Grand Ancestral Bloodlines

Ryu raised an eyebrow at the sudden question. It seemed that they weren't fighting anymore? He kind of got the feeling that these people didn't really care about this battle, either that or they felt that this matter was too skewed and couldn't be bothered to partake in it.

But that made him also feel that these people, despite being the founders of the Dual Radiance Sect, were somehow also the least bound by its Karma. Which made no sense. Logic seemed to dictate that since they were more powerful, they should also be the most unfettered. But this wasn't true.

Honestly speaking, if not for the overwhelming benefits, no powerhouse would ever start even a Clan, let alone a Sect. At least with a Clan, you would likely have descendants one way or another to obstruct your path. So making a Clan, giving it structure, and benefiting from it in that way just made more sense than not. But with a Sect, it seemed that you were going out of your way to be masochistic, bringing together a whole host of people with little to no connection between one another and trying to make them a cohesive whole.

Now that Ryu thought about it, it was an interesting choice for a couple to take this route. Two powerhouses, already marital partners and Dao Companions, were the ideal starting conditions for a Clan.

This was all to say that the binds of Fate that one gained from starting such an organization were heavy. At least with a Guild, it was loose enough that you could gain some benefits and avoid many of the drawbacks. But there was no such thing for Sect.

Somehow, though, these two had come out unscathed from not only the formation of their Sect but its destruction as well.

And once again... they reminded him of the little woman so much.

Ryu suddenly thought of something.

Taking a step back, the Dual Radiance Sect was a rare Sect where Bloodlines were shared across their various groups and small Clans. In a lot of ways, they were linked by blood much like a Clan was... Was there a secret behind this?

In the end, Ryu just simply explained what he knew. Although he looked relaxed, he never really put down his guard.

The two listened calmly and didn't seem surprised by anything he said.

"Fading Star Sect, huh?" Radiant Star scoffed. "I knew it."

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"You heard the story, why are you wondering what I mean?"

Ryu tuned them out. It was no wonder their Sect ended up like this with all the constant bickering. They seemed to think that so long as they appeared to be calm as they spoke, that everything would be better. But this wasn't the case at all.

Ryu did find it interesting though. None of the historical records mentioned their bickering, and they only alluded to their separation. Could it be that it was whitewashed? Or that they were only arguing in front of him for some other reason?

It couldn't be that they thought they were alone; they were smart enough to know the entire Seventh Heaven was watching right now. They just didn't seem to care.

It was probably the whitewashed idea. There were many examples of this in history, instances of people trying to wash away the truth with white lies, and often black lies. It was his job as a Ruin Master to see through them, but he hadn't cared enough to really delve into this topic.

At least, that was his conclusion until they spoke again.

"Child, how would you feel about taking me as your master?" Fading Star suddenly spoke.

Ryu raised an eyebrow, finally looking toward this couple again.

His reaction wasn't as visceral as it would have been in the past. It also wasn't exactly unethical to have more than one master, so long as their stations weren't too close. Meaning, if you had one Dao Lord as a master, then jumped to another Dao Lord just because they were marginally stronger, or even have much greater backing, you would be scorned and ridiculed.

However, Ryu's first master was a True Sky God at best, and that was in terms of Sacrum's rating system. He wouldn't even be a match for a World Sea Realm expert of the True Martial World. Not only were Fading Star and the old man not of the same station, they weren't even of the same world.

Even so, just because he didn't have the same disgust toward the idea of taking a master, that didn't mean that he would casually take one. He had crushed the inheritance of a Dao Sovereign without a care in the world because he had disrespected him, and he didn't even feel the slightest regret.

These two hadn't exactly disrespected him, well Fading Star certainly hadn't, but they hadn't really impressed him either.

Radiant Star thought that his display was awe-inspiring, but as far as Ryu was concerned, it was a stage he would inevitably reach given time.

The reason he took in his first master was that he could provide something to him that Ryu couldn't fathom at the time, and it quite literally changed his life.

Plus, it might not take so long for him to display what Fading Star had either. He still hadn't brought out his Dao Vessel. Although he didn't have much practice using it, the gap between a Lower Founding Dao and a Peak Founding one was enormous.

On top of that, weren't these two dead already? And even though they seemed to be able to shirk the limitations on this Throne Challenge somewhat, they were still restricted by the Heavens to the insights of a Perfect Sky God.

What insights could a Perfect Sky God give him that would be the equivalent of what his master had given him back then?

Seeing that Ryu didn't answer immediately, not only was Fading Star not angry, even Radiant Star didn't seem angry.

In fact, for the first time, Fading Star smiled.

"I have a particular distaste for people trying to test me, but since I've taken the initiative to take you in as a disciple, I won't mind it this once."

Ryu's eyes narrowed.

The lights of the world seemed to go out.