Ad Astra

I never thought I'd end up back in Wongye city, but after the week and a half long ride in a flying boat, I was glad to see any signs of civilization.

I wasn't exactly happy being forced to leave the Celestial Rimewood sect such a short time after arriving, but Sect Leader Yuefan had been clear. There wasn't anything I could do to help Jia. I wanted to stay close to her, see if I could thaw her trapped heart with my presence or actions, but I'd probably just make things worse. No, it would be best for Jia if I kept my distance, and tried to find some other way to cure her affliction.

I was reminded that her issues stemmed from her constitution, and I also had an issue with my constitution that Text had helped clear up after I had found him, so I asked him if there was any way to cure Jia, but his answer didn't help me feel any less powerless.

"Answer: No knowledge is available on the Primordial Ice Coffin Body."

That had put me in a dour mood, and my traveling companions had long since gotten bored of my complaining during the trip back to the western continent. Well everyone except Alice, though even the stoic girl eventually walked away after a while to stretch, practice her forms, or train with Zi Fu, who seemed to enjoy sparring with her. Even Shimmer, the tiny, fluffy traitor spent more time with Wei Lin of all people instead of me, though I suspected he was bribing her with dried meats of some kind or maybe particularly tantalizing head scratches.

By the time we reached Wongye city, no one wanted to talk to me, which…was fair I guess. I'd been in a bad mood ever since leaving the north, though Wei Lin did do a good job of distracting me from my inner turmoil by continuing his tutelage in swordplay.

It was helpful for my mood to do some proper weapon training and I enjoyed the practice of using only my body cultivation to spar with the older boy. It didn't cure my dourness but it did give me a reprieve from my own worries and thoughts.

By the time we had reached Wongye city, and the flying boat carried us in front of the Beltigo Corporation HQ building, I had molded my guilt about my part in Jia's condition into conviction. I didn't care what I needed to do, but I was going to get my friend back. And the first step to getting her back was getting stronger, and finding the other trials. Perhaps taking Jia to one of the trials would give her the chance to find one of the inheritances left behind by the Aurion sect? Though I suspected she wouldn't let me go into a trial again after what had happened in the first one.

Something within me wriggled at the thoughts of Jia getting an inheritance like I had, but I couldn't put a finger on why that felt wrong to me.

Or maybe she could get the Divine Drop or whatever it was going to be called for water qi somehow and maybe it could fix her? That was a good lead at the least! But that required the ship to work so we can search out the other trials, which means I needed to come to Beltigo just to talk to Artorius Beltigo, the heir to the entire Beltigo corporation.

I looked up at the sleek, metallic building standing out against the rest of the structures on the street with their more appropriate design for the culture of the area.

We walked in, Zi Fu leading the way, and the receptionist— a different one from Li Mei Ling who had been here before—took one look at him and stood without a word, showing us to a special elevator hidden in a nook off a side hallway past reception. He bowed to us deeply as the door closed.

We rode the elevator up to what I assumed was the top floor of the building, a light 'ding' sounding off when we reached the top that was eerily similar to the sound Text makes when he finishes analyzing something.

We followed the somewhat narrow hallway to the end, and got to a door where a guard was waiting. He motioned for me to go ahead into the room, then turned to another door and motioned for the other members of my group to go there. It seemed I wouldn't have backup for this conversation.

I took a deep breath and then stepped up to the door, the guard knocking in a rhythmic pattern and waiting for a moment before the voice of a man much older than I was, maybe around Zi Fu's age if not a bit older, instructed me to enter.

I walked in and found a middle aged silver haired man sitting behind a desk. Considering he and Zi Fu had known each other growing up I expected him to be younger, but then again, my senior's youthful appearance was due to his cultivation. This man looked much closer to how I expected Father would have looked by now if…

I shook my head of the thoughts, thinking about them still hurt, and I didn't feel ready to relive all that again. He looked up at me, his piercing mahogany eyes seeming to evaluate my worth with every moment.

"Astra Termina. Born and raised on Setria 9, by Calum and Vivian Termina who…tragically died in a building collapse. You were then raised by an elderly neighbor until her peaceful death at which time you lived on your own and took up mining asteroids for a living until a few years ago Dou Can time. Then you suddenly jumped up in cultivation despite having a constitution that should have made you incapable of doing so without body cultivation being the cause. You thwarted the plans of an over-zealous member of the Church of the One True Dao, and then left Setria 9 for Dou Can after the local powers tried to control you." He read off, as if It was a list of things he needed to pick up at the store.

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Then his face softened.

"I'm truly sorry about the death of your parents, Astra. That sector of Setria 9 had long been neglected by a corrupt administration. Since learning of your existence, and what you did for Fu's master, I looked into the records from that time.

A long history of bribery, extortion, and other illegal activity culminated in neglected infrastructure in the poorer sectors of the colony. I understand it is far too late to make a difference, and that ultimately it is our fault that you lost your parents; but I'm using this discovery as the impetus to send trusted investigators to all colonies we have across the universe to make sure something like that doesn't happen again.

The unnecessary loss of life leaves a bitter taste in my mouth, and I'd also ask for your insight in what changes could be made to the colonies that would improve life for those like you living there."

I was…honestly surprised by the candor and empathy from the man. I supposed I had been biasing myself against him based on his relationship with Senior Zi Fu, so maybe he wasn't so bad?

The mention of my parent's names didn't really make me feel good though, and neither did his use of my full name either. I guess it made sense if he had information on me though, Setria 9 was created by the Beltigo corporation.

"Thank you for your kind words, and it is too late to do what needed to be done, but I appreciate that you're willing to help people going forward. I'll tell you any ideas I can think of, but I think you called me here because you wanted to negotiate?"

He nodded.

"I understand. I would appreciate your help. Now, you may be wondering why I've shown my cards about how much I know about you, and why I refused to sell Zi Fu the fuel without speaking to you first.

Firstly, before I explain, I would ask that you do not spread what you hear today to others. While the information isn't necessarily harmful should it be well known, it is a secret the Beltigo corporation has held near and dear for decades.

Are you aware of the boundary line separating the universe from the void known as 'The Precipice'?"

I nodded in affirmation. Which he mirrored.

"Good, that saves some time.

It is not well known as truth, but rumors exist that the void is receding over time. These rumors are true, and part of the reason for the Beltigo Corporation's success over the last half century. Sometime around fifty years ago, a certain planet was found near The Precipice that had not been previously known.

One of our merchant ships spotted it when traveling close to the void and sent word to our main headquarters. We dispatched a reconnaissance team to the planet and discovered something beyond our wildest imaginations.

The ruins of a long gone human civilization much more technologically advanced than our own littered the planet. The ruins were long reclaimed by nature, but remnants remained. These ruins had entrances that led deeper underground where the inexorable erosion of time seemed to have been kept at bay. Within these structures we found plentiful resources and materials, but the true benefit we gleaned was much greater. Information.

We managed to access the data within the systems left behind on the planet after barely cobbling together a suitable power source for the long abandoned tech.

We used this information to rapidly improve technology universe-wide, though not without ensuring our own survival, and we quickly became a dominant force in the universe, our reach wider than ever thought possible.

Along with the information within their records, we found much more dangerous information…blueprints and schematics for weapons of war, with no explanation for why they would be needed. We assumed the worst, that some ancient war between humans was the cause of the eventual downfall of their civilization. My grandfather, the CEO of the Beltigo corporation at the time was a simple man. He built this company from the ground up, and instilled in my father and I the importance, and danger, this type of knowledge could bring. Not wishing to repeat the seeming mistakes of the past, my grandfather made the difficult decision to seal away knowledge of these weapons.

Under the counsel of his closest employees, he allowed the purely defensive weapons to be brought back and studied, along with the utility based technology that would help bring prosperity to the myriad people across the universe.

Thus began the golden age of technological advancement that we find ourselves in now.

Now guess how surprised I was when we receive a messenger from the Radiant Halo Sect explaining that the demonic presence increasing in the universe is because a powerful seal put in place by an ancient, more technologically advanced, civilization of humans is weakening and will eventually fully unravel and return the demonic threat in full force to the universe. Considering the knowledge we had already gleaned from our research, this seemingly ridiculous report stirred a strong fear within me that those weapon blueprints and schematics were not for fighting other humans.

In truth, I had wanted to speak to you since learning about how you helped cure Elder Vale, but now that Fu explained more about your experience in this 'trial' and your discovery of a functional research ship from that time, solidified within me that I must speak to you."

While that was all interesting, and the fact they decided not to unleash war machines of the past on the universe did put them in a more favorable light, I still didn't really understand why I mattered in this.

"I appreciate the impromptu history lesson, Mr Beltigo, but I'm not sure what you want from me, nor why you can't sell us the fuel for the ship, especially if you share our goal of saving humanity."

"It's not that I can't sell you the fuel, it's that I won't. Part of the reason I wished to meet you was to ask that you work with us, and give the Beltigo corporation control over the research ship you found."