Depthless Hunger

Chapters 621-624

Chapter 621: Expected Reunions

The Empress made her wait for a while as an assertion of her power, but it was honestly a bit flimsy, so Omilaena wasn't bothered. Since they gave her a room that was a lot nicer than the ship she'd taken across the ocean, she remained in the Coiled Empire and enjoyed doing her research with the chakra of Rosemount around her.

When she was finally summoned, it wasn't to an audience at the throne room, which suited her fine. Instead Omilaena was led by nervous guards to a smaller garden off one wing of the palace, where she discovered the Empress of the Coiled Empire waiting for her. The lamia looked as massive as before, with all her regal accouterments, but her power wasn't so intimidating anymore.

"I do not appreciate being treated like this," the Empress told her. "No matter that you rendered me assistance, this is-"

"You'll appreciate what I'm about to tell you." Omilaena took a step closer, looking up into the elder lamia's eyes. "Have you heard about what happened on Deadwaste?"

"Some local matter. It interfered with trade, but trade with Deadwaste has always been insignificant to the Coiled Empire."

"There's a man who's going to land any day now, and he has a full defensive phase." Omilaena smirked as she saw the Empress flinch at that reference. "Not only that, he has an offensive phase as well. Now, if I tried to fight him, I would lose right now. But if you tried to fight him... I think it wouldn't go well for your reputation, would it?"

The Empress lashed her tail irritably. "Is this some charade of blackmail? Are you telling me that the human you were with is coming to attack me?"

"Hah! Kai has mastered phases too, but no, it's not him. I'm being entirely sincere in warning you about the invaders: they hit Deadwaste first, but some of them are coming to Rosemount next. I'm not trying to intimidate you, I'm here because I need allies. You and the great powers are some of the few who might be able to fight him, so I don't want you to go in unprepared."

"This seems absurd, but you've always been absurd." The Empress lowered herself closer to eye level, glaring at Omilaena. "Let's assume this threat of yours is real. If the danger is as substantial as you claim, you haven't come to me for protection, not at your strength. So what do you want?"

"Resources." Omilaena formed a chair metal and sat down, then summoned her pipe. "I'm close to a breakthrough that will let me fight the invader, but I could use some help."

It took a while for them to negotiate a deal, mostly due to the Empress's pride. For her part, Omilaena felt that she was actually understating the threat, and she was mildly irritated to suffer through this. But if Jonijix and other invaders landed and the Empress tried to fight them, they would destroy her fabled defense and possibly even rape her, which would be an atrocious start to their time on Rosemount.

If Omilaena got some resources out of warning them, well, that was a nice bonus. She negotiated to receive a number of the strongest poisons and metals in the entire Coiled Empire, promising to help them in their defenses. It wasn't even really a lie, since she would use her new power to beat the invaders... just not necessarily in time to save the Empire. Even with all the unknown variables remaining regarding her Physique, the math didn't look good.

There was one other term she was insistent on: contacting the Elven Expanse. The two powers were still on decent terms after they officially collaborated to defeat Matiavel and "generously" free the Commonwealth, so that wasn't so hard. If things could be arranged in time, that would make Omilaena's time on her home continent much easier.

She left the Empress and returned to her rooms, beginning to work with her new materials. The remnant of the Whispering Death she held was being slowly converted by the Prana Jewels, but that alone would take forever - it was an Insanity, after all. Somehow she needed poison chakra that she could absorb.

Days later, before Omilaena found any solution, she heard that she had a visitor. When she stepped out of her room, she saw a familiar elf.

"Ceryyn Sandflower," Omilaena said with a smile. "It's been a long time."

"Omilaena!" Ceryyn hugged her with surprising enthusiasm, then just as abruptly pulled back. "Wait, is it bad that you're alone? You didn't have a fight or something, did you? Because I was really rooting for the three of you t-"

"Nah, we're still fine, just working on separate continents. Look I'm not going to play the political game with you: I want to use you for your teleportation."

The plan had been to explain about the invaders and the threat to all Rosemount, but Ceryyn immediately gave a mocking salute. "Then call me a pack mule!"

"Wait, really? That easily?"

"You did the Elven Expanse a great service, and I feel we didn't properly repay you... though speaking of, how did you enjoy Darkmist Island?"

So Omilaena finished her elven negotiations much faster than she had anticipated, arranging for teleportation all across the continent. She explained everything to Ceryyn, from abbreviated events regarding Darkmist Island to the current threat. It was actually fun getting to talk to Ceryyn again, and Omilaena realized how much she'd missed Rosemount.

They were going to arrange a broader tour of the continent, but Ceryyn needed to inform the elven elders and make arrangements of her own. Omilaena waited patiently enough while she was gone, continuing her training slowly but surely.

And then, sadly few days later, she heard that Jonijix had landed. Fuck, out of time already.

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..

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Meeting with Kai, even briefly, had almost thrown Zae Zin Nim off her rhythm. It was difficult to focus purely on cultivation when thinking of her husband, and the visit made her miss her wife as well. Just trying to work for their sake wasn't sufficient to regain that singular focus she had managed before.

And yet, the distraction proved to be what she needed. Looking only at herself, considering cultivation solely from a single angle of "Brightwind purity" had blinded her to broader patterns. It seemed that, to attain inner understanding, she needed to look outward first. Some of the more mystical cultivation manuals, which she had discarded as crackpot, actually made more sense now.

So Zae Zin Nim began to examine members of the Brightwind Sect with her deeper spiritual senses, determining what she could about their underlying cultivation. She even volunteered to help deal with political problems caused by the ongoing changes at the center of the continent - not really for the Brightwind Sect, solely because she wanted to examine more cultivators.

She wasn't Omilaena, but years of being together had given Zae Zin Nim a reasonably strong understanding of the deeper theory of souls. The more she thought about it, the more she thought she understood the principles underneath the doctrines.

Many of the cultivators she saw were on inferior paths, obtaining less than the theoretical maximum of pure cultivation. But she had learned that purity was not necessarily the ideal - crystal cultivation was a purer use of qi, after all, and it was inferior to what she knew. And even her father had begun to delve into mana and chakra when he reached the limits of Sky Soul and needed more power. The best path of cultivation needed to touch on every part of the soul, which made it much more complex than the essentialized Brightwind cultivation.

If only she could examine Omilaena again... but she would have to work based on her memory of her wife, which was admittedly quite detailed. When Omilaena had become a cultivator, she had made it part of her soul in a different form, just as Zae Zin Nim had made a Goralian Class into the Coldfire Corona. As they had both proved, these alternative forms could be just as powerful as the originals.

Meanwhile, Kai was more of a mystery with his Gluttonous Cultivation, which looked completely normal to shallow spiritual sight, yet behaved somewhat differently in practice - especially given how much qi he required for each stage. Could that ultimately become something different?

If so, then she thought that she might be able to take another step of her own, higher than the next step on the map. The Blackblood Physique had been meant to be purged, but she had made it into something superior. She would still reach for Sky Soul, but it would be the truest form of Sky Soul, based on the ancient principles instead of merely following the rules of others.

To take either of those steps, she would need Kai to return from the Heavenly Mountains and Lakes. And when it came to that, all she could do was wait for news.

Chapter 622: Unexpected Blessings in the Heavenly Lakes

The irritating thing was that the Heavenly Mountains and Lakes were actually quite beautiful, Kai just couldn't enjoy it. He could imagine coasting overhead during more leisurely times, or even taking a vacation there with Zae Zin Nim and Omilaena. But now, with so many deadlines over his head... the sparkling waters, rich qi, and picturesque mountains were basically mocking him.

Well before he left the Brightwind territory, he'd returned to using Mutefang's Stealth instead of skimming above the clouds. It was slower, but it allowed him to weave his way around the various sects that would no doubt have started a vendetta if they saw him. All around he saw people declaring fealty to the Yangix Sect, which was being treated as a sort of empire over all other sects, allowing them to retain their own customs so long as they submitted.

Much of this region was unoccupied, like the other regions of Cloudspire, and he found a surprising number of glades or small islands that were so rich in qi that it would have been worth stopping to cultivate. Instead Kai pushed on, following the rumors - and the occasional blasted wreck of a sect - toward the invaders.

When he finally discovered where Yangix was holding court, he had to stop well outside their range. Sneaking closer, much less trying to go undercover, was an unacceptable risk because there was a chance that the gray power would take over if he got anywhere close.

Kai had actually considered triggering it on purpose, since it might make Yangix act out and begin blasting cultivators in his path, or at least harm his reputation. But in that form he was even more merciless than normal, and potentially more powerful, so it might be wise not to show that, especially when Kai had no guarantee that it would have a positive effect.

Instead he climbed a massive qi-laden tree and focused his senses until he could see into the small island where Yangix was holding court. He had the patriarchs and matriarchs of multiple sects around him, treating them like no more than young masters hanging onto his every word.

"Endlessly compressing qi into the dantian is a dead end," Yangix was lecturing. "Yes, you can attain slightly greater power, but the dantian is only the first seed of true cultivation. If you seek true path, you must first find understanding within."

"What becomes of the dantian?" one of the listeners asked.

"The body requires a sea of qi, of course, but it must grow beyond the small forms you have here. To do so, you need not compressed qi, but elevated qi, a power that has attained true understanding."

"And how does one acquire such understanding?"

As Yangix answered, Kai heard the ring of bullshit. He couldn't claim to be an expert on cultivation, even the Deadlake version of cultivation, but he knew dissembling when he heard it. Yangix was selling the cultivators a false bill of goods, pretending that he could help them attain the same undeniable power he possessed. In fact it was nothing but the benefit of being born in a place with denser qi, so without it, he would never be able to deliver on his promises.

Could that actually be used against him, though? Kai was familiar enough with Cloudspire that he didn't entertain any fantasies of the sects rising up against him - they were hungry for power, but they wouldn't challenge someone who could blow them apart by pointing at them.

Most likely the best path was to shake their confidence in Yangix, to give them reason to doubt that the power they felt could ever be theirs. Challenging him directly was the wrong decision, especially because Kai wasn't completely confident he could win in his current state. No, he needed to find a promise that could be broken from the outside.

Kai shadowed the court for two days, cultivating on his own as he listened to the endless teachings and politics. Aside from his waffling about the principles of cultivation, Yangix was convincing more and more sects to swear fealty to him. He had a dozen offers of marriage, but Kai didn't think Yangix was motivated by lust: what he really wanted was the respect and prestige. Right now he got more out of being the most desired bachelor on the continent, and if he did marry, he would treat women like sterile treasures.

On the third day, Kai finally heard the chance he'd been waiting for.

"These teachings are too subtle for us to grasp," one of the old patriarchs said, shaking his head as if befuddled. "Perhaps we could learn better if you offered us a demonstration, something that would be simpler for primitive cultivators to understand."

"Not an unreasonable request." Yangix stroked his chin, which had grown a thin beard, and nodded wisely. "You have customs related to dragons in these parts, do you not? I have seen your ceremonies of leaving little gifts for them..."

"Yes, it is traditional to leave qi-laden offerings for the sacred dragons of the lake. Of course, the dragons do not bless all who come to them, so perhaps it is not a good lesson."

"Nonsense! I will show you and the dragons a cultivation that they have never imagined!"

That was it: Yangix had made a promise that could be exploited. The old patriarch acted servile, but his only purpose in asking the question was to make Yangix show his qi in a form that could be more easily analyzed. As much as he put on airs, Yangix wasn't actually that bright. Anyone who buttered him up and suggested he was an amazing cultivator could manipulate him easily enough.

So the entire group went to one of the sacred lakes, Kai lurking in their shadow. He wasn't sure if the process would give him a perfect opportunity, but he finally got lucky: the offering was left out in the evening, then the next morning the dragons gave their blessing. Perfect.

Yangix pushed his qi into an enormous incense stick, which began to burn with an intense smell. Kai thought it was vaguely unpleasant, but the cultivators were apparently very impressed, because his stick had produced more smoke than anyone else who had ever attempted the offering.

In any case, that didn't matter: they retreated to praise Yangix and wouldn't return until the morning. As soon as they were gone, Kai slipped into the water of the sacred lake and sank to the bottom, meditating while he stretched his senses. Presuming that the ritual had some substance to it, the dragons were sacred beasts that would be lured by the incense, so it was only a matter of time.

Well after sunset, Kai felt the first dragon appear, curling over the lake as it investigated the incense. He considered bursting out of the water but held back. The cultivators had said something about the number of dragons summoned reflecting a cultivator's strength, so it was a safe bet that Yangix would summon a lot of them.

Soon enough a second emerged, then a third. These were Cloudspire dragons, so they were elegant and sinuous instead of blocks of scale-clad muscle like the golden dragons. Kai didn't think their essence would have been a good fit for Dragon's Might or the other abilities he was planning, but they were very suited to cultivation. Not only were they bursting with qi, they carried a supernatural aura like some of the other sacred beasts he'd seen on Cloudspire.

Stolen story; please report.

This must have been what Zae Zin Nim had been referring to, even if she hadn't fully articulated it. Kai was beginning to shift into his Savage Heart form, jaws opening as if he could drink the lake. He waited until no more dragons seemed to be coming, then he burst to the surface.

In his initial burst upwards, he used Isulfr's Bite to consume the head of a dragon he passed, then gripped another in his claws. Kai killed it even as he bound a third in place with Void Gaze, then pivoted to a fourth. The individual dragons were weaker than him, but not much weaker, so he needed to be prepared to fight all of them at once.

He turned out to have been over-prepared. Some of the dragons panicked, while others assaulted him with waves of water-like qi. But with all his defenses, Kai shrugged off the impacts and ate another dragon, and that broke them, sending the dragons scattering in all directions.

Not fast enough. Now that he realized this was a hunt instead of a battle, Kai used the full force of Thunderbird's Wings to flash over the lake, grabbing each and every dragon before it could escape. There was more meat than he could eat, but he filled himself to the brim with the flesh of dragons. For a brief time, even the bottomless hunger of his monstrous nature was overwhelmed, and he concentrated on channeling all the essence into his soul.

<

Sacred Dragon's Qi - I (alpha)

>

They resolved into "Sacred Dragon's Qi", which surprised him since he hadn't intended to focus on qi. Perhaps cultivation had been too much on his mind, or perhaps the dragons were simply extraordinarily aligned with the paths of cultivation. Their blessings were supposed to grant cultivators nebulous advantages in their breakthroughs, after all, perhaps similar to how the golden dragons granted blessings.

Whether or not that helped him, Kai was satisfied with his work. When the cultivators arrived in the morning, they would find no dragons at all, a disturbing result for the ceremony. Kai had no doubt that Yangix would be able to talk his way out of it, but doubts would begin to worm their way into the mind of all who heard him.

On his way out, Kai realized that someone was watching him.

A man in dark robes stood on the bank opposite the incense, his eyes filled with a calculating rage. He had long dark hair and an ageless face, but Kai guessed that he was at least middle-aged. Based on the cut of the robes, he was probably from the central region as opposed to any of the others, so presumably he was just one of Yangix's followers, in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Or so Kai thought until the man opened his mouth.

"You killed my son." The patriarch stepped forward, his qi supporting him as he walked onto the lake. "Your whore seduced him into a war that was never his, then you killed him."

Kai had never seen the man before, but suddenly he saw the family resemblance. "You're Xir Xan Khan's father?"

"Patriarch of the Coiling Island Sect." The man took a deep breath and the power of a Sky Soul flooded out. "I never thought fate would bless me with a chance of vengeance, but it has brought you to your death."

Chapter 623: Vengeance Almost Forgotten

Omilaena had been eager to get back to Rosemount, but not so much the Elven Expanse. Mostly desert unless she was allowed in the cities, and right now she didn't want to get involved with that. Still, it was a necessary step in her travels, even if she suspected that Ceryyn would return with bad news.

She sensed an elven teleportation technique and turned, strangely alert: all that phase training had sharpened her senses, making certain formerly quick actions shift the world into slow motion. It might have been unusual for Ceryyn to teleport out of the nearby city, but it wasn't too surprising... except it wasn't her.

Yonto Bludshard appeared not far away, as lanky and calm as usual. The bow across his back looked stronger than the previous one, but he was still carrying the Thunderbird arrows she'd made for him.

"Hey," Yonto said.

"Hey." Omilaena tried to best his casual greeting with an even more casual wave. "Are you here to teleport me?"

"It sounds like you have a lot of demands, so I figured I'd chip in."

"Great. Ceryyn is taking a long time to talk to the elders and then bring me the bad news, so what do you say we do a small side trip? The Slumbering Colossus isn't far away, how about we pop over there?"

The casual mention of an Insanity only made Yonto raise his eyebrows slightly. "Maybe we could, but I don't think she'll be long. Teleporting is easier with two, so we can wait to combine our abilities."

"Hmm, did I detect a bit of familiarity there?" Omilaena went out of her way to look him up and down, as if she could uncover his secrets. "Are the two of you banging?"

"Yup."

His immediate response threw Omilaena briefly, then she grinned. "Well? Is it good?"

"Ask her." Yonto gave a minuscule shrug, but she thought there was a hint of a smile on his lips.

Before she could tease him any further, Ceryyn appeared from the sand-covered staircase as she emerged from the city. She didn't need to open her mouth for Omilaena to know what the answer would be, but she let the elf say it to be polite.

"I'm sorry, but the council of elders isn't willing to throw their full support behind you." Ceryyn shook her head sadly. "They're watching the invaders, but when Jonijix only killed a few people and got run out of the Coiled Empire, our warnings took a hit in credibility."

"Only because Jonijix found lamias repulsive," Omilaena said. "Trust me, once he gets horny we're all going to have a bad time. Is he still moving to the Commonwealth?"

"That was the last report. Until then, we have some time..." Ceryyn brightened and moved to her partner. "Oh, I asked Yonto to help, is that okay?"

"If it gets me around faster, I'm not complaining."

So far, the worst had yet to happen on Rosemount, but Omilaena could feel the tension rising across the world. It was only a matter of time until the house of cards came tumbling down, and she wasn't sure if they'd be ready.

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Under other circumstances, Kai might have stopped to talk. He didn't truly know the patriarch of the Xir family and leader of the Coiling Island Sect, only knew him by reputation. But there was no time, so Kai immediately examined the man's soul as he prepared to attack.

<

Name: Patriarch Xir

Total Power: 1764

Cultivation: Sky Soul (1000)

Physique: D-0 (200)

Heavenly Body (+200)

Immortal Body (+100)

Soul Level: 8 (64)

Coiling Presence (+100)

Coiling Death (+100)

>

The patriarch had over 1700 Power as a perfect Sky Soul, which was formidable for Cloudspire... but didn't seem so dangerous anymore, not compared to the opponents Kai had been facing. This fight would likely be fast and dirty.

Aside from the need to finish things quickly, before Yangix and the others realized what was happening, it wasn't difficult for Kai to summon some real wrath. This was the man who had tried to have his son marry Zae Zin Nim as a chess piece, and as a peer of Zae Clen Ban he was likely to be just as despicable. Kai had no intention of holding back.

"My son told me that you were stronger than you looked." Patriarch Xir's lip curled as he stared at Kai. "One would hope, otherwise such an incompetent cultivator would stand no chance. It's disgusting for a barbarian to-"

Kai attacked in that moment - not because he was being insulted, but because there was no more need to wait. He didn't even think about using full power and speed phases, he just attacked, and he very nearly ended the fight in the first move.

Before the patriarch could react, Kai was inside his range and his claws were cutting into the man's chest. But Sky Souls didn't reach that rank for nothing, and Patriarch Xir managed to react: a coiling force burst from his chest to deflect Kai's blow. His claws shattered it instead, sending the man hurtling backward into the forest beside the lakes.

Immediately Kai was on him again, intending to pounce, but the patriarch flipped to his feet too quickly. This time he stopped taking the fight lightly: he began burning his own cultivation to enhance the Coiling Death, which arced around him. Not just one coil like his son, but three, weaving dangerously and threatening Kai.

Who walked directly into his range. As the Coiling Death stabbed down, Kai manifested his Monstrous Tail technique, which swung around him, deflecting the strikes. They hammered with the full weight of a Sky Soul's power, but Kai had surpassed that mark some time ago - Dragon's Might was fully capable of enhancing his techniques as well, so they kept up with the Coiling Death blow for blow.

Patriarch Xir stared in shock as Kai got closer step by step, deflecting his strongest attack without even using his arms. Kai raised one hand, building up a Tyrant's Claw that would cleave directly through the cultivator's defenses.

That finally made the patriarch call off his attack and retreat - exactly what Kai had been trying to bait him to do. The instant his opponent stopping using all his presence techniques, Kai hit him with Void Gaze, locking him in place.

Before the patriarch could recover, Kai closed the distance, smashing his claw into the man's chest and driving him to the ground. They skidded through the mud, smashing through several trees before they at last came to a halt with Kai atop the patriarch. The man was attempting to summon the Coiling Death again, but Kai continued smashing it aside, then he opened his mouth and consumed one of the coils with Isulfr's Bite. That reduced Patriarch Xir to hammering at Kai's arms with physical techniques, his blows glancing off Kai's armor.

He realized, almost to his surprise, that he had defeated a patriarch easily. There was a deep wound in his side that he hadn't noticed until that moment because Behemoth's Heart easily handled it: one strand of the Coiling Death must have gotten through his Monstrous Tail defenses. That reminded him that he could potentially use an armor ability, if he could find the right monstrous essence.

But he didn't need it for cultivators like this.

"I have some questions for you," Kai said with a growl as his claws closed around the patriarch's neck. "Why did you try to marry your son to Zae Zin Nim?"

"It was to make peace with the Brightwind Sect," Patriarch Xir said, then tried to spit blood at his face. With a speed phase, Kai easily leaned aside from it.

"Then why did you say she seduced him?"

"The deal was called off as soon as everything fell apart in the Southern Rivers. He was there without my permission, against my better judgment."

"Why did you call my wife a whore?"

Patriarch Xir stared at him as if he couldn't believe what he was saying. "What are these absurd questions? Are you going to demand I fall down and apologize to you? Nothing can erase the blood debt between us."

There was no blood debt as far as Kai was concerned, he was just trying to build up a hungry wrath deep within him. He thought back to Xir Xan Khan, insulting Zae Zin Nim at every moment, and imagined how the entire Coiling Island Sect planned to use her as nothing but a bargaining piece, or worse, a resource to be exploited.

"I heard about what she did," Patriarch Xir continued, filled with bitter hatred. "She gained the power to defeat Clen Ban by ruining herself. Fitting that she'd bear the spawn of an abomination like you, if her womb can even-"

That would do it. Kai opened his mouth and consumed the patriarch's upper body in a single monstrous bite.

Immediately he felt qi surging within him, not so different from the other cultivators he'd eaten except far more powerful. This time, Kai clung to the specificity of it, forcing the power into a concrete essence instead of burning it. Consuming humans was still unnatural to him, but he began to feel the power manifest in his soul.

As soon as he did, he felt strangely done with it all. Not disgusted or regretful, just tired of cultivators again. He stopped to check the body and discovered that Patriarch Xir had worn a spatial ring, which might well contain resources that Zae Zin Nim needed.

Other than that, he consumed the body. There would be traces of the battle, but otherwise the patriarch would disappear without a trace, leaving everyone to wonder what had happened.

There was no point spending any longer here, not when he might trigger a conflict with Yangix by lingering. Kai slipped away, returning to the Eastern Plains with essence burning within him. He was still hungry - always hungry - but this time he was also oddly satisfied.

Chapter 624: Facing the Unbeatable

"So... this is the Slumbering Colossus."

Omilaena stood back and took a good look at one of the Insanities she had never seen before. It lay against a mountain as if it was a bed, its great weight having flattened some of the crags - up close its rocky surface would have looked like part of the mountain itself and its true form was only visible from a distance, standing on a nearby mountain peak as she was.

Roughly speaking, the Slumbering Colossus looked like a person made of stone, but distorted. It had absurdly thick stumps of legs, a blocky torso, and arms that ended in over-sized hands with four fingers each. The head was strangest, with little chin or forehead, just a mouth and eyes that filled far too much space. They were closed, and they had been closed for all of living memory.

"Impressive, isn't it?" Ceryyn swayed beside her, cheerful despite their circumstances. "Some think that it's a threat to the Elven Expanse, having the Slumbering Colossus in the mountains so close to us, but it never wakes up. They actually take elders out to see it sometimes, to train our presences."

"Yeah, I can see why. It's impressive."

"Are you satisfied? We need to meet up with Yonto."

"No, not yet." Omilaena flipped a needle to her hands. "It wouldn't be right to come all this way and not give it a try."

She leapt between the mountains, sailing through the air and watching the Insanity's vast chest grow to fill her vision. When she landed, it was like a leaf falling atop a house for all that her presence mattered. Even though she had aimed for the center of the chest, it was so vast that even a small error meant she was off her target and had to walk.

Just as she'd heard, the Slumbering Colossus did have a heart of some sort at the center of its chest: they said it only beat once an hour, a pulse that throbbed through the mountain. Omilaena knelt down, prepared her needle, and stabbed as best she could.

Her first strike was experimental with ordinary metal, and of course it did nothing. She tested poison next, and it had as little effect as you would expect for rock. After that, Omilaena built another needle slowly, trying to not only attain a power phase, but to concentrate the metal into a more intense form. Phasing matter was still difficult for her, but she eventually managed it.

When she stabbed this time, her needle did pierce the stone... but it was a tiny pinprick compared to the beast. Omilaena dusted off her hands and considered for a time before she leapt back.

To most people, a phase was an unstoppable advantage, but it wasn't actually an invincible power. It just meant that something was compressed beyond what was normally possible, and not everything that was compressed was equal. The Slumbering Colossus had a phased body, yes, but beyond that it was much tougher than anything she'd encountered. Not invincible, but close.

Omilaena landed on the opposite mountain and saw that Yonto had shown up. He and Ceryyn leaned against one another comfortably before she arrived and Yonto lurched to a slightly more upright position to nod.

"The Windlord agreed to meet with you," he said, as if meeting a great power was nothing remarkable. And, given how far they'd come, perhaps it wasn't.

"Are you done with the Insanity?" Ceryyn asked.

"For now," Omilaena said. "Alright, let's go to the Flaeren Dominion."

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The southernmost regions of Goralia had become a comfort zone for Razzagah Lantrian: still familiar territory, but close enough to the Southern Reach that he could step over the border and let the land of dryads and naiads become a little more like home. Normally he was happy to return there... but now it had become an alien land, just like so many other places on Deadwaste.

Goraykan loomed ahead of his caravan, a city he had visited on multiple journeys becoming an ominous fortress. There weren't any reports from elites in this part of the continent, but merchants still talked, and they had confirmed the arrival of invaders.

"Remember, I won't be able to defend you in there," Untariin told him as they approached. "If they attack, I'd die as easily as you would."

"Even if you got the drop on them?" Razz asked. "I know everyone's talking about phases with the invaders, but I don't get it myself. They can't be seeing the world super fast all the time."

"It's more like... sprinting, I guess. Someone who can run much faster than you isn't faster than you while standing still, but if you start running, they'll pass you quickly. Even if I got really lucky, I couldn't break their defensive phase."

It was troubling for Razz to think that the allies he'd been working with were helpless against this threat, but he'd heard that the invaders ignored those who didn't look like elites. Despite what Untariin said, Razz felt more comfortable having the man with him, if for no other reason than as a guard in the increasingly lawless wastelands.

When they reached the city gates, he was surprised to see guards detach and move toward the caravan... not Goralian hunters, Birtaegali mercenaries in their familiar red armor. What the hell were Birtaegali doing this far south?

"Let us have a look at that!" One of the men swaggered forward and tore the cover off the nearest caravan to look over the fine goods within. "Well, not bad!"

"Hands off." Untariin stepped in, catching the man's wrist, and immediately they settled into a strange stalemate.

As far as Razz could judge, the mercenaries had only 50-100 Power, so they were far weaker than Untariin, but they must be here on behalf of the invaders, who were far stronger. Rumors suggested that this city was occupied by five lesser invaders and two of the most powerful.

It looked like Untariin regretted his automatic action as well, as the Birtaegali began grabbing weapons and considering whether to mob him. They formed a knot at the gates, with locals quickly vanishing into side streets in case violence broke out. Before it did, a man in plain clothing swaggered up, and Razz immediately knew that he had to be one of the invaders - there was an aura about him, as if he thought he was superior to everyone he saw.

"What's going on here?" he demanded. Then, in a single blink, he was standing in front of Untariin. "You causing trouble for our mercenaries? They have our authority, ya know."

"I..." Untariin shifted back, not yet summoning a weapon, but at the precipice of making an attempt.

Razz swallowed and forced himself to move. He knew that if the hunters started to fight, it would all be over before he could even see what was going on. Most likely that would mean that Untariin would die, and even if Razz couldn't do anything he had to at least try.

So he threw himself to the ground, bowing to the invader. "Honored lord! Please listen, he was only defending our gifts to you!"

The invader stopped and peered down at him as if baffled. "Eh? What are you doing?"

"My lord, I have heard of your dissatisfaction with our land, and brought you the finest wares from across Goralia." Razz got to his feet, trying to hide his trembling, and found one of the wine jars in the nearest caravan - one of those he'd fermented with concentrated mana. "This may not reach your high standards, but I hope it will be better than you have tried so far."

"No!" One of the Birtaegali started to move in, then stopped as the invader glared at him. "My lord, it could be poisoned."

"Hah, as if your poisons would work on us!" The invader uncorked the jar and took a swig. Everyone at the gates held their breath as he drank, smacked his lips, and then shook his head. "Huh. I thought everything here tasted like piss, but... this could be worse. Not good, but it has a little kick to it."

"Thank you so much, my lord." Razz bowed deeply, beginning to recover his nerve. "I fear some of my goods will be inferior, but I hope that I can find a few that satisfy you."

"Wait, wait." The Birtaegali leader, no doubt nervous that someone was co-opting the force he'd attached himself to, moved closer with an irritable expression. "Why would he do this? Does he expect you to pay, like a commoner?"

"Of course there's no need to pay," Razz said smoothly. "But I recognize you as the new lords of the continent, so the wares you acknowledge will gain value. It's simple business: by seeing which gifts gain your favor, I can make a profit elsewhere."

"Hah, good!" The invader seemed entertained by this idea once he understood it and began looking through some of the goods. It seemed the Birtaegali mercenary wasn't satisfied, because he moved forward and touched the invader's arm, speaking in a lower voice.

"My lord, I don't trust this. Just think about it for-"

Then the Birtaegali mercenary was slumping to the ground, cut in half by the invader's simple iron sword. Razz flinched - it really had been faster than he could see, even faster than he was used to hunters moving. And the mercenary leader, who had been a strong man wearing mana-laden armor, had simply died instantly. All the other mercenaries fell into line, and even more Goralians watching disappeared into the streets.

Against that, all Razz could do was smile, and his smile might be better armor than anything else in the city. As Untariin moved back, he and Razz exchanged a glance - how strange to think that after the Krysali man had saved his life multiple times, Razz had been able to save his.

Whether or not he could save anyone else, or whether this was a huge mistake, remained to be seen. Razz put on his best unctuous smile and began showing the invader his wares. They were in.