[Chapter 41 part 2] Dawn – Martial Artist From The Cultivating Realm

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“That…” She sighed. “It’s not a story with a happy ending.”

“True,” Doehser acknowledged. “I suppose it’s not… However, history should be passed on, lest its lessons be forgotten. May I impart it now?”

Astra and Lily looked at each other, then, with a deep breath, Lily said, “Sure.”

“The Cultivating Realm spent most of the Dark Age untouched by conflict. We kept to ourselves, as always, while the world around us burned. Sola was wise enough to leave us for last. However, there were many who traveled outside and joined the fight. One was Xiao Ning, the scion of the Red Sky Sect.”

“While no one approved of this foolishness, we largely tolerated it. We shook our heads when Xiao was hailed as a hero in foreign lands. It wasn’t until after Nuzou’s death that a problem emerged.”

“Sola’s undead horde had risen from the Blue Abyss, replacing the sirk who’d all but died out. The war immediately turned in her favor. Marching tirelessly, they leveraged their mobility to launch concentrated assaults wherever defenses were weakest, claiming more and more territory.”

“Xiao saw a counter to this dire situation in a young immortal named Lily Morgana, whose wide-scale bombardments were extremely effective against grouped targets. He deduced that if these pyrotechnics were powered up further, they might blunt the onslaught. He also knew the means to accomplish this.”

“In the vaults of the Red Sky Sect, there resided a divine treasure called ‘the Crimson Shaft’. Not only was it an incomparably powerful catalyst, the staff held an Illusory Grace which triplicated any fire spells cast through it, regardless of scale. It was a perfect fit.”

“Unfortunately, ‘divine treasures’ belong to the entirety of the Cultivating Realm. While our clans and sects have always been individualistic, we recognized the value of alliances against external threats, hence the Great Assembly. Xiao appealed to borrow the staff, but we refused. There was no benefit to weakening our defenses.”

“Infuriated, Xiao stole the Crimson Shaft and offered it to Lily. The effect was a game changer. Wielding its power, Lily soon earned the title ‘Living Artillery’ and acquired her two Sublime Vagaries. At that point, her firepower and range went beyond anything seen before. The tactical threat she represented altered the war dynamic, forcing Sola into hit and run strikes and multi-front skirmishes.”

“Although the tides may have been turned, the Cultivating Realm was seething with rage. From our perspective, Xiao had committed an egregious betrayal. Worse, his disrespect towards the Great Assembly was unforgivable. Under pressure from the other sects, members of the Red Sky lured Xiao to an isolated location. There, the nine leaders, myself included, ambushed him and ended his life. In doing so, we set an example for those who’d challenged our laws.”

That’s pretty bad. Dawn glanced at Soul. She could see he was livid. So could Doehser.

“I can tell this tale upsets some of you.” The man laughed softly. “Worry not, Karma came for us, with great speed and terrible vengeance. The price for our hubris was beyond anything we could’ve imagined.”

“When the word spread of Xiao’s execution, all Enera was aghast. Not only were cultivating sects sitting out the struggle, they’d even murdered one of humanity’s champions. We became universally loathed. The avatar of hate reacted to this passion.”

“Wielding the wrath of Enera against us, Saven’s host, Nataray, lead Sola’s army into the Cultivating Realm. We experienced the rudest awakening as a third of our territory fell in the first week. Too late we understood what Xiao had been fighting. There’s nothing as soul crushing as two dozen undead colossuses bearing down on your position…”

“At the conclusion of those seven days, the Great Assembly convened. The mood was grim. Two of our leading sects had been wiped out. Two more were on the verge of extinction. The rest were only a matter of time. Having turning the world against us, how could we expect aid? We faced oblivion.”

“It was then that an extraordinary event unfolded.” Doehser smiled at Lily. “Would you care to recount this next part?”

“Oh, god no.” Lily said, burying her face in her hands.

Amused, Doehser continued, “In the midst of our despondency, a fourteen year old immoral barged in. I’ll never forget what she said.”

“‘I hate all your bloody, stinking guts. You rotten bastards deserve everything that’s happening to you. However, Xiao loved these lands. So, as much as it pains me, I’m going to save you for his sake.’”

As Lily groaned, Doehser laughed, “In any other scenario, such impertinence would’ve been swiftly punished. That we held our anger shows how desperate we’d grown.”

“Demanding how she planned to accomplish this feat, Lily declared that she’d summon a dragon god and wipe out Nataray and her army. Naturally, we were skeptical, so she lead us outside and made a demonstration. Leveraging the Crimson Staff and her Sublime Vagaries, she channeled insane energy into the most complex of magics.”

“Above us, for the briefest moment, the pupil of an eye appeared. It was the size of a mountain range.” Doehser closed his eyes. “The power of that thing was magnitudes greater than anything we were familiar with. It was an existence beyond comprehension. The entire assembly was convinced that a full summoning could deliver what Lily promised.”

“What happened next is history. By luring Handam Xolran to our aid with promises of witnessing a dragon god, we succeeded in stalling Nataray. During this interlude, Lily performed a week long spell at the Red Sky’s Vermillion Temple, and the power store in that sacred shrine fueled the greatest summoning ever seen.”

Dawn remembered. We’ve all watched the recordings. Argadon had been visible thousands of miles away, so his form had been captured from innumerable angles. Only the head and neck had appeared in the sky, but they’d been the size of a continent. Yellow eyes and a body of blue crystalline scales. It’d lasted fifteen seconds, the time to let loose a single breath. Starfire blanketed one fourth of Sanwue, and Natarey and her legions vanished into nothing, along with the top mile of the planet’s crust. So much weight disappeared that volcanoes erupted. These losses forced Sola to resort to her Armageddon spell.

“While altruism may not be one of our virtue, we in Sanwue understands honor.” Doehser faced Lily. “You offered us salvation at a time the world was aligned against us. Lest we ever forget this debt, a statue of you stands outside the Great Assembly, right next to Xiao Ning. Plans to depose you will come to naught.”

“The support is appreciated.” Lily bowed her head with respect. “But I don’t understand. Why hasn’t anyone from the Cultivating Realm visited until today?”

Doehser closed his eyes, “Our shame from back then is almost unbearable. Not only did we fail to recognize the threat Sola presented, we took the life of our hero in the process. This mortification has kept us quiet for millennia. Now, however, with another dark age threatening, it’s time for silence no longer. We’ll never repeat past mistakes. When the stars fade again, the Cultivating Realm will not stand idle.”

Finishing, Doehser appraised the regent carefully, “While I’m here, I must ask… Was ‘Argadon’ something you made up?”

Lily shifted uncomfortably, “After receiving ‘Godly Reach’, I extended my senses and searched the Ether for powerful summons. My Sublime Vagary let me peer deeper than ever before, to places no one had ever tread. I found him there. He’d been sleeping so long that he’d forgotten his name. So I gave him one. I was fourteen.” Lily stressed the last part defiantly.

“I see.” Doehser smiled. “Thank you. You’ve settled a longstanding debate on which heavy bets were wagered.”

Doehser Fang set down his empty glass and stood, “It’s time to depart.”

He walked briskly away before pausing and turning back. “The upcoming Lantern Festival… The annual celebration of the Dark Age’s end which takes place around Enera. It was you, Lily, who started it, was it not?”

“Yes,” Lily answer. “Xiao once told me of a festival where they released hopes for the future into the heavens. It was something he wished me to see once the stars returned.”

Doehser nodded, “Thank you, I figured as much.” The man retreated with a sad, satisfied expression.