Chapter 84 - Ambush

Lind wiped the sweat off his brow as he was carefully guided to the side of the teleportation array. He had thought he was beyond being disturbed by teleportation, but apparently the arrays between cities were much more powerful.

"Circulate your Qi, Lind." Qing was patting his back as Qi flowed in his meridians. Lind expected Tyr to poke fun at him, but surprisingly she was sitting next to him quietly. Her reptilian eyes were looking at the crowd that had come with them from the Inner District to wherever they had come. Lind tried to recall but his mind was busy keeping his lunch down and circulated his Qi.

"Why was that so rough?" Lind really wanted to know why he was having a problem after he thought he was ready for it, but this time Qing smiled weakly at him. She then carefully took out a pill and took it herself as her own color finally improved.

"Teleportation is done through certain elements. Specifically darkness, earth, and light. If you share those 3 elements, there is generally no issue, but if you have more or less, what do you think happens?" Lind instantly understood Tyr's words. His dantian was disturbed by only 3 elements and the other 3 tried to respond but their relationships were rocked at the same time.

It was a miracle Lind did not throw up every time he had teleported.

"It gets better as you increase your major realm. I still feel woozy but it is far better than when I was a Soul Realm." Qing volunteered and Tyr nodded with her. So Lind had more motivation to try and reach the World Realm as distances were massive even on one continent let alone crossing to another in this world.

"Give me the basics. Focus on what you know. Start with life spans." Lind thought it was odd but he found his mind felt better going to basic knowledge. He even smiled as he went back to the Frey Clan where he learned the basics of cultivation.

"A Body Refining Realm can live up to 150 years, the younger the better results. A Soul Realm can live up to 200 - 250 years, but the later one breaks through, generally the lesser the lifespan increases." Lind could almost hear Garnt educating the young children under his tutelage but Lind had always thought it was a fantasy back then. The warm smile grew wider as he recalled the rest he had picked up from Younger Twin.

"A World Realm can live up to 600 years on average but the lowest increase would be to 500 years. The Sky Realm can live up to 1500 years unless they were born in the Floating Isles, then they should be able to live up to 2000 years." A surprised look flashed over Tyr's face but she motiong him to go on. "Heaven Realm can live up to 5000 years, but it is possible to extend that with treasures or techniques if one is compatible."

That was the end of Lind's knowledge but he saw an approving nod from Tyr. Lind noticed he was far less nauseated than before and stood up shakily. He saw quite a few were with them at the side but most were recovering far faster than him. Likely, they were waiting for the next outgoing trip as they kept moving, but Lind's group was staying in this city.

"We are still in the Darkmoor Kingdom, but we should now be in the mid-grade power of Crimson Halls." Lind looked out into the sunlight as the mumble of the city became louder before his eyes went wide. It was common for Sand Tier to be in the Lotus Empire but in this place, he could make out many mid-Stone Tiers all around him just at the teleportation array.

"Are they all World Realms here?" Lind had not seen but a handful of Soul Realms at all as they moved but Tyr only smiled as they moved away from the crowds. Lind noticed that the buildings were made of a pale red stone. Could it be clay?

It gave off a profound aura near the array but as they moved off, the stone became more common with Soul Realm arrays until they once more increased in quality once again.

"The Crimson Halls are a strange power as at one time they were competing sects that came together for defense against a horrifying beast tide." Lind listened as Tyr laid out the history of this place. "Once it was over, so many had died they simply decided to become one but acknowledged their origin of various halls."

Lind nodded and could see a mixture of styles that had been made harmonious. At least it did not make him dislike the ambiance, but because he was so relaxed he nearly missed the warning from his instincts he had honed for the last half a year.

His body took over and dodged a blade that his Eyes showed was poisoned with something vicious. It was far beyond the Soul Realm for certain. Qing screamed but pulled out a formation that created a shield instantly around Lind as Tyr took to the skies. The moment she flew, all the cultivators looked in awe as a Sky Realm was rare in this power.

Tyr's aura pressed outward but she found nothing. The Crimson Halls were part of Darkmoor Kingdom, so demons were fairly common here as they were everywhere in Darkmoor. It was difficult to find an assassin if they were an expert. Tyr snorted and crusted a talisman in her hand before returning to the ground.

"Did it scratch you anywhere, Lind?! Show me now!" Lind was actually wishing he was poisoned as Qing tried to rip his robes off in the middle of the street and he noticed Tyr's serious face was replaced by amusement instantly.

"I AM FINE! Please stop!" His words finally got through to Qing as she noticed there were no tears in his robes. Her panic slowly faded as tears were beneath her pale eyes. She clung to him in desperation and Lind carefully patted her back. Being worried was one thing but this reaction was far beyond his expectations.

"Fu fu fu, nothing going on between us you said Little Qing." Tyr's voice made Qing freeze and then back off of Lind as she was crimson. Lind finally understood but he was not bothered. Any sane man would be pleased but his bond with Qing was unique. No one was as close to understanding his pain as anyone else he knew. He was about to stand up when the shield was dispersed and he was buried in yet another hug.

"Don't scare me like that!" A very familiar voice and pristine white battle dress was all he glimpsed before his face was put directly into someone's soft chest. Only 1 woman would do that and a smile crossed Lind's face before he was forcibly pulled back out by a pale blue hand.

"Little Shoti seems to be competing too! Don't smother the boy!" Lind now blushed crimson and the crowd laughed a bit but solemn armed soldiers stood not too far away. Lind was truly confused as to what was going on.

"You swore to protect him, what happened?!" Shoti's aura had gotten stronger but Lind sensed with his Eyes that it was only the middle of the Sand Tier. That was a rather impressive increase for the World Realm, but it was based on the Lotus Empire standards. He would need to get a better idea of the rate of increase the Heavenly Maiden Sect found acceptable.

"I was, but an assassin would be pretty poor if they could not anticipate a Sky Realm guard as a worst case scenario." Tyr examined the small black blade that Lind would call a trope weapon as it had a loop at the end of the handle. He would expect the owner to have a shiny plate on the front of a cloth wrap on their head based on his old memories but he doubted they worked that way in real life.

The fact his body's instincts had saved him made Lind very grateful for Qing and the Elder in charge of the training courtyards at the Lotus Academy. They save his life. Shoti and Qing were talking with Tyr but Lind let his senses stretch out. Tyr had already looked but had not seen anything, but there was something he could do, she could not.

His World Touch gently spread out to the limit of his ability, maybe 50 meters, but he did not find what he was looking for. He focused on the blade and its profound poison and followed its path drifting in the air. It went back to a building nearly outside his limit, but Lind locked on to the short tower.

It was open on 4 sides with a bell inside but no one was there now. Tyr was looking for a demon but if Lind wanted to assassinate someone, he would send something else. At last, he found a trace of the poison much lower and followed it until it stopped in a small crowd.

His staff suddenly extended and lightning flew through the air at the crowd. Many panicked but Lind used his World Touch to protect the innocent easily. A woman was struck dead on but rather than burn her, it encircled her completely as she looked stunned at Lind. The 3 Maidens were struck dumb at Lind's actions but Shoti was the first to recover.

"HER!" Tyr was last to move but got there first. Lind dispersed his lightning as 2 more blades were removed from her person by Shoti and Tyr. Qing stayed near Lind but glanced at him to wonder how he had found his attacker.

"Excuse me, but we must apprehend her." The leader of the soldiers bowed politely, but his amber eyes left no room for argument. The black armor was sharply contrasted on the crimson robes the soldiers wore. Tyr looked sharply at him and it did make sweat breakout on his brow but she slowly nodded.

An artifact in the shape of a collar was clasped around her neck and Lind watched the soldier escort her away. The 3 Maidens gathered back around Lind as the 3 kunai, as he called them, were put away. The poison was only on the first blade but Lind was sure the woman had more of it as he was able to follow the Qi to her.

"How did you find her, Lind?" Qing asked the question as they followed the soldiers' wake through the crowd. Lind glanced around but he saw Shoti use a formation plate that protected them from being overheard.

"I can see demonic elements with my Sky Eyes." Shoti and Tyr nearly stumbled at Lind's words but Qing already knew how powerful his Eyes had become. She was hardly surprised anymore as his ability to comprehend complicated theories were far beyond a normal Soul Realm.

"You can see demonic Qi?" Tyr was very serious as she looked at Lind and he was confused. They all knew he had Eyes, but was it that big of a deal that he could see demonic Qi? Shuri, with Ryu, had told him she could see demonic Qi as well. He now knew the details of all 4 of the followers of Ryu. Crusher had to be kept away from him as she seemed to be enthralled with the duel he and Ryu had.

"Lind, it is not normal for a soul cultivator to be able to see demonic Qi without decades of practice." Shoti broke it to him but Lind had at most only 2 years of exposure but he had been able to see demonic Qi in the Tri-Clan Tournament. It had been on a weapon of one of his opponents.

Since it had never come up, he had never spoken of it, but it was odd? Lind recalled suddenly the difference between him and other cultivators. His Earth knowledge had let him comprehend faster the profound parts of his elemental cores. It also let him know that demonic Qi was a derivation from the main elements.

He only had an inkling from that Ruin with the Ruin Spirit and the 3 types of elements. Lind became quiet as he really thought about it and realized that was why he was able to crack the puzzle in that Ruin. To a normal cultivator, the 3 separate element sets would be like asking him to decipher Egyptian hieroglyphics when all he knew was American English.

He had no reference so it was at best, pictures that represented words he might have a guess, but he would not understand it. Instead, he knew metal was in the earth, fires can be hot or cold under the right conditions, and so forth. Discovery channel had been a lifesaver for that kind of trivia.

"Should I hide this?" Lind looked at the 3 women and all of them nodded.

"It would reveal more about you than you want people to know. A few decades from now, it will not be such a big deal." Qing reassured Lind and he relaxed as they made their way to a much higher class area of the Crimson Halls' capital. Lind liked the pale red stone color topped by dark shingled roofs neatly arranged along the street.

A business would have an open doorway leading into their laid out tables or reception windows to do trading and buying. Lind saw Qi stones trade hands at mid grade quality easily but only a handful of the high quality. A quick calculation based on food purchases and Lind realized he was quite well off.

He wondered if there would be any more issues on his journey to the Heavenly Maiden Sect.