Eternal Emerald Dragon

Chapter 667 - 666 - Demon Sight

The Ward of Hope had changed drastically in the last 1200 years.  Where once it was fairly similar to the rest of the lands, the demonic seeds had transformed and caused natural areas of demonic Qi to be born.

It was slightly spread beyond its borders but not by much.  It was now the true center of demonic power and helped jump the struggling demons just barely making progress to making them a large chunk of the Sun Tiers.

Unlike the humans that freed them so long ago, they did not suffer loss of vitality due to their enslavement so Haim and others survived where many they once called friends died.

Several sects and smaller powers were born from the boon of demonic resources but then the rain of Karmic Restitution exploded the resources available.  Now, what had been simply confined to the Ward of Hope had spread across the lands.

It was as if all the Qi in the Law Binding was mixed together and invigorated pre-existing natural areas of demonic Qi that had been left undiscovered.  The new sources allowed powers stifled by the rule of Haim to branch out and grow on their own.

One of those powers was demonic seers.  No one knew why, but the rare talent of peering into Fate was strong in demons.  It was not something consistent in mortal realms nor anywhere else but part of it was likely selective breeding Dar Empire did.

If a gift was useful, slaves were used as a genetic experiment to increase the odds of birth and later, increase the strength.

Seers had grown because the nobles desperately wanted to know the future to bring down rivals or rise to power in general.  It was ironic that none of the seers revealed the end of Dar Empire but Lind Frey had proven several times that Fate was only a possibility where he was concerned.

The Conclave of Paths was a sect that was odd.  It was relatively small but very powerful.  It also had a simple admission policy.  An inner disciple would view their future and accept them or not.

Some were let in without any gift to see the future but later revealed to be key to unlocking more of the gift in their children!  Despite such powers, however, the seers were severe against any member or rogue that claimed to know the entire future of their lands.

The founder, Seras, had been in isolation for several centuries but she suddenly emerged a few days ago and stated she would be going on a journey.  No one stopped her.  While some were concerned for her safety, if she died on her trip, it was what she had already seen and her time.

The demoness let her cobalt and crimson eyes adjust as she flew in the skies over the Hinterlands.  Her sect had been settled in a valley where no beast dared to live.  It was due to a powerful poison natural treasure but inside it was blue flame treasure as well.

The 2 should have combusted and destroyed the land long ago but instead had come to some kind of harmony that none could rightly explain.  It was that dichotomy that attracted her and others followed.

She had known a power would settle there but she had not known she would found it!  That was the key to their powers.  They could see what might be, but could not completely pull away the veil of it.

The stronger the vision, the more likely it would happen.  It did not mean, however, that it was certain without the actions leading up to it happening either.  The civil war in the past for instance, had been so clear to her but one decision from Lind Frey had shattered it.

Now, she felt her visions disturbed once again but rather than be worried, she smiled.  She followed her feelings until a glade came into view.

She carefully landed without drawing attention as she saw a little girl laughing and playing with the butterflies floating over the green grass.  The few flowers in the field were quite pretty and harmless to the mortal child.

The reason she stopped was the feeling of disturbance was strong but it was not the child that was the source.  It was something else she could not see.  Still, the demoness could feel her sense confirming he had to be there.

"Your sight is terrifying, Seras."  A part of the air rippled and a man in a fine set of dark robes appeared.  Unlike his crimson or emerald base robes, Lind Frey looked nothing more than a young man wandering the world.

The little girl looked scared as she ran to his side and hugged his leg.  He patted her dark haired head gently as he smiled.

"It is ok, she is a friend."  Seras felt happy Lind looked at her like that.  He turned his eyes to her and her abilities screamed at several visions once more but she carefully avoided looking at them.

One of his futures distinctly did not want to be disturbed.

"Emp–"  She had been about to bow when his aura spiked and she corrected herself.  "Fellow Daoist Frey, it has been too long."  She meant it.

While Gravis, Lanbao, and Linghu had been fine, many were testing them lately as it had once been tested when Lind was still active.  His actions made them very cautious as they did not want to be caught by him when he awoke at first.

Yet, as time passed, they were becoming bolder.

She looked at the small mortal child.  She seemed too thin but was rosy compared to the other signs of a lack of food.

"I was unsure we would ever see you again."  She had tried to scry for when he would awake but her abilities failed miserably.  Others tried, at request of various powers or for their own interest, to see it as well.

The fact she was the only one able to find him spoke of her abilities growth over the last 7 centuries.

"I have snuck out, obviously, but I find the world had changed while I slept.  Not all of it is bad, but some I find disagreeable."  His hand comforting the small child as her tiny amber eyes looked at Seras was a clear message to her.

"Resources were massive at first but greed has made many pull back.  The abundance you granted saved the Two Rivers Alliance but it does not stop the greed."  He nodded at her words.

"Little Lua was left to fend for herself because they believe she has no talent for cultivation.  I find their assumptions flawed."  Before Seras could understand he leaned down and whispered in her ears.

The girl, Lua, began a series of exercises.  Seras recognized them but that was not what made her jaw drop.  The once frail flesh began to thicken slowly to the naked eye!

Lua could only do 3 cycles of the moves but it was enough to improve her body massively!  Lind summoned a tasty meal he shared with her as he complimented her.

How was that child viewed as talentless?!  She was not quite in the Body Tempering Realm, but she was very close.

She was only 4 to 5 years old at most!

"W-where did you find her?"  Seras was quite frankly stunned.  How could Lind randomly find such a talented child!

"She was left to die in a back alley of what you call the Haven Lands."  Seras' eyes narrowed as she realized the problem.

"They use artifacts to test the potential of children at a young age.  It is not infallible, obviously, but it is how they find good seedlings."  Lind nodded but his face belied the stern eyes.

Lua simply smiled but said little.  Seras wondered why but Lind made no comment.

"So they simply give up and don't even give people a chance?"  Seras wanted to deny it but even the demons were not much better.  They had done better, but any demon not able to meet the minimum standard was left to their own devices.

Still, the demons acknowledged strength, regardless of where it came from.  They did not simply abandon them.

"It was a practice from the mortal realm that has spread.  Another mortal realm ascension pool unsealed but they already went through their uprisings long ago before that happened.  They shared a similar point of view so it simply became the norm."  Lind looked up in surprise but then recalled Adrin's description of his mortal realm.

It was likely that one.  Still, he made a note to check for any more sealed pools.

"So what works in a mortal realm is applied to us?"  Lind was not talking about the Heaven Realm but his kind.  Seras shook her head.

"The 6 elementals have thrived thanks to your knowledge.  If anything, you have caused a boon in cultivation."  Lind relaxed a bit but still felt vindictive.

"I would never have allowed such a thing to pass."  Seras nodded but she knew some battles were not worth fighting.  Gravis had, in fact, tried to fight the use of such artifacts to judge talent and simply to train mortals and see how they do.

He had been overwhelmingly denied as it was so much easier to use a method that seemed objective but none asked the question Lind would have.  What measures does the artifact use to decide talent?

Since Gravis only opposed the process and not the standards, he lost the fight.

Lua proved it was flawed and she suspected Lind could easily break the dependence if he wanted to now.

"So, why are you hiding?"  Seras could not see why he would not find his friends and was in a glade far from civilization.

"Surely you do not need your gifts to tell why?"  Lind smiled as he began to play with Lua.  She showed some things she found and he treated it as great discoveries while teaching her more about them.

At that moment, Seras saw Lind Frey as he truly was.  He was never an Emperor, warrior, or scholar.  He was curious.  He wanted to understand the world and then he revealed what he found for all to join him in the secrets he had unveiled.

Her head suddenly tilted back as a new vision took hold.

A massive stone circle glowed in her mind as great danger loomed.  The death of all hinged on a choice but just as she was about to see it, 2 emerald eyes of a dragon looked back at her in warning.

She dismissed the vision and found herself sweating heavily as she looked up at the tranquil sky.

She slowly looked over and saw an empty vial with faint demonic Qi showed she had been cared for but the pair was gone.

She could no longer sense him at all which spoke volumes of him understanding her abilities.  She smiled as she reached out to Haim.

"He is awake.  Prepare."  She said nothing else and flew back to her sect.  The world would be changing again soon.