Kai exploded into a cloud of white purifying flame, his body pulling itself apart.
As the pain took him, Kai despaired. The memory of meeting Azurewing was still fresh, and he wondered, and not for the first time, how it had come to this.
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Four days ago….
Arcadia's grand audience hall dwarfed Kai, an architectural tribute to some gargantuan deity. Immaculate marble walls cradled tall golden frames that nestled vast panels of vibrant blue crystal. Their ghostly glow dappled the hall, casting an otherworldly gleam that gave Kai the impression of walking beneath waves of Arcadia’s ocean.
Echoing in the cavernous expanse, Kai's footsteps seemed to keep the rhythm of his pounding heart.
"They really want you to feel small here," Relay mused, nestled on Kai's shoulders, his gaze sweeping the grandeur of the chamber.
"Maybe it needs to be this big?" Kai countered. His gaze, wide with awe, strayed towards the imposing dais at the end of the hall. Behind it, a monolithic blue silk curtain billowed in the gentle breeze.
Its rhythmic undulations bore an uncanny resemblance to a liquid wall, waves cascading from the top only to crash into the marble floor.
Kai dropped to kneel at the center of the room, arranging his robe modestly. He directed his gaze towards the dais, his mind awash with anticipation. Days of labyrinthine negotiations with contentious factions had led him to this point. The female and male cultivators of the royal family formed separate alliances, each too engrossed in their mutual rivalry to properly consider his requests.
Yet, he felt ensnared in their power games. His introduction to Azurewing's personal guard had been an ordeal, a day fraught with diplomatic dodging and subterfuge. Still, he had borne it for his safety, subjected himself to the peculiar etiquette of the royal court, including the cryptic instruction to remain stoic and non-reactive to any 'strange' occurrence.
"This humble one offers his service to the exalted Lord Azurewing, the divine protector of Arcadia. May his life be prosperous," Kai cautiously glanced at his guardian tutor hidden between the magnificent columns framing the grand windows.
Lou Xin's approving nod was the reward for his perfectly rehearsed introduction. Kai exhaled a sigh.
"What could a mere child like you possibly offer me?" The voice, a growling rumble, set the blue curtain aflame with movement.
"This one cannot claim expertise but has a modest understanding of soul-related maladies," Kai recited, maintaining a submissive posture. Despite his downcast gaze, his spiritual sight let him perceive the dias and Azurewing's silhouette behind the shifting curtain.
"Indeed?" The azure veil parted, unveiling the colossal serpent, his head the size of a house, with eyes the size of great windows large enough for a family to gather and look out together.
"Approach, little soulforger. Show me the prowess you dared to flaunt in my presence."
Now what do I do? Kai mused. He was instructed to stay in place and not move and given clear directions to do as Azurewing bid. Kai unbound his soul light and looked up at the cerulean serpent. His golden light brightened the room as he took in the giant spirit beast.
Azurewing owned the air above the dais, every fluid motion of its spectral body an arresting ballet. It disappeared momentarily behind a curtain, only to reemerge, scales flickering with bright sapphire luminescence.
The beast was an elegant enigma, large yet lean. Mighty wings outstretched, casting a shadow over the great marble platform, then tucked seamlessly against the serpentine body. A regal crest of silver horns crowned its head, sweeping back in an artful arc. Deep-set eyes, mirroring the profound depths of the sea, sparkled with the glint of ancient wisdom.
Kai focused his energy on studying Azurewing with his soul sight. His breath hitched, recognition lighting his features. The immense spiritual power comprising the beast struck him; a vision of transcendent elegance, masterfully crafted to mimic the organic scale and fang without the trivial complexities of mortal beings. So this is what transcendence looks like?
"You're... quite sizeable," Relay's voice rang out, audacity rippling as he leaped from Kai's shoulder. The golden ferrox levitated momentarily before blinking into existence before Azurewing's vast form. Kai's heart stuttered at Relay's brash move.
"And what does a creature as large as you eat?" Relay floated up to the serpent's snout, paw meeting scale with a resonant metallic clink.
"Impertinence," Azurewing rumbled, each syllable echoing around the chamber, stirring Relay's fur into a chaotic dance, the ferrox blinking back into existence beside Kai. The grand beast's voice filled the room once more, "Why do you present me with such a distasteful creature?"
"This humble one begs your..." Kai stalled, his gaze bouncing from the imposing serpent to the stoic guards draped in purple. He tried again, "I must apologize for..." His words fell flat once more. A deep sigh escaping his lips, he finally muttered, "Enough with your rules and pretentious ceremonies." Stooping, he ruffled the golden ferrox's soft fur, "Pay Azurewing no mind, you're not distasteful."
This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.
"Such audacity, to show such disrespect," Azurewing's growl echoed around the chamber.
"Hold on," Kai shot back, his golden soul light pulsing, "You invited me here, aware that I'm a soulforger. Yet you planned to trick me? Seems to me you're the disrespectful one." Kai bound his soul light, rising to his full height.
"Bow before Lord Azurewing," a voice bellowed. Kai turned to see Lou Xin step forward, royal purple robes swirling around him. The intense glare from his dark eyes seemed to drill into Kai. Lou Xin's fists tightened underneath his robes, a palpable spiritual pressure spilling toward Kai; his bushy eyebrows quivered with pent-up fury.
"You mean Lady Azurewing," Kai corrected, his voice as calm as a placid lake. "If you can't even be straight about that, I doubt I'll get anything useful from you for an actual cure."
"Kneel before Lord Azurewing!" Lou Xin's command thundered through the hall as a renewed wave of spiritual pressure washed over Kai, as benign as a gentle tide kissing the shoreline.
"Enough," Azurewing interjected, her long, sleek form gliding through the air and spiraling around the room.
"This soulforger has passed your petty trial," her voice was a soft hiss, her forked tongue flicking out to taste the air. "Please excuse our deceit. The rumors about you were so ludicrous they beggared belief." She circled Kai and Relay, scales shimmering like an ocean under the moonlight.
"I refuse to accept," Lou Xin stepped forward, his voice echoing in the grand chamber, "this boy can achieve what our experts can not."
"Did you catch that, soulforger?" Azurewing hissed, a note of amusement in her tone. "Lord Lou Xin considers you no more than a child."
"Ah, the folly of youth," Kai retorted, his voice laced with mirth. "While you may be young, masquerading as old," he pointedly observed the incessantly slithering serpent, "we're essentially old souls wrapped in youthful bodies. Life's just one big mystery, isn't it?"
"Youth?" The word seemed to choke in Lord Xin's throat.
"You're probably not even a millennium old," Relay quipped, scrutinizing the man. "You're basically a baby."
"Do you expect me to buy into the farce that you're older than I am?" The man's eyebrows arched, his forehead crinkling with indignation.
"Does age really matter?" Kai fired back. "Can you see her infected heart core, or do you know how to cleanse it? Can you pinpoint why she's weakening with age? If not, why are you here, cluttering this conversation? What use are you?" Kai's patience for the old man's fruitless diatribes was wearing thin.
"I am Lord Azurewing's defender. I won't let some inexperienced whelp exacerbate her condition." His voice held a stony determination, and he regained his calm demeanor with a deep, grounding breath.
"Lady Azurewing," Kai reiterated, followed by an exasperated sigh. "This is going in circles." He then focused his spiritual pressure and directed it toward the man, hitting him with a forceful wave just as he was about to retort. Kai watched with satisfaction as his facial features slackened before he toppled over, unconscious.
From the shadows, seven more purple-robed guards sprang into action, rushing into the room, weapons ready.
"Stand down," Azurewing's voice boomed. "Return to your stations and take Lord Lou Xin with you." The celestial serpent encircled the chamber mid-air, asserting her authority.
The guards hesitated, exchanging nonverbal cues among themselves. After a tense moment, they agreed upon a course of action and moved to remove their fallen comrade. Once they'd cleared out, Azurewing descended, her majestic form creating a wall around Kai and Relay, ensuring their privacy.
"Here, we can talk without prying ears," she hissed, her forked tongue flicking out to sample the air. "Now, tell me. What do you see when you look at me?"
The thought couldn't be ignored - with just a swift contraction, she could crush us both. Kai's gaze slid up the towering serpent coils.
"You possess a transcendent body, seemingly perfect on the outside, but it lacks internal intricacy. It's sustained by a soul and soul body of a less advanced cultivator; your primary core is even less evolved than Lou Xin's," Kai explained.
"Your heart core harbors dark energy, leeching life from the others. You house three cores - the primary one, radiant with azure energy, sits in the crown position. The second, the dark heart core, is undoubtedly the root of your ailment. The third, emanating green energy, is the feeblest and rests nearest to the dark heart core in your chest. It's a recent addition, likely an unsuccessful cure attempt. It's only compounded the issue."
"As for your cultivation realm, it lags behind mine, which brings us to the question - how do you maintain control of such a body?"
"Remarkable," her tongue danced through the air, "how revealing your eyes are. Knowledge can be a dangerous weapon. Perhaps, it's best not to see so much."
"I'm here to assist and can't do that blindfolded. I need to understand your condition and its origins. Your black heart core seems to be sapping your cultivation, although that's a first for me. I assume controlling your body will become increasingly challenging until you're trapped within."
"You're not entirely correct, but not far off either," Azurewing conceded. "Given your insights, I believe you might be capable of doing as you've promised. However, before we delve deeper, I must insist on binding oaths from you both. The secrets you're about to learn are fiercely protected and of paramount significance to Arcadia."
After a moment's pause, Kai nodded in agreement.
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"You must know the legend of Azurewing, the story of how I was swayed by the Lou family's esteemed patriarch, subsequently pledging my allegiance to his lineage," she hissed, her tongue flickering.
Having pledged heaven-bound vows of secrecy, Kai and Relay stepped into an expansive courtyard to accommodate the colossal serpent. Set in the city's crown, the courtyard was a tranquil oasis. Ponds, alive with the flash of koi, were interspersed with gentle, babbling streams that wound their way around age-old trees whose canopies shaded the courtyard from the city's bustle.
Majestic trees, their leaves turned into a mesmerizing blend of purple hues, proudly stood against the skyline, their thick, gnarled roots disappearing into the lush, verdant grass. Leaves of purple, orange, and fiery red swirled in the autumn air, dancing in the soft breeze, painting a vibrant tapestry against the clear, azure sky.
The day was brilliant, the air crisp with a hint of winter to come, yet filled with the earthy aroma of decaying leaves. In the distance, a picturesque view of the city lay sprawled, its high-reaching towers and bustling streets held at bay by the serene beauty of the courtyard.
"That's but a fable we wrote," Azurewing said, the sunlight catching her iridescent scales, casting bright blue sparks around the courtyard.
"Now let me tell you my real story."