Chapter 320: Old Grudges

The alarm rang through the emblems of every disciple, starting from the second layer of the branch. The newly recruited Mages and the weaker members residing in the first region were not notified.

Everyone in Priam’s faction immediately stopped whatever they were doing and gathered at the center of the territory. Without wasting any time, Priam activated his leader’s emblem, teleporting the little over two thousand members directly to the main square.

The atmosphere there was suffocating and heavy with tension.

Besides Priam’s faction, there was only one other active faction, made up of fewer than five thousand people—all survivors of that fateful mission who had chosen to retreat during the final battle.

Although they had belonged to different groups in the past, they had merged into a single force after returning. At that moment, the entire 11th Branch had only two high-level factions.

It was an absurdly low number. But unfortunately, it wasn’t surprising. Throughout the twenty-year cycle between recruitments, the mortality rate was staggering. The southern region of the Divine Plane was merciless.

Everyone remained silent, waiting in the center of the square.

Although Priam had now reached the level of a Sage and could leave the faction to focus on his personal advancement and the test for becoming an Inner Disciple, that wasn’t an immediate obligation.

*BUZZZ!*

The sky hummed and violently trembled.

When they raised their eyes, they saw the very fabric of space tear apart above them, revealing two dozen dimensional rifts.

Through the openings, they could see crowds of disciples from other branches gathered in their respective territories.

The shock was immediate. This wasn’t an ordinary emergency alert—all the external branches were being connected simultaneously! This was an event with very few precedents in the history of the Sect!

In front of the 11th Branch’s square, Mishnar appeared in the air, accompanied by three hundred Elders in battle-ready stances, all wearing sharp and grim expressions.

Within minutes, the leaders and elite forces of all thirteen external branches were virtually connected.

Then, from the central portal at the top of the sky, a lone figure emerged. He was a simply dressed man with youthful features.

"Greetings, Central Elder!"

The greeting from the Elder Leaders of every branch echoed in perfect unison, followed by the roar of thousands of disciples in chorus.

The figure gave a slight nod, maintaining a cold expression.

"I’ll keep this brief. The Sorcerers have launched an offensive on a scale rarely seen in history against all of our domains. Right now, the Sect’s main planets are already engulfed in a bloody confrontation."

A deathly silence fell over the crowd. Many of them even forgot to breathe.

"The planets under the responsibility of the external branches have not yet suffered any direct attacks. However, given the scale of this war, it’s only a matter of time. Therefore, all of you must mobilize immediately to defend our territories together."

The shock was universal. The threat had appeared without any prior warning, catching everyone completely off guard.

"You’ll have to sustain the defense on your own; the Central Sect cannot afford to send reinforcements and weaken our main lines. However, we won’t be sending you into a blind slaughter."

"As the youngest Central Elder, and one whose power is inferior to that of my peers, I have been assigned as the sole representative of the Central Sect responsible for overseeing the entire External Sect. You will be my soldiers, and together, all of us will fight with our lives on the line to achieve victory!"

His voice echoed with confidence and pride.

"Those present will be divided into two great armies. The first army will consist of all the Elder Leaders and their battalions of Elders. You will be deployed to the invasion points where we have detected high concentrations of Sage-level opponents. I will personally lead you on the front lines."

"The second army will be formed by all the external disciples. And the supreme commander of this force will be Priam of the 11th Branch."

Priam raised his head in surprise. Him?

The Central Elder’s gaze passed through the dimensional rift and locked directly onto Priam. Seeing the astonishment in the young man’s eyes, the authority figure let out a restrained sigh.

This didn’t anger him. After all, Priam was only a disciple, and this was an unparalleled responsibility that would affect the entire Sect.

"Those with greater abilities carry greater obligations. Priam, the weight placed upon your shoulders is colossal, but it is up to you to fulfill your role. This is your duty."

Priam let out a silent sigh. He accepted the responsibility without protest. Standing out too much came with a price, but deep down, he would rather take the reins himself than be led by someone incompetent during such a critical moment.

If he was going to war, then he might as well fight under his own orders.

"Lord Central Elder, this is unacceptable!"

Suddenly, heated voices echoed from the dimensional rifts of two different branches—specifically, the 8th and 4th Branches.

In each of those two territories, nearly two dozen Level 1 Enlightened Sages had gathered.

One glance was enough for Priam to understand the situation. These were the newly promoted Sages from those branches, warriors at the peak of their preparation to take the Inner Sect examination.

Those young Sages had not participated in the previous mission, even though they had been Mage Masters at the time of recruitment. Their respective branches had probably foreseen that they were close to advancing to the Sage level and kept them isolated, focusing purely on their ascension.

For them, that mission would have been another failure, just like it always was. Securing new Sages for the Sect was far more valuable than risking their lives in an uncertain battle.

As for the 11th Branch... Priam was currently the only Sage who would be taking the Inner Sect examination in the near future.

Although Priam’s name had become famous throughout all the external branches after the events of the mission, in theory, he stood at the same level as those newly promoted Sages.

For those arrogant young men, accepting Priam’s leadership was simply too bitter a pill to swallow. After all, they were all disciples, and they would now be under his command in the war that was approaching.

"QUIET! Who do you think you are, raising your voices here?!" Janna roared, directing a cold and threatening glare at the rebels from her own 8th Branch.

On the other side, the new Elder Leader of the 4th Branch, an elderly-looking man, reprimanded his subordinates with equal firmness.

"B-But..." Some of them tried to protest.

Before the Elder Leaders could impose a harsher punishment, the cold voice of the Central Elder echoed through the space.

"The decision is perfectly logical."

Everyone’s attention immediately turned toward the figure high above.

"Do you really think you’re on the same level as him? That comparison is downright ridiculous." He stared indifferently at the protesting disciples.

"Almost two decades have passed in the outside world, but considering the actual amount of time disciple Priam has experienced, it has only been about five years since he was recruited by this Sect. Tell me: how many hundreds of years did each of you take to go from mere Mage Disciples to Sages?"

Silence.

The arrogant Sages widened their eyes, unable to come up with an answer. In truth, the vast majority of the disciples had either ignored or were unaware of this detail. Since Priam had entered domains with time dilation on two separate occasions, the overwhelming pace of his growth wasn’t obvious to outsiders.

Even if it had been twenty years, his progress would still have been considered genius-level. But throughout the history of the world, there had been no shortage of legends about Innate Celestials who achieved something similar; there had even been one who took only nine years to become a Sage. So, since Priam belonged to the same class, it wasn’t all that shocking.

But reaching this level after only five years of actual life? That bordered on insanity.

"Furthermore..." the Central Elder continued, unwavering. "Priam’s status cannot be compared to any of yours. He is the only Semi-Inner Disciple in the entire External Sect—a completely unique title. Look at yourselves in the mirror: compared to him, you’re nothing more than ordinary and irrelevant Sages."

The Central Elder’s words, devoid of any theatrics, struck the rebels like a devastating blow. The silence in the 4th and 8th Branches was absolute.

On the other hand, the feeling in the 11th Branch was completely different.

Every disciple and Elder raised their heads, clenching their fists with indescribable pride. After generations of humiliation and neglect, their branch was finally reclaiming some of its glory. Priam’s prestige reflected directly upon all of them.

In Priam’s faction, the excitement was palpable; eyes shone brightly, and confident smiles appeared on every face.

Priam, meanwhile, simply let out a restrained sigh.

He didn’t reject the recognition in the slightest—in fact, quite the opposite. But he wasn’t some emotional young man. He knew very well that standing out too much meant having a proportionally larger target painted on his back.

He preferred having peace. But... a little excitement could be fun.

After a brief pause, the Central Elder’s voice became solemn:

"The Sorcerers’ forces have already invaded our territories and begun the merciless slaughter of all the inhabitants under our protection. As members of the only Sect in the southern region of the universe, you should have been prepared for a conflict of this scale at any time."

"The battlefield is unpredictable. Therefore, I demand that you abandon pointless rivalries and divisions between branches. You will have to fight side by side and support one another. Internal conflicts will not be tolerated under any circumstances!"

As he emphasized the order, the Central Elder’s gaze settled on Priam, then shifted toward the representatives of the 8th, 4th, and other branches that had been involved in conflicts during the previous mission.

That was the Central Elder’s true concern.

With the history of grudges and violent disputes between the branches, uniting these young people into a cohesive force would be a monumental task. If even a single branch disobeyed the chain of command in the heat of battle, the entire defensive line could collapse.

The Central Elder had bet on the strongest name in the External Sect, hoping he had what it took to turn that crowd into an actual army.

Priam let out a soft breath, understanding perfectly well the purpose behind the authority’s words.

"Old grudges stay in the past," Priam declared, his calm, deep voice being transmitted through the dimensional rifts to all thirteen branches. "My faction will serve as the command core for obvious reasons, but every other branch will be treated with absolute impartiality. I guarantee that I will do everything within my power to lead us to victory."

His tone was calm, overflowing with natural firmness.

"As long as there is no betrayal against my command, I am willing to shed every last drop of my blood for each and every one of you."

"Our enemies are the ruthless Sorcerers. I cannot promise that everyone will walk out of this war alive, but I make one promise: when the greatest dangers arise, I will be the one standing on the front lines, facing the worst threats."

He didn’t give an impassioned or overly dramatic speech. He offered only a simple and straightforward promise—and it was precisely that genuine simplicity that struck the disciples right in the heart.

Noticing the drastic change in the crowd’s attitude and the determination beginning to shine in the disciples’ eyes, the Central Elder allowed himself a discreet smile of approval. Priam possessed not only power and talent; he also carried the innate aura of a true leader.