Eternal Emerald Dragon

Chapter 1629 - 1628 - The State of the Western Lament

Lind and Sun tested his Battle Aura, well Lind called it testing but the thrice damned monkey called it fun, and they confirmed Lind had improved.

His Battle Aura was no longer stagnant but it was far from refined. The extreme version was avoided for obvious reasons but it was a massive upgrade in his battle strength!

Sun then pulled experts in spears, swords, shields, and all manner of weapons but not all were at the Divine Realm. Most were Radiant or Sovereign Tiers but they were all insanely potent auras of their respective weapons.

It helped Lind refine and perfect his newly ascended Battle Aura.

The training also became the main entertainment of the entire island! Lind was more than willing to partially transform to gain an edge and further his aura. Sun and the others could fight to their heart's content and thus invigorate the others of the lower realms.

Karu scolded him for indulging the fervor of the island but Gaia was laughing and enjoying herself.

Ever since he awoke, she seemed more carefree. The previous centuries she had been so serious after they hid away from the world. Some burden had been lifted by witnessing his Mystery on top of somehow reclaiming part of her father's heritage.

No matter how Lind examined her, he had no explanation for how it happened. It had to be related to her dryad bloodline but he frankly had a very shallow grasp of the more advanced plant species.

Most Immortal plants saw no need to transform or become something other than what they were. There was also the fact he had started to encounter races he had never heard of in any record of his old Celestial Fields Realm.

Karu affirmed that certain continents seemed to be connected to more varied environments that Lind would generally classify as aliens.

Yet, the cultivation elements did not change. It made him wonder if his old Earth shared worlds with counterparts to those races in the universe. It was likely.

It also made him wonder if the beasts mimicked those forms rather than humans in those worlds! Could he shift races like that with his skill?!

Aside from combat and elixirs making progress, Lind also advanced his weaving. He still was not a true Grand Maester but he was getting closer. The various needs of the island demanded some complete replacements from him and since no Fiends existed there, he could freely make powerful defenses to keep them out.

Sun appreciated that.

Sun also answered his questions about the past. The Western Continent was once the largest of the 4 in the Divine Lands. Sun often traversed all 4 but always returned to the west when his memories awakened or became close to doing so. He had to reclaim his staff and ascend to being a True Lord.

A very vague memory of a legend on Old Earth appeared in Lind's mind and he wondered if the legends of the Divine Lands infected all worlds somehow. The name he originally blamed on one of his own may have actually been caused by the reverse process!

Stories of all the legendary creatures could also be the same.

As he ascended, he grew to realize the Dao touched all worlds just to different degrees. If humans of Old Earth had been able to be affected by it, could they have seen the cultivation world in flashes? Magic, fairies, and so forth could all be glimpses of the higher realms?!

He had zero proof but it did not detract from the stories they had created. Inspiration was certainly potent and maybe some were so strong they could not be altered that much by mere mortals.

Still, he did not see the more scientific fantasy creatures so it was not a perfect theory.

The Western Continent was host to many powerful factions that encouraged academic, crafting, and other centers of the more mental side of cultivators. The Deity Alchemy Guild had essentially spread its branches from there to all the continents.

The Western Continent had the most dense civilization mixed with treasures. Thus, it made the most apt sacrifice for the birth of the Fiends.

Sun had not been alive at that time. It was the only reason his memory retained the truth about the Celestials. The Heavenly Punishment wiped such knowledge that existed at that time.

Sun could think of a few places like the lower worlds that might retain records but Celestials were not exactly popular. They had a kind of arrogance and aloofness to them that did not endear them to others.

Lind had not experienced that at all but then again, he had revived them in his world.

After the devastation, the Void Ocean powers moved in enmasse. It was a great opportunity and any small islands were either swallowed whole or became footholds to invade larger ones.

Sun was born during that time. He had to fiercely gather his people and fend off invaders for hundreds of millions of years.

In all that chaos, no one noticed the creep of the Fiends. The vile bastards seemed to have a single thought of slipping into the shadows and honing their craft while planting seeds. The long-term planning had already begun back then too!

Sun died and was reborn quite a few times before the chaos finally settled. Now, there were essentially 4 major factions left.

The largest island was held by a mercantile faction. Alchemy, refining, and so forth had risen from the ashes of the giants that fell and used those Mystery Grade resources to repel all invaders.

No single guild could stand alone so they compromised and simply became the Faction of Creation. Creation Island was named after them, and their ego obviously. It was not a safe place for Lind to go at all no matter how much he could find what he needed there.

It was roughly centrally located just off center to the old continent to the west of the old center.

The other 3 factions were made up of sects and various powers. The next most powerful faction was beasts, of course. Thunder God Liger had survived the destruction and rather than allow outsiders to take what was left, he moved to gather many beasts and his island nation was quickly able to enforce their will.

The island was a natural paradise in one respect but had become the true grind of survival of the fittest. Life and death was not just normal, it was expected. The sole exception was newborns.

It was a legacy left over from when many young died and each beast race was desperate to survive. Thunder God Liger had laid down his laws and they were few. The only unnatural one was the protection of any newborn.

No baby would die by murder or neglect! As they were all desperate, none argued. Now, after epochs had passed, the Law stood unbroken. Any that tried to were turned upon so viciously back in the old days that it became ingrained in their race memories.

Besides, the battles kept the population well under control so there had never been a need to change it.

Those 2 islands had the only working long range teleportation arrays. They made up not even a fifth of the old continent but Lind's entire Celestial Fields would still be swallowed whole by either with room to spare!

The continents were just too damned big!

The other 2 factions held a chain of islands. Seven sects laid claim to the Shimmering Dragon Chain, a far west set of islands that were part of a grand formation array that withstood the destruction of the continent.

The sects were remnants of powers that had lived there before but nearly all perished. The original area had been a profound mountain range with the same name. Three active volcanoes helped fuel the arrays indefinitely.

The last faction was more of an accident and a desperate desire to live. Various powers fell but the core of them were able to survive by last ditch methods. The support systems and lands were gone but they were extremely powerful Divine Realm beings.

Practical needs made them find others and they took over the northern region of islands.

New powers with old names rose up but only a handful remained to the present. There was simply not enough to go around back then and also arrogance was not so easily suppressed.

Political maneuvers and betrayal made many fall! The Northern Dagger Alliance was not a safe place for anyone, let alone Lind.

None of them were safe due to Fiends and their agents but Lind was curious. There was no mention of the southern areas he knew to exist.

Sun scratched the side of his cheek when asked.

"It is, uh, not safe there. Even back then, there was a vast stretch of an area a very old power laced with Inheritances and restrictions. It was a famous place to go and try your luck but when the continent was ripped apart, so were they, but they fought back." Lind arched an eyebrow and waved for him to continue.

Sun summoned a potent jade slip and handed it over. Lind sunk his aura into it but shot to his feet the instant he did.

The Inheritances had been not reduced to Ruins but fully converted to Relics. The explosive transformation actually created new land yet it was immensely dangerous.

Clashing forces and incomplete remnants caused devastation that killed everyone in millions of kilometers no matter who they were. Even Fiends did not go there later!

The Ruined Islands was a last bastion for the desperate and the abandoned. It was also a place known for 2 particular Divine Realm cultivators.

Older and Younger Twin!