Eternal Emerald Dragon

Chapter 1809 - 1808 - Pelia

The young woman was a medical miracle. No mortal had ever been able to survive in the Divine Lands yet the strange bond forged by Lind kept her safe. Ryl had never left her side either.

The Dusk Grypwolf was so happy the pack had grown!

Lind was not sure what other pack animals would think of his strange group. A Divine Lord dragon, a new species, and now a mortal human woman, Lind could never explain it.

Qing confirmed her soul was healing. It had actual damage too so that was good news. Her body was a different problem. The base was human but it had been mutilated badly in an attempt to make her compatible with the fake thrall technique.

It worked, yet he felt it was a very crude process. He wanted to find all research on it and erase it from existence!

It was equivalent to making a mortal a puppet for higher realm cultivators! He also suspected they had to be mortal. A cultivation would severely interfere as any wicked path puppeteer had learned long ago.

Controlling a mortal as a true puppet was useless for obvious reasons too. Puppets were just extensions of the aura of the cultivators. Thralls, however, were different. They were connected to Fiends and could be transformed or given more power by their owner.

It seemed someone had figured out at least a crude solution. Why was obvious, thanks to the need for those wanting to hide their actions, what better way than to use mortals like disposable tools?!

The method was clearly still incomplete. They were likely using people like the Veridian Bone Sect to test it out and work out the issues.

He could see some glaring flaws just in comparison. It was clear the connection had to be maintained constantly or the mortal would be crushed by the Divine Lands natural environment.

Thralls, on the other hand, passively received protection with no extra effort from a Fiend. He doubted there was a way to compensate for the nature of that vile race. Still, people would try and the spirits knew what lengths they would go to to achieve it.

"Mhm–" The young woman mumbled and was clearly having a nightmare. He activated a vase artifact next to her bed. It began to glow as a gentle wave of energy flowed out of the mouth and covered her.

The discomfort vanished and he shut it off once she had been calmed down. It was not good to suppress such things but she was in a delicate state.

It had been a few days and they had to keep a careful eye on her as mortal’s had many needs.

Ryl poked his head into the room and he smiled.

[Is pack sister ok?] He nodded.

"She should wake up soon but remember, we have to take things slow. She had been through a lot." Lind also had no idea how she would feel about such fantastical beasts around her.

Unlike Ryl, the connection to her was very dim. It barely worked and he suspected it had to do with what had been done to her body.

Ryl took up a position agreed upon across the room but still in sight of the bed. The young Dusk Grypwolf was practically giddy.

His wives were now fully investigating the Veridian Bone Sect and the Kingdom of Blades as they ensured no one could escape. The death of the sect elder had not gone unnoticed but the method was natural so far as others were concerned.

Karmic Tribulation was clear. Heaven had judged and whatever triggered it was only investigated to clear any other possible troubles.

He was reviewing the reports when his aura let him know their guest was finally waking up. He held up his hand to Ryl as a reminder and waited.

He also sent word to Qing just in case she needed a human to calm her down.

The eyes fluttered open and Lind noticed they were still purely human despite the alterations to her body. They were bright green, a pigment not natural to humans. He let her slowly sit up and look around.

She saw him but hardly reacted. Ryl, on the other hand, made her eyes go wide but she did not seem afraid. He was not sure if that was good or bad.

"Do you understand me?" He gently asked a question and her head snapped to him. She slowly nodded but she seemed afraid to speak. He smiled at her.

He pointed and she saw the water and preserved food. It was very gentle on a mortal body. She seemed to consider several things but he did not rush her.

He turned as Qing arrived. She silently came to his side and waited. The young girl would decide to trust them or not.

Slowly, she picked up the water and drank it. Surprise bloomed on her face followed by her nearly wolfing down the food. She coughed and Qing gently patted her back.

"Take your time. Your body has been under a great deal of stress. We have plenty of food and water." The young girl looked at Qing and began to cry. Before they could react she grasped Qing and began to weep hard.

Ryl looked forlorn as he wanted to comfort his pack sister, as he called her, but Lind kept him back.

Eventually, she calmed down and Qing was singing a song to her. She finally pulled back and looked puffy eyed as she seemed to accept her new state of affairs.

"Wh–cough–Where am I?" Her voice was rough. Her throat and vocal chords had been damaged but he had fixed them. It seemed more like she was unused to talking more than anything.

Qing explained where the girl was. Her eyes only got wider and it was clear she had no concept of what they were speaking about. The restrictions on mortals limited them on what they could say too.

The names of places were dangerous, but saying ’in our home’ was safe enough.

She seemed to absorb that but then looked at them all and asked the thorny question.

"Are you Divine Realm cultivators?" The fact Heaven did not react shocked them. Even Ryl, despite being a native, felt something off. Lind then realized the horrific truth.

"Blessed Crimson Range." Qing looked at him in shock but it only increased as she realized there was no reaction from the girl! "It seems Heaven and Earth truly are fair."

The poor girl had already been exposed to the Divine Lands for who knew how long. She looked fairly young, barely near 20 yet the alterations made it hard to determine that fully.

It was easy for a Divine Realm to maintain a mortal for centuries yet the price to the mortal would be steep. They were not meant to live forever.

"How much do you remember? Do you know your name?" She looked at him and it seemed to take a long time to gather her courage.

"Pelia. I am Pelia. I am from South Shadow Village. I had a brother Kar and my parents–" It was like a dam broke. Lind took it all in and inscribed a jade slip. She spoke and spoke until the sun set.

She had another meal and resumed talking about her friends and neighbors. She spoke about the forest and the animals her brother kept bringing home.

Qing was quietly crying. Ryl slowly moved forward and then rubbed his furry head against her. She smiled and hugged him. His tail slowly wagged but he kept his normally hyper energy restrained.

Lind let her gather herself before she became serious.

"I–I remember some of what happened after the bad men came. I–I–I want them to be rescued if they can be!" He smiled gently at her. Lind wished he could grant her that dream with ease, but it would be hard.

The Divine Lands were massive. The remnant Glass Palace forces were his goal if he wanted to stop it.

"Tell me all you can. I cannot promise it right away. I can only promise I will hunt them." She seemed to believe him as a smile finally graced her face. She then told him of the hellish path she had lived.

Qing went from weeping to rage. If the Glass Palace survivors knew they had angered her, they should end their own lives. It would be the only mercy the world would give them.

Lind noted some details.

The auction had to be held in the Heaven Realm lands somewhere. There were too many worlds to search, yet it was enough to narrow the field. An Immortal must have conveyed Pelia up the realms in an artifact to protect her until the bond could be formed.

The reason he suspected the Heaven Realm lands was it was easy to get a mortal there. Ascending a mortal to something like the Celestial Fields would draw attention in too many numbers.

He noted it all down and relayed it to the forces out watching the Veridian Bone Sect. He highly doubted they would show up but he knew who to put on the case.

Sun.

He was one that cared for his people deeply. Further, he had been willing to sacrifice his life for Pelia. He would be happy to live up to that offer.

Lind almost pitied them. Sun had so many lifetimes under his belt that any trick was old hat to him!

"What will happen to me?" Pelia’s question brought him out of his thoughts. He saw her being hugged by Qing and comforted by Ryl. He smiled at her.

"You need to heal but after that, it is up to you. Although, what do you feel when you look at me and Ryl there?" He pointed at the Dusk Grypwolf.

She was confused but then seemed to sense something. She grew afraid.

"Am–am I going to be used by you too?" Qing almost laughed but she held it back. Lind shook his head.

"What you are feeling is a connection of the pack. The beast bloodline put into your body allowed me to save your life. I am the packleader and Ryl is your pack brother. I have to tell you, he is very happy to have a pack sister." Ryl began wagging his tail hard but then he realized he was getting too excited.

Pelia actually giggled. She was surprised but then a smile spread.

"I–I don’t know but I want to think on it." He nodded at her. It was not surprising. She had been through too much. He then held up his jade slip.

"I will try to find your village, but that will take time. A long time. If you want to learn to cultivate, I am happy to teach you, but everything is up to you. You get to choose." His words took a moment to settle but then fresh tears entered her eyes.

He needed no words. He felt her gratitude. He left her with Qing and Ryl. His face changed once he left the room. He was done being subtle.