Death... and me

By the time Rean had finished explaining 'his' theories again, everyone had dropped their disdain for Rean's abilities. Although some could also tell that portions of those runes would need to be revised, his theories seemed feasible. Not only that, but they could truly increase the efficiency of their airship if they really worked.

Suddenly, one of the subordinates of the airship looked at Palaris and asking, "Elder Palaris, we can't let such an opportunity like this pass up. I don't know how he has such a high Soul Purity even though he's an adult. However, his talent in formations is definitely worth a lot more than his capability of controlling the trials."

Even Ophele, who was angry at Rean because he made her grandfather cry again, had to admit that his formation talent was terrifying. Well, little did they know that Rean was just showing them what he learned somewhere else.

Nevertheless, Rean took that opportunity to ask, "Controlling the Bloodline Trials? What do you mean?"

Palaris narrowed his eyes as he fell into deep thought. 'Perhaps I should make a request to the high elders? However, they'll definitely want to check why he and his brother have high Soul Purity at their age. If he was just another normal kid...'

Palaris then shook his head as he said, "Forget it. We can't get involved in this problem. Don't forget, I'm only someone responsible for an airship's formation."

Rean didn't care about it, though. Their meeting was nothing but a coincidence to start with. However...

"Grandfather, that won't do. I'll ask mother to make an exception." As soon as Ophele said those words, everyone's expression changed.

Naturally, that caught Rean's attention. 'Her mother? Could it be that she's some sort of bigshot?'

'Probably,' Roan replied through their Soul Connection. 'Seems like this mistake of yours will be of some use now. If we can stay in two different places inside their headquarters, it will help us understand everything much better.'

Rean slightly nodded, responding, 'Alright, I'll try to make things work on my side. Though, are you okay being the only one sent to the Bloodline Trial formations?' Rean was still somewhat concerned about what would happen there.

'It's fine. They won't suddenly attack me or kill me. Besides, we have the idiot orb to pull us out if the situation turns awry.'

The idiot orb immediately complained in response, asking, [Who the hell is the idiot orb?]

Rean faintly smiled as he looked at Palaris and Ophele discussing.

"Grandfather. You know that the head favors her a lot. Besides, we have two twins with the same ability. She should be able to convince the head to leave this one for us at the very least." Ophele was truly interested in Rean's skill in formations.

The other Zasfins around them also agreed with her, saying that they also wanted to learn more about Rean's theories. If they did well, the position of their group inside the Soul Rulers would increase a lot.

Eventually, Palaris nodded as he looked at Ophele, saying, "Alright, then. However, she definitely won't listen to this old man's words, so it has to be you. Are you fine with that?"

Ophele immediately nodded with confidence as she said, "Yes! Leave mother to me."

Rean then pretended to be confused at the situation as he asked, "Ahem...can someone explain what's going on? What do you mean by controlling the bloodline trials? Is there any danger when you do that?"

Palaris pondered for a bit before deciding that it wouldn't make much of a difference even if Rean knew about it. Not long after, he explained, "The others outside don't know about it, but the Bloodline Trials of the world are controlled by us, the Soul Rulers. However, the core of the formations that operate the Bloodline Trials are humans with very high Soul Purity. That being said, once you're sent inside, you will have to work on it until the day your Soul loses its purity."

Rean nodded after hearing that. He had to take this chance to know as much as possible, so he continued to ask, "You said that I would do it until my Soul Purity disappears. Well, to be more specific, I'll have to work until it reaches the level of common humans, right? Isn't that fine, then? I can come back once I'm done with this job."

Everyone else's expression changed after hearing that. "There's no coming back. Once you can't do your job anymore, you are done for."

Rean pretended to be taken aback as he replied, "Co-Could it be that they will kill me? Why? I can still work like a normal human after that!" Of course, Rean had theorized back then that the human kids that finished their tasks at the Bloodline Trials were used for something else after that, the Soul Stones. Of course, he wouldn't say it aloud.

"You will die, however...not in the way you think."

"Grandfather!" Suddenly, Ophele stopped her grandfather's words, saying, "You can't talk about that."

Palaris was taken aback for a moment and nodded, apologizing, "Oh, sorry, sorry. You're right."

Rean took that moment to ask Roan, 'Should I push forward?'

Roan knew what he was talking about and pondered for a second before giving the green light, saying, 'Go for it. From what I can see from the other Zasfins' expressions, this is not a big secret between them. Ophele only stopped Palaris because she thought it would affect you. They want your expertise as a Formation Master, after all. So, they can't allow you to hate them too much. This is the perfect moment to bring that topic out.'

Rean nodded and took a deep breath before asking, "It seems like that once I'm done with my task at the Bloodline Trials, I won't just simply die, huh?"

Ophele shook her head, responding, "You better not know about it. You won't like it."

Rean snorted in response as he asked, "Are you talking about the Soul Stones?"

Immediately, everyone's expression in the room changed as one of them asked, "How do you know about that?"

Rean shrugged his shoulders before continuing, "That's because I have seen one of them before. I'm not an idiot, you know. Soul Power is different from Spiritual Energy. It only exists because souls exist...or so my deceased master mentioned. That being said, I always wondered how that thing was created. Once you refused to talk about what happens to the human kids after they finish their tasks at the Bloodline Trials, it wasn't hard to guess the rest."

Sure enough, it seemed like Rean was right.