Chapter 416: 416. Demon Prince

Noah returned to the underground corridor where Elder Iris had left him.

He had discussed with the patriarch for some time but, in the end, he was forced to accept his orders.

'I must lead the human assets to war while he prepares the copying spell, he wants to take complete control over the archipelago. However, how am I even supposed to command the other captains? I'm still in the gaseous stage.'

Elder Iris entered his field of view as he evaluated that issue.

Noah knew that he was strong, he had defeated a rank 3 cultivator in the liquid stage after all.

Yet, the sect had many solid stage cultivators, it was pointless to mention the leaders of each faction at that point.

Elder Iris had an old notebook in her hands, her furrowed brows showed her disappointment toward the message that she had received.

"What is it?"

Noah asked when he saw that her gaze went on him and remained still, he felt uncomfortable under the inspection of an elder.

"Nothing, Lord Prince."

"Wha-"

Noah wanted to ask about the title she used when the walls of the exoskeleton trembled and the patriarch's voice resounded through the entirety of the sect.

"Orders for all the cultivators in the human ranks: The Chasing Demon sect is going to war! We are taking over the entire archipelago. You have six months to prepare, the battle will start after that."

Some cheers could be heard coming from the residential areas, the sect had always been one of the strongest organizations of the Hive but its members were forced to hide to give the appearance that the legal organizations were in control.

Those restraints weighed on the minds of the disciples, what was the point of being strong if they were then forced underground?

Also, most of them were extremely loyal to the sect and could relate with its history, they had longed for the moment when they could take over all the islands and rule out in the open.

"All the cultivators in the second and third rank will be forced to take part in the war, any deserter will be considered useless and disposed of."

The eyes of the weak and secluded cultivators widened when they heard those words, the patriarch didn't give them any choice on the matter.

"Though, every war needs a general. I hereby give the title of Demon Prince to Noah Balvan, the cultivator that has successfully retrieved the Inheritance of our ancestor. He will lead you to battle, follow his orders as if they were mine."

That was the moment when Noah's eyes widened too, not only did the patriarch use his real name, but he had also given him a title!

The walls of the exoskeleton stopped trembling and Noah's horned face shone for a few seconds, he realized that some permissions had been granted to his oath.

"What does my title do?"

However, Noah had always been a lone cultivator, he knew almost nothing concerning the titles in a sect.

Elder Iris was still looking at him, she didn't seem surprised by the news, it seemed that she had been informed before the patriarch's speech.

"Being the Demon Prince means that you'll most likely become the next Chasing Demon, it's needless to say that this title isn't given easily."

"I meant its applications."

Noah couldn't be bothered by the meaning behind his new status, he only wanted to know what it implied.

"You have now the authority to punish or restrain your fellow disciples, as well as injuring them. You are still forbidden to kill them however, such decisions can only be ordered by us elders."

Elder Iris' words echoed in his mind.

'It gives me some leverage on the other captains at least, it should be enough to make them follow my orders.'

"Let's go to the inventory, I need to empty my ring and retrieve some items."

Elder Iris nodded at that order, she led Noah outside the patriarch's habitation and through the passages connected to where all the wealth of the sect was stored.

Marcia was waiting for their arrival on an area were the light radiated by the exoskeleton was less powerful, that sight was quite unusual for the environment of the sect.

"Elder, Prince."

Marcia bowed to both of them, she was the captain in charge of the faction handling the inventory but she still performed that polite gesture to Noah.

"Open it."

Elder Iris ordered, Marcia touched the wall behind her in specific spots before a formation lit up and the purple minerals moved, revealing a descending dark path.

The three of them went in the passage, many inscriptions could be seen on its walls which illuminated that dark path.

A large basin was at the end of the corridor, items of a various kind could be seen orderly stored there and surrounded by an intricate formation.

"You can leave the items here, I'll take care of putting them inside the formation according to the order needed."

Marcia spoke and Noah didn't waste time.

All the items that he had decided to give to the sect were taken out in an orderly way with the help of the spirit automaton, the Credits, the precious drugs, the dragon' corpses, a few weapons, all the scrolls related to the darkness element, and a copy of the fifth Kesier rune remained inside the ring.

Noah inspected its contents, the wealth inside the ring remained incredible even after taking out all the useless items.

'If I was an ordinary cultivator or even one without lofty ambitions, the road to the fifth rank would be extremely simple with even a fraction of these items.'

Resources formed a pile in front of him while he was deep in thought, even Elder Iris was surprised when she became aware of the quality of some of those items.

There were rank 5 weapons, drugs, and techniques after all!

Elder Iris was still in the fourth rank, she couldn't help but be attracted by some of them.

Marcia, on the other hand, was completely amazed, her jaw hanged open as her eyes darted between the items of the Inheritance.

However, Noah couldn't be bothered to wait for their stupor to fade and directly asked for the things he needed.

"I need all the darkness spells, cultivation techniques, and arts of the inventory. I will probably give them back soon but I would still like to inspect them."