Ri could only stare helplessly at the now empty skies. There wasn’t even a moment to feel relief at the release of her mother… Because immediately afterwards, her husband was taken away…
No matter what nonsensical hopes she held, there was no logical path to victory. All signs pointed to their loss… How could Dyon, a mere boy of sixteen years of age, hope to survive against such powerful enemies? He was alone!
Little Black nudged Ri’s cheek with his own lovingly, trying to console her.
“Big brother has no intentions of dying,” Little Lyla spoke from atop Little Black, her large pink eyes glistening.
Ri listlessly nodded. She knew quite well that Dyon wouldn’t have any thoughts of death. In fact, with the anger blazing within him right now, his only focus was giving them the most horrid deaths imaginable.
But… If things went the way they wanted simply because they willed them… They would never be in this situation to begin with…
**
Within the Shruti section of the arena, Saru’s emotions were agitated. She could hardly say she had any deep feelings for Dyon – that was ridiculous. But, she had an understanding about him in their exchange of fists due to her sutra. His being held a purity that she had only ever seen from her own mother. A soul like that dying would anger anyone.
“It’s best that we go now princess.” Elder Shruti tried to speak tactfully, but there was no room for delay. This wasn’t their universe, nor was it their conflict. Since it was clear they wouldn’t get the opportunity to enter the Belmont Holy Lands, what was the use in staying? Even worse, the experts of this universe may very well be too much for them to handle.
That was by design, of course. It wouldn’t be much of a coming of age ceremony if Saru had too much help. In fact, it was because she was so young that she had protectors at all. However, this situation had clearly gotten out of control.
That day, the Shruti disappeared from the quadrant as though they had never been there.
**
“What did he tell you, Ulu?” Matriarch Lebna looked at her granddaughter who had seemingly regained color to her cheeks.
Ulu shook her head, a small smile playing her lips. “Nothing important. All that matters is that I’ll be able to birth husband an heir.”
“Is it really so simple?” Matriarch Lebna had lived too many millennia to be so gullible. Was there really anyone so benevolent in the martial world?
Even if Ulu had done absolutely nothing to Dyon prior, Matriarch Lebna wouldn’t believe that he would just go out of his way to help.
So, when she then considered the fact that it was her very own granddaughter that instigated the situation in order to gain their families a chess piece, she found it even more astronomically unlikely.
And yet, Ulu sat there smiling. The same girl who had cut off all her five senses just moments ago, seemed to have raised from a nightmare and into a dream. The beauty that made her among the six in this universe shone through fiercely…
Matriarch Lebna may never know how right she was. When Ulu dies on the birth date of her child, many might think it was a fluke or heaven’s jealousy. But, Ulu would always know different.
However, that didn’t matter to her anymore. She had lost her husband and child all due to her own selfishness. Everyone believed Dyon would die, there was simply no way out of this, so how could Ulu think he’d ever have the opportunity to save her husband? The mere fact he had gone out of his way to save her child before leaving was the only thing that anchored a feeling of pain and remorse in Ulu right now.
A man she had co-signed to a life of slavery… A man whose wife she had nearly taken the most important thing from… Still had the purity in his heart to not punish her child for the mistakes she made… And yet that was a man she had despised just moments ago…
‘You may never find out just what kind of service you’ve given to our clans…’ Ulu said to herself, ‘I nearly ruined everything, and yet you still found it in your heart to forgive. Even if it costs me my life, this is a price I am willing to pay. It’s a price I deserve to pay…
Thank you…’
**
Hours later.
In the skies above the planet, a second group battle was taking place. Luckily, outside of Dyon’s expectations, the reason Patriarch Cavositas hadn’t appeared wasn’t because he had joined that fight. In fact, he was nowhere to be seen!
Patia-Neva’s fists raged with dense ice and space intents as he clashed against King Clyte. The rest of their allies were there as well, but King Belmont seemed to be struggling – dealing with three opponents on his own.
“Haha! To think the mighty Patia-Neva would struggle so much with this little Clyte!” King Clyte mocked his long-time rival. How many years had he felt stifled by Patia-Neva’s talent? How many years had he lamented not having the strong legacy that the Patia-Neva’s had? Even when he thought that he had finally ridded himself of Patia-Neva for good, and established the Clyte clan as the new rulers of Planet Naiad, he had come to find out his wife was pregnant by another man!
Unfortunately for Patia-Neva, recovering from a cultivation deviation wasn’t so simple, and a mere decade and a bit more than a half wasn’t enough. His cultivation had plummeted, and his ice will, his most powerful, had followed. Even now, after all these years, he could only make use of one with mind ice will, having completely lost his martial way.
However, his one with mind was built solidly. He hadn’t been sitting idly for the past years. In fact, he had had to build his ice will from the very first level will to what it was now – a first level intent.
The truth was that King Clyte was still no match for Patia-Neva. However, after his first talk with his wife and daughter, Patia-Neva had settled on something…
Although he never thought of asking for forgiveness, and was perfectly ready to be cut out of both of their lives, the two most important women in his life had given him an ultimatum: to build his dao the right way.
And his first step toward that goal was to make use of this pitiful first level intent to do away with the last of his inner demons.
However, the longer he spent trying to shed away his shackles, was another moment that their inevitable defeat itched ever closer.
Within the demon sage’s tower, the mixture of groups was odd. It seems that the only thing that really connected these people was Dyon…
There was Lionel, Dyon’s wives, his siblings, Clara, the Sapientia, the Pakals, and even Ava and some Sicarius were there. And yet, the space was deathly silent..
The war had seemingly ceased. After the near destruction of the planet, no one could find the energy to continue to do something so useless.
Suddenly, Lionel broke the silence. “I have the ability to bring you all to the Belmont Holy Lands in the absence of my father, but, I won’t do it if it’s nothing but a suicide mission.”
Ri’s eyes glistened as she looked up. She didn’t like Lionel’s words, but she understood them. What was the point in going if they’d just end up in the same situation again? Dyon might even have to threaten suicide yet again for them to survive. Few knew more than Ri just how powerful a kitsune’s legacies were. For her mother to lose… and so thoroughly at that… This situation wasn’t normal.
“However, there’s also no love lost between me and him. For me to do so requires payment.” Lionel’s eyes traced over Madeleine’s sleeping body before he returned it to Ri.
A palpable and dense anger built in the air.
“Ha. When everyone thought the world would end, despite your grudges, my husband allowed you to step into his treasure. He didn’t have to do so, and he was even less afraid of not doing so. Yet, he allowed it anyway. And now you have the audacity to ask for payment?” Ri’s growled, her canines growing in length with her every word. “If you were ever wondering what the difference between you two was, it’s clear as day. You have no integrity, no substance, and no heart. For you to think you could ever win the heart of my big sister is quite simply the best case of insanity I’ve ever come across.”
Lionel’s features didn’t shift at Ri’s words, instead, he answered calmly. “The other difference is that I’ll be alive at the end of today and he won’t.
“As for your other point, your husband lost nothing allowing me to enter. However, I would actively be sending myself to death. In addition, my life is worth far more than his. He is the successor of a dead man and a dead clan. I am the prince of a Royal God Clan. How can these things be compared?”
Ri’s baleful aura filled the lobby of the tower, “To stand there and have the gall to say those words. I’d really like to hear what Royal God Clan you’re prince of? From what I see, your family’s power structure has been completely shattered.”
Surprisingly, Lionel still didn’t react adversely. “That’s a matter of perspective.” He didn’t seem intent on explaining as he continued. “I don’t want Madeleine in the way you’re thinking. I simply want her to return something that should have never been hers to begin with.
Give it back and I’ll escort you. If not, feel free to kick me out of the tower.”
Ri’s eyes suddenly flashed with a realization. She had assumed that Lionel was asking for Madeleine to fulfill some sort of sick and twisted power trip. But, it turned out that he was asking for her faith seed!
Because faith seeds were the fruit of external cultivation, they could be taken and stolen. This could leave the one losing the faith seed either dead or alive. However, more often than not, a person would rather die than separate with a faith seed for obvious reasons.
In addition to this, there was the added layer of protection added by clans once one of the members transcends. This protection allowed for clans to tell when their faith seeds left the possession of one of their own. In cases where this happened, all out wars would often occur which is was why it was practically an unspoken rule that such things were banned. It was highly taboo to steal faith seeds as a result.
However, Madeleine’s was different… For one, Madeleine herself wasn’t a member of any phoenix clans, so her having the seed should have already set off alarms. But! Amethyst’s faith seed never had this layer of protection added because she transcended while hating her clan. Also, even if she had had this added layer of protection, the phoenixes were extinct… There was no one to detect such a thing.
This also made Madeleine a value that was nearly limitless. Why? Because she was the key to reviving two phoenix bloodlines. Her descendants, should they be talented enough, would be the only way for the faith seeds of the long extinct ice and fire Phoenixes to makes their reappearance in the world because the bloodlines the Belmont’s had been simply too weak to do such a thing – they weren’t even recognized by the universe as having Phoenix bloodlines.
That said, this was a double-edged sword… Because that meant that should anyone choose to steal Madeleine’s faith seed, there would be no deterrent…
Although others may not be fully aware of where Madeleine’s faith seed came from, and would thus be too apprehensive to take it, Lionel and the Belmonts were different. They knew exactly what it was! In fact, many Belmonts saw themselves as the rightful owners after protecting Amethyst’s temple for so long.
Ri’s frown deepened. She couldn’t believe the level of shamelessness of this supposed prince. Did he really think he was worth something while he acted like this?!
“Absolute n –“ Before Ri could finish her sentence, a weak voice rang out.
“I accept. Help us save Dyon, and I’ll willingly give it to you.”
**
Many hours ago, as soon as Patriarch Ragnor’s hand had fallen on Dyon’s shoulder, a high level spatial intent had torn them through the air, allowing them to appear directly above the Belmont Holy Land.
From the outside, it looked just as peaceful as ever. Dyon stood straight and tall by the man he saw as nothing short of his mortal enemy. It seemed that Patriarch Ragnor was intent of using his hand on Dyon’s shoulder to ensure that he was at least a few inches lower than him.
‘There’s something off here…’ Dyon’s 6th sense had reached ridiculous levels. Even with the shroud over the Belmont Holy Lands, he could tell that something just wasn’t right. It couldn’t be so peaceful.
Almost as if on cue, an opening in the formation manifested, revealing complete and utter devastation.
Majestic mountains blazed in fire, green pastures lay coarse and unkempt, even the magnificent buildings that had once been the unmatched would make an artisan shed tears of sadness.
Without so much as a word, Patriarch Ragnor flashed forward with Dyon’s shoulder still clamped in his hand. In an instant, they were before an odd entrance that seemed to have been quite important and well guarded until everything was thrown into chaos.
The surrounding warriors looked startled by the sudden appearance of two unknowns. But, before anything was said, a familiar old man and his grandson stepped out of the cave.
Elder Daiyu’s eyes swept over Dyon, but he didn’t see any of the despair he thought he would.
Chenglei burned with rage when he saw that it was Dyon who had come. He had suffered two massive losses because of this young man, and here he was pretending as though none of this had anything to do with him.
An uncontrolled sneer appeared on Chenglei’s features. “I hope you remember your words when you stood arrogantly in the skies above that garbage Focus Academy at that bogus wedding.
What was it you said again? You wouldn’t hide your identity as the celestial deer sect’s successor because you wanted your enemies to know you existed and despair in the knowledge that they couldn’t stop you?” Chenglei chuckled, losing his usual cool and indifferent demeanor, “How’s that working out for you now?”