Chapter 1016: Sea of Dust

Chapter 1016: Sea of Dust

Reach Tell Kirin. No longer a vague hope, Leon and his team now knew that that was where they needed to go. With that information, the team made quick progress after leaving Naxor Amis. As with the approach to Naxor Amis, they maneuvered around the desolate remains of larger population centers and constantly stayed on the move, save for the rare moments when rest was truly neededMari was still only a sixth-tier mage, after all.

Thankfully, the Mandian Lands were relatively flat. According to Tir and Nara, they had once been quite paradisical, with shallow hills, pleasant forests, and abundant rivers. The climate had been temperate, and the people fairly peaceful. There were wars, but for the most part, they were directed outward, away from the Mandian Lands.

Leon wished he couldve seen the region in its prime. As it was now, all he saw was the same bleak landscape that hed seen since entering the Mandian Lands days ago, save for more frequent rivers with water so polluted and thick that it flowed like tar.

At the very least, there were no more monsters or creatures to stop their advance. Leon found that as curious as he found it comforting, though; the dark aura of the Primal Devil was growing thicker and more intense, requiring him to reinforce his and Tirs defensesas well as spare Nara a defensive ward, too, when his personal defense started to prove itself inadequateand yet, not a single person or monster appeared to try and impede their progress.

When in a desert, ask not from whence the rain comes, I suppose, Leon thought every time he found himself wondering just what in the hells KhajiYun and the Primal Devil were doing, letting them make so much progress.

Whatever the case, progress was rapidly made, and within two weeks of leaving Naxor Amis, they finally started drawing close to Tell Kirin, and Leon didnt need anyone to tell him of that.

Tell Kirin had once been a magnificent city if the map Leon had and the stories hed heard of it from Tir and Nara were any indication. A city centered on a massive tower not unlike Ambroses, with majestic palaces, vast forums dedicated to trade and debates, spectacular monuments, and grand halls all spiraling out from the center like the petals of a lotusand with similar coloring, too, with white and pink stone dominating the visual style, though the city possessed all other colors in abundance.

All of that was gone, now; the greatest architectural and artistic achievements of Arkhnavi were now little more than a sea of gray dust.

Qo Weylekhs tower, however, still rose high into the sky. Leon could hardly see it, though, for the vast structure was surrounded by black storm clouds that occasionally rippled with purple lightning, though the towers base was still visible enough through the gloom of distance and intense dust storms.

The tower was twelve-sided instead of cylindrical like Ambroses and was much wider at the base. Dozens of shorter towers crowded around the base, further widening its footprinteleven circles of twelve twelve-sided towers each, with each circle of towers radiating out from the central tower being shorter than the last, giving the structure as a whole a kind of star shape. Qo Weylekhs central tower was the twelfth circle, though it was the only one on its own.

The towers themselves were made of smooth bronze without even the slightest hint of green patina. There were no windows or doors that Leon could see, leaving the structure itself somewhat plain, though Tir told him that the towers had once been enclosed with layers of walls that turned the areas between the smaller towers into public parks of great beauty, and that water and multicolored ivy had once spilled from the top of each tower, adding even more color.

There wasnt so much as a single dried blade of grass left, though, and no water flowed from the towers, leaving the structure entirely bare.

And there the structure sat, its upper half obscured entirely by the storm, its lower reaches surrounded by wild dust dunes stirred into chaos by the storm above. To reach the tower, theyd have to cross the dunes, get through the dust storm, and then find a way inside the towers. From there Leon wasnt quite sure.

[What do you think, demon?] Leon asked. [Are we close enough now?]

[Hmm,] Xaphan hummed. [I can still feel the resonance of my power, but its hard to place.]

[Should I call you out here to get a better read?] Leon asked.

[Do I look like Im in need of such charity?] Xaphan testily responded. [Give me two seconds, Ill get a better read on where you need to go.]

Leon silently counted to two.

[Well?] he asked.

[I wasnt being literal, human,] Xaphan sniped, eliciting a chuckle from Leon.

Whats so funny? Nara asked, his tone tinged with the slightest bit of accusation.

Having such a bitchy demon thats so easy to annoy living in my soul realm, Leon responded. He needs some time to give us a good idea of where to go other than, the obvious only remaining structure in the whole damn sea of dust.

Nara frowned, but they had already come to a short stop at the top of the last hill before the dust sea, so he simply conjured a stool and said, Then we might as well get some rest now. By the godswere unlikely to have another opportunity for a while.

The gods have blessed our journey thus far, Tir added, but I am not so bereft of Wise Farangeuns gifts to advocate charging in right now. Let us wait to gather all the information we can before proceeding.Thi/s chapter is updated by nov(e)(l)biin.co/m

The gods have always loved the prepared, Nara whispered.

The lazy fucks prefer those who ask for the least amounta work on their part, Mari exclaimed as her suit kneeled and entered what Leon now knew to be something of a recharging state. Mari wasnt going to get out of the suit, not with how intense the aura of darkness was around here, but her suit could at least ensure that it had as much magic power as it could contain in such a short amount of time.

KhajiYun smiled at her, a wistful look crossing his face. I believe that I can save you four a tremendous amount of pain and suffering. This path I offer you is one of peace, forgiveness, and joy. If you believed you could bring such things to others, would you not consider it your moral imperative to do so? If you had the power to save those in need, to bring salvation to the sinful is that not what you must do? To do otherwise would be sinful beyond reproach, and though the gods will forgive all our mistakes, all our sins, it is always better not to need those things in the first place.

If your gods are so forgiving, then why does anyone need salvation? Leon asked.

KhajiYun cocked an eyebrow and glanced in his direction. Everyone will be saved, in the end, he said. But the sooner we reach the gods light, the less suffering we must endure. The gods may forgive us all in the life after this one, but that doesnt mean we should not strive to reduce the suffering we experience in the life we currently live. This is not about the destination, my friend, but the journey.

Leons eyes slid past the cultist to briefly survey the wild and chaotic sea of dust behind him, where once a great city that millions called home once lay. You must ignore all the evidence given to you by the eyes and ears. Id almost wonder if youd been corrupted by that Primal Devil, but I blasted you with too much lightning for me to believe that without more evidence. Leave us, cultist; your words will find no purchase here. Leon dismissed KhajiYun with an imperious wave of his hand, and the cultist sadly smiled, bowed once, and then vanished. As Leon had suspectedand he was sure the others did too, given their lack of actionKhajiYun had just been a projection. He hadnt appeared before them in person.

Fucker cant even talk to us face-to-face, Mari ranted. Has to pretend to be here. Like a little bitch.

I came close to killing him back in Naxor Amis, Leon said. Or at least, I think I did. I wouldnt blame him for taking precautions, even though he seems to want to join his gods more than anything.

Leon Nara said in the kind of serious tone that indicated he was interrupting with a much more serious topic. He said that you know who he is?

Leon grimaced. Only what he told me back in Naxor Amis. Man by the name of KhajiYun. He spared Tir a look. Said his parents were caught up in the purge. That was about it. No other specifics, nothing of much value that I could see.

Be that as it may Nara said while Tirs face paled slightly and he averted his gaze, I wouldve preferred to know this information sooner.

Apologies, Leon replied. I was distracted. Were this more immediately relevant information, I wouldve shared it by now.

Of course, Nara said in a strained tone that indicated it was only a diplomatic agreement.

The name doesnt tell us anything, does it? Leon asked, his embarrassment over not bringing this up sooner overpowering his pride momentarily.

Not to me, Nara responded as he glanced over at Tir.

The name doesnt stand out, Nara said.

He said his father was caught up in an adultery case, and his mother protested it, Leon clarified.

Many fit that description, Tir sorrowfully admitted, his eyes turning to the tower in the distance.

Whats done is done, Leon stated. All we can do now is move ahead, doing what we think is right. Take what youve learned and make sure you never repeat your mistakes. Right?

Tir took a deep breath and steeled himself. Right.

Great, Leon whispered as the group quietly went back to waiting for Xaphan to finish what he was doing.

---

Did you feel that? a man asked his only companion.

I did, the woman replied, her voice hushed but urgent. Felt like that Devil-worshipping man who took Japarthi

The two shared a look of concern before turning their powerful senses outward, surveying the sea of dust before them and the broken and barren hills that surrounded it. Beyond the tower they could just barely make out in the dust storm, they could sense the dissipating power of the one they spoke of, only a few dozen miles away. Given the way it interacted with the darkness magic in the environment, it was impossible to miss, even though the four powerful mages they could just barely make out in the distance were nearly invisible in the sheer sea of polluted magic in the air.

More cultists? the woman wondered aloud.

No, the man replied. Ones a tenth-tier mage. Maybe hes the last one?

The two shared another look before coming to a silent agreement. They set off from the hill they stood upon, both fading from view until they were completely invisible, and began making their way toward this new group