Sorin felt a pressure on his mind, and almost unwillingly, the scenes he’d witnessed during Astley’s Time Shadow Ritual were displayed before Grand Elder Hargrave. A monstrous killing intent rose over the next few seconds, only to vanish the next instant.

“Have you told anyone else about this?” asked Grand Elder Hargrave.

Given the rumors about Grand Elder Hargrave’s actions after his parents’ murder and the well-known fact that he’d doted on his late daughter, Sorin was fairly certain that the man wasn’t in on the plot. “My companions are currently assisting me with the investigation. No one else knows.”

“Then they must be killed,” Grand Elder Hargrave said coldly. His killing intent spiked once again. “I apologize for the inconvenience.”

“W-What?!” exclaimed Sorin. “Wait a minute, wait a minute. Aren’t you overreacting?”

Grand Elder Hargrave frowned, and his killing intent receded. “Perhaps. I have been known to lose my temper when it comes to such matters. What’s more, my current condition makes it quite difficult for me to investigate in person. It wouldn’t do to deprive you of helpers given the current state of your rotten clan.”

Sorin let out a sigh of relief. “I was planning on investigating using less official information channels. Though it would save me a lot of trouble if I had general information. What was the Arma Clan? Why were they exterminated?”

Grand Elder Hargrave licked his lips and thought a few seconds before answering. “Human trafficking.”

“What?!” exclaimed Sorin. “You mean, prostitution or slavery?”

“Worse,” answered Grand Elder Hargrave. “Those things are illegal but tolerated. No, instead, it was the kind of human trafficking that could only result in death for those sold.”

Sorin’s eyes narrowed. “Medical experiments.”

“Indeed,” said Grand Elder Hargrave. “That on its own wasn’t a problem.”

“What do you mean, it wasn’t a problem?” asked Sorin. “This is human trafficking we’re talking about.”

Grand Elder Hargrave shrugged. “Almost every clan in existence has bought and sold human beings. If you know about medical experiments, you should know that your clan in particular has quite a bit of blood on its hands.”

Sorin clenched his fists. “It’s not right.”

Grand Elder Hargrave answered with a cynical laugh. “Yes, that’s exactly the type of expression your father had when he found out and inherited your clan’s ‘legacy’. He was reluctant, but he ultimately did what was necessary.”

“Necessary?” questioned Sorin. “Human experimentation like this can’t be justified for any reason.”

“We’ll just have to agree to disagree,” said Grand Elder Hargrave. “The human race currently has 113 demigods and over 5,000 flesh sanctification cultivators. This number would have likely been 90 percent lower not for the Kepler Clan’s tinctures. Tinctures developed through hundreds of thousands of preventable deaths.”

“But—”

“I’m not going to argue about justice and principle, Sorin,” interrupted Grand Elder Hargrave. “In my view, the end justifies the means. That said, you aren’t alone in your train of thought. Your Abberjay Branch and your father thought much the same. It’s largely thanks to his efforts that the Kepler Clan produced so many medical mannequins using your father’s divine ability, Ophiuchan Simulation, thereby eliminating the need for a great deal of trial and error and deadly trials.”

Seeing that Sorin was unconvinced, Grand Elder Hargrave added, “Believe me, I understand your skepticism. Many people died directly at your father’s hands. But you should know that it ate away at him like nothing else. It was the same for my daughter—yet another reason it was the right choice for her to stop cultivating the Malicious Sutra of the Undefiled.

“But back to the human trafficking case. The reason the Arma clan was annihilated wasn’t because of human trafficking per se, but the type of human trafficking they were engaged in. Approved experimental subjects and some small favors to the large clans are one thing, but they just had to push the boundaries by selling cultivators with bloodlines to the factions controlled by the other seven evils.

“Once this was discovered, the Zeiss Clan meted out the ultimate punishment of familial extermination. The line that couldn’t be crossed was made clear, and the human traffickers in the black market steered clear of that unspoken market ever since.”

His frown returned. “Still, it concerns me that I was unable to discover anything while your Grand Elder was present. This means he purposefully tampered with my attempts at gleaning extra information.”

“So, you think he was responsible?” asked Sorin.

“Maybe,” answered Grand Elder Hargrave. “But I have no idea what his motivations might be. From what I’m aware, your father eventually couldn’t take it anymore and refused to continue the family research. An agreement was made whereby the Mockingjay Clan would continue this research component, and your father would instead commit himself to poison research and trailblazing for future inheritors of the Ten Thousand Poison Canon.”

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Sorin reflected on the facts he’d collected thus far and decided that this avenue was worthy of investigation. Since the Arma Clan had been annihilated, the only potential avenue of investigation that remained was these human traffickers that were operating semi-openly.

Grand Elder Hargrave agreed with that assessment but refused to assist Sorin in his investigation. “As a demigod, any inquiries I make will be closely monitored. It would be best if you made your own discrete inquiries. As for how you do this, it’s up to you. You’re a resourceful man. I’m sure you’ll figure something out.”

“That said, You should lie low for the next half year and try to gain some strength. The Ratten Clan has made some serious accusations about your actions in the advanced dungeon, and you will likely be called before the council.”

Sorin snorted. “I thought the Ratten Clan had no seats on the council.”

“Don’t be naïve,” said Grand Elder Hargrave. “No seats doesn’t mean no power.

“Fortunately, the Zeiss Clan disagreed, and the confrontation with the Ouroboros resulted in the Ouroboros’s willing death. An inheritance ground is currently being formed, something that requires the assistance of several demigods and even the five deities.

“I anticipate that it will take a good half year for them to be done. You’ll be free from any official meddling until then. Travel to the Infinite Dungeon will likely be restricted until the inheritance ground is fully formed, but that doesn’t mean you should let your guard down.”

A wave of sadness washed over Sorin as he thought of the Ouroboros. There was something about the creature that brought him joy. Had Asclepius shared a deep relationship with the Ouroboros?

“You said my companions were alright, but what about Gabriella specifically? What about the other God Seeds?”

“They each experienced significant gains in their cultivations,” answered Grand Elder Hargrave. “Gabriella gained more than most. Her role in hearing the Ouroboros resulted in the sanctification of a great portion of her flesh. Her total sanctification now sits at 50 percent, bringing her ranking up to 4th place amongst the free God Seeds – those not affiliated with the Divine Clans.”

“Only fourth?” asked Sorin.

The Grand Elder chuckled. “Did you think the others would fail to grow when given the chance to interact with a divine entity? Benjamin Riss experienced a huge growth spurt by foiling the flamekin plot to karmically tie the Ouroboros. Celine Atlan experienced modest gains, and so did Messa Payne. In all, your faction gained the least from the outing, Gabriella excluded. Charles’s sanctification is up to 30 percent, which brings me to my next point: your ranking.”

Sorin’s lips thinned. “I imagine it’s still at least place.”

“Indeed,” said Grand Elder Hargrave. “What’s more, I did not sense the usual energies transcending life and death from your divinity, nor did I sense any great spiritual empowerment in your being during our short confrontation.

“You are, without a doubt, a God Seed. At the same time, you seem to be lacking a great deal compared to the other God Seeds. Your essence is strong, but your overall capabilities, not so much. I imagine your divine mission involves unsealing your constitution? No, don’t answer. It can’t be anything else. Justk now that it’s a problem, since your constitution is partially sealed while that of your peers is not. You’ve provoked a dreadful enemy in Ratten Hyde, and the last thing you need is to be useless to the other targets of his ire.”

“Ratten Hyde,” muttered Sorin. “Our next confrontation will likely not be so simple. What’s more, I sense he’s up to something. He let me go on purpose.”

Grand Elder Hargrave nodded. “I believe that to be the case as well.”

Having said everything that needed to be said, the Grand Elder waved to dismiss him. Sorin turned around to leave, but a flash of energy drew his attention.

Sorin caught an information jade. “A small gift,” said Grand Elder Hargrave. “That boy, Mordecai, is a genius when it comes to spell forms, but in the end, his talents are limited. I am aware of your collaboration with the boy, but you shouldn’t get your hopes up. Physical poisons are not the same as equivalent spell frameworks. Powerful spell forms won’t necessarily result in a stable poison. The same applies in reverse.”

Sorin scanned the information jade and discovered that it contained experimental data. The Hargrave Clan had gone through many troubles before settling on poisonous spell forms as their bread and butter. Many of the experiments overlapped with the Kepler Clan’s, but there were some unconventional approaches that were worth considering.

“I’ll be sure to put this to good use,” said Sorin, continuing towards the exit.

Spider Manor’s halls were mostly empty due to the Grand Elder’s recent return and his generally rotten mood. It was only servants that scrambled across the manor’s rotten halls. They wore collars, making Sorin wonder whether the Grand Elder was more involved in said human trafficking than he let on.

Just as he was about to leave the manor, Sorin looked over his shoulder. “How can I help you, Charles?”

The petulant young God Seed walked out of the shadows. His mana was much thicker than before, and his presence had increased by nearly an order of magnitude. “I don’t believe you can do anything for me anymore. Not in the state that you’re in. You wasted so much essence draining the Chamber of Strangling Webs—the least you can have done was push your sanctification up a few notches to give us a fighting chance against Ratten.”

Sorin frowned. “If you don’t have anything better to say, I’ll be on my way.” He moved forward, but was met by a fierce poisonous aura. Sorin instinctively reacted with the same technique he’d used to break through Grand Elder Hargrave’s Aura but was surprised to find his movements greatly restricted.

“I told Michael you’d make a useless ally, but he refused to believe me. I wonder if he’ll reconsider extending his protection if you so stubbornly refuse to grow.”

“I hardly see how my growth concerns you,” said Sorin.

“I suppose it doesn’t,” said Charles. “At best, you’ll make for a scapegoat in your current situation. A sacrificial offering to buy us a few years respite as Ratten’s ire cools.”

Sorin pushed forward as the poisonous runes in his aura adapted to counter Charles. His poisons were powerful, but not adaptable like his. Given enough time, Sorin would always be able to create a perfect counter.

“We’ll see who will be buying who time,” said Sorin, walking slowly towards the entrance. “After all, it wasn’t me or Michael to land the killing blow.”

Charles’s killing intent surged, but a small spike of killing intent from the core of Spider Manor dashed any actions the young God Seed might have considered taking. “I see Grandfather’s playing favorites again. In that case, I’ll respect his wishes and let you go.”

“Take care Charles,” said Sorin, grinning ear to ear as he walked out the Hargrave Clan’s front door. “Do be sure to watch your back. I hear the next six months will be especially sensitive.”