Time passed. Mais spent his time cultivating in his room and the boiler room, trying to improve his alchemy skills. However, it was difficult for him to learn new things without someone reading his books to him. There was little that Mais could improve on his own. Therefore, in recent weeks Mais had once again witnessed the progress of those around him, but he himself hadn't made as much progress. He had only been healing his wounds.
Although Mais hadn't actually made any progress at the cultivation base, he had made progress in his understanding of the Tao. Pima's superior skill in the Tao of Lightning was so impressive that it made an impact on him. Pima overwhelmed others with her aura, but she inspired Mais. Mais soon saw the Trace of the Lightning Tao.
However, Mais had gained an understanding of seven Taos. Mais hadn't yet connected a Tao to each of his Sage Cores, but because his Alchemical Tao was a very powerful one, Mais still possessed a superior level of power compared to the other Sages.
Among his peers, at least.
Mais had gone most of the way to the next realm, but he didn't feel as stressed as he had last time. Reaching the Origin Heart Realm wouldn't be as difficult as it had been in the Sage Realm, because Mais already knew a way to reach it.
This was called the Harmony of the Ten Taos. When Mais made unexpected progress in his Cold Tao, he suspected he had a talent for it and began exploring ways to advance through it. Although he hadn't discovered much until reaching the Sage Realm, where the influence of the Tao had receded into the background, he devised an unusual method to reach the Origin Heart Realm from there.
The Harmony of the Ten Taos was an Origin Heart Realm technique which required a separate Tao to be connected to each core. The technique's difficulty was palpable. Although it only aided in reaching the Origin Heart Realm, it was a peak Origin Heart technique. The fact that a Sage could grasp a technique beyond his own realm, that this technique was a peak technique, and that it achieved understanding in the Ten Taos, as clearly demonstrated in its structure… everything about this technique was incredibly difficult. Even accessing the technique was an ordeal. Nevertheless, Mais felt he could successfully apply this technique. If he could do so, he could overcome the disadvantage of having less physical strength due to his age. After all, experts in the Origin Heart Realm weren't always young. Old men were physically far superior, and that wasn't their only advantage. Fighting them under normal circumstances was quite difficult, and the fact that Mais had a chance to challenge them was further proof of his ability.
Once again, Mais was isolated from everyone else, holed up in the basement of Kasuur's mansion. For the past few days, he had been tirelessly searching for something that would enable him to easily recreate his Annual Compensation Pill. Although the Annual Compensation Pill was generally made from simple materials, its effect was immense. To achieve this effect, Mais had placed a special plant from the Treasury Palace into the cauldron: the Void Flower. Mais had no understanding of the Tao of Space or the Tao of Time. Nevertheless, he had created this pill, which had enabled him to gain an understanding of the Tao of Alchemy. The Annual Compensation Pill was deeply tied to the themes of time and emptiness. Mais had no understanding of the Taos of these two themes either. Therefore, he should not have been able to produce a pill containing these Taos. True Alchemists create their pills by infusing them with Tao, after all. Master Alchemists could not possibly have any trace of Tao in their pills. This could only be achieved by adding certain herbs, which was extremely difficult.
On the day Mais actually saw the Trace of the Alchemical Tao, he used the Tao of a plant, just like a Master Alchemist. But Mais didn't just do that. He was contemplating how plants infused their Tao into alchemical pills that day, and he clung to a tiny idea. When Mais tried it for the first time and succeeded, he realised he had seen the Trace of the Tao of Alchemy. Unlike Master Alchemists, who could only create Tao-infused alchemical pills with a low probability at that time, Mais gained the ability to produce them whenever he wanted. He could use his own foreseen Tao, as well as the Tao contained in other materials. He had discovered the binding effect of the Tao of Alchemy, just like all other True Alchemists.
He had created his own pill and broken through all the boundaries. However, the Void Flower was not a common plant; it grew under harsh conditions on planets without atmospheres. It required a nearby star to provide energy and a spatial agent to grant spatial abilities. These two elements also had to be a certain distance apart so as not to harm the flower. This rare plant was sold at high-profile auctions.
Naturally, there was some of this flower in the Treasury Palace, but not in the quantity Mais desired. After all, Mais would need to eat dozens of them to see a significant effect from this pill.
Mais was looking for materials that could produce the same effect but were cheaper to obtain. However, plants containing Space and Void-themed Taos weren't readily available. Mais also wanted to search for separate plants that contained the two Taos individually, but there was no one who could help him and read his books.
KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!
The knocking on the door interrupted Mais's attention. He frowned and calmly reduced the heat under the alchemical cauldron. He had already told Anika that he didn't want to be disturbed. The pill-making process is always dangerous. After all, alchemists usually work with very high temperatures. One mistake could cause an explosion that would blow up the entire building.
Nevertheless, Mais's frown quickly disappeared.
The floorboards of the basement creaked. Whoever was behind the door didn't seem to be carrying much. Otherwise, Mais wouldn't have lost sight of the person approaching, despite his focus on the cauldron.
That's how he knew who was coming.
"Valeria?"
The door opened. The little girl entered. Valeria was now nine years old. She was still a child, but the death of Mais's servants, who had treated her with affection, weighed heavily on her. Her cheeks had grown hollow and her ears, which had always been prominent, had become even more noticeable. She had lost weight. She no longer looked at Mais with the same eyes. She was hesitant. It was not the same playful hesitation as before, but fear.
"Y-your dinner is ready, sir," said Valeria. She stammered slightly, revealing her fear. She had even said 'sir', but Mais didn't like it at all.
"Are you afraid of me, Valeria?" Mais asked. Hesitation appeared on Valeria's face once more. She wanted to remain silent. Yet she was afraid of not answering Mais.
"You killed them..."
"I did."
That wasn't the question, but Mais felt like he'd already got his answer. Valeria was not like the other foreign servants. They wouldn't say such a thing to Mais. They wouldn't admit to being afraid either. They were afraid it would upset Mais. Instead, they would say nonsensical things like they respected Mais. Perhaps Anika would say outright whether she was afraid or not. Valeria didn't even see the question. She only had things she wanted to say to Mais on her mind.
The silence made Valeria even more tense. At that moment, her thoughts began to pour out of her mouth:
"Is this what it's like to be a Nurturer Cultivator? Do ordinary people's lives have no value? You and Maria fought, but innocent people died."
"No one is innocent, Valeria. You're only innocent for thinking that."
People's lives were valued according to their power. Mais knew that his life was worthless in the eyes of Baro. That's why Mais had put Maria's life on a scale, and with that he had survived. Those maids could only blame themselves for having chosen the wrong side.
Mais moved forward. Valeria shuddered. She was afraid. She took a step back. Mais noticed her hesitation. He stopped. Seeing Valeria's fear saddened him. He had no idea why he felt that way. The fact that people were afraid of him... shouldn't have mattered.
Yet it did. It mattered to Mais.
"I'm afraid too, Val. If you want to know why I did it, that's my answer."
Mais stepped forward. He walked past Valeria calmly. Valeria's breathing and presence were too obvious to Mais's heightened senses. No contact occurred. Just as Mais was about to pass through the doorway, Valeria finally moved her lips.
"Someone asked me to be an informant on you. I took their money."
Mais paused for a moment. Then a smile slowly appeared on his face, though he didn't show it to Valeria. He seemed about to turn his head, but then changed his mind. He turned back around and continued walking.
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