"Demonic cultivators use Demonic Qi, Spiritual cultivators use Spirit Qi, those are merely two of thousands of forms of energy each with their own rules or limitations to cultivate, choosing one path closes another, choosing the wrong path can end the journey, we teach you only what we know but you must make decisions wether good ones or bad"
- Hals maib guidance teacher ~ Nascent soul stage
A flying chariot sped through the nearby void
Several cultivators in formation protected the chariot from all sides
"Mrs. Bell, we have arrived, the Golden flower sects flag ship - Voice of flowers - is within sight" the charioteer spoke
No response came from the cabin but a light next him lit up.
"Anabella this will be the first time we introduce you to anyone outside the family, make sure you leave a good impression on them and make sure you don't cause any trouble" a woman calmly and softly spoke
"Yes mother... What trouble could I cause?" A young girl spoke questioningly
As if she noticing setting off a fuse inside her mother she quickly turned away
"Anabella, empty your pockets"
The girl flinched while making sure not to meet her mothers eyes
"..."
As flying ships arrived at the Golden flower sect, groups of sect members whom were assigned to greet and lead the guests prepared themselves.
The first vessel soon landed on raised platform
"Greetings and welcome to the Golden flower sect, King Jasper and Queen Sill of the Four kingdoms fleet, I will be your escort to the venue today my name is Esly. Please if you will follow me we have prepared transportation to lead us to the venue, I've taken the liberty to prepare a tour along our path to showcase our world ark - Voice of flowers "
Pointing at several large golden-silver carriages, the man lead the way
The king and queen followed behind, followed by a young boy and girl 5 years of age attended by several guards but most of the kings entourage was led by another attendant to another set of carriages while a few followed the flying vessels they used on their travels.
'This man is rather uneducated, to walk befor the king' one of the kings entourage though.
Soon all boarded the carriages and departed along a set path.
Another flying ship arrived not long after, the spiritual pressure given off was higher then the previous ship yet looked more simple in comparison to the lavish flying vessels of king Jasper and company, but not by much.
This time a young woman greeted the guests
"Greetings and welcome to the Golden flower sect, Sir Mesma of the towering merchant group, I will be escorting you today my name is Millie and I have prepared transportation for the evening"
Leading the way towards various lavish silver carriages the woman did not delay
Following the middle aged man named Mesma and six children all the age of 5 followed suit, a few older man which looked 50-60 followed another attendant.
Quickly setting off they had at first taken the same path as the previous guests before changing directions in a fork of the road.
The next ship followed, this time the spiritual pressure dropped and was in Harmony with its surroundings
"Greetings and welcome to the Golden flower sect, King Astero and Queen Eólli of the High elven woodland, I will be guiding you to the venue today my name is Haley im pleased to guide you this evening"
The woman lead the way to several beautiful wooden carriages brimming with life and sculpted with vibrant carvings of plants and animals.
The king and queen simply looked unimpressed and simply followed behind.
Following behind them 3 children one older of around 12 years of age and two younger ones 5 years of age.
One after another, flying vessels of all kinds arrived and passengers disembarked to be greeted by attendants without delay.
On a shining flying ship still sailing the void
"El how does your body feel, no signs of a breakout?"
After a bit of silence a childs voice answered
"N-No"
They soon arrived at the dock leading inside the Voice of flowers, their ship covered in star light with many glistening lights flashing periodically happened to draw the attention of many
They landed without hassle and disembarked without guard
"Greetings and welcome to the Golden flower sect... Madam Nordaine i presume?"
A woman looking in her late 20s walked out of the flying ship
"I am for now" saying so she lifted her hand and tossed a boy with dark hair
"Carry him for me"
The woman caught of guard by the sudden actions held onto the child she had just received
"Lead the way"
The attendant had lost control of the lead
"Ah yes. Right away madam Nordaine"
The young attendant was a girl in her early 20s and of the previous generation disciples in the Golden flower sect, hading received important guest many times befor yet she didn't expect to be treated like a simple servant.
Looking down towards madam Nordaine's feet you could see two little girls clinging on to the each side of her
The carriage prepared for the Nordaine's was silver on the outside and purple within elegant yet simple designs adorning it.
As more flying ships arrived guests were lead to their final destination the sect master and vice sect master of the Golden flower sect well prepared greeted each guest personally
"Its a pleasure to see you again King Bright, did queen Veol not feel well this evening? the golden haired sect master inquired
"Indeed she had a slight deviation in her cultivation that she couldn't ignore but im sure she will be fine " the king replied rather displeased at the fact.
The child next to the king put her head down upon hearing these words
It seemed odd to reveal such flaws but should someone want to assist the king and gain his favor in the future they knew what to do.
The sect master simply smiled and greeted the next guest
"Lord Rivera its a pleasure to meet you again, we have not spoken since the alliance founding"
"Yes, it is my fortune to see you once more" he said this while not really looking at the sect master but rather towards the direction of the newly arrived madam Nordaine
Greeting the next guest the sect master noted this down in her head
"So it is Mrs. Bell, did patriarch Wesnick not have time today?"
"No he just didn't want to come" wasting no time making excuses Mrs. Bell replied
"Heheh" a little girl laughed to the side, instantly receiving a glare from her mother
The sect master simply moved on to the next guest, not everyone had the motive of forming closer ties with outsiders, simply being present to keep relations warm was enough.
"Grandmaster pike its a pleasure to have you here, a truly welcome surprise" the sect master knew the faces and names of each guest regardless of importance but she only greeted those of importance
"Thought I'd go out for a walk when I heard you were hosting an event for the youngest generation of at least 3-10 years of age... Although I do see some above that age have decided to show" the man spoke while looking in the direction of the high elven king and queen who arrived befor him
Next to this middle aged man a small bearded man around half the size of an average cultivator
"Yes it seems not everyone can keep to regulations, but then again not everyone is of the same make" the small man spoke
"It's also my delight to meet such a renowned senior as yourself elder Fôr, the stories of your adventures have even reached my ears" the sect master turned her attention to the small man named Fôr
"Small as they are eh?" A bit of questioning and teasing tone could be heard ever so slightly
The sect master had ignored Elder Fór in favor of greeting grandmaster pike first, she did this intentionally in order to have an excuse for a private meeting under the guise of an apology in the future.
The dwarven fleets defensive formations and tactics are simply to enticing, her sect needed such abilities.
As the artificial day within this world ark progressed all sorts of guests had arrived each seated into one of six groups.
Each group had brought those they considered important members within their respective fleet, from councilman, generals to craftsman each person has a certain amount of influence within their respective fleet.
An additional requirement for todays gathering - A child must be present, blood relation did not matter.
The sect master of the Golden flower sect stood from her seat and gave a welcoming speech
"Hello everyone, as you all know I am Anne the sect master of the Golden flower sect. Today we will be introducing the youngest generation amongst our alliance to one another in hopes that when you meet in the future you will assist each other and protect each other, possibly even further cement our alliance as one. We have all agreed to test the youngest today of their spiritual roots in view of all our allies to show the trust we will place on each other in the coming years"
Of course not everyone from the youngest generation would appear today, simply a few that got lucky or had direct relation to people in power.
As this was said a giant gray mirror was brought out and placed on top of a wide platform
"We will not only be testing the Spiritual roots today but also rewarding the best talents with gifts donated by the various powers present which will further help them down their path"
Pointing to another direction, several tables filled with various boxes could be seen shining in a dimly lit area.
"Of course we won't be rewarding only the best talents, but all the children today here with gifts that best suit their future paths. As most children that have arrived today have only recently turned 5 years of age please be mindful of your words and actions we don't want to scare them and leave a bad impression"
Silent agreements could be seen
"Once we test the children we of the Golden flower sect invite you to participate in our flower blooming festival, which is why we have prepared todays venue outside so you can witness an important moment for our sect. In order to appeal to each of you we have also prepared rare delicacies from our homeland and the various regional entertainments that could be found throughout. Other then that, we will also have several of our elders here to discuss cultivation experiences with those who wish it, finally we will hold a small trading auction for things you may need or want to get rid off"
Stopping here she then proceeded to recite an incantation lighting up the surroundings with warm light
"Now then, let us begin"
She made an inviting gesture to the various guests present and signaled to her own people
Many children made their way up forming several rows of midgets all waiting for their chance to shine
Some kids seemed exited, others worried, some panicked, while others had no reaction.
The vice sect master Llylia then instructed them on what to do.
"First you must introduce yourself ok? Tell them your name, age and where you are from then walk up to the mirror and stand there. You dont jave to do anything else besides that, the mirror will do all the work so you don't have to worry about failing to feel your spiritual Qi. After that you can walk back to your parents ok?"
Some children nodded while others seemed to understand but didn't reply
"Ok we are ready to begin. Does anyone wish to be the first?" No response came
"Any brave volunteers among you? No?"
"I will go" the voice of a young child was heard
Llylia looked around but couldn't see the source of the voice
"Step up then young one" she instead went a roundabout way to locate the owner of the voice
A red headed boy that was shorter then the other children came forth looking rather proud and haughty.
"My name is Hector, I am 5 years old and come from the 4 kingdoms alliance" he held his head high looking 'down' at his peers he turned away from them and walked towards the mirror.
The boys parents King Grand and Queen Margery seated with confidence as if already knowing the result.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Somewhere in the endless void
"Have you located it yet?"
"Haaaa no. The energy signature simply doesn't last in the void, we need to go vessel to vessel otherwise it's simply a waste of time"
"Dammit that could take tens of years! We don't have that kind of time we must find some other way"
"By the time someone 'finds a way' it could be to late for our people, its best we start searching"
Hundreds of arks moved through the void with no true direction.