"First, we must integrate you into Humanity," the Spirit Lord said. "I regret to say that Humanity isn't clean."
"Spies?" Manny asked via voice transmission.
"Correct," the Spirit Lord said. "Some of the Demons can change their shapes. Even their Aspects of Power look almost identical. The only way to find their identity is to probe their Center, but we can't investigate everyone."
"Can't you just tell by their Momentum?" Star Genesis asked. "Beasts don't have Momenta."
"They do not, but some of them can mimic Momentum," the Spirit Lord transmitted. "Of course, there are still ways to unmask them, but we can't unmask all of them."
"Why not?" Kyle asked. "Would make things easier."
"It's not that easy," Manny interjected. "While it's possible, you shouldn't always do what's possible. Am I right in assuming that the Overseer isn't involved in every matter?"
"You're correct," the Spirit Lord transmitted. "As far as we know, the Overseer rarely pays attention to Humanity. They are focusing on something else. We do not know what they are focusing on, but we know that the majority of the war is managed by their powerful Ascendant Demons."
"The Overseer could investigate everything closely, and there wouldn't be much we could do. However, this has only happened when we've dealt a heavy blow to the Demons. As long as we do not deal a heavy blow to them, the Overseer doesn't seem to get involved. Most likely, the Ascendant Demons can contact the Overseer, but they will only do so if they believe it's necessary."
"If we kill all of their spies, they will become suspicious, and they might contact the Overseer. This is the reason why getting rid of all of the spies is a bad idea. As long as the spies report that everything's fine, the Overseer won't get involved."
"While Humanity wishes to help you, we have to do it covertly. We have to treat you like normal yet talented Sages. We have thoroughly scanned everyone in this group, which is why we are certain that there are no spies present, but as soon as you leave this place, we can't be certain anymore."
"Secretly, you will have all of our support, but openly, you will be members of one of our units. We will make sure that your future superiors are not spies, but we can't be sure about the others. If you are in desperate need of something, you may contact your superiors, but you should keep these requests to a minimum."
"So, I'll just be a normal guy, I guess," Kyle thought. "Thought I would get the five-star treatment, but in the end, I'll still be treated like everyone else."
"I would also suggest splitting up," the Spirit Lord transmitted. "You can gather information more easily, and you will arouse less suspicion."
"I agree," Manny transmitted to the team. "We need more information about what the enemy has, how they operate, and what we can do. We also need to work on our powers and Laws. Speaking of, is there any way to access Level Five Law Wells?"
"Difficult but not impossible," the Spirit Lord said. "The Level Five Law Wells in the Abyss are fiercely defended, but we can sometimes attain control over one for a couple of centuries. However, keep in mind that defending a Law Well means defending territory deep behind enemy lines. We can only sacrifice so many people. I'll do my best to include you in one of these operations, but they happen rarely. Naturally, you will also have to act like you're harvesting the Law Well, not comprehending its Laws."
"Harvesting a Law Well?" Fierce Breaker asked with furrowed brows.
"Our Battle Rites require some insights into the Elements," the Spirit Lord explained. "The best way to gain these insights is to consume a great amount of Elemental Energy of the specified Element. As long as you follow the instructions of the Battle Rite, the Elemental Energy will quickly integrate, and you can build it. That's why we usually harvest the Surplus Energy of the Law Wells and bring them to Humanity."
"That's how you corrupt your foundation," Manny interjected, purposefully not including the Spirit Lord. "You are combining something real and stable from this Cosmos with something ethereal that has no real hold in the Cosmos, an Imposing Law or part of one. Your Imposing Law will become neither ethereal nor real. It is in a half-state that locks up parts of a real Law without truly becoming yours. It essentially destroys your Imposing Law and the real Law you have used."
"There is a way to recover from a corrupted foundation, but that way includes abandoning and destroying your Imposing Law. The real Law will become available again, but you have to condense your Imposing Law again. Additionally, such a fundamental manipulation of Laws requires extremely advanced Formation Arrays, and I don't believe this world has them."
"At this point," Fierce Breaker transmitted. "It might be for the best if you tell us how to properly and safely condense a Refined Law. We might need them."
"Fine," Manny transmitted. "It's risky, but we have to take risks if we want to succeed. I'll tell you."
The next moment, Manny sent an enormous amount of information to the team, telling them how to make a Refined Law without endangering their foundation.
"Huh, that's actually not that hard," Kyle thought. "I thought it would be more complicated. Although I get why Manny's so careful about it. If I had tried without all of these warnings, I would've definitely walked into one of these pitfalls."
"It won't be easy to look at Pure Level Five Laws, but at least I have something I can work on while waiting for an opportunity."
After sharing all of the important information, the Spirit Lord asked them the most important question.
"Which units will you join?" he asked.
"We'll try to make it easy for you to exchange information across units, but please bear with us if your messages get delayed."
The group discussed amongst themselves, and eventually, they came to a consensus.
"I will join one of the Sects," Star Genesis transmitted. "I will primarily focus on Formation Arrays. We have enough combat power as it stands. What we need is support."
"If possible, I want to join Humanity," Manny said. "I'm confident in my ability to gather information. The more I travel and the more freedom I have, the easier it is for me to gather information."
"You have created your own Battle Rite," the Spirit Lord said. "That gives me an excuse to put you on the recruitment list. As long as you show that you can become a Unique Sage, you can officially join. Until then, it's best if you enter a Tribe. You will have more time to grow there."
"That's fine," Manny answered.
"Is it possible to become a Shield without... reeducation?" Fierce Breaker asked, referring to the fact that all Shields had the same aura.
"Yes, we have units that take on special tasks," the Spirit Lord said.
"Oh," Kyle thought. "If I had known that, I wouldn't have said no earlier. I thought they would brainwash me."
"Good, then I will join the Shields," Fierce Breaker said. "This gives me an opportunity to work on condensing an Imposing Law of my own. Additionally, I can see the war for myself!"
"I will become a Spear," Sebastian transmitted. "I need an excuse that allows me to go to the Abyss. I need to see how the Elemental Dimension works in the Abyss and how they keep the Elementals from coming here."
"That's what I would have suggested," the Spirit Lord answers. "We've never had someone who can see the Elemental Dimension themselves. You're also the only reason why I've even realized that you're from the Supreme World. If I hadn't seen your Elemental, I wouldn't have gotten involved."
"I will join the Tribes," Swamp Dragon said. "My goal is to become an Elder in the Tribes so that I can save lives and improve the chances of Humanity. If I receive an important decision, I can also improve the exchange of information between us."
"I can make that happen," the Spirit Lord transmitted. "A Guide often needs to travel between different cities and bases to help their students."
"And I will go somewhere to the frontlines," Kyle transmitted. "Shield or Spear, both are good. As long as I have endless opportunities to amass power and resources, everything's good. Just send me into battle all the time."
The Spirit Lord raised a brow. All the other members had given reasons that would contribute to the greater mission. Meanwhile, Kyle had just said that he wanted to get rich and powerful.
"Is there a certain reason for this choice?" the Spirit Lord asked.
"He's our muscle," Manny transmitted with a slight smile. "After all, we need somebody who can actually kill the enemy leaders."
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