Eternal Emerald Dragon

Chapter 1381 - 1380 - Dangerous Ambitions

Barbatos was drinking a powerful wine in a goblet made from a massive tooth. It was not a rough affair, but a true artifact. It had been Forged by one of his ancestors from their own tooth.

He needed it to make a wine strong enough to even phase him normally. His Silver Tiger bloodline was highly beneficial with a significant downside as his race advanced. They lost the ability to enjoy a good drink!

His ancestors had worked with anyone, even the wicked sects, to see if there was any way to restore the power of a good drink!

He was not certain of the legend but it was rumored that his ancestor found a Divine Drunken Master. It was apparently considered a serious issue for the Divine Realm cultivator and he made it his mission to let Barbatos' ancestors enjoy drinking once more.

After much trial and error, the very bloodline that denied enjoying alcohol was used to make cups that made unfathomably strong wine. Any other Immortal would likely face a near death experience if they tried to drink it.

The goblet in his hand was part of a set of 9 but the other 8 were taken by others if they ascended or died in battle. Barbatos tried to find the latter but had no luck due to the Under Land's current standing.

His status was a little special and some Sovereign Land powers had invited him and the others but their race memory tied them to their territories.

Normally, he would simply be enjoying the dark red wine near a fire and listening to his many grandchildren telling him stories or clamoring for his own. The little tykes were now adults but they always made more in time.

Now, he drank to try and avoid thinking about the dangerous meetings he was sitting in on.

While originally the various forests were held solely by beasts, not all humans and demons sent down to the Under Lands accepted living outside a place they could use to advance.

Demons were a bit more respectful of strength but also sought out challenges. They felt cleaner to his sensibility. There were 2 humans that had used underhanded methods to kill the beast Sovereign Tiers.

The current state of the Under Lands made retaliation nearly impossible but the fact remained resources were not easy to recover either. So even if they took the current meeting to avenge their fallen comrades, they had no one to send to take over.

The humans and demons had met the harsh truth that the various forests could only sustain a single Sovereign Tier at the peak. Even then, only about 10 low Sovereign Tiers could be allowed as that would strain the forest to the max.

A flash of an emerald haired True Lord made him frown. Despite spending centuries in the forest, rather than greater consumption, Barbatos had felt like the Qi had improved dramatically.

The dryad Sovereign Tier had improved dramatically and been happier than he had ever seen any of the plants.

Honestly, she acted like a child but it was a nice change after how dour they all were. Also, unlike the other races, becoming a Sovereign Tier seemed to drain their vitality in some way.

Now, the dryad felt like she would outlive them all! The plants of his forest also seemed full of vitality far beyond the beasts until one took a closer look.

The Soul Realm to Sky Realm beasts were all healthier and more powerful than they had been in billions of years if records were to be believed.

Barbatos, too, felt his own cultivation improve and he felt like he had more Qi at his disposal with his Laws integrating faster than before. He had not reported any of it but now there seemed to be a similar effect causing the forests to grow.

Thus, the meetings. Meetings that normally only happened if one of them died or a crisis came up, now had gone on for a year.

The issue was the content.

The idiots wanted to prepare for invasive assault on the Hollow Lands!

They were under some delusion that the formation was breaking down but he knew the truth. His forest had shown such results internally over the last 600 years so when it spread he had a good guess why that was.

The True Lord had shared about the 6 elementals and how they were drastically different from other cultivators.

Given that the True Lord was one and suffered no ill effects from the formation, it followed that others would be like him.

Their arrival had caused many waves but the side effect was likely unknown to any in the Sovereign Lands. Sovereign Tiers commanded the world around them and it seemed the 6 elementals were having an unintended side effect.

He also thought they lacked common sense.

If the Under Lands were seeing such drastic changes, what would the Hollow Lands be seeing?

It all seemed to escape them and they felt the Heavens were on their side in the conflict they were trying to incite!

Barbatos loved battle but he trusted his instincts due to that. They told him it was a very bad idea to launch an attack but about 30% of the leaders wanted to do it. They also outright stated they would go without the approval of the group.

Realistically, they had no say to stop anyone from committing suicide but the Sovereign Lands had been clear when the formation was set up.

They would tolerate the beast holdings since they were their ancestral home and could no longer threaten them, but if an invasion began, the retaliation would not stop at the instigators.

It would be the excuse of those in the Sovereign Lands that had been clear to him via his contacts that they wanted to crush all hope of resistance. They wanted to rip out the last of the resources that had survived but all would know it was for their own use.

Even a damaged Sovereign Tier treasure would be helpful to them. Also, there was every chance such treasures could recover if taken to the Qi rich and Law stable Sovereign Lands.

He looked out at the azure and crimson leaves of the current forest there were in. Barbatos drank deeply as his golden eyes narrowed.

"I am not in the mood, witch." A lilting laugh preceded a demoness appearing as if out of mists. Her figure was almost beautiful but her face was disfigured. Her body was barely hidden by her scant robes yet her face always drew the eyes.

It was said she had been cursed by the Heavens for her indiscretions but Barbatos knew the truth. He could smell it in her blood.

"Your disapproval of me does not change that I share your stance. Those warmongering idiots will get us all killed. Can your special guest be of help to us?" Barbatos' knuckles turned white as his massive form blurred to slam the demoness into the dark wooden wall.

It cracked but she hardly seemed bothered as she seemed to be permanently sneering due to the damage on her face.

"You defile the spirits and get away with a curse yet dare to continue to defy the Heavens? Have you learned nothing?!" He spoke the absolute truth. No one knew of True Lord Frey that would pass it on but there was a way to learn of it.

It was possible to directly contact the spirits of Heaven and Earth with certain rituals. Normally, they were used for wisdom or inspiration but some found a darker use for them.

The delicate laugh did not match the twisted flesh looking down at him. He could not even see her eyes, but he knew she could see.

"I paid my price but the curse has unexpected benefits. Did you know the spirits are very happy he is here? They were quite obvious about it even beyond the realm we can see." Barbatos had not expected that.

His grip loosened but he downed the rest of his wine before moving back to the desk holding several glass containers held more for him. He poured 3 of the darkest red together into his goblet and it shimmered with silver light.

He set it on the table and looked back at her. Despite the chest and hips barely covered, the robes had not even shifted a centimeter due to his attack.

"Speak quickly, you have until the fermentation is done." She swept a hand down her robes and glared at him but chuckled.

"You are angry because you know the truth. They have to be stopped and there is only 1 way. If we do that, over half of us will die and those fools that survive may still attempt an invasion." He gritted his teeth to the point a high pitched frequency could be heard.

That was the problem spoken boldly. The rest of it was just words and delaying the inevitable battle. Some of both factions had left and a few neutrals that did not care or had too little to contribute as it was.

"I can ask him, but he is a creator, not a destroyer." For the first time he had known her, surprise flowed in her scent. She tilted her head as if listening for something before she slowly nodded.

"So he is but you should know that is not the whole truth. He is strong and willing to fight. Why focus on his skills?" She seemed genuinely curious but Barbatos noticed the goblet stopped shimmering.

"Time is up–" A chill went down his spine and he quickly dodged to the side.

"Stop being childish! You are the oldest of us and yet you act like you are still a cub suckling the teat of your mother! We will die! That fact leads to a single conclusion so why are you so reluctant to ask a True Lord of all things for help?!" Barbatos sighed tiredly but turned to her and looked more serious than he ever had in his life.

"You do not know the terror of a True Lord. The fact is, if he wanted, none of the beasts here could defy him. Do you understand? If I ask for his help officially, he will simply snuff out every Sovereign Tier without breaking a sweat. If he used his Authority, he would not even have to move." She looked in disbelief but then stumbled as the spirits seemed to confirm his words.

He downed the entire goblet and felt the burn. It felt good but it did nothing for the disquiet in his soul.

The witch was right. They were all going to die.

"I will talk to him, but be ready to accept the consequences." He then tore open space and vanished.