Eternal Emerald Dragon

Chapter 1051 - 1050 - Assessment

With his new companions, Lind had to figure out their strengths and abilities before returning to the wider world.

The sect war was not as simple as various powers fighting over resources but manipulated minds and powers forced to fight with massive losses despite the more pragmatic view cultivators should take.

Even with the Divine Ruin removed, he operated under the assumption all would track his trip through the skies to see if he had treasures or resources they were all looking for.

His enemy just wanted souls and any clear enemies removed.

Jur was far too weak no matter what but he could help her foundation regardless. Nana was more problematic given she was beast kin but he could still see ways to assist her.

The true curve ball was Priestess Chu, herself.

She had not only shifted species but had massively increased her cultivation. She had not even faced a tribulation which even Haro could not explain.

It was possible the ordeal of species shifting counted as a tribulation but he had no other ideas.

Lind suspected facing the Divine Ancestor of her original bloodline was indeed enough so he did not argue the benefit.

He started with the easier part of the group with Nana and Jur. Their weaker realms let him refine their foundations

He let Jur and Chu bond while he started to train Nana.

She was the most problematic for him as he had never tried to help a beast kin before. Her foundation was a nightmare!

She had a dantian like a human but half her meridians were shifted to a beast! Without direct manipulation by an ancestral bloodline, she could barely advance!

It was little better than a slave contract!

He dared not use his own blood again but his harmony actually held an answer. By creating the Harmonic Key Elixir once more, he was able to unlock her potential to a more balanced state.

Rather than the forced shift her body had gone through, she became something closer to a human with an awakened beast bloodline. It took the better part of a year and several treatments of his elixir to essentially have her start over.

She did not get the benefits of the race memory or natural progression, but she did not suffer from the detriments of her human origin either.

It was the best case scenario he could ask for as her strength and foundation improved dramatically.

Once she resumed her cultivation, Jur was next up.

She was in the Sand Tier and unlike her mother, she was no longer cursed. She was a true Sky Panther descendant. Priestess Chu and he worked with her to better guide her on her cultivation but her instincts were now awakened entirely.

She made stunning progress in only a month to the peak of the World Realm!

Her tribulations were almost a joke after all the struggle he had faced! Even so, she was still very much a child and thus needed greater education than someone that looked similar to her age.

After a little over 2 years, Chu had mastered herself completely and could once more face her cultivation. Her foundation had been stable but her understanding was lacking entirely.

Her Laws alone were abysmal compared to what they should be.

Lind set goals for her but she only took a few months to hit them. It was enough to stabilize her and he did not want to delay his return any longer.

Like him, she could tear through space and fly but the same restrictions applied if not more so to her. He had to guide her through the first journey as the left the underground caverns and emerged into a star filled night.

The jungle was still there but the streak of burnt earth had already been covered up! It was terrifying how fast that was!

Lind spent a few days checking over the area before he frowned deeply. The place where the village was supposed to be was empty. The buildings and trees were just abandoned but no damage was found.

What happened to the Jade Dream Sect? Had no one come looking?

The total lack of corpses and battle was more disturbing to him but then his instincts screamed at him about something to the south. He thought it was an enemy or beast but then it was like he felt a strange thing.

The closest he could compare it to was when facing a heart demon went wrong. The Qi would run wild in a cultivator but if they had any shred of their original selves, they would be trying to claw back their body.

It was far more powerful to the south but the sensation was similar.

"What was that, Husband?" Lind blinked as Chu refused to call him anything else. Despite reclaiming her mind, the fact remained they had mated. Instinct or not, that fact did not change.

They had had a VERY long conversation about his situation but she did not seem to have a problem with any of it!

He pushed it aside as another strange spike came from the south. It was only then that he became concerned. He recognized the Qi signature!

"Stay close. I think a friend is in trouble." All 3 looked at him in surprise but Chu picked up Jur and the 3 set out. Their beast traits allowed them far more speed and stamina than humans so Lind did not have to hold back as they crossed the still ravaged jungle.

Beasts had returned to the jungle but they kept well clear of their group. The highest realm was a Sky Realm and nothing else.

It was clear the Corruption had long since wiped out more powerful beast clans. The beast kin had the advantage of human tools to augment their cultivation unlike the beasts.

The plants were unique in that they had far more Immortals among them but it was solely due to their long lifespans and highly resistant natures to change. The tainted Qi was affecting them as well but not to the same extent as other races.

They moved through the shadowed paths with shafts of light piercing the canopy as the wind moved the branches above their heads.

It was only after 2 days that they found the bodies.

Black and green robes were covered in blood in what was left of the Jade Dream Sect forces. Lind tried to discern if there were any other corpses but it was only as he saw the wounds that he knew he would find none.

"Claws. Beast tide?" It was possible but awfully damned convenient.

"It would explain why the village was abandoned. There are caverns they hide in when the signs appear." Chu spoke up and Nana nodded with her. Still, he found it deeply suspicious a beast tide just occurred as they returned to the surface.

The spike of Qi came again but now screams came with it. The voice confirmed who it was to him.

War Maiden Katara.

"Stay behind me. Something is very wrong." The corpses aside, he had not found any sign of a beast tide on their travels. Jungles and forests could recover quickly but there were still signs to be found.

He saw nothing. The beasts around them were relatively tame but not spent like they would be after a tide.

Aside from his own crashlanding, no other damage was found even as they moved on from the camp. Further, his senses were unimpeded so unless he was deaf and dumb, a beast tide occurred well within his range without being noticed!

The sun reached its peak as they came across a bloodied and mud covered Heavenly Maiden. The once resolute and calm demeanor of the woman he had met was nowhere to be seen as she looked almost half crazed.

"Kill her. She is losing to a heart demon." Chu spoke flatly and seemed to find the matter closed but Lind did not. His Eyes glowed and he frowned sharply.

"It is not a heart demon. It is war." The 2 older women looked surprised but Jur then floored them all.

"Why is that red stuff attacking her?" Lind snapped his eyes at her before quickly conjuring a span of metal. He slapped it over her eyes.

"Do not look any longer! I will take that off when we are away from here." Chu and Nana were surprised at his action but Lind was stunned. Jur had Soul Eyes! He had tested her but she had not shown any Talent yet now she did!

"RUN!" A scream was the only warning as a massive sword came whistling in the air. He snapped up his hand and caught the blade like it was just a stick! He then turned and saw the battle raging in War Maiden Katara's soul.

"You made an Oath, didn't you?" It was the only power that could fight the powerful bloodline array. If her mind had been cleared up again, she likely chose to swear something ridiculous.

A smirk flashed but then pain lanced her body before he saw veins of crimson try to claim her once more.

How long had she been like that? If it had been since the Ruin left, it was over a year!

"Time to sleep." Emerald flames engulfed her and the putrid smell of impurities filled the air as the cycle finally stopped. He picked her up and turned to his small party. "Back to the cave it seems."

Space shimmered as all 4 of them vanished. Perhaps he could get a real update if he could help the Maiden with her current dilemma.