"Do you understand now?" Nathaniel’s voice trembled slightly. He lowered his head like a man carrying the pain of the entire world on his shoulders.
"What you heard earlier... that burden has been crushing for years."
He let out a long sigh before speaking again in a quieter voice.
"You saw Kathlyin, right? She still has feelings for ..." Nathaniel slowly pressed one hand against his chest dramatically.
"But because she rembers Eli as her own twin sister, she keeps suppressing those feelings deep inside her heart."
He closed his eyes painfully. "Only I know the truth..."
Rosel’s small face instantly beca emotional.
Nathaniel looked so lonely at that mont that even the sunlight entering from the window seed sad for him.
"Alas..." Nathaniel whispered while staring toward the ceiling like a tragic hero from an old movie. "I truly do not know what to do with this burden of lo..."
Suddenly Rosel stood up.
Her eyes were watery, but there was also a powerful determination inside them.
The kind of determination only children could have after hearing sothing completely ridiculous and deciding it was the most important thing in existence.
Nathaniel blinked in surprise.
Then Rosel slowly stepped forward and placed one tiny hand on top of his head.
"I’m sorry, Grandpa," she said emotionally. "I didn’t know you were hiding such a huge secret all this ti."
She lifted her chin proudly afterward, looking both sad and heroic at the sa ti, like she had just accepted an important mission to save the world.
Nathaniel stared at her silently.
Honestly, for one brief mont, he almost felt bad. Not because he was lying.
But because he had completely destroyed Thoratos’s image in this child’s mind using nothing but a slipper.
Still...
It was too late to stop now. After all, as Centipede Man’s uncle once said....
"With great secrets cos great lying skills."
Nathaniel felt that those wise words truly carried the weight of history. So he continued acting.
"Your pers... perse..." Rosel struggled while trying to pronounce the difficult word.
Nathaniel gently helped her. "Perseverance?"
"Yes! That!" Rosel nodded quickly. "Your that is amazing! I didn’t know I was making such a huge mistake by misunderstanding your relationship with Grandma Kathlyin..."
Nathaniel almost smiled instantly. ’Grandma Kathlyin now?’ Internally, his happiness nearly exploded. The propaganda was working beautifully.
But on the outside, he maintained the calm face of an ancient man burdened by destiny.
"No matter what," Nathaniel said seriously while holding her shoulders, "you must never tell anyone about this secret."
Rosel imdiately nodded with full seriousness.
Nathaniel lowered his voice further. "And you must always rember Centipede Man’s uncle’s final words before he died."
He paused dramatically. "With great...."
"With great secrets cos great lying skills," Rosel finished solemnly.
Nathaniel nearly got emotional again.
The child had rembered the sacred teachings perfectly.
Rosel nodded to herself afterward, looking like soone preparing to carry the weight of humanity on her tiny shoulders.
Then Nathaniel’s expression suddenly beca serious again.
"And one more thing," he said carefully. "You must never make Eli suspicious."
Rosel instantly straightened her back.
"If she starts rembering the truth..." Nathaniel whispered heavily, "the Chaotic Stones may attack her mind again."
Rosel gasped loudly.
Nathaniel slowly nodded with deep pain visible on his face. "Her head will hurt very badly. Maybe even worse than before."
Rosel’s face imdiately beca filled with panic. "I-I understand!" she said quickly. "I won’t say anything!"
Nathaniel placed one hand on her shoulder proudly.
Good. Very good.
At this point even he was starting to believe his own propaganda.
*****
anwhile, deep inside the castle training grounds, the atmosphere was completely different from the chaos happening inside Nathaniel’s room.
The wide stone field was silent and calm. A cold breeze moved gently across the area while golden sunlight poured down from the open sky above.
At the very center of the training grounds, Julius and Rosalina sat cross legged on the ground with serious expressions on their faces.
In front of them stood Elizabeth.
Her long hair moved slightly with the wind while her calm eyes looked at the two youths before her. On both of her palms floated two beautiful shining orbs.
The orbs looked almost unreal.
Inside them, countless colors swirled slowly like tiny galaxies trapped inside crystal spheres. One orb glowed with deep silver light while the other constantly changed colors like flowing paint inside water.
Just looking at them made Julius and Rosalina feel pressure in their hearts.
"The inheritance will now be passed down to both of you," Elizabeth spoke calmly, though her voice carried natural authority.
She slowly raised the silver orb slightly.
"This is the Ti Path inheritance left behind by the Third Patriarch."
Then she raised the colorful orb.
"And this one is the Colour Path inheritance created by the Tenth Matriarch of the Hayes Clan."
Julius and Rosalina listened carefully without daring to interrupt.
Elizabeth continued speaking slowly.
"Always rember this clearly. These inheritances are not perfect."
Her eyes narrowed slightly.
"Every single person who cultivated these paths made improvents over ti. Even the patriarchs themselves continued changing and improving the inheritance during their lives."
She looked directly at the two of them. "And I expect both of you to do the sa in the future." Her voice beca slightly heavier now.
"If one day you feel you can no longer progress further, then you must leave behind your own understanding. Make a copy of the inheritance, add everything you learned, and return it to the clan."
"Is that understood?"
"Yes."
Julius and Rosalina both nodded at the sa ti. Neither of them looked relaxed.
These inheritances were incredibly precious.
Even though they were not planning to fully focus on Ti Path or Colour Path in the future, these inheritances still gave them another road to walk if they failed to obtain the inheritance of the Invincible Path later on.
For cultivators, having another path ant having another chance at survival.
Elizabeth looked at the two quietly before speaking again.
"Once I give you the inheritances, your consciousness will enter the enlightennt left behind inside them."
She slowly folded her hands behind her back.
"If your understanding is high enough, you may directly reach the Peak of Conversion Stage."
Julius and Rosalina’s eyes imdiately shook slightly.
Elizabeth calmly continued. "And with enough enlightennt... you may even step into the Void Core Stage with a single breakthrough."
"Keep that in mind."
"Understood," the two replied again seriously.
Elizabeth finally revealed a faint smile.
Then she slowly stepped forward and handed the orbs toward them.
The silver Ti Path orb floated toward Julius. The constantly shifting Colour Path orb floated toward Rosalina.
The mont the orbs touched their hands, both of them felt a strange cold sensation spread through their bodies.
It felt as if they were holding entire worlds inside their palms. The two stared silently at the inheritances for a few monts.
Then Elizabeth gave the final instruction.
"Use a small amount of your compressed mana and guide it into the orb." Her voice beca softer now.
"After that, you will lose consciousness."
She paused briefly before adding, "What enlightennt you gain... will depend entirely on yourselves."
Her eyes narrowed slightly. "And the greater your enlightennt, the greater your chances of stepping into the Void Core Stage."
Julius and Rosalina both looked at the inheritances quietly.
Then they slowly glanced at each other.
Neither of them spoke. But both could see the determination in the other’s eyes.
After taking a deep breath, they activated a small amount of compressed mana and pushed it into the orbs.
The reaction was instant. The shining orbs suddenly released blinding light.
Julius felt his vision spin violently. Rosalina’s ears began ringing loudly. Then.....
Everything went black.
*******
A/N
Here is an illustration of a scene from this Chapter.....and also u may go back to the previous Chapter to see the illustration of the previous Chapter.
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