Although Lindon was relieved that, even if they didn’t manage to convince anyone else, at least he had helped his own clan.
He was somewhat ashamed of that thought. The other clans deserved to be saved just as much as his own, and he would still work to help them make it out, but the Wei clan just mattered more to him. Of course they did. They were his family.
[Should I start replaying the memories of all the horrible things they did to you, or do you not need my help with that?]
That didn’t matter anymore. He had gotten them to listen, which felt in a strange way as though he had gotten some revenge. Like the rivers of white-and-purple marching beneath him proved his worth.
That was silly, but he felt pride in it anyway.
Yerin shaded her eyes with one hand and looked east, toward Mount Samara. “Well, bleed and bury me if that isn’t a problem.”
With so many weak presences beneath him, Lindon couldn’t sense anything in that direction. At least not through the power of the Wandering Titan and the suppressive field of Sacred Valley.
But with Dross’ help, he picked out figures moving through the woods on either side of the road.
Heaven’s Glory. Armed and moving his direction.
[They really don’t learn their lesson, do they?] Dross mused.
Lindon was more than capable of flying over and taking them out himself, but he was worried about Yerin and the Wei clan. It was hard to tell how weak Yerin might be, and if any of the enemies made it past him, the Wei clansmen would have no warning.
He tried to keep his irritation from rising into anger.
The Heaven’s Glory School just would not leave them alone. He didn’t know how they made it past Eithan, but he couldn’t imagine they’d harmed him.
Then again, these were the very same people who had managed to kill the Sword Sage.
His frustration started to fade into worry as he landed next to the Patriarch. Wei Jin Sairus and a handful of Elders made a boulder in the flowing stream of the clan, and they stopped barking orders to turn to Lindon.
A couple of them saluted and bowed to him, and one elder Lindon didn’t recognize beckoned to nearby servants, but Lindon kept his eyes on the Patriarch.
Sairus dipped his head slightly, but that was all.
“The Heaven’s Glory School is coming,” Lindon reported. “They’ll reach our vanguard in minutes.”
The Patriarch’s gray eyebrows pinched together. “A battle group?”
“Weren’t coming to scratch our backs,” Yerin said.
“Then we should meet them ourselves.” Sairus gestured, and the nearby servants—who had been rummaging in saddlebags—instead dashed off to prepare mounts for the elders.
“We’ll meet you there,” Lindon said.
Yerin had never stepped off the cloud. This time, she sat down, her legs dangling off the edge. “Not saving any for them,” she muttered.
They arrived back at the forefront of the Wei clan evacuation as the people in purple-and-white were coming to a confused halt. Remnants pulled up short, carriages ground to a stop, and constructs settled to the ground.
Heaven’s Glory stretched across the road, a dozen Irons led by half as many Jades. Including Grand Elder Emara.
What was Eithan doing?
The Grand Elder stepped forward…and bowed at the waist. “Wei Shi Lindon, I apologize if we frightened you. Your master, Eithan, sent us to help you.”
Lindon felt like the world had flipped upside-down. He settled his cloud onto the ground as Thousand-Mile Clouds spread out behind the Heaven’s Glory artists.
Yerin kept a hand on her sword as she hopped to the ground, clearly on edge against the Heaven’s Glory Jades.
But the clan didn’t stop just because they were blocking the road. Wei clansmen bustled around him, flowing along, intermittently cutting off his view of the Grand Elder as travelers passed between him and the old woman.
“I admit, I did not expect to hear from you yet, Elder,” Lindon called over the din of the crowd. “If you could coordinate with the Wei elders, they will lead you to families that can use your help.”
The Jade dipped her head again. “Our paths up the mountain are already crowded. We will carry some through the air, and others through side paths.”
Heaven’s Glory spread out even as the Tenth Wei Elder scurried to greet their leader.
[I don’t like it here,] Dross muttered to Lindon. [There’s too many people around, and I can’t sense anything.] Between the normal Sacred Valley restrictions and the presence of the Wandering Titan, Lindon’s perception was restricted to the point that he felt as though he wore a wet sack over his head.
Keep an eye on them.
They had seen how strong Lindon was, and it seemed true that Eithan had sent them…but Lindon had killed several members of the Heaven’s Glory School. He didn’t trust them, and Yerin certainly didn’t. He expected them to have some kind of plan.
Of course, no matter how a spider spun its web, it was useless against the tiger. Lindon would scatter Heaven’s Glory one more time if it weren’t for the Wei clan streaming between—
The second Lindon returned his attention to the Wei citizens in front of him, he and Dross realized the same thing at the same moment.
The drivers in their carriages, and the riders on the backs of their saddled Remnants, weren’t casting nervous glances at Heaven’s Glory.
They were looking fearfully at Lindon.
He had been betrayed.
Again.
A deep anger came up from where he’d buried it. He’d managed to fight it back ever since he’d arrived here, but now it bubbled up.
Into the Path of Black Flame.
His Blackflame madra was no better than a Jade’s, but what more did he need? Threats would be worth more than truth, now, and intimidation better than actual power.
So Lindon drew inspiration from the person he knew who could best act like he was in charge even when surrounded by enemies, and he said what he thought Eithan would say.
“Gentlemen,” Lindon said, “this is a mistake.”
Each of the Wei clan surrounding them pumped madra into lengths of cloth they revealed from their backpacks, saddlebags, from the sides of their carriages. Each was woven with scripts.
Boundary flags.
The boundary formation snapped into position immediately, locking the aura surrounding Lindon and Yerin and suppressing their power. Aura of light and dreams was agitated, casting phantom images and sounds all around them.
To Lindon, they were just noise and nonsense, but he put a hand on Yerin’s shoulder. He needn’t have bothered; she looked around with completely clear eyes and sneered.
“Heaven’s truth, I was going to let them live,” she muttered.
Dross, where are the Golds?
[Not too many around, and they can’t see us. I can contact them, I think, but…] He hesitated. [Do we need them?]
Yerin might.
Dross sent out a call for help.
The Wei Patriarch arrived outside the circle, the First Elder at his side. “Stage two!” he shouted.
Wei clansmen ran forward, carrying a massive chain of scripted goldsteel and looping it around the outside of the boundary field.
Lindon’s wariness spiked. A script in goldsteel would be significantly sturdier than boundary flags, so whatever it did, it might actually affect them.
If this went any further, he was going to have to burn his way out.
So he wouldn’t let it go further.
He ignited the Burning Cloak and dashed in the direction of the Wei clan elders, who stood on a hill overlooking the road. He crashed into the side of a carriage, smashing the outside to splinters and sending it careening onto its side. The illusion field shattered.
Yerin followed up a second later, tapping one foot onto the upturned cart and leaping for the elders. Constructs erupted from the crowd all around.