Eternal Emerald Dragon

Chapter 476 - 475 - Sebas Suspicious

Lind found many helpful resources for his plans but the very first thing he did was to build a massive weaving around a clearing deep in the forest.  It did 3 things.

It kept the villagers away, hid what was inside the clearing, and finally condensed Qi to a level Lind found much better.  He kept his recovery to peak tier 3 of the Sky Realm so he could return to the village but his cultivation issues were avoided in the near future if he only had to stay inside the weaving.

Once it was set up, he began to harvest resources but had to negotiate with the trees.

They were aware to a limited extent.  Their thoughts were slower and less clear to him but after some experimenting, he was able to make an artifact that conveyed words between them more effectively.

Kiran and Mika were shocked at the skills Lind showed.  He also kept plucking away at the details of the world he was currently in.

Strangely, all the villagers seemed wary of him even though time had passed without incident.  After a year, Lind began his real work.  It was also at that time that Sebas began to try to find out what he was doing.

Thankfully, Lind had learned his aura was a good tool to deflect unwanted inquiries but Sebas was getting bolder.

Lind suspected his lack of action was somehow giving him away but his power was real so it bought him time.  He did not want to have a battle with innocents nearby so he sped up his work but his limited power slowed him down.

He was forced to cultivate back to tier 5, as high as he could go with his weaving, to make effective progress.  The wood was now treated and ready to be shaped when he felt Sebas at the border of his weaving.

Sebas may not be able to advance but the inability to advance did not seem to stop the man from investigating.

Lind quietly looked on before slipping out behind the man.  Thanks to the extensive training of his wives and his experiences in Relic and Ruins, he had learned to stalk with the best of them.

It was not a talent dragons usually had as they were dominators of their regions.

He followed behind the man until he grew frustrated.  He then tossed his hands in the air before stomping back towards the village.

Lind waited patiently.

He did not have a full grasp of the man but enough flags had been raised from what he could learn to not trust what was shown to him.

As if he had seen the future, Sebas returned stealthily to look at the clearing but Lind had plenty of time.  A Sky Realm hardly needed to eat or sleep compared to a World Realm.

If not for his current condition, Lind was confident to wait decades before needing food or drink.

His current state had too many risks to go that long but Sebas was impatient.  Clearly his frustration was not entirely an act.

Lind followed him back towards the village but the old man took a different path away from the simple wall and gate that led to the forest.  Sebas moved out of sight of any of the youths weeding or harvesting the fields.

The weather hardly changed in the village but it did get cool for a quarter of the year before becoming uncomfortably hot.  Fishing was the primary food source but the fields supplied a good balance.

Lind had noted they did not store food aside save for preservation but there were no formations or even formation plates being used anywhere.  He also noted a complete lack of cultivation techniques.

The only way they cultivated was with direct refinement of Qi.  It was highly inefficient and likely the cause of their shallow foundations.

They did not use their elements at all really, but had a basic grasp of them.  The flying boats stood out all the more due to all of that.

The boats were crude by his standards but excellent by theirs.  How were they made?  He had not seen a single person make or repair one at all.  Lind had refrained from modifying them until he knew all he could.

Sebas finally reached the shore but there was a small cliff that loomed over the waves there.  Lind saw the man carefully look around before heading toward the craggy side before using his full strength to move a stone aside.

It was well set to blend in but Lind could see it easily.  His eyes narrowed as he finally sensed a formation.

He moved carefully but the expanse of sand was wide open to the cliff face.  Circling around to the plains would afford him a chance to get closer but the last stretch was still exposed.

"No choice."  Lind summoned a formation plate of peak grade 3 quality.  He had been studying them for inspiration in his weaving so never used them.  Annabelle had been happy to give him some.

Lind vanished to all senses and carefully made his way forward.

The stone was positioned so that it was blocking the opening from the village side but left an opening to slide into.  Lind carefully examined and waited before proceeding.

The formation was a simple one to make the stone blend but he triple checked as it was well made.  It was of at least mid grade 4 quality which far exceeded all he had seen in the village.

Still, he found nothing and continued.  A simple tunnel with steps went down into the earth.  Lind took no chances and used gravity to float above.

He had only gotten a few steps down when his instincts flared in warning.  He used his Eyes and found more mid grade 4 arrays.

Traps.

The stairwell was trapped but he saw how to get by safely.  Despite the quality, the controls were very simple.  It was clearly made for someone like Sebas to use them.

He floated down but the strain on his dantain was negligible until it finally flattened out.  Light arrays lit up the underground structure but Lind could see they were supplied by crystals embedded into the walls.

There were no doors or twists after that but the arrays became more defensive.  Lind made his way forward as he finally felt something that made him angry.

Fiend Qi.

"...powerful, like the Emissary sent every 5 years.  His robes are fine but he seems to not know the basic things.  When he took 2 of the children, I assumed that was the end of it."  Sebas was kneeling before a pillar that a jade stone sat on.

Unlike any jade stone Lind had seen before, that one gave off Fiend Qi.  There was nothing too bad there but Lind saw the displayed image of an impossibly beautiful woman.

Her ash gray skin and metallic steel hair were clear as her cold eyes looked down on the old man.

Further, the stone was fueled by Sebas's life force.  Lind now understood where the missing 2 centuries had gone.

"The useless trash out there hardly warrants my concern.  If one of our pets ran afoul of the aether beasts, then he is simply recovering his strength in the abysmal condition of your village."  The voice was grating but not as bad as the man's had been back on Severis Island.

The complete lack of concern made Lind pause but then he noticed the background of her image.  It was a cityscape in the open air!

How?!

A Void of Heaven could not be made in the open air.  Even an attempt to do so would draw the wrath of Heaven.  He could grasp that much from his memories and studies.

Underground was the only place such a thing could be made as there were natural ores that could obscure Heavenly Tribulations, thus blocking Heaven's view.

"He is already recovered but has claimed a piece of forest for himself.  He takes no one there!  He does not act like the other Emissaries."  Sebas clearly expected him to do something vile yet because he had not, suspicions had arisen.

It was almost laughable but Lind did not find anything funny at that moment.

"If his duties are done, then he is in no hurry.  He has no reason to tell you a thing, slave!  The tithe you send is meager enough.  Should I replace you?"  The old man shivered but then smiled in confidence.

"He uses the same Qi as the villagers."  Lind winced.  If there was anything damning, that was it.

The Fiend's eyes narrowed violently.

"IMPOSSIBLE!  He can only retain the Qi, not use it!  You are certain?"  Sebas nodded.

"The girl, marked for the next tithe, saw him erect the barrier.  She felt the elements in her fonts resonate.  I confirmed the same with her little brother."  The Fiend leaned back and brought a hand to her chin.

"Very well.  You have acted correctly.  Kill the children and blame him.  We will be there in 3 days.  Plan accordingly."  Lind found the jumps in logic an odd plan to have but perhaps there was simply the need to have a scapegoat for attacking him openly.

"By your will, Mistress."  The image flickered and vanished.  Sebas giggled before emerald flame slammed into the stone shattering it entirely.

"I think there needs to be a village meeting, old man."  Lind appeared but his eyes were vertical slits while emerald scales slowly spread across his body.  The restriction barring him from flight suddenly vanished.

"M-monster!"  Lind blurred and slammed the old man into the stone wall.  His Eyes confirmed no further Fiend arrays before they exploded upward.

The stone shattered like an egg but Lind only made a chasm for all to see the truth.

He only had 3 days and there was no time to waste!