The moment Sasaki stepped into the temple—
BOOM!
A powerful pressure suddenly crashed down on him.
Sasaki's knees bent immediately.
His body was forced toward the ground as the enormous pressure covered the entire temple.
The blonde girl standing behind them quickly covered her mouth.
She was doing everything she could not to laugh.
Alfie's eyes widened.
"What's this...?"
He looked at Sasaki in panic.
"Mr. Reaper?!"
Sasaki gritted his teeth and slowly pushed himself upward.
"Urgh..."
He struggled against the pressure.
With one final push, Sasaki finally stood upright.
The moment he did....
The pressure disappeared.
Sasaki exhaled heavily.
"My bad..."
The blonde girl finally let out a gentle laugh.
"The old man is always sleeping."
She looked toward the enormous room.
"And when he's sleeping, his Renshical aura floods the entire temple."
Jackson looked confused.
"I thought he wanted to see us. Why is he still sleeping?"
"He gets sleepy almost immediately after talking, so..."
She shrugged.
"That's why."
She stepped aside.
"Get inside now before he falls asleep again. That big guy's footsteps already woke him up."
Alfie and Jackson immediately walked into the temple.
Behind them....
Whoosh.
The massive temple door slowly closed by itself.
Sasaki looked ahead.
Some distance away, they could finally see the old man.
He was sitting on his knees.
The man was intimidating.
He had long white hair, dark weathered skin, and a long white beard that reached down toward his chest.
He wore a dark traditional robe decorated with floral patterns.
The three of them walked closer.
Eventually, they stopped in front of him.
The old man barely lifted his head.
"You can sit and have a drink if you want."
His voice was lazy.
Sasaki sat first on the traditional mat in front of him.
Alfie and Jackson followed.
Sasaki looked around the temple.
"That was one hell of a way to welcome us."
The old man didn't reply.
He simply lifted his small tea cup and took a slow drink.
After a few seconds, he finally spoke.
"You're still very far behind when it comes to what's going on in this world."
He lowered the cup.
"You're walking blindly into the middle of it without knowing what you're walking into."
Sasaki remained quiet.
The old man looked directly at him.
"Tell me, Sasaki."
He raised the tea cup again.
"What exactly do you know about Renshi... Darkside Spirits... and the Chronicles?"
Sasaki thought for a moment.
"I don't know much about the Chronicles because I never really mastered or learned how to use it."
He shrugged.
"I felt like it was just a waste of time."
The old man's expression didn't change.
"As for Darkside Spirits, we all know they're descendants from the ancient gods and Darkside gods."
Sasaki continued.
"Renshi is Renshi. Humans just discovered it someday in the beginning of time, before Darkside Spirits existed."
Silence filled the temple.
The old man slowly drank from his tea cup.
Then....
"How ignorant are you?"
Sasaki's eyes narrowed slightly.
The old man continued.
"Living this long and thinking the Chronicles is just a waste of time."
He glanced toward Alfie and Jackson.
"I'm glad these kids won't be as old as you before figuring things out."
He placed his tea cup down.
"The Chronicles is the new beginning of the world."
Alfie and Jackson listened carefully.
"Which is why this world is called the Reborn World of Chronicles."
The old man looked at them.
"And do you know why that is?"
Sasaki, Alfie, and Jackson shook their heads.
The old man nodded.
"Because the Chronicles is the new age of this world."
He continued calmly.
"The Chronicles gave this world a rebirth when it was discovered."
He paused.
"And this was before Darkside Spirits existed."
The old man reached inside his sleeve.
He pulled out a brown folded piece of paper.
He slowly unfolded it and placed it in front of them.
"People who master the Chronicles are more powerful than people who use their Renshi blindly without going through the natural procedures."
He pointed at the paper.
"Humans with Renshi."
His finger moved downward.
"The Five Phases of the Chronicles."
Further down.
"Ultimate Bloodline Techniques."
And finally....
"Ultimate Bloodline Forms."
Alfie's eyes widened.
He stared at the paper.
This was the first time he had ever seen the complete hierarchy explained this way.
Jackson and Sasaki weren't as surprised.
The old man noticed Alfie's expression.
"You're the only one here without this knowledge, Alfie."
He folded his hands.
"If you all can become disciplined and obtain the five phases of your Chronicles, then you can use your power to its full potential."
He pointed toward the bottom of the paper.
"Only after that should you worry about your bloodline techniques and bloodline forms."
He waved his hand dismissively.
"And the word 'ultimate' is mostly just for show."
Sasaki raised an eyebrow.
The old man continued.
"It's easier to simply call them Bloodline Techniques and Bloodline Forms."
He folded the paper and placed it back inside his sleeve.
"But fortunately for you, Sasaki..."
The old man looked directly at him.
"You've already unlocked the first two phases of your Chronicles."
Sasaki's expression changed slightly.
"First phase..."
The old man nodded.
"Those beings you created from your Renshi to fight alongside you against the Ultra Darkside Spirit."
Sasaki remembered the two Renshical beings.
"That is your first phase."
He paused.
"They're not strong enough, though."
Sasaki listened carefully.
"You need to make them stronger."
The old man picked up his tea.
"We'll get there."
He took a sip.
"Your second phase is your blood manipulation ability."
Sasaki's eyes became more serious.
"You can control the blood inside your body and the blood around you, even if it doesn't belong to you."
The old man raised one finger.
"As long as your Renshi connects to it."
He raised another.
"The more Renshi you pour into the blood, the larger it gets, and the stronger it becomes."
He lowered his hand.
"That is the ability of Phase Two of your Chronicles."
Sasaki remained silent.
"Unlike those morons, you don't go around yelling the phases while using them."
The old man looked at him.
"...Because you don't even know about them."
He leaned back slightly.
"That's why you're not one of them."
Sasaki frowned.
The old man continued.
"You'll be given a private tutor to help you gain control of your Renshi once and for all."
His expression became more serious.
"That unbalanced Renshi inside you can be manipulated by powerful Darkside Spirits because most of it comes from their kind."
Sasaki's eyes narrowed.
"If you gain total control over your Renshi, you'll also gain control over the healing and regeneration abilities that come with it."
The old man exhaled and took another drink.
"Sasaki..."
He stared at him.
"Your case is more difficult than it sounds."
Sasaki waited.
"This will take a lot of time for you to gain total control of your Renshi and master the other three phases of your Chronicles."
Sasaki immediately asked,
"How long are we talking about?"
The old man exhaled.
"Two months."
Sasaki blinked.
"If you're fast enough."
Everyone looked surprised.
Sasaki's expression quickly returned to normal.
"That's not what I was expecting."
He shrugged.
"Two months is no big deal. I was expecting more."
The old man became silent.
Sasaki stared at him.
"It's a long time."
The old man finally spoke.
"You'll find out why I said it's a long time later."
His attention shifted toward Alfie.
"Alfie, your case was resolved by yourself."
Alfie looked confused.
"Lucky for you."
The old man continued.
"You saved us the stress of helping you gain control over your two Renshical sides."
Alfie remained quiet.
"Even though you're not all-powerful right now, you only need to focus on making your body stronger."
"The power will flow in on its own."
Then he raised a finger.
"But the techniques won't."
Alfie's eyes became focused.
"You need to create more destructive techniques with your Light Renshical side."
The old man's voice became more serious.
"That will be the most important thing as time goes on."
He leaned back.
"Your Chronicles phases will come on their own."
Alfie nodded slowly.
The old man then turned toward Jackson.
"Jackson..."
Jackson sat up straighter.
"You're a special case, to be honest."
The old man sighed.
"Sometimes I rethink the decision of bringing you here."
Jackson's expression dropped.
Before Alfie could speak, the old man raised a hand.
"And before you plan to interrupt me, Alfie, allow me to finish."
Alfie closed his mouth.
The old man looked back at Jackson.
"Jackson, as a Renshi user, you have nothing special."
Jackson's eyes lowered.
"No special bloodline."
A pause.
"No special Renshi."
Another pause.
"The only thing you have is a smart brain."
Jackson looked up.
"And that is the only reason I considered bringing you here."
The old man glanced at Alfie and Sasaki.
"Because Alfie and Sasaki wouldn't have come without you."
Jackson remained silent.
The old man continued.
"Your Octo Bloodline is the weakest of the three most popular bloodlines."
Jackson's expression tightened.
"Shinras from this bloodline are mostly average Shinras."
He paused.
"A few of them become Pro Darkside Knights."
Non become a Special Darkside Knight."
Jackson's eyes narrowed.
"Your father is one of those few."
The old man took another drink.
"And he didn't gain his position because of his strength."
Jackson looked up sharply.
"But because his friend is the Special Darkside Knight."
Jackson didn't say anything.
The old man finally leaned back.
"You can become different if you think differently."
He looked directly at Jackson.
"Figure something out yourself."
He shrugged.
"That's all I have for you."
Then....
"Yaaawn..."
The old man opened his mouth in a huge yawn.
"I don't remember the last time I talked this long."
Sasaki looked at him.
The old man closed his eyes for a moment.
"That will be all."
He pointed lazily toward the entrance.
"Alfie and Jackson, you will be joining the Silenters in training."
Alfie and Jackson looked at each other.
"The ones you saw before coming in here."
The old man looked toward Sasaki.
"Your private tutor will be waiting for you outside."
Sasaki nodded.
"You boys need to get in shape as soon as possible."
The old man paused.
"And Jackson..."
Jackson looked toward him.
"You need to think fast about what will make you stronger than you are."
Jackson remained quiet.
"Training with the Silenters will improve your battle skills."
The old man closed his eyes.
"But it won't improve your destructive ability."
He took one final sip of tea.
"The clock is ticking."
The old man's head slowly dropped.
Within seconds.....
Zzzzz...
He was asleep.
His calm snoring echoed throughout the enormous temple.
Sasaki stared at him.
Alfie stared at him.
Jackson stared at him.
Nobody spoke.
The old man was already fast asleep.