It took some time to calm Casey after she had been ambushed by her own Aunt. After muttering about disgraceful older women, she had eventually left to visit the Chin's family home, intent on discussing matters with her in private. How that conversation - and the subsequent visit - intended to play out, Arthur had no idea and quite firmly, really did not need to know.
Instead, he turned to the next job, one he was suddenly glad was being done in public. The kind of rumors that would be created, as he handed out cases of the beast stones for cultivating to his various Clan members was perfect recruitment bait. Of course, there were negatives to such actions; but being in one of the safest buildings on this floor allayed most of that.
Still, he did caution his people to watch where they stored it and not to walk around with the stones in public. The Tower Guard's protection only extended to the building itself after all.
Finally, when all that had been sorted and a quick discussion with the returned Eric and Leia confirmed he had another appointment tomorrow with the Ghee Hin leadership, he was able to scurry back upstairs to continue his period of testing and practise. As he had promised Mel, his period of self-mutilation was over. Mostly.
Instead, he spent his time lying on the bed, focused inside as he turned energy around and around in his meridians, trying to form a poisonous Yin energy combination that was both effective at nulifying Yang chi and yet was stable within himself. A somewhat contradictory set of requirements, he had to admit.
But hey, if itsn't challenging, everyone would have done it.
***
"So, remind me again why we're meeting with the Ghee Hin?"
"And the 66." Leia replied to Arthur.
"And the 66. And the United Nations," Arthur confirmed. "As though we want to deal with all of the damn gangs at the same time."
"You want ignore them, can also," Eric said. "But susah lah."
"I know, I know. We're not big enough to deal with them, and they're all big enough to crush our people in the various places. And even if we were the size of Prime Group or whatever, they'd still be someone we have to appease a bit." Arthur sighed. "Everyone wants to bother us."
"Normal, right?" Leia pointed out, the pair flanking him as they walked down the street, Yao Jing ahead of the group to and Jan already watching the meeting spot.
"Because we have something they all want?" Arthur sighed. Access to the Clan rooms, to the potential powers and strength as they grew. "Still stupid. We're nothing yet."
"Don't forget the government also, eh?" Eric added.
Arthur let out another sigh at that. How could he forget. Only good luck, a little maneuvering by Casey and Mel, the general laziness of the government bureaucrats and their fast ascent had kept the greedy hands of the government personnel at bay. That, and the fact that the few bureaucrats who were semi-permanently stationed in the Tower just weren't the cream of the crop had left them somewhat protected.
It was not going to last. Either this floor or when he exited, he had to deal with them.
The problem with dealing with the government, with any government as an individual, was a matter of disparate strengths. Even the most powerful Climber could not - alone - defy a government. At least, not successfully and in the long-term and not become a criminal. Sure, they could retreat to a Tower, and in the Tower, where the advantages of a government - the significant difference in resources, the numbers and the various apparatus to leverage against the individual and their loved ones - were curtailed, but that was not defiance that could last in the long-term and on Earth.
For many of the Guilds in the west or the Clans in the East, the most powerful gained an uneasy alliance with the governments, balancing their needs with the government's own need and desire for strong Climbers, the outflow of enchanted material and goods and stones to provide for Climbers that had exited, and of course, the training of personnel with the Climbers own needs.
Beginner Towers were notoriously unreliable for providing materials. Even now, the Malaysian Tower had basically offered very little in loot drops. At exit, they might be able to acquire some small number of goods; but mostly, the exiting Climbers would emerge from the Tower with increased stats, their cultivation skills and a host of stones; many collected in the last few levels that they could then utilize to sell to other, previous Climbers; or to extend their stay.
By setting out, and moving through another Beginner Tower; they would necessarily gain a second or third or more surplus of beast stones to sell onwards. Which was, in the end, the most common methodology of survival and progress for a large number of climbers before they were, themselves, required to progress to higher Towers by the accumulation of Tower energy in their body.
A smaller number of cultivators, of course, chose to progress through Beginner Towers quicker to move towards intermediate locations. Not an official designation, of course, but one utilized by the governments to indicate Towers which were not only harder but also; more likely to provide material gains.
It was these Towers - and their resources that powered the Tower economy and, at the highest level of progress, Earth technology and luxury goods. With basic automation having overtaken the necessity for labour, the Towers made for a necessary relief valve for the population and also, a series of luxury items that could not be acquired anywhere else. As always, scarcity drove demand, especially among the elite.
In this sense, Clans and Guilds were both in high-demand for their - theoretical - ability to train and create a powerful and consistent source of new Climbers. Climbers who not only survived the first few towers but would progress to Intermediate Towers and pull rarer materials and goods.
Of course, on top of all that, there were other considerations like military might, utilisation of Climbers against other countries and the like - most commonly exemplified by the series of bad movies like 'Tower Force 1 / 2 and 4' and TV shows like 'Vigilance' or 'Death by Climbers'.
All of which was to say, at some point, he'd have to deal with the government. He could only hope that their small size would allow them to skate under the radar, for while rare, Clans or Guilds weren't exactly uncommon at all. Just, not usually formed on the very first floor.
Heck, there were two other Clan buildings on this very floor; including the one dedicated for the Bumikasih. Government sponsored and trained Climbers were, for the most part, elites that the rest of them - even people like Casey - left alone. Most were old money, others had contacts or were related to powerful individuals or royalty. None of them were people worth antagonising under fear of being tossed into prison when one left.
Or being visited in the Tower by someone paid off to showcase the government's significant disapproval.
"Whatever. So, the triads want to meet. What for?"
"Want us not to steal their people?" Eric offered.
"Maybe."
"Probably want to talk about how you can work together," Leia said. "With three of them here, can't be more than that, no?"
"Well, it'd be unusual for them to all agree to kill us. Especially after we did well with the 66," Arthur said.
"Oh... you think maybe," Eric made some stabbing motions, low-down as though he expected to slip a kris into a kidney or two.
"Betray us all?" Arthur considered the words, glancing around the city again idly. While he was becoming well known, at least by reputation, few enough people actively recognised him. Though the way people prodded and poked and pointed, he doubted that would last too long. "Be very brave to do that, to the other groups."
"Unless they kill us and the 66 all."
"Still a danger of retaliation outside of the floor."
"No lah," Eric said. "Mostly, fights contained to each floor, you know? At least among the triads."
"What do you mean?" Arthur said, curiously. He hadn't heard of that before - not that there was a reason he should have.
"Can't have fights start just because one person start one on one floor, so we normally keep retaliation to each floor. At most, in the Tower. Don't bring it outside, unless they step too far," Eric said.
Now Arthur looked confused, so Leia explained.
"It's about timing. If the outside, the main branches started fighting, by the time word got back that a fight had been resolved, or a peace agreement or treaty formed; it might have spread to another Tower, or outside. There's too much time and distance, so generally they keep it to the floor. If it's really bad, the Tower."
"Oh, that's smart." He frowned. "How about Guilds and Clans?"
"Same lah, but sometimes you can communicate faster."
That, Arthur knew of. Guilds that had communication means through Towers were generally only one-way or of limited use. Still, even limited real-time communication gave them a huge advantage over informal organisations, which was why the Tower made organisations were so valued.
Before he could ask further, he realised, they had arrived. It was easy to tell, what with the dozen or so thugs hanging around outside, glowering at anyone who even looked like they intended to come close.