"I admit, my Sect might not be able to resist you," Sect Master Urgnah said, "but the Sect Alliance belongs to the Heaven Breaker Sect, and that's a power you can't fight!"
"Heaven Breaker Sect, huh?" Gravis asked with a smirk. "Is that the hidden overlord of the Sect Alliance? The one that you pay so many resources to?"
The Sect Master became surprised that Gravis knew that they were paying the Heaven Breaker Sect. Only the Sect Masters and Vice Sect Masters knew this! How did he know!? However, that didn't matter right now.
"So, you know," the Sect Master said with narrowed eyes. "Then you also know that you can't just do whatever you want here."
Instead of backing down, Gravis chuckled a bit. "I think you got something wrong."
"What?" the Sect Master asked with indignance.
"The Heaven Breaker Sect is only interested in resources. They don't really care about Law Comprehension Areas since they should have plenty of those themselves. Additionally, Law Comprehension Areas can't just be transported and handed over."
"So, let's assume that you go to the Heaven Breaker Sect and tell them that someone is encroaching on your authority. The first thing they would ask is how powerful I am. So, you say that I am a Peak Immortal, and immediately, they would feel like you're useless. How can you not deal with a Peak Immortal?"
Sect Master Urgnah gnashed his teeth.
"Next thing," Gravis said. "You tell them all about me, and then they believe you. The next thing they would ask is what I have stolen. After all, they are interested in their own tribute more than anything. What will you say? You can't lie, so you will say that I stole nothing."
Gravis chuckled a bit again. "And you know how that will end, right?"
Sect Master Urgnah didn't like what he was hearing.
"They will say that they don't care," Gravis said with a smirk. "They would say that you should stop annoying them with this unimportant stuff and to contact them again when I start stealing so much stuff that it affects their tribute."
"However, obviously, I'm not going to do that," Gravis said. "I'm only here to comprehend Laws, nothing more. I'm not even disallowing your Sect from sending disciples here. For the next 20,000 years or so, I will be traveling from Law Comprehension Area to Law Comprehension Area, just comprehending Laws."
"I'm not interested in your ores. I'm not interested in your Immortal Stones. I'm not interested in anything physical. I only want to comprehend Laws, nothing more."
"So, get over your stupid pride and just accept the situation. Alternatively, you can also call the Sect Alliance and fight me. I wonder how that will go, and I also wonder who the first dead Sect Master would be?"
Sect Master Urgnah clenched his fists in fury and helplessness, but there was nothing he could do. Gravis had them in their hands! Gravis was right when he said that the Heaven Breaker Sect wouldn't care about this. So, the only remaining path would be to gather the Sect Alliance, but Sect Master Urgnah would need to be in the vanguard since it was his territory. There was no way for the Sect Master to survive in that situation.
The disciple looked with nervousness at his Sect Master. Could they do something about this?
After some seconds, the Sect Master sighed. "Fine, you win," he said, "but you said that this territory is now yours. What of the time when you are done comprehending the Laws in this territory?"
"I will leave, obviously," Gravis said. "After that, I have no more use for this Law Comprehension Area and will hand it back to you. A Law Comprehension Area for a Law I already know is of no use to me anymore, so I don't care what happens to it afterward."
The Sect Master nodded. "What if someone from another Sect comes and challenges the defender of this territory?"
"It's my territory, so I will obviously defend it myself," Gravis said.
The Sect Master nodded and already started planning.
"However," Gravis interrupted, "don't even try to use me to lure in someone from another Sect. If it happens, it happens, and that's fine, but if you manipulate the surroundings to increase the chance that it happens, I will count that as being disturbed. Who knows, maybe I will just concede the fight and hand the territory over. After all, the new owner would be just as helpless about me staying here as you."
The Sect Master became annoyed that Gravis immediately shut this possibility down. So, there was truly nothing they could gain from it?
"Fine," the Sect Master said. "You don't need the key to the Law Comprehension Area, I presume?"
"No, I don't," Gravis said. "I can come and go as I want without the key."
The Sect Master had no idea how Gravis had been able to grasp such an ability, but there was nothing he could do about it right now. The Sect Master was annoyed that some Peak Immortal that wasn't even part of the Sect Alliance was able to do whatever he wanted in a territory governed by so many Immortal Kings.
As Sect Master Urgnah thought more about it, he felt that the situation was truly surreal. The entire Sect Alliance could obviously kill this singular Peak Immortal. After all, fighting one Cultivator was entirely different from fighting over a hundred. According to Sect Master Urgnahm, even if Gravis could kill several Sect Masters, he would run out of Energy very quickly, leaving him helpless to the remainder.
The Sect Master felt like he was holding a dagger to Gravis' throat and could kill him if he so chose to, but for some reason, Gravis was the one in control. The Sect Master had Gravis' life in his hands, but he couldn't kill him.
This seemingly defied reality. The one with more power was supposed to be able to suppress the one with less power. Obviously, the Sect Alliance had more power. However, they just couldn't use it against Gravis.
How was a weaker being able to control a stronger force?
The Sect Master became more interested in Gravis as he thought about these things.
"I have a question," he asked.
"Sure," Gravis said with a shrug as he moved away.
"How do you do it?" the Sect Master asked. "How are you able to stay in control against a force so much more powerful than yourself? Also, how are you so incredibly powerful as a Peak Immortal? If you don't mind, I would like to know."
The Sect Master's tone was no longer angry or frustrated. He sounded more like he had given up and just wanted some advice.
"Absence of responsibility," Gravis answered immediately.
"What do you mean?" the Sect Master asked.
"I don't have to run a Sect, leaving me with infinite time to comprehend Laws."
"I don't have any close ones that you can use to threaten me with."
"I don't have a home, which you can attack."
"So, to answer your second question first: I just spend a ton of time to comprehend Laws until I know far more Laws than anyone else. The absence of responsibility allows me to dedicate my entire life to the pursuit of power."
"As for your first question: That's the same answer. You are weighed down by responsibility, making you more vulnerable. I can threaten you and your Sect, and even if you can ignore this threat, I can use the same thing against others, and they might not be able to ignore it."
"Your Sect will obviously not be the only one that receives a visit from me, but all the other Sects will be just as helpless as you."
"The Sect Alliance you have formed to protect yourself has become your weakness. Every member of a close-knit Sect is willing to sacrifice their lives to protect their home, but a Sect Alliance is loose. No Sect is willing to sacrifice itself for the gains of another Sect."
"Your protection and responsibility are what make you so vulnerable," Gravis explained. He was borrowing the Law Comprehension Area without any repayment, so he decided to answer the question honestly.
The Sect Master remained silent as he thought about Gravis' words for a while.
"Responsibility, huh?" he asked himself more than Gravis.
After some more seconds, he turned to Gravis again and bowed politely. "Thank you for your wise words. You may stay here as long as you want."
Gravis smiled and nodded. "No thanks required. See it as a trade."
The Sect Master looked at the disciple, who had been watching. Then, he looked at Gravis again. "He can stay, right?" he asked.
Gravis nodded. "Sure. As long as he doesn't annoy me, I don't care who stays here. You can send hundreds of disciples here for all I care."
"Alright," the Sect Master said. "Then, I wish you luck in your comprehension."
With that said, the Sect Master left.
The disciple felt like his Sect had been humiliated, but he had heard the entire conversation. His feelings told him that they were supposed to be the more powerful ones and that Gravis shouldn't have the ability to just waltz in here and do what he wants.
However, feelings and reality often disagreed. The disciple was frustrated and felt humiliated, but he also knew that there was nothing they could do. If he were in his Sect Master's shoes, he would be just as helpless.
He simply had to accept this humiliation and move on.
Meanwhile, Gravis ignored the disciple and looked at the lightning with a smile as he scratched his chin.
'And so, my Law Comprehension begins!'