Stella bit her lip as she mulled over Morrigan's words. Having three affinities that were all near the Monarch Realm sounded unbelievable.

How did Vincent Nightrose even survive long enough to get strong? It will have taken him at least three times as long to cultivate as he had to rotate between gathering and processing three different Qi types. Is he a madman or a genius? The amount of insight into the heavens daos he must have... I shudder just thinking about it. Even with all of Ash's help, I feel like I'm falling behind with just one affinity.

Stella looked around the table and saw everyone else contemplating what they had just been told. Even Sebastian Silverspire seemed confused despite being part of the Silverspire family, which had close ties to Vincent as they made the spatial rings for the whole sect. Well, they used to have closed ties. They are the ones trying to lead the mutiny.

"That's terrible news. That means it will be far worse fighting Vincent Nightrose than three Nascent Soul Realm cultivators at once," Grand Elder Redclaw spoke aloud, drawing everyone's attention. "As I'm sure you all know, except for the younglings at the table, our Qi reacts violently with each other. Even if we are of the same affinity and from the same family. But when a cultivator has multiple affinities, they can be seamlessly combined. Two affinities already greatly increase a cultivator's possibilities in combat, but three? I just can't believe it... no wonder he has ruled this sect for so long."

Stella nodded at the Redclaw Grand Elder's words as his musing matched her past experience. A long time ago, she tried to fling spatial techniques through Ash's portals, but it didn't work despite them sharing the same affinity. But according to the Redclaw Grand Elder, if I had another affinity, let's say fire. I could throw fireballs through portals? That really is far different from fighting a separate spatial and fire cultivator.

"Big Uncle, I'm confused. If having more than one affinity is so strong, why do I only have metal?" Ryker asked. "What are the downsides to having multiple affinities?

Stella gave the kid a side-eye. Despite being five years old and his head barely reaching above the table, he commanded a surprising presence due to his Star Core Realm cultivation. How does a kid that young reach the Star Core Realm anyway? Just what did he find in the Mystic Realm for such growth? I never bothered to ask since there's been so much going on... Is this how things keep escaping Ash's notice?

Elaine, who was sitting next to an empty seat where Douglas should be, enthusiastically took up the kid's question. "Cultivation speed is by far the biggest downside. Each affinity needs to be tended to individually, and while they can be at different stages within the same realm, in order to ascend to the next realm, the cultivator has to bring them all to the maximum stage. So Vincent Nightrose might have blood at the 9th stage but cannot ascend to Monarch Realm until he gets gravity and his mysterious third affinity to the 9th stage as well."

"I believe he would need to learn the laws of all three of his affinities, too," Ashlock added, but it seemed he only spoke directly to a few people in the room, which made Stella smile wearily. There was still a lot of research she needed to carry out before she could create an aether origin stone for Ashlock. Stella felt on a time crunch. It might be too late to change his affinity if she couldn't figure it out before Ash reached Monarch Realm.

"So the main disadvantage is all in preparation?" Ryker asked curiously.

Elaine shook her head, "While versatile in combat, his Qi pool is split three ways. So if he faced a foe that only one of his affinities worked against, he would run out of Qi far faster than a comparable cultivator..." Elaine trailed off as a giant shadow passed by the room.

Everyone glanced toward the runically enhanced window being battered by the storm as the room darkened. Stella raised a brow as she made out the vague outline of a white tree floating past and down toward the main street of Ashfallen City. A moment later, Douglas flew by on a sword of brown flames, giving them all a thumbs up.

"You're planting Serena now?" Stella asked aloud, knowing Ash would hear her.

"The people are understandably concerned due to Celeste Starweaver's public declaration of the incoming beast tide. So, I'm doing what I can to alleviate their concerns. Since Nox is in another dimension right now, I need a focal point for the people to place their trust in. While not ideal, Serena will have to do for now."

Stella saw Celeste sink back into her seat as her brother rightfully glared at her.

"I'll also have the cult increase the number of free pills they give out, and I'll have to look into food production due to the storm. Anything to distract the people while we work out how to tackle this problem."

"Free pills and food?" Evander Starweaver asked with a gleam of interest.

Stella glared at him, "Why do you seem surprised? Didn't think an 'evil god' would care for others?"

"I had heard from my sister about it before the information blockade became too strict to receive any more messages. I didn't believe it initially, but when my Father received the prophecy and asked me to seek allies, I came here despite the All-Seeing Eye's fate." He looked to Celeste, "Despite being empty-headed sometimes, I trust her judgment, and I'm glad I did. I'm not caught up on the Ashfallen Sect's strengths, but with the Silverspire Grand Elder still in closed-door cultivation, you seem like our best bet of making a stand against Vincent and weathering the beast tide."

"Freeloaders," Stella snorted.

Evander shrugged, "We share a common enemy and goal."

"Stella, leave it. They are desperate for help. Following Vincent Nightrose to the next area is a death sentence for them, especially Celeste Starweaver, with her awakened bloodline. I'm sure they will come to our side willingly over time. If not, we can deal with them accordingly when this is all over."

Stella clicked her tongue but let it rest. She had seen the raw destructive power of Celeste Starweaver during the tournament while being in the Soul Fire Realm. It was hard to imagine the destructive capabilities of the Star Core Realm cultivator sitting opposite her or their Father, who was likely half a step into the Nascent Soul Realm. It was hard to turn away such firepower simply because they refused to bend the knee to Ash.

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While the Blood Lotus Sect Patriarch will be a force to be reckoned with, I'm confident we at least have a chance. But a hint of worry was in Ash's voice earlier when talking about the incoming storm. It had been subtle, but I know him best and caught it.

Moving the conversation away from Vincent Nightrose and the Starweavers, Stella asked Ash, "You saw the beast tide and a cataclysmic storm shrouding their advance, right? Is it the same as the storm over us right now?"

"Yes. However, the further north you go, the storm grows far more violent than what we have been experiencing. I had thought it was a natural occurrence, but now I know it's likely being orchestrated by one of the monsters in the beast tide. I pushed back against it and noticed the first wave of beasts were being protected by a veil of demonic Qi, which vanished when I brought them back to Red Vine Peak."

"How does this storm compare to the Dao Storm?" Stella asked.

"Far, far worse." Ash replied with that same hint of worry in his tone, "I can't think of a way to stop it."

"Stronger than a Dao Storm? Interesting," Elaine muttered to herself as she pushed up her glasses, "A storm on such a scale would need at least the backing of a Nascent Soul Realm beast. But for what purpose? Past beast tides didn't have this treatment. Usually, the weaker monsters are forced forward to weaken the cultivators so the Star Core and above ones can sweep in and end us. It's almost as if they know that sending monsters will only strengthen the All-Seeing Eye."

Evander looked like he was about to ask something but refrained. Celeste, however, didn't have the same ability to hold back. "Stronger? How can monsters make the All-Seeing Eye stronger?"

Stella instinctively gathered a hint of Qi at her fingertips. No matter how destructive the cosmic affinity was, she could decapitate these outsiders before they knew what happened.

"I won't give outsiders specifics, but I can absorb Qi from monsters," Ashlock replied and Stella was a little taken aback by how he revealed such a thing. "No matter how many they send my way, I will never run out of Qi. Well, that would have been the case if not for the storm making my efforts to kill even the weakest monsters incredibly Qi intensive."

"Oh... okay, that makes sense." Celeste bobbed her head in understanding, not pressing the matter further. Stella relaxed as she realized the girl wasn't malicious. She was just a curious person.

"This storm is quite far to the north, and yet you were able to kill monsters from here? That's quite an impressive feat. Is there any chance we could get a look at this storm? You know... so we can see what we are up against?" Evander asked as he leaned back in his chair. "For a godlike being such as yourself to sound concerned, I fail to imagine it in my head."

There was a long pause. Stella could feel Ash's presence still in the room, so she was unsure why he wasn't replying. An uncomfortable silence blanketed the room as everyone exchanged glances. Stella met Diana's eyes, and they had a silent conversation. They had been best friends for years and had gone through many life-and-death struggles together, so they didn't even need to exchange words to understand one another.

Oh... I see the problem. Stella realized as Diana eyed Evander with caution. Giving a slight nod toward the demoness to confirm she would handle this.

"Evander and Celeste Starweaver, we greatly appreciate your presence in today's meeting, but the Ashfallen Sect will handle things from here," Stella announced, catching the two off guard. "If you need accommodations, there are spare rooms in the White Stone Peak that you are free to use."

Evander tilted his head, "Did I say something wrong?"

Stella shook her head, "No..." The true answer was on the tip of her tongue, but she knew better and refrained. "We will speak again very soon when a more in-depth plan to deal with Vincent Nightrose is drafted. We just have a few details to discuss first that we cannot share with outsiders such as yourselves."

"Ah. I see," Evander stood up, and his sister mirrored his action. "We shall take our leave then."

Stella gestured to the door, and the pair made their way out of the room. Celeste looked over her shoulder before rounding the doorway. She gave a small smile and said, "Thank you for including us in your plans."

"No worries," Stella said with a slight nod. The door clicked closed, and she felt everyone's eyes on her. Some were understandably confused, except the more veteran cultivators at the table who had seen their fair share of politics.

"Before I say anything," Stella looked directly at Sebastian Silverspire. "What is the Silverspire family's relation to the Starweavers?"

"Mutual interests, that is all," Sebastian said coldly. "You don't have to concern yourself with sharing your true thoughts about them with me. After all, I have an oath of loyalty to the Ashfallen Sect."

"Was there something wrong with them, Master?" Jasmine asked in a hushed tone. It seemed Ryker was also deeply curious as the boy leaned in closer.

Stella ran a hand through Jasmine's grassy hair and playfully shook her Disciples head, much to the girl's annoyance. "Jasmine, do you know why the Ashfallen Sect has survived until now?"

"Why, Master?"

"At least try to guess," Stella rolled her eyes.

"Uh," Jasmine cutely wrinkled her nose as she thought deeply. "Because of your Father's powers?"

Stella laughed, "I suppose that is a big part of it. But it's something more general than that."

"What is it, Master?"

Stella tapped Jasmine's nose. "We keep the extent of our powers secret, just like how Vincent Nightrose's third affinity and true cultivation stage is a closely guarded secret. So is everything about the Ashfallen Sect. I sent Evander and his sister away because they were trying to figure out the extent of Ashlock's power while under the guise of cooperation. The questions seemed innocent enough, but remember—they openly admitted their plan to oppose us once Vincent and the beast tide had been dealt with. Those aren't people we want knowing how far Ashlock's powers reach."

Jasmine's eyes went wide, "Master, how did you notice?"

"I didn't at first," Stella gestured to Diana, "Ashlock's lack of response and Diana made me stop and realize it. They are far better at political stuff than I could ever hope to be."

"Don't say that, Stella." The Redclaw Grand Elder said, "You definitely have some rough edges to your personality and weak areas, but who doesn't? Dare I say I have had the pleasure of watching you grow significantly over the last year. Just now, you handled the situation perfectly. If it had been you from a few months ago, their heads would have gone flying."

"I did think about it..." Stella sheepishly admitted.

The Grand Elder smirked, "I could tell. You still need to work on your emotionless cultivator face. If you wear your emotions so openly, you lose the upper hand in an ambush. I can't tell you how many fights have started while sitting around a table just like this one, but you wouldn't have known a slaughter was about to begin based on everyone's expressions as they talked."

"I will take your teachings to heart, Grand Elder Redclaw," Stella said, giving the man a slight bow of respect. The Redclaws had been nothing but honorable neighbors since being forced to join the Ashfallen Sect, and Stella still felt a little bad about how their relationship had been built upon a series of lies and threats.

"Just looking out for the immortal's dear daughter. I would hate to think what would happen to this little piece of paradise out in the wilderness if something were to happen to you..." his gaze swept the room, "Or anyone else sitting here today. My family was on the verge of falling apart, but now we are closer than ever before. Seriously, one day, I hope to share a drink with the immortal to show my appreciation!"

"I can take you up on that offer." Ash's voice echoed in everyone's heads. "But I must warn you, it will be hard to out-drink me."

"You... will drink with me?" The Redclaw Grand Elder said in disbelief.

The air rippled as spatial Qi swirled through the room before gathering near the door that the Starweavers had left through earlier. A portal manifested, and through it, Stella saw the base of Ash's vast trunk that reached for the heavens.

"Does this mean..." Stella trailed off in utter disbelief.

"I think it's about time. Unlike those outsiders, everyone around this table deserves to know the truth about what I truly am."