Maximilian made his way through the sewers and into the museum without issue. The brief journey went so smoothly that he was a little worried that there was a trap. Now that he was inside was disappointed to find that there was almost no security present. There were three guards spread throughout the museum but with how big the place was they might as well have not been there. He intended to grab one and ask where his mother was but he figured it. He stepped into the hallway a few minutes later and found another guard in front of her door. A guard who leveled a handgun at him. When his instincts failed to even slightly warn him he put the threat out of his mind.

  "Stop! If you proceed any further I will be forced to use lethal force." The guard barked. Almost as soon as he finished Maximilian took another step and sure enough he fired. Maximilian's body moved on instinct. His right hand shot forward and caught all three bullets before either of them had processed the sound.

  "Hmm? Nice. Leave." He released a bit of killing intent. Just enough to intimidate the guard. For a moment the man looked like he would try to fight and part of Maximilian was impressed. He wasn't sure if it was a sense of duty or loyalty or something else but even that had limits. When Maximilian reached for the door the man ran. With him gone Maximilian pushed him out of his mind. He opened the door and sure enough found his mother seated against the wall. A note book in her lap. She finished writing closed the book and looked up.

  "You've returned. Am I to assume those gun shots were because of you?" She asked. When Maximilian opened his hand and dropped the bullets the room fell into an uncomfortable silence. They stared at each for several moments as a series of unasked questions were shared.

  "I have. I think its time that we made our exit. If they haven't listened to you yet than they don't plan on it."

  She sighed and stepped up to him. "I will have to rely on you to get out of here."

  Maximilian chuckled and offered her his arm. "That I can take care of. I would like to go and see the visitor. Do you want to come?" She paused for a moment then took his arm and nodded.

  "Have you decided what you will do? Your father would be disappointed if you killed anyone."

  "I've no interest in killing people. Not if I can avoid but I have to admit the thought doesn't disturb me. I am not sure if it's something the Network did or if it was just something inside me."

  "Its more than likely the former. I've done a few tests on myself and a few other volunteers. I am not sure how but this Network has made our brains more pliable. On top of several other changes it has made it easier for us to kill one another."

  "Well that wasn't a difficult thing for us to do before but I think I see your point. If whatever it is wants us to fight than it would need a way to get civilians willing to fight and die."

  "On top of that it seems to stoke our impulses. Not necessarily the good ones or the bad ones. It has in a way of speaking made it so that we all view the current world as a land of opportunity. One where we can accomplish anything if we strive for it. I had expected to see more case of depression but if anything, its opposite."

  Maximilian was about to offer an alternative one they stepped into the main atrium to find ten heavily armored people waiting for them. Maximilian stared at the half encirclement for several moments but his instincts didn't warn him. Which confirmed a fear. His instincts only warned him of dangers to him. There was some vague sense that applied to things he wanted to do but it wouldn't help him protect others. Not that it mattered now. His mother was close enough that Prismatic Barrier would deal with any threat.

  "Ah you must be the interloper I've been hearing about?" A cultured voice asked as a man dressed in an incredible two piece suit stepped into the room just behind the gunman. The man had almost no spiritual energy which only made the situation odder. He glanced at his mother to see if she knew who the man was but she shook her head. It wasn't hard to figure out that he was the rep but was that it? Did they not have any cultivators or had they sent this man because he was expendable?

  "I suppose you could say that. I am afraid I don't know you."

  The man shook his head. "Who I am doesn't matter. I am able and willing to extend an invitation to both you and your mother. Your country no the world needs you."

  Maximilian raised an eyebrow at the man not sure if he was being serious or not. He supposed the situation made sense. The United World Government would want soldiers especially if they had to face a beast tide. Even if they hadn't there should be cultivator threats out there. No the part that confused him was why the man thought he needed an offer? "I am sorry but I am not interested. Though I would like to know what your plan are for the people here? If and when the beast tide arrives, they will die if they can't escape."

  The man lowered his head as if ashamed, but Maximilian was pretty certain it was fake. "I am sorry but the teleportation expenses are too high. Further our head quarters isn't large enough to house everyone. I am sure you can understand." Maximilian's gaze hardened as he took a step forward. The guards' fingers slipped to their triggers. Maximilian was going to charge through but thought against it.

  "How strong are the cultivators you have? What are their levels?" He doubted they had anyone above level 12 or so since they didn't bother sending a proper fighter but it was better to be safe than sorry. Especially when being sorry could mean the deaths of both him and his mother.

  "I am not at liberty to say but I can assure you everyone is treated fairly. Everyone is paid according to their contribution. You may not be aware but that is apparently standard practice for a faction in the multiverse." The man responded as the rest of the council made their way into the room. The smug look on most of their faces was almost enough for Maximilian to end the conversation but his curiosity was still stronger.

  "What do you mean?" When the man made no move to answer his question he sighed. "I will let you leave because I don't want a conflict with your government. Not yet anyway. Though I do hope we can get along. As for your offer I don't believe you have anything to offer me." The man started to reply but Maximilian had long ago lost interest in the conversation. He took a breath and expanded his Dao fields. Rain and Static electricity exploded throughout the room. It was as if he had become the eye of a thunderstorm. He had taken the time get more used to his fields and now they might as well be a part of his body. He could control them as if they were his hands and feet. His mother's grip on him tightened but she was otherwise safe. He was just about to force to amply the fields when the voice of the Network filled his ears. It was so sudden that it caused him to freeze.

  Requirements for Leader-board initialization has been. Would you like to use a pseudonym? Yes/No

  Maximilian wasn't sure if the Network had done this on purpose for some reason, but he supposed it didn't matter. He was going to use old gaming name when he thought better of it. He had no way of knowing if it would let him change it later which meant it was best to go with something he knew he would like. He selected no and was about to turn his focus back to the task at hand when a window appeared. When he realized what the window was his eyes widened. He had theorized about it but now that he could see it. Really see it he wasn't sure what to do.

  Maximilian couldn't help but be disappointed. He had run forward as if there were a specter just behind him. That if he had slowed down someone would catch but not only was that not true. No one was even close. It filled him with anger and irritation. What were they all doing? The people who went to the tutorial should've been told what about the monsters. They should've been warned about what to expect so why were they so far behind? The problem was worse than he thought since he couldn't be sure they even had a reasonable amount of power. Was Justinian equal to him at level 10? Or were they weaker? How would humanity survive if this was the best we could provide? He hadn't even taken into account the other species. Were they stronger? He couldn't afford to take his foot of the gas. He was about to get rid of the screen when he realized there was more to it. Or rather there were two other screens. One was labeled wealth and the other Dao. He was ranked number one on both Dao and Level but he wasn't ranked at all on Wealth. Which when you considered that he had been burning money kind of made sense. The oddest part was that there were only three people on the Dao leader board and off them none were on the level.

  If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

  It was confusing for a moment but he put together a quick theory. He figured people who were already spiritual or at least the type to meditate on things would have a better time getting Dao. Either that or people who have exposure to certain things would have an easier time getting a Dao related to it. A nuclear physicist would likely understand fire better than most and would get that dao easier. Of course, he wouldn't be able to prove it until he had a bigger sample size. All that was for later. He sent the screen away and turned his attention back to the people in front of him. People that looked even less certain than they were before. He knew that these people were just doing what they were supposed or rather what they were told to do. Despite that he couldn't help but have a little fun. "I don't suppose any of you are Justinian or perhaps Yao Wei?" He smirked and withdrew his Dao fields. The sudden lack of power should be more deafening than the original display. As if someone had pressed stop on the world.

  "S-stay back." The UWG representative said as his eyes darted toward the doorway he exited. To the man's credits he got control over himself quickly. "I am a representative of the one true government. Attacking or otherwise impeding me would be a direct attack on the government and would be responded to harshly."

  Maximilian shook his head in disappointment at the man. Even now he was hiding behind someone else. He could understand the desire, but he could at least have the decency to not do the talking then. After all, if the government did send someone or a group to fight him it would be those people that would have deal with the consequences. "Leave. I am not interested in joining you. I will take no action against you for the next three hours. In that time take what you want and leave." The man looked like he wanted to argue so he released a small portion of his killing intent. When his mother tightened her grip, he stopped. "Go." The man did his best to make a dignified exit, but it was hard to disguise running for your life. The man left followed by the generals and then the remaining guards. Maximilian and his mother stood there until he was certain no one would come back. "Can you gather the people? I want to start moving them. Can you take me to the Network station? The sooner we get this on the road the sooner we can save these people."

  He and his mother separated after she led him to their teleporter and nexus station. He wasn't sure what made them put the two of those so close but he decided not to mention it. Now that all the leaders except one were gone taking over the settlement was simple. He claimed the station and it was a part of his orbit. It prompted an unexpected change to his status screen. The line that mentioned Nubia now said "Nubian Dynasty". Which was surreal. He understood what it meant of course but it was weird to think of himself as a king or royalty. He had wanted to be a leader, but this was a bit much. Not that he was complaining. He gave himself a moment for reflection before he started setting things up. He activated the teleporter and was pleased to see that he could return to the base of his mountain. What remained of Bridgerock was still a teleportation location. He figured that conquering this place had either expanded his teleportation range. Or it was something the Network provided for free. He leaned toward the former. The Network wouldn't give anything away for free. He wanted to leave and focus on getting stronger but that was irresponsible. Despite the way he had done it he was no responsible for these people.

  Of course that didn't mean he couldn't cultivate. He summoned a spirit stone from his bag and sat down next to the teleportation array. He needed to keep his senses about him just in case something came up which meant his absorption would be slower. That and he didn't want to reveal too much about his wealth. He wasn't rated highly so it wasn't a problem but that didn't mean he wanted to flaunt what he had. An hour later the first group filtered into the room. They were led by his mother and he could tell that they were almost all non-cultivators. Though the youngest, a boy who looked to be sixteen or so was. Despite that he was sub level three so he didn't think about him too much. Maximilian gave them his most pleasant smile before he got to his feet. He activated the array and stepped through first to make sure it was safe. He had to fight back a grimace when he calculated how much it would cost to send this group. He wasn't sure how much it would cost for everyone but he was confident it would be close to all he had. Next he escorted the group to Nubia where he warned everyone about what was coming. Together it took two hours for him to get everyone into Nubia. Two hours and all the credits he had earned plus he credits his mother and a few other people had. It was a bit annoying but when he compared it to what he gained he couldn't complain.

  Not only had he saved the innocents, but he had advanced his own quest. It was still a way away from completion, but he figured that would change soon enough. The Network had done him a great privilege by advertising for him. All he had to do was find the people. With that taken care of he decided to hand the reigns over to his mother. He wasn't sure how hands on he wanted to be, but he figured it was best to leave the day-to-day governance to the people that would always be here. At least for now. He was only level fifteen which meant if he wasted too much time on politics a monster might grow to be stronger than him. Stronger than all that earth had to offer and what would've been the point? He wasn't in a rush to leave. He wanted to research a few things in the library and make sure that the situation here was stable. There should be enough housing, but he also needed to make sure everyone had food and other things. His mother could handle the logistics but that wouldn't help if there was no food. The more he thought about it the longer the list of things he needed to do grew. By the time he had gathered his makeshift council he was starting to worry that he had bitten off a bit too much. Of course, no one said running a baby country would be easy.