Planet Oros, Oakheaven Town.
The town was bustling with activity as always. Merchants were entering and exiting the town to trade goods. Locals had their stalls open for business with local produce, cooked quick meals, welcoming all pedestrians to taste and enjoy. Sounds of children laughing and giggling, running everywhere, could be heard. It was adding vitality to the air itself.
On the street, one could see the largest tavern in the town, Broken Keg. The tavern was unusually crowded, with most of the seats full, but still no noise could be heard besides one voice that seemed to be telling some story. The crowd, full of sly traders, rowdy farmers, and energetic adventurers, was having drinks, silently afraid to miss a word. The speaker was an old man whose face was a map of deep-cut lines and a white beard showing his age and experience in worldly matters. His eyes were hooded, clouded like milk glass. Anyone could tell he was blind, but still, everyone was listening to him with rapt attention.
Then, the bell rang, signaling someone entering. The old man stopped. Lady Seraphina and Jara, now disguised with ordinary faces, entered the tavern. Seeing the silent tavern, both felt as if they had interrupted some important discussion. All customers were glaring at them. One of the adventurers scowled, "Damn Owner, remove the bell or prohibit others from entering. The story was just coming to an interesting part, and someone again interrupted."
"Oh, so are you going to pay the owner to cover his losses?" Another adventurer smirked, making fun.
"If the old man doesn't stop speaking, then I can afford to pay some extra. Anyway, the owner has been making loads of coins for the last two days since the old man came," the first adventurer replied cleverly.
"What are you standing for? Sit anywhere you see a place", one of the merchants yelled at Seraphina and Jara, seeing them still standing.
Jara instinctively went for the sword, as if she would behead the merchant if he spoke rudely again.
Seraphina, subtly shaking her head, stopped Jara from making a move. Then went towards the only remaining empty table, which was coincidentally at the front and nearest to the old man.
"Hey, don't sit there. It is reserved by the old man for his guests. He has said he will not tell the story if anyone besides his guests sits on that table," one of the farmers kindly reminded them.
Seraphina and Jara now stood awkwardly near the empty table, not sure whether to sit or leave the tavern. Both sensing the awkward situation, turned around to leave.
Just then, seeing them going back, the old man who was telling the story came out of his daze and hurriedly said, "Milady, wait, please sit, please sit. I reserved this one for you."
Seraphina was surprised, "For us, I don't think we have ever met."
"Yes, we haven't met, but I know about you, and I was waiting for you. Please wait for some time, let me finish the story here, then I shall provide you with all the details," the old man kindly requested.
"Milady, let's listen to the story. Till then, I will pack some food from the tavern owner", Jara suggested.
Seraphina, being interested in listening to the story, went to take a seat along with Jara while soothing the infant in her arms to sleep.
"Old man, you are blind, how can you tell they are the guests and they are women. What if they are not?" another adventurer jokingly said.
"I know, I just know. Sometimes we don't need to see to know, we can feel it," the blind storyteller kindly replied without taking offense at the insult.
"Old man, ignore him. Continue the story," the other merchant advised.
"Ahh, so where was I?" the old man inquired with a frown.
"You were telling, the gods, the demons, and all the powerful were planning something to save the world," the farmer reminded.
The old man sighs in relief, "Ahh, yes, I remember now. So, about thousands of years ago, the gods, the demons, and the emperors all reached a consensus and gathered together. They ceased all ongoing wars across the universe and prohibited their subordinates from pillaging, destroying worlds, and waging wars. Then, they planned to have a Grand Convention. In the Grand Convention, powerful warriors across the universe will gather and fight in a tournament. Even the gods, demons themselves, will participate. This was done on the advice of the TruthBearer."
"Who is Truthbearer? And how could he command all gods, demons, and emperors?" one of the farmers asked with curiosity.
"Truthbearer is not one person; it is a lineage of truth. They always have one descendant in each generation. And the next descendant is decided not by blood, but by the selection of the most suitable disciple, decided by fate. As for why he can command all gods, demons, and emperors. The answer is he cannot," the old man replied.
"So how did he convince them?" one of the merchants asked.
"Truthbearer holds knowledge of everything, whatever is known or unknown to others, but he cannot use that knowledge for his own benefit or for evil. He can only say the truth when asked. He cannot lie," the old man answered.
"Seeing the ongoing wars, the devastation they caused, the suffering of people, he thought of preventing the bloodshed and then sent letters to gods, demons, and the emperors that he would answer one question for everyone in exchange for peace for common people, and on condition that they cease wars and avoid needless loss of life in pursuit of resources. The question has to be about themselves and should not harm the common people's interests. Also, the question will be answered for the top 10 participants. Also, those who don't win will still be able to ask questions, but answering or not answering will depend on the price, which will be decided by the importance of the question. The price needs to be paid by the participant."
"And for the gods, demons, and the emperors, this was a golden chance to pry unknown secrets of the heavens, to resolve some regrets, and to advance further in their cultivation."
"So, most of them agreed with his condition, thinking to follow it till they get an answer to their question. And those few who did not agree willingly were forced to agree under pressure from multiple enemies."
Seraphina and Jara were also captivated by the story and were listening attentively.
As if sensing their focus on him, the old man smiled at them and continued, "Then, in this way, the Grand Convention was organized. All-powerful rulers, gathered in the realm of TruthBearer, Ver. In the Ver realm, the TruthBearer had laid an ancient formation with him as a core. It forced everyone to follow his rules, according to which he would not harm anyone, while fighting outside the arena was forbidden. When fighting, both participants will be of the same realm. Stronger ones will have their strength suppressed to a weaker one's level to enable a fair fight."