Eternal Emerald Dragon

Chapter 1162 - 1161 - Fallen Immortal

Lind had only caught the end of the confrontation but he had learned a lot. Oz's provocations had let slip several potential enemies but there were some basic idiots there too.

The Dawn Imperium was a prime example.

They sent someone who disdained everything from what he could tell. Lind did not need any special senses to determine it as he had met enough of them to recognize many of the ticks to their personality.

The Heavenly Maiden was also far too assertive to be the true envoy unless they expected him to roll over due to only being a guest elder. It was not impossible but a very short sighted move if true.

The demons were the surprise to him. They gave off all the flags of being battle maniacs but when the tension was at its highest point, where a maniac would be happy, they were calm and cautious.

The more troubling was the Divine Sword man, Hannibal, and the Stonelight Guild elder. They seemed amicable but Lind felt something was off with both of them. It was not Fiends but something was very wrong with them.

The phoenix was also odd but it might be due to her artifacts obscuring her features even to his eyes.

All in all, the other members of the banquet were more like guards than envoys. The True Maidens in particular had a hell of a bloodlust at the end!

Their group returned to their quarters where Lind dismissed everyone to relax, save Oz. It was time for some answers.

The 2 men sat on their knees around the low table in Lind's courtyard. Lind poured the tea as Oz seemed to become frail. The arrogance and confidence from the banquet was nowhere to be seen.

Lind had not been sure but something had been rising in Oz at that moment that far exceeded the Diamond Tier.

"What are you Oz? You have helped me very well and been a source of advice about the 2nd layer for me, but those people from the upper echelons recognized you. I trusted you with my truths, will you not do the same now?" Lind did not hold back.

He had no time as by tomorrow, his door would be inundated with demands for meeting him and explanations about why Oz was with him.

The wrinkled face smiled sadly at him before untying his belt and lowering his robes to show his scarred chest. Lind narrowed his eyes as it was not an injury a Diamond Tier could survive.

Even more interesting, was that he never felt a thing when he examined Oz before.

"Immortals can be vindictive bastards, Master. Before I was captured by the band that held Ranger, I was an arrogant assassin. I was good too." A smirk of pride flared but then dimmed.

Lind let him collect his thoughts as they both sipped at the tea. He had chosen Sealed Mint Tea as it was good for soothing the soul. All the emotions weighing one down would be released according to the merchant he got it from.

It really did stimulate the mind from what he could tell but whether it helped with emotions remained to be seen.

"I won't bore you with my adventures but I will tell you about my fall. The bloodline array likely explains how busy I was but at the end I should have been more suspicious. I was given a commission to kill the general of Azure Light Peaks. You should visit there if you ever get the chance and see the peaks light up at night. It is like starlight on the ground." Oz smiled before looking off into the distance.

"It was a trap. Or rather, it was all a collusion to try and end me. My organization often did that for members they felt threatened by but until me, they never colluded with a target! I thought I was executing a fine attack, only to be ensnared by Law Grade formations." Oz rubbed his chest in a clear memory of pain.

Lind was confused though. A cultivator could lose their foundation but falling as far as Oz should result in death.

Vitality could not be recovered and losing cultivation should accelerate aging, so why was Oz still alive?

"They gave some pretty speeches about me rising above my rank and other petty excuses. Really, they just felt threatened by someone that could live on their own outside the organization. I did not blame them, really, but I was not just going to accept my death easily." Oz sneered at the memory before he summoned an ancient dagger.

It was chipped and cracked but Lind could feel the lingering precision of its creation. It was an Immortal tool. It was totally scrap now, but he could feel it had once had a spirit too.

"It had a convoluted name, but I simply called it Ender. We were partners for 4 million years before that trap. I only draw breath thanks to them." Lind let his aura wash over it and became sad as he felt only a wisp of intent still inside it.

The spirit was long gone.

"It sacrificed its life force for you. A good friend, indeed." Oz looked surprised at first before smiling widely at him.

"Master, I thought I knew the depth of your consideration but you still surprise me. I know your ring has a spirit but you treat all life the same." Lind nodded at his words but Oz then caressed the broken dagger gently.

"If I was to guess, I have maybe a century left at most. Still, it was more than I could ask for. Ender was more than I deserved at the end and I was able to kill my enemies since they expected me to die when they destroyed my crystal." Lind snapped up at those words.

Breaking an Immortal's crystal was not an easy thing at all! Even his power, impressive as it was, could hardly scratch one but he had no doubt weapons were created for that effect.

"Does that organization still exist?" Oz smiled wide as he looked at him.

"Not at all. Someone may have revealed all their base locations to parties that wanted revenge for millions of years. Strange coincidence, that." Lind could only nod at that.

"What about those at the banquet, why did they know you if you were an assassin?" Being infamous was one thing but recognizing someone on sight was damned odd for so many.

Oz then summoned a rather plain sword that had a sheath that was worse for the wear. Still, he knew what it was at once.

Shock covered his face as a broken token joined it.

"Assassination came later, but my first path was quite righteous. I was a core disciple of the Divine Sword Sect. I was also bestowed the Dao title of WInd Slicer when I was only a Sky Realm. I was very good." Lind was surprised but nodded. Still, it begged the question, how had a Divine Sword Sect disciple become an assassin.

As if reading his mind, Oz became grim.

"Hannibal is an honorable man but he is rather rigid. If the sect declares someone an enemy, reasons do not matter to him. All that matters is order. Be wary of him as he would not like your ideals at all. The races should be separate in his mind." Lind finally felt why that man felt off to him.

"The old woman?" Oz snorted at the question.

"She is his old lover, believe it or not but he chose the sect over her. While I can understand it to a point, Hannibal took it to an extreme due to his superior. That is the man behind him. Sect Master Decker. If you allow it, I will happily die to kill that bastard." Lind narrowed his emerald eyes to those words.

Oz sipped deeply at the tea before contemplating how to proceed.

"My fall from grace was not exactly cut and dried. I was happy as a disciple but I was not so fixated on the sect to not see some of the corruption in the higher ups. They turned a blind eye to things like many sects but I had no problem with that. My issue came up when my mother was ill. She was beyond their lands so it was no concern to them so far as that went, but I made a request to attend her last days." Oz looked like he was about to collapse at that moment.

All the strength went out of his body.

"Decker was just an elder in those days but he was in charge of me. He denied my request because I defied his orders before. I refused to wipe out a village that defied the sect. They were just mortals so why did we have to wipe them out? I was not into killing weaklings." Lind narrowed his eyes once more and filed away that detail.

"Why are you so frail now?" Oz smirked but then his aura spiked suddenly before falling once more.

"I think Ender not only saved my life but a reservoir of my old self. I can feel it. I can't advance any more but my old strength is there for one last battle. I can be an Immortal again if I want for a brief time at the cost of my vitality. I can only guess but I think I can be at my peak strength for a day before I die." Lind tried to gauge the truth but Oz seemed like a normal Diamond Tier to his senses.

Still, he put it on his agenda to study Oz more later.

"Thank you for trusting me. You are mine and I will not give you up. Still, I would ask you to refrain from provoking the others further. I am sure I will need no help on that front." Oz nodded but then paused before speaking.

"That Adan should be taken at surface level. He is vain and an idiot but he is the son of the current Emperor. He is spoiled beyond belief too. Still, he despises shortcuts to power. He has become an Immortal through his own effort so do not underestimate him." Lind nodded.

Oz then went on about what he knew of the others. Some of it was personally gained but the demons were pure speculation as he had never met them before.

The pair had a frank conversation long into the night and Lind learned much about his upcoming meetings. He almost wished Fiends would attack by the end of it but he had no doubt they would make a move.

It was time to prepare for the next dance!