Eternal Emerald Dragon

Chapter 824 - 823 - Power Shift

It had not been too long since the Immortals met.  There had been a few scandals revealed too in that short time that resulted in their number decreasing.

Now, however, High Priestess Ren felt frustration unlike any time in her life.  Things had been stable if dishonorable during the time of the Starbreaker Empire.  It was what they had to do to survive so she swallowed her pride.

When the Empire vanished, it was actually a blessing in her mind, but things had not stayed still.

The various shady to full criminal enterprises had tried to snatch up the now unguarded resources to aether beast areas for their own use.

A bloodbath had been expected to an extent, but not a complete extinction of all forces sent on top of an ultimatum by the very man they were seeking!

It had set off a storm as news spread and now a meeting was being held.  To be exact, it was the 4th meeting and Ren was getting supremely tired of the speeches about the indignity of it all.

During the meetings, a final piece of news came as a shock.

A massive migration of aether beasts had occurred about a month ago and now they had taken up all the resource areas of the Starbreaker Empire.  Further, the plants along the border had become far more powerful!

A few scouts sent to confirm the issues barely escaped.  Some swore the roots or branches were about to kill them when something made them stop.

No one knew the full truth but it was clear that where the Empire had fallen, new powers were rising incredibly quickly.

Plants were not a large concern to the humans, but the beasts were a different matter entirely!

The scarce resources already hampered alchemy, refiners, and formation masters but simply cultivation was also on the line.  The Sacred Path opening was only good for comprehending Laws, no resources came from it at all!

Not a single idiot at the meetings dared to suggest it either.  Even hundreds of thousands of years later, the scar of what happened when they tried was burned into the survivors.

"We cannot stand for those mongrels to get stronger and become our rivals!  We must put them back in their place…"  Ren tuned in as one of the young men was giving an impassioned speech.

If he had faced a single hardship since he was born, she would eat her staff.

He was plump faced where a few, including her, were withered.  She was powerful but her time was ending and they all knew it.

A flare from her staff's eyes on the snakehead drew her attention.  She actually sat up but no one noticed as they were too busy talking out of their noses to notice their hair on fire at that point.

[Thank the Heavens, I am running out of patience!]  She did not hide her exasperation with her current circumstances at all.

[Your request took some time.  We agree that the level of power shown exceeds our expectations.  Further, it is concerning to us.  She is on her way.  She will not speak with any of you but do not impede her or you will die.]  The voice was the newer one again.  A male dragon, but she was confused.

[The old bastard is not coming?]  She could almost feel the flinch on the other side.

[Senior is not up to traveling at the moment.  Instead, his granddaughter will take care of it.  She has been a peak Sliver Tier Immortal since before the Cataclysm.]

Shock flooded Ren but she kept her face calm.  She was one of the very few left that knew lifespans were dictated by race as much as cultivation realm.

[Do I at least get to know her name?]  Ren knew calling her Old Bastard's granddaughter would likely not go over well.

The meeting seemed to be reaching a verbal climax but it was the same as the previous ones.  Everyone agreed 'something' must be done but did not want to put their own foot out to be cut off.

[Your race had a name for her long ago.  Suneater.]

All the blood really drained from Ren then.  Her hands shook in fear.  Dragons were powerful beings but some of them gained infamy for very good reasons.  They were feared by all races, even dragons as well!

Suneater had wiped out several civilizations due to their practices of sacrificing dragon kin in their rituals or hunting whelps instead of braving the dangers to face an adult dragon.

Her name came from the first empire she destroyed all on her own.  The Sun Empire had ruled for billions of years but its nobility put too much stock in having dragon based artifacts or clothing.

Many took the safer route of hunting whelps or worse, stealing eggs to raise a dragon only to slaughter it.  It was a massive affront to the dragon race but the Sun Empire never expected full retaliation.

The Emperor at the time, despite many warnings from his wives and some ministers, actually encouraged more egg stealing.  Killing a whelp was bad enough, but at least it could fight back, but taking an egg was anathema to many aether beasts.

Against her clan's wishes, Suneater showed up at the border one day and began to wage a one-sided slaughter of every village, town, and city of the Empire.  By the time they responded with force, it was far too late.

Their deep foundation meant nothing in the face of her rage.  She was severely bleeding and had several broken limbs by the time she got to the capital.  Everyone assumed she had made her point and would not negotiate a settlement.

The Emperor was enraged but he had only lost meaningless commoners and minor nobles.  He was safe so it was all able to be recovered in time.

Instead, she ascended to Immortality right then and there.  The tribulation had been terrifying and reached the 7th round!  There was nothing left but a glorious winged dragon with crimson gold scales roaring over the ashes of her enemies.

The legend was burned into humanity and many used it as justification for the hunting of dragons not associated with any dragon temple or power.

Many challenged Suneater after that but none survived.  Witnesses noticed some she gave a quick death while others were made to linger in suffering before dying.  Their crimes were taken into account it seemed.

Some powers had no pity for being swallowed by her, but others had allies that tried to avenge them no matter the reasonable causes she had to fight.

Now, that same legend was being sent to face their current predicament, why?!

[You do not understand how powerful he is.  He is not a peak Sliver Tier yet the power you have reported far exceeds it.  She is the most experienced warrior we have left.]

That last word made Ren narrow her eyes.  So, the dragons were not unscathed by the Cataclysm despite the evidence to the contrary.

"High Priestess!  It is time for us to begin to plan our counter–"  She snapped out of her thoughts as a different young man spoke to her but it was the same tired claim of making plans when no one could agree on who should enact any plan.

She was about to speak when an oppressive aura flared all around them.  Ren noticed she was left alone aside from anyone.

It seemed Suneater had arrived.

[Humans.  Do not interfere in our matters.  I will handle my own kind.  Anyone who dares to observe or get in my way will die.  This is your only warning.]

The female voice was calm and powerful.  It made the glass shake as powerful wings swept up and shot a large body out of the opening into the Sacred Paths.

Many turned pale and a few vomited as they had never truly felt the power of a complete Immortal before.  Ren bowed slightly before sending one piece of advice.

[They are near the weaker areas of the world.  Full power could speed up the crumbling.]  An acknowledgement came back that Ren appreciated.

Even the dragons did not want that outcome.  The power had shifted too quickly for many in the room.

The Starbreaker Empire was gone, the aether beasts were on the rise, and now a dragon had come from the Sacred Paths.  They were no longer involved in that fight.

"Any of you that might have ties to stubborn powers should warn them to take that threat seriously.  Tell them, Suneater has come."  Legends of the lost lands still survived.  The name Ren just spoke made some that had weathered the pressure fairly well joined their fellows in being sick.

The room cleared in record time as Ren calmly made her way back to her quarters.

[Just out of curiosity, what if he resists?]  She wanted to know so she could be prepared but the response shocked her.

[It depends, if he is what we think, then we can only comply.  If he is not, then he must die.]  Comply, as in obey?!  Just what was going on these days?!

Ren hobbled up to her room and actually prayed to the spirits of Heaven and Earth that peace could last just long enough for her to leave that life behind!