(Inside the Time Stilled World, Skyshard City, Leo's POV)
A few hours after arriving in Skyshard City, Leo convened the first high-level meeting with all the senior administrators of the Time Stilled World, as he officially assumed command of the realm.
Before him sat the key figures whom Chaosbringer had entrusted with managing the world in his absence.
However, now that he had arrived, they began to brief him on the most critical developments that had taken place during the past few years, each report outlining just how much had changed within this strange, suspended world since he last checked in on it.
"My Lord, I cannot stress enough, on just how fast the strength of our troops is increasing inside this world compared to the wider universe..."
A Lieutenant began, his eyes glowing with passion as he shared a few key statistics with Leo.
"The success rate of breakthroughs into the next tier is up by 60%. Almost no-one fails their ascendance test anymore, and individuals who have been stuck at the amateur and master tier for years are suddenly seeing themselves ascend only a few weeks after staying in this realm."
He shared, as Leo peered into the numbers of his data slate, the reports surprising even him.
"The concentrated mana of this world is extremely beneficial for troops to learn new spells and improve their control over mana. Also, by wearing mana hearts for long periods of time, many also see the quality of their internal mana circuits improve. In just the last two years, we have had 170 new Transcendent Tier Warriors emerge within the Cult Army, whereas we only saw 304 reach the mark in the last 20 years in the outside world...."
He paused, as he let the significance of those numbers sink in.
"What I'm trying to say is.... My Lord, if we stay within the Time Stilled World for another half century or two and focus singularly towards raising high quality troops. It's not impossible for us to raise at least half a dozen new Monarch's, and have an army of thousands of Transcendents to fight beneath them.... That us coming here, might just prove to be a blessing in disguise."
He concluded, as pin drop silence spread across the room.
Every man turned towards Leo with their eyes burning with pride and vengeance, as Leo nodded curtly to the report, but said nothing more about it for now.
"Thank-you for your insights, Lieutenant.... You may sit now." Leo said, as the Lieutenant bowed and sat down, only for the chief scout to stand up next.
"My Lord, as per your instructions we have been trying to map out the terrain of this Time Stilled World for the last four years, however, we have still not managed to map it in full—"
The man began, as he sent a file over to Leo's data slate, showing the recently updated map of the regions they had explored so far.
"So far, we have colonized about 25% of the total land we have explored, and there's potential for us to slowly convert another 10% of this land into city expansions, however, other than that most of the terrain is unsuitable for city construction. There are vast muddy swamps, dense mind bending forests and various endless chasms spread across the planet that can claim your life in an instant. And overall, they're not worth the effort of converting them into liveable land...."
He reported, as Leo looked at the map and then into his eyes before nodding.
"The good news is that we still have lots of land left to explore, and there is a potential to always find new flat lands to build cities in. However, the bad news is that, despite our best efforts, we are unable to pinpoint the location of the 'taint' of this world. Despite searching far and wide, Me and my men found no signs of an ancient dragon's burial site like you suggested, nor of any long lost civilization that one could have colonized this world...."
The scout said as Leo raised an eyebrow.
"So my Lord, if there is any such site in here, I'm afraid you'll have to give us more time to find it. Or look for it yourself."
The scout concluded, as Leo nodded in acknowledgement and gestured for him to sit back down.
He was mildly surprised that the Cult's best scouts could not find Motherak's burial site, or trace the source of the taint in this world, however, he decided not to fret about it for now.
For even if the scouts could not find it, he had faith in himself to complete the project regardless.
*Screech*
Once the Chief Scout sat down, the Resource and Survival Minister stood up, as he bowed before Leo and started his report.
"My Lord, on the technological front we have made countless innovations to better the lives of the commoners. The refinement poles in particular have proved to be a game changer for construction and betterment of living conditions, and I'm proud to announce that we have found a way to mine, process and manufacture all the necessary resources needed to build them right here within the Time Stilled World! We no longer have to worry about the taint corrupting us, for at least the next 500 years. And with our best Blacksmiths also finding a way to refine the tainted soil and water, I'm certain that the living standards of our people will only improve going forward. According to our projections, even if the current generation of youth breeds and populates like they would in the outer worlds, and our population expands, we should still be able to provide for them for centuries more to come...."
He said as his voice began to crack with emotion.
"Thanks to your foresight, the Cult will survive... My Lord. By your grace. We will survive...."
He said, before bursting into tears, as Chaosbringer immediately moved over and placed a consoling hand over his shoulder.
(More chapters in Buyers club for TMT)