Chapter 67: Patriarch v. Artifact Spirit (2)
The creation of an interface that can allow for unrestricted transfer of information. Constructs of metal forged with uncanny precision, allowing mortals to travel at the speed of cultivators. Pillars of rock and glass that pierce the clouds without the support of runic formations, yet manage to remain structurally sound. And you have the audacity to tell me that those without the ability to cultivate, possessing bodies so frail that an errant rock tumbling down a hill would be enough to fell them accomplished all that? The Artifact Spirits words were tinged with incredulity as its gaze landed on Yao Shen, containing something other than malice within them for the first time since they had met.
Yao Shen remained silent.
Languages that carry none of the intrinsic understanding greater runescript possesses should not have been able to calculate and contain worldly phenomena to this degree, The Artifact Spirit continued with its analysis, its gaze never leaving Yao Shens visage. To counter it with an unnerving degree of flexibility, breaking the numerous aspects of the Dao into separate branches of study and then evolving methods to study naturally occurring patterns until they reached the point of certainty. Then devising formulae to express.
Even Yao Shen hadnt expected the Artifact Spirit, which had seemed like the very personification of hatred until moments ago to burst into boisterous, unrestrained laughter.
The very realm quaked with the Artifact Spirits laughter, heralding a fissure in the embankment of hatred that had been festering for over a millenia, suppressing and caging all other emotions, all other feelings, until they were part of a past long forgotten. Heart Demons should have long driven it insane, but the Artifact Spirit was merely a fragment of a true soul a sapient being that had permanently lost the ability to cultivate, sustaining itself only on the Qi it could absorb from its surroundings.
Yao Shen couldnt help but marvel at the scene that was unfolding before him, his human sight revealing to him a truth that he had been all but oblivious to.
A change in the noxiously thick cloud of hatred swirling around the Artifact Spirit, as it exhaled a small wisp of the negative emotion through its hearty laughter.
A small mote of vibrant silver light had been gained in exchange, cheerfully floating on a sea of hatred.
Yao Shen found his hands trembling as he observed the mote of light intently, unwilling to let his focus waiver even for a second.
It was small. Vulnerable. A droplet in the sea.
And yet
When the waves of hatred crashed against its surface, it didnt just endure. It devoured in return.
Yao Shen watched on, enraptured by the phenomenon that was unfolding before him.
Feeding on the very hatred that was trying to smother it out of existence, the mote of light had swelled to almost double its previous size.
Then, when the mote of light had perfectly doubled in diameter, it split.
The sea of hatred was evidently enraged by this act of defiance, prompting it to intensify its assault.
Thus commenced a cycle.
Two motes of light turned to four.
Four to eight.
Eight to sixteen.
The sea of hatred that had been accumulating its strength from an era that predated even Yao Shens birth, lost a quarter of its volume in a matter of a few minutes.
Hope was not the direct antithesis of hatred.
Perhaps that was the reason why three quarters of the sea of hatred still remained intact, reaching a stalemate with the tens of thousands of motes of hope that floated in its midst.
But it was not the outcome of this clash that had enraptured Yao Shen so.
It was the insight.
The true nature of hope he could see it now.
Contrary to what he had believed, hope wasnt something that he could imbue in his words; not an emotion that could be imposed onto others.
No, it was much simpler than that.
Hope was internal.
Hope was an infection.
A single flicker of hope had been enough to change the sea of hatreds polarity, just as a matchsticks worth of light was enough to pierce through the darkest of nights.
I had hoped, The Artifact Spirit began, having recovered from the bout of laughter it had just experienced. Or perhaps, I had no choice but to hope to believe that eventually, the Dwarven Race would remember the accomplishments of Vondar the Scholar, if not the previous generations, then the next. I had hoped that they would stumble upon the secrets of this human sect and then destroy it, fulfilling my desire for vengeance. Then, I would have chosen one among my race who was worthy of succeeding my cause and pass onto him what knowledge remains preserved in my memories.
Yao Shen merely observed the Artifact Spirit, knowing that this was not the time to interject.
In you, I see a different hope. The Dwarves have all but forsaken me, forgotten the memory; the legacy of Vondar the Scholar. I will not betray my race. But your ambition, the culture and advancements of your world, appeal to my scholarly side. As long as you remain true to your ambitions, the promise to treat all races under your banner equally, then I believe that we can reach an agreement.
Yao Shen struggled to contain the exhilaration he felt from the Artifact Spirits words, as he replied, What terms do you propose?
I will allow you to use this artifact on three conditions, The Artifact Spirit stated, its tone crystal clear. The first. I am not opposed to the rise of a new power on Ionea, as long as your actions reflect the nature and ambition of your goals. The second. In return for use of the artifact and by extension, access to the lumenite mine, you shall provide me with detailed knowledge of the laws of your world and the theorems that calculate their existence. And finally, the third. You must recruit Dwarves to your cause, until the time when I choose one as my successor. Violate any of these rules and the Artifact you so desperately seek shall crumble along with my spirit.
Moments passed by as Yao Shen gazed into the Artifact Spirits towering figure, only for the Spirit to meet his gaze.
There was no need for any discussion. The Artifact Spirit had seen what lay in Yao Shens soul and in return, Yao Shen had experienced the fluctuation in its emotion, from hatred to a guarded hope.
If the Artifact Spirit was successful in the appointment of a successor, then the one who inherits Vondars knowledge would also receive the knowledge of another world alongside it.
But even then.
I accept.
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