Gathering Wives with a System

Chapter 736: Secrets Revealed, Exalted Rank

Isaac, Alice, and Selene looked at one another for a few moments. None of them immediately knew where to begin, especially after Jasmine had openly offered to answer almost any question they had. Isaac eventually decided that there was one topic they needed to understand before anything else.

"Let’s start with the World Tree."

"It’s a Catastrophe," Jasmine said.

Everyone froze in shock. For several seconds, nobody could say anything, as if their minds were struggling to process what Jasmine had just revealed. Even Althea was so shocked that she stood there with her mouth slightly open, completely forgetting to hide her reaction.

Isaac eventually recovered and looked at Jasmine seriously. "How is that possible? If the World Tree is a Catastrophe, why isn’t anyone doing anything about it?"

"I doubt they know. Even if some of them do know, they probably only care about their own profits and interests, so they have little reason to involve themselves in something that could cause them trouble. I’m not sure about the Emperor, though, because he should know about this as well, but why he isn’t doing anything is beyond my understanding," Jasmine replied.

"W-what are you saying?" Althea muttered. "The World Tree we have always been praying to is...?"

Jasmine nodded calmly. "Yes. It’s a monster."

Nobody could respond after hearing those words. The World Tree had always been regarded as one of the most important beings in their society, and countless Florathi considered it one of their greatest guardians. Yet the truth was that one of the strongest guardians connected to one of the major powers in their Sector was actually a Catastrophe.

It was a chilling realization.

Isaac took a moment to think before asking his next question. "What is the World Tree’s goal?"

"It wants to advance to the Exalted Rank," Jasmine answered.

Selene’s expression changed slightly because she clearly didn’t understand the significance of those words. Jasmine noticed her confusion and decided to explain before continuing with the rest of the matter.

"Do you know what rank comes after Overlord?"

"Ascender?" Selene asked.

"No. Ascender is a title given to those who have entered the Tower of Heaven and Hell. They are exceptionally powerful Overlords, but they are still Overlords. Our Sector has no one who has reached the next rank, and that rank is the Exalted Rank," Jasmine explained.

Selene’s brows furrowed as she considered Jasmine’s explanation. "Until now, no one has been able to enter the Exalted Rank?"

"To be exact, no one does it. There is a reason for that, and it is connected to the Thousand Year Stampede," Jasmine replied.

Jasmine paused briefly before continuing. "As soon as someone in our Sector enters the Exalted Rank, the Thousand Year Stampede will begin immediately, regardless of how much time has passed since the previous one. The System considers an Exalted being proof that our Sector has reached the minimum level required to proceed to the next stage of the apocalypse, so it will begin the test."

Her expression became more serious as she explained the consequences. "If we pass the test, the second stage of the apocalypse will begin, but if we fail, everyone in this Sector will be destroyed."

The room became silent again. Nobody seemed willing to interrupt Jasmine after hearing that, because the consequences were far greater than any of them had expected. Even Isaac had to take a moment to consider the implications of what she had just revealed.

Isaac slowly pieced everything together. "So there are multiple Overlords who are already close to reaching the Exalted Rank, but they are deliberately waiting for the Thousand Year Stampede to begin before advancing. That way, their advancement won’t cause the Stampede to happen earlier than scheduled, and they can use strength they’ve gained to increase everyone’s chances of survival."

Jasmine nodded. "Correct. Do you remember the Cyclone, the Ascender protecting the Mistborn and someone who is extending their lives?"

Isaac nodded. He wasn’t surprised that Jasmine knew the truth about Cyclone’s identity, because even without her ability to see possible futures, Florathi’s intelligence network should have been enough to uncover information about someone of that level.

"They are also one of those Ascenders who are waiting," Jasmine continued. "Cyclone is waiting for the Thousand Year Stampede to begin before advancing to the Exalted Rank."

Isaac nodded again before asking his next question. "So how does the World Tree fit into all of this?"

"The World Tree doesn’t care about bringing the Thousand Year Stampede forward. Because it’s a Catastrophe, the test doesn’t affect it in the same way it affects the rest of us. It is therefore trying to advance as soon as possible, and that is why it has been paying so much attention to you," Jasmine said.

Isaac remained silent for a moment. That was bad news, because the World Tree wasn’t simply another powerful being trying to survive the apocalypse. It had a completely different objective, and its desire to advance meant that everyone else in the Sector could potentially be dragged into the next stage of the apocalypse before they were ready.

"This sounds like a serious problem," Isaac said. "Why didn’t you ask for help from the other mid-rank species that are around the same level as Florathi?"

"There are two main reasons. First, they have their own problems and they don’t have resources to be involved in our affairs. Second, the World Tree has too much control over the Florathi," Jasmine replied.

She continued explaining before anyone could misunderstand her meaning. "If Florathi tried to unite with the other kingdoms, the World Tree could easily manipulate enough people into turning that alliance into a war. Florathi would end up fighting the very kingdoms we were trying to cooperate with, which would cause countless deaths and consume enormous amounts of resources without doing anything meaningful to the World Tree."

The group fell silent after hearing that. The situation was far more dangerous than Isaac had initially expected, because it wasn’t simply a matter of defeating the World Tree. Its influence had spread too deeply into Florathi for brute force to solve the problem without potentially causing even greater destruction.

"Do you have a solution?" Isaac asked.

"Yes. It is a long process, and frankly, it is also a gamble. However, our main piece will be Alice," Jasmine answered.

Isaac glanced toward Alice while Jasmine continued. "As she must have already told you, despite my repeated requests that she keep it secret, she is a Hero Unit. Once she awakens, she will become far stronger and gain new abilities that could help us tremendously."

Isaac nodded as he listened. The plan clearly wasn’t something they could finish discussing in a single conversation, especially when Alice’s awakening was such an important part of it. They could go over the details later, so Isaac decided to move on to another question that had been bothering him.

"How did you see Alice’s past life?"

Althea, who had been quietly listening to the entire conversation, looked even more confused than before. She clearly had no idea what they were talking about or why Alice’s past life was connected to Jasmine’s strange knowledge, but she remained silent and continued listening.

"I technically didn’t do it myself. My Talent allows me to see futures and pasts related to myself, so normally I wouldn’t be able to see someone else’s past. I could do it for Alice only because the Goddess of Love, War, and Harvest temporarily granted me a blessing," Jasmine explained.

Isaac raised an eyebrow at that explanation. "The Goddess of Love, War, and Harvest gave you a blessing that allowed you to see Alice’s past?"

"Yes. Her blessing strengthened my Talent temporarily. And before you ask, I don’t know why she did that. She gave me the blessing in exchange for completing a task for her, and that blessing allowed me to see Alice’s past life," Jasmine replied.

Isaac nodded slowly. He was becoming increasingly confused by the Goddess of Love, War, and Harvest, especially because she normally behaved as though her main goal was simply to meet the God of War again.

However, this was different. She had somehow led Jasmine toward Alice’s past life and then allowed Alice to see that past herself, which made Isaac wonder what exactly the Goddess was trying to accomplish through all of this.

While Isaac was thinking about it, Alice suddenly asked a question that had apparently been bothering her as well.

"Isn’t the Goddess of Love, War, and Harvest the guardian God of Florathi? If that’s the case, why did she allow a Catastrophe like the World Tree to gain so much power and influence within Florathi?"

Jasmine looked at Alice for a few seconds before answering. "That’s one of the questions I don’t have a definite answer to. The Goddess has never directly explained why she allowed the World Tree to grow to its current level of influence. That said, I believe this happened because...."