Eternal Emerald Dragon

Chapter 563 - 562 - Imposter

Sheena and the other bandits had fled the lives they lived in frontiers or other bad situations but few of them had any inkling of how the inner parts of their empires worked.  Lind had spoken more with the soldier who now sat freely in front of him.

She was Briel and had no family left after a noble slew them for breathing too loudly.  Some of the other soldiers had similar stories.

Apparently, if a noble did such despicable acts, they had to leave at least one alive to give to the defense force of their respective armies.

Perot did not have the manpower to simply let good soldiers die, so they needed enough fodder to keep them alive.

Briel also let him examine the weaving brand on her but he was stumped on it.  It was well above him and showed how big a step the 4th circle or 5th circle had to be.  He could not even make out the traces, only the feeling of it.

It was not as muddled as the weaving holding Delenn but the massive step up in quality mystified him.

Wicked weavers paid a steep price for using the souls of others, even if willingly offered.  Chief among the effects was the inability to create such a delicate weaving as the one he saw.

Every piece of information irritated Lind more because he had no way to get easy answers.

"Could I register as a Soulmancer?"  Lind ascended but he could try to cook up a story to avoid revealing that fact, but Briel looked pale when he asked.

"No.  At least, I know you are too powerful to make them believe anything but the truth.  Such a powerful Soulmancer would not have been missed by the screenings."  Lind frowned as he had no answer to that.

A sudden chill entered his mind.

"What would happen if someone believed I was a Soulmancer but it was learned I was an imposter?"  Briel cocked her head at the odd question as no one in their right mind would make such a mistake.

"The imposter would be hunted, without question but to make sure no leak got out, the only sources would be killed after their souls were searched."  While no one impersonated Soulmancers, she had seen that exact punishment for any secret a cultivator might have passed on to others.

An entire clan had been wiped out before her eyes for less.

Lind quickly held out a map to locate where he was in relation to where he needed to go.

"What is wrong?"  Lind did not answer her as he quickly traced his hand through the Hinterlands to the checkpoint of Simon, Gravis, and Melody.

Orwellia was their home but he recalled Reeves and his crime!  They would call for a Soulmancer!

Lind raced out of the Two Rivers cave system and burst into the sunlight.  Neither Glenda nor Gail had a chance to ask him a question as he shot like lightning into the sky!  His senses as a dragon told him he was heading the right way and he only prayed he was in time!

⬧⬧⬧⬧

Gravis had no left arm anymore.  It had been torn from him by his fellow soldiers at the order of the black robed Soulmancer.  He was only alive to become fodder for a weaving.

Reeves' soulless corpse was still breathing but that would end in time.  It looked terrifying as the eyes seemed to try and draw him in but he heard Simon scream in rage before it cut short.

"Nothing.  No identifying marks or emblems.  Useless."  Melody hugged Keke tightly to her as tears fell down her face.

She offered herself up to safe him but the Soulmancer only laughed in her face as his pale fingers dug into her shoulder before tossing her into the cages of their checkpoint.

It had been a routine request but Gravis had missed the warning signs.  A Soulmancer that was kind was simply a myth.  The man had used soul rings but never confirmed what he was.  His questions and words were wrong too.

Basic knowledge he thought to be a test had been actual questions!

"Heh, not so big of a man now are you, Gravis?"  A weasley voice made him grimace as the scarred face of Edwin leered at Melody.  He was guarding them while Reynolds was serving the Soulmancer as the new leader of the checkpoint.

"You would have made the same mistake, Edwin."  The greasy haired head turned to him and sneered but then he moved towards Melody.  Gravis tried to rise up but the collar and chains on him left him as a mortal.

His wound was only sealed due to the Soulmancer wanting to claim his soul.

"Pity to die without experiencing a real man, afterall."  Edwin leered but Melody only stared coldly up at him.  She was in the same state as Gravis but she held Keke close who had passed out long ago.

The boy was terrified and broken now.

The lock array was disabled but before Edwin could do anything, the wall blasted open!

Emerald flames filled the chamber but did harm to no one, only the formations and metal of the bars disappeared!

Standing in the gaping hole was a familiar face.  Lind Frey!

His emerald eyes looked around and frowned deeply before Edwin tried to use a shadow spear to attack!

Lind did not even flinch as it shattered on his light colored robes.  Gravis noted they seemed too big for him but felt his heart race as the man gently looked at Melody and Keke.

"I am so sorry.  I never meant for harm to befall any of you."  His true feelings were clear but Gravis then realized his cultivation was unsealed!  He could move his Qi again!  He quickly stabilized his broken body but then a powerful aura swept over them all.

"So, you are here."  A black robed being stood at the top of the stairs to the cells.  The limp corpse of Simon made Gravis weep but Reynolds looked on in amusement as Edwin ran back to them.

Gravis knew the Soulmancer was a Sun Tier but the fact Lind came for them gave him a strange sense of peace.  So there were Soulmancers that were truly kind.

"Why?  Why did you hurt them?  They only reacted that way because of how you trained them to be?"  Lind did not seem afraid but the feeling of death came over Gravis.

There was nothing they could do against the pinnacle of the current world.

"Why?  Because they only need to obey and if they fail, they no longer deserve to live."  Lind's body clearly shook with rage but Gravis could only stand next to him.  They would die but they would die on their feet.

Lind glanced at him but then stepped forward.  Gravis felt inspired but the Soulmancer only smirked as he disappeared.  Gravis assumed his defiance would make him the prime target but the evil man appeared next to Melody and Keke.

Gravis felt all the blood drain from his face as the pale hands were about to touch the child and his comrade.

"YOU DARE?!"  Emerald flames blasted at the Soulmancer which stunningly made him duck away.  The hood stared at Lind as if he was the monster.

"What was that?  It felt dangerous despite how weak you are?"  The mocking tone made it clear the Soulmancer was trying to cover his reaction but Lind sneered at him.

"You may be higher cultivation, but I can see what you are.  You are nothing!"  Sigils blazed around Lind and the Soulmancer responded in kind.

A screaming Simon appeared for a moment before being infused into the soul circles, yet Gravis frowned.

Lind was clearly a Moon Tier but his soul circles felt far more powerful than the Soulmancers.

Why?!

Why did a lower tier cultivator feel more powerful?

"A 3rd circle thinks he can stand up to a 6th circle?"  Lind did not look disturbed but Gravis frowned.  It seemed like the Soulmancer did not feel the difference between them.  What was wrong with him?

"You paid the price for your shortcut.  I see that it was steeper than I imagined."  Lind then completed his weaving as a dome covered Melody and Keke while Gravis felt his cultivation rise a bit.

The Soulmancer sneered as spikes of earth rose up to smash the dome but they shattered like glass!  Shock was clear on Edwin and Reynolds yet Gravis was with them.  How?!

Before anyone could truly absorb what happened, Lind transformed into a 7 meter tall sinuous dragon form.  A blast of flame slammed into the Soulmancer but his robes protected him as sigils blazed!

Edwin and Reynolds were not so fortunate.  They became piles of ash before anyone even knew to try and protect themselves.

"A beastling?  So, you are not an invader then.  You are simply an abomination."  The Soulmancer hardly seemed bothered but then a slim black staff appeared in Lind's clawed hand.

The vertical slit emerald eyes gleamed as a massive blade manifested in emerald light.  It was a broadsword of Qi!

The blade whistled and the Soulmancer held up his hand to block it with a soul circle yet all were shocked as the blade sliced through it like a hot knife through butter!  The blood flew in the air but only an arm was lost on the Soulmancer.

"I will not lose to an ant!"  Sun Tier aura flared but emerald flames shattered it as 5 claws slashed the air.  The Soulmancer did not dare to block as even Gravis could tell it was insanely powerful.

How did a Moon Tier have such power?!

"DIE!"  The air rippled and Gravis was stunned as all 6 elements coalesced around Lind at a level of power he had never felt!  The Soulmancer raged as he tried to escape and found a barrier stopping him.

The 5 slashes ripped the black robes apart to reveal a despicable body beneath. It was riddled with scars and black splotches that made Gravis sick.

"You cannot–"  The emerald blade became a glaive suddenly as the head of the Soulmancer flew up.  No one had been able to trace the path of the weapon as Lind became human once more.

He looked exhausted but smiled at them.

"So, ready to go?"  Gravis felt a strange feeling wash over him and he began to feel light headed as Melody collapsed.  They had been at death's door yet now they were offered a way out and it was just a bit much!

Gravis collapsed and darkness closed in but he knew he would wake up.  Lind Frey was something else.  He actually hoped he could see what would happen in the future but his missing arm made him useless.

Still, the smile on his face was bright and he looked forward to when he woke up.