novelraw Chapter 216 - 215 - Trial of Stone Ready
Chapter 216 - 215 - Trial of Stone Ready
Lind had spent his 5 days productively. Now that he was at the castle, he no longer needed to hold back or hide. Also, the Regent was still the ruler of the country so he had to deal with the headaches that appeared after only 1 day.
Sky Realms to peak Gold Tiers arrived with a desire to meet with Lind but per the laws of Altair, he had to prepare to face his trial. The view from the windows in his tower were amusing as even the great powers did not dare to interfere as he made his own declaration to take this issue seriously.
His status combined with giving him face for his current situation made them hold back but the Regent could seem to age more with each passing day. Lind had expected confrontations but the formations allowed him to control who could enter up to Diamond Tier. Lind did greet a few friendly powers via communication jade stone but he told them all the same thing the Regent did.
He would face the Trial of Stone and then be free to speak at that time.
Lind oversaw over ⅔ of his followers breakthrough to the World Realm. The women were dedicated and highly motivated. They also had the very person that understood the theory of elemental relationships better than anyone.
Their breakthroughs were very helpful for Lind as well as he studied the various combinations and qualities. He discussed what they learned and they held nothing back. His enjoyment of sharing knowledge made the women trust him even more.
"Master, what are we to do while you are gone?" Reya had clearly been nervous about asking on that subject but Lind had slowly figured out the formations' limits and he grew to hate the creator of them.
Once Lind was gone, the arrays would push out anyone not in his presence without some kind of marker or artifact to allow them to stay. He had no idea what he needed as it could be anything at all and the Regent would be using it if he could.
"I have called on someone to take care of you all. In fact, once this is over, I encourage you to decide what you want to do. The person coming here I trust with my life and more." Lind suddenly felt his ring space resonate and he smiled as the windows opened to the balcony.
A flying sword was carrying a single demoness that no one dared stop as she was tied deeply to the story of LInd. Further, she had no ties to any power but also being a mid Gold Tier made her a supreme power house in Altair.
Virulent green eyes lit up with warmth as Cyntilla hopped down. The defenses tried to work on her but Lind shut them down and embraced her like a drowning man being pulled from the waves.
"It is so good to see you!" Cyntilla could tell Lind had been worn down. They had known Altair would be hard on his spirit, but clearly it had been worse than imagined. She looked hard at the women around the room and was stunned to see so many Sand Tiers in Altair that were women.
"I see you have been busy, my love." Lind pulled back and looked sternly at her before she giggled. The tension in the women fell away as they knelt to the demoness.
"Reya, this is my fiance, Cyntilla Fang." The room became silent as Cyntilla stared at Lind but he did not care anymore. The path was set and nothing could stop it. "I have not made an official announcement but not even Gods will stop me from marrying this woman and 3 others. Consider them your true masters in the future."
Reya's eyes bulged but then the women throughout the complex of rooms cheered in joy! They had worried about the future in their hearts and it had driven them to cultivate like devils.
"You are not holding back on building a power for yourself, but I can't argue with your results." Cyntilla appreciated the stability and power of each of the women in front of her. They were clearly older than normal to start cultivating like they had but Lind had been able to guide them over a little under a quarter of a year.
It showed both the power of his elixirs and his knowledge. A terrifying combination.
"I took on the responsibility so I will see it through to the end. If they wish to go their own way, I will happily grant it. For now, I need someone to make sure war does not break out while I am in the Trial." Lind looked down and frowned. They were coming already.
"I would wish you luck but I think you don't need it. Instead I will say, have no mercy for your enemies. You have given too much over the years." Cyntilla's words would have shocked him back when they first met but now he saw the wisdom in it.
Being generous and kind to friends was fine but being merciful to enemies left too many problems in a person's wake. Lind would never be blood thirsty, but he did not need to be if crushed the will of his foes to ever rise again.
Lind pulled her into his arms and kissed her deeply which caught her off guard but was returned in kind. Many of the women blushed and more than a few looked jealous but only mildly.
"For luck." Cyntilla laughed at his words as he swept his robes around to march out of the room. The grim look on his face told them he was off to face his trial at last. Cyntilla followed closely and Reya led the rest.
They gathered all their things and left the royal quarters after spending most of a week there becoming so much stronger. The guards were surprised Lind came to meet them but were flabbergasted to see the mid Gold Tier next to him.
"This is Lady Cyntilla Fang, you may know of her?" Sweat broke out instantly as rumors had spread of the demoness that had defied both Darkmoor and the Demon Empire. She now stood in front of them and was the strongest person in their kingdom related to Lind Frey directly.
"Welcome to Altair, Lady Cyntilla!" They saluted smartly and did not even risk a glance at her lithe body despite her wearing armor that hugged her frame beneath her cloak. Lind moved forward and the guards quickly turned and led them to the entrance of the castle.
There was an ornate carriage that Lind saw was hitched to a large mountain lion that was at the peak of the Stone Tier. He frowned as a slave collar was on it and the controller seemed to be discontent with his charge for some reason.
"Your High–" The Regent was at the head of the nobles on the right side of the main path but seeing Cyntilla made all the blood drain from his face. The various nobles glared at the lavender skin of the demon but a few recognized her and also began to fidget nervously.
"Ah, yes, this is Lady Cyntilla Fang. She has come to collect her new household servants. We just exchanged ownership before the guards came for me." The Regent was about to burst a blood vessel but then the aura of Sand Tiers flared from over half of the women in front of them!
Shock was on all their faces. How was that possible?! All of the women had been verified as from Obsidian Cliff, a backwater city in charge of a few farming villages. How had they gone from Body Refining Realm to Sand Tier of the World Realm in only a few months?!
"You are all fools." Cyntilla's cold voice snapped them out of their stupor but they had no rebuttal as various powers were now watching and no doubt had the same thought.
Why are you all putting a clearly qualified heir through a dangerous ritual for your pride? Politics was fine but the benefits were clear. Power was the ultimate pursuit but it came in many forms and Lind Frey had proven he created power as easily as breathing!
Who wouldn't want such a man leading them?
The Regent felt a weakness in his soul but shook it off. They were already set and could not turn back. Altair's future was on the line!
"Your Highness, your carriage is ready to take you to the Trial of Stone. Please know none of them can follow you there. Your safety is, of course, assured." He bowed to Lind and ignored Cyntilla but it only made Lind smile darkly at the man.
Lind moved but not towards the carriage door. He saw the frustration in the golden eyes of the lion and realized it was a lioness. Of course it was. Altair just could not stop being what it was or maybe they chose one to send a message to him.
"Highness, please get in the carriage. Don't worry, this useless aether beast can at least pull a carriage. She is not good for anything else." Lind felt his body tense and looked back at Cyntilla who shrugged at him and smiled warmly back.
The slim man was a low Iron Tier but all were stunned when he was flung up into the air by a flow of Qi that made a gust followed by a strictly controlled mini-tornado before he fell flat on his back.
Lind retrieved the formation plate from his limp body and approached the lioness. He looked deeply into those golden eyes and then applied the plate to the collar. There was an audible click and it fell to the ground.
All were tense as they looked on but the Regent was praying to see a tragedy at that moment that was none of his making.
"You are free. Do what you will." LInd stood there calmly as the lioness stretched and shook her golden fur happily as Qi flowed freely in her body once more. She looked hard at Lind before she seemed to vanish in a flash of light.
A scream drew all eyes to the former controller as he was ripped in half and eaten right in front of them. Lind felt a little queasy but not any pity for what happened. He had known taming was not a field Altair specialized in. Instead, they used slave collars to torture beasts to obey.
Of course, they had to capture them young to have any success but beasts grew strong quickly as they got older compared to humans. It often caused conflicts since kindness was a foreign concept in that entire kingdom!
The scene of carnage made some frown deeply but then the lioness stood up and moved back to Lind. He stood there calmly but was then stunned with the lioness that was near his head height, rubbed the top of her head against him and began to purr.
Laughter came from the large group of women and all saw Cyntilla was laughing hard as she held her sides as tears fell off.
"You are truly gifted, Lind. Even that lioness wants you!" Lind rolled his eyes but slowly raised his hand and patted the lioness between her ears as her tail began to swirl happily. Her breath was not pleasant but Lind fought hard not to think about what she just ate.
"You are free. I have to go to a trial so do what you want." Lind did not know if she could get away but none there would stop her but she kept pushing at him and purring as he pat her head before he sighed and began to look at the Regent.
"The Trial is ready, I will get going. I will see you all when I am done." Lind chose his words well. He knew a week was enough but only a truly naive fool would not suspect any issues ahead. He would deal with it and overcome it. He refused to bow to them.
He looked at the carriage but then was picked up and swung onto the back of the lioness. She roared and took off before Lind was ready!
He nearly fell off but grasped her fur to hold on and wind roared in his ears as he moved faster than he expected any beast could move. He used his Eyes and saw she was of air and light elements.
"You are more clever than they realized. Thank you for the ride." The city blurred past them and a gate came up that was far more ornate than the original one he entered on the western side. They were heading south and the guards looked confused as a crimson robed man rode a golden lioness out of the city.
A few recognized it but had no idea what was going on but as they were expecting it with that very cultivator, they simply saluted as wind was powerfully flowing behind it. Far behind, the train of carriages was starting out to follow as they all headed to the Trial of Stone and the fate of Altair.