Eternal Emerald Dragon

Chapter 1225 - 1224 - Blood and Ashes

Lind shielded his mother from the storm as they both tried to reach Kal, Tessa, or Kexin but nothing could leave the storms yet!

He raced along the paths he knew like the back of his hand. He noted the trail of blood at first but it veered off after a time. The bear would keep its word but it was harmless at the moment.

They reached his main cavern where the fox girl was brewing tea. He noticed a cup for him as well but he did not pause before collecting her.

His mother took over explanations as he raced them along. Numbers! They needed numbers!

The damn path had never seemed so long as days became a week.

He finally saw signs of the town wall ahead. Normally, he would follow procedure but today was not the day for it.

Emerald flames gushed around him as he shattered the icy gateway into the town. The demons panicked but he quickly imparted his orders. His erratic behavior shocked them all but his record worked in his favor.

The long line came in sight and he lost hope! They were clearly waiting for someone inside to come out!

They were all standing to the side! It was the normal position to await the people inside to exit!

"Halt!" A squad of Shard Tier demons appeared in front of him but he just brushed them off. They could not even slow him down!

Many grew angry but the handful of Radiant Tiers noted his erratic behavior as outside the norm. They calmed the line as he slammed his hand on the surface next to the door. Emerald Qi radiated like a sun from him.

He had ignored the damn bridges for 1300 years but now that he had to be fast he knew nothing about how to follow them.

Even he had no idea where the Knife Edge Bazaar actually was!

The bridges were the only way!

His Eyes and Touch were pushed to the limits once more such that blood began to fall from his physical eyes. His oppressive aura actually made the invisible bridge shimmer!

It all made sense! Why did the soulless always know when someone flew or tore through space inside the bridges? Why were they always able to zero in unerringly at that moment?

It was because they were monitoring the damn bridges the entire time!

Teleportation was easier to grasp in the empty space of the Endless Peaks but the soulless ability to intercept was troubling. It bothered him because he never felt anything when it happened during their only experiment.

It was just like they manipulated the–

He suddenly looked up at the bridge in a new light. Of course! There were more hidden bridges! They might have arrays hidden from sight to directly interfere with controlled teleportation!

It was actually a tactic of warfare to prevent cities from being evacuated or invaded. They adapted it and hid it in places they suspected the demons would try to set up safe points of contact!

It had been staring them in the face and they thought they were using some ancient relic left behind by a powerful cultivator.

It happened all the time on an individual level but the desperate situation made them embrace it without a proper investigation!

Now, a million years later, they thought they knew it all but the truth was far more sinister. It was a massive trap!

The thrice damned Fiends left it intentionally open. If it was not used, fine, but if it was, it gave them an easy way to spy on the cultivators' efforts to survive against the hordes!

He focused on the bridge and was floored at what he felt. It was like facing the Divine Wraith! Dao. It was made of a Dao but he could tell it was just barely done. Compared to his pseudo-Dao weapon, it was far more stable.

The comparison helped him and he narrowed his vision as the path was not straight as they long suspected. The bridge barreled down then back up while going in all the cardinal directions.

The shapes were sigils! The whole bridge was a giant weaving!

He finally found a massive hub of sigils he barely perceived but the location became clear.

"I found it!" He shouted aloud and the crowd murmured as suddenly demonic soldiers appeared in droves.

"Lord Emerald Immortal, we have come!" He looked to see Sliver to Crystal Tiers had arrived. A few Radiant Tiers stood up but he did not even pause as he began to engrave in the air.

"Do not wait, hop in once it opens." Shock covered their faces but they were even more stunned when the traces connected to the bridge. The previously invisible structure was exposed!

Space tore open and all were able to see the other side!

[GO!] Lind used a mental command to make people move as he collected his mother and the fox girl. He then paused as 3 familiar auras locked onto him. [Follow us!]

He then leapt in. The gateway was improvised and used the weaving of the bridge to make it. It would not last long at all.

Lind landed in the normally calm barren land with the Knife Edge Bazaar but it was a devastated land. Columns of black smoke curled up and screams were clear even as far away as they were.

"Damn it." He thought they would wait but they did not need everyone there. They only needed enough. If enough Radiant Tiers died, the soulless could lure the 4th layer to open up or worse, leave the 2nd layer and below exposed.

The orders had changed!

"How are they here?" One of the demons at the peak of the Crystal Tier spoke up but he glanced at familiar faces. Kexin glared at him but Tessa and Kal smiled to see him standing next to his mother.

"I owe all 3 of you a lot but I need you. Kal, go all out now." The man smiled as he transformed. He grew a meter in height as hooves, tail, wings, and horns all appeared. All the demons suddenly froze as a special aura washed over them.

Kal looked fierce as his dark leather and mail armor was revealed under his robes. A massive battle ax appeared in his hands that was also peak high grade 7! A name floated in his mind but there was no time for conversations.

[This is my follower with an Akashic Bloodline Physique. His orders are mine. Go to war!] Lind finished the mental words and Kal took the demons to the skies. The lavender skinned beings blotted out the sun but he noticed Tessa and Kexin stayed with him.

"You will be getting a kick to the head from me later, Lind Frey." He nodded at Kexin's harsh words but the fox girl frowned at her. He held her back as he looked to his mother.

"I will get you to a place to heal. Do what you can, Mom." She smiled as she nodded. She could fight but her greatest strength was as a healer.

"What will we do, Lord Frey?" Tessa had respect in her voice but he had no doubt she would have choice words for him later. He looked at the chaos as the demons joined it. There was no choice.

"Kill as many of the bastards as we can. It is a race against time to find the way they are getting in and collapse the damn thing." All 4 of them nodded at him. He turned to the fox girl and she swallowed as she understood she was critical.

Her senses were going to be needed and she had the best ones in the entire layer at the moment.

The group flew into the battles. Macabre scenes were everywhere between the flames of buildings collapsing. It was clear the soulless had ambushed the whole Bazaar.

The only silver lining was that only professionals lived there. No families or other vulnerable cultivators.

On the other hand, it also meant the attack was more effective in gutting experts of all grades and skills. Forges were shattered craters while several herbal pyres made a sickening sweet smell as flesh burned alongside them.

Lind could only ignore the devastated areas as nothing lived in them. The dark winged bastards appeared randomly and the 3 of them used their harmonies to send them to hell.

He noticed Kexin's harmony totally destroyed the soulless while Tessa was closer to him in just ceasing all life in them. He did sense they were a bit more dead than his but how he could not determine in the current situation.

They finally came to a barely standing barrier under assault. A massive cloud of soulless were breaking the formations but Lind merely roared before unleashing his flames. The soulless did not react but the demons and beasts behind the barrier found a second wind.

The Emerald Immortal had come! Kexin and Tessa decimated the enemy but Lind frowned.

Their reaction was fast, near instantaneous compared to before! There was no delay in orders!

[A Fiend is nearby. Be wary.] The group shivered but nodded. They quickly entered the barrier. Kexin and Tessa went to find places to shore up defenses while his mother and the fox girl followed him to the healing area.

He parted from her there and was left alone with his only companion.

"What is your name?" His question surprised her but a smile slowly spread on her golden face.

"Lina!" Lind almost sighed. The similarity could not be a total coincidence but he pushed it aside.

"We go on the hunt, Lina!" He used his aura and shot to the sky. The battle was ongoing but it would only end in annihilation if they could not cut off the damned soulless!