novelraw Chapter 1021 - 1020 - Lost Villages
Chapter 1021 - 1020 - Lost Villages
The brother's words proved true as they moved through the wilds. They came across old and new signs of smaller battlefields. Lind noticed only a few corpses were left to rot but only his finer senses could detect the bits that remained.
The more he saw of the countryside as they moved north, the more he realized every square centimeter was ripped up at one point by severe battles yet now it seemed more rare.
Compared to what he felt in the south, the forest around him was clearly all grown at the same time in the last 800 thousand years. The sheer breadth of that similar growth time meant it had been a dead zone back then.
They moved for the better part of the day and the tiny ears on Lan flexed just like a cat as he looked back at them several times. He was holding his brother's hand tightly but waved at them with a smile that could melt any heart.
A smirk crossed his face as he waved back. Shoti would have insisted on cuddling the little boy while Annabelle and Qing would have tried to protect him from her. He could see Cyntilla then sneaking around them all to pick him up for 'safety reasons.'
Ethry and Kora would have been interesting to see for reactions but Lysanna would have had a tired sigh looking at it all.
Tal and Fey would have been all over him if they could. His other children would not be any better!
"Lind, we are being followed." Delenn whispered to him but he nodded. He saw Lan look afraid but he smiled wider and waved at him.
"They are not an enemy." It was not a human following them, but a beast. He glanced to his left and his eyes narrowed.
A figure loomed beyond the brush and he recognized it as an ape.
[Do not interfere with us.] Lind sent his message but the ape only looked at him sharply before beating its chest.
He smirked and flared his draconic aura at it. The response was immediate as the ape moved off. He doubted that was the end of the interest as the beast had been near the peak of the Sky Realm.
It was plenty powerful enough to have intelligence beyond its instincts.
"Any beast clans nearby?" Lind asked the question but Bori shook his head. His white hair almost seemed to glow in the sunlit day.
"Many are barely holding on. The rest moved far away since the Ruin appeared. We all knew great danger would come." Bori stopped and looked up at the sky. "Many have died to those trying to profit from the misery here."
Lind felt grim but nodded as they resumed their journey.
His aura was spread wide and he finally saw the ruins of settlements. Skeletal remains were piled together in the burnt out husks of structures. They were long cooled and grown over, but he could still see them with his aura.
He counted at least a dozen and the size estimated a few hundred lived there at one time.
Anger surged in his veins but it was far too late to do anything.
As they came close to sundown, he saw fresh destruction. It was clear the survivors of the villages had tried to live together but that was not enough.
He paused as he felt an imprint on one village.
It was as devastated as all the others but it had a lingering trace of the white tiger. It was over 2 decades old and would align with the older brother's age.
He could not piece it all together but the timing indicated their mother had tried to force her cultivation or her bloodline to advance. It failed and now her children showed it had been worth it. They had lived for a time.
As the sun was about to vanish, a small cave came into his range and he saw simple formations set up to protect it.
Early twilight was when they actually reached it and he saw Bori place a stone on a rock to let the formations allow them to pass.
He could have easily bypassed them as they were only grade 3 but he did not disillusion them.
The cave was rather nice as there were areas carved out for sleep, desks, and a hearth.
He was impressed at how comfortable it was and Delenn smiled at it as well. The brothers relaxed at last and bowed to a small shrine near the entrance. He saw a table crudely carved with 2 names.
He bowed low to it and she did as well.
"Welcome to our humble abode, seniors. Please relax here." Bori pointed to a few simple stones set up as seats. Lind smiled and sat as the 2 nearly collapsed. Bori was in the later tiers of the Sky Realm but Lan was in the early Soul Realm.
Despite the lack of resources, they had decent cultivation realms but it was clear both would top out at the peak of the Sky Realm with their body requirements.
Lind could help them but he was not there for that.
"May I ask about your mother?" Lan got excited but Bori held up his hand to stop him. His pale eyes looked coldly at him yet Lind stayed calm. "I merely want to know what caused her to fail in her awakening."
Bori slowly nodded.
"I was in my mother at the time. It is why I am so strong. The battle had nothing to do with the village but they came anyway. Father was about to die when she said it was like a burning fire in her body awoke. She was about to fully awaken when–" Bori looked guilty as he stopped.
Lind understood instantly.
"She went into labor." It was not a question and Bori nodded.
His birth caused her to fail.
"She was still able to save his life and get away before I was born. I have lived in this cave since. We were doing well but then it was like the life went out of her after Lan was born." He looked to Delenn but she had no more idea than he did.
He could well imagine that a failed awakening would affect the vitality of the cultivator.
"You said your father died not long after?" Bori nodded and looked angry.
"He just wanted to hunt for some food! We just want to live but the guard chased us off when I was a child and my mother as well!" He looked at Delenn and she looked guilty as she nodded.
He did not understand. Humanoids were generally welcome even if they were beasts. So why were they turned away?
"Beasts with humanoid form before the Heaven Realm are considered problems. Other beasts will want them and could invite a beast tide." He found that unusual but could at least grasp it.
Beasts advanced by consuming prey. If a beast could assume humanoid form before the Heaven Realm, the meat would be incredibly beneficial. A failed awakening, however, he suspected would be the furthest thing from desirable to them.
"I do not care about such things but I can tell I am not common. Here." He pulled out food from his ring for both of the brothers. It was mostly meat and some spices for them to have.
They both drooled but Bori turned his head.
"I will not take pity!" Lind smirked as it was clear they were hungry.
"I healed you. You need to eat to fully recover." Lan looked at his brother desperately with his finger in his mouth. Where did he learn to be so cute?!
Bori seemed to see through Lind's intentions but slowly nodded. They dove at the meat and subsumed it!
He kept producing meat until both were satisfied and sleepy.
The brothers drifted off right where they sat.
"This sect war is terrible. Can you stop it by claiming the Ruin?" Delenn spoke as she gently covered the pair with a cover from the resting area.
"I doubt it. The destruction I saw was brutal and likely only the tip of a rather dark iceberg. They have shed blood for over a million years. At this point, no one would accept a loss." His words were depressing but hard to deny.
She may not be able to reach as far as him but the truth was clear to her.
He looked at her suddenly in inspiration.
"Could you stop the war?" The Fionan Empire technically ruled the area. Could the hegemony not put a stop to it?
"It does not work that way. The Heavenly Maiden Sect was able to erect war towers in our empire without repercussion. It means my father or someone in the noble court authorized it. It also means they are in on the war as well." He frowned at her words but saw the issue.
The sects were not weak to the empire. They were all fighting over lands outside the protection of the Law Bindings and the investment was not cheap.
HIs anger rose once more and a desire to end it with it. He summoned his badge and felt the pull still to the north and west of their current position.
"I think it is time to resume old habits." She was confused but he began to plan. The war was costing innocent lives on a level he could not accept.
He was going to war.