It was as though a pale of cold water drenched their fury. Those who had been trying to withhold their anger sank into their chairs in shock.

In truth, the concept of a Heaven's Child wasn't exactly wide spread, but who here wasn't privy to their Clan or Sect's most secret files? They were practically known as the puppeteers of history, holding this title even above the Celestial Hamsters.

Clans who had them by their side, whether to control or cooperate, were destined to rise to the top, while those who didn't have them or fell out of favor with them were doomed from the very beginning.

Still, there hadn't been news of Heaven's Children for a very long time. Many had taken the destruction the Dark Phoenixes caused in eliminating so many universes and quadrants as an opportunity to escape the chains that held them to the Clans they served. In fact, maybe that was part of the reason the Clans of today simply couldn't match the Clans of the past in power And maybe that was yet another reason the Ancient Battlefield was descending so quickly.

Still, after an initial shock, the skeptical looks remained. Were the simply supposed to believe these words? For all they knew, the Star Clan chose this child randomly from a batch of clever youths.

"It seems they are still skeptical, Sir Apollos." King Star said respectfully.

There was only one way to eliminate any such questions, and the seemingly adorable kid did it without hesitation.

A slow and deliberate blade streaked across his frail neck. To a mortal, it may have seen fast. But to the cultivators here, the blade might as well have been a snail gliding across a windowsill.

A frail head and proportionally small fountain of blood flew into the air.

There was no doubt. King Star had just killed a child before them all. But, before anyone could cry out in horror, the toddler's head flew up from the ground, reconnecting to the child's neck as though nothing had happened at all.

Apollos frowned at his now blood-stained white robes. With a wave of his hand, the blood suddenly vanished without explanation. No one, not even King Star, knew how he did it

"Now that that nonsense is out of the way," The childish voice continued, "I hope that no one else questions me. I won't kill myself again for you, anyone who continues to doubt can leave."

Apollos sounded like a child throwing a tantrum, in sharp contract to the happy and bright kid he had been just a moment ago. But who could blame him, he had just experienced death all to prove a point.

"We Heaven's Children view the Heavens themselves as our parents, and in a lot of ways, we're chained by them. But, we are also far freer as well. In the past, it was still an issue for even us to share the truths of the Ancient Battlefield, however. The Heavens are weakening. Very soon, it's quite possible that a Mortal Plane will no longer exist."

The parliament grew silent. They had known it was serious, or else they would have never come. But the thought of the end of an entire Plane of existence made them shiver from head to toe.

Apollos swept his gaze over the crowd, seemingly finally satisfied with their response.

"The actions of the Dark Phoenixes were only a precursor to the matters of today. The path toward darkness, the rise of chaos, the inevitable downfall of our descendants, these are all things that could have been predicted long ago.

"No one is certain of the series of events that set it off, but one thing is for certain, the Heavens don't feel that this is the way things ought to be."

Hearing such words come from a child made them difficult to accept, not because they were wrong, but because of the way it sounded. Such an immature voice shouldn't be able to speak of such things in such ways

"The descent of the Ancient Battlefield isn't a marker for the Heavens dissatisfaction, it's rather a desperate plea for help. Such a course can only be reversed when the brightest beacons of our future come together to turn the tides of Fate."

Apollos sighed. "I'll get straight to the point. The descent of the Ancient Battlefield is divided into two parts the entry of our geniuses and the true descent of the battlefield. There's a reason for this.

"In reality, one might think that the impact of youths is meaningless in the grand scheme of things, but you'd be wrong. It's the youths the decide the path toward the future and the trajectory of our collective Faith. It's precisely because the Golden Era ended so prematurely that our Modern Era is so weak. Without a solid foundation, the future can only remain bland and meaningless.

"The entry of geniuses is the Heavens' acknowledgement of this fact. Though the Ancient Battlefield is a prison, it is also a treasure trove. There are many Failed Clans who have been biding their time for several eras, waiting for the right moment to strike. Those very Failed Clans have sharpened their spears and honed their wills for countless epochs and they smell blood."

Apollos sighed once more. He felt like he was losing his train of thought, he tended to do this often, going off on tangents, that is. It was a necessary side effect of his abilities, it was what it was.

Before he went any further, he explained the basics of the battlefield. He had mentioned the Failed Clans before even ensuring those below understood just what it meant.

He explained how Clans of certain stature could exchange their accumulated Faith to enter the Ancient Battlefield and that many powerful empires of the path had chosen to do so. Of course, there were a few prideful factions who refused until it was too late, the elves, for example, but there was a good number of those who made the right, difficult decision.

After understanding these things, the grave expressions on those below worsened. Their Tower Quadrants?.... Did they even stand a chance?