The Dawn of the New World

1412  A better place for all

"That is your rank within the sanctum as a servant of the Nine, not the level of your mark. The cost of blessings or access to more privileged information/resources and the like is all based on the level of your mark."

Hao Xuan remembered hearing about it before but he thought the rank and levels were the same.

"So even for a Champion, I have the lowest level mark right now?"

"Yes," he bobbed his head up and down, "You start off better than the others but it's still very low. Let's take the purchasable cursed gold as an example. Being a champion you can buy 500,000 per day as opposed to the usual 10,000 limit that others start with."

"But for those who have higher level marks than you and have been working diligently for decades and centuries for the Sanctum, they would be able to purchase perhaps millions of gold coins per day and still not reach their limit. Why? Simply because of their dedication and loyalty!"

Hao Xuan nodded in realization, "So I simply need to level up my mark and that should be enough to bypass most other requirements, right?"

"Indeed."

"Good. What do you think is the best way to do that?" he asked almost excitedly but Lord Jyothi's hesitant response quickly put him off.

"That is- We- You see the mark is a contract between you and the Nine. Their expectations of you would be different from their expectations of me or someone else. The requirements are vastly different depending on the person and their interest and abilities."

But Hao Xuan still wasn't satisfied with the answer and despite his reluctance, he pushed Lord Jyothi for an answer.

"Can you give me an example? Would it be too much to say what you sacrificed to your mark?"

Lord Jyothi smashed the chains a couple of times before standing up to face him. His voice fell, "My lord I would not hide anything from you. It's just that information like this is considered quite private and not openly shared with others."

Hao Xuan got the hint, "You don't need to be concerned. I would never share it with anyone let alone that old witch. But if you still feel unsure I shan't push you further," he said smilingly.

"No no, how could I not trust the Champion of my own house?" he waved his hand frantically, "It's nothing special, I only have to sacrifice one of my best creations every once in a while," he gestured towards the few empty spots on the surrounding walls.

Hao Xuan looked around and found the vague silhouettes of different weapons imprinted on the mounting mechanisms but no actual weapons.

"You sacrificed all of them?!" he asked, surprised.

Even from an initial glance, there were at least a hundred missing weapons.

"Yes, but it is not as bad as you think. We are not forced to sacrifice nor required to. It is the price you have to pay to increase the authority and level of your mark."

"I guess that's not too bad. Do you only have to do it once?"

"For some it's only once but for others, they have to maintain a continuous supply of sacrifices to keep their authority. I am lucky that the mother does not test me more."

"Hmm-"

'So the better relationship I have with the Nine the more favorable conditions they will grant me...'

"-Then do you have any suggestions on how to best curry favor?"

Lord Jyothi didn't have to think long about this one, "Of course. The simplest and fastest method is to complete any requests that the fully-fledged members of the Sanctum have put up. The more complicated and difficult the request, the more favor you will gain and in turn increase the level and authority of your mark. Basically, you should always be striving to help make the sanctum a better place for everyone."

Hao Xuan's eyes almost instinctively rolled by themselves hearing that.

'These people might be destitute outcasts for the time being but if given the chance they would destroy anything that stands in the way of the Nine.'

He had no delusional aspirations of making friends with most of those people. And if things worked out even Lord Jyothi would be free from their grasp.

"Of course, I will keep that in mind. Thank you, my lord," he lowered his head in respect which flustered Lord Jyothi to no end

"My lord please, how will I ever face the mother again if you treat me as such? Please raise your head," he pulled Hao Xuan up and placed chains in his hand.

Not only did they weigh lighter but their crude size had also been drastically decreased.

"I made a few changes to the design so it would not hamper your movements in combat," he said pointing at the collar and the cuffs that were almost a quarter of their size now.