Myriad Rivers to the Sea

Chapter 316: The Soul That Devours

Instead of taking offense at Jian’s blunt, transactional terms, Lin Mei smiled. It was a genuine smile of a seasoned leader that had seen much over her life. She saw his words not as an insult, but as an honest declaration of the principles that the guild held. In her long life, she had found that such pragmatism was often far more reliable than the fickle winds of honor. You can count on someone when they are doing it for their own benefits or benefits in general. It was much harder to count on someone when they say they are doing it out of the goodness of their heart.

She accepted what they said. “Your candor is appreciated, Elder Jian,” she said. “Perhaps even preferable. The door is now open for cooperation between the two of us should the need for it arise. That is a good outcome.”

She knew that in this increasingly chaotic world, having a powerful, motivated group as a semi-ally was a significant victory. It gave them more options, more room to maneuver. Lysander was happy as well, nodding in agreement. It was always good to have more people in arms, fighting for relatively the same thing, even if their ultimate motivations differed. At least they were not completely against the idea of helping out.

With the terms of their new, tentative relationship established, Lin Mei’s expression turned solemn once more. “Now, for the final matter. As I stated, all who have heard what has been said today must enter into our sealing pact.”

She stood, and a complex, ancient-looking rune began to glow on the palm of her hand. One by one, she cast her seal technique on everyone present. She went to Jian, then Kui, then Cyra, and then the three Generals. Each of them stood firm, their minds open, and allowed her to do so.

Jian kept a careful watch on the technique as it was being used, in case there was any kind of trick to it. Once he confirmed there were none, he let the group know to speed things along. They felt a gentle, irresistible wave of energy enter their sea of consciousness and settle deep within their soul, a silent, eternal guardian of the secrets they now held.hat Li Yu couldn’t accept the seal. Forcing the issue would be a grave insult to his powerful master and could shatter their newly formed, fragile alliance. The risk was acceptable. “I see,” she said, her voice returning to its calm, authoritative tone. “If the First Grand Elder has placed such a powerful ward upon you, then we will not force the issue. However, you will have to leave from any further discussions we have. I hope you can understand where we are coming from here.”

Li Yu immediately bowed. “Of course. I completely understand. I apologize for the trouble I’ve caused here.” With that, he excused himself, turning and walking out of the silent, tense meeting room, leaving the group to their now-secret discussions. He wasn’t insulted that they didn’t trust him, he wouldn’t trust easily either. It was actually a comfort to him that they were so careful, it meant they could be more trusted.

He went back to the Golden Voyage, his mind still trying to understand the strange, protective hunger of his own soul, and waited for their discussion to end. He would use the time to explore his nascent soul once again, it kept surprising him over and over again. Perhaps it was a good thing that it was so protective.