Ang was reading the newspaper in his hands. In this chaotic world, the lives of many hang by a thread and may sometimes get decided on one wrong move they make. So, to keep the continent updated on current affairs, the first Elders Council organized an organization to collect publicly available information and spread it across the continent. Nowadays, multiple organizations such as these have been established. They publish newspapers every week across their range of regions. Some focus on regional news, some on news that affects a district, and some focus on the entire continent. The price of these newspapers was high compared to any ordinary book, but the chance to know what is happening in the world and act accordingly is worth paying for. If one can't afford it, a copy will always be available at the local library the following week at a low price.
Due to the cost, mostly only the rich and officials buy them every week. The rest wait and read them at a discounted price in the library.
"Ho, So it's about that time, haa.." said Ang with his interest picked.
"Anything interesting on the news this week, young master Ang?" Asked Rue while serving tea.
"Yeah, The Qian and Jian Families made peace and are having an arranged marriage between their younger generations", replied Ang with a slightly mocking tone.
"Isn't that wonderful news? The people of this continent will have one less thing to worry about?" Rue asked, a bit puzzled.
"Rue, why do you think the martial world is chaotic even though the elders' council and their families are trying to protect the people?" asked Ang.
"Well, isn't that because of the Dark Clans? They follow a different approach to cultivation and pose a threat to the righteous path. They cause chaos and destruction everywhere they go, causing unrest among the people," answered Rue as if it were obvious.
[System notification:]
[Dark Clans: These Clans follow a different approach to cultivation than ordinary people. Their methods produce exceptional cultivation progress but also have heavy backlashes, ranging from reducing life span to losing sanity. They usually stay in hiding and are few in number compared to the Noble families.]
By now, Ang had completely gotten used to the presence of a system in his consciousness. He can now completely accept it as if the info dumped by it were his own memories.
Hearing Rue's words, Ang sighed in response.
"Old man Rue, When Saura fought and brought peace to the world, who do you think he fought against? " Asked Ang.
"It was the dark clans, of course. He made sure that every single one of them is gone for good", said Rue with Pride.
"Then why do you think the dark clans exist even today?" asked Ang.
Rue fell silent for a moment. "Maybe the Ancestors missed a few?" he said, no longer confident in his words.
Rue was a very kind-hearted man who tried to save Ang unit his last breath. He believed in the first Noble house with his heart and soul. He looks like a 50-year-old mortal. Due to his old looks and subservient attitude, people often think of him as a weak warrior who lost his cultivation and now serves the first noble house due to a lack of options. But, what they do not know is that he is a grand master-level warrior. Once a person reaches the grand master level, they can make themself look younger or older. Some go for a wiser old look, while some go for a younger look, but those who do not care don't bother with it. Rue was hiding his cultivation level due to some circumstances. Hence, he chose the look of a 50-year-old.
"The current dark clans have no ties to the old dark clans other than the ways they follow. When the war ended, Saura ordered their history, teachings and cultivation techniques to be burnt down. However, human greed is never satisfied, so some stole the techniques before they were burnt. Which brought us to our current situation.", said Ang looking out the window from his study room.
"Maybe the elders will make sure to get rid of them this time", Rue said, regaining his confidence.
Ang remembered how he once sold a Dark cultivation technique in an underground auction. The Nobles almost fought with each other to obtain it. It was sold for so much that he used it to fund the army in his war against righteous families.
"I doubt that. There will be chaos in this world as long as there is greed and the grievances born out of it," said Ang in a serious tone.
Seeing Ang like that, Rue was taken aback.
"He changed a lot after the blood awakening. He used to be so childish before. Well, I am happy that at least he is taking life seriously now," Rue thought to himself.
"As such, do you truly believe a small marriage agreement will erase the 80-year-old grievances?" asked Ang to Rue, who was staring at him.
"Maybe only the time will tell", Replied Rue with a smile.
What Ang said was not just his theory. He remembered that the scuffles between the two families continued even after the Marriage and only stopped when he waged a war on them.
After Ang finished his tea, taking the now-empty cutlery, Rue left. Ang realized that barely any maids were left in the estate to serve them. He doesn't know why Rue is so loyal to him, but he doesn't want a grand-master to serve him tea. This disrespects his strength, even though he is hiding his cultivation level from the world.
He then saw the newspaper with Shin and Julia's images. The newspaper stated:
"In light of the recent conflicts between the Jian and Qian Families, The family heads have taken the decision to have a marriage contract between Shin, the prodigy from the Qian family and Julia, the prodigy and heir to the Jian Family. Since they are both very young, their true age not even 20, they will be married once they are older and reach the Master warrior realm. This will establish a strong bond between the two families and strengthen their force in the martial world, resulting in the maintenance of law with the utmost stability."
[System Notification:]
[True age: In the world of cultivation, People look differently aged, even when they are the same age. A 100-year-old lady can look like a 30-year-old, and another can look like a 40-year-old based on their cultivation speed. When they break through to the next stages, the ageing never stops but only slows down until they become grand-master-level warriors. So, the scholars of old came up with a system to measure age in-distinctively. It is calculated based on the premise that one's life force is doubled upon breakthrough. So if a person breakthroughs into the apprentice realm at 15 years, his true age will be 15 that year, increasing by one every two years. If he breaks through to warrior level after ten years, their true age will be 15 + (10/2), which is 20 years. Even though they lived for 30 years, they will also look like they are only 20 years old. Later, if they break through to the master realm in 40 years, then their age will be 15 + 5 + (40/4), which is 30 years. They will look like a 30-year-old even though they lived for 65 years. This continues until one reaches the grand-master level. Once they break through to the grand-master realm, they will gain complete control over their physical body and can change their appearance.]
The news spread across the land, creating a buzz among the citizens of the continents. Some were overjoyed that the tense times of war were over and they could enjoy peace. Some were very disappointed as they had no opportunity to seek glory in the war, and some were calculating their business impact. Some way or another, everyone had heard about it, showing these two families' influence on the continent. But among these people were also those who did not want this to happen.