"Fancy meeting you here," Zac smiled as he sat down on a lush pillow.

The tracking signal had led him to the deck of a large teahouse overlooking dozens of glistening waterfalls. The establishment was clearly popular because of the scenic view, but the hundreds of patrons didn't seem to notice the Draugr in their midst. More impressively, they appeared completely oblivious to the gargantuan toad sprawled atop a mound of pillows, taking up a good chunk of the platform.

"I thought the System's restrictions couldn't possibly restrict the great Esmeralda?"

An infuriated series of croaks shook the teahouse, and great gusts of wind threatened to throw the F-grade patrons into the misty clouds as Esmeralda peppered off a string of what Zac could only assume were sign-language curses.

"The System has strengthened Earth's shroud? What does that have to do with me? You made it sound like I intentionally was making it difficult for you," Zac said, helplessly shaking his head when Esmeralda frenetically signed a retort. "Wait! I can't talk with you like this. You have to do something about your size."

The current Esmeralda towered at over fifteen meters, large enough to stuff half the tourists into her mouth. Facing her was like looking into a hill of black flesh, and he couldn't even see her hands without relying on his Soul Sense.

The toad's antics were causing a commotion, yet the patrons seemed to think sudden gusts of wind were to blame. It was like the whole area around them had become a blind spot they both mentally and physically avoided. The effect actually went beyond that.

They were sitting right in the open, yet Zac felt as though everything within twenty meters was hidden from Heaven's gaze. The feeling was actually a bit reminiscent of his Void State, and Zac was all but certain not even Monarchs could listen in on their conversation.

The effect surpassing any illusion array Zac had seen was obviously made possible by Esmeralda's bloodline. Spots of mysterious runes had appeared on her cheeks since they met last, which were currently emitting an unusual energy signature. Otherwise, her appearance hadn't changed much since they last met in the Perennial Vastness.

The only noticeable improvement was the mysterious vats on her back. The black liquid inside had become even darker and emitted a dense aura of Death. It almost felt like the old thief had visited the Abyssal Shores to siphon some of their lake water. Despite the liquid's apparent upgrade, it failed to perfectly contain the ripples of time from within.

Looking at the vats resulted in an uncomfortable throb, where Zac felt a weak temporal pull. It was like something was trying to drag him back to a prehistoric age, triggering his overexposure to temporal fluctuations. Thankfully, the effect didn't go beyond a mild inconvenience.

Esmeralda herself didn't emit a speck of aura, though Zac's instincts told him she'd recently stepped into Middle Hegemony. Such advancement speed wasn't very impressive, considering Esmeralda's current incarnation was already an Early Hegemon when they last met. Then again, beasts required far more time and energy to gain levels, and stronger bloodlines demanded even more.

An ancient beast like Esmeralda had to require terrifying amounts of time and effort to advance, possibly to the point her Early D-grade levels needed as much energy as Zac did in Middle D-grade. Zac was painfully aware of just how harsh those demands were.

It had been eleven months since he stepped into Middle Hegemony, so he'd only averaged one level per month. Actually, it was half that, considering six of his levels had come using the best Natural Treasures and Pills money and merit could buy. This speed was considered shocking and only made possible by his two bodies fighting without rest on the frontlines. Had he progressed just by adventuring in Zecia, visiting danger zones and Mystic Realms, he might not have gained a single level in that time frame.

Reaching peak Middle D-grade before the Left Imperial Palace seemed all but impossible. It had taken two rounds of pills to gain just six levels: one after upgrading his Supreme Pathbound Skills and one after [Void Heart] finally spat out the refined Tribulation Lightning two months later. Considering each level required exponentially more energy, a third round wouldn't make much of a difference, even if he figured out a way to use leveling pills again in the short term.

The slowdown was to be expected and generally not considered much of a problem when your lifespan was measured in millennia. However, it left Zac lost on how he was supposed to progress in the future. The kind of targets he'd need to kill to reach Peak Hegemony didn't exactly grow on trees, even in the Multiverse Heartlands.

Monarchy posed an even greater challenge. Suppose he formed an unprecedented Inner World thanks to his encounters with the Four Desolates, reducing the drain to a minimum. Then what? Nurturing a world requires vastly more energy than a core. He could become the second Eventide Asura and wipe out a whole sector without gaining more than a level or two.

A scathing croak dragged Zac out of his thoughts. Despite her attitude, Esmeralda did shrink to a more manageable size as she kept forming signs.

"I didn't mention someone has already breached the shroud, triggering a failsafe?" Zac muttered. That was actually true, though Zac wasn't about to throw Iz under the bus to appease Esmeralda. "I don't know anything about that. And how have you still not learned to talk? I only understand half of what you're saying without Lova translating."

'Why should I use crude forms of communication, limited by the lowest commonality, to placate some featherless heron? Movement is truth, and truth is meaning. Feel instead of see, comprehend instead of complain,' an ethereal voice shook Zac's mind.

At that moment, Esmeralda made her move. Her tongue lashed out, and the labyrinthian layers of meaning hidden in her voice made Zac's mind lock long enough to get tapped on his forehead. Zac was startled awake by the nudge, a flash of anger igniting in his heart when [Immutability of Eoz] briefly triggered before losing trace of whatever Esmeralda marked him with.

"What the hell did you do?" Zac growled, [Death's Duality] already in his hand.

'Guiding light for a fumbling fool.'

Zac's thoughts of retaliation were forgotten. Esmeralda hadn't used her mesmerizing voice again. In fact, she hadn't used a voice at all, and words weren't words. Zac's eyes were glued to Esmeralda's hands, struggling to make sense of the intense clarity of the message they'd imparted.

That's right, how did he usually understand what the toad wanted to convey despite her seemingly random gestures? Esmeralda obviously wasn't using real sign language. There was no structure, syntax, or repetition as you'd expect from language.

It was communication through Dao, following the Laws of the Cosmos instead of the rules of language.

Esmeralda's gestures expressed the fundamental basic building blocks of all Daos, transforming them into context and meaning by linking them together. The realization was like curtains parting, and Zac understood what she meant by feeling and comprehending. The Dao encompassed everything and could thus convey anything.

'That's better.'

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

"Could have given me a warning," Zac muttered, stilling his beating heart.

He'd momentarily felt like he'd come into contact with the Grand Dao, though that clearly wasn't the case. Curious, Zac tried to replicate Esmeralda's comment with his hands.

'A Mortal trying to speak in Dao Script? Esmeralda signed as a braying croak full of jibing joy echoed through the valleys. The old thief was clearly delighted at pulling one over on him after having her grand entrance to Earth foiled. 'That's like… That's like…'

"Like a toad trying to eat swan meat?"

'You mock, but I'll have you know I have eaten swan meat. Bony birds without merit. Wait, it's here!'

Zac frowned, readying himself for battle as he saw Esmeralda's eyes turn serious. Esmeralda's demand to come pick her up had led him to a late F-grade world, but that didn't guarantee no threats were lurking in the dark.

However, no Kan'Tanu assassin popped out of the shadows. Instead, it was a large insect emerging from a hidden cave behind a waterfall. It resembled a flea carved from cobalt, the sun reflecting on his lacquered chitin. It looked novel, but that was about it. It was alone, weak, and it didn't appear aggressive since the other patrons took its appearance in stride.

Then, it disappeared. Zac would have assumed it had been teleported away if he hadn't vaguely seen a streak of black flash between the nearby cliffs. Crunching sounds emerged from Esmeralda's mouth as she chewed with relish.

'See how convenient? You can eat and talk this way. I'd like to see you do that while flapping your gums,' Esmeralda signed. 'Too bad, this is beyond your ability. How can you speak the truth when you have only seen a corner of it? Before you've made it your own? You can give it a try if you ever manage to Defend your Dao. You're kind of stupid, but you do have the structure down, thanks to the gift of the Lost Era.'

"I'll try to endure until then," Zac shrugged, not overly concerned.

Esmeralda's ability was impressive, but it didn't seem to have much use despite requiring the insights of an Autarch. Zac guessed it also required immense practice and study, possibly more than practicing one's Soul. You had to reach a certain level of comprehension of all Daos and their connection to weave the Grand Dao into language. After all that, Zac could only vaguely intuit her words until she marked him with a translator. It didn't seem worth it.

'Ignorant.' Esmeralda gave him a pitying look. 'Language is truth, and truth is possibility. It's access. Do you think I only relied on my bloodline to pass through taboo regions and supposedly unbreakable Defensive Arrays? If you control the language of the Cosmos, you're qualified to rewrite Destiny.'

'And just so you know, I still could have entered your hovel if I wanted! I just didn't want to draw unnecessary attention. An experienced extractor only takes risks when the rewards warrant it!'

"Alright, alright," Zac smiled, raising his head in defeat upon seeing Esmeralda's intense look. She looked ready to come to blows to defend her thief's honor. "Anyway, it's good that you're here. The trial has already been brought closer once. It might start at any moment."

'I'm not surprised. This region's providence is dwindling, and the System will invariably pick the path deemed to hold the greatest returns. Fate's direction has been thrown into chaos. I bet it's costing that old thief an arm and a leg to keep the pillar's ascent entangled with your war. It might just cut its losses and let fate take its course at this point.'

Zac's eyes briefly widened, feeling like he'd just been shown a glimpse of the vantage of someone who'd stood at the peak. The feeling was ruined shortly after when Esmeralda caught another insect, her face full of bliss as she chewed on her treat. Having been given the key to deciphering Esmeralda's method of communication had only made her seem odder.

The sense of dealing with a mischievous child was still there, but it was now mixed with hints of an ancient mind. Was the immaturity part of her personality, or was it the result of her regressive curse?

Esmeralda's analysis also shed some light on the plight Zecia currently faced. The heroic advance where the Alliance pushed back the invaders after unleashing the [Centurion Spear] amounted to nothing but a brief moment of glory in a bottomless downward spiral. Only half their Field Armies remained, with the rest being annihilated or crippled to the point it had to be joined into another.

Every month was worse than the last, despite the Pope never returning. One appearance had been enough to cast a shadow over Zecia's war efforts, a shadow that had only grown over time. Many Monarchs, fearing for their lives, became increasingly unwilling to participate in critical missions and raids. This led to a series of missed opportunities and disastrous losses, where each setback was another chink in their cohesion.

At first, the outsiders tried to stabilize the situation through various means, from mobilizing their Monarchs to infusing capital and resources to bolster the local forces. With new powerhouses sneaking into Zecia every day, it looked like they'd at least maintain the status quo until the trial.

However, their presence all but disappeared three months ago. They still fought on the frontlines but seemed content to have their youths engage in minor skirmishes. Anytime the danger reached a certain threshold, the outsiders disappeared, leaving the locals to fend for themselves.

It was like the outsiders had come to a mutual agreement that Zecia was the loser. Conquering a Sector was a long-term undertaking, even if one side held a clear advantage. With only 380 days left before the trial began, why waste time helping the losing side?

As Iz would have said, Zecia wasn't fated, and helping them might even harm their Karma with the Left Imperial Palace. Fishing in the muddy waters of a sector's gradual collapse held better chances of awarding sealbearers, including from those supposedly on the same side.

Of course, the Kan'Tanu were well aware of these considerations, so they kept a steady pace to not rock the boat. They were slowly spreading through the sector, isolating the larger factions without delivering a fatal blow. They were setting the stage to pounce after the trial had begun and the outsiders were gone, removing one threat at a time.

The latest target was the Thirty-seventh Field Army, the place the Calamity Company had called home for over a year. The Endemire Sage had fallen, his War Fortress destroyed. The Calamity Company would have met the same fate if they hadn't been out on a campaign at the time.

The Thirty-seventh's fate meant they'd been stuck in enemy territory with a huge bounty. Their many seals had been the bait for multiple successful operations with those who still fought the good fight. Without a Monarch watching their backs, their next ambush could prove their last.

Normal teleporters had long since stopped functioning in the war-torn region, rendering his escape bangle's feature useless. Thankfully, the System provided a path to survival—destroy the Seafarer to earn an army relocation. That was why Zac had pushed deeper into Kan'Tanu territory to take out the experimental fortress, even relying on the Void to bring it down.

Zac still wasn't fully comfortable openly using his bloodline in such a public forum, even if [Void Mountain] let him mask its unique aura and energy signature. He could only pull so many impossible feats before someone figured out the truth. Ultimately, keeping secrets couldn't be compared to the life of his subordinates. Besides, Zac already had so many targets on his back that it wouldn't make much of a difference if someone figured out his connection to the Void.

If anything, he was more worried about having to call in such a troublesome favor to get the location of the Seafarer before his location was exposed. The Sindris Clan weren't fools, and Zac hadn't managed to glean their intentions from their brief exchanges. Friend or foe, each encounter held the potential for disaster.

'You look like someone has snatched the food from your tongue,' Esmeralda signed. 'Don't lose your mind over something so small like a border region's collapse. It happens all the time. You're rich and connected. Just bring your people away from here if you're worried.'

It was true, though only to a certain point. Many were already looking for ways to leave the sinking ship. Doing so was easier said than done. Even factions like the Dravorak Dynasty would have to sacrifice their foundations to gain refuge with their main branch, where only the top talents and Monarchs would be brought back.

The Kavriel Province was no different. He'd already heard rumors of a planned exodus unless something changed. The Kan'Tanu were probably not foolish enough to target a branch of the Undead Empire, but there wasn't much point in staying if all dreamers in Zecia were infected with Heart Curses.

The Undead Empire would extract the spirituality of the Kavriel Province's continent and cultivation havens before relocating the Kavriel Clan and a few others to another frontier sector. The trillions of common citizens would be abandoned, as they weren't even considered true citizens of the empire. With the established factions being so ruthless to their own, how could Zac possibly secure passage for over a billion people? He'd be lucky if he could bring away a few thousand, and the assistance would come with strings attached.

"Let's not talk about this," Zac exhaled. "I'm not ready to give up on Zecia yet, and much can happen over the coming years. How are your preparations?"

'I had to give up on some of my plans, but the most important matters are dealt with. I just need you to provide passage,' Esmeralda signed, a teasing grin spreading across her face. 'How's my temple looking, little priest?'

"Just missing the final touches," Zac grunted as he got to his feet. "Let's go back and wrap things up."