Eternal Emerald Dragon

Chapter 950 - 949 - New Paradigms

A cup of steaming tea sat on a table in a gorgeous pavilion of dark wood sitting in a massive garden. A palace loomed over the garden but it was just as richly decorated as the pathways crossing the well manicured plants that made up the area.

A young man sat at the table alone as he let the tea cool as he examined a jade slip in his hands. He had sandy hair cut short as his robes were a mix of blue, black, and silver. His face was narrow but very handsome. His eyes were as black as obsidian as they were focused on things only he could see.

He senses retracted from the slip as he frowned as he sipped some tea. He looked up at the pleasant blue sky with white fluffy clouds but the majestic view brought him no joy.

"Highness." A voice spoke from midair but the man did not seem surprised.

"Unless it is something supremely important or a command from my Mother, leave me alone." The presence paused but did not leave.

"I leave it to your judgment, Highness. There are signs the Frey Clan is closing off their borders. It is possible their Founder is preparing to become a Crystal Tier." The prince blinked and frowned even deeper.

It was common knowledge that the Frey Clan Founder was a fearsome individual when it came to disseminating knowledge. It also seemed to be difficult to replicate his startling results of powerful cultivators in the same realm.

The Emerald Cloaks were a force no sane person would challenge but on top of that the Clan members were able to do things few could stand up to!

If they chose to become a power to rule them all, only the combined might of all other powers working together could possibly stop them.

The fact that they showed no interest in bothering was an issue the Prince found worrying. The pace of their increase in power did not show any sign of slowing down as they now had 6 branches growing in power as well.

"They would hide it but it is impossible to hide the preparations for that kind of tribulation. He will also likely try to allow others to watch to study it." The Prince's words met only silence but it was an obvious conclusion.

The actual event was not the issue, it was what would come after.

The Celestial Fields and basically the Heaven Realm lands to many mortal realms, had all become tuned to the image Lind Frey had spread to all cultivators. While he had pulled back in the last few millennia, his reach was apparent everywhere.

Prince Jude downed the last of his tea as he saw many issues cropping up. In a real sense, the shadow of Lind Frey kept a lot of powers in check just by always being there. Despite his absence, his family and the sects or empire created by him had spread across the lands.

His elemental theories opened the door not just for 6 elementals but for all cultivators to gain more strength.

If he suddenly left, even with his Frey Clan remaining, it would cause a shift.

In the nearly 9000 years since the Celestial Fields was restored, not a single sign of the higher layers have shown themselves. There were no ascension pools like between other high to lower density Qi realms.

According to the few records and survivors, it took natural ascension or a Crystal Tier escorting someone up to leave the lowest layer behind.

The Frey Clan had such a cultivator but had never used that method. That fact told all what they wanted to know about the dangers above.

Prince Jude dismissed the agent and summoned a communication jade. The signal went out as he waited. There was a chance it would not connect but he suspected the news would reach all his compatriots.

As expected, the jade stone lit up as it connected.

[To what do I owe the pleasure of the Crown Prince of Chihong Kingdom reaching out to my humble self?] Prince Jude almost choked at the last few words.

"I would hardly call the Prime Disciple of the Gothran Sect as humble. Your sect is on par with the various high powers. Gloria, I have no time for your games. Have you heard about Lord Frey?" The jade artifact lit up with what he could almost feel was her amusement.

[You are a bit slow, I already knew about it long ago. You should get better spies.] He sighed but ignored her jab.

"Do you understand what will happen once he is gone?" The silence was far longer that time. At least she took that much of it seriously.

[What is your point?] He felt a vein pulse on his forehead. She was not ignorant and simply fishing to find out his own opinion.

"Very well, the other well established powers he brought up from his war with the Fiends will continue to support the Frey Clan as they have, but the rest of us will look for cracks to widen. The Frey Clan has too much power." Prince Jude did not feel danger from expressing such an opinion.

Any power that was at the upper echelons would be foolish to not consider rivals rising up in the future.

[The relative peace we have is thanks to their efforts, never mind the current restriction on the Fiends.] Prince Jude could acknowledge that. Still, he could see the danger.

"The source of peace can become the source of war in the future. Lind Frey and his progeny I trust, but future generations will change." His words did not make a long pause that time.

[You are always a paranoid one. The foundation Lord Frey had laid will not corrupt so easily.] He sneered at her words. Gloria was not so naive as to believe such a thing. Their powers had existed in the Heaven Realm lands long before the Celestial Fields was restored.

Without the Fiends, they had seen many beneficial powers rise but then become a danger as new generations took over.

It was not just a suspicion but a fact he knew would come to fruition in time. Prince Jude was already a peak Sun Tier and will become an Immortal any day.

He knew enough about the past to fear the future when well established figures leave their powers behind due to death or ascension.

"The accepted paradigms will start to break. We already know the Fiend War treaties broke apart under the very peace Lord Frey established. It is reasonable to assume it will happen again when he is gone." Prince Jude made his point clear as he wanted to move the conversation along.

He was not in the mood for word games with the other news he had heard.

[You seem to forget he is not the sole anchor of his Clan. His wives are not going anywhere. His children are also not going anywhere. It could be a very long time before–] Prince Jude had had enough.

"More Fiends outside their zone have been found in the north east at the extreme edge of the realm." His words brought dead silence. He had been reviewing reports as their powers were also located in the north eastern areas of the Celestial Fields.

It was as far from the Fiends as was possible to be for the last 9000 years.

Despite the devastating assassinations that came from there, no such incidents had been replicated and the various powers had aligned against the Fiends solidly. Skirmishes still occurred but the Frey Clan had empowered them to the best of their ability to keep them in check.

If more Fiends had been found, it meant terrible danger to all the powers nearby.

[How many?] There was no more teasing to the voice but Gloria now understood Prince Jude was being serious.

"The reports vary a bit but it seems there was an enclave of Fiends that had hidden themselves away. They built up their power quietly and now have Immortal Fiends. Their headquarters is unknown but raiding parties are located at the edges of the realm thus far." Prince Jude would be glad if that was all there was to report.

It got worse.

"The local villages have been treated as farms for centuries. They were too afraid to reach out for help. No one knows how long they have been active." His grim look was clear but the news of Lind Frey leaving would only embolden the Fiends if they learned of it.

[Not good. Please send me what you can. We can't let this go on. If Fiends are spreading freely, the entire Realm is in danger.] Gloria was now just as grim as him. He picked up his jade slip and touched it to the communication stone.

His aura pushed the imprint through it directly. Their communication stone had the advanced ability to do so. It amused him that such a function had been missing until they introduced it to the other powers.

[Got it. Will you be petitioning the Frey Clan?] Prince Jude paused at her question. It was not a bad idea but he did not want a war to erupt in his backyard.

"We will need to be careful about it. There are some of them that travel freely that won't draw too many eyes. If we get a special envoy, the Fiends may act rashly." The monsters were well known on the other side of the realm.

Prince Jude had read enough records to fear what those creatures could do.

Their world was changing more and more. They had to stop taking for granted the current closeness the entire realm had too as resources were not limitless.

Prince Jude would be surprised to learn he was but one of many powers shifting their focus as news of Lind Frey's coming ascension became known. The new Fiends were but one aspect of that consideration as other humans and demon powers would also prepare for any advantage they could grasp.

The new paradigms would start to form even before Lind Frey left, but first, a new war would begin.