garcia were to use such a manual to establish his own academy, the local H.A.R.M. branch would offer him their complete support.
However, while finding a suitable technique for Garcia had been straightforward, it was a different matter for me. Even if they emptied H.A.R.M. Cascadia's entire arsenal, they wouldn't find a single manual that would capture my interest.
"How many vampire slaying merits would it take for me to exchange a Ward of Nature technique with Martial Abbey?" I looked at Aisha expectantly.
However, Aisha's response left me disappointed. "Martial Abbey doesn't have good Ward of Nature techniques. They primarily study the Path of Redemption and possess few advanced Path of Nature manuals. The Red Party and Mount Olympus have more options."
"I've heard these two names before. Are they what you call the Martial Orders?"
"Yes," Aisha replied, already accustomed to my lack of worldly knowledge. For someone like John, focusing entirely on martial training was perfectly normal.
"Why are they called Martial Orders? Aren't they countries similar to New Terra?" I asked, curious about the distinction.
"No, they were built on the remnants of countries, but they ran out of ordinary people." She paused, thought for a moment, then added, "If there were any ordinary people left, they wouldn't have enough to practice the Path of Redemption."
"What do you mean by 'ran out of ordinary people'?" I didn't like the sound of that.
Aisha sighed, then continued with furrowed brows, "Before the discovery of the Path of Redemption, the best way to break into higher Realms was to consume people—much like vampires do."
I wasn't surprised. The Crystal Realm required a vast amount of essence—the easiest way to obtain this was by consuming large quantities of humans and vampires, with humans being far easier to find and subdue.
"In the land of the free, this concept was inconceivable. The Great Paladin took painstaking steps to find an alternative—and thank God he did. He called it the Path of Redemption to symbolize repentance from the sinful ways of the past," Aisha continued.
"But in China, using people as fertilizer to cultivate whatever the Party needed had been the way of life since the 20th century." Aisha's lips tightened into a thin line as she spoke.
"They designed an efficient social structure and national apparatus to burn through their population, perhaps not that different from how their country had operated before anyway. And they had plenty of people—billions of them. Sustained them for a couple hundred years. Then, they invaded India, Southeast Asia, and Europe." Aisha's eyes, usually warm, had hardened to obsidian, and a muscle twitched along her jawline as she recounted the brutal history.
"Their ways are ruthless but effective. At one point, China was so strong they had tens of thousands of Crystal Realm Breakers and hundreds of Wards of Nature. Then the entire continent faced a population crisis, and Mount Olympus counterattacked."
"Mount Olympus, that's the other Martial Order?" I interjected.
"Yes. They suddenly emerged—nobody knew where they came from. There were only a dozen of them, but all were Fifth Realm Breakers. They fought both vampires and the Red Party."
"Initially, they were the weaker Order. They fought a protracted militia war. As Scions of Nature, they live exceptional long lives. The Red Party didn't know what to do with them."
"Did they manage to save the population of their continent?"
"No. But that's what gave them the upper hand. Eventually, the tide turned, when the way of the Red Party was no longer sustainable as they ran out of human fuel. The entire Euro-Asia continent was ravaged to the point, that you could go thousands of miles without encountering a single human soul." Aisha's eyes flickered with sympathy and compassion. It must be a horrific situation.
"It sounds like they're arch enemies, yet I've heard they're now in an alliance." Since the two Orders might hold the key to my Fourth Realm techniques, I wanted to learn as much as possible.
"About a thousand years ago, New Terra had a strong president. He brokered peace between Mount Olympus and the Red Party. Martial Abbey and the two Orders formed an alliance." Aisha's voice softened, her eyes taking on a distant gleam. She straightened her posture slightly, her shoulders squaring as though in salute to a memory, and the cadence of her words slowed with reverence when speaking of New Terra's past glory.
"New Terra was once the strongest in the alliance. That changed a couple hundred years ago when the Vessels of Redeemer died one by one. Now, we are the weakest. The Red Party wants to feed on our citizens—just like those vampires. If not for Mount Olympus's protection, we would probably have all been consumed."
"Currently, Mount Olympus leads the alliance. The Great Master has twelve disciples, while the Red Party, once boasting millions of Realm Breakers, now has fewer than a hundred. As for Martial Abbey... you've already witnessed its full might at the capital."
Its full might? I hesitated for a moment. Surely she couldn't be referring to that senile old man and the remaining twelve corpses?
If that were the case, I would need to reconsider my options.
H.A.R.M. was already weak, but who would have thought their superiors would be even weaker.
"What are the requirements for joining a Martial Order?"
Aisha Patani fell silent for the first time, then looked at me with concern. "Don't... at least don't entertain such thoughts for now."
She had never before interfered with anyone's choices.
Even in the Chuckanut Mountains, knowing danger lay ahead, she wouldn't say another word after explaining the circumstances if someone still wanted to follow.
But this time, Aisha Patani's face turned serious—her dark eyes narrowing beneath knitted brows, and her lips pressed into a taut line that spoke of genuine alarm.
"Even if you went there, you wouldn't find what you're looking for. The methods to break through from a Ward of Nature to a Scion of Nature vary greatly. Each person must struggle and comprehend it themselves. It's not a path that can be taught."
"You can definitely figure it out yourself." Trust welled up in the young woman's eyes as she gazed at me.
"Thanks for the vote of confidence." I gave her a sidelong glance. Where did this inexplicable faith come from? Still, knowing that others also had to rely on intuition to progress made me feel better. After all, this was how I had endured all along.
"Are there Realms beyond Vessel of Redeemer and Scion of Nature?" I followed up with a question.
"The Realm of Holy Transcendence. Both paths ultimately lead to the same destination—shedding one's mortal body, just through different approaches. It's a legendary Realm, although rumors suggest the Great Master of Mount Olympus has already reached this state."
Speaking of martial training, Aisha's eyes lit up with interest. "For the Path of Redemption, there are established methods," she explained. "Over the years, Martial Abbey has accumulated twenty-three techniques. Obtaining just one would give you access to the Vessels of Redeemer Realm."
The progression from Crystal Realm to Seeker of Redeemer and finally to Vessel of Redeemer offers a more direct route than the Path of Nature. However, as Martial Abbey's current state clearly demonstrates, such shortcuts inevitably exact their toll.
"I see." I stood up and pushed open the door.
Indeed, my earlier decision to follow both paths had been correct. If one path became impassable, I would still have alternatives.
… …
H.A.R.M. General's Mansion, Vancouver.
General Skyler Grant studied the two young people standing before him. Though only a few days had passed since their last meeting, his hands still trembled with excitement.
"Did you succeed?" As soon as the words left his mouth, he shook his head vigorously.
What a foolish question he had asked.
If they had failed, how could these two be standing so casually before him?
The old man stood up and paced back and forth in the room, clenching his fists and gritting his teeth, before finally taking a deep breath to calm himself down.
After a long moment of contemplation, he asked, "Can I truly rest now?"
He had originally planned to look after John for a bit longer, but ever since witnessing him slay the old Leviasaur, General Grant couldn't imagine any way he could still be of assistance.
"I actually want to take some time to visit colleagues in other cities…"
After sending out the letters previously, he hadn't received a single reply.
It was quite unsatisfying.
"I will stay here for a while," I nodded.
A wave of emotion washed over me.
Although I had planned to shatter my core, I genuinely intended to visit him, considering all the help General Grant had provided me in the past.
I had simply been too busy hunting vampires and couldn't find the time.
I hadn't anticipated that after such a brief conversation, he would be departing.
"Do whatever you want." Skyler Grant waved his hand dismissively and strode out. He now had absolute confidence in the young man; with John Kane presiding over this place, unless the Blood Moon Vampire King himself appeared, there would definitely be no trouble.
Do whatever I want? I raised my eyebrows.
Those were the old man's exact words.
"Hmm?" Aisha Patani glanced at Skyler Grant's disappearing figure, then noticed the subtle changes in John's expression.
She remembered that John had worn a similar expression when he went to find the Ascendant King.