GREED: ALL FOR WHAT?



The difficulty of a realm lord appearing is evident in the void universe. There are several realm trees without realm lords and origin gods above all else knows how difficult it will be to create a 6-law concept. They couldn't create one. So are they to wait for someone to create one and become realm lord when they failed?

The answer to that question is evident. In the void universe, a realm tree with a realm lord appears no more than once among a hundred realm trees. Sometimes, a thousand realm trees are needed to encounter one with a realm lord. That's at best a 1% chance that a realm tree possesses a realm lord or worse, a 0.1% chance. That is not good enough to wait for.

Ancestor Ghastorix has been an Origin god for more than a thousand origin cycles before the Monarch of High Heaven was born. He and the really old origin gods didn't know when the era of conquest will come and they can't wait based on the remote chance that it will come. He couldn't wait for something that might never appear.

The end of the universe is coming. If Ancestor Ghastorix is to save himself and the people he cares about, then he has to be realistic. He can't wait on something that might never happen or bet on making enough significant contributions during the era of conquest. He is just one of the millions of Origin gods that will participate in that war and he can only be in one place at a time. How is he to stand out? 

All these uncertainties make waiting for the era of conquest look foolish. So Ancestor was willing to reduce his potential for something more realistic and he had been saving towards it. Fortunately, Soverick came along. He became the child of the plane and the racial council approached Ancestor Ghastorix. They gave him a world engine for him to surrender all the rights he had to his descendant.

In a way, they were offering to buy Soverick from him. The racial council didn't say it like that but he understood the implications of the offer. He would have no right whatsoever over Soverick and wouldn't be able to complain about whatever they decide to do with Soverick. 

He took the deal because it was a good deal and because he can't say no. No one in their right mind can say no to the racial council and he certainly wouldn't have gone to war for a single descendent of his that he doesn't even know. It is a war that he will surely lose too.

Besides, the racial council could have gone ahead with their plans for Soverick without his consent. They are stronger than him. But they spoke to him first and offered him compensation. His refusal wouldn't have changed the outcome either way. The first sage will not be deterred by the refusal of one origin god. 

The Ghastorix ancestor also respects the first sage to refuse him. He was there when the Vipers still existed. He fought along with the sages and the first sage to vanquish the Vipers. He respects the first sage too much for him to be an obstacle to something that will benefit the plane. 

So instead of antagonizing the first sage, it was better to take advantage of the situation. He took that deal on behalf of all the Ghastorix family so they can't complain now no matter how much injustice they feel about Soverick's outcome.

Hadrick understood immediately. "Ah. That's true. So we have been bribed. Our mouth is supposed to be full because of what has been stuffed into it. Unfortunately, I have a very big mouth and a large appetite. Soverick is worth more than a world engine."

Guntu coughed awkwardly. That got Hadrick's attention. It asked, "What is it? Don't you agree that Soverick is worth more than some world engine?"

Guntu replied with a question of his own. "Do you know what a world engine is and how much it is worth?"

Hadrick answered his question. "What's a world engine and how much is it worth?"

Guntu sighed. The other origin gods laughed at his misfortune. They found the situation funny.

Hadricks snapped at them. "Is something funny?"

They froze at the question. Then they hurriedly shook their heads. "Nothing ancestor."

Hadrick picked one of them out. "Benet. Do you think you can dare to laugh at me? I'll share funny stories about you with all your friends. We'll see how you like that. Do you remember that time when I used to spank you for stealing?"

Benet groaned. "I wasn't stealing. I was just tasting it. Your spanking was unjust. You were just bullying me."

Hadricks disagreed. "It is stealing because the pie was not yours and you ate it."

Benet insisted, "If she didn't want people to eat her food then she shouldn't have left it outside."

Hadrick retorted, "She placed it outside for it to cool."

"I beg to differ." Benet disagreed.

The two of them began to argue whether Benet truly stole the 5 plates of pie many origin cycles ago when he was a vitality core refiner. It is a rehashed argument as old as time. Hadrick believes he stole it. Benet believes he was just tasting the pie and that it doesn't matter that he ate all 5 plates of pie because he was simply tasting it. He believes that he should be thanked for what he did because he did that lady a favor. Her pies didn't even taste good. 

Guntu had to be the voice of reason again. He interrupted the passionate exchange of ideology and philosophy about the concept of ownership. "Let me answer your question ancestor Hadricks. Then you can return to embarrassing Benet." 

"In a moment," Hadrick said to him. Then it said to the other origin gods, "As for all of you, I am going to tell everyone your deepest darkest secrets. All of the plane will hear of them unless you tell me what was so funny."