Endless Horde: Through the Eyes of a Godking

Chapter 837: Generous Reward

—

“Congratulations.”

Cedric stood before the representatives of his territory, who had just returned from their journey. He didn’t summon them right away; he allowed them a few days of rest before appearing before them.

“With how young our sector domain is and with fewer representatives we sent, for all of you to reach the finals of the Heavenly Star’s Millennial Tournament is nothing less than impressive.”

“I’m proud of you, and you can be proud of yourselves. Don’t be discouraged. All of you have performed well; I watched everything.”

“Don’t think too much. The ancient sects and organizations are just that. It’s normal for them to raise strong disciples. That’s the least thing they could do for the Human Council to continue supporting them. Suffice it to say that if they get complacent, they could easily fall from grace. They’re under immense pressure too.”

“Instead of dwelling too long about your results, I want all of you to look forward instead. You’ve got a long road ahead of you. The path to the peak of life evolution is still yours to walk; no doors have been closed just because you didn’t rank high enough in the tournament.”

“I, as your Sector Lord, can show you a glimpse of what’s on the other side. How much you understand and grasp is, of course, up to you.”

After saying this, Cedric raised his hand and swept it across the room.

In that instant, the surroundings changed. All of a sudden, everybody found themself in a very spacious hall. It looked grand and felt solemn. The pillars were high and sturdy; the walls seemed as if they were made from ivory. It has an open ceiling, showcasing the massive swirling cosmos above, illuminating the hall with its milky white radiance, making everything look holy and magical.

But that’s not what truly got their attention. Instead, it’s the atmosphere. It’s charged with something that felt familiar but also elusive.

And at the center of it all was a collection of stones with carvings in them. The stones were uneven, unrefined, and ancient. But the carving on them was not. They’re something more, something older, grander, and far more mysterious than they’ve ever seen.

“I’ll send you to the stones that fit the path you’ve been walking on so far. You have a year to meditate upon them, no more, no less. Don’t waste this chance, for you may never have it again.”

Cedric didn’t give them much time to think. With another wave of his hand, he sent everybody in front of the respective stones they have an affinity with.

As soon as he did, he told them, “Sit down, don’t waste time, the clock is ticking.”

And they did just that. Although confused, surprised, and having a lot of questions they want answers to, they could only follow his orders. They could only accept that the Sector Lord was not interested in answering their inquiries. Therefore, they could only accept what’s given to them.

Cedric wasn’t doing this out of malice. He just didn’t want to explain. Like he said, they’d probably never return here, so why tell them anything? The time they spent asking questions would be better suited to comprehending concept laws instead.

Besides, Cedric doesn’t really have a proper name for this place.

In truth, this place was just a location within his Inner World…or Inner Universe, if you will. This hall was constructed to house the Timeless God Stones Cedric used to record his concept law comprehensions.

He was keeping them all here, turning them into a collection. He knew that one day, he’d have a use for them. And recently, especially when he’s thinking of a reward for his representatives, this place crossed his mind. So, this was a test run, if you will.

Whether they earn something from this or not will be up to them. But Cedric’s confident that they should. After all, what’s recorded in these stones were his musings about Origin Laws. Even incomplete, they should broaden the horizons of these people even just for a bit.

And he’s not wrong in this assumption. This was proven by how quickly everybody fell into an enlightenment state. Not even a day passed since they began, and all of them were already immersed.

Not even a calamity could pull them out of this reverie. Their gazes dulled, their bodies went slack, and it’s as if their souls left their bodies to go somewhere.

Cedric observed their state, quietly gauging how far they’ve gone. If they start drowning in the sea of concept laws, Cedric won’t hesitate to fish them out since they were his responsibility.

He didn’t let them choose which stones to go to. Cedric had already seen everything they could do and made the decision for them. There was a high likelihood of them making the same choice anyway, so why bother wasting time with that? And if they went off-script? Well…who knows? That’s not going to happen anyway, now that he made the decision for them.

It didn’t take long before manifestations appeared around them. These manifestations represent the depth of their understanding of their respective concept laws. The more vivid these manifestations were, the deeper their affinity and understanding were.

Even though most of them have already lost themselves in this wonderful and immersive state, they are still vaguely aware of how rare of a chance this was.

As for their questions earlier? Who the hell cares about that anymore?

Who cares where they are, what these stones were, and how the Sector Lord got his hands on them? What’s important is that he was generous enough to bring them here and share this opportunity with them.

And for this, they are eternally grateful.

One thing to note is that none of these people were close to comprehending a single Great Law. At most, some of them were halfway there; the rest? They’re still floundering about.

Even so, Cedric could tell their tendencies and already sent them to the most appropriate path for them.

Mind you, the carving in these Timeless God Stones? They were bits and pieces of law essences…or Heavenly Laws, as most people recognize them.

If anybody amongst them fully comprehends even a single shard of what’s in front of them, that means that their concept of laws will jump from the foundations to a complete Heavenly Law right away.

That, no matter who you ask, is a life-changing opportunity. One that could easily cause cosmic wars and extreme conflicts.

And yet, here it was, right in front of them, even though all they did was to show the very limits of their skills when the chance presented itself.

After this, if anybody dared to say in front of their faces that their Sector Lord was stingy, they’d strangle them with their own hands.

**

And just like this, a year passed.

“WAKE UP!”

Cedric’s voice bounced on each corner of the hall, being amplified the more it echoed.

Every representative was shaken out of their reverie, the manifestations of laws fizzling out of existence around them. The interruption caused them to feel dizzy and a great sense of loss.

Before any of them could even throw a final, yearning glance at the stones, they already found themselves back in the room where they were before the sector lord brought them to that place.

Some smacked their lips, suppressing their dissatisfaction; some deflated; some still yearned to return there; some were anxious; and some were in a hurry to find a place to seclude themselves to digest their gains.

“Alright, go home. Digest your gains and continue becoming stronger. The Rising Sun Sector Domains will depend on you in the future.”

After saying this, Cedric disappeared from their sight.

The representatives, although reluctant, could only obey orders. The Sector Lord disappeared before they even had the chance to ask questions.

It seems that, as he said, they may never truly return there ever again. Which is such a shame because now that they’re fully awake, they recognize the real value of that place.

As for how much they’ve gained, well, it varies. But for the most part, they made great strides in their concept law comprehension.

At the very least, every single one of them could be confirmed to have reached the Great Law level in their concept law cultivation.

And for people at their level? This was an extraordinary leap. One that immediately propelled them to the real elite levels of the Heavenly Star.

It’s a shame that this opportunity came after the tournament instead of before. Because if it was before, they could’ve secured far better rankings. Maybe even the final top 100.

Alas, their sector lord probably did this on purpose. It seems that he cares very little about showing off, and nobody could truly blame him for that.

What’s important is that they’re still not done digesting their gains.

Although their comprehension of their concept laws went further than any of them expected, they still need to stabilize it for some time. And that would take another period of seclusion and training.

The skills they learned need to be applied, after all. Otherwise, everything will just end up being flashy lights and mirages.

Pretty, but harmless.