The council chamber fell silent as all the Elder's stared at John with great surprise, not ever expecting him to decline such a life-changing offer. The Elders all stared at John with various expressions, from confusion, to scrutiny, and even amusement.
"Hahaha," boisterous laughter boomed out, replacing the silence within the room. John glanced sideways at Elder Bluestar, while the other Elder's also glanced at him, mostly with expressions of disapproval.
"You see, this child is not worthy of becoming the Prime Disciple," Elder Bluestar said, clearly pleased with John's answer. "Any sane disciple would jump at this opportunity and beg for the chance to prove themselves worthy of the Prime Disciple position, and yet he outright declines. Not only is he full of disrespect, he's also quite stupid. Truly not worthy!" he rambled on with a pleased smile on his face.
"Daoist Bluestar, if you speak a single time more, I'll remove you from this chamber myself," the Alliance Head boomed out with great displeasure, his words instantly silencing Elder Bluestar's laughter. However, an amused smirk remained on his face as he stared at John as if he were staring at a fool.
The Alliance Head glared at Daoist Bluestar for a short moment before looking at John.
"Child…are you sure of your answer?" he asked sincerely. "While the Prime Disciple position has many responsibilities, it also has rewards to match. You will be passing up on a monumental opportunity."
"I understand, Alliance Head," John replied respectfully, as he truly did respect the Alliance Head, who had shown him nothing but kindness and courtesy thus far, and even entrusted him with the Prime Disciple position. "But my answer remains the same!"
"A pity," the Alliance Head sighed with obvious disappointment. "I won't try to change your mind, but could you at least provide this old man some reason for your answer?"
"Of course," John replied, as he glanced at the Alliance Head and then several of the other Elders in the room. "While I truly appreciate the offer, I must decline due to one main reason. This Prime Disciple position will require me to devote my life to this Alliance, which is something that I cannot do. While I am part of the Alliance and would assist it when needed, my goals and cultivation pathway will eventually lead me away from it. As such, I would only tread the same path as Sect Leader Thunderzen, and eventually give up the position."
Many of the Elder's raised an eyebrow at John's words, as his words were quite presumptuous, despite his respectful tone. The Honorable Alliance was one of the strongest powers in the entire world, and for someone who tread the Honorable cultivation pathway, it was the obvious choice for climbing the cultivation ladder.
However, his words seemed to indicate that his goals laid above and beyond the Honorable Alliance, which many of the Elders did not think possible.
A soft scoff drifted out from Elder Bluestar as he heard this, but he knew better than to say anything. The Alliance Head stared at John for quite some time in silence before sighing once more.
"If this is your choice, I will respect that," the Alliance Head finally conceded. "It is enough that you have pledged your support for the Alliance moving forward. I'm sure we'll be counting on you in the future," he said with a small smile on his face.
"And I will help the Alliance however I can when called upon," John replied respectfully, and after a short moment of contemplation, spoke up once more.
"Before I leave, I would like to make one request, although I understand if it is not accepted," John said to the Alliance Head.
"Speak," The Alliance Head nodded his head at John's words, willing to hear the request.
…
Later that night, John sat in an empty room located within the Honorable Alliance headquarters. The Honorable Alliance headquarters was a massive spherical building, which housed tens of thousands of rooms within, all serving different purposes.
After his meeting with the Council of Elders had concluded, the Alliance Head offered him one of the best rooms for as long as he wanted. John had naturally accepted the offer, as he had not managed to rest a single time since leaving the Dao Transformation trial realm.
Not only that, but he had not had a singular moment to consolidate any comprehensions from his various trials and battles, which he needed to address urgently. Battle comprehensions and insights into Daos were fleeting things, and if not grasped quickly after occurring, would fade into obscurity and be wasted completely.
As such, John needed to urgently meditate on recent events, and the finest cultivation room the Honorable Alliance had to offer was a very suitable location for that. The Alliance Head had escorted John to this room himself, another sign of the great respect and kindness he had shown towards John.
Their discussions as they walked through the Alliance Headquarters ranged from the Jade Dragon Realm to Elder Bluestar, and eventually ceased as they arrived at John's temporary room. The Alliance Head said a few more words to John before leaving, at which point he had entered the luxurious room.
The room had a soft-white interior design, with ornate furnishings and luxurious amenities, and was also quite large. Like his abodes back in the Heavenly Lightning Sect, it also had a meditation room dedicated solely for cultivation. The room was surrounded by powerful formation barriers which blocked all sound interferences, making it perfectly secluded for meditation.
Not only that, but there were powerful formations surrounding the room that converted spirit crystals into misty Qi, making the Qi within the room much thicker than normal. Such formations were incredibly hard to make and also cost a fortune to operate, but such an expense was something the Honorable Alliance could afford.
John sat in the very center of the room in a meditative position, and calmed his mind as he breathed in and out deeply several times while he planned his meditation session.
"I have several things to focus on tonight," John mused softly. "First, I will address my cultivation, then my Dao comprehensions, and finally, my Dragon-God Shift inheritance. After tonight, my strength should skyrocket to another level once more!"
