The last Asura Sovereign

The elders and deacons were telling about the help they could provide for the clan. They didn’t specify the amount of resources they would donate to the clan but they were ready to use the clan resources and start refining the products they were capable of free of cost. Punya wanted to interject and make them clear about the situation but he let them be.

For array and alchemy, the clan had enough products and even if they wanted more, the raw materials for refining were almost spent. The weapon and talisman department had fewer people than others and since the inheritance was not more comprehensive, even the finished products were only ordinary. As for the beast taming branch, there were very few combat-oriented beasts at higher levels. Most of the beasts were raised for food, only the sixth elder had beasts at the second-grade middle stage.

It was a pity the beast taming branch didn’t have much of an inheritance at a higher level otherwise with the Bareback mountains near them, they could raise a variety of beasts and since the beasts have longer lifespans than cultivators, they could guard the clan for centuries. The previous generations had tried that but beasts with a higher realm required more resources daily. It was costly to maintain without a suitable inheritance.

And if the strength of the beast was subpar, it would not be worth the trouble. With that much resource, they could raise a foundation building realm cultivator. Even in the whole Emerald kingdom, there were not many beast tamers. Raising beasts and using them for combat effectively were two different things. The beasts raised for meat were usually of gentle temperament whereas those strong in combat were ferocious in nature. Not everyone could handle them.

As for the remaining minor arts, there wasn’t much on the Rijal clan. Only a few auxiliary professions were the mainstream of the cultivation world. This was because most inheritance had been lost through the time due to various reasons. For example, the number of cultivators that wield swords and blades consists of ninety percent. Just like this, the mainstream was alchemy, array, talisman, and weapon refining. Although puppetry, beast taming, etc. were popular, they weren’t as popular as the four.

Most of the elders were proficient in one of the auxiliary professions and whoever hadn’t practiced was adept in battle. There were only a few in management positions. As Punya watched the elders discussing the help they were going to provide, one of the deacons raised a question about the outpost. She began to ask about the situation of the outpost and why there were only fewer than a hundred members left there.

Looking at the deacon’s face, he remembered one of the Battle hall members who had a similar face to her who had returned yesterday. It was probably her son. “You don’t have to worry about them. They are dismantling the outpost. They will arrive in a few days. They are going to gather whatever resources are left near the area. At this moment, even a little bit of resource helps” Punya replied.

The deacon asked the question again “But aren’t they in even more danger than in the clan? What if the other clans sneak attack them? With few of them, they wouldn’t be able to survive.” The Battle hall members had taken the curse from Radha and were absolutely loyal to the clan. With most of the resources being funneled to them, they had rapidly gained strength. Even without the curse, they had become loyal.

So it was normal for their family members to not know they had returned to the clan. After all, they were one of the trump cards of the clan. The Battle hall members that returned previously were small in number and only a few were in the foundation building realm. “You don’t have to worry about the sneak attack. In the forest, the Battle hall members had the advantage so surviving wouldn’t be hard for them. And Radha is with them so the enemy has to send pretty strong cultivators to take down the whole outpost.”

Hearing this the female deacon sighed a breath of relief but her face was still full of worry. In the clan, everyone knew that after Keshab, the strongest battle prowess was of Radha. So unless there was a half-step core formation realm cultivator, they wouldn’t be able to harm Radha. This was before she broke through. Now she was stronger than Keshab. The matter of leaving few members on the outpost was put to rest and the elders were talking about the spirit stones and resources required to maintain the mountain-protecting array.

The elders were hoping they would be able to hold on for a day or two. Even after knowing all these things, they were still taking the easy way out. Punya sighed inwardly, maybe this war would be a good thing, if they survived the flames on the heart of the clansmen will surely burn blazing. From his past experiences, Punya knew better than to tell them what to do. If he steps up now, it will only aggravate them and turn them against him.

After a few hours of discussing mundane things and making unrealistic plans, Punya sent them away on the pretense of arranging their stations to defend the clan. The elders wanted to draw plans together but Punya sent them away telling them that he would draw prototype and consult each of them later. After the elders went away he sat on the clan leader's seat and sighed. If the Rijal clan continued like this, it would be destroyed after a few decades or century even without war. Most of those present today was either corrupt or selfish.

He couldn’t be like Radha and start beating the shit out of them on small disagreements, his position didn’t allow him. Watching something you love dearly falling apart before you and being powerless to do anything about it is the worst feeling in the world. Punya knew the stakes before inheriting the position but after more than a decade, he became tired of it.

The more the days went by, the more he began to respect his ancestors. Sometimes just being powerful is not enough to deal with those who share a semblance of bloodline. If it was an outsider, he could just draw his sword but to the clan members, he couldn’t use force especially when you have dedicated the best part of your life for their betterment.

And there was still an issue of the mole. There have been no suspicious activities on the elder’s or the deacon’s front. He had even sent shadows to monitor them secretly. But these two days, everything just seemed normal. Getting nowhere was eating him inside.