After listening to Josephine's account, Aurek finally understood.
Why were there so many empires in the Eastern Domain? Why could those so-called supreme factions stand above even the royal houses? This was how the extraordinary manipulated worldly power to climb the ladder of status—a method by which transcendents used secular authority to achieve their own ascent.
Aurek wasn't interested in so-called heritage accumulation, but one point caught his attention.
"Stellar Rank and Sage Rank experts hide themselves because of the Heavens?"
Josephine nodded.
"The calamity of the Heavens isn't as simple as ordinary divine punishment. It descends in many different forms and annihilates everything. So Stellar Rank and Sage Rank powerhouses aren't merely reclusive—they're in hiding. Only when they are absolutely certain can they make a move; otherwise, the accumulation of endless ages could be wiped out in an instant."
