Emperor

Pef sat cross-legged on his bed, another millimetric sapphire in his palm, and sweating profusely as his qi squeezed inward, tunneling into another dimension using the gem as a focus.

The new Emperor rank gave him a bit more control, but especially over his own body, and qi.

Gravity was still heavy. However, here on Blue Xi it was considerably easier to replenish qi than back home on the Saint continent.

Two hours later, the new storage ring was complete, and Pef asked his glove the results: 'How big?'

'It has 4 cubic meters. Perfect result, for a Sky rank' the glove replied with a snicker.

'You said I would get 10 meters!' Pef wailed in despair.

'Keep your Practice, Aspirant. Your new rank may seem great, but you're the weakest Emperor in the universe, for now'

Pef grumbled and muttered, but he did in fact gain his rank just yesterday. Others had been Emperors for 10 thousand years.

His Uncle was at least 4 times stronger, and Ang Xi was merely halfway to next rank.

Every rank of cultivation had their own stages, and knowledge and experience increased those differences even more.

Pef stood up and presented the ring to his wife.

"So twice the capacity for half the time. Pretty good I say. You could have done this by grinding at Sky rank for a thousand years, like most smiths do." his other wife spoke softly, examining the ring for a few seconds.

"Sorry, dear wife. I'm not that patient" Pef replied with a sparkling grin.

Her silver eyes twinkled in amusement, and her hands roamed over his body, measuring and testing his muscles.

"Your body is too weak, young husband. Your arms in particular. The wrists are torn and will need a week to heal completely. Your left ankle as well" the goddess explained in a more serious voice, then drew back behind the Xie's brown eyes.

It always fascinated Pef how the passenger inhabiting his wife appeared so collected and knowledgeable. Then again, if she had been a goddess, she may have lived and learned for thousands of years...

"Oh, new ring! Thanks hubby!" Xie exclaimed as she noticed the ring in her hand.

"Come, dear. Breakfast then recruiting" Pef said with a pained smile. This woman! The ring was meant for someone else!

This time, Pef and Xie made their way to the Xi Guard cantina, where thousands of lower ranks were being served the Legion porridge for breakfast.

Pef located Major Wu sitting alone at a table and pointed Xie at him, before going to collect two bowls for themselves.

When he returned, those two were already boasting about killed beasts and bigger hammers.

Pef sat down and wolfed his porridge in a minute, after tasting it cautiously. It was salted a little, but nothing else.

Perfect meal, nutritious and organic.

"What can I do for you, Emperor Pef Xi?" the Major asked after a minute of silence.

"Winning the tournament was costly. My wrists had torn from trying sword qi. But even if my hands were chopped off, I'd have been fine in a month." Pef said gently, tapping the glove with a raised eyebrow.

The man glanced at Pef's hand, then around with some worry.

"Not here, sir. I heard you have a flying snake? Perhaps we can take it over the sea and explain to me how it works?" Major Wu suggested politely, and with wary eyes.

"Sure, let's go!" Pef exclaimed in fake joy, while scanning around for white auras. Only 4 of them, and all Majors.

Too few for a congregation of cultivators of this size and strength.

Where were the rest?

5 minutes later, Pef took out his airship some 50 kilometers out over the sea.

The major arrived a minute later, breathing heavily.

"Come in and sit down, Major. That's the purpose of this airship now. Recovering qi after bursts of speed" Pef explained as he began fueling the stove and preparing another breakfast, more filling and delicious.

"So you're saying the holy glove can heal me?" the man asked cautiously.

"Not sure exactly how the Guard sees Legion artifacts, my friend. But...yes. The glove can give you the full Legion method, not the mashup of teaching the Guard uses." Pef said softly, stirring the turtle soup with grace.

His moves were much more exact and balanced now, much like Oracle Ching had, after 600 years of Practice.

"Isn't that...the Patriarchy exclusive? Only Emperors receive the holy Xi method..." the Major asked hesitantly.

"See, there's the thing. I have the glove. I decide who gets to Awaken" Pef explained with a more serious tone, holding the wooden spoon up, like a scepter.

"And in exchange?" the Major wondered, perhaps quite naturally.

"You become part of my staff. Ang Xi said it's okay, so there's no problem" Pef replied with a shrug, and tested the soup.

A few more minutes at low simmer. He took off the copper bowl and let it rest on the supporting rack.

The man was interested, but also afraid. "That's great, but our continent is ruled by the Patriarch..."

"Old Deng kinda works for me now. See, the Legion has one commander, the one with the highest chance to ascend. Right now, the glove says that's me. And it's not just over this continent, or the planet or even this galaxy. The whole universe"

Pef said softly, and tested the soup again. Perfect!

He poured three bowls and served Xie first, who smiled in delight. Then they all gulped the soup like it was a divine nectar.

It's only your words though. The Patriarch gave out his glove to his Emperors..."

"Fine, I'll talk to the old man..." Pef grumbled and motioned Xie to take over the rudders.

Then he sat down and pulsed his qi towards the strong qi beacon to the west.

'What is it now, Young Pef?' the Sovereign asked a bit annoyed.

'Hey, old boss. Let this Major Wu know, he works for me now. And any others I select for my staff' the young hero demanded with a cheerful tone, though a bit wary of what the old man would do.

'Hmpf! Compel them to secrecy. And no more than a hundred.' the grumpy Patriarch replied with another pulse of qi, then washed over the airship and swirled around Major Wu for a second.

The Sky rank Major coughed a breath of dense qi, like his lungs were forcefully fed with Sovereign ranked qi.

"G-agh...the Patriarch...he was angry..." the man gasped and fainted.

Pef shrugged and poured two more bowls of turtle soup. If the new guy didn't want any...

Xie seemed to agree, as she grabbed her bowl and downed it in a second...

"You got me a moving target to Practice, that's very sweet of you, hubby!" she exclaimed looking at the future victim with glee.