Ling Tian looked at Sam as if he is talking out of his ass.

"You are kidding me, right? There is no way, that these families are sacrificing so many of their resources just to give the other academies some kind of simulation of Gambler academy defenses.

They should be idiots to do something like this.

"

"Well, they kind of are. But you are missing a point here.

These families don't necessarily know that is what they are doing. My guess is that the Deans are manipulating them. They must have said to these families, that the other academies cannot act without proof and instigated them.

Then, they would have helped the families by drafting the plan. Telling them, how they could deal with the defensive measures.

However, all those plans are just indirect way of make these families do their bidding.

It is pretty simple. I am surprised that you didn't see past this.

"

Ling Tian smiled for a moment, but it was gone by the time Sam looked at him.

"Even if what you said is true. And I mean a bit IF, what is the endgame of the academies? What will they gain from this? They will suffer unbearable losses in process and they will get their hands on what? A first grader?

"

"No, in their perspective, they will get access to Joker and his network and in turn the knowledge and resources behind the Hub.

That is also the reason why the hub was attacked. I locked Bloody Chariot in a deal and now he is defending the hub. The Deans probably wanted to estimate just how far he will go with that defense. They got their answer.

They understood that they wouldn't get much progress on that end, unless they dealt with Bloody Chariot.

They put a hold on that side and now they are working on me.

To be honest, I don't really understand what is stopping them from directly attacking. No matter how strong the Gambler academy is, dealing with ten academies? That is not easy. Anyone with rational mind will give me up and save the rest of the academy.

I don't what is the key deterrent here.

They have been acting on their own suspicions and assumptions, whenever they did anything in the academy realm. The academies really don't have any overseeing authority that could punish them, unless someone consciously goes and files a case in the court.

The city guard is more of a symbolic representation to keep the common citizens in line.

I have been wondering what is stopping them for some time. Do you have any idea?

"

Ling Tian stayed silent for a moment and said.

"First, they are afraid of what this will escalate into.

There have been some serious wars between academies before. They always ended up bloody and left the whole academy realm like some half eaten carcass.

Because of the wars and the losses, the academies wanted to minimize it and some unspoken rules like capturing the resource points, ransom exchanges and all came into picture.

Its just that these academies are in complete tension, trying to one up each other and when two of those fight, the other academies couldn't let that opportunity go.

It always spirals down. So, everyone is afraid of starting it. Even if they did, it is always in the controlled proportions. This is the first time in a long while, something like this is going down.

"

"Is there a second reason?

"

"Yes, there is indeed a overseeing authority.

An authority that lords over the Academy realm. Specifically selected to monitor and even maintain this academy realm. You could consider it a special task force, consisting of the members that follow different gods.

But there is a core team that handles the most of the decisions. It is called the Messenger Council.

They look at all the activities in the Academy realm and let them play out. When everything goes to **, they interfere and act as mediators. They actually put a stop to the previous academy war.

"

"But I didn't see any records or information regarding them.

"

"Of course, you didn't. Because there were none. They are a taboo to talk about and except for the upper echelons of the academies, that too highly senior members, no one else knows about them.

"

"What's so special about them?

"

"I already told you. They monitor everything. The Deans and the Grand elders of the academy realm might have missed this great joke that you pulled on them, but the Messenger Council knows about it. And the fact that you managed to go on this long without any interruptions means, they are allowing you to do this.

"

"Why? I am damaging the academy realm to a great extent. The reputation of the realm will be in tatters soon enough and it wouldn't even be fit for people to come here and study by the time I am done with it.

"

"They don't really care much about that. They only interfere when the academy realm is on the verge of actual destruction, like the kind where recovery is almost impossible, or when the fight of the academy realm spreads too far and effects the high profile clans and organizations that are devout believers of the gods.

"

"Like Telchines?

"

"Well, Kind of. Telchines are a decent example, but there are some more close to gods than that.

"

"That's interesting. But why though?

I thought these academies are created to create the armies for gods. Some Battlefield of gods, Battlefield of Divinity or whatever screwed up names you guys have around here.

"

"True, but do you really think, the almighty gods who have power to even dictate the fate and nature will just put their focus on one realm like this?

If you think that, then you might want to reevaluate your opinion on them. Even though the Gods are involved with this realm, by giving rewards and such for their academies, the true controllers are the Messenger Council.

They act as the actual messengers between the academy realm and the gods. Hence the name.

"

"What makes them so special?

"

"The key members of the Messenger council are mostly half-bloods.

"

Sam was stunned.

"By half-bloods you mean?

"

"Yes, they are descendants of the some of the high level gods of various factions. They carry the god's blood. The higher cultivation level they have, the more effective this strain of blood is. I cannot reveal you any more than that.

"

Sam fell silent for a while and watched the battle at the entrance.

The defensive layers of the academy are crumbling, but the opponents are falling much faster. Just like how Sam predicted, the family heads are acting like idiots and are sending the attacks in patterns.

Even without knowing they are testing the defensive measures for the other academies.

However, as the time passed, they saw that their people are going down and they are losing too much in the battle.

One family after another withdrawals started and after a few hours, the opponents collapsed as they took different directions.

The whole thing was a bit anti-climatic as there was no massive showdown at the end. By the time they left, the defensive layers were down to eight. Sam wondered how many they actually had, but they are still pretty distance away from the core area of the academy.

Sam relaxed and went into a deep thought.

"So, why did you reveal all this information to me? About the messengers and stuff. You said it is taboo topic.

"

"I just wanted to make you more cautious. You progressed way too far in raising chaos in the academy realm.

I expected this type of disruption, but I didn't expect it would happen while you are still in first grade.

It is an eye-opener for me.

I just wanted to be aware that there is a hidden element at play here. You need to take measures by taking that variable into account. I know that is your style, so I am giving you a headsup.

"

"Then, the taboo part of it? Won't you have any backlash?

"

Ling Tian just smiled and replied.

"I am sure the Messenger Council would want to do something about it. I just don't know if they actually can.

"

"You sound arrogant.

" Sam replied.

"Backed by Competence.

"

Sam just shrugged and paused. He is used to those replies because he used to give those to others.

By evening, everything in the academy realm cooled down. There is a strict curfew outside. The city is empty and no one is making a peep.

"So, what's next? Can you give us a headsup so that we can be better prepared?

"

"In a couple of hours, the pocket dimension will open. The first graders will be out and they will receive loads and loads of information about various people. Of course, just pumping information is no fun, but there is going to be something special in that.

So, you might want to be prepared.

Go with full force and keep your students safe.

Meanwhile, I need to meditate a bit.

"