"What has happened?"
A very subdued group gathered in the main eting room of the citadel.
There were only 7 Immortals left including 2 that were unable to co.
The young woman asking was one of the few that had simply been locked in her quarters until it was all over.
Then the ssage went out to call a eting from Lady Ren's jade stone.
She had dark blonde hair put into a long braid draped over her left shoulder as her pale violet robes brought out her pale skin.
She was a little sunken in physically but far better than most other cultivators.
The other 4 people in the room were Immortals about half way through their lifespans.
So far as she could recall, they had never had much say in the course of citadel policy.
Tiana saw no one was willing to answer her question when the double doors opened.
A very old man was walking with difficulty into the room.
"Senior Ogden!"
She moved quickly to help him in and he looked at her with suspicion?!
"Stay away and resu your seat."
His body looked frail but his voice was as strong as ever.
His pale amber eyes took in the other 4 n and a deep frown crossed his face.
He took his chair near the area other powerhouses would normally take.
Tiana was confused but the other 4 stayed silent until space suddenly tore open by Lady Ren's chair!
A stranger ca through carrying Lady Ren like a princess!
The old woman looked relaxed and more vital than Tiana could recall ever seeing before.
"Show off."
Her voice made them all snap out of their shock but then saw the strange man with erald hair gently set her in the chair.
The snake head staff was still in her hands but sothing seed off.
Artifacts usually carried the aura of their owner but the staff no longer seed to belong to Lady Ren.
The young Immortal looked out at them all before frowning.
"One is missing.
A mont."
He once more ripped open space like it was nothing!
The formations should have locked down the space inside the citadel yet that defense was flouted once more!
"Ack!
W-w-wait!
I am innocent, I did not do anything–"
An all too familiar voice ca from the tear when a very thin man was tossed out like a rag.
He tumbled into a corner before being able to collect himself.
"Hian, so glad to know you never change even in an ergency."
Lady Ren was calm and seed to be enjoying herself.
"Lady Ren!
I swear to Heaven and Earth–"
A powerful aura washed over them all as the tear sealed behind the stranger.
"Enough!
I gave an order and you tried to sneak away.
I already know what you have done and gambling away resources, while not a proud thing, is honestly the least worriso vice to have.
You will still be punished but I really do not care so long as no one is hard which you avoided.
Hence, you are alive."
His voice was detached and srizing all at the sa ti.
His words, however, brought a chill to the room aside from 2.
Ogden stood up and bowed low to him!
"Thank you for your tily assistance.
I owe you my life."
The man waved it off before standing next to Lady Ren.
"You were killed because Lady Ren and you see eye to eye on the austere needs of your situation.
In other words, you live in the harsh reality others refuse to see."
His erald eyes swept the rest of the room.
"The rest of you, were either too weak to beco corrupt or in once case, stood by your honor and paid the price."
All heads swiveled to Tiana.
She paled and beca fearful but Lady Ren actually smiled at her.
"I always wondered why that slave ring was broken up.
You surprise
sapling!"
Praise from her hero made Tiana blush deeply and sink into her chair.
"In case all were unsure, I have full access to the original formations of this fortress.
You all have layered on barely functional formations that could not resist the original command eyes.
This was a dragon stronghold long ago and it is so once more."
It was only then Tiana and the others realized the man had reptilian eyes!
"Y-your the dragon that woman went to fight?!
How are you alive?!"
Hian was sceaming but others were just as shocked.
The man actually smiled and shrugged.
"She is still alive but that is not your concern.
What is your concern is the opportunity to save your race before ti runs out.
It is running out but you can do sothing to save yourselves."
He then looked sad before he proceeded.
"I will not lie.
Many of you may die before there can be a change but I have gotten hope that what destroyed the world a million years ago can be stopped."
A black tal circle with a crystal set in a mounted bracket floated onto the center of the table before a map display went up.
None of them needed to be told what they were looking at.
It was a rough graphical representation of their position in relation to the crumbling edge, but surprise passed over their faces as it was changed.
The crumbling increased more than it had in the last thousand years.
"Do to the foolish battle, things got worse at the edge of the world, but there is one area that did not."
The map zood in until they saw a peninsula starting to form.
Why?!
What made that area different?!
"That is the location where the Starbreaker Empire fell.
What is going on there?"
The stranger smiled before an erald light circled around him that they all recognized.
"I wiped the Empire from the face of the world.
I have no regrets about that but sothing wonderful ca from all that death.
A seed has been planted and it absorbed the fallout of our battle to beco stronger."
His words shocked them but Tiana jumped to her feet.
"It needs Laws?"
Lind bowed at her.
"To be precise, it needs complex Arts that only Immortals can wield.
Destruction is not necessary but to nurture it will require sacrifice and patience."
He then turned to Lady Ren and bowed.
"Flowery words are not gonna be my style.
Plain and simple I am dying.
I am going to die there and let my soul disperse right there.
Ogden, this headache is all yours but understand you will not be in charge."
The old man bowed and glanced at the man.
"You're going to kick the dragon nest into gear, boy?"
He smiled wide and nodded.
"Ti is running out.
I need so materials from them that I hope they have.
If I can pull that off, I can promise this much.
I will be able to go into the devastated lands and find the source of all of this tragedy."
Tiana and Ogden felt sothing shift in the world.
It was not sothing they could put into words, but it was like Heaven and Earth was whispering to them.
She checked to see if there was any Art being used but the Qi in the room was still.
"You don't have to trust him, just know that the only reason you are still breathing is because he knows all the formations allowed him to see.
Stop over thinking it."
Lady Ren was serene.
"Co on, boy.
This old lady is ready to rest at long last."
He knelt before her but before anyone could act, Tiana was suddenly next to her hugging her.
"Don't go!
We need you, Lady Ren!"
A surprised look passed over the old woman's face but she saw the sly smile on Lind's face.
"Bah, you are too sentintal!"
She was not so harsh in her tone but she gently hugged the young girl.
It was stunning to know how little she knew about the activities of the others but Lind had no restrictions.
Nothing could stop his will inside the citadel.
"Even if I don't go, I am dying anyway child.
My ti is up.
We all know nothing is forever.
Cultivators get a bit more ti but death cos for us all eventually.
At least this way, my death will have aning."
Wet tears fell on her shoulder and Ren felt touched.
"I think it is better to show you what has to be done anyway.
Hold on."
The room lit up as formations glowed brightly with erald light before space shifted around them!
Shock covered all their faces, even Lady Ren's, as they were suddenly in a field!
"I stand corrected, NOW you are showing off."
They all looked to see he was barely winded!
"I cannot do that a lot, plus ti was of the essence."
He then gently picked up Ren and the flat ground vanished to reveal a massive crater!
At the heart of it was a glowing space that each Immortal felt their foundations settle just being near.
The pair walked on and the Immortal humans could only look on as Ren was gently allowed to stand at the heart of it.
"Well, the mont is here and I find I am afraid but I can feel it slipping away.
I was worried how all of you would die once I was gone.
I worried about a lot of things, but now–I have hope again."
Ren looked up at Lind's face and gently touched his cheek before handing the staff to him.
Qi blazed before it went from white to erald and he handed it back.
"You chose this and this is how I honor it."
She smiled and then pain crossed her face before she nearly fell.
Branches suddenly shot up and gently took her body in their grasp.
Lind stepped back and all watched as spiritual Qi blazed one last ti from Lady Ren.
Her body decayed as the Qi was consud to let her soul manifest.
Instead of an old woman, a gorgeous woman solidified before smiling gently down at them.
"Not so bad.
So this is what Immortality was supposed to be like."
Confusion crossed the others' faces but Lind let out a roar as the power of Laws suddenly skyrocketed around them.
Ren smiled as she slowly fell apart and the sliver that anchored her to the world broke apart in front of them.
Rays of Qi ca from above and the Immortals felt Heaven and Earth rejoice as the sensation of the ground around them beca far more solid and real to them than anything before.
"This is the new order.
Immortals will work to save the world at this seed as best they can.
I do not
ask you to die here as Lady Ren has.
But nurture and defend this place to the death.
It is tiny and nothing in the grand sche but it is the beginning.
Cultivation is a long path begun with a single step."
His words resonated and Tiana with Ogden were the first to bow and swear they would do so for the rest of their lives.
The citadel changed and humanity began to regain its dignity.
The end of the world was still coming, but they would fight till the end.
Lind smiled and nodded before taking them all back to the citadel once more.
The towering tree rising at the center had an erald staff at the heart of it and its eyes flared for a mont before the flow of Laws and Qi settled once more.
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