Eternal Emerald Dragon

Chapter 813 - 812 - Mysterious Stranger

Bui was irritated that he could not get home as he had been heading back when everything went to hell.

His team had been the closest to the Starbreaker Empire and the last month, a month that should have been spent at home, they had scoured the now strangely empty land the Empire had been in.

If that had been all, it would have been fine but then new orders came to scatter and find a mysterious stranger that might be involved.

Now they were wandering the wilds searching for this man no one had ever heard of before.  He found it a waste of time.

He could be home and finally indulging in the brothel after being gone for more than a year!  If he found this damned target, he would drag them kicking and screaming by his hair if he had to!

Bui was at the peak of the Star Tier, so why was he stuck with such grunt work?!

Bui moved through the massive trees all around him and kept his senses extended.  Despite all his internal grumbling, he took the job seriously.  He was looking for the local beast lord without actually entering their territory.

There was an agreement between the humans and the beasts of intelligence when hunting targets.  Given the identity of the current target, there could be some issues but as they had agreements, the honor of the beasts would make them still tell the truth in most cases.

Some aether beasts were not so clear cut but his target was at least in the more rational category.

"I wish to speak with the Lady Yue!"  He did not dare use a telepathic call.  While it would convey his intent, his emotions and prejudice would also come through during such a call.  While only the Sky Realm and above beasts could understand, the message would be passed along.

His tan robes were emblazoned with the mark of the open book and staff.  It was the mark of the citadel members.

They had no official name and strictly speaking they were several groups working together but over the last million years they had slowly become one.

It made things easier as time passed.

He waited as several small and large wolves seemed to appear out of the very shadows of a leafy plant let alone the trees around him.

Bui could appreciate their ability but sneered internally as the strongest around him was only a World Realm.

They would be idiots to attack him.

[State your purpose, human.]

A voice reached his mind but Bui did not dare to react as he knew it was on par with him.  Just because he could not see the wolf, did not mean it was not nearby.

"I have been sent to find the person responsible for the destruction of the Starbreaker Empire.  The Immortal Council is looking for him.  I have a description and more in this jade slip."  He held up the current copy he had.

Jade slips were not so common but could be reused.  The beasts would only need to examine the slip but his instructions were specific.

"I was told to give it only to Lady Yue!"  He was not lying at all but he really wanted to meet her.  The stories spoke of how gorgeous she was in human form and she would need to assume human form to use the jade slip in his presence.

Silence was not unexpected so he waited.  The wolves just stared at him but Bui was not so easily intimidated.

Most of the sunlight had become dim and the glowing eyes actually began to irritate him when the aura returned.

[The Goddess is hunting but states she saw the destruction of that vile den.  Whoever destroyed it will be welcomed with joy to our pack.]

Nothing else followed.  Bui knew that while the beasts did gain more sentience as they advanced, at times their bestial nature could corrupt concepts, yet he felt like he was getting brushed off!

"I am not here to–"  He was about to start shouting when all the hairs on the back of his neck stood on end.

He had been alive for over 2000 years so he had a strong survival instinct.

He could feel that if he spoke one more word, he would not return home at all!

"I was entrusted this by an Immortal.  The Lady Yue is only a Moon Tier.  By the blood agreement–"  Bui tried to be calmer but an aura spiked.

[You dare!  The Goddess has made no bond with filthy humans!  You do not bother us, we do not bother you.  Survival is all that matters!  If you do not leave, you will feed our pack!]

It was not an idle threat.  Bui knew that while he was a Star Tier, he was not worth it at the moment to avenge in the current circumstances.

He bowed low and carefully backed off until he felt the aura pull back.

Sweat covered his brown and his robes were sticking to him uncomfortably as he realized it had been 3 Star Tier wolves focused on him at that moment!

"Damn beasts."  He swiftly turned to leave when he found a demon waiting for him.  She was very pretty with no sign of corruption.

He sneered at her Sky Realm cultivation before he suddenly felt fear.  Her eyes were like bottomless pits and all he saw was terrifying power.

"My master has sent me with a message:  Leave me in peace or I may feel the need to repeat my actions."  She spoke calmly but something was weird about her.  Bui was not sure but he carefully let a dagger fall into his palm.

His sleeves always had 6 of them, 3 to a side, for easy access in the shortest time in battle.

Still he felt like he may have found a clue when she tilted her head.

"I see, nevermind, my master has changed his mind."  Before Bui could react the world went dark and he was suddenly high in the sky.  He saw nothing but terror filled his body as he saw the surface far away.

[I loathe killing needlessly, but you have wandered too close to me.  The wolves keep away from me, but the Fiends did not.  I do not need any more trouble.  Go back and tell the dragons I will come in my own time.]

A voice boomed in his head but Bui still saw and sensed nothing but the wind whistling in his ears!  He also was hyper aware of gravity!

[Swear you will obey.]

Bui felt a jolt of hope.  An Oath at his level was barely binding that far out from the Sacred Path opening!

"I swear to Heaven and Earth to obey your orders!"  He was about to calm down when pressure appeared all around him!  It was the pressure of Heaven and Earth at the Immortal Realm!

The Oath took hold and Bui realized he was doomed.

[You should choose your words more carefully in the future, but that works for me better than my original plan.]

A massive shadow appeared and Bui soiled himself as a massive emerald dragon was holding him by a single claw!

"I will make this short.  You will not recall meeting me.  The wolves were acting scared and wanted you to stay away.  You will then relay that a powerful Immortal aura gave you a message to relay to the dragons.  Any deviation from this will result in crippling you.  Do you understand?"  Bui wanted to deny it but he found his head nodding easily!

Suddenly, the claw let go and Bui screamed as the wind raged around his body as he fell.  Only just above the treetop did he slow down and hover.

[Do not forget, Heaven is not the only thing to fear.]

Bui was suddenly on the ground covered in sweat and his own waste!  He did not care!  He was terrified and ran!

Any time he tried to find a way around his Oath, his dantian felt pained!  He was regretting ever coming to the forest and not urging his scout leader to go home!  He wept and looked ugly as he fled.

⬧⬧⬧⬧

Gel suddenly shook as she felt Lind's connection to her mind pull away.  It had felt odd to let him see through her eyes.

"Why did you reveal yourself to him?!"  She felt it was foolish but he gently landed as he turned back into a human form.  He looked exhausted once more from just that simple exertion.

"That jade slip was a trap.  The moment he went to leave, it started to send out a signal.  I had to distract him while I disabled it.  I did not expect him to make such a completely foolish Oath."  Nothing could hide from Lind's Eyes and his Touch made short work of the inner formation of the slip.

What bothered Lind more was the fact that jade slip was keyed to his aura.  How did they have his aura, let alone his description as a human?  The only ones that saw him like that were Gel and Orion but all others were dead.

His guess about the dragons was his best shot.  They seemed to have retained a level of power far beyond anyone currently alive.  If they were the ones that sent the warning, they likely saw everything through the weak connection he had made.

It made him angry.

They did not care about him before but now that he did something drastic like that, they wanted a word?  Not a chance in Hell it would be anything less than his terms.

Gel suddenly got under his shoulder and he realized he was shaking.

"You need to recover more.  Come."  Gel seemed to be adapting quickly.  He summoned a violet jade slip in his free hand.

"Here, study this for now and see what you can understand.  We will work on it from there."  It was the crystallized results of Kal's training and comprehension as Cyntilla had taught him to control the negative aspects of the Akashic Bloodline.

It was brutal but the twist of Gel's current situation added a level of complexity he wanted to grasp and see if it could be done.  His eyes lit up with excitement at seeing what he could learn!