Book 7, Chapter 57 - The Metallic Divine Tree

Chapter 57: The Metallic Divine Tree

After teleporting Belial away from his allies, Cloudhawk looked around at their new surroundings . A shocking scene presented itself .

It was very different from the jungle planet’s divine factory . It was likely that the Demon King had adjusted it somehow for his own purposes after it had been abandoned . This place, however, was still true to its original construction .

If he hadn’t seen it with his own eyes, Cloudhawk would hardly believe it was real . Non-standard buildings composed of odd geometry hung suspended in air . There were no underground volcanoes or harsh environments, in fact it was calm and safe .

A strange and beautiful building was in the center . Unlike the other minimalist structures, this one looked like a tree . Its surface was composed of a metallic substance that flowed like water . Its exterior was like colored glaze, but it had the ma.s.s and sheen of metal . Its roots burrowed deep into the ground and its branches spread upward to encompa.s.s half the s.p.a.ce .

Whatever this tree was, it was in operation . Six huge rings surrounded it spinning quickly . They seemed to be drawing energy from the surrounding s.p.a.ce before disseminating it through the tree itself .

This whole s.p.a.ce was created by the tree .

Beneath the jungle planet Cloudhawk hadn’t seen anything this beautiful or complete . He could tell by the energy it released that the tree was central to everything . Perhaps, he thought, the six rings surrounding it represented the six Elysian realms .

Indeed, he saw differences . One ring was inert, another slow and dim . The four remaining spun easily and burned with light . If he had to guess, the stopped ring probably represented the Shepherd G.o.d’s long-fallen realm . Meadow’s enchantments had failed and its population was in decline . Faith was no longer widespread . As such, no more souls were provided and the ring went quiet .

As for the dimmer ring? That one had to belong to Skycloud . After years of turmoil and tragedy, the faith of Skycloud’s citizens had been shaken . It did not provide the same energy it once did, but there were still many who believed in the G.o.ds . For now at least, it provided some energy to the tree .

The remaining four rings glowed brightly . Dragenmere, Praelius, Stormford, Highmorn . The four Elysian realms continued to provide energy for the tree and all the Source around it . This array ceaselessly gathered the souls of mental energy of fallen Elysians, resulting in the ma.s.sive crystal all around them .

A billion people could live for a century off the Source that had formed by now . Food, energy, anything they needed could be provided by this strange power . IF the G.o.ds were to arrive today they would already have a huge surplus in relation to what they left behind .

But, there was no s.h.i.+p! Cloudhawk found it strange, where did that droplet-shaped vessel go after it crashed to earth? Could it have transformed itself into the tree?

No s.h.i.+p, but when Cloudhawk looked closer he did see something else . Among the liquid boughs of the tree he could see small things darting around . They were like tadpoles, racing through the structure to a central point .

Cloudhawk looked at the Elder . “Belial, your expectations have failed you . No s.h.i.+ps, no portals . No way for you to escape . ”

Belial’s face was as dark as ocean waters . According to the information he’d gathered, there had to be a way to escape this planet here . He still had faith, escape was near he only needed to uncover it . But first, this troublesome human had to be dealt with . Without a word, the Elder pushed up his sleeves and prepared to fight .

“Hey now, cool it . There’s no use fighting me . ”

The time for bulls.h.i.+t was done . In the demon’s right hand, a ball of black fire sprang to life . In his right he summoned a burning sword of onyx . Thrusting it forward, fires as choking as a waterfall belched forth and enveloped Cloudhawk .

Belial was not a typical foe . Even under typical circ.u.mstances, Cloudhawk did not have a major advantage . Worse still, the demon had found a way to enhance his abilities, strengthening every attack considerably .  

But if he couldn’t block it directly, what was stopping Cloudhawk from dodging? 

The Demon King’s successor was not some foolish upstart, young and inexperienced . He didn’t know much about Belial’s powers, but he did know his talent . As an artisan, the Elder would have all manner of relics and the benefits they provided . Until he knew more, he had to be careful .

Their arena was a unique one . The crystallized mental power that surrounded them worked like spirit beads, but for the important distinction that Source was not pure . It was a mixture of psychic energy and human souls . Mankind had no way to tap into it .

Belial, on the other hand, had created a special relic furnace . The furnace swallowed surrounding energies and converted it into usable energy . Source was refined into accessible mental power for the demon to use .

In other words, Belial’s power was limitless . He could fight until Cloudhawk was drained .  

Belial held the trump card and Cloudhawk wasn’t stupid enough to fight a war of attrition . He used his pure spatial powers to avoid the attacks because it was all he could do . If he couldn’t beat his enemy with brute force, perhaps he could win through agility .

One blast of fire after another seared through the chamber, but none found purchase . The Elder paused, but only enough to gather his strength . The fires did not disperse, but instead gathered into platforms like h.e.l.lish lotus flowers .

Cloudhawk watched the strange scene as Belial used them to race across the chamber . As he renewed his a.s.sault, the flowers shot forth like fiery pythons . They wrapped around Belial protectively, capable of attacking whatever came near .

Cloudhawk wasn’t sure how to answer the new threat .

Meanwhile Belial activated several more relics . Huge dark wings emerged from his back that increased his speed a dozen fold . Ignoring Cloudhawk frozen in defensive position, he raced directly for the heart of the seed .

Cloudhawk thought to try and stop him but held back . He couldn’t stand in the demon’s way regardless, not in his state . But it didn’t matter .

The G.o.ds’ s.h.i.+p wasn’t here . Belial’s wishful thinking was doomed from the start . Instead of chasing him down, better to let the Elder discover the truth for himself and let those hopes die .

Beneath the demon’s feet danced a dozen gouts of flame . A pair of enormous wings beat furiously, driving him forward . In his left hand the dark furnace continued to spat power, while he wildly brandished his sword of flames in his right .

Like an avatar of destruction he rose to the canopy of the divine tree . The power that poured off of him was stifling, unimaginable .  This was the power of a demon Elder – true and terrible strength . No one Cloudhawk had met so far – Not Arcturus, or Judas, or even Legion – could match Belial .

He knew it had to do with the artisan’s methods . Cloudhawk didn’t now know what strength Legion had possessed in his heyday, nor did he know the full extent of his own legendary predecessor, the Demon King .

Belial was at a loss . He was the greatest builder of his people, so he had a keen eye . This had to be the tool G.o.ds used to escape the planet, but he saw no indication this was true . How could that be? Was his intelligence so wrong?

He glared at the flowing metal structure . It was huge, there had to be some secret within . The G.o.ds left this behind and sometime afterward it took the shape of this tree . The liquid metal was its sh.e.l.l, strong and protective, but not impermeable to the demon Elder .

Several metal discs appeared and descended upon the enchantment . They clung to the tree’s surface like a plaster . Belial activated his relic to make them fuse together and pull, forcing a gap in the tree’s defenses .  

Only just then, the earth shook ferociously as though wracked by an earthquake .

The entire chamber rattled as the tree recognized a threat . An imperial and domineering will invaded the minds of Belial and Cloudhawk .

“Intruders! Die!”

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