Eternal Emerald Dragon

Chapter 1129 - 1128 - Rubyfire Palace in Ruins

Lind looked grimly at their surroundings. The tracks clearly continued up the volcano but they had to stop before then due to the debris. It was a palace but it was missing towers, walls, and generally clear it had been the focus of the previous attack.

The King and the Crown Princess as well as the former king had all been away. It was the perfect strike time. There were likely still defenders left in place but if they were betrayed at the right time, even that would not be enough.

Power could be based on strength but knowledge could break strength when applied correctly.

Lind had proven that all too well in his relatively shorter life. The broken formations, collapsed structures, and still smoldering areas revealed a very long term plan had come to fruition in Rubyfire Kingdom.

Compared to the area he fought Delenn, it was clear it was a well coordinated attack and not a group running from a predator. The path had been cleared but he could see traces of the once fine reception area.

"Lord Emerald Immortal, I will guide your party to some quarters we have set aside for you. They are not what we hoped to give you but they are still far above the quality others can currently enjoy." The 5th Prince spoke up and his eyes looked determined to make a better impression but Lind smiled at him.

"Thank you. Oz and Ranger will take all but Chu and Jur. Settle in and we will come later. Mills, you are to focus on your gains." The girl bowed at him and the majority left as Princess Fyre led the trio up the final stretch to the main palace.

The halls were rife with signs of battle but Lind narrowed his eyes as he noticed the servant passages.

They were entirely intact. That could not be a mistake nor an oversight.

"So, he used the servant corridors to bypass the battles." His voice caused the Princess to nod grimly.

"We did not have time to properly investigate until it was all over. By then you had already killed him." Lind did not bother to correct her. He had at best irritated the true enemy but the threat was currently removed.

The main corridors were still blocked with wreckage but a path had been opened and he noticed the incline had been carved into at each floor. The way up was stark since they had to climb over some of the improvised repairs.

He saw it was originally ramps with some stairs but he noticed some formations to levitate were there as well. It made key choke points for any invading force but something clearly had not worked.

Every floor showed signs of battle so how had the enemy overcome the choke points?

"They stole the formation activation keys?" He mumbled as he rubbed his chin in thought but Princess Fyre never slowed or answered his question. Chu, however, shook her head.

"I feel something wrong, Husband. It is as if the very air is wrong to my senses." Lind had long since mastered his draconic senses but he was still born human. He could not interpret the nuances on the finer end of things like a natural beast could.

He focused on his physical senses and just barely felt it. Space had been twisted! He quickly used his Eyes and narrowed them.

"The formations to stabilize space were usurped to allow jumping between floors!" It was clearly a sign an expert had betrayed the palace but it also gave him ideas. Inverting the function of a formation like that was the work of a genius.

Eventually, they came to the first area where the damage was not as extensive. Lind noticed, however, a lingering scent of blood. A lot of people died before the 2 massive steel doors in front of them.

He saw the formations were intact as well unlike most of the places they had passed. Princess Fyre bowed low as she turned to them.

"Welcome to our home." The thunk of the lock was heard as the doors swung inward. A massive hall towered into the sky and a crystal window looked out on the hollow peak of the volcano where a massive ruby red crystal floated over active magma.

Lind was in awe as the feeling of Laws was much heavier than even he had expected. The palace and other structures must insulate the crystal from the rest of the city and also protect weaker cultivators from being influenced by the crystal while they tried to cultivate.

Any tribulation would have been disrupted as well by just the presence of the crystal.

Tribulations related to anything with fire Qi would be incredibly more powerful or cause dangerous Qi deviation if the cultivator did not fully grasp the Laws contained within the Fire Law Crystal.

While the hall was actually very clean and neat with 2 seated areas on either side of the main walkway, the raised thrones were clearly cracked or repaired recently. Lind also noticed there was a doorway hidden at the back that had been quickly replaced since he could feel the heat leaking into the room.

There were passages off to other places in that part of the palace but he suspected the inner palace simply encircled the peak of the volcano. It doubled as direct access to the crystal and a final defense they can focus on both their royal family and the crystal without having to double up if they had 2 different locations.

Even a peak Crystal Tier would find going near that Fire Law Crystal dangerous as incompatible Laws or a lack of comprehension could overwhelm them if they tried to bypass the city entirely to get to the volcano.

Lind looked up to see King Risselle looking exhausted on his throne but he smiled at them as they all came in. Compared to before, his eyes were much dimmer and even his hair was dull. Whatever technique they used hinged on the condition of the Fire Law Crystal.

"Welcome to the inner palace, Lord Emerald Immortal. I see you are not hiding your strength anymore!" Battle maniacs were indeed scary!

Not a single comment about his physical appearance but only about his strength!

"Your Majesty, I think we should dispense with routine and address the serious issue you summoned me for." Lind noticed nothing from the room they were in but he had no comparison either.

He frowned but then saw his father stare hard at him so he bowed and they moved on towards the back of the massive hall. It was actually bigger than it looked as it took nearly a quarter of an incense stick burn to cross it!

He felt like there was some spatial manipulation or perhaps it was another layer of defense. Eventually they crossed a boundary and the feeling of heat spiked but the trio was hardly bothered.

The King and his family seemed surprised not even Jur was affected but they came to the recently repaired door. Lind saw broken formations for bloodline authentication but now the King simply infused Qi to unlock the stone door.

It slid away and the group came out into the searing area of the volcano. There was a feeling of disruption despite none of the magma flaring or being violent. The hissing of stone and molten material was normal but Lind felt like all his Fire Laws were improving just standing there.

He actually felt less pressure than expected but Chu and Jur clearly had to stop and acclimate. He noticed pylons lit up around a platform of dark stone and quickly realized they were the final layer of protection from the raw environment.

It was like an airlock for the Fire Laws!

The King and Princess seemed to become pale all of a sudden but he did not see a reason. The former king fared better which deepened the mystery for Lind.

Since no one spoke he moved forward until he saw an arched entrance way to a path that led up to a stone outcrop right below the floating Fire Law Crystal.

He felt no resistance and simply walked up. The volcano felt rather comfortable to him but he found that odd. He had experimented with various environments and confirmed a few things with Ethry, Illyria, and Feng.

Phoenixes, of course, found any flame welcome. They could sit in a literal erupting volcano and think of it like a shower.

Conversely, black shelled tortoises did not like them at all. Dragons were mixed.

Fire Qi based dragons were closer to a phoenix but not to the extent of enjoying an eruption! Other elemental strengths had varying results but fire was not a good choice against most dragons.

Ethry, being of all 6 natural elements, found most environments enjoyable but still could not match a phoenix.

Lind found himself to be the same usually but at the moment, it was as if he had come home.

He pushed it aside as he looked back and saw the royals were struggling for some reason but Chu had started to follow after him. Jur had assumed a lotus position and begun to cultivate.

He turned back to finish the journey and finally stood directly beneath the Fire Law Crystal. He had never seen a Law Crystal before and expected to take days to even begin to understand it, but he was shocked.

The crystal was not mysterious to him at all! Lind almost stumbled as his dantian surged not only with Fire Laws but all 18 elemental Laws! His harmony flared like a star in his crystal and the world fell away.

The last thing he knew was pain was spreading in his mind but then the world became nothing but light!