Slaughter. That is the only way I can describe the scene around me. Both the attackers and the defenders fought without care for anything but killing their opponents. With the blessing of their god, no matter how serious the injury was, the wolf-like beings could quickly heal and return to the fight, while the other side used their military formations and overwhelming equipment advantage to constantly shell and kill their opponents.
But their attacks were indiscriminate, not caring who got caught up in them as long as the enemy was harmed. This also included me and the slaves caught up in all that mess. As this was not my mess, I didn't join any side of the fight; instead, I went to where the slaves were gathered, shielding them from the conflict. Shielding the terrified and desperate people under my wings, I watched the carnage happening around me.
But then, I felt a strong attack impact my side. Turning my attention there, I saw a beautiful swordswoman swinging her sword at me. While I didn't want to get involved, I wouldn't just stand and take a beating, so with a melodious cry, I used my magic to counter her attacks. With the starry glow, my Glintstone Sorceries met the icy strikes of the attacker.
Our confrontation quickly intensified, forcing all other combatants to escape our vicinity as the earth around us started to break and crumble. To protect those behind me, I crystallized the whole area near me, turning the previously lush terrain into land of azure Originium Glintstone, causing the nature around me to stir with the growing energy.
As the fight continued, more people started to attack me, surrounding me while screaming commands I couldn't understand, exuding only hatred and bloodlust. So I continued to defend, increasing the strength of my spells and even setting up a sword formation around me. I could see five people appearing to be leaders of this army trying to cooperate to breach my defenses, and with the danger I felt from them, I had to act before they could.
I gathered all the power of the Originium Glintstone around me, unleashing it with yet another Phoenix cry, triggering a Catastrophe with me at the center. In an instant, everything around me crystallized, all life, all will, even every soul, everything sealed into Originium Glintstone. Those who, for various reasons, avoided becoming the crystal statues didn't fare much better; their wills were impacted by the power of Primeval Current, risking shattering into the cosmic dust.
To prevent those under my protection from being affected, I returned to my human form and planted my standard in the center of their gathering, my voice echoing clearly despite the chaotic rumbles of the Originium Glintstone Catastrophe happening around.
~"O' Flag, protect my people! ~ Luminosité Éternelle!"
Enveloped by the gentle yet holy light, all those slaves were spared the destruction happening outside, many kneeling and praying to some god. Ten minutes later, the turbulent world around us calmed down, allowing me to lower my barrier and see the damage I caused.
There was no life anywhere I looked, only the cold crystal figures, all turned into memories sealed within those azure crystals; power for me to be utilized. This was the true and absolute power of Alayavijnana; everything can be turned into pure memories that I can use. Surprisingly, only the wolf-like beings and the previously deceased attackers were caught up in my attack; all other humans escaped the range before they could be assimilated.
In the far distance, I saw the five leaders approach me again, speaking in a language I now could understand.
-"Hey! We mean no harm!"-A fox-like woman spoke to me, stepping forward while her allies watched my movements.-"How can such a big bird turn into such a short man? He is even smaller than you, Jingliu."
-"Don't be rude, Baiheng."-The swordswoman named Jingliu sighed, then she looked at me and bowed slightly.-"I apologize for attacking you. I thought you were just another Abomination."
-"I understand your situation. It was my fault for being in the wrong place at the wrong time."-I also apologized, surprising them that I spoke now.-"Previously I couldn't understand your words; now, after absorbing memories of the crystallized people, I learned it."
-"Then you must be a follower of The Glowswather."-A white-haired man nodded his head, as if understanding the causes of this accident.
-"I'm not exactly sure about that."-I smiled somewhat wryly.-"I just arrived here; I mean, in this world, so I'm still a little lost on the common knowledge. I traveled from another leaf of the Imaginary Tree, so while I can infer some things due to underlying laws of the world, I might not be able to answer your questions.
-"Is that so!"-The fox-woman rushed to my side, circling and observing me.-"Tell me about your place. Can I visit it? Is it different from here?"
I turned to her friends, who were no longer on guard against me; instead, they also showed interest in my story.
-"Baiheng."-Jingliu reprimanded her.
-"Sorry."-She apologized, but her eyes never stopped observing me.
-"I can tell you more things, but first, could you help those people?"-I pointed to the slaves behind me.-"They were captured by those 'Borisin'."
-"Of course. Thank you for keeping them safe during the battle. I'm Jing Yuan, the strategist of this incursion."-The white-haired man introduced himself.-"This is Jingliu, my master and our leader, as well as the Sword Champion of the Xianzhou Luofu."
She nodded, showing a slight smile.
-"Dan Feng. The Imbibitor Lunae and High Elder of Vidyadhara."-The man with dragon horns said directly.
-"Yingxing, a craftsman."-The stoic man with black but slightly greying hair nodded.
-"Baiheng! A Nameless traveler and the best pilot!"-The fox-girl jumped and extended her hand to me.
-"Enoch of Laterano. My titles mean nothing here, so just consider me a wandering mage; also, please call me Eno."-I shook her hand.
-"Magic, huh? That's the strange power you used?"-Jingliu was interested in the power that could stop her.
While neither of us used our full power, we could still understand our strength after probing. In direct combat, we would be about equal, both firmly at the Planetary Level, but that's if I didn't use my Authorities as conceptual power to bend and manipulate Laws was a different subject.
-"Yes, but what surprises me more is that your strikes carry the power of Fate, yet you do not possess Authority."-I looked at her with genuine interest.
-"Authority? You mean like Aeon?"-She tilted her head slightly, causing a cute effect with her overall expressionless appearance.
-"Aeon…"-I quickly browsed my new memories.-"No. Authority is the ability to manipulate the world with your will… Let's not delve into it now. As you see, I'm rather lost here, so would you mind pointing me somewhere where I can safely stay and understand where I ended up?"
-"How about joining us for now?"-Jing Yuan suggested.-"You can see our records to understand more about the world, while we can gain a guest with great power."
-"Sure, but if you want me to work for you, make sure to give me a fair wage and retirement benefits."-I smiled and accepted his proposal.
-"That's for sure."-He laughed.-"I don't know how long your race lives, but here, in the Xianzhou Alliance, warriors are always respected and cared for in their old years."
-"For better or worse, I won't age, so concepts like ageing or growing are lost on me."-I shook my head.-"Like a certain Pink Fairy, I'm always 16 years old."
-"Lucky you."-Baiheng looked at me enviously, then he once again noticed my height.-"On the other hand, I guess you aren't that happy."
-"You truly know how to kick a man while he's down."-I narrowed my eyes.
-"Mhmm."-Jingliu also looked at Baiheng with a dangerous gaze.
Noticing our gazes, she whistled while hiding behind Dan Feng and Yingxing.
-"How about continuing our talk on the board?"-Jing Yuan invited.
Everyone nodded, so we quickly left this planet, but before I stepped on board their ship, I had to make sure neither Originium nor Glintstone could cause trouble. As this planet was rather small and mostly destroyed, I allowed it to fully crystallize, then I forcefully shattered it into dust, burning it away with my flame. While others were surprised by my meticulous cleanup, knowing how dangerous Originium and Glintstone can be, it was better to be safe than sorry.
The next few days, I followed their fleet while reading everything I could to better understand this new world. As I was still a 'guest', I was accompanied by Jingliu most of the time, just in case, so the two of us became somewhat familiar during this time. She told me many things considered common knowledge, teaching me things such as Paths and how to use them to utilize Imaginary Energy.
We would also often spar, exchanging our insight into sword and martial arts in general. In pure swordsmanship, I was no match for her, but I could hold my ground by utilizing my sword formations and my speed. While she didn't use them often, Jingliu was well versed in utilizing flying swords and sword formations, just not ones so 'mystical'; rather, they focused on how to utilize swords and maximize their attack.
I also introduced Hua to her, and the two of them quickly became good friends, bonding over their pursuit of ultimate martial art/swordsmanship. Mobius remained hidden in my Azure Dream; her personality was ill-suited to being a 'guest', but she didn't complain after I sent her some Borisin bodies, which sparked her interest in Abundance.
When I learned of Paths, I was instantly intrigued by their power, especially so with Remembrance, as I should be considered an Emanator based on what I experienced. The problem was, no one followed that Path around; even in the whole Xianzhou Alliance, such people were rare.
Leaving aside Remembrance, as I was already aligned with its philosophy and actions, after hearing about other Paths, I found three that resonated with me. First was Erudition; I strongly adhered to its modus operandi, but I was not entirely aligned with the idea of the entire world being calculable; I've experienced the fickle and contradictory nature of gods, so as long as there were beings like them, I couldn't stand behind this statement.
Second was Equilibrium, where I was in the exact opposite situation. I fully agreed with the principles of duality and balance of this Path, but I couldn't and wouldn't follow the actions of this Path; absolute impartiality and symmetry in all is not only far from me, who heavily puts those close to me above others, but I also would never correct my actions.
Lastly was the Hunt. While I wasn't extreme to the point of disregarding everything, I was not only vengeful, but also rather single-minded about the matters I decided on. Ruthlessness and decisiveness could be used to describe my actions, especially when they are targeting my enemies.
According to what she understood, while it's not common- especially if one wants to pursue the ultimate height of a single Path- one can walk many Paths at the same time, but there were no Emanators of multiple Aeons. With that in mind, to better understand the powers of Paths, Pathstriders, and Emanators, I asked Jingliu to help me embark on the Path of Hunt.
She easily agreed to help me, even appearing happy to do so; when I asked her why, she answered that: 'Whoever wishes to learn my swordplay, I will teach them', but to me, she just appeared somewhat tsundere in that statement. To me, she genuinely enjoyed teaching, or rather, she felt relieved that she could help others possess the strength to survive.
With that, our spars turned into an apprenticeship, with me being abused by Jingliu every day. Jingliu's teaching philosophy was easy: fight. But this was exactly the best way to learn how to use Hunt, to fight without care for anything else. While not easy for someone whose thoughts like to wander, with Jingliu heavily limiting what abilities I could use, I slowly managed to enter that zone.
In the process of learning, Jingliu also imparted to me her Way of Sword, causing my crystal blades to be imbued with moonlight just like her slashes. This allowed me to return to my roots; after all, my connection to the Moon was a strong one. This made my swords much sturdier and sharper, no longer breaking after any kind of more serious strike.
Jingliu also made me follow her to the battlefield, joining the battle against Abominations of Abundance, an enemy I found repulsive due to their disregard for consequences, something I heavily detested for many reasons. So my name soon started to spread in the army: a strange Halovian knight who could match their Sword Champion.
This made others of the High-Cloud Quintet learn about my apprenticeship, causing Jing Yuan and Baiheng to join in on the fun, becoming teacher assistants after pestering Jingliu. So, aside from my sword and battle training, I started to learn archery and piloting from Baiheng, while Jing Yuan taught me strategy and leadership. Not long after them, even Yingxing and Dan Feng joined in on teaching, one imparting blacksmithing and the other Vidyadhara elemental control.
It was obvious they treated me like a youth who left home to explore and grow, and no matter how many times I explained that my age was much higher than what I appeared to be, they would always tell me that, by Xianzhou law, I was still a minor under 200 years of age. While I argued about my time spent in Samsara, Dan Feng would point out how Vidyadhara Elders inherit memories but not years of previous incarnations, rendering my argument null.
So I became everyone's 'junior', something that spread even more quickly in the army, placing me in the position of mascot for their troop. My appearance also didn't help my situation, appearing much more delicate and beautiful due to a 'gift' from Elysia and the influence of my unsealed soul. My height alone froze at the exact same number as Elysia's, the petite 1.63 m, which would make me short even among Sankta, let alone here.
This fame soon reached even the General behind this army, Teng Xiao, who invited me on board Luofu. So when this incursion ended, I followed the troops back to see their home, and the thing I saw caused me to truly understand how great the power and dedication of the Xianzhou Alliance were. With that awe, I met with Teng Xiao, and it instantly shattered; the general was like a neighborhood uncle, even treating me to some sweets, which I happily accepted, as all Sankta should.
After we talked for a moment, he suggested that I officially join their ranks, explaining that they would not limit my freedom, but hoped to exchange knowledge and skills. In exchange for allowing me to learn and use their resources, I would impart my own skills and share wisdom of my world. I agreed to this as Xianzhou's advanced technology was something too important to miss.
So I became a true member of the Xianzhou Alliance, with the same rights and treatment as Xianzhou Native Long-Life Species. After that, my life entered a period of intense learning and adaptation, allowing me to fully integrate into life on Luofu.