On one side, there were the nobles that wanted more power and wanted to dethrone the Elbas family.

They tried to probe a reaction from the Royals to understand their line of rule and sent one of the heirs of a large-size noble family for the mission.

One the other one, there were the Royals that wanted to maintain control over their subjects.

They could not personally attack Samuel's group because doing that would lead to a public uproar but they also wanted to limit the growth of the other noble families.

That's why they used the criminals that they were gathering for the creation of a hidden army.

In a world where birthright decided most of your future, there was an overabundance of individuals that broke the rules in order to become stronger.

Those individuals were under the control of Thaddeus' branch of the Royal family.

Noah clearly understood why the Royals needed to create such an army.

'There are too many noble families. No matter how strong they are or for how long they have accumulated resources, one family can't match hundreds of them. Yet, if the Royal dynasty manages to create soldiers out of criminals, they would obtain the perfect expendable army and would fix the issue of the numerical disadvantage.'

He thought after going back to the cave to rest.

Noah didn't want to stay in that place for long but he needed at least a few hours to recover from the battle.

His sea of consciousness and dantian were almost empty, he needed time to refill them.

Luckily, he had enough potions to use which largely quickened his rate of recovery.

'I was used as a pawn in their political games. The Royals wanted to test the strength of their new force while the nobles wanted to see what kind of reaction the Elbas would have. Even the heir of a large-size family is nothing in the eyes of cultivators in the heroic ranks.'

He clearly remembered the cultivator's words.

'"You are just one human". I hate to admit it but he is right, with my little strength I can't avoid being involved in these matters. Refusing them would just aggravate our relationship and my anonymity depends on their goodwill. If I want to keep my freedom, I have to leave.'

Inevitably, Noah began to think about abandoning the Utra nation and escaping where the Elbas family and the Balvan family could not reach him.

'I still have things to do here though, especially the matter about the forging.'

He still couldn't leave.

He needed a safe environment where to experiment with his creations and he also needed the resources of the capital, the Royal city offered too many opportunities.

'No wonder cultivators don't want to leave it and ultimately accept being on the Royals paybook. Sacrificing freedom for a smooth cultivation journey seems the smartest thing to do.'

If Noah didn't have his wild ambitions, he would also think of joining the ranks of the Royal family.

'However, for how long will they support me? Will they allow me to become a rank 4 cultivator? Will they allow me to attempt in the breakthroughs for the divine ranks? I don't think so.'

A ruler, in order to govern, had to be stronger than its subjects, it couldn't allow for individuals to surpass its level.

Noah was sure that if he joined some organizations, he would soon be suppressed like it had happened in the inner circle of Balvan mansion.

He sighed thinking about that.

His energies had still to recover so he had time to sort his thoughts.

'Is this world all about birthright?'

Noah ultimately had that doubt.

'Birth defines your social status, the number of techniques that you can obtain, the spells, and so on. Sadly, I'm not an exception as most of my battle prowess derives from my element.'

Noah wasn't underestimating himself.

He knew that, even if he considered only his martial art, he was one of the best warriors of his generation.

He had trained nonstop since the age of eight after all, his determination and diligence were unmatched.

However, most of his overwhelming strength came from the Demonic form which expressed the full power of the darkness element.

'Does my value strictly depend on my element? If I had a common aptitude, would I still be this powerful?'

Noah lingered on those questions for a while before determination filled his eyes.

'I obtained the Demonic form spell because I was the best of my generation. I surpassed nobles and nurtured soldiers to obtain it. Everything I have, I took it with my own hands.'

There was no reason to overthink issues over which he had no control.

'I might have been lucky to be born with this aptitude but I've also had to risk my life for each of my improvements. I would have been a great cultivator even if I was of the fire element.'

He stood up as soon as he resolved his doubts, moving toward the exit of the cave.

Noah didn't want to stay too much in that place.

Even if the Muwlos family had a tacit agreement to not use powerful cultivators, that wouldn't prevent Samuel's father from arriving on the battlefield and kill the criminal that took his son's life.

'To prove it, I will create with my own hands something that surpasses every birthright.'

His resolve was steeled, he knew exactly what he had to do.

'I need to buy new weapons, preferably inscribed items in the second rank. I need to sell all the items that I don't need and stash rank 4 materials to be always ready to escape. I need to forge using the Demonic form as a material. I need to bring my body in the heroic ranks. In the end, I need to create my own techniques.'

Noah still had some of Abel's blood to absorb but his priority was returning to the Royal city at that moment.

'Time to go back!'