novelraw Chapter 571 - 570 - Fortress of the Two Rivers
Chapter 571 - 570 - Fortress of the Two Rivers
The sudden attack showed how weak their defenses were. Further, Lind assumed he was working against the clock before someone else found them. Faced with that future, three choices remained.
They could strengthen the formations and weavings to disorient any invader in the hopes they gave up. They could scatter to the remote corners of the Hinterlands. Finally, they could fight.
Lind chose the last but let the rest choose what they wanted. Sheena, unsurprisingly, jumped at the chance to fight. So did many others but many families, such as they existed in them, were worried.
He had noticed that despite several very active members, no children were born. Only children that came with parents or alone from the empires added to their numbers.
Benny was solemn for once but she chose to stay and help fight. Gail had Gravis and his answer was a foregone conclusion. He had to avenge Simon more than Lind had already.
With his arm restored, his strength was much higher than ever before.
It took only a few days to settle their new prisoners. Unlike the previous hunting parties, these were career soldiers. They joined the army voluntarily and usually came from the noble or affluent class of cultivators.
While many wanted them dead, only a few serious injuries had been incurred. Lind's authority was also much more firm than 5 years ago.
He also made a valid point that he might be able to get some intelligence from them.
All of that, however, was set aside as he now looked at the large island surrounded by the 2 flowing streams of water.
It was a decent start but he wanted to expand it first.
He was the most powerful being aside from Glenda but she was still healing from her ordeal even with elixirs from him. It showed how terrifying an attack from a Soulmancer could be.
He now began to grasp what those people were. While they were weavers, they were also leaning into skills that reminded him of Fiends. He doubted that was a coincidence, but he needed something certain to confirm his suspicions.
"Everyone had moved to the far shore as you requested, Lord Frey." Lind sighed internally as Sheena had become a Star Tier powerhouse but her eyes shone with reverence for him and what he was about to do was likely to make that worse.
He made sure to insist he was as fallible as anyone, as evidenced by the latest attack. He had not figured out how they found them but clearly he had missed something since they had made a beeline for them.
"All right, head over and make sure none of our guests disappear or escape." She knelt and ran off. He had confirmed with Glenda that Heaven Realms should be able to fly but the Law binding prevented that.
The power of an Immortal was terrifying but still limited. To make the Law Binding required a lot of preparation and resources that were not easily found in the Heaven Realm. Lind suspected Immortal Suzen had long planned his move only to have the cataclysm force his hand.
The chaos was going to sweep the lands, so he had moved before he was ready. The reason he believed that was due to the myth of the beginning. It was sloppy and clearly done as propaganda.
In other words, the same being that carefully set up a Law Binding, possibly over hundreds of thousands of years having such a sloppy beginning spoke to not being ready.
Still, it mattered little as he focused on his task at hand.
"If you could cooperate with me a bit, I would appreciate it." Few would understand but Lind knew Heaven was always listening so he assumed Earth did as well. His Qi flared as darkness, water, and earth became a storm around him before the ground rumbled under his feet.
All watched in awe as the flowing rivers rose into the air! They contained the fish, stones, and plants safely preserved as the sun glistened through the streams! Emerald light lined Lind's body but he was only getting started!
The island had a massive underground complex but it was a mix of natural and carved in chaos. He stomped his foot and it was like the strike of Heavenly thunder rocked the land!
The entire island collapsed with one kick!
If anyone from the Floating Isles were to be looking on, they would be in shock as Lind had often demonstrated power above his tier but he rarely used Arts or conjuring aside form his harmony.
Now, Lind demonstrated the delicate and forceful power he possessed as he began to Reshape The Home Art his former Vice-Sect Master Wyndam had created. The 6 elementals had a rather unique ability to not only use all elements but resonate with the world at large.
What would take support of artifacts or many experts working together, a 6 elemental could do with half the effort. Lind suspected it was the very harmony they possessed that was part of that efficiency but used it now.
The Art was only possible with 6 elementals and was fairly straight forward. Where many cultivators used tools or Qi to dig out a cultivation chamber as they needed, 6 elementals could lay the foundation for structures and even walls at the World Realm.
At the Sky Realm they could build a whole structure of incredible strength and function but limited to a house or tower if they focused.
There had been an exception to that limit. Forgers.
Forgers seemed to be able to create more complex structures with ease and infuse abilities just as they would a weapon or armor.
Lind being both and far above Sky Realm, had been playing with the Art for years. He wanted to simply organize a wall or town layout, but now he was using all he had.
His senses flowed deep into the ground and felt joy come back to him. It was as if the Earth had heard him and welcomed his changes! Lind adjusted his focus and found ores he could use!
He split his concentration between setting up the foundation of his plan and extracting the ores.
All looked on in total shock as squared off areas quickly began to appear as a massive island was built around them. It was no longer natural yet the Qi seemed to flow happily along the new river paths.
He had shifted it so the split in the water was more even and the 2 streams were settled once more. The once smaller branch was carefully allowed to swell but Gravis and others sharply noticed sigils laced along the bottom of each river!
They shined and then vanished.
There were 2 bridges connecting to the mainland but none dared move as metals and stone glowed with heat like a second sun!
A castle with a wall began to rise. It was only 5 floors tall but it was spread out over half a kilometer for its grounds. The island was about 10 kilometers around now and a massive wall rose at its edge.
There was no sign of inscriptions but power flowed off the wall clear to all cultivation senses. The prisoners, especially the new ones, had been thinking of escaping in the chaos but completely dismissed any notion from their skulls.
They were in the presence of a monster but it was like their legends made flesh. A Lifemancer and Blessed Creator in one being was already stunning but all saw sigils blaze to show he was a Soulmancer as well!
Yet, he never touched a single one of them. All the soldiers knew such massive constructs would require moderate to large sacrifices from the populace normally. Now, they saw what a Soulmancer could be.
It shook the foundation of their world to see it as they looked at the little over 900 people now around them. They were not starving, miserable, nor afraid. They were alive!
The rumbling of materials being moved around began to cease but the plain dark stone wall seemed intimidating until emerald light flared at the center of the island.
A massive sinuous dragon rose into the sky and roared. Nearly all knelt in awe but Glenda smiled with a few others near her. Gail admired Lind but had accepted him as a kind companion more than a being beyond reach.
He was a good teacher to them all and she knew he was trying to get somewhere. She had heard him speak of his family and the concern in his eyes made him very human to her. Benny simply grew up with Lind guiding her so she happily followed him but was no longer stunned by much.
Gravis and Melody were respectful of Lind but knew he was a fallible being even with all his power. His limited knowledge had been fleshed out by them but such conversations kept him grounded in their eyes.
The rest simply could not wrap their minds around a single being so powerful.
Where the emerald light blazed, the feeling of life flowed! Grass, herbs, and even trees sprang up as if summoned! Fountains began to work and sewage with aquifers began to flow in the newly made fortress city.
"Welcome to the Fortress of the Two Rivers. Claim a place for yourselves. Those that have some skills will find facilities with basics set up, please resupply them within the month." The dragon slowly dispersed to reveal an exhausted Lind slowly descending.
Glenda flew up and caught him. He smiled in thanks at her as he looked at his work.
He had nowhere near the power to pull such a feat off alone. He had felt Earth answer his call and now Heaven seemed to rumble in joy. He grasped they were unhappy. He did not know the full reason but the Soulmancers were the most likely cause.
"Everyone, prepare for guests that are likely coming. Get as much meat, fruits, and other stock as you can." All bowed and dispersed to claim homes, shops, and set up the prisoners.
Sheena became a rabid follower at that moment and Lind saw no way to break her of that issue, yet she remained fair from what he could see. He also made damn sure there was nowhere to make a shrine or statue.
He also reinforced everything so anyone trying to remodel without him would be in for a surprise. Glenda carried him to the balcony of the tallest tower in the castle. It was a western style castle since those were easier to make but Lind had learned a lot.
He needed to cultivate to recover and digest his comprehensions of his Arts and weaving. He could feel a breakthrough would be coming soon. He just hoped it was soon enough!