Four islands drifted along, barely upheld by the spiritual energy around them. John suspected that either he or Aldara could have molded existing elemental regions to fit their own desires more easily than dragging islands across wide oceans, but it wouldn’t send the same message to the Sovereign Primacy. It was a message that they, too, were vulnerable to attack.
Even if the Triptych didn’t care what happened to their people- which might very well be the case- they still had to consider public sentiment. Attacking some of their longest held territories had been for a reason. They would be their greatest supporters, so if they were shaken it would affect the wider group. And even if it was impossible for a disturbance to stop the trio of Exalted Soul Phase cultivators, unrest could at the very least keep them busy. Requiring their personal attention could provide an opportunity.
Those were all the justifications John used. But mostly, he thought that his idea had been stupid. He was so exhausted. But at least they had finally arrived in friendly waters after annihilating the most recent pursuit fleets, and would soon be settling into place near the Molten Sea.
“How should they be arranged?” Aldara asked. “We have a perfect opportunity to reposition them if we find it valuable. And… they seem to have continued to maintain some level of spiritual energy production.”
John considered the question. He had honestly thought they wouldn’t be much more than a pile of useful resources. The fact that they seemed to have kept more than that was astounding. Obviously John hadn’t tried to move an elemental region before, and a few small islands hardly counted as a region, but he had presumed that they would fall apart, or at least conform to local elemental patterns.
Perhaps these would, given time. But that might be a failure on the part of the two of them rather than an inevitability.
“My first instinct is to form them into an elemental cross pattern,” John said. “But they have clearly endured in their current form well enough. Disturbing that would be unfortunate. To that end, I might suggest that we align the water and fire islands with the Molten Sea. But…” John shook his head.
Aldara understood where he was coming from. “We would have to first break up the plate holding them together, and the rearrangement might unbalance things. Perhaps all four islands would fade into the elemental prominence of the Molten Sea, becoming little more than an extension of the area. Or they might fade into pure water element given their connection to the ocean water around them.”
“Right.” Most experienced cultivators would understand these things, but not quite the same way as a full cycle cultivator. “It would be a shame for them to fall apart. So I think the water and fire should be on the opposite side. The Molten Sea is mixed elements, so we shouldn’t need to rearrange the islands any. The water should feed into the air so we only need to be concerned with the earth element. But that already feeds into the natural fire island. The air being bolstered might not be enough for it to sustain the earth.”
“We’ll have to monitor the flow, I think,” Aldara commented. “Otherwise, minor placement changes could become an issue.”
That didn’t sound so bad. It would be a nice break.
Of course, John suspected that the Sovereign Primacy would continue to launch attacks- but if they were stationary, John would have no issues going all out to attack any incoming fleets. And if Aldara was there as well, then anything short of the Triptych would be a hopeless assault. If they managed to draw in their true foes…? Then the whole mission could be considered a success.
They remained on the stolen islands for several weeks, driving away a few halfhearted attacks from the Sovereign Primacy. High priority messages from their respective groups came to them, which sadly meant their island vacation was a working one. But such was life when you were one of the five most powerful people on the planet, by every definition.
-----
The four islands weren’t individual chunks of rock. John and Aldara had reached deep enough to pull up a larger combined plate, sturdy bedrock that had at first seemed to weigh them down. However, they wouldn’t have been able to keep the islands stable without it, and it greatly simplified the final process of placing the islands. They merely needed to fuse their island with the seafloor, instead of digging new support for the islands. Reshaping earth was the last thing they needed for their journey.
It might not even require any work, but it seemed more appropriate to create a natural feeling. Thus, after they had rested for a few days, they began the process of attuning it to the surroundings and fusing the bedrock. They had traveled far enough that the actual materials were somewhat different. It would always stand out… but that didn’t mean the combined islands couldn’t have their place.
This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.
It was a shame they only represented a core cycle, but hoping for a full cycle that prominently displayed each element was a bit much to ask. Indeed, when the elements were properly balanced it usually didn’t feel like much of anything. At least, that was the case for those who were inexperienced. For John and Aldara, it was something special.
-----
It was unclear to John if he should continue to measure his cultivation in ranks. There were clear dividing lines and changes in power for cultivators below the Exalted Soul Phase. But regardless of whether or not there was a strict increase in rank, John knew he was stronger. How could he not be, after undertaking such a significant task?
Except, of course, it had been entirely possible that growth would end upon reaching the Exalted Soul Phase. It could have been the limit of human capabilities. John didn’t feel that, though. He had some serious doubts about what a potential next phase would consist of, but if it was merely improving power as he already had… he was certain that progress was being made.
Fundamental changes were unlikely. New totems? A far off dream if not wholly imagination. But continued growth of his spiritual energy was obvious. The same was true for Aldara. He could detect a difference just from the time they spent traveling together.
Unfortunately, that meant their foes would be growing too. It was only a question of who was faster… or if the stronger party could force a conflict. John had to imagine that over time three individuals would ultimately outperform the two of them. Though he lacked complete confidence in their victory, he still thought that the near future was their best chance. Not least of which was because the world would crumble if they waited for long, population centers wiped out one after another. Even if it wasn’t contained to just their allied territories, the total death toll was already becoming unbearable.
-----
At the time John and Aldara had been robbing the Sovereign Primacy of some of their islands, the Triptych had been active on the opposite side of the Molten Sea, striking the southeastern side. Rather than aiming for any gains of their own, however, they simply crushed the recovering sects of a few of the islands in the area. It was a reasonable action now that they were at war, but they needn’t have provoked the Molten Sea to begin with.
As it was now clear that the previous aggressions weren’t going to be limited to a few instances, the Molten Sea had come to John about matters of cooperation. They weren’t keen on fighting alongside the Empire of Elements, though John could tell that their overall sentiment wasn’t that against them. After all, those who hadn’t been aligned with the True Sea had ultimately been able to take over the rest of the region. People could forgive a lot when they experienced significant gains. Having a mutual enemy was also impactful, but the continental alliance was still easier for them to approach.
Tihomir Kelemen had been one of the prospects for the Exalted Soul Phase. As the cultivation surge continued all across the world, there were many who had reached the late Ascending Soul Phase, many now approaching the peak. Yet taking the final step had proved impossible for most, as John was aware of many who had tried and failed to advance. Though it wasn’t public knowledge, John was aware that Tihomir had made that very attempt.
Superficially, he still displayed the aura of a cultivator of the forty-fifth rank. In truth, his cultivation had fallen to the forty-third rank, barely within the late Ascending Soul Phase. John didn’t pry too deeply, but he imagined it would be difficult for the man to recover to his former point. John was well aware how lucky he had been with his own cultivation regressions, though of course only one had actually happened while his current self.
“We need access to the Molten Sea,” John said, after they had gone through the pleasantries and reached the point of discussion about how they could work together. “Transporting our cultivators through your territory will speed access to different sides of the continents… and to the Empire of Elements.” John held up a hand to stave off the legitimate protests the man should make. “The latter shouldn’t be necessary more than once. But if we get an opportunity to strike at the Triptych, we will either send our warriors to join them… or call them to join us.”
Of course, that required sufficient advanced notice of the enemy’s operations to actually respond. That was nearly impossible… but they were working on that every day. If nobody but another Exalted Soul Phase cultivator could face people of that rank, they were left with no choice but to be flexible.
Tihomir nodded slowly. “I will consult with my fellows about the possibilities.” He hesitated for a moment before continuing, “Do you know of any weaknesses they might possess?”
John considered for a moment. “We have not been able to verify much, given their actions. However, we can make some assumptions. First, that they are afraid of an organized force of Ascending Soul Phase cultivators. They use great force to devastate a location or two, then retreat. But not before resting. There are likely two parts to that. First, they are inviting counter assaults- but only within a certain threshold. Most likely they retreat if they were threatened. And they could be. The Triptych is excessive in their attacks, wearing themselves down.”
“So it might be possible to catch them…” Tihomir said.
“Yes. But not without sufficiently fast communications, and fleets might have to push themselves too hard. A perfect encirclement is likely impossible, and they can no doubt detect incoming fleets from a great distance.”
“Is there anything else?” Tihomir asked.
Technically, there was. But not something he could take advantage of, and even making the attempt might reveal too much. John supposed it might not matter that one of the trio had a slightly unbalanced set of totems, but if it could provide even the slightest edge it was important to take advantage of it. John and Aldara were the most qualified individuals to do so. They just had to find an actual opportunity to make use of that knowledge. For that, they needed to see the actual response to their assault. No doubt it would be significant.
