Chapter 707: Rules and Schemes Between Transcendent Races
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 707: Rules and Schemes Between Transcendent Races
Witch Academy.
A meeting gathered from the transcendent-level personnel of various academies finally ended on a sour note.
The organizer of this meeting was the Abyssal Demon Transcendent Academy, an institution not currently included in the joint hunting ranks.
As a "top-tier" academy that had only recently established a foothold in the Main World, they also harbored designs on the Expansion Realm. They had actively tried to wedge themselves into this joint exam hunt, but the Witch Academy had barred them at the door.
After all, the qualification for participating in this joint exam was a strict prerequisite: the academy's students had to establish a stable teleportation channel within the Expansion Realm. This was a hard requirement and a rule set in stone by the Witches.
Initially, when the Abyssal Demons heard they had to help the Expansion Realm rebuild its civilization, they refused outright. Later, upon hearing there were benefits to be had, they tried to crawl back in.
The Witches had promptly kicked them out for such blatant opportunism.
Since then, the Abyssal Demons had reverted to their naturally shameless tendencies, pestering the Witches until now. Furthermore, not long ago, they had managed to persuade other transcendent academies to "plead" on their behalf.
This meeting was the result—the Witch Academy stood as the sole opposition against a coalition of other transcendent academies led by the Abyssal Demons.
The meeting’s discordant end signaled that neither side had achieved their objectives.
The Expansion Realm had been repaired under the leadership of the Witch Academy; therefore, the Witches held absolute authority over its development. If they didn't, why would the other academies follow the Witches' rules, using student exchanges as a pretext and going through the immense trouble of having students build teleportation channels?
Their transcendents could tear open a spatial tunnel between the Core World and the Expansion Realm with a flick of a finger, but they weren't allowed to.
As for why? The Witches would tell them plainly: their rules were the rules!
The Abyssal Demon Academy essentially wanted to reap the rewards without doing the legwork, hoping to stretch their hands into the Expansion Realm for a share of the spoils.
Their excuses were flimsy. For instance, they claimed a portion of the credit for the Expansion Realm's restoration, arguing that they were the ones who brought over that small world, which even came with a fragment of [Transcendent Knowledge].
But the Witch Academy wasn't buying it, and their stance remained ironclad.
Those bargaining chips had already been spent when the demons first moved into the Main World.
However, some fellows were simply too thick-skinned—but then again, that was the nature of an Abyssal Demon. Moreover, they had successfully rallied other transcendent academies to stand with them.
In the eyes of the Witch Academy, even those academies siding with the demons had only been granted access to the Expansion Realm by the Witches' grace. For them to turn around and join a coalition to pressure the Witch Academy... it was laughable.
Yet, a very realistic problem remained: the Witch Academy did have to consider their collective stance. While the opposition couldn't sway the sovereignty of the Expansion Realm, they possessed the capability to sabotage it and cause endless trouble.
This constant harassment and nuisance would persist until the Witches finally "flipped the table."
What did flipping the table mean?
It meant reaching a point in the Main World where no one could tolerate anyone else anymore, returning to the path where power was the only language, and reasserting who the untouchable boss was. That was a "falling out," an outcome no one wished to see. Any transcendent war inevitably resulted in massive losses, and the Main World might even slide further toward total fragmentation.
The Witch race didn't fear such fragmentation. Because they mastered World Ley Line repair techniques, they dared to go to total war as long as the Core World still had a margin for repair.
But doing so would be a colossal waste of the Main World's development time and opportunities. Thus, unless pushed to the absolute brink, the Witches would not flip the table.
This "patience" shown by the Witches was the "leeway" that other transcendent races constantly tried to exploit. Perhaps this was what they called the "art of negotiation"—slowly testing the Witches' bottom line.
During the meeting, the Abyssal Demon Academy repeatedly emphasized that if they weren't granted the right to enter the Expansion Realm, they would attempt to carve out their own path.
The Witch Academy’s response was equally fierce: If you dare reach out a hand, we’ll chop it off.
Whichever hand you extend is the one you lose.
Even when the Abyssal Demons tried to sell them a "pie in the sky"—offering a suspected medium-sized world defined as a "Game World" to the Main World to contribute to its restoration—it only served to infuriate the Witch Academy further!
Because they had already used that same "pie" when they first arrived!
Of course, that alone wouldn't have been enough to truly incense the Witches. What really enraged them was that the world coordinates of that Game World in the Void had been leaked!
It was impossible for the Witch Academy to have done it. The only ones who could have were the Abyssal Demons, followed by the other transcendent academies.
After all, the Witches had long since viewed that Game World as a prize already in their bag. They had even pressured the various transcendent academies into signing a Witch Contract of fair competition, forbidding transcendents from interfering with it. They had a whole series of plans involving using the players to drive the social restructuring of the Main World's Core World.
Now, the other side had backstabbed them with an information leak, making things very uncomfortable for the Witches.
The Witch Academy had intended to use Xiao Han’s uniqueness combined with the constraints of the contract to easily harvest the Game World.
But they hadn't reached the harvest stage yet, and the world had already been exposed. Personnel outside the contract's rules were one of the loopholes; the Witches had simply thought too highly of these people...
Even though the Game World was already marked by a "Transcendent Witch," scaring off many races, the leak of the non-interference contract signed between the Witches and the other transcendent races of the Main World made many Void powers start to stir.
Perhaps they didn't dare to openly seize the Witches' property, but... it was easy to pull small stunts in the shadows.
For example... connecting a Void power to that world, synchronizing Void information, and shifting them from a state of total ignorance to one where they embraced Void factions.
This might not change the world's ultimate fate, but once that world realized its true situation, they would begin a frantic attempt at self-salvation.
With the Transcendent Witches unable to intervene directly due to the Witch Contract, such behavior caused significant trouble. The most direct consequence was that the leaders of that world would realize the stupidity of sending players to descend upon the Main World.
As long as the Void races didn't tell the people of the Game World the whole truth and instead packaged themselves as "allies" lending a helping hand, they would gain a proxy force to oppose the Witches.
Furthermore, the development of that world was built upon a complete set of [Transcendent Knowledge]!
And it wasn't just a single fragment of knowledge; it was a complete system of [Transcendent Knowledge] developed by an entire civilization!
Moreover, it was achieved through technology and had even derived a prototype domain. This meant that the techniques developed with this [Transcendent Knowledge] as the core were a "heritable power"!
Faced with the ultimate destruction of their world, a civilization would sacrifice everything for even a glimmer of hope.
If manipulated correctly, that nearly fully developed [Transcendent Knowledge] wasn't impossible to get a hold of.
This was the predicament the Witch Academy currently faced. Even with their overwhelming power, the ubiquitous schemes of others still served as a harsh lesson.
In essence, only the Witch Academy and the Abyssal Demon Academy had truly spoken during the meeting. Although other academies sent representatives to stand with the demons, they were merely signaling an attitude; the actual performance was left to the Abyssal Demons themselves.
Precisely because it was an asymmetrical negotiation, it was destined to end in discord.
However, sometimes meetings aren't meant for a win-win outcome, but to achieve a specific tactical goal.
The Abyssal Great World was a very unique world—or rather, a unique power—and the Abyssal Demons could only represent one faction within it.
Due to its nature, the Endless Abyss had become a "Great Market" for the various lifeforms of the Void. Its peculiar environment constantly birthed unique life, making it a nursery for "entirely new life."
What did new life represent?
A brand-new race recognized by the Void, and the "Primal Spell Prototypes" for transformation and summoning that such a race might have researched.
Thus, the Endless Abyss was a Great Market of life.
The research into Knowledge Seeds required a vast Sea of Consciousness to nurture a Mother Tree of Knowledge. The "incubation carriers" used to condense those seeds were often sourced from the Endless Abyss.
The Abyss Great Market could even "customize" life for "guests" based on their needs, as they possessed countless Void life templates—even those not recognized by the Void.
Therefore, the Abyssal Demons had enough chips to demand a piece of the pie in the Main World. they were like the foolish sons of a nouveau riche family, using what seemed to them the cheapest things to trade for what they wanted.
Though the meeting and negotiations ended poorly, who was to say this wasn't another form of "mutual benefit"?
At the very least, the Abyssal Demons had received a hint that invading the Expansion Realm would not result in the Witches holding them accountable—they simply lacked the "official status" that the other academies possessed.
What did this mean?
The Abyssal Demons were officially forbidden from entering the Expansion Realm. If they invaded, other transcendent academies would drive them out in the name of "fighting invaders."
However, the transcendent academies led by the Witch Academy would not pursue deeper accountability for the incident.
They would condemn, but take no action.
The Abyssal Demons were all too familiar with this pattern.
And the baseline for the invasion the Abyssal Demons could conduct was... below the transcendent level. In other words, this was a variation of the "Transcendent Non-Interference Principle"—a "fair competition" led by the students of their respective academies.
* * *
After the meeting concluded, the various transcendents dispersed.
"You didn't say a word during the meeting. Aren't you worried?"
At that moment, a figure walked up to Bai Yu and struck up a conversation naturally.
"Hmm?" Bai Yu looked up at the slightly unfamiliar Witch before her. She was surprised but responded nonetheless. "Worried about what?"
"Worried about your little girlfriend, of course."
"What do you mean?"
"It seems you aren't very clear on the current situation. Let me be blunt: your little girlfriend might be in danger~"
"Xiao Han is in danger?" Hearing this, Bai Yu immediately became alert. Xiao Han was her "reverse scale"—no one was allowed to touch her. "Xiao Han is participating in the joint exam hunt, isn't she? With so many teachers watching, what danger could there be?"
"It seems you really don't understand. With those races acting up like this, Xiao Han is one of the catalysts. Setting aside how much of a freakish genius she is, just based on her current achievements... as soon as she becomes a true Transcendent Witch, the honor of realizing the Void World Interconnection—using the Great Knowledge Sharing Spell derived from the Tree of Great Knowledge as a link—will be enough to push her toward a nomination for Honorary Truth Witch..."
"..."
"Think I'm joking?"
"No. I believe Xiao Han is worthy of that honor."
"You're very confident... or rather, you have a lot of faith in that little Witch named Xiao Han. But right now, she is still just a Little Witch. Although I've heard that the Primal Witch herself seems to favor her, she will only protect a true Transcendent Witch. So, before her advancement, this is the only chance those transcendent races have to stop the Witch race from expanding again."
"The only chance? If they try... they will face my wrath." Bai Yu gave her answer calmly and resolutely.
"Even if you have to face an entire transcendent race, or even multiple races? Hmm... a Witch whose Ordinary Subject metamorphoses into a pure Revenge Subject... that sounds rather interesting."
"If possible, I hope I never become what you've described. Also, if there's nothing else, I'll be going. I sense an aura from you that I don't like."
"As expected of a Body Cultivation Witch~ Is that Heart Sense? Then you've probably guessed what kind of Witch I am, haven't you?"
"...A Rebel Witch." Bai Yu took a long look at the Witch before her and spoke.
"Correct~ You don't have any prejudice against Rebel Witches, do you?"
"Not for now. But that doesn't mean I won't in the future."
"I've already warned you that your little girlfriend is in danger, and you still don't feel any goodwill toward me?"
"There's no need. I trust Xiao Han."
"Oh? Is this the trust bestowed by love? Fine, fine~" The Witch looked as if she had been defeated.
"The more you tell me these things, the more I suspect you're up to something. Though you're the first Rebel Witch I've met, I've read about the things your kind has done. I advise you not to touch Xiao Han."
"Oh dear... I'm causing a misunderstanding. Fine~ I'll stop. But before I go, allow me to introduce myself. My name is Sheryl Owen."
"An insignificant name~ Like you, I think very highly of Xiao Han and her future. But I hope her power can contribute to the great cause of the Witch race. To that end, I am willing to offer my own meager strength~"
"Sheryl Owen... I'll remember you." Bai Yu repeated the name, etching it into her heart.