John's face turned grim upon hearing this. His family clan was part of some of their plans. He had not seen or heard from them since he left for the pocket realm, and was filled with a sense of melancholy, as well as worry.
'I hope it's not related to my clan.'
John couldn't help but interrupt the Sect Leader and ask a question that was burning in his mind.
"Sect Leader Thunderzen, based on your previous comments regarding my mask, I've come to the conclusion that you're most likely the strongest person on this continent. Am I correct in that assumption?" John suddenly asked.
The Sect Leader paused, not expecting this question from John, but was quite amused at his astute observations.
"You are correct," Thunderzen replied. He knew what John was getting at, but decided to let him ask the questions anyway.
"Then if the Bloodfiend Sect is trying something nefarious, why don't you personally stop it. You should have the power to do so, correct?" John continued.
Sect Leader Thunderzen smiled at John's naïve question. "You would not be faulted for thinking in such a way. If I truly wanted to, I could destroy the entire Bloodfiend Sect myself without too much trouble," Thunderzen confirmed. "However, doing so would draw down a calamity on our Heavenly Lightning Sect, far greater than I would be able to bear."
John frowned upon hearing this, and couldn't help but ask why.
"What are the calamities you would draw upon our sect?" John asked.
"There are two," Thunderzen replied. "The first is that, in my assault of the Bloodfiend Sect, surely some Elders and powerful members of the sect would slip away. Those Elders would ligner in the shadows, and fueled by a desire for vengeance, would carry out unspeakable acts on the Yuan Continent. While we would most likely eventually root them out, the damage would be unthinkable, and countless lives would be lost."
Sect Leader Thunderzen paused for a moment to let John digest this information, before continuing once more.
"However, that isn't the real reason for me staying in my hand," Thunderzen continued. He paused for a moment to pour himself more tea.
John pondered this matter during the silence, as an idea came to his mind.
"Is it related to the Divine Martial Continent?" John couldn't help but ask. He had already learned that the Heavenly Lightning Sect was only a branch sect, with a more powerful main sect on the Divine Martial Continent.
With this in mind, couldn't the same be the case for the Bloodfiend Sect?
Thunderzen nodded his head in affirmation as he took a sip of tea.
"That is correct. Much like our sect, the Bloodfiend Sect has their own main sect on the Divine Martial Continent. While their system is a bit different than ours, a powerful sect on the Divine Martial Continent still treats them as a branch sect," Thunderzen confirmed.
John frowned once again upon hearing this, but remained silent as the Sect Leader continued his explanation.
"You can consider our sect, and the Bloodfiend Sect, to have...different allegiances. Our sect is part of the conventional path of cultivation, or the Honorable pathway, while the Bloodfiend Sect belongs to the taboo, or the Forbidden pathway of cultivation. While there are many different alliances on the Divine Martial Continent, our Honorable Alliance and the Forbidden Alliance are sworn enemies," Thunderzen explained.
He took another sip of tea before continuing, as John sat there in silence.
"In the past, our two sides had no rules, and as a result, we nearly drove both alliances to extinction. This allowed the other alliances on the Divine Martial Continent to rise in power, which nearly resulted in our mutual destruction. As such, a sort of...pact was made, to ensure our survival."
"What pact?" John asked.
"The pact is that those above the Heaven Tribulation Realm are not allowed to interfere with those at the Heaven Tribulation Realm or below. There are a few other laws in place, but those are not ones you need to know right now. All you need to know is that in the past, the most powerful cultivators with no laws restricting them would wipe out entire sects, and bury entire continents with their power.
However, as I mentioned before, the only thing this achieved was mutual destruction of both sides, and so this restriction was put in place. As such, if I step over the lines, not only will I draw the wrath of our Honorable Alliance, I too will draw the wrath of the Forbidden Alliance to our sect. While my power is something that can reign freely over this continent, it is not something that can dominate that continent," Thunderzen explained.
John sat there in silence as he took in all this information.
'It seems like the world is a lot more complicated than I originally thought.'
"As such," Thunderzen once again spoke up. "I am unable to directly interfere with the matters of the Bloodfiend Sect. Doing so will cause far more issues than it solves. As for our spies, they are unable to gather much information regarding these movements, as none of them hold high positions in the Bloodfiend Sect. As such, we are not sure what they are planning. However, that doesn't mean we can't do anything," Thunderzen continued, a small smile forming on his face.
"And that is where you come in," the Vice-Sect Leader suddenly chimed up. "And this is also the reason for your recent training."
"Me?" John asked in a questioning voice. "How am I supposed to do anything to a sect as powerful as the Bloodfiend Sect? And what does this have to do with my training?"
"Yes," Thunderzen confirmed. "We were discussing how to go about this issue, when the solution was presented right into our laps. You, with the help that ancient mask of yours, will disguise yourself as a disciple of the Bloodfiend Sect and infiltrate their sect with the intention of finding out their plans."