Making Babies
In the 648th year of the Change, 87 years after the Sect's establishment.
The Forbloffende Traes Sect continued blockading the most important routs between the center, north, and south of the Vrida Region. A few days ago, the 14 organizations made a public announcement that they were inviting the Forbloffende Traes Sect to a meeting to discuss an agreement and give this unnecessary conflict the stop it deserved. A few days later, without the Sect's response, everything remained in a stalemate, with the soldier and auxiliary units outside the Sect not lowering their guard or getting false expectations.
When they received the news, they were only so much responsive to the enemy’s decision after almost 4 years of rivaling each other. Of course, the deaths they caused over the 5 territories gave them ample satisfaction, especially those who resented them for being better and joining the organization they could not.
On the other hand, when the Region thought the Sect wanted this to continue, the Sect Master gave a declaration to the public, as his voice reached outside the Sect. It almost sounded as if it had mistakenly happened.
“The Sect has developed to its most determined state. You, its people, have achieved the development nobody else could hope for and could only dream about. I now announce that the Forbloffende Traes Sect will change to a different recruitment schedule in the future. It might take a year before the testing grounds are opened again, and perhaps more later on.”
“The testing grounds will also change, as will the current operations within the inner territory. When the time comes, I will publicly announce the requirements and cautionary notes anyone wishing to join the Sect must look forward to. I’ll only offer one word of advice now. If there’s something one must focus themselves on in the cultivation path, it is Craftsmaking. Without it, your stay in the Sect will be no more than 80 years, perhaps.”
“If you wish to become a citizen or engineer, then you only need one thing and hold to it to belong to my Sect. Push your mentality forth, challenge your limits, and prepare to be treated like an equal in the Sect. Because not even cultivators are exempt from physical pain and their minds drained from the boundless knowledge that lies in my Sect.”
“Hua- HUAA- HUAAAA!” After the Sect Master’s words echoed through and through, the Sect as a whole cheered. The few thousand people outside first felt doomed yet gladdened to have come here. However, they would continue to have children, and some others related to them would. What then? What if the Forbloffende Traes Sect’s recruitment changes did their timing wrong?
However, they had no other choice but to accept. If the Sect could be convinced by the public, like the other territories’ organizations were pressured, they wouldn’t have formed a blockade. At most, the blockade wouldn’t have lasted more than a year. Naturally, none of that happened.
… Meanwhile, inside the inner territory. Heian Ciemnosc stood before his central cottage, with his Ancestor, Elder, and the two exemplary Core Disciples standing down the hill, near him. The soldier units were in formation, albeit spread out, down the hill. The auxiliary units and some civilians were spread throughout the streets.
After everyone heard the Sect Master’s words and cheered, they fell silent. They looked at the Sect Master, who had more to say as he looked back at them. Undoubtedly, no matter how Heian Ciemnosc was supposed to be when he was born. As of right now, all he felt while watching those warm, contented, proud, excited faces was a slight warmth in his ultimately cold, fresh body.
“Pretieta,” Heian Ciemnosc lowered his gaze to the blondie beauty, mature young woman who gave her man flirty, glinting eyes. Her breathtaking, clear blue eyes changed to strictness and stared at the Sect Master after a light bow. Heian Ciemnosc looked at this and quietly mentioned before beginning, “No more bows. Unless it is a ceremony’s procedure, I only want swift and direct responses. And so should others. One’s bow, even between fellow Sect members, is not light.”
“Yes, Sect Master.” Pretieta looked at Heian Ciemnosc with widened eyes before solemnly nodding her head, leaving it with her chin against her neck for a momentous moment. Heian Ciemnosc placed his right hand on her left shoulder and softly began, “The Sect do wants peace. Tell these soldier units and auxiliary units they must pick up their seniors outside. It’s time for them to come back. There’s a funeral to be had. All of them will be sent off, and no one can miss it.”
Pretieta nodded and awaited his continuation. Heian Ciemnosc patted her shoulder and added, “You will travel to the meeting and arrange this truce. There’s no need to show off, we never relied on such things. Ensure the Sect’s peace with the rest of the Region.”
“Understood, Sect Master, but…” Pretieta let her words linger. Heian Ciemnosc nodded at her and positively said, “Speak up. What is it?”
“I’m only at the Crabstynian realm, while those in the meeting are the other organizations’ leading figures. I’m not sure my strength will be enough,” Pretieta said, with her pretty face looking up. Heian Ciemnosc curled the right corner of his mouth and casually replied, “You won’t be going alone. Complete your initial task first, then go.”
“Yes, Sect Master.” Pretieta nodded before stepping backwards. She walked past Todoro and the other two, slightly nodding at each other, before addressing the troops down the hill. “Soldier and auxiliary units of the Forbloffende Traes Sect! The time has come for peace to return to our hands…”
“Todoro,” Heian Ciemnosc lightly called out, turning his face from Pretieta’s back to the tall young man’s visage. Todoro stepped forth and nearly bowed, stopping himself before saluting with his right fist tapping his heart. “Yes, Sect Master.”
“I’ll put you in charge of most auxiliary units, with Liliam and Hexitia as your logistics heads. Go to these locations and start a more important, crucial collection of the resources I detailed in the information.” Heian Ciemnosc used his dark Soul to pass data and even images to Todoro. “Prepare well before moving out. Pretieta still needs to return with good news. No one will bother you. But if something happens, watch the skies.”
“Understood, Sect Master!” Todoro nodded before turning around to look at the handsome and beautiful two slightly further below the hill. They nodded at Todoro with respect and clasped their fist. Todoro walked away, with those two following Todoro’s back after nodding at Heian Ciemnosc. They felt the time to become Acting Elders swiftly approaching.
‘Sigh…’ Heian Ciemnosc looked up and saw Pretieta about to finish her discourse. The people below were getting all riled up, and even Pretieta was convinced by her very own words. Sara silently encompassed her lithe, small arms around his shoulders, pressing her face against his neck from his inner universe. She silently spoiled him as the discourse ended.
“Huaaaaaaaaaaaaa~~!!” The troops loudly echoed once again. This time, the civilians also cheered, although muffled by the others. Still, it felt great to form part of the same as the Sect welcomed a new image and developed even more.
… Soon after the discourse, Todoro and the exemplary 2 got to work, with an additional citizen joining them to help them in the matter. Pretieta also prepared, departing for the western forest to attend the meeting…
In the utmost eastern extreme of the western forest. A group of 14 figures waited in a circle in the same place where Sect Master Darkness last spoke to them. Their arms were crossed, and some moved around slowly, but others waited with shadowed countenances. Today was the meeting day, and the meeting had been delayed for 3 hours already.
“I wonder if he’ll come…” - “Do you think he’ll still offer us more liquor?” - “Of course he will. Poisoned!” - “Even if it’s poisoned, I’ll drink a little…” - “He’ll know we were after his Sect’s Art. There’s no way we’re getting out of this without paying a hefty sum.” - “The… Sect Master of the Forbloffende Traes Sect isn’t like… us. Reckless, lustful, and precipitous.” - “You’re insulting us all? Even yourself?” - “Do we not deserve it?” - “…” - “… Huh? What’s that?”
Rumbleeeeeee…!
Just as they were discussing, bored but still waiting for someone. A strange quaking echoed. However, this wasn’t from the earth but the air instead. Furthermore, the atmosphere became… strangely hot. It was as if countless Eons had passed and this place turned into a paradise for Fire element cultivation.
“No… way…” Finally, a few minutes later, they could see something approaching from the Region’s center. It became bigger as the quaking became more intense and the atmosphere hotter. A small, line-like dot became an enlarging object flying towards them.
Pretieta slowly rode Alejandro. He was only half his true size, but it was enough to place these people back in their place. When she arrived before them and landed her feet on the ground, Alejandro followed suit and collapsed behind her, turning endless dirt into the sky, like waves more than 50 meters high.
Then, the meeting began. Any sort of superiority the 14 organization leaders felt before was gone. The Forbloffende Traes Sect’s Sect Master didn’t even show up. Only their second-highest member, an Ancestor, with a ‘trifling’ Crabstynian realm cultivation base came to discuss terms.
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Whatever hopes of intimidating someone like her or to make the Forbloffende Traes Sect step back like them was smoked away the moment Alejandro’s 2 pairs of dangerously slanted eyes landed on them.
. . .
A few days passed since the meeting concluded, but many things happened right away. The world watched as the Forbloffende Traes Sect was the main actor of these things.
For starters, the peace between the 2 sides was achieved. The Sect demanded the 5 territories to come clear with honesty, and they did. The 14 organizations declared their ill intentions in dragging the Sect’s riches to their bags. Even those who weren’t aware of the happenings suffered this crucial blow to their image.
Then, the only second thing the Sect demanded was an apology. Without it, there would be more conflict, although it was the same for the other demand. All or nothing.
Thus, the 14 organizations formally apologized to the Forbloffende Traes Sect. Having to do this was a heavy blow, more so because of the more than a million troops they lost as a coalition. Nearly every organization lost at least 100,000 troops, leading to brand-new, never before seen desertions to occur in the Vrida Region’s 5 territories.
Of course, the number wasn’t big. After learning from their past mistakes, one after another, the organizations didn’t chase them or told the Forbloffende Traes Sect that their deserted members were off the grid. Instead, they let things happen peacefully. Of course, that wasn’t all that happened during those first few days.
On the day when the organizations were announcing their apology, the forces Todoro moved throughout the Region became active. A couple of days was enough to get things moving. Besides, the citizen’s management skills were quite something.
They moved to the north, marched to the forests, and even went to the sea in some fishing boats. Of course, with their Craftsmaking capabilities, they were pretty safe around the Vrida Region’s shores. The Vrida Region suddenly witnessed black clothing and armor everywhere.
After the organizations noticed that the Forbloffende Traes Sect was only targeting resources, and the selected areas were outside their territories, they sighed in relief. They let things happen smoothly as they received news from the Sect bases.
While most of their members seemed to move everywhere, the remaining troops, especially those ‘true’ soldier units, dismantled their bases and encampments. They returned to the Sect, and a few weeks later, they rejoined the daily mission intake after getting their break and payment for participating in the conflict. There were bonuses for individual achievements, army achievements, and because of the victories. It was a bit of glory.
The Region became used to these things after a few weeks, not knowing that the Forbloffende Traes Sect finally commenced their most well-awaited moments. For starters, they were now intricately careful and detailed to caretake a brand-new ‘iconic’ Fauna in the Sect: the Lobotum Void Serpents.
Additionally, the Sect spent a few months collecting the new resources before the Sect Master and the hierarchy gave the green light to start something else. Military college’s rudimentary classes. Regarding these, the hierarchy of the Sect would give classes to every person in the Sect. From Servants to Core Disciples.
Furthermore, only after graduating from the military college could one become an Outer Disciple. Of course, the latter wasn’t fully implemented yet, and only the newest recruits had to welcome this sudden change with open mouths and closed eyes. However, things were moving fast, and the Servants who wanted to become Outer Disciples received a lot of help. Meanwhile, the new members were being placed ‘on hold’ until the next year.
The new Servants and Outer Disciples received their pay and weren’t charged, but they would begin living like anyone else in the next year. This was a small transition, one that barely shook the Forbloffende Traes Sect’s hard-earned, solid foundation.
Of course, there were not enough higher-ups nor upper echelons to let the military college become compulsory. However, things were working in that direction. A few months after the Sect moved out again, and their second years of growth commenced, Liliam and Hexitia promoted to the Acting Elder position. They announced their stagnancy in that position for a year before they attempted to become an Elder.
With this, several thousands of Core Disciples immediately applied to become Acting Elders. Only some at the Ashes Apperception realm weren’t still confident to become so, and they were at the early or intermediate stages. Only after a while would they also promote to become Acting Elders. It wasn’t like it was easy to break into the Obsidiafying realm and Ashes Apperception realm, after all.
The Sect continued its daily recruitment. Nothing stopped, and it seemed as if nothing will. When the first year since then arrived, the Sect finally welcomed the military college’s changes. The new members from last year were introduced to the Sect’s lifestyle in the 12th month. Things went smoothly, and when the next year began, the Vrida Region became aware of these changes.
The influx thinned down. The people wanted to wait until knowing the results of the Sect’s new methods. After all, it concerned the lives of their children or themselves. Never once has the population of the Vrida Region become so absorbed in an organization’s small transitions.
However, after another 2 years, the results from these changes became notorious. The Sect now had a very limited and strict distinction compared to the other organizations. Now, even those who became new members with cultivation base would become Servants no matter what. The only thing separating them from the rest was their Craftsmaking.
This was already happening before, but even those in the Obsidiafying realm with an understood profession were sent to live with civilians and the like. At first, many believed this to be a tremendous insult. But after those 2 years, the Vrida Region welcomed revitalized cultivators whose auras changed, and whose bearings improved for the very best.
Thus, by the third year, the Forbloffende Traes Sect returned to their previous daily influx of new members. Year by year passed. The once tranquil and desolate Sect was no longer so vacant. The civilian districts were more lively every year, even if by a tiny portion, and the new changes in the Sect were well-welcomed to the point it seemed like it has always been like this.
Before, only Core Disciples had enough window to gather materials to build or order a fellow Core Disciple a Mortal weapon. The only thing the Sect gave them for free was their first set of armor. But after the new resources’ collecting started, this was spread throughout the Sect.
Even some Outer Disciples could own a Mortal weapon, let alone Inner Disciples who were just 1 step from the Core Disciple status. This was something unique in the Vrida Region. After all, only organizations focused on trade had it this easy when they had perfect connections and enough value within their inner territory.
Transporting vehicles became truly present on the streets, where the cultivators and non-cultivators mingled on the streets and chatted, even meeting other people. The situation was so peaceful and serene that it didn’t seem like the Sect had just freed itself from a possible war.
What’s more is, however, the military workshops around the military section, where countless Core Disciples went to and returned daily. Several tens of thousands worked all day, with another batch working all night. They never stopped working, giving tough schedules to the Core Disciples, of which some still needed to study to become Acting Elders.
Missions continued, although the southern territory was now increasingly nervous, with the whole south of the Vrida Region belonging to the Forbloffende Traes Sect territory. It had become so ginormous that the southern territory felt it was being the sole nuisance in the south.
However, because the Sect didn’t expand to the sides nor northwards, nobody wanted to speak of entering negotiations with the Forbloffende Traes Sect again, much less with a sole, lone wolf southern territory far away from them.
… As such, a decade passed like that. The Vrida Region nearly fell into war from a golden, white floor filled with peace. It remained itself afloat and filled every corner of the Region. Meanwhile, the Forbloffende Traes Sect had conducted drills outside the Sect for the past year and a half. This wouldn’t have been something to care about, if it wasn’t because the war instruments the Sect used were unique and never before seen.
Multiple motorized vehicles, which could hold from a couple of troops to up to a few hundred. From bikes to trucks with enough armor to actually withstand… top-notch arsenal.
The fact that the Sect had machine guns and artillery, which only Third Step organizations could easily acquire, made the 14 organizations’ widen their mouths until enough flies to make a nest entered them. However, the intricacy of these land force’s vehicles made them even more nonplussed.
Then, after the motorized vehicles exited the Sect, the armored vehicles were next. Tankettes and tanks drove through the green grass akin to shooting stars. They weren’t that fast, of course, but their speed was absurd.
Those tankettes weren’t bigger than top-notch tanks, but the fast ones were a couple of meters longer, with the slow tankettes’ width much wider than those top-notch tanks. As for the tanks, there were 3 types of them. A light, medium, and heavy armored distinction.
The light tanks were nearly as fast as the tankettes, with more machine guns and anti-missiles and other similar turrets on them. They could endure more damage than tankettes, and had more ammunition. The medium tanks, on the other hand, were slower, but their armor was incredible, something simply superior to any of the aforementioned.
The heavy tanks were the slowest from all tanks and tankettes, of course. But they had several layers of armor, with so many machine guns, and a self-propelled artillery with multiple barrels as their main gun, as it is with the other tanks, but fewer barrels than the heavy tank. Besides, the heavy tank also has more than 1 artillery gun. They also have more anti-missile turrets, with other similar turrets installed on them.
The light tank was only slightly smaller than a top-notch tank, with a medium tank much larger and fearful than such. The heavy tank was a tremendous, monster grandfather to the top-notch tanks. It was simply incomparable to put those 2 together. The Forbloffende Traes Sect’s babies were something entirely else. After that came the helicopters.
The Sect has 2 types of helicopters, a supportive and main combative one. The supportive was a long helicopter with a rotor longer than its length, with just 2 machine guns of rapid fire at their sides and countless missiles installed behind them. It had windows on its upper sides, looking like a deer’s eyes if they were dragged sideways as much as possible.
The Sect’s combatant helicopter was smaller than the supportive helicopters, but there were ample differences between these. The combatant helicopter had wings instead of a rotor. Its 2 main wings at the side, before its wide and tall cabin, enough for more people than in the supportive helicopter to board, and 3 thin, auxiliary wings behind the cabin. 3 on the left and 3 on the right for quick, rapid maneuvers.
The main wings are larger than the helicopter’s length. Although it doesn’t have many missiles, not even a third of the support type storage, it has half a dozen wings, of which 4 are the costliest machine guns in the world.
…
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Let It Rain's note: So here's the thing. I had written about 3 dozen vehicles for this moment, but I realized just how out of the novel they were. This isn't an army building or management-focused work. The sect development is all that matter, but I accidentally put too much focus on the other 2. In the end, I decided to describe the appearances, rough number of arsenal on them, and little more.