Chapter 221 - The Meeting (1)

(Jane's PoV)

I stared at the majestic historical building in front of my eyes. It was not my first time seeing this place but seeing it now made me feel like I was visiting a different temple.

On my first time visiting here, the mystic feeling wasn't felt as strong as what I was feeling now. Maybe because the first time I came, there were lots of people visiting this ancient site. Even though I saw some astral beings here and there, it wasn't as many as I was seeing now.

This time, however, what I was seeing was not mere Kuntilanak or anything. They were souls, or to be precise, they were armies.

Yes, the vast yard of the temple was filled with different colors of glow from different armies. Standing in front of each army was their General. I didn't see their Master but I guessed they had been waiting inside by now. It seemed like General wasn't allowed to enter the meeting.

My expression turned solemn as I realized this fact. I turned my head towards Tom and saw him nodded at me. He might have accepted the fact that he couldn't go inside with me even though I knew that he was unwilling to do so. It was clear on his face, though. It was a good thing that Sanji was beside him, acting as his supporter. With Sanji's level-headed style, I wasn't worried that Tom would be easily provoked.

Maybe First Army was the only one who had two leading men in front of them –only we knew best what position Sanji had in the army.

I took a deep breath before I walked towards the gate. San had been waiting in front of it, smiling at me like a spring breeze filled with warmth. It was hard to ignore her even though Siji had repeatedly reminded me to stay away from her.

"You're here." She said. "Password?"

"Casanova." I answered calmly, neither acting close to her nor avoid her.

I wasn't sure the reason Siji wanted me to avoid her. Whether it was because of his personal motive or something even greater than that, I didn't want to take a risk.

After I said the password, white halo enveloped me and seconds later, I appeared in a foreign place. The walls were made of the same stones as the ones in the temple. Even the floor was made of the same material. It looked gloomy and scary, with only some torches lit up the room.

However, I didn't feel suffocated. Even though there was no wind blowing in this place which was a sign that there was no air ventilation in this strange room, the room was free of smoke from the torches. Then, I realized one thing. This place was not in human realm. This was somewhere in astral world.

In the middle of the room was a big round table made of white… jade? It looked beautiful and shiny, with ten chairs made of something as black as charcoal. The contrast it set up in this foreign room made it somehow looked even more bizarre. Like, beautifully bizarre. I personally was interested in the chair. Upon closer inspection, I found out that it was made of wood.

What kind of wood was as black as this?

I didn't have time to think about it, honestly, because the people sitting around the table had been staring at me. I looked at them without any expression on my face before I picked a chair for me to sit on calmly.

I noticed that the other Masters came in different age. So far, I thought I was the youngest of all. Not only that, I was trying to hide my surprise as I saw they were not all Indonesians. I was never a racist, but seeing what they said white, black, and yellow people together in the same room really got me a bit nervous. Probably Indonesia was the only one who got two Masters.

After sitting down quietly, I began to ponder who had not come. There was only one empty chair left, but it wasn't for long. From a corner of the room, I saw a familiar face striding in and sitting on the only empty chair around the l.u.s.trously bright jade table.

Where did they get jade as big as this table?

Ah, that's not the point.

The one who had just arrived locked his gaze at me with a sneered in the corner of his lips. Looking at his youthful appearance brimming with vigor, completed with the aura of a master around him, I unconsciously compared the man in front of me with the one I beat up days ago.

That's right. He was Rassya, the Master of Cloud Army.

It seemed to me that he had successfully regained control over his righteous position. How strong he was at this point, I had no idea. However, I couldn't see his advisor anywhere. Since all of the Masters were here, it was safe to say that I was the youngest, for real this time. I was worried that it would put me into a disadvantage since, normally, younger people should listen to older people.

Not that I obeyed them much, though. Hahaha…

I wished I had Siji with me to ease this awkwardness I felt inside. However, ever since I entered the room, I couldn't see any Advisors nearby. I could only think that it was normal that Advisors wouldn't be needed in a meeting between Masters. But, still… I wished he were here.

Creak!

The sound of the chair being pushed back made me lift my head towards the source of the sound. The oldest of us, the sophisticated looking old man with white beard and almost a head full of white hair, stood up and eyed us one by one. I couldn't see what he had in mind when his eyes swept past me.

His gaze was solemn without any ripples, as if he was blind. If not for the clear light in his eyes, I would have assumed that he was blind.