Destiny in Cinders

Although An Jing had decided to head into the town, he wasn’t about to charge in blindly. They were right in the middle of a fey siege, and approaching carelessly meant he could be blown away by the shockwaves from the Purple Mansion major formation, let alone the horde of feys. Still, An Jing was in no rush. He knew perfectly well that a lone Purple Mansion crown fey couldn’t possibly topple Hilltwixt, not even a true spirit like the three-legged golden crow. Though the major formation currently lacked the power to strike, its defensive capabilities were still more than adequate. Besides, Deepnight City was guarded by Goldcore venerateds, and any one of them could suppress this true spirit with a single hand.

Granted, all the venerateds might be absent from the city, allowing this true spirit to launch an attack in their absence. But in theory, Hilltwixt was still guarded by its own Purple Mansion sages in addition to the formation. However, these sages usually spent their days cultivating in seclusion, appearing only when major crises arose. And right now, such a crisis was at hand. ℓ.

At this moment, Hilltwixt was blanketed by a pall of black fog that blocked out the sun. Within the darkness, countless golden sparks and electric arcs crackled to life, outlining profound formation patterns that exuded an air of indestructibility. A truly great formation excelled at both offense and defense, and the Purple Mansion major formation was currently in defense mode. The moment the cloud-like array of flamecrows attempted to breach it, they would be swallowed by the pitch-black expanse, never to fly out again.

Though the golden crow attempted to pierce through the formation with its true-yang flames, it could only blast open one or two narrow holes. The flames would be exhausted before getting halfway through. Realizing its attacks couldn’t breach the formation, the golden crow charged in head-on. With crimson flames blazing in its eyes, it opened its beak, revealing rows of fine, sharp teeth. It let out a piercing screech and beat its wings. A brilliant totem ignited across its back and behind its wings. Within the pattern, ten suns burned bright, scorching the fabric of heaven and earth.

In that instant, the temperature around An Jing soared rapidly. Blistering steam rose sublimated from the puddles on the ground, carrying a heat fierce enough to scald the fur off any ordinary beast. With this pattern as the core, the golden crow drew the collective power of the flamecrow and ember raven horde into itself. The creature became a living sun wrapped in flames, screaming down from the sky toward Hilltwixt with a blinding trail and a booming shockwave. A golden streak plummeted to the earth, parting the dark clouds, the fog, and heaven and earth itself.

”Take cover!”

A shrill cry escaped the silver squirrel before it blacked out. An Jing immediately stomped his foot down hard, blasted open a crater, and dove straight in for cover. Right then, a tsunami of shockwaves exploded outward in ripples. A giant dome swelled in the atmosphere, and a pale-gold veil-like cloud slowly rose from its apex, piercing the gloomy clouds to reveal the maddening astral chaos swirling violently behind them.

An Jing couldn’t see what was happening back in Hilltwixt, but he could see the stars in the sky. This had to be a vital clue that might even unveil part of the current state of Skysource. But now wasn’t the time, so he could only etch the sight of the chaotic stars into his memory. As the shockwaves finally began to subside, he poked his head out and looked toward the town. Hilltwixt remained perfectly intact.

Within the blinding, crimson-gold flames stood a figure who had appeared at some point. Dark-brown ironsand surged across his body, condensing into an impenetrable barrier. Beneath him, the ground spewed forth a limitless deluge of mud and stone to completely cover the battered walls of Hilltwixt.

The three-legged golden crow, which had transformed into a blazing sun, was now pinned firmly in the center by six formation banners under his control. The man was even on the verge of turning the tables, drawing upon the power of the terrestrial veins to seal it away. Though the golden crow broke through the restriction of the formation banners with a piercing shriek in the very next instant, a strike that should have utterly demolished Hilltwixt’s major formation had been blocked completely.

”Six Harmonies suppress the scourge; the Primordial Source bounds the ages.” The formation banners in the front flew back to hover around him, revolving like small planets around a star. Rather than pursue the enemy, the sage announced, ”I am Sage Fogmountain, guardian of Hilltwixt. All residents are to return to your homes immediately. Any casualties resulting from failure to do so are entirely your own to bear!”

With that, Sage Fogmountain waved his hand, and the six brown formation banners flew out in every direction. In mere moments, they added an extra layer of reinforcement over the major formation, leaving the previously damaged walls gleaming with a metallic sheen. Fogmountain sat cross-legged on a seat of ironsand that had materialized at the center of the formation. From there, he maintained a standoff against the three-legged golden crow, which was circling Hilltwixt in the distance, tracing ring after ring of brilliant gold across the sky.

This is it. An Jing knew it was time to enter the town. He pulled out Frostwhite Dart, activated the barrier formation disc, and stacked all sorts of talismans on his body. With a sudden burst of speed, he headed straight toward the town. The sudden appearance of this figure didn’t escape Forgmountain’s notice, though it brought him no surprise. The outskirts of Hilltwixt were always bustling with transport vehicles moving back and forth. When feys struck without warning, many were locked out of the town yet dared not venture far on their own. Being caught on the plains was a death sentence, so their only choice was to stay put and wait. Seizing the chance to enter the town while he was there showed real bravery and decisiveness. Fogmountain raised his hand, and the major formation opened a path for An Jing to ride straight into town.

Luck is on my side. An Jing entered the town without a hitch, facing no fey attacks or interference from the formation. He felt a little surprised, but perhaps this was the reward for his courage. If he had been afraid to enter the town, he would have faced the wrath of the beast horde which had been driven to a frenzy after being blocked by the sage. Luck and misfortune were intertwined; it was hard to say what would have happened.

By now, many houses and warehouses within the town had collapsed. The scorched meteors called down by the golden crow littered the streets, hardening into various misshapen clumps that burned intensely and spewed toxic black fumes. Not a single person was out on the streets; only numerous automata were trying to put out the fires.

Once this is all over, I’ll probably be able to snap up quite a few cheap, damaged second-hand automata. What a windfall for Riverside! The thought flashed briefly through An Jing’s mind, but he didn’t slow down as he headed for his warehouse. In fact, outside frequent run-ins with disasters due to his celestial arc, he was actually rather lucky. The warehouses all around had been damaged by the beast horde, either smashed by meteors or set ablaze. By contrast, only the entrance to An Jing’s warehouse had collapsed. The rest of the building was merely blackened by the flames and sustained no structural damage.

Huo Qing must be inside. An Jing scanned the area with True Spirit Eyes. Failing to spot anyone, he initially assumed Huo Qing wasn’t in town, but had instead been fortunate enough to head back to Deepnight City to look for Metalhand. However, he quickly discovered that the waterscreen in Huo Qing’s workspace was still running, and his books lay wide open. These were unmistakable signs of a hasty flight in the wake of the sudden attack. The only reason he couldn’t see Huo Qing was because he had hidden within a stealth formation.

”Huo Qing, are you alright?” An Jing pushed aside the collapsed iron wall at the entrance, stepped into the warehouse and shouted, ”Are you hurt? I have medicine if you are!”

”No worries, I’m all good!” Huo Qing didn’t recognize the visitor at first, but quickly emerged from the underground stealth formation the moment he heard An Jing’s voice. He let out a sigh of relief, then said in disbelief, ”An Jing! You’re here. Were you also in the town during the attack?”

”No, I only entered after Sage Fogmountain showed up.” Laughing heartily, An Jing walked up and pulled Huo Qing into a hug. Mid-hug, Huo Qing stiffened slightly at his words. How could he not know the risk An Jing had taken by entering the town? It was completely unnecessary.

”This is just... this is too...” Huo Qing found himself completely at a loss for words.

An Jing just brushed it off with a casual wave. With the ability token in his possession, he knew full well that his life was never in any real jeopardy. ”It’s no big deal... But you, on the other hand... You’re truly incredible.” He took a step back in surprise, sizing up Huo Qing’s robust build, which looked nothing like a typical formationist’s. ”It’s only been a few days and you’ve actually mastered the Imperial Sky Art?!”

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