The Mech Touch

"I-I-I-I'm not ready!" Veronica panicked! "This is too fast! Are you sure it will be safe for us to enter the Ruined Temple when it is filled with so many people who hate our guts?!" "You are correct to assume that our entry into the Compact will be met with opposition, both overtly and covertly." Cynthia honestly stated. "There will be interlopers who shall challenge our right to take command over their Shrines. This is nothing new. The Compact is not as great as it used to be. With the preparations that I have made over the years and the resources that we have obtained from our initial trade with the Red Ocean, a gap has already formed between myself and the cultivators who have devoted much of their lives to obsessing over past glories.

Veronica slapped her paw against her chest. "I am glad to hear you are confident in defeating your challengers, but what about me?! I'm just a cat! Sure, I may be a partial phase lord and stuff, but I don't think I can handle opposition as easily as you. Those Compact cultists will skin me alive!"

Her mother actually chuckled!

She laughed at the prospect of bringing her own child to an infamous den of cruel and evil cultivators.

The Ruined Temple was one of the most notorious places in the galaxy by far!

It was here where the remnants of the Five Scrolls Compact barely maintained their existence.

Even though the current Compact was just a shadow of its former self, it still had plenty of formidable members!

Veronica had no confidence in her ability to mix in with those cruel and relentless cultists. She was a cat from a completely different society. She would much prefer it if she could spend her days in a proper civilized society. There was no way she belonged in a cult where countless ambitious people schemed and killed each other on a daily basis! "I have already accounted for most situations. Her mother said. "As I have said, our attempt to claim the highest seats of the Five Scrolls Compact will be regarded as a brazen takeover attempt. We cannot assume our positions without proving our strength and ability. However, the contest will be different for you and I."

"How so, mother?"

"Let us start with the shrines. The Water Shrine has largely managed to survive the Great Betrayal with most of its institutions left intact. Many of its members have died, defected, or disappeared entirely, so the remaining loyalists struggled to prevent the Water Shrine from deteriorating even further. After four centuries of development, it has risen up to become the second-strongest shrine of the Compact. Well, it is not as impressive as it sounds, as there are only two proper shrines left."

"Which shrine is the strongest?" Veronica asked.

"The Earth Shrine." Cynthia answered. "This mostly has to do with their strategies and temperament. Its leaders and members are rather passive and like to build up strong defenses and fortifications. They rarely take risks and like to bunker down during a crisis. This is why the Earth Shrine has retained most of its heritage during the end of the Age of Conquest."

"What is the Water Shrine like then? I take it that its members are more proactive." "That is an understatement." Cynthia responded with a cold smile. "The leaders and members of the Water Shrine are aggressive and tend to favor action over inaction. They are actually responsible for most of the infamous deeds that the Compact are known for during the Age of Mechs. The differences are largely caused by their cultivation methods. Earth cultivators can grow stronger when they take land, defend a territory and fortify it with increasingly more remarkable defenses. So long as they retain access to enough resources, they can continuously grow. Now how do you think Water cultivators are able to develop their strength?"

Veronica thought about her past experiences with the crazy cultists.

A certain Dr. Jutland came to mind.

"Biotechnology. They have to be focused on cultivating their organic bodies somehow. They must be really keen on transforming their bodies. These cultists won't hesitate to engage in horrific experiments in order to develop their bodies further. They are like the dark mirror of the MTA's Transhumanist Faction."

"Your guess is close enough. The Water cultists do far more than develop their own flesh and blood, but it is true that they are more eager to conduct experiments on other humans and preferably fellow cultivators. That has also caused their internal competition to reach a high state of intensity. Its members are therefore much more unstable but also quite formidable as a response. Even if the selection of the next Holy Son or Holy Daughter by the Water Scroll cannot be controlled by any human, the most senior members of the Water Shrine are still able to raise their own batch of promising prospects."

Veronica scratched her head with her paw in confusion. "So the selection of the Holy son or Holy Daughter of the Water Scroll can be predicted?"

"Only up to a certain degree. The Five Scrolls Compact has already developed a set of rules and criteria on who may earn the supreme favor of a Sacred Scroll. The rules are not perfect, and there are more than enough cases where unexpected people have taken over the mantle. What is important is that these presumptive 'heirs' are unwilling to admit defeat. They will challenge me in an attempt to deny me a prize that they desire for themselves. I cannot prevent this from happening as it conforms to tradition. What is good is that the Earth Shrine has already conveyed the intention to avoid interfering with the 'internal affairs' of the Water Shrine." řΆΝỌꞖʧ

Veronica's eyes glowed brighter! That was a massive concession, and one that would

Definitely help her mother secure her takeover!

"What about me? Do I have to beat back the challengers as well?" Veronica carefully asked.

Her mother chuckled again. "Hehehe, your situation is entirely difficult. Have you forgotten that the Metal Shrine has not survived the Great Betrayal? After the Metal Scroll shattered into pieces, the entire reason for the existence of this shrine became invalid, or at least that was what most people thought at the time. Combined with the fact that the Progenitors of Mechs originated from the Metal Shrine, its very meaning and existence within the Five Scrolls Compact has become awkward."

"Do you mean... the Metal Shrine doesn't exist anymore?"

"That is not strictly true." Cynthia shook her head. "The three remaining Shrines have collapsed, but there were still many members that have survived the Great Betrayal or were stationed in safer locations throughout the galaxy. The Wood Shrine, the Fire Shrine and the Metal Shrine still maintain a formidable amount of members on a wider scale to this day, but they largely consist of low-rank members who continue to live double lives across human space. The number of mid to high-ranked members among them are miniscule, and mostly reside in the Ruined Temple or other special regions. Since they do not spend so much time at the heart of the Five Scrolls Compact, their loyalties are fairly low."

The basis for the shrines and all of the subsidiary organizations to exist was the existence of the Sacred Scrolls.

The Ruined Temple still hosted the Water Scroll and the Earth Scroll. Unfortunately, the absence of the other three Scrolls prevented the other shrines from developing just as

Well.

"Will the fact that the Metal Shrine was ultimately the cause for the Great Betrayal affect my safety in any way?"

"No. There are several reasons for this. One, you have my implicit protection. The cultists may accuse me of nepotism, but I shall never allow the Compact to break its own rules to disadvantage you. Two, the Metal Shrine is the weakest of the three remnant shrines. It holds the least amount of value and there is not that much wealth and skilled members to fight for it. Three, there is no intact Metal Scroll in the Metal Shrine's possession. Since you are one of the few who possess a fragment as well as the Iron Resonant Crucifix Crown, your are the most legitimate candidate to take over this surviving institution."

Great. The Metal Shrine sounded like a run-down faction and institutions within the Five Scrolls Compact. Plenty of cultists must hate its members because the root of the Big

Two's rebellion originated from its now-destroyed halls.

From what Cynthia described, the Metal Shrine had likely lost much of its most important treasures, tomes and other inheritances. Whatever the Metal cultists had left likely remained in the hands of private individuals or groups.

In other words, much of the surviving knowledge and relics that used to belong to the

Metal Shrine had now become the private property and exclusive inheritances of members spread throughout the old galaxy!

Veronica knew that it was impossible to recall all of this valuable knowledge and possessions because cultivators were inherently selfish.

Taking over the Metal Shrine was therefore incomparable to taking over the Water

Shrine!

The two were in a completely different league!

As a consequence, Veronica grew a little more relaxed, but she did not drop her

Vigilance entirely.

"So the Metal Shrine has become the equivalent of a stinky junkyard in the Ruined

Temple." "That is not a completely inappropriate characterization." Cynthia smiled in amusement. "Even so, there should still be enough Metal cultists who are greedy for the Metal Scroll fragment, the Iron Resonant Crucifix Crown and so on. If they are True Gods or Domain Shapers, I likely won't stand a chance against them. I am not a fighter by occupation and my fighting ability is poor. This is especially the case for my current incarnation." "That is true. Your lack of development in this area is a serious oversight on your part, Veronica. Even if you insist on becoming a creator, you cannot survive in this day and age without knowing how to crush and kill your opponents. That said, you should have nothing to worry about this time. Your opposition will not be a problem."

"...Can you tell me more?"

Cynthia looked at her child with an exasperated breath. "You still have an organic brain inside your cat-sized head. Use it. I have already given you enough information to deduce an answer. While the Metal Shrine has largely become insignificant within the Compact, you must still remain sharp if you spend any time among its members. Just because you are a Holy Daughter does not mean that you have become exempted from their plots and schemes. I can bring you into the Metal Shrine, but it is up to you to secure your own position. I am confident that you will be able to make this happen. The

Challenges you face are ultimately trivial compared to mine. I shall bear the greatest

Burdens."

Though Veronica still wanted to ask a lot more questions about the Metal Shrine and how to take it over, her mother no longer addressed this topic any further. Perhaps this was a test that Veronica was meant to pass by relying on her own efforts.

The Cyborg Cat grimaced. She hated these sorts of tests. She didn't even want to take over the Metal Shrine, but she understood the necessity of it. If she had no choice to join the Compact, then she might as well aspire to become one of its leaders!

At least then she wouldn't be forced to obey instructions from a higher authority!

Cynthia talked a bit more about the planning surrounding their upcoming entry into the

Ruine Temple. Transportation was a huge issue. There was no way they could instantly teleport from the galactic rim to the galactic center where the Ruined Temple was hidden! Veronica looked utterly confused. "So how are we supposed to cross this distance?"

"That is a good question..."

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