Chapter 1979 1979. Shares

Noah had a vast experience with the Blood Companion, King Elbas had built countless puppets throughout his life, and Great Builder was the creator of the workshop. The three experts could immediately understand that they were in front of a living being that was only waiting for fuel to fill its centers of power.

It wasn't hard to guess the puppet's purpose. Heaven and Earth had countless laws and followers, but their enemies had continued to increase as they approached the end of their journey. The rulers were also busy, so improving their army would give them the chance to take care of their opponents without losing focus on what they considered crucial for their path.

Heaven and Earth had to defeat the dragons to complete their path, but the monster outside the sky, the orange city led by their old version, and Noah's group were opponents that would require their full attention. However, everything would change if they could improve their outdated followers.

Divine Demon raised his hand, and blood-red energy gathered in his palm. He was ready to destroy the puppet with a single blow, but he held himself back while moving his eyes among Noah, King Elbas, and Great Builder. The expert knew that the current issue could require more than brute force.

"I don't think we can stop this," Noah eventually whispered without moving his piercing gaze away from the empty body.

"The blueprint is ready," Great Builder commented. "The stormy regions and the sky might be full of similar locations already."

"They might need some time to perfect everything," King Elbas guessed.

"This puppet is ready to gain energy and a law," Noah shook his head. "Heaven and Earth are probably trying to find loopholes in their fairness to activate their new army without suffering serious drawbacks. Building a separate dimension inside the stormy region might work in their favor since they wouldn't rely on the benefits given by the sky."

"Do you think that Sword Saint's breakthrough has bought us some time?" King Elbas asked.

"Probably," Noah replied, "But does it even matter? The project is complete. Heaven and Earth will soon have a superior version of cultivators ready to overwhelm us."

"It still feels off," Wilfred broke his silence. "The fairness shouldn't be so easy to break. We would be already dead otherwise."

"They cheated," Noah explained while pointing at the male puppet. "Heaven and Earth didn't invent a new species. They simply built weaker hybrids."

A second of silence followed that revelation, but Supreme Thief quickly added something. "That explains how they have managed to build something like this without triggering drawbacks. Their enemies are getting stronger, so the scales of their fairness have tilted in our favor. Heaven and Earth had the chance to balance it with these living weapons."

"Are you implying that we are to blame for this?" Steven scoffed.

"It would make sense," Noah sighed. "The stronger we get, the easier Heaven and Earth can bend their limits in their favor. The same goes for the monster outside the sky and the orange city. Their influence is expanding, so the rulers are experiencing a new freedom."

Silence fell among the group again. It felt disappointing to see Heaven and Earth using their improvements to find loopholes in their fairness. The event was inevitable, but the experts still found it annoying.

Noah's team had a challenging path already. Having to deal with Heaven and Earth's increasing freedom was another blow that they didn't expect. They knew that their arrival in the ninth rank would unlock a series of punishments that the rulers couldn't deploy before, but the improved army was something completely different.

Moreover, that project hinted at the existence of similar experiments meant to defeat whoever dared to oppose Heaven and Earth. Noah and the others couldn't even start to guess what the rulers could create with their incredible knowledge and resources.

"So," Divine Demon cleared his throat, "Do we burn this place to the ground or not?"

"Maybe give them a bit more to make their minds on the matter," Wilfred whispered.

"There's nothing to decide," King Elbas sighed before glancing at Noah and Great Builder. "I want a third of the puppets for my experiments."

"I'll take a third for the same reason," Great Builder added before turning toward Noah.

"I'll eat the rest," Noah shrugged his shoulders before raising his hand to summon his dark matter.

"Wait!" Divine Demon suddenly shouted. "I also want a share of these puppets."

"Why would you even want something like this?" King Elbas snorted. "You are a brute."

"I need to add them into my world," Divine Demon announced.

"Can't you just wave your hand and recreate them with the energy of the world?" King Elbas complained.

"Stealing energy from Heaven and Earth is always better," Divine Demon explained, and King Elbas couldn't say anything else. His companion's statement was more than reasonable.

"I actually desire a share of the puppets too," Steven coughed. "It's for my world."

King Elbas rolled his eyes, but he couldn't deny those requests. All his companions deserved a share of the puppets, so he limited himself to glare at Wilfred.

"I'm fine like this," Wilfred quickly stated.

"I want my share too!" Supreme Thief uttered before King Elbas could feel satisfied with Wilfred's answer.

"Why would you need a share?" Great Builder complained.

"I am the thief!" Supreme Thief shouted. "I should be the first to steal stuff from Heaven and Earth."

"Your world doesn't involve these materials," Great Builder continued. "You steal laws and abilities."

"I am the thief!" Supreme Thief shouted.

"You have already said that," Great Builder sighed. "Come on. I'll take you to steal something after this mission. Leave this to Defying Demon's group."

"But you are taking your share!" Supreme Thief replied.

"Because I need materials to save your ass whenever you cause a mess," Great Builder declared.

"This scene feels familiar," Divine Demon blurted while tilting his head.

King Elbas massaged his temples to suppress the raging irritation that was trying to invade his mind. He couldn't believe how many idiots kept appearing on his path.

Great Builder and Supreme Thief bickered for a few seconds, and the latter eventually gave up on his claims. The group would divide the puppets into five equal shares as they explored the blinding separate dimension and continued to study the area.

King Elbas stepped forward and silently announced how he would start the division. A golden speck of light came out of his body and expanded until it created a membrane around the puppet. The light then shrunk to become a glowing layer that adhered to the empty man's skin.

King Elbas performed a pulling gesture with his hand, and the golden membrane brightened before shrinking even further. It transformed into a sphere that floated toward the expert and fused with his body.

Everyone prepared themselves for an eventual reaction of the separate dimension. Their mental waves expanded and spread through the whiteness to check the cavities in their range. Noah and the others expected their theft to trigger traps or similar defenses, but the area remained silent.

"When did you become so good?" Wilfred asked.

"It wasn't me," King Elbas admitted as an ugly expression appeared on his face. "Heaven and Earth simply don't care about a single puppet."

"Which means that they can produce entire platoons at the same time," Noah continued, and everyone's mood worsened.

****

Author's notes: I wanted to warn everyone about the break, but I found myself unable to write the actual chapters needed for the announcement after making my mind about that matter.. A week off after two years of almost constant writing isn't much, but I feel good now. I'm back.