Chapter 671: Learned Helplessness. (End of Volume.8)

The words finally spread across the Khan Empire about what happened during the tournament in the Immortal Mountain. The whole empire was shaken by the revelation that a Demonic Cult’s Grandmaster killed everyone, leaving a few powerful clans to lose their power and influence. The revelation only created chaos because those who had been hungry for power and domination finally got their opportunity to take over the lands that those powerful clans managed.

There were two different reactions to the news. The first reacted with fear and horror, paralyzed by the truth. The second reacted with hatred and anger that drove them to point their resentment toward the Demonic Cult. However, the Heavenly Alliance also received a huge backlash because they failed to protect what they should have protected. The world of martial arts was in the brink of chaos because of the absence of power and authority in each city. A bloodbath that had been a part of the Khan Empire’s culture suddenly felt like it had grown into something far worse.

The news didn’t state anything about Rasmus or Anastasha because Rasmus didn’t want them to be known as heroes. It was his decision, even though Anastasha believed it would be a nice way to manipulate the masses with it. They fabricated a lie that the Heavenly Alliance managed to kill the Queen of the Night, but the Heavenly Alliance also took a heavy blow from the clash. They fabricated that three of the Zeniths were bedridden and Alliance Leader Ma was going to a seclusion to recover.

Rasmus and Anastasha were about to leave the Immortal Mountain because they finished with the Heavenly Alliance. They managed to achieve a similar outcome, although the process was a lot messier and unpredictable. They only wanted to understand the dynamic and the history behind the clans and the Heavenly Alliance, using that as a foundation for their future schemes. However, due to an unexpected visit from the Imperial Princess Neesa, they had to adapt and improvise, which ended up achieving what they wanted by skipping lots of steps in exchange for losing important assets.

"Count Blackheart, may I take your time for a moment?" Ogun asked, he was rushing to see Rasmus before he entered the carriage.

Rasmus turned around and looked at Ogun and gave him a nod.

"I will be direct. Alliance Leader Ma uses his own method to find out what kind of a person you are. I’m aware that you were aware when he asked you those questions," Ogun spoke as he looked at Rasmus. "May I ask, do you have words to live by? What makes you who you are?" He asked, knowing it was absurd and unimportant.

"I really don’t have words to live by, but I have something that always come to mind when. It’s learned helplessness," Rasmus answered.

"Learned helplessness? What’s that?" Ogun furrowed his brows.

Rasmus forgot that term only existed on Earth, and it wasn’t that surprising that Ogun wouldn’t know what it meant.

"You managed to escape one before when you requested for our help," Rasmus answered. "It’s mental paralysis. Overthinkers will do nothing but think all the time and failures will do nothing but fail. It’s the inability to escape the cycle," he explained.

Ogun rubbed his chin, his eyes scanning the ground as he tried to process what Rasmus said. But what Rasmus said had a contradiction that the Heavenly Alliance managed to escape learned helplessness when in truth, they were only changing who they were depending on. In a bigger picture, it wasn’t learned helplessness, it was still dependence in the end.

"That’s not true, Count. We are just changing who we are depending on," Ogun chuckled as he shook his head.

"You didn’t count when you chose to break free from that helplessness. You acted independently when you requested my help. You’re correct about that, but if you’re capable of making an independent choice to escape the cycle, what’s stopping you from doing it again in the future," Rasmus asked with a smirk on his face. "Just because you’re helpless now, it doesn’t mean the same in the future," he pointed out.

Ogun stared at Rasmus and a smile appeared on his face as he scoffed and nodded with understanding.

"We will see each other again, Master Strategist Ogun," Rasmus said as he gave Ogun a martial salutation.

Ogun felt his heart ached to see a man with such respect, but at the same time he was the most heartless person he had known his whole life. He then gave his salutation to Rasmus and watched him enter the carriage. He watched the carriage move down the mountain, and his mind still lingered with what Rasmus had said.

"Learned helplessness," Ogun muttered to himself.

Anastasha looked at Rasmus and stared at Rullein that was somehow looked too comfortable to be sitting next to Rasmus. She watched the way Rullein leaned her head on his shoulder like a child who wanted to get praise for doing a good job or knowing that she had just made her parents proud. Nie on the other hand, she had been quiet and sat beside Anastasha with zero understanding of what was going on.

"Do you want to know what happened?" Anastasha looked at Nie. "Of course, knowing will have its own consequences," she smirked at her.

Nie shook her head, she had seen enough and knew enough that knowing the details would only make things even more complicated. However, she didn’t expect that Rullein suddenly became so lively when the first time she met her and all the way on their journey to the Immortal Mountain, Rullein had been quiet like a statue.

"It was a bit extreme if I must say," Anastasha looked at Rasmus with a playful smile. "But, to be fair, it went smoothly. I don’t think I would be able to pull something like that out of thin air," she continued.

"You just don’t have the power to do something like that. It’s a shame for you, but I still find the outcome acceptable," Rasmus responded as he looked out the window.

"It is a shame. Losing righteous people who know how to use power and have the ability to restrain themselves aren’t that easy to find," Anastasha sighed as she crossed her legs. "But in the end, they’re going to die anyway. After all, everyone is a piece in the chessboard, including ourselves. We are just too valuable to be sacrificed, that’s the difference," she muttered.

"Where to next?" Rullein raised her brows as she stared at Anastasha.

"I think you already know where we are going, Miss Rullein," Anastasha smiled at her. "Our next destination is the Demonic Cult. We are going to force them to wage wars against he Heavenly Alliance and the clans of the Khan Empire," she continued.

"Sounds like more fun..." Rullein giggled.

Nie listened to the way Rullein giggled, and it was the same as the Queen of the Night. The way Rullein’s eyes moved, the way her gaze showed that mischievous and playful in them, it was uncanny.

"Since you managed to fool the Heavenly Alliance, making them believe they killed the Queen of the Night when in truth she was just a mere clone of yours," Anastasha chuckled, praising Rullein’s flawless acting skills. "Oh, I accidentally revealed the truth," she slowly turned to look at Nie with a playful and cold smile painted on her face. "I suppose you have to accept the consequences for knowing, whether you asked for it or not," she whispered.

Rasmus glanced at Nie’s pale face, and he knew that she had become the greatest entertainment for Anastasha.

"Hey, can we eat noodles? And those pecking ducks?" Rullein looked at Rasmus with her brows raised.

"If only we are welcomed," Rasmus nodded.

At the same time, inside the imperial carriage, Neesa saw a pigeon landing on her window. She grabbed the small scroll attached to its foot and slowly opened it, reading the content with an impassive expression. She then knocked on the wall behind her, and the carriage went fully stop.

When her personal maid opened the door for her, her most trusted bodyguard already knelt on the ground.

"Send a message to Liu," Neesa spoke in a cold and flat tone. "He will become an envoy of the imperial family under my command. Inform him that he will go to Mount Ji where the Demonic Cult is," she ordered.

"Yes, Your Imperial Highness," the bodyguard bowed his head as the maid closed the carriage door in front of him.

Neesa sat there, staring out the window, her expression grew colder and she began to peel the skin on the edge of her nail, a habit that she had when she took the wrong action. She suddenly stopped peeling the skin, staring at her finger before she nodded with understanding.

"If that’s how you want to play, I’ll play by your rules," Neesa muttered to herself. "The whole continent will be the prize," she continued.