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Chapter 1,223.
🕑 Added 2024-03-20 20:38:40 +0000 UTCZac was in a sorry state, especially his Draugr body, after rushing into the sea of lightning to enter the [Epiclesis Bell]. Multiple skill fractals were damaged from cramming Chaos Energy into their delicate circuits, and his pathways were a mess. He'd even damaged his soul and Cosmic Core. It wasn't just the black lightning or the tribulation. The biggest problem was the dozen Chaos Motes he'd absorbed at once as a warning.
His Mental Energy was equally drained. The exhaustion from overcoming the Atavism and digesting the Dao Impartment was fast catching up with him now that he wasn't running on Chaos and adrenaline. Containing the Glimpses of Chaos for so long had provided Zac with valuable insights at the cost of overdrawing his reserves. His Soul Cores looked like dying stars, and swallowing a handful of recovery pills did little to help.
Zac wanted nothing more than to sleep, but having such a dangerous stowaway aboard the Yphelion was an issue that couldn't wait. The audacious Reaver hadn't actually teleported away after slamming him with his mace. Kator had snuck aboard the Yphelion, hiding his presence from the security systems by installing an unfamiliar array directly to one of the vessel's power lines. It created a bubble of isolation that perfectly matched the Yphelion's energy signature.
In hindsight, it was definitely the correct choice. Zac had seen just how far the Heavens and the System were willing to go to erase the threat. Top-tier escape treasures could certainly overcome such a vast distance, but that was when space was normal. The immense pressure from the Heavenly clouds combined with the weakened spatial integrity made any teleportation incredibly dangerous.
Not to mention, activating an escape treasure risked drawing the System's attention. It was a far safer choice for Kator to hide inside the Yphelion, betting on Zac's refusal to let his people come to harm. As such, he was safe and sound, having retreated to safety before Zac even cracked open the bell.
Luckily, Zac had caught him early. Kator's measures couldn't elude Zac's Chaos-augmented senses after activating [Apex Jungle]. Kator was a being of Death, and he'd lit up like a beacon. His subterfuge was even more hopeless after the System had upgraded the ship. Kator's array had to be custom-made to work with the Yphelion model, and it had lost much of its efficacy now that it was plugged into something else.
"I'm back. The plan worked, but we have a problem," Zac said with a muted voice into a communicator. "The Reaver is still here."
"Damn, I was forced to retract my shadows when the monks reappeared," Ogras swore on the other end. "They were coming alive."
"He used the chaos to his advantage," Zac sighed. "Knock out the other one and bring some people."
Zac kept a measured pace toward Kator's hiding spot. His state was far worse than the Reaver's, and Kator remained content to stay put for now. Every second gave Zac the chance to recover a bit more energy and figure out a plan. The problem was that Zac still couldn't figure out what Kator was thinking. It was clear that Kator's final attack was a disguised attempt to help him out.
Kator knew about his plan of using the Remnants even if Zac hadn't explained it outright. His uncle Kaldor had already seen Zac use them once in the Orom World, and it was impossible to hide the fact that he'd bought the set from the Limited Exchange after stepping into Middle Hegemony. Kator wanted to facilitate their activation by putting Zac in a time-accelerated domain. He would most likely have managed anyway, but the assistance made his job a lot easier.
That olive branch wasn't enough to discern whether Kator was friend or foe. Zac didn't have enough information on the White Sky Phalanx and the brewing conflict within the empire to understand Kator's position. He could be caught in a plot he wanted no part of or turned into a sacrificial pawn.
There were aspects of their recent interactions that supported that notion. Kator had always been annoying, but he'd been unusually infuriating since the mission began. Kator had also given him hints of the threat Zac faced from the Heartlands by mentioning the bounty, and there were similar clues hidden in their discussion when Zac was trapped by the Eidolon's seal.
Kator was also a ruthless opportunist. He'd called himself selfish, and Zac didn't doubt that part for a second. His actions had painted his faction in the worst possible light, and Zac hadn't thought twice about attacking the Undead Autarchs with the borrowed power of A'Zu and Be'Zi.
Now that things had calmed down, Zac was left with misgivings. The sudden appearance of Autarchs was absolutely not a good thing, but Zac felt Kator had led him toward the wrong conclusion. Were they really planning on killing him and taking the Flamebearer seal after he wrapped up his quest? Zac wasn't convinced after having some time to think it over.
A warning beep dragged Zac out of his thoughts, and Zac swore with alarm. "Hurry, he's targeting the ship arrays!"
Zac forced his body into action, setting off into a sprint. Kator had ripped open a panel of the Yphelion, and he was already digging around inside. This went far beyond siphoning some energy for his array. It was outright sabotage. Zac had hoped he could trust the Reaver's sense of self-preservation and that he'd lay low at least until black lightning had dispersed.
Kator must have realized the problem with his array and concluded his situation was so unfavorable that he had to take drastic measures. His actions didn't pose an empty threat, either. The Yphelion wasn't the most durable of Late D-grade Vessels, and he'd seen Kator's offensive might just moments ago.
The situation was even worse when the ship was targeted from within. Any critical arrays were guarded with additional protection, and there were multiple redundancies in place. However, Kator clearly had an intricate knowledge of the ship, going by his earlier inspection and how he could install the obfuscation array.
Kator's choice of hiding place shouldn't be random. There were hundreds of rooms and service tunnels throughout the ship, some even harder to access than his current location. Had they discovered a weakness in the design? If so, then an all-out attack could very well cripple the Yphelion.
The ship was only so big, and Zac appeared before the chamber in no time. Ogras stepped out of the shadows while Kruta, Emily, and Galau caught up soon after. Emily wasted no words before imbuing Zac with a set of tomahawks while a miniature totem pole appeared behind her back. Zac felt a rush of vitality from Emily's layered buffs as they stabilized and strengthened his body.
"Your right-hand woman is guarding the other one. She'll kill him if he makes the wrong move. I left one of my shadows just in case," Ogras whispered as he looked at Zac up and down. "What's our plan?"
"Be ready, but don't do anything hasty. He might not be an enemy," Zac said before opening the door.
"The locals kept gossiping about you, and the tales grew taller by the day. I even heard someone call you the reincarnation of an Abyssal Prince in Kavista before setting off. I was never convinced, even after you somehow activated that ancient piece of junk."
"And now?" Zac said as he stepped inside, [Death's Duality] firmly gripped in his right hand.
"Seeing is believing. Suffice it to say that my horizons have been broadened. I've never heard of someone bickering with the System and coming out ahead. The road was a bit bumpy, but it looks like you got everything you wanted."
"Not quite."
"I suppose. Can't get rid of me that easily," Kator laughed.
"Then let's talk," Zac said. "But first, get your arm out of the wall."
"I think I won't," Kator shrugged.
Killing Intent began leaking from Zac's body, and two similarly ruthless auras appeared in the room as Kruta and Ogras entered. Emily took up a position in the doorway, ready to provide support from the backlines. Galau remained outside, working remotely with the shipwrights on rerouting any critical systems and energy away from the area.
"Quite the line-up," Kator said as a shield grew on his free arm. "Are you sure you want to fight right now? I can tell you've taken a large step forward, but you're in a wretched state. Can the Yphelion withstand our battle? It'd be a shame everything fell apart now after you managed to navigate those dangerous waters."
"I will if I have to," Zac said with determination.
The silent standoff grew tenser by the moment, with neither side moving. Kator didn't take his hand out of the hole he'd created, but he also didn't channel any energy. Eventually, Kator's body began creaking and rumbling. He was actually laughing.
"I'm just joking. You're right. We need to talk, so I prepared a little something. Call it a belated greeting gift. Take a look."
Kator stepped aside, leaving Zac lost and suspicious. The Reaver's frantic dismantling had removed multiple layers of protective plating to expose a section of the arrays that made the Cosmic Vessel run. The complex, interlocking system was far beyond Zac's understanding, and the System's alterations had made them even more aliens.
However, even Zac could tell there was something odd going on with the exposed spot. The Yphelion had been completely reborn from the golden pillar. Zac had asked the System to bring them to safety, expecting it to teleport them or open a spatial tear. He'd never expected that the System would interpret Zac's request in such an oddly generous way.
Perhaps it felt the balance was skewed and added extra benefits. As such, the System didn't half-ass things as it did with some rewards. Anything Zac inspected with his administrator access or Soul Sense said the same thing. Not a single inch had missed the System's attention. Light fixtures, decorations, anti-dust arrays, storerooms—everything had been touched up.
Everything except a small section hiding in the wall of this remote service room.
The blockish fractal patterns that were the calling card of the Iliex stood out as a sore thumb in the middle of graceful patterns engraved by the System. Zac pushed his sense deeper into the hidden crawlspaces to confirm. The exposed spot was the only aberration, and it didn't seem like an external addition like Kator's obfuscation array.
The Iliex-designed section was fully integrated with the main array, and running diagnostics indicated everything was in working order. Pulling up schematics stored in the Yphelion's database even displayed this part, indicating it was part of the propulsion system of one of the subspace generators. Still, Zac had a bad feeling as he looked at it. The System wouldn't make a mistake like this.
"The Ruthless Heavens did me a solid," Kator said as he lazily scratched his chest, where a scar from his fight with the Golem remained. "It would have been harder to convince you otherwise."
"What—" Zac said, only stopping himself at the last moment. He'd been led around the nose enough by Kator today. "Step aside."
Kator shrugged and sauntered over to the far side of the room, with Kruta and Ogras taking up defensive positions.
"Galau, come over," Zac said, and the merchant peeked over his girlfriend's shoulder soon after. "What do you make of this?"
"Huh, what's this?" Galau said, his wariness over Kator's imposing presence gradually giving way to academic curiosity. "It's part of the schematic, but why is this pathing suboptimal? No… don't tell me…"
"Can you identify it?"
"There is something odd going on, but it's hidden in an ingenious way. I need some help to figure out what the secondary function is. Can you call over Jaol?" Galau asked, his eyes never leaving the Iliex runes.
It didn't take long before a glassy-eyed Jaol stumbled through the door, clearly having trouble coming out of the Dharmic vision. The tense atmosphere woke him right up, and he scurried over to Galau's side. Ogras had already thrown out an isolation array to mute their discussion, but their confused expressions indicated their analysis would take a while.
"Don't look at me," Kator said. "I have my suspicions, but I'll wait for your helpers to confirm them. We wouldn't want our new partnership to start off on the wrong foot because of a mistaken guess, now would we?"
"Alright, what games are you playing? One minute you're antagonizing me, the next you're acting buddy-buddy."
"Why not just throw him overboard?" Kruta said. "The easiest way to deal with stowaways."
"Forceful teleportation is easier said than done, Blooddancer. Especially when the target is wearing a spatial anchor," Kator snickered. "Besides, doing so would have nasty consequences for everyone involved. You can explain it, one barbarian to another."
"The binding clauses of our agreement are still active," Zac sighed. "Throwing him overboard now is a death sentence, so I'll be hit with a backlash. The contract was witnessed by more than half the Undead Empire's Surpemacies, including the Primo."
"How is that possible?" Kruta sputtered while Ogras looked thoughtful. "Is the agreement still standing? They sent Grand Elders into the region!"
"Even so."
Zac had tried to make Kator admit to breaking the agreement or rebelling against the Undead Empire, but he'd been extremely careful with his words and actions since the get-go. Kator was correct in that he hadn't broken a single clause, and Zac could still sense the magic stamp that meant the Primo's Writ remained active. Conversely, simply attacking Kator without proper justification risked triggering a backlash, as it would be a form of insurrection against their official party leader.
It would have been one thing if Kator had actually tried to damage the Yphelion, as that was equivalent to an attack on everyone aboard. But even that turned out to be a false opening. Zac felt a headache coming on, and he looked at Kator with annoyance. It felt like he was dealing with a lawyer rather than an elite soldier.
"Buddy, you need to read everything twice over when dealing with old schemers," Kruta lamented. "Otherwise, you'll end up digging trenches in some penal colony for a few Nexus Crystals a month."
"I guess I missed this loophole."
"That's a pretty big loophole to miss," Kruta muttered. "Ai, whatever. I knew what I signed up for."
"So you'll be the one who faces the backlash if we want this guy gone?" Ogras snorted. "Like a bone stuck in the throat, this one."
"I can't relate, but I'll take your word for it," Kator said.
"We got it! It's a tracker!"
Everyone's attention was drawn to Galau, who'd emerged from the isolation array.
"What did you say?" Zac growled. "A tracker? Is it active? Can the Autarchs use it to follow us?"
The fate of the four Autarchs had suddenly become the most pressing issue. Their positions had imploded into unstable black holes filled with malevolence and heavenly wrath. Zac couldn't imagine even an Autarch surviving such a deadly concoction. However, there were no signs of them inside the Void.
A Monarch was essentially a walking Mystic Realm, and Zac remembered how specialized units hurried over any time a Monarch fell during the war. A Low-grade Monarch's Inner World could survive for a couple of weeks after its creator's demise, becoming a time-limited trove holding the wealth of a C-grade cultivator.
Of course, it was a risky venture, considering it was almost impossible to kill a Monarch without also crippling their world. It could collapse at any time, and whole sections could split off and disappear without notice.
No matter how weak or stable their worlds are, there would be signs of spatial instability. This wouldn't change when an Autarch fell. If anything, the commotion would be hundreds of times greater. Yet there wasn't a whiff of spatial fluctuations or broken pieces of an inner world around the blast site.
Zac had been too preoccupied with Vilari at the time and simply figured they'd managed to escape by the skin of their teeth. He hadn't been too worried, as their main priority should have been to escape Heaven's pursuit. By the time things calmed down, they would have been forced out of Zurbor, and any trail leading to them would have gone cold.
However, things were very different if they were being tracked.
"Don't worry; it doesn't work after the ship broke," Galau assured Zac, allowing him to breathe out in relief.
"What, you still think this is related to us? How are we supposed to have installed this thing?" Kator scoffed. "You've been monitored by someone else."
"Who?"
"The Centigrade Pryer must have had his eyes on you for a while."
Comments
Kconraw
Thx for the chapter
R. Maxwell Steele
What's convoluted right now on the story? He's been seeking out the remnants atavism for ages. He's rescuing his daughter. And he's sneaking behind enemy lines. If anything seems like everything is coming together.
Zachary Blevins
The story becomes a more overly convoluted mass the longer it goes on and on. I catch myself checking out for chapters at a time because I get tired of some overly convoluted bullshit that’s going on.
Michael Fannon
The war between Zecia and the Kan'Tanu is a system event that has been brewing for centuries. When Zac triggered Ultom, the system was forced to combine the 2. The void priestess talked about that when she spoke to Zac after the void gate adventure.
Mike Naka
The only real plot hole I can think of at the moment is why is it only the Kan'Tanu that are invading Zecia? If other factions have been on the lookout for the Ultom trial and if the prizes are so monumental, then why is only 1 B-grade faction invading Zecia. You'd think other factions might want to invade. Yes, I know some used the Kan'Tanu to get in, but if the multiverse is soo huge, then I still wonder why there's only 1 invading force. If there's a 'power' behind each outer court, then you'd think they'd expend a lot of their resources to get a piece of themselves back like the Primo. I'd think that a 'power' would want to do more than just bet on the Kan'Tanu collecting sealbearers to sell. I dunno. Maybe I'm just spinning my wheels?
Dan
F5…. F5… F5
MikeNaka
We may have only seen a small sliver of the groups wanting something from the Ultom trial. Maybe each outer court holds something a pre-system entity wants?
Collin Sorrells
Kator is on the fence still for sure and we really don't know the real Kator. Ogras had some things that really anchored him. Strong familial bonds, the unjust deaths of most of his kin, a longing to be more, having to hide his talent for fear of assassination..... Imagine how insufferable and arrogant Ogras would be if he had lived Kators seemingly bespoke life and been blessed with that much success and talent 😭
Krispy sock
Idk who is the clear favorite, but I’m hoping we get to see iz release some of that raw dog power against some of them
Nate
We're probably going to get his POV along with others today
Random Information
How did the Centigrade Pryer become aware and interested in Zac before Ultom even emerged? My guess is it was due to Ubo, the Elemental from the Orom World. Ubo may have managed to escape (probably by latching onto Zac's escape). If Ubo has links with the Centigrade Pryer (they are both elementals after all), then it makes sense for them to keep track of someone like Zac.
Alexandre Bergeron
What are your opinions regarding the top 3 strongest flamebearers entering Ultom's trial? With all the new entries and newly discovered top-tier factions and their descendants, do you still think Iz is the clear favorite? The primordial? Some other Eonic Seed? Curious about your thoughts.
Collin Sorrells
Well that's a huge twist. I actually think it's perfect for the tracking scanners origins to introduce a third party that had knowledge or suspicions of what was about to happen in the multiverse that led towards Zac's activities. So what are your guys thoughts on these observations and speculations. ........................ Zac and Ogras were surprised about how clueless the undead were about the exact details of what was actually happening with Ultom and how to participate in the trail. They somewhat regretted giving them so much information for free but had assumed they would already know the basics. After understanding what they needed to do, Kator and Tavza seemed to have planned on becoming flame bearers themselves and on getting allot more seals for their followers than they were able to get. It seems the Primo is being very stingy with the details and was just like "Go to Zecia, something important is happening there, you are to participate. The Drauger edge walker will be an important asset for the mission, you are to make a deal with him". Then they were spoon fed the bare minimum amount of additional information about the pillar rising and a mission to retrieve an important item as the situation progressed. The Buddhists are also acting strange and the different kingdoms don't seem to be sharing everything they know with each other or working harmoniously together and have their own separate motivations and secrets. The Sangha predates the system and rubbed shoulders with Laondio and the limitless empire as did the Primo and the undead. Someone awhile back had a theory that there's a Buddhist counterpart to the Primo in the Sangha leading the kingdom that has no beef with the undead and that has never went to war against them and that there is some kind of secret relationship there. If that's true, they were definitely forced by Laondio to sacrifice something in the creation of this eternal heritage as well, just like the Primo. So we have 2 pre system entities that know exactly what the Ultom courts are and what they want to recover from it and who probably had some level of direct interaction/conflicts with Karz and Laondio. My guess is that this Centigrade Pryer is some third ancient pre system monster that was involved in the creation of Ultom and that has some direct and intimate knowledge of exactly what happened back then. Because of that, something it was looking for or signs it knew to look out for put it on Zac's trail. This Centigrade Pryer was probably forced to give something to Ultom and wants it back as well. A third ancient player in the form of a mysterious and reclusive golem monstrosity that single handedly rivals the Sangha or undead empire in power hell-bent on getting what it needs back from Ultom seems like a grand thing to kick the chaos up another notch and to help Zac fish in muddy waters.
Hartmann
They upgraded his ship options and added the after service division.
Shurjin
So even if the Creators were forced by an even bigger force to install the tracker, the balance has become greatly lopsided, almost getting Zac killed or captured, and they will likely have to mend the unbalance one way or another to Zac.
Darnell Maxwell
War Profiteer! Gathered more war merit than everyone else in your grade.+5% to all attributes. Probably got the reward wrong but I'm betting that's what the title he'll get will be called. God I knew there was an obvious name for the title but I couldn't think of it. That shit has been itching at the back of my mind for like a week now. Or it could be something like Sector Sevant. Guess that could work too.
Darnell Maxwell
Welp I was wrong. Still don't trust Kator but I admit to taking this L.
Joey
It was pre Void Star which makes it even more suspect
Joey
In his POV, Kator said that he was giving information to the 7th Heaven but they didn't know about the remanents so it's unclear how much he actually told them
Joey
That he's keeping his options because he didn't give everything to the heavens, so he's trying to play everyone
Lex Luther S
Karunthel had told Rham that someone had requested a scanner to be placed on zacs ship and he argued for an upgrade to zacs quest reward to which they immediately agreed to, showing that someone had an interest in that backwater sector, but makes me wonder where the tracking array popped up or if I'm forgetting something. Though I've no doubt they didn't care about zac, though after becoming the fulcrum that set everything off, there's no telling now. Hell, this could be where the tracking array came from after the yphelions upgrade to late D grade when his ship yard was upgraded. Though I doubt they'd do that unless they were literally forced and unable to reject the request.
Lex Luther S
I don't think he was privy to those details till right as he was leaving for the mission. Besides, as mentioned the 2 undead autarchs snuck in via the bell so there's no way kator had a hand in that given he's only a hegemon so the system wouldn't really have a need to go after him.
Telewyn
Ah, so maybe the ship upgrade isn’t because the System likes his motes so much, it’s because the Ilex shipyard is a System provided benefit and they broke the rules?
Chris
Good chapter I reckon. Good progress.
Dan
Exactly. He’s doing the exact opposite of Venus (spelling?) the fate cultivator from Twilight Harbor and Perenial Vastness. He is the Yin to Ventus’ Yang. They’re both talents of the young generation but they also know that their factions don’t give half a flying fuck about them. Hitching their wagon to the chaos and destruction that is Zac is the only way they can see to possibly get through the trial without being sacrificed by their elders.
Joey
Just how many sides is Kator going to play? The Heavens can't be happy with him after how the ambush turned out
Berry McCockiner
I’m hoping for an epic clash Iz Vs. Centigrade Pryer 1v1 and POV Zac. Would be fucking lit
Luke Scheffe
Both the Sangha and the UE were aware that Zac was Ultom's fulcrum when he left the Orom. It seems plausible that he found out from them.
Rushin Lad
The illiex talked about putting a tracker in right before custom ship building, right after bringing the voidcatcher post void star
Luke Scheffe
But after both the Sangha and the UE were aware that Zac was Ultom's fulcrum.
Luke Scheffe
I'm pretty sure that it is just metaphorical feasting, where they reuse the imbued concepts in each era.
Vinay S
How did centigrade pyre and illiex know about ultom? Even before Zac knew... did they install tracker just because Zac's fate and providence was strong? Another faction in the mix now
Thomas Laptain
I doubt Kator knew about the tracker beforehand. Finding it was just a happy coincidence (/peripheral effect of Zac's Luck?), a combination of where he hid and the system changing all of the ship but that one part.
Collin Sorrells
I don't know why this is a surprise. They made it very obvious that it was ordered personally by a supremacy and that the supremacy was looking for something important. I was kinda baffled by the pushback I got on that. There isn't really such a thing as a tracker to begin with, all trackers are scanners that just report back the information in real time. Radar doesn't track, it scans, the tracking ability is just a useful byproduct of the information being tracked.......... If it's reporting back the scanned information, it would be impossible for that to not be easily tracked. The only way it could not possibly be a tracker is if there was some system enforced multiverse VPN making the transmission anonymous... Or if it was not transmitting at all and just scanning and storing data but it would be pretty useless if it wasn't transmitting unless they were planning to capture Zac's ship manually in the immediate future and retrieve the data.
Dan
Ilex installed a specialized scanner because their bosses told them to. And told them it was a secret they couldn’t tell Zac. So, he’s been tracked for a book and a half by now.
Collin Sorrells
That chapter made it very obvious that it was a tracker and nefarious business that could get Zac captured or killed. How could a scanner ordered by a supremacy not have tracking capabilities? They even said, someone must be looking for something important.
Joshua Little
Thanks for the chapter.
Hartmann
That is the Radiant Temple.
Jonas Lemke
Anyone remember that faction that talked about picking up Zac as a disciple after the system shroud had been lifted way back when Zac climbed the tower of eternity? The guy with a terrifying axe? Wonder what they're up to
Joey
There will be reparations
Jonas Lemke
My thing is that Kator waited until after the tracker was useless to tell him about it as a way to convince him he's been on his side all along
Jonas Lemke
Buddha himself is probably an eternal heritage, or his corpse has been able to last throughout the eras
Tyler
I'm assuming their dead god is how they get their power. Unless it's an actual heritage similar to the Heart of the Empire, I'm imagining the inner world of a fallen Supremacy or higher, held together by the faith of the Sangha. At least until we get further information. In this chapter Zac talks about the leftover realms of Autarchs dying, if that realm has its own Heavens, perhaps it could stay around a bit longer.
Tyler
Thinking about it, Zac probably wouldn't have been able to save Vilari were it not for the Sangha. The Undead Autarchs had complete control of the situation until they showed up and distracted them long enough for Zac to pull out the remnants.
Kator said something about the Sangha feasting on the flesh of their dead god? Pretty creepy.
Yuh292
“This is an order from higher up. For some reason, the leaders really want a certain type of scanner on this brat’s ship.” “A specialized scanner?” Rahm muttered. “Should we tell him?” “We can’t, strictest orders,” Karunthel said” Book 10 Ch. 21 (before Ultom was mentioned)
The Lost Pages
That explains how the baldies tracked him. But why was the centigrade pryer involved? How were they related to the Illiex?
SmokeJam
I'm actually starting to despise the Sangha... Kator e.g. is at least obviously obnoxious, but the Sangha is just the worst kind of slimy.
Jeff McCulley
Well, this was ordered before Zac ever set off for the Void Star. Which is where Zac triggered the event. And even though the Beast Alliance had been searching for the pillar for hundreds of years, I kinda doubt that anyone was expecting it to pop right up. Maybe I’m wrong?
Kharas
Yee, makes sense. Thanks for the heads up :)
Tyler
I think it was here: "The issue was the Glimpses of Chaos. He'd held onto them far longer than ever before, even using skills with them as fuel. Enduring the streaks of annihilation damaged his pathways, and his soul was approaching dangerous levels after forcibly containing the glimpses for so long. It was time to let go. The jungle around the Yphelion collapsed as Zac finally lost control over the skill. The System didn't make a move. "Get us out of here, and we're even," Zac said with a hoarse voice."
Jeff McCulley
The head of the faction for one of the Flamebearers Iz told Zac about.
Jeff McCulley
He was ordered to create the hate relationship because it was the best option to steal fate. He found a better way and took it, likely against orders. Kator HATES being forced to take orders.
SmokeJam
After books of pure barbarism, then simple minded training in some basically arbitary places, we finally got a real story on our hands. Actual politics, intrigues and schemes mixed with the flash and bang of fantasy and magic. Maybe this sounds arrogant, but I mean it in the best positive way: Congratulations to your tremendous development as a writer. I was wavering if I should keep the sub here and over the last 2 weeks or so you have proven that I should. Thank you for awesome chapters and actually good cliffhangers, as well as obviously well planned and advanced story building.
Frardowin
Leader of the Ibex, I think
Jeff McCulley
Book 10, Chapter 21. And apparently the golem WAS an Iliex that Zac didn’t recognize?
Tyler
It's the same kind of virtuous, technical, "holier-than-thou" "balance" that Three Virtues can claim was sought with the tainted [Boundless Vajra Sublimation] that made him wary enough to catch the Draugr attempts to poison him.
Kyle
We know from Kator’s POV way back that he was concerned that the UE elders would sacrifice him in the blink of an eye if it meant getting an advantage regarding Ultom. IIRC he decided that latching onto Zac’s fate might be preferable, and that trying to be his friend wouldn’t work out. Zac knows from recent events that Kator’s “attack” was a smokescreen to apply time dilation, and considers that Kator’s “arrogant noble” attitude thus far gave Zac more insight and forewarning into the disposition of other factions of the UE that he may not have gotten otherwise. It doesn’t explicitly spell it out, but I think the implication is that Zac realized that the “helping while attacking” and “informing while being an arrogant asshole” were Kator’s way of toeing the line between hitching himself to Zac’s wagon while avoiding anything that couldn’t be explained away to his UE superiors. It’s not enough for him to believe Kator is acting in good faith, but enough to hear him out.
Kharas
Its an extremely powerful elemental on the same level as the primo. its also got a powerfull descendant in the running for the Left Imperial Palace somewhere in the sector. On top of that the 4 elementals that the 2 monks used (along with a unknown golem) to hijack entry into the Zubor sector were also from that faction. It seems now that the faint karmic connection the monks spotted, and used, were actually because the Centigrade Pryer had made the Creators install a tracking bug in Zacs ship long time ago. So the Centigrade pryers faction, and the 4 elementals, had a connection to Zac trough the tracking device, and the monks brainwashed the elementals and used that connection to also track Zac. I think TFD have been watching to much Shrek talking to Donkey lately.. because this history sure as shit have more layers than the average onion :p
Jeff McCulley
I went and looked up the passage. Chapter 21, Book 10. Either Karunthel was lying through his teeth to Rahm, or this came from WAY above his pay grade. And it’s clear they’re talking about a scanner, not a tracker. We’ll see how that changed when Zac gets back.
Tyler
I wonder if the "balance" True Destiny was referring to is the revelation of this tracker. The Sangha uses Karma to track people. The Centigrade Pryer somehow convinced the Creator golems to put a tracker on Zac's ship. It seems to me that the Sangha was only able to track Zac because of this. They infiltrated Zecia with a golem (I'm assuming this golem has some relation to the Creators) and elementals who work for the Centigrade Pryer. My theory is they were able to see the threads of Karma that linked those specific people back to their factions, and could follow those threads of Karma to where they intersected in the Yphelion. Basically the Sangha is like "well, we told you you were being tracked and betrayed by very powerful people, so us tracking, trying to kidnap you, and interfering here isn't too terrible."
Kharas
He have been ordered from the start to create a connection with Zac. His superiors ordered him to create a hate-hate relationship instead of trying to be allied because their analysis showed it was the best way to do it. He helped Zac a number of times when he dropped information about what the undead empire were up to while he snarked Zac off. Beside that he have also helped Zac twice in very short order over the last few chapters. 1 was when he hit Zac and used his temporal/time powers to give Zac more time to bring out and activate the spark and splinter. 2 was right now when he actually showed Zac that his ship was bugged so some one could follow him. Is that enough for Zac to trust him. I doubt it.. Kador is to slippery, but it might buy him another chance to actually form some sort of working alliance between himself and Zac.
Shup Idot
Inb4 tomorrow is another POV lol
Lucas Gulick
Centigrade Pryer?
Jeff McCulley
Nice catch!
Kharas
I completely agree with both your points. But I simply think he will take a number of precautions himself, and squeeze the creators/Iliex for what they are worth. The main reason his army and himself have been so successful in the war have been the ships he have sold from the shipyard and the massive amounts of gear and formations he have been able to buy with the wealth from the sale of the ships. But as you say, the friendly relationship is for sure over. We will see in the coming chapters how Zac responds to the betrayal. Anger over wealth or the other way around.
Jeff McCulley
I’m gonna take a wild guess, because he owns a Creator shipyard? Maybe even where Karunthel got demoted from. I remember a scandal mentioned.
Luke Scheffe
There’s still the question of if the Pryer was specifically interested in Zac, or if he was somehow aware of Ultom and just took advantage of their being a special award being distributed in the region.
Random Information
... the Pryer was an ancient elemental who'd achieved pseudo-immortality like the Primo. The descendant's level was a question mark, but the report said the unique elemental race were all monstrously talented. It was estimated the young Pryer would have four Earthly Daos on top of their other ungodly advantages. (Chapter 1208)
Bootsie Mcfootsie
I feel like none of that reasoning on how Kator was "helping" him and might not be an enemy made any sense at all.
Tyler S.
They must be part of the council that was called when he got confermation to upgrade to an early D grade shipyard.
Random Information
Zac will not be appeased by that. Karunthel betrayed him - and its a black mark against the Creators as a whole. Zac should mention this to the Tayns - or at least threaten to.
Kharas
At the very least he will be able to get some pretty heavy concessions from the Iliex when he finds out that they have sold him down the river like that. I very much doubt he will kick them out or something similar. The economic value of that shipyard is simply to big for him to not keep selling ships and earning the big crystal.
Jason Bradford
The Centigrade Pryer is Primo-level. Also has a descendant called the Pryer supposedly monstrously talented with 4 Earthly Dao’s…
Skai
I KNEW IT, few chapters ago. I asked a question about if anyone remebers this thing in yphelion. Community conclusion was that it was advanced scanner. My theory was that it was a tracker bcs karunthel was upgrading yphelion for installing it. AND NOW my theory comes on top. DAAAMN that feels good. TFD great chapter mate.
DrSubterfuge
"One [Flamebearer on Iz's list] was the direct descendant of someone called the Centigrade Pryer. Iz had only provided a brief introduction, explaining that the Pryer was an ancient elemental who'd achieved pseudo-immortality like the Primo. The descendant's level was a question mark, but the report said the unique elemental race were all monstrously talented. It was estimated the young Pryer would have four Earthly Daos on top of their other ungodly advantages." ch1,208
Random Information
Chapter 856 is when the scanner/tracker was mentioned. Chapter 1187 is when True Destiny encounters the Golem.
Kharas
The conversation really sounds like Zac have given up the Spark of Chaos. I will have to reread the last few chapters to see if I can spot it tomorrow :p We already know that the tracker is something the Iliex at his shipyard were forced/ordered to install by some higher ups in their own organization. If these have made a bargain with the Centigrade Pryer (who ever that is beyond being a strong elemental faction and the faction of the 4 elementals that were used by the monks as life force teleports to bring them into the Zubor sector, I dont think we know). It seems like Kator really wants to, at least for the time being, team up with Zac to further his own goals. Interesting chapter, but no real solutions or conclusions have been reached, so I guess we will have to wait until tomorrow to see what they figure out :)
Kirivina
Plots and plots, and plots within plots. Fantastic!
Lex Luther S
Aggghhh shit. To think that comment from the shipwright so long ago when zac was close to upgrading, his shipyard would come back around. I kinda figured it might have been the tyans, but it seems the Pyre and his(?)its(?) faction were in the know and on top of any type of information regarding the pillars ascent in zecia from the get go. Or maybe they saw the coming signs and read fate in a way that pointed towards or near the zecia sector. And the price for simply installing a tracker and scanner is pocket change for them. My worry is how zac will feel about this because he'll know it was Karunthel and crew that installed it🤔 though maybe once he hears an explanation and apology, he'll also see the positives from it as he did get a much much better ship than originally planned from the quest and said upgrade may have been what saved his skin when making that deal with the undead empire.
James Faulkner
Tftc! Have we ever heard of the Centigrade Pryer before?
TKOva
Nice, also who the fuck is that.
Hartmann
What the hell how did the Centigrade Pryer know about the Creator Shipyard on Earth?
Andrew
Thank you!
Random Information
So that's how the Sangha tracked him - using the Centigrade Pryer Golem.
Craig
third
NeverNaught
Man I can't wait to see the fallout this will have on different factions. The Sangha, white sky phalanx, and now the ancient elemental, even the Iliex might get some come uppings their way. Anyone remember if Zac had any interactions with elemtals? I remember the life based one inside orum. But he seemed tight with 3 virtues. Multiple loyalties maybe?
Austin
Tftc!
