Inside the barrier, there was Griffin's nest surrounded by a forest of gigantic trees that radiated sacred Qi, unaffected by the demonic Qi outside. The center was the origin of all-natural Qi. There was a small mound with a throne positioned at a higher point. Lian was seated on the throne, surrounded by Griffins and humans, with a completely tranquil expression as if it were his rightful place. His presence conveyed natural leadership, emanating an aura of authority and confidence.
Beside him, a group of five young humans was present, while Lian attentively listened to everything this group of just under 100 Griffins had witnessed in recent times. Lian had some doubts. Anri, the elf that had absorbed the black lotus, led with overwhelming strength, subduing all the demons. Why would a small and weak group constantly attack the Enchant clan while a powerful and massive group tried to destroy Griffin's nest?
The pieces began to fit together quickly when the description of Anri's demonic power revealed itself to be something only evil dragons in the Divine Plane possessed. The black lotus granted Anri a sinister and infinite cultivation capability. He became something rare known as the "Demon who Swallows the Heavens."
Anri distracted the humans with weaker demons, making them believe that the situation was under control and that they didn't need external reinforcements. Whenever the barrier protecting Griffin's nest was about to break, the Griffins were forced to fight. This was a feast for Anri, who devoured the leaders one by one, rapidly advancing in his cultivation.
In the last attack, a few weeks ago, Anri devoured the most powerful Griffin in the nest, and with each devouring, he needed several days to fully absorb that power. Aware that they were doomed, Saya was sent to seek shelter with the humans, hoping for the return of the Sovereign. However, they were pursued by powerful demons, and Saya almost died if Lian hadn't saved her.
Lian explained to everyone there: "This sinister ability allows one to absorb the power of all other things in this world. These demons devour humans and other beasts to advance and can even devour other demons."
The existence of a demon capable of devouring everything, including its own kind, disgusted and frightened the humans immensely. Anri chose to strengthen himself more efficiently by devouring the Griffins, but soon he would knock on the Enchant clan's door and, in the future, the human cities.
Artemis listened to everything with her head lowered, her eyes clearly moist, but she fought with all her might to stay strong.
Lian looked at the humans with a sarcastic expression. He understood their thoughts and decided to wake them up from those idiotic beliefs. "All humans consume thousands of pills in their cultivation. They are made from special herbs or beast cores, flesh, or bones. No one has a problem using those materials, right? But what about human flesh, tendons, and bones?"
He snorted as he continued. "Hmph! Don't be hypocrites. That's just another branch of cultivation. Nothing more, nothing less. Humans use and devour other races without any scruples. This demon is no worse or better than any other race," Lian added.
"Cultivators are much more nourishing compared to a material of the same grade, like the so-called immortal grass. He will return even more powerful in, at most, three days," he concluded in the end.
Then, Lian raised his hand, and divine runes quickly filled the environment. The runes then descended toward all the Griffins. Within seconds, a majestic and divine aura exploded within their bodies, and the chains in their bloodlines were removed.
"Thousands of years have passed since I put these chains on you. I still don't trust your race, but because you have fought for so long without causing trouble, even when almost facing extinction, I am setting you free," Lian said.
The Griffins returned to their original form, unable to control their power. Overwhelmed, they bowed with all their strength to express gratitude for Lian's words.
"Spend the days controlling the power within your bodies and prepare for battle," Lian spoke, without even looking at them and called the group of five young ones to a location behind the throne.
All the humans of the Enchant clan grew tense as they had lost nearly half of their cultivators. An even worse battle was approaching rapidly. Artemis clenched her fists and gathered everyone in a separate location. She had decided to place complete trust in Lian, as he had promised to bring Anri back to her.
Saya watched Lian and the group move away with a bitter feeling. She wanted to follow them, but she was not called. Being a Royal Griffin, she was born without the constraints of her bloodline, and Lian had never tried to talk to or teach her anything. Frustrated, she reflected on everything and understood that if she wanted to be close to him, she needed to become stronger. She needed to catch his attention somehow.
The group, led by Lian, arrived in a silent area that appeared identical to any other part of the nest. Suddenly, Lian made a few seals, and a spatial fissure appeared before him, revealing the entrance to a small world. Everyone gathered excitedly and entered.
Their sight quickly changed, and they took a deep breath. They felt pure life energy emanating from all the entities present. It was as if that world was primitive, untouched by humans. The winds carried traces of divine and pure vegetation, and a sense of peace enveloped everyone. The transcendent beauty of the place could calm the soul and elevate thoughts to higher planes of existence.
Riria was the one most deeply affected by that environment. Her elven blood was being intensely stimulated, and a sacred aura emanated from her body. She felt an irresistible urge to lie down in the green fields and forget the worries of life.
Lian smiled and held Riria's hand, bringing her back to reality. She quickly snapped out of her trance, and Lian led her in a certain direction. The others followed swiftly while Edea, Wei, and Shiho looked on with jealousy at Riria and Lian walking side by side at the front of the group.
In a short time, they arrived at an area that contrasted with the rest. It was a small region of a few meters without any vegetation, as if a lake had been completely drained. In the center of this space, a small point shone brightly. Lian approached and grabbed it: it was a treasure he had left there a long time ago. It was a relatively small stone with a deep blue and almost translucent color, emanating its own light.
The stone had a unique cut, with multiple facets that captured and reflected light in a dazzling manner. In the Divine Plane, it was known as the Cintamani Stone. It was a relic capable of creating and accumulating the laws of light, something extremely rare in the Mortal Plane but more common in the Divine Plane. This stone had helped Zeke survive and use sacred Qi in moments of certain death when he lived among mortals.
After ascending, the stone didn't have much use for him. So, he left it there with the Griffins and created that small world. The power of the stone would give life to many rare divine grasses and herbs. He wanted to nurture Lyn with all the life force he could find, increasing her life expectancy. He couldn't even imagine continuing to live after witnessing her death from old age.
However, the worst happened... Bitter memories flooded Lian's mind as he observed the cracks spread across the mineral. Destructive Qi still permeated those fissures.
The power contained in that small stone had a simple consciousness and intelligence, but now it was completely dead. Lian understood that the spirit of the stone had dared to read the fate of that world, predicting Lian's return, but as a consequence, it suffered punishment from the heavens that destroyed it.
After a few moments, Lian called Rumi to his side. The stone had lost almost 90% of its sacred capacity, resulting in the drying of the lake, and soon everything in that small world would die.
Lian recalled reading some texts in the Divine Plane about rudimentary and little-explored techniques created to allow a human to manipulate the laws of light. However, there was a region completely dominated by a Goddess of Light, and her followers were blessed with a Light Core, which granted them the ability to utilize those laws. Therefore, there wasn't much research available on how to do it without the power of a deity.
Studying the power of the divine tree in his meridians, Lian had some ideas and realized that Rumi would greatly benefit from it.