Defiance of the Fall Chapter 1393: Nine Suns and Six Paths

The period of tranquility had reached its end.

As the five-element domain began to crumble, a wall of biological matter advanced. The sudden manifestation of a spiritual spring near the outpost had drawn at least a hundred Beast Kings, accompanied by an uncountable swarm of their offspring. The basin was so packed with monsters that the ground itself was hidden beneath a shifting floor of trampled beasts.

Under different circumstances, Carl wouldn't have been bothered by such a sight. While he hesitated to call Iz Tayn reliable, her presence usually meant that a high density of enemies simply resulted in a more spectacular bonfire. Currently, however, Carl was standing against the tide alone. The situation was dire; he had no frontline soldiers to use as a screen, and the volleys he’d fired earlier had painted a target on his back the moment the elemental shield failed.

“I suppose I’m out of options,” Carl muttered, his jaw tight as he produced a collection of arrows forged from Spiritual Gold.

Crude runes etched into the metal aligned perfectly with his class's energy circuits. Throughout their brief periods of rest, he had only managed to craft twenty-six of these specialized projectiles. It was a meager supply, particularly since activating [Empyrean Suns of Yi] required a minimum of eight. Yet, it wasn't the loss of resources that worried him—it was the physical toll the technique would extract.

Taking a deep, grounding breath, Carl planted the arrows in a neat line in the dirt. As he tapped into the solar flames of his path, the shafts vibrated violently, and the phantom cries of celestial crows rang in his ears. A moment of absolute silence followed before Carl’s essence merged with the sun.

Guided by his Earthly Dao, he drew and fired with a rhythmic cadence that transcended his own understanding. Each projectile transformed into a streak of white-hot light, draped in golden-red plumage of concentrated fire. Rather than picking off individual targets, Carl aimed his shots into the air above the encroaching mass.

While his standard energy projectiles could fly for miles, these physical arrows possessed even greater potential. However, upon passing through the barrier, they detonated into massive fireballs. The beasts below looked up with brief curiosity before resuming their frantic assault on the flickering five-element shield.

Carl couldn't spare a thought for their confusion. Having fired only three times, smoke was already curling from his nose. Searing heat began to cook his internal organs, and the agony intensified with every subsequent shot. By the fifth arrow, the pain shattered his focus; by the seventh, he felt as though his very soul was being incinerated.

Through a feat of pure willpower, Carl located the eighth arrow amidst the shimmering heat. Despite his bowstring smoldering, it held firm as he drew it back. He loosed the final shot, and the sudden cessation of the technique's pressure brought him to his knees, tears streaming down his face. The flames that threatened to consume him stabilized just before reaching a lethal threshold, though his scorched meridians ensured he would be bedridden for weeks.

His depleted Cosmic Core pulsed with a desperate thirst, and he looked toward the spiritual spring with longing. He quickly shook off the temptation, focusing instead on the eight tiny suns now orbiting his heart. Their counterparts mirrored this formation high above the battlefield.

The chaotic explosions had transformed into stable miniature stars, fueled by Carl’s entire cultivation and months of preparation. Each sun was circled by dozens of three-legged crows that radiated heat even more intense than the spheres they protected. The monsters realized the danger too late.

The crows plummeted toward the earth with suicidal intensity, their forms sharpening into fiery bolts as they gained velocity. They struck the beast tide like a rain of fire, and thunderous blasts leveled the valley, vaporizing thousands of creatures instantly. Even after impact, the flames refused to die out.

The fire clung to skin and fur, spreading with a life of its own. The terrain itself fueled the disaster; a massive fire-attuned Spirit Vein lay dormant beneath the basin. While the sudden appearance of the five-element spring had disrupted the local energy, there was still plenty of power to feed the conflagration.

As the first wave of crows vanished, new ones emerged from the suns, directed by the miniature stars within Carl’s chest. He had enough energy for two more cycles, but he knew time was a luxury he didn't have. Though a dozen Beast Kings had been vaporized and many others were struggling against the flames, the survivors wouldn't stand by while he turned the basin into a crematorium.

Choosing to expend the remaining energy as an attack rather than letting the suns be destroyed, Carl considered a more desperate measure. Using the heart as fuel and the soul as the projectile, he could manifest a ninth sun for a final, mutual destruction. Even the powerful Late D-grade Beast King at the rear would be threatened by such a blast.

However, Carl had no intention of becoming a martyr unless it was for his family. He wasn't the type to seek glory in death. With a mental command, he collapsed the suns, causing them to rain down upon the beasts as a literal storm of hellfire.

These smaller fragments lacked the precision of the crows but made up for it in sheer volume. They merged with the environment to create a massive wildfire. Carl looked at the destruction with a bitter smile, mourning the lost Kill Energy. Stumbling to his feet, he downed several healing pills and limped toward the spiritual spring.

He harbored no illusions about being a powerhouse like Emperor Atwood. Over seventy Beast Kings remained, and he had mostly eliminated the weaker ones. Fortunately, the lingering flames carried the genuine aura of the three-legged crow—a gift from Iz—which made the beasts hesitate to advance.

The pressure on the base’s defenses had eased, allowing the barrier to begin regenerating. Carl estimated his gambit had bought them at least twenty minutes of peace.

Thick, chaotic spiritual energy rolled off the spring’s surface. Carl found it strange; normally, a spring appearing out of nowhere would be seen as a miracle, especially since its elemental nature complemented the fort's defenses. Yet, it was considered a problem because of the imperial road.

The Imperial Workshop required a specific fire-attuned node for this region, and a natural five-element emergence threatened the stability of the entire network. He and Iz had been sent to fix the imbalance while the local garrison held off the beasts. That plan had clearly gone sideways.

Carl plunged his face into the water, drinking deeply. The liquid cooled his burning pathways and refilled his energy reserves far more efficiently than Cosmic Crystals. Because the spring sat directly on the Imperial Road, it was remarkably free of the corrupting influences found elsewhere in the Left Imperial Expanse.

He envied Zachary Atwood’s ability to consume vast amounts of energy. While the Emperor could have drained the entire spring as an E-grade cultivator, Carl felt full to bursting after only a few moments. He sat on the bank, his energy replenished but his stomach uncomfortably distended.

He wondered what his next move should be.

Looking back at the outpost, he could see that the fighting inside hadn't stopped. He had fled to the front lines partly to escape Iz’s temper. She had seemingly lost her mind, attacking the very people they were supposed to help. Now, the scent of charred remains from within the fort was starting to overpower the smell of the beasts outside.

This was a disaster beyond his ability to fix. He dreaded explaining this to the Farsee Court.

“I was a fool to think a mission for the Emperor would be simple,” Carl sighed.

With Iz leading the way, their journey had been productive, clearing several Memory Domains. Iz had already manifested one flame-based halo and was close to achieving a second since they joined the Farsee Court.

The Farsee Court was linked to the peaks of Nature, Order, and the Elements. Their purpose was to civilize the wilderness and build the empire's massive infrastructure. While other courts provided support, it was Farsee that imposed the Empire’s version of Order onto the landscape.

The work was never-ending, and they had been assigned tasks immediately. As Sealbearers, they utilized the Earthgate—a specialized transport system—to reach troubled sections of the road instantly.

Their current mission involved the spring’s disruption of energy. Previous jobs had dealt with incompetent mages or stolen goods. Carl had tackled each one with enthusiasm, believing that every success brought him closer to the court's inner circle and the Emperor’s ultimate goals.

He had assumed Iz was working toward the same end, but now he wasn't so sure.

Up until this point, Iz hadn't shown any signs of conflicting motives. Traveling with her was highly profitable, as Carl often claimed the treasures she deemed beneath her. She had even provided him with the [Empyrean Suns of Yi] and her own blood to empower it as thanks for his help.

Iz didn't seem to care about the lore of the memories or the philosophical implications of their journey. She was mostly focused on arson and vague prophecies. She possessed a divine appearance but the temperament of a fire demon.

Her reckless approach made even the most aggressive leaders on Earth seem cautious. Carl was the one who did the actual legwork and social navigation, especially after Iz nearly executed a group of Imperial engineers. He realized now that he should have seen this breakdown coming.

Attacking Imperial Workshop staff was a capital offense. To make matters worse, their only way out was the Earthgate located inside the burning fortress. Leaving by foot through the domain's edge would result in them being spat out in a random location, wasting months of progress.

As the fires outside died down, Carl tried to rationalize her behavior. Iz was volatile, but she wasn't mindless. There had to be a reason, though he doubted she had found spies among the locals; she had started throwing fireballs the second they arrived.

He wondered if this was related to the Clan of Pomul.

Although the Workshop ran the Farsee Court, the road's design incorporated knowledge from the Pomul—a race thought to be extinct. Iz was aware of them through ancient ruins that were popular among treasure hunters.

The remnants of the Pomul possessed a deep mastery of Order and had been forced into service by the Workshop. Though they appeared to work together, there was a clear underlying hostility between the groups. Carl recalled Iz having a secret discussion with the four-armed beings just days prior.

“Sulking won't solve this,” Carl whispered, heading back toward the fortress.

The chaos inside had subsided. He found Iz in the central plaza, standing over a body that had been burnt to a crisp. Carl only recognized the remains as the militia leader because of the distinctive weapon lying nearby.

“Is the situation under control?” Carl asked, eyeing the charcoal remains.

“It is now,” Iz replied, sending another blast of heat at the corpse.

“Isn't that a bit much?” Carl started to say, but he stopped when the charred exterior peeled away to reveal a golden sheen. “What? Another one of these monks?”

Hidden beneath the disguise was a follower of the Buddhist faith. It wasn't just the lack of hair; the man bore the ritual scars on his forehead and radiated the distinct energy of Karma. The sensation reminded Carl of a powerful monk he had encountered at the Imperial Graveyard.

This monk was only around the C-grade level, similar to the captain he had replaced. He was clearly dying, his internal world likely destroyed by Iz’s flames despite his outward appearance.

“Do you truly wish to extinguish all hope?” the monk wheezed, looking at Iz. “Your soul is already heavy with sin. This will only worsen your Karma. You can still choose a different path.”

Iz didn't respond with words, instead incinerating him completely.

“They're everywhere. Was he a participant in the trial?” Carl asked.

“No,” Iz answered. “He was an operative who had spent years turning this base into a secret Buddhist cell by infecting the residents with Dharma seeds.”

“You could have given me a heads-up,” Carl grumbled. “I thought you’d finally snapped.”

“They were waiting for us. They tried to influence our Dao Hearts the moment we arrived. I had to use my flames to clear the mental interference,” Iz said, looking at him skeptically. “You felt nothing?”

“I just felt a bit homesick,” Carl admitted. “Was that it?”

“The power of faith,” Iz noted with a sigh.

“So the monks were troublemakers even in this era,” Carl remarked. “I didn't think they'd resort to sabotaging infrastructure.”

“They didn't,” Iz corrected. “The spring was an accident they tried to hide. When they couldn't, they knew the Court would investigate.”

“Then why stay?”

Iz paused to find the right words.

“The universe has finite resources and truths. For one person to rise, others must fall. For one ideology to be true, its rivals must be proven false.”

“I don't follow. Truth is just truth, right?” Carl asked, confused.

“Truth is defined by those with the power to enforce their perspective,” Iz explained. “The Buddhist Sangha is close to completing their Six Paths. Once they do, their version of reincarnation will become the fundamental law of the Multiverse.”

“And how does that involve these border guards?”

“You know what the Limitless Empire is trying to do,” Iz said.

“They want to come back to life.”

“Essentially,” Iz agreed. “Doesn't it strike you as odd how easily we've found these 'secrets'?”

Carl thought about it. It did seem a bit too convenient. He had assumed it was just Iz’s talent for finding trouble, but they were small players in a very old game. If the Empire wanted to hide something, they could have.

He felt a chill as Iz looked at him with a strange expression.

“Belief has power,” she said. “The Empire wants us to know. By planting these ideas in our minds, they use our actions to give their plans weight. Even our opposition provides the conflict necessary to make the outcome 'real' in the eyes of the heavens.”

Carl didn't quite grasp the metaphysics, but he committed her words to memory for later. Noticing his confusion, Iz simplified her point.

“Even in its fallen state, the Limitless Em—”

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