It was unclear whether Caesar was angry, which raised many suspicions. People were scared, and many wanted to run away. They wanted to leave the party and move on with their lives as soon as possible. But Mais asked Caesar a very problematic question.
A bitter smile appeared on Caesar's face.
"The party can go on. It seems I have to answer this little fellow's questions."
People thought he was going to get violent, but he turned off all sound contact with the outside world and took Mais with him to a seating area in the corner. The crescent-shaped seat blocked many angles from the outside. People could not see their faces.
"You have completely blinded me to the outside world," Mais said. When the voices stopped, only smell and touch remained between him and the outside world. Soon, the smell would be gone as well, and he could not touch things in Caesar's presence. That would be too humiliating.
Caesar laughed. He had already realized that this blind boy was extraordinary. It was clear just from his cultivation base and age that he was extraordinary.
"How did you manage to see the Tao Trace? You're blind, after all. You haven't even reached the Sage Realm," Caesar said. Mais couldn't help but guard against these words, but then he realized that this man had an incredible understanding of the Tao. It wasn't just because he was in the Origin Heart Realm. Rather, it was because of his understanding of the Tao that he could see into him and see through his development.
"My understanding of the Tao—"
"You're not going to tell me that you reached this level at your age, and more importantly, that you realized I understand a Transcendent Tao without having seen any Tao Trace."
"So you admit it? You admit that you have an understanding of a Transcendent Tao. But how did you do it?"
"You haven't even crossed the Core Realm, yet you want to know the answer to this question? Aren't you afraid this will be the end of you, too?"
"You and I are not the same."
If Mais learned the Transcendent Tao, he could reach the Sage Realm. Then, then...
"What is it? Do you think you're so great just because you saw the Tao Trace before reaching the Sage Realm? You better get rid of these delusions soon, kid. Transcendent Taos are not that simple. No, they're a curse!"
Caesar gritted his teeth as he spoke, then sighed. He took a cigarette out of his pocket, put it in his mouth, and lit it with a snap of his fingers. Of course, Mais did not see this, but if anyone had, they would have said that Caesar had acquired a very high level of understanding of the Tao of Flame. He was able to create flames out of thin air.
With Caesar's sigh, Mais knew it was finally time to tell his story.
"These people don't know me just because I'm famous in the kingdom. They look up to me as an example for their children. They try to reach my level by following in my footsteps. I am an idol to them. This is not because of my cultivation, much to your surprise. They admire me because about 16 years ago, I was one of the geniuses who participated in the Star Path Tournament."
Participating in the Star Path Tournament... Mais understood. It was a basic city, and on top of that were the state cities. Above that was the capital. People from those big cities were more likely to participate and represent the kingdom than people from here. Of course, their children had a chance to participate. Even if it was very slim. After all, talent alone was not enough. Luck was needed too. Baro was only 19 when he wanted to enter the tournament. However, Caesar managed to enter when he was even younger.
"What do you think? That I was a great genius? Yes, I was, but I didn't enter the tournament on behalf of this kingdom. I entered it on behalf of a more important place. But that's not important. I had an important situation that required me to participate in the tournament no matter what. In the end, it didn't matter that I was in the Beginning Realm. At that time, I was only at the first or second stage of the Sage Realm. I was definitely going to die in the tournament. So, I decided to take a risk. I stole my mother's spellbook and found information about a Transcendent Tao in it. Of course, the information shouldn't have been useful at that point, but it was. A miracle happened. It was the miracle I believed in. I saw the trace of a transcendent tao!"
He was so excited when he described those days. His eyes shone, and it was clear how excited he was. Mais continued to listen in silence as this noble man's gaze shifted to that day. It was impressive that he had reached the Sage Realm at only 18 years old, but even more impressive was the fact that he had grasped a Transcendent Tao and reached the 10th stage of the Sage Realm.
He crossed an entire realm with a single Tao comprehension.
Once one reaches the Sage Realm, the traces of ordinary Tao become useless. At least, they would not advance a sage's cultivation by a single step. However, it would develop a foundation, which is not bad. Seeing a trace of a complex Tao could advance you a stage. However, these would become more difficult as the realms progressed, and you would realize that you should never try to level up by relying on the Tao. Often, it was easier to cultivate a Complex Tao than to wait for one to appear. Only old men who had reached their limits would try to transcend them by gaining insight into the Tao, and that often didn't work.
Still, reaching the end of the Sage Realm was exciting for Caesar the 17th when he was 18.
But let's not forget that. Even if he hadn't grasped the Transcendent Tao, Caesar would still have been a genius who reached the Sage Realm at 18. Maria, who was 15 in the Core Realm, was not a genius at that level, let alone Ulam, who was 19 in the Origin Energy Realm.
When Mais heard this, he couldn't help himself. This was no simple achievement. Of course, his older brothers had done much better, but you could understand the magnitude of Caesar's accomplishment just by looking at Baro. He was 36 years old and had reached the 10th stage of the Sage Realm. Caesar had reached this stage by the age of 18!
"When I entered the tournament, I survived a few fights. Of course, I was defeated. The greatest geniuses under 30 years old from the Kingdoms and Empires were much stronger than me. I was just unlucky to have participated in the tournament. But at least I survived until my last battle."
A serious expression appeared on Caesar's face. He clenched his fists. He blocked out the sound so Mais wouldn't notice, but the silence told Mais a lot.
"There was a young man with a dirty beard. He wasn't much older than me. We could have been the same age, yet he had incredible power. He was the one who played the final match against the First Prince. For the first time in history, the Star Path Tournament finalists were both under 20 years old. Unfortunately, I was much weaker than either of them. He was in the Ascension Realm. I hadn't even entered the Origin Heart Realm yet. He was practically fighting a bug. "
"He didn't crush me. He wasn't a bad person. He sat and talked with me. He wasn't afraid that I would attack him. And he was right. I didn't have the strength to attack him. He told me about the insights he had gained during the battles. So, I gave him insights into another Tao: the Tao of Energy. "
'This was the Transcendent Tao!'
The Transcendent Tao was a Tao of such a high level of power that the ordinary Tao could not enter. It was a single Tao that surpassed the power of the Complex Tao. The Tao of Energy was perfect for this."
Caesar had already sighed. It was an incredible experience for him, too. Remembering that man always brought back unforgettable memories. Especially what happened afterwards—it was unbelievable!
When I told him about the Tao of Energy, he shared his thoughts on it. We talked until evening on the day of the tournament. Our fight ended in a draw, but we continued to discuss our thoughts. I had already been eliminated, but he still had to continue in the tournament. He shouldn't have been so reckless and should have rested. He didn't. Even as a cultivator in the Ascension Realm, he was hungry for power. I admired him. At least, I did at the time. "
"But I didn't feel that way then. My thoughts were confirmed, and one miracle after another happened. I must say that in that tournament, some of the best geniuses on the planet were present. Yet, none of them had developed an understanding of the Transcendent Tao except me. What I achieved is much rarer than that, but this is the only way I can tell you about it. What happens next will belie my words. I was able to feel the energy of the Tao that day, in that moment!"
Mais exhaled the cold air from his mouth and shivered. Contrary to Caesar's belief, Mais knew a lot about the Tao and was not as ignorant as Caesar thought. Caesar was only in the Sage Realm. Even if he broke through to the feeling stage of an ordinary Tao in the sage realm, it would greatly impact his ability to break through to the origin heart realm. But Mais had entered the feeling stage of a transcendent Tao.
Had anyone else achieved this throughout the planet's history?
Even Mais felt suppressed for a moment. He was horrified to be suppressed by the man in front of him regarding his greatest achievement in life!