Eternal Emerald Dragon

Chapter 417 - 416 - Broken Shell

Fey smiled as the little children playfully 'fought' her off.  They had finished their training and were now on a pleasant grass hill partially shadowed by the islands above them.  She enjoyed the little punks wanting to spend time with her.

It had been almost a decade since Big Brother brought her to East End.  They had seen how the city operated and Lind no longer had qualms about it.  People left when they planned to or stayed and were taken care of.  The broken down city was depressing so the Circle had made the illusion to give pleasant dreams to the people.

Lind never asked what happened to the old administrators as they were clearly no longer alive.  It was not hard to imagine how they ran the city before the Circle took it over.  There were few resources but food was a major import that they made sure all could enjoy.

The Spirit Lord Festival had been a real but depressing thing the old leaders of East End held.  It was mostly a way to get more resources for themselves and also occasionally sell a slave or 2.

Fey was glad such darkness was gone but it was sad the joy could only be an illusion.  The children now lay exhausted in the grass looking up at the peak of blue sky they could see.  She and Lind finally learned something about the Isles she had taken for granted.

It was true day and night cycle on the  higher islands but the lower ones had formations or weavings to get the illusion of clear days and nights.  Weather was real so rain, snow, and so forth fell as it should but day and night were all fiction for the enclosed lower isles.

It made her realize they all lived in some kind of illusion.

Her thoughts were no longer as heavy as they had once been.  On top of learning weaving, Big Brother was having daily sessions with her about her heart demon.  Big Sister Qing had once told a bit about how Lind had faced not 1 but 3 heart demons.

She could not imagine the smiling and careful man she knew had been nearly killed before they ever met.

It made her realize why it was easier to talk to him about it because he knew.  He really knew what she was feeling.

She wished she could do the same for him.

He had finally broken through to tier 3 of the Sky Realm but only just.  It was only a year ago and now he had a new problem.  The limiter that weaving invoked was much stronger and slowing down his cultivation even more!

Daphne had confirmed that was normal.  The more Big Brother mastered weaving, the faster his cultivation would pick up.  Rather than be depressed about the soon to be reached limit, it made him light up.

She had no idea why but Lind had mentioned that everything had a way, and there had to be a good reason for weaving to affect its users the way it did.

She hoped he was right as she would be sad if he could not advance.  She would never leave him but she knew he would not accept that.  He had been the same in the World Realm.  He would not hold back his close ones.

"Senior Fairy!  Do you want to see something good?"  One of the little girls suddenly piped up but all the other kids suddenly looked solemn.  Fey did not quite understand but she knew the kids were not beyond messing with her.

She looked up at the sun and confirmed there was more than half the day left so she nodded.  They had time before lunch and the afternoon training session.

They were walking to the very edge of the island.  Fey was not worried as most islands had border formations to prevent any accidents, even the Ravaged Isles had such protections, as some islands could give the illusion of still plenty of ground before a sudden sharp drop appeared.

They moved ever closer and were just about to cross the safe range when the kids turned as one to the left.  They moved north, away from East End but after a short distance, Fey felt a change.

Her instincts warned her of something ahead and she was about to act when a little sandy haired boy grasped her hand.

"It is ok, Senior Fairy.  There is nothing scary ahead."  Fey highly doubted that.  The cultivation world was not only a cold place with humans but the world itself.  There were plenty of aether beasts, plants, and even natural treasures that could pose a lethal threat to people.

She was going to sternly reprimand them when the world changed.

They had been on a grassy plain but were now in a cave.  When did they enter a cave?!

The children did not seem bothered and even commented on how the cave was still too dark even during the day.  What was going on?  Where were they going?

Fey suddenly realized they had been moving downward for sometime.  She had not noticed due to the children distracting her.  A formation!  They had passed through some kind of formation!

"Where are we going?!"  She had enough but when she tried to use her tier 4 aura, nothing happened!  It was not sealed but she could not release it!

"It is ok, we promise.  Old Granny will love meeting you!"  Fey froze.  There was only 1 being that could effortlessly suppress a Sky Realm and be referred to as 'Old Granny' by the children.

The Star Tier aether beast!

The tunnel turned down but never moved inward or outward to the edge of the island.  Why?  How deep was the beast?

After what seemed an eternity, the sound of thunder reached her ears.  There had been no storm but light was rising and then she saw a stunning sight.

A massive waterfall!

A deluge of water roared down the edge of the island over a massive tunnel entrance.  Fey noted a few other tunnels branching off from the large one they entered but the moist air made the kids smile as they began to play a bit in the mud and stone.

Fey found their relaxed attitude a bit calming but she never let her guard down.  She would let no harm come to them!

"Bah, if I wanted to harm humans I could just sneeze."  A voice boomed in the cave but did not harm anyone.  The kids cheered as Fey realized the back of the cave was actually a head!

It was massive!

Fey was an ant compared to just the head of the aether beast.  The pressure that suppressed her own aura was just as massive.

"I believe we agreed to no adults.  Those were the rules!"  Fey's eyes narrowed but then the kids whined and poked the giant face as if they were used to being equals to the aether beast.

"Old Granny, you said we could bring someone we like.  Senior Fairy is really nice!  She helps us gets stronger but makes sure we have fun!  She taught us many games!"  It was true.  Fey had agreed to teach the Circle battle skills but the children needed time to be children.

Fey remembered how Big Brother always interrupted her work at pills before he 'died' and took her to parks, plays, or just let her do what she wanted.

He had impressed on her that fun was a necessary part of life or something important would be lost.

She took that to heart and the kids loved her because unlike the other adults, she actually played more with them!

"I see, well that might make a difference.  Let me get a look at you."  Fey suddenly felt even smaller as the pressure of a Heaven Realm aether beast focused on her.  She knew Heaven Realm was a massive step forward but only now did she appreciate how much more.

"Junior greets Senior."  Fey cupped her hands and bowed.  She was shaking as she realized there was literally nothing even a tier 9 Sky Realm could do to this being.  It was far beyond anything she had ever encountered.

"You need to get out more, my dear.  Now, since you brought someone new, I will need to talk to her for a bit.  No more though, not even the kind man, do you understand?"  The kids nodded but smiled.  They then ran off to play as Fey pondered her acceptance.

She was fine but Big Brotherwas not?

"What is wrong with Big Brother?"  She was no longer shaking as her courage had risen to defend him.  A gentle chuckle came from the large face.

"I actually like him fine but we are not exactly compatible.  My bloodline and his do not mix.  I like you too but did not expect to meet you, Fierce Fairy."  Fey blushed.  How did she know about that nickname?!

"Ah, my bad habit, I have been sensing your thoughts.  Your shell is broken too, it seems."  Fey felt anger rise but then confusion, broken shell?

"Sigh, I do not like long conversations, it is why I do not mind the children.  They jump from topic to topic.  So many new ideas!"  The warmth in the voice calmed Fey.  "I am not here by choice.  I was heavily injured millions of years ago.  Fortunately, I fell into a newly formed Mortal realm while I lost my cultivation to the Star Tier."

Shock flooded Fey as she realized what she was hearing.  The Black Shelled Tortoise had been much more powerful and from a higher realm!

"Please do not shout in your mind, you no longer can contain it.  Your heart demon did quite a number on you but that boy is doing a solid job of helping you.  He must have suffered greatly by one himself."  A tinge of pity came through but Fey was more curious about what was going on with her.

"If Senior could explain please?"  A very tired sigh came from the face but it was not dismissing her.

"After a cultivator suffers from a heart demon there are generally several consequences.  Many you already know so I will not cover it here, but something mortal realms don't know as it does not come up, is that your once protected thoughts are leaking everywhere.  The wall of your mind is broken."  Fey shivered.

"Is it bad?"  The feeling of a shrug came from the beast.

"Only a Heaven Realm can sense it so not really.  A mortal realm is the safest place to recover from a heart demon.  The only real danger is Fiends or their agents.  If they sensed anything about you dangerous to them, they would move Heaven and Earth to obliterate your soul."  Fey felt a chill down her spine.

"Um, ah, Senior, how much of my thoughts can you read?"  Fey felt worry grow as a certain memory came back to her.  If the heart demon did break the shell and she had it for years, could it also have weakened those same defenses back then?

"Why do you ask–!"  A sharp pain filled Fey's head before it quickly vanished.

Anger suddenly filled the cavern but was quickly dispersed.

"Children!  Go home, now!  You are not in trouble but I have changed my mind, I want the kind man here within the day.  Do it now please!"  Fey trembled as she realized she was right.  The heart demon had thinned her defenses.

Three years before Lind found her, she was on a mission solo back then for the sect.  She had found a nest of Fiend agents.  They had a portal partially open and many dead villagers.  She had killed all of the agents and shattered the anchor point but the Fiends had been screaming she would pay.

Right before it closed, their tone had changed but she had not really cared until the beast warned her.

Their words came back.

"What are you?!  How did you become like that?!  NO!  You must die!"