Chapter 371: Who the Hell Are the Fellas?

The shawarma scammer hadn't counted how many people Ares was travelling with but he'd accidentally given him the perfect amount to feed every single person on the dot. Everyone was able to get a taste of the goods and appreciate what was admittedly some pretty damn good food. If only the guy hadn't been trying to cause trouble Ares would have given him more patronage down the line. Oh well, just enjoying this was good enough for now and there were probably other shawarma places he could find if he looked hard enough. Regardless, everyone made their way down the market and stuck to the main path because the Oasis sect was at the other end of the city, near the northern exit, and on the way to the Riddlemyd. The Lighter Duo had their own plans and would separate from the group at some point but Ares was taking this time to conspire with Aejaz and make these two stand out a bit! There was no need to do anything complicated so Ares gave Aejaz some random garbage he'd imbued with destruction mana and then had Aejaz relocate those objects into the Lighter duo's spatial rings. This way Ares would detect the familiar, ancient mana and know it was them without even needing to look in their direction! Ares probably could have just asked them to hold onto some kind of identifier but it was honestly somewhat embarrassing to even ask and Ares felt a little guilty. In his defence, it's not like anyone else recognised them back on the Federation until later either! They had to explicitly tell both Aejaz and Onno who they were so Ares wasn't alone in his perplexity regarding these two identical humans!

As was expected, upon coming across a junction about three quarters of the way to the sect, the Lighter duo finally found the inn they'd heard about from Onno and split up from the rest of the group. They'd be heading out for the Riddlemyd starting tomorrow and that would basically be all they did during their stay here because they wanted answers for many of the questions they had about their past. They were obviously keeping some secrets from Ares regarding their background but it was almost definitely mostly just personal and trivial so Ares didn't pester them to be honest about it. They had a lot of information to sort through and complicated feelings on various matters to ponder over so it was for the best to just let them do their thing and only occasionally intervene when it was necessary to do so. They had their own adventure to go on.

From there it didn't take long to arrive at the sect and Ares had to admit the place had a unique charm to it. It was like an outdoor paradise of sorts and the name 'Oasis' suited it particularly well thanks to its relatively open layout. There weren't really any massive walls or anything, excluding the perimeter, it was just a bunch of tents scattered around a large sandy area with water running through it but it was well organised. Some small structures did exist here and there but it had a very natural feel to it which, combined with the abundance of mana in the air, made it a rather calming place to relax in. Plenty of disciples were lounging about in front of small bodies of water and getting tanned... Ares could feel his skin burning just watching them but they all had artifacts that allowed them to do this safely without risk. Unsurprisingly this artifact was mass produced and a really hot item as just about everyone here seemed to own one. It was a see through umbrella that wrapped around and covered the entire body of whoever used it like a net, protecting them from the sun's rays. A warm breeze, refreshing drinks, and lounging by the water seemed like a nice way to cultivate and some people were doing precisely that here and there. This was also only just the outer court area and what Ares could see before entering the sect. There were some pure white walls off in the distance that should be indicative of the start of the inner court and the general cosiness must have only gotten better and better the deeper you went in this place.

Apparently the quarry was somewhere near this sect but it didn't seem to be anywhere Ares could see right now, even with his divine sense, so he hazarded a guess and assumed it was either further north, just outside the city, or within the deepest parts of the sect. That then did raise the question of when this sect was built here as whoever founded it must have been the person who also discovered the quarry right? No way they'd get permission to build a sect on top of such a valuable resource so they must have found it themselves and used the sect as a cover up for their real goal. The stardust they would have then made off the quarry in the long run would catapult this sect into its current position as de facto head of the region so it all added up in Ares' brain. It wasn't shocking that the second something went wrong with the quarry, their golden cash cow, the sect would get down on their hands and knees begging just about anyone and everyone who could help them by lending aid. That being said, the quarry issue sounded quite serious, so much so that it could affect all of Xasca, so it wasn't exclusively in their own interest that they were doing this and there was a real sense of urgency amongst the elders running about.

The disciples either hadn't been told what was happening or they'd been assured repeatedly the elders had it handled and it was nothing more than a small, passing issue. Either way the outer court disciples, at least, were going about their normal lives without a care in the world. Whether an elder was giving an outdoor sermon or they were heading into a tent to accept a mission out in the desert they were all living their best lives and progressing on their cultivation journey. It wasn't all sunshine and rainbows, though, as this sect was not like Ares'. This place had a life and death arena off to the side that was currently in use and it was positioned such that the town folk could watch along and make bets if they wanted to. There was a long and gruelling bloodbath underway right now in which two bulky combatants were bare knuckle brawling and biting one another without even using magic. Maybe they'd run out of mana, maybe they agreed before hand not to use any, or maybe they just didn't think it was worth casting magic right now. Regardless, blood was spraying everywhere and limbs were being broken with every other swing. Ares could make a pretty educated guess who was going to win but he didn't really care to keep watching and so just headed over to the front gate.

Some sects allowed people to enter the outer court freely, either for the shops within the sect or just to have a look around and taken note of what kind of place they were dealing with. If a parent wanted to come and check the place to know if it was worth sending their cultivation prodigy to they were more than welcome. Some places had strict checks and, sometimes, it was a mix of both. Free, unregulated entrance on certain days, restricted access during certain times, a valid reason needed to enter, etc, all valid routes to take as it was a tricky balancing act between security, flaunting assets, and encouraging people to tr and join. It seemed like this sect only permitted non-disciples or elders to enter the outer court on weekdays when they turned the sect into a sort of public swimming pool and made money off beverages and food. Long story short, Ares was finally going to be getting some use out of his foreign aid badge! Him and Aejaz had been holding onto these things for what felt like forever now. They'd received them after returning from Baja and only gotten a chance to flash it months later... Then there was the fake monk with the letter he'd received from Drai so his access was all but confirmed already. If anything, they'd roll out the VIP carpet for him given the kind of work he was gong to be doing here.

The trio made their way up to the gate and were halted by a guard with an upright spear in his left hand. Massai showed his letter and was waved in no problems but apparently the guard had to go and check the authenticity of the foreign aid badge and a five minute wait ensued in which all the disciples were staring at the new-comers. It was always strange having a foreign aid disciple pop around as they were typically representatives of the other sect's capabilities and worth eyeing up. It was somewhat rare for anyone who wasn't a core disciple to get one of those things so a sensory enhancement disciple showing up with one was definitely a little weird. Not many people here knew who Ares was just from seeing him as recordings of the international were not easy to come across during such an early time period after the international just finished. If his name was announced then they'd probably know but as is they were mostly just staring out of curiosity at the duo. Aejaz was a pretty boy and Ares looked relatively unassuming so they either continued ogling Aejaz or went back to their own business soon enough but there was one particular disciple who was eyeing up the duo for all the wrong reasons. Though he didn't know Ares, he did recognise the sect's foreign aid badge, so he knew it was a visitor from the sect that won the international, and that was seemingly enough to get on this person's nerves. The stranger walked up to Ares with his chest puffed and hmphed condescendingly in his face while Ares was distracted with looking around the place.

"... Can I help you?" Under normal circumstances, Ares would have just used some pressure to fling this guy into the nearby water but he was supposed to be acting with discretion, thanks to his status as a foreign aid disciple, so he he reluctantly refrained from doing anything aggressive. If things went truly wrong he would declare himself the sect master of Heaven's Path and that would afford him the right to act a bit more kingly if he was being wronged but, for now at least, this oddly agitated fellow was going to be allowed to get away this behaviour as it was his home turf after all. There was a limit to the kind of antic she pulled before crossing a line but, so far, he was cruising within those limits and not pushing his luck too far.

"So this is the quality of foreign aid disciples the winning sect of the international has? Kinda disappointing." The snarky voice almost made Ares punch him on reflex and it would have had nothing to do with the contents of his little jabs. It was rare to find somebody who's voice alone was this obnoxious! It was raspy, snide, and demeaning in the worst way possible. Whether he always sounded like this or it was just now that he was being an asshole Ares didn't know or care, this guy had better watch his mouth!

"And what were you expecting, exactly?" Just because it was common for the foreign aid disciples to have higher cultivations that didn't mean the rule was always true. Someone like Enyo had other talents, like her lie detector, that made her invaluable. Also, a person's character and attitude was also highly important so judging a foreign aid disciple off their cultivation alone was silly. If it was just a matter of pure strength then sure, whatever, Ares was an outlier in terms of his cultivation-to-strength ratio anyway and this disciple wouldn't necessarily be wrong regarding his assumptions under normal circumstances... But you could never possibly know what a foreign aid disciple brought to the table and there was always a chance your sect was in dire need of those talents, whatever they were. That was why the unwritten rule was to be polite to foreign aid disciples, so long as they weren't looking for trouble themselves, and not pick fights. The last thing a sect would want is for someone to paramount to their continued operation to up and leave after some random cocky disciple was rude to them for no good reason. Disciples were always briefed on this rule at some point in their introduction to the sect, and asked to be respectful if nothing else, but it seemed like that lesson had gone in one ear and out the other for this particular guy.

"Someone stronger?" The guy's face was practically screaming 'what else did you think I was expecting, idiot?' He almost looked confused that someone could ask a question as stupid as the one Ares just did, from his perspective anyway, and Ares was seriously one more comment away from decking the guy! 

"I don't know that there's any stronger disciples than me in the sect currently. The only people who come close are the two core disciple brothers..." Arse was referring to Eagerton and Edgerton here as those two had a pretty respectable power level all things considered. Ares was cultivating at a quicker rate then them for the most part though, as they were primarily focused on their respective arts (n ot the magic kind), so he would likely overtake them soon. If he had access to his revenant form he wouldn't hesitate to declare himself strongest but they were talented in their own right, and their large cultivation bases played a big role, so they couldn't be so easily dismissed without Garmr in Ares' back pocket. Fortunately Ares was nearing bloodline awakening so that debate could be put to rest and he would become the newly crowned strongest in the sect without fail at that point.

"Pft. Either you have a massively overinflated ego or the Heaven's Path sect is truly lacking. I'm guessing its the former because you look weak. Weaker than my brother and he took part in the international too. Apparently the Heaven's Path sect's disciples were real monsters but you don't look like one to me; unless we're talking about how hideous you are. If you're weaker than my brother, and he's weaker than the strongest disciples in your sect, how could you possibly be as strong as you claim?" 

Ah, so that's why this guy's got a stick up his ass. Pettiness was a hell of a drug and this guy was overdosing. His precious brother represented the sect on the big stage and got his ass beat embarrassingly in public. This guy must have taken a lot of pride in both his brother and the sect so it was a major double blow that stung to high heaven. Ares didn't remember if he even saw the Xasca team, anyone too weak was wiped from his memory, but it made sense they would have fielded a team given the fact that they were a major region. This guy being butthurt meant he was probably looking for a small win here to claw back Xasca's reputation on the global scene and so bullying a disciple from Heaven's Path, one who was recognised as a representative of the sect in one way or another, was his path to glory supposedly. Maybe if he'd paid more attention to his brother's stories instead of just taking away the worst possible lesson from it all then maybe he could have spared himself this fate. Revenge was not the answer and it was only going to bite him in the ass if he went any further.

Luckily for this brash disciple, though, the guard returned in a hurry, which probably had something to do with Ares' identity being confirmed by another elder in their external affairs department, and saved this fool from an embarrassing fate. The guard hadn't recognised Ares either but definitely knew his name well enough to avoid making any mistakes here. Plus news was already spreading about the Federation incidents so it was unsurprising he was told upwards of a hundred times but his fellow elders not to let anything happen with this particular guest. Ares ought to just pop in, say hi, and then go spend most of his time in the Riddlemyd so, as long as things didn't go wrong in the first ten minutes of him arriving, they should be fine! They'd show him to his residence and then make it off limits for the rest of the disciples so they couldn't possibly bother him anymore. All Ares had to do was check in without getting into a scuffle and the sect could breathe a sigh of relief that such an MVP arrived without a hitch.. And, yet, that same disciple of theirs from earlier wasn't willing to let this go so easily... When the guard saw this idiot raring for a fight, and looking to pick one with Ares of all people, he wanted to drop kick this moron into a nearby tent but he was, unfortunately, rather troublesome. This guy had backing and attacking him, even if for a good reason, would give this guard a mountain of trouble. This wasn't like Heaven's Path where clans and big families had zero influence over the inner workings of the sect, people here had power that couldn't be denied and transcended these sect's walls.

"Ahem... If you'll please follow me, Ar..." The guard was going to try and subtly name drop this monster who came to visit, so the disciple could take the hint and go take a chill pill far away from here, but the little twerp interrupted him and seemingly wasn't in the mood to keep up 'friendly' pretences anymore. He hadn't outright demanded a fight up until now but when he saw that the disciple from another land was about to be escorted away without things escalating further he figured now was his time to make a move.

"I challenge you to a duel. Not an ordinary one, though, I want a fight to the death in our arena over there." Ares didn't have to follow this guy's finger to know he was referring to the life and death arena about half a mile away. A slap noise was heard and Ares could tell the guard, who didn't get paid enough to deal with these situations, was slapping his forehead out of frustration that things had gotten to this point. How unfortunate that Ares hadn't made it to safety before being hassled! Why did this have to happen today of all days when this guard was on duty? Also, was this Ares kid some kind of trouble magnet?! There were rumours about the incident with the bandits back at port already spreading and now this?! Did Ares have a literal target on his back that said 'kick me' in giant neon letters or something!? Was there an invisible bounty on his head that only the biggest assholes of the world could see?! Thankfully the guard was a quick thinker and had a solution pop into his brain on the spot to avoid things getting messy.

"I am afraid that's not possible. According to rule 312 in the handbook of sect rules, 'foreign aid disciples cannot compete in life or death battles'..." The guard spoke with certainty and confidence and, yet, Ares' lie detector was having a field day right about now! This guy was making shit up because he knew there was no way in hell anyone actually read that entire stupid handbook and memorised it all. He just picked a large numbered rule near the end of the book and expected nobody to know if he was telling the truth or not, diffusing the situation and preventing the ticking time bomb that was Ares from going kablooey all over the sect. If this kid casted any of his arts here, based on what the guard had heard about Ares, it would be disastrous! If his magic could sink the Federation then what chance did Oasis have!? This stubborn disciple was related to the Fellahin Juggernaut, the greatest cultivator throughout all of Xascan history, but the chances of them saving this brat if he got into a fight with Ares was pretty damn low. Though a fight between Ares and the juggernaut would be pretty fun to watch it would destroy the sect at the bare minimum and cause everyone involved a lot of headaches.

Ares was still a representative so attacking him on such a scale, with the Juggernaut, for no good reason would ruin relations with the red region in Central Land! Hell it might even complicate things with the entirety of Central Land as that was generally how stuff like this ended up working out. Foreign aid disciples were valuable disciples in one way or another so, if they were attacked, there was retribution to pay on a large scale. It was generally assumed that the entire country or landmass would go to bat for the wronged sect, even if ties to it weren't great, as messing with foreign aid disciples who were supposed to be in your care was a low blow. Even if you hated the wronged sect, not sending your own foreign aid to the perpetrator's sect from then on was considered good manners and most people abided by this consistently. Wronging Ares here, even if he came out the victor, would spell trouble for Oasis as Central Land would no longer send anyone their way, not even regular disciples, and there had been a steady influx for some time now thanks to the Riddlemyd. They'd built good relations with Central Land so ruining it all because of this one brat would be a nightmare! If everybody could just sit still for a minute and calm down then this situation was still salvageable!

"I don't care about this sect's stupid handbook." Not a good sign! The guard could already feel a serious migraine coming on from dealing with this damn kid. "And you, foreign disciple, if you refuse me now I'll just have the Fellahins track you down whenever you leave the sect and you can fight them to the death instead."

"The who?" Why was this idiot threatening Ares with the names of some, presumably, big shots that he couldn't possibly know?! He'd been in this country for less than an hour and he was already being threatened for a second time! This was getting ridiculous so Ares just accepted the threats. "Fine, whatever, send those Fella fucks my way. I'll have 'em eating dirt... Or I guess sand by the time I'm done with them!" The guard was incredibly thankful Ares had handled things in this way because, at least this way, there would be no violence taking place within the sect and Oasis could claim it had nothing to do with their fight! Of course Ares had done this intentionally so it wasn't a stroke of luck but rather clever engineering from a future sect master who had to take such things into consideration. Unfortunately, however, there was one thing that Mr Sect Master here had overlooked and that was a type of unrelenting stubbornness that only a nepotistic nitwit could possess.

Though it wasn't too deadly, the disciple launched an attack at Ares! It was a type of wind magic that fired a simple air blast but, thanks to the environment, contained grains of sand that would grind along Ares skin and really hurt if he was hit by it. Naturally, the correct response in this situation, then... Was to get hit by the attack right in the face! Ares didn't move or raise a finger so everyone other than the guard just assumed he would be screaming for his life in a second. Contrary to expectations, though, the sand just bounced off him like tennis balls off a racket. The grains of sand went flying straight back at the disciple who kissed his teeth and was forced to dodge his own attack while Ares remained completely unharmed thanks to his expert pressure deflect. The disciple was annoyed now, as Ares should have just obediently taken the attack and crawled away like the worm he was, so he was getting riled up and ready to launch a bigger attack and really kick things off.

"That's enough!" A man parted the growing crowd and came thundering through the disciples like he was their king. To some extent this was true as, based on what Ares knew of him thanks to Onno's descriptions, this ought to be Drai the sect leader. What he was doing here, however, in the outer court was another matter. Ares could take a wild guess but his suspicions didn't have to linger long because they were instantly dismissed when Drai spoke again.

"... I know Rud said you were prone to getting into trouble 'as often as birds do chirp' but this really is quite something..." Yep, he'd been forewarned that Ares was like a toddler that could not be left alone for five minutes without disaster striking. As soon as Drai had been informed Ares had arrived he rushed down here and, lo and behold, Rud was right as always. It wasn't even a Yulo prediction, it was just plain as day and completely observable, even to someone who couldn't see the future like Rud, that Ares was bound to complicate matters just by existing. Regardless, Drai's timely appearance meant that the situation should hopefully settle down now and the guard could breathe a sigh of relief as he scampered away back to his post where a large number of people were brewing. Either the townsfolk were spectating the kerfuffle or some people just wanted to get in the sect and the guard had been MIA for a while now so the queue had gotten decently long, increasing his workload and making him consider quitting this damn place... Well whatever, at least Ares was inside now and that was easily the most important task he was ever going to have guarding this stupid gate. Whatever happened from now on wasn't his problem!