Chapter 604: Obliterated

“Hmm, you are more diligent than one would expect from one so young,” Caldrus noted.

Julius sat up and swiveled around on the rock. He glanced at the old man who was shuffling toward him. Caldrus hadn’t spoken much to Julius during the past week, but Julius had spotted the old man observing him from a distance multiple times when he thought Julius wasn’t looking.

“What do you mean by that?” Julius asked, looking away and shifting his attention back to the orb in his hands.

“Most children your age don’t appreciate or understand how much time and effort it takes to improve. They are so concerned with the promises and allure of power that they fail to do the small things. The things that they won’t see a direct benefit for years to come. Only once they are older do they realize the folly of their mistakes. Young Master Shin is an example of this.”

Julius shrugged uncaringly. “If you know this, then why don’t you stop or tell him?” He had a feeling where this was heading. Maya had already asked him earlier, but he told her that he wouldn’t go around begging to help Shin of his own accord.

The old man let out a raspy chuckle. “You should know that the young don’t always listen to their elders.”

Julius sighed, stabilized the orb, and turned back to the old man. “Is there something I can help you with? I suspect there is a reason why you came out here when we are alone.”

Caldrus was old, but he wasn’t a fossil. He had gray hair and wrinkles, but Julius didn’t let that fool him. The man was still dangerous, and thus, he was already prepared for the worst. Perhaps he thought that he could bully Julius into helping Shin.

Ever since his last assassination attempt, he was a little more wary. His regeneration gave him more confidence in his survivability, but against a Tier 5 on Caldrus’s caliber, he didn’t think it would be smart to rely on it to save him.

“Calm down, boy. I am not here to fight you. I am here with a proposition,” Caldrus said with a chuckle, sensing Julius’s wariness and sounding like he was amused by it. “The fact you are even entertaining the notion of fighting me is another reason why I wanted to ask you.”

“Ask me what?”

“Would you be willing to help Shin as well? I know you have been helping Maya, but Shin could really use some help too.”

“If he wants to join our sessions, he is more than welcome to join us. But it’s up to him. Like I told Maya, I am not going to beg some guy my age, just so I have the privilege of helping him.”

“He wants to, but the boy is too proud to ask for any help,” Caldrus said with an exasperated shake of his head.

Julius shrugged. “Well, that’s not my problem. Like I already told Cassandra, I am not traveling back to the Burning Sun Sect with you guys. I am coming with you to Corvus, but once we get there, I will be going my own way. I don’t have any plans on being a teacher to either one of them.”

“Yet, you are helping Maya.”

“She is helping me too.”

“Please, you are going above and beyond to help her. I have seen the diligence you have shown while training her. You aren’t just showing her random things and sparring with her. That willpower training you are helping her with is fascinatingly remarkable. She has already seen quite a nice growth in her willpower. Plus, you are giving her constructive criticism while allowing her to figure out her own problems. You are quite a good teacher, you know.”

Julius narrowed his eyes at the old man and scoffed. “Is that what this is about?”

“What do you mean?” Caldrus asked with a glint in his wrinkly eyes.

“Did Cassandra send you to do this?” He asked with a sigh, looking over at where he knew Cassandra was likely watching from. Was this her next strategy to get Julius to come back to her to the sect?

Caldrus chuckled. “Nope, this was my idea. But I didn’t think it would be a bad idea for either party. We could easily get you a position as a tutor or a personal trainer at the sect.”

“I’m sorry, but I have other plans,” Julius denied.

“Really? Because, from what I have gathered, you have no idea what you are going to do and have no real knowledge of our country. What are you going to do? Run around and hunt down monsters and bandits all day?”

Julius shrugged. “That doesn’t sound too bad. It gives me the freedom to explore and try tasty new foods.”

“But will you have access to restricted regions or rifts?” The old man pointed out.

Upon mentioning this, Julius couldn’t help but frown and think about that. He already knew just how important connections were. He took it for granted sometimes because of Lily and Derek’s families, but if he were still in the Empire, he would likely have a plethora of rifts available to him.

“I’m sure I can find some on my travels,” he said with a shrug.

“Perhaps, but that will rely entirely on luck. All of the known rifts, especially the valuable ones, will have been taken over by various sects. The majority of the rifts in Corvus are protected by the Ten Great Sects. You will only be able to access one of these rifts if you are a part of one of these sects. Even if the sect you join doesn’t have ownership of the rift, they can negotiate with other sects to enter the rift,” Caldrus explained.

“What is this? A monopoly?” Julius asked with a scoff.

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“Yes. A large portion of a sect’s revenue comes from various rift materials. And it is one of the biggest reasons, other than specialized techniques, why people join sects. Without the backing of a sect, it becomes a lot more difficult to enter or even find rifts.”

Julius scrunched his nose. “What about these regions you mentioned?”

“You have similar things in the Empire. You are aware of places like the Endless Forest, correct?”

Julius nodded. “I am.”