Chapter 443: Seeding Bonds Before Parting

Even though Kai wanted to remain with the group, he knew that realistically speaking he would have to leave in order to avoid bringing the Verdant River sect down on them. Given limited time together, they needed to choose their activities carefully. Zae Zin Nim had been insistent about intimate time together, and he wasn't complaining, but Kai actually considered something else a higher priority if they were going to be separated.

At the moment, while they waited to receive contact from the dryads, he and Omilaena were sitting on a tree branch and discussing further advancement.

"I'm not hearing a problem," Omilaena said. "It sounds like you were heavily outnumbered and Banchlain's Aura didn't falter. These presence techniques strike me as another gimmick, heavily dependent on opponents not being able to resist."

"But it's still a simple technique from one monster." Kai could only shrug. "I want to do better, but monsters are thin on the ground here..."

"Oh, I'm not faulting you for ambition." Omilaena grinned and slipped her leg over his, teasing without really meaning anything by it. "Fortunately for you, I learned some basics about presence techniques in the sect archive, even if not the techniques themselves. In this case, I think you want to do the opposite of specialize."

"The opposite? You mean merge the aura into another type of essence?"

"While that could work if you were aggressive enough, that wasn't what I had in mind. As far as I can tell, presence techniques work by overwhelming the opponent with multiple aspects of power at once. If you want to improve yours, you need a wide spread of components. Sacred beasts, for one."

"That's attainable, at least." Kai looked out into the woods, seeking sources of life. "Strong beasts aren't common here, but I might be able to find an appropriate one."

"You have the right idea looking for sacred beast essence, but go even further. They don't have to be terror effects, you could also absorb awe or confusion. That's why I was saying it's non-specialized: you should be able to develop an aura that hits the enemy with so many different emotions that their heads just explode."

"That's a good thought. Thanks, Omi."

"Oh, I'm not done. If you're going to find a sacred beast, I think you should try to consume some human essence as well." Omilaena raised a hand to forestall his objection. "I know, I know, you have trouble absorbing it. But you seemed to gain something from Anaelina, so we know it's possible. Just keep an open mind. I think the ideal aura would combine monster, beast, and human essence."

And here Kai had thought he was being ambitious, trying to take a technique that worked against Sky Souls and make it stronger. He didn't love the idea of eating humans and was skeptical about how well he could absorb such essence, but if Omilaena suggested it, he'd keep it in mind.

This might be a project for the long term, anyway. Creating an aura not just for the cultivators of Cloudspire, but the far more powerful cultivators he knew existed beyond.

Their conversation shifted to Omilaena's thoughts on his Physique, though those were more familiar. She agreed with him that C rank seemed weaker than expected, but hadn't seen anyone do any better. Until they knew more, or she got some results from his blood, it was probably best to return to physical training and see how fast he advanced.

He also wanted to discuss cultivation with Zae Zin Nim, but he didn't get a chance before the camp was disrupted. At first all the Krysali were alarmed, until he identified the intruder as Lifrinyne. The dryad was one of very few who knew their location, and though the others asked her questions, her only answer was to lay down a flower flowing with chakra.

"You really blew the sect over," Nymidria said as soon as her illusion appeared. "This is absolute chaos now. The good news is that no one suspects that we were involved with spreading the disease across the barrier. The bad news is that they haven't even noticed yet."

"How much do they know about me?" Kai asked.

"Word in the sect is that there's a barbarian assassin with an unquenchable thirst for jade maidens. Everyone in the Verdant River sect is locking up their daughters."

"It's worse in town," Lifrinyne added quietly. "I'm... afraid you shouldn't come back. Any men who are a little tall, even much shorter than you, are being questioned. The women can return if we need to arrange anything, but otherwise the rumors are turning to paranoia."

"Disgusting," Zae Zin Nim muttered. "How dare they say such things?"

Omilaena leaned over her shoulder with a grin. "Well, he has an unquenchable thirst for one jade maiden."

"Omi, not now!"

Normally Kai would have smiled at them, but at the moment he was too worried about the implications of what Nymidria had said. "So at minimum they're increasing defenses," he theorized, "and they might be sending out cultivators to hunt me down. We guessed that might be the case, so I'm ready to go south and draw them off if necessary."

"I'm afraid you're going to have to do just that," Nymidria said. "Right now the forces at the sect are too dangerous for us to attack the Loam, even if the barrier is down. The patriarch of the Deepriver sect is a shrewd man who could cause trouble, and Xir Xan Khan of the Coiling Island sect is-"

"What did you say?" Zae Zin Nim's squirming vanished in an instant as she focused on the words, suddenly murderous. "What was his name, and what is his role?"

Nymidria blinked in surprise. "Xir Xan Khan? I didn't know of him before, but apparently he's the heir to a powerful sect up north. Why, do you know him?"

"Hopefully not, but... likely."

The change that had come over Zae Zin Nim was so striking that Kai instinctively moved to put an arm around her shoulders. Omilaena had also shifted from teasing at her to offering support. Very few things caused an extreme reaction like this, usually just her father or other elements of her past.

"My father wanted to marry me off to a powerful sect," Zae Zin Nim explained, "one that had techniques or resources he required. When last I spoke with my father's cultivators, they said that a young master of the Coiling Island sect was insisting on my hand in marriage."

"I haven't kept track of that one," Omilaena said. "Do we know them?"

"They are a small but powerful sect in the Heavenly Mountains and Lakes, with a base on a sacred island with very pure qi. I believe they have only one heir, so... though I don't know this man in particular, it is very likely the same person."

"And you think he's still interested?"

"Hopefully not, but he very likely knows my appearance." Zae Zin Nim wrapped her arms around her stomach and looked down. "My father would have shown him paintings or illusions of me... before my illness, most likely. I'm sorry, I don't know any valuable information about him, but the two of us can't meet."

That was a real concern and Kai found himself overflowing with a mix of emotions. He felt a strange surge of anger at Xir Xan Khan as a representative of all the young masters who had plagued his wife's early life, and wished that he had been able to kill him. He also wished he could comfort Zae Zin Nim, but Nymidria didn't look like she would wait for niceties.

"Your personal issues don't matter unless they complicate things," the dryad matriarch told them. "We want to keep him away from you anyway. If we can draw him and all of Yul Wei Ren's forces further south, then they won't be relevant when we strike at the heart of their barriers."

"Then I'll take on the sacrificial role," Kai said. "We've been hearing about sects and clans being exterminated down there, so I'll investigate. Maybe make an appearance and cause some trouble. The only problem is that I can't fight them all forever, and I don't want to waste the distraction when you can't take advantage of it."

"That part I can help with." Nymidria snapped her fingers, though the illusory form made no sound, and gestured at Lifrinyne. The younger dryad quickly showed them a bag that seemed to be filled with glowing blue seeds.

"More communication seeds?" Omilaena asked.

"These aren't permanent, and the supply is limited, but yes." Nymidria looked over them and finished with her piercing gaze on Kai. "We have more opposition than we expected, and you've gotten more attention than I'd like, but the plan is unchanged. The greatest treasures of their entire sect, and even the whole Masterful Crown clan, could be ours if we can just weaken their defenses enough."

Since none of them could argue with that fundamental fact, there wasn't much else to say. Aside from arranging some minor details, they began to separate to prepare. It sounded like they needed to figure out new methods of gaining information on the sect, but Kai realized that didn't involve him anymore.

No, his path lay even further south. At best, he was going to cause trouble and lure some of the strongest cultivators in all the Southern Rivers to attack him. At worst, he'd get entangled in some far nastier problem of the sects.

But there was no more time, not when his presence risked everyone else. After farewells that were all too short, Kai leapt over the side of the ship and plunged into the river.