[Book II Chapter 61] DYLAN: Bastion

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“——I bid you the best of fortunes.” Chon finished, retreating from view.

Sanwue’s saints had gathered before the half-ring arch for this final round of instruction. They were to pair up in groups of three and find their fourth from the adventurers in Bastion. These parties of four would then be sent off to assist regions in need.

Dylan frowned watching his peers mill around. The thought of interacting with the cliques of the major sects was unappealing. He spotted Gen Jiang speaking with several disciples. The man returned his gaze and shook his head. Not this time I guess.

“Excuse me.” Said a voice behind him. He discovered a lovely little brunette in white staring up at him. “I’m Nang Wang from the Radiant Sight Sect. Would you like to team up?”

“Why me?” Dylan asked, thrown off by her friendly, cheerful tone.

“I admire what you did, saving that living cauldron girl.” Nang explained. “I have no experience being a ‘hero’, so I figured it’d be a good idea to learn from you.”

Dylan growned internally. He then glanced over to see eager cultivators surrounding Soul Skyfell. Once the boy has found his partners, the rest might turn to me.

“I accept.” Dylan declared. “Let’s cross over to Bastion to find the remainder of our team.”

“We’re going to recruit two adventurers?” Nang asked, trailing behind.

“Yes, and the sooner we begin looking, the more choices we’ll have.” Dylan said.

A hot, dry heat assaulted them on the other side of the portal. Dylan immediately jumped atop the nearest building to take the lay of the land. A Sandstone buildings spread out as far as he could see, with great avenues dividing the vast city. Several other half-ring arches were visible, three with steady streams of people flowing through. In the distance was the massive fortress, and, beyond it, an equally impressive great wall ran off into the horizon on both sides.

“Incredible.” Nang whispered. Dylan said nothing but agreed.

> Dowart chimed in. <>

A Ghost Corrosion Disciple joined them to provide directions to the Adventurer’s guild. Dylan and Nang jumped across the city. There it is. Below the giant fortress was an area filled with electric sprites buzzing around at lightning speed. The two landed on the square building as instructed.

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Since there was no one around, Dylan turned his attention to the fortifications looming over them. Over a mile wide at the base, the multilayer structure became narrower towards the top. The outer walls were covered in scaffolding on which hundreds of airships were moored.

“That’s the Tower of Babel, where champions from around Enera came together to save this world. It also serves as Bastion’s docks.”

The speaker was a woman with pink skin and small horns on her head. She approached with a friendly expression. “Welcome to the Adventurer’s Guild. My name is Miki, the one tasked with helping you.”

“We’re looking for two new members, preferably the strongest saints available.” Dylan tried to mask his surprise at meeting someone from the demon world.

“Two of our strongest…” Miki tapped her lips then smiled. “I have just the two for you. You’ll find them on the building over there, the one which now has a jungle growing over it.”

Dylan easily spotted the roof covered in dense tropical foliage. Roots overflowed, winding down the walls.

“Are they normal?” Nang asked hesitantly.

“It might be different in Sanwue, but out here all saints are somewhat unique.” Miki explained, still wearing her smirk. “And you asked for the strongest, so of course they’ll be extra special.”

Nang glanced at Dylan, face full of worry. He pursed his lips. “Let’s go met them first.”

They entered the miniature Forest and discovered a meadow at its center. Around the edges bloomed every flower imaginable, yet Dylan didn’t recognize a single one. A young girl crouched on the side, examining something within the tree roots. She couldn’t have been more than seventeen.

“Hello.” She said, noticing them. “What can I do for you?”

“We’re cultivators from Sanwue hoping to recruit adventurers to form a party.” Dylan revealed halfheartedly.

“Oh, did Miki finally send us some teammates? That’s great.” The girl exclaimed clapping her hands.

“What do you mean by that?” Nang quickly asked.

The girl cocked her head, confused. “Well, it’s been hard finding anyone willing to work with me because…” The girl trailed off, realization dawning on her face. “You… Have no idea who I am do you?”

Dylan and Nand looked at each other. “Should we?” He asked.

“No, course not.” The girl beamed, clearly elated. “I’m no one important.”

Dylan knew this was a lie, but didn’t care enough to press the point. The true identity of some foreigner meant nothing to him.

“Anyway, I’m Free.” The girl continued. “Tall, brooding, and silent over there is Darius.”

Dylan and Nang faced the direction Free pointed and were shock to find a large man leaning against a tree truck not ten feet away. Dark fabric covered every inch of him save his deep brown eyes.

“He’s hard to notice, isn’t he?” Free laughed. “Darius is a rogue shinobi from somewhere he won’t reveal, very mysterious. He’s also suspiciously competent. Dueling him in the guild’s arena was like fighting my sister. I never once won.”

“What about you? Are you truly strong?” Dylan didn’t doubt the larger man’s power. Rather, it was the seventeen year old which concerned him.

“Me?” Free grinned. “I’m strong.” In an instant, all the trees lunged forward, their razor-sharp branches pausing just inches from Dylan.

Dowart whistled softly. <>

“Enough.” Dylan exclaimed. “You’ve proven your point. We’ll be happy to partner with you.”

“Is that fine?” He asked Nang.

The radian Sight disciple nodded. “I’ll trust your judgment.”

“Fantastic!” Free gave Nang a big hung, with the cultivator trying haplessly to get away.

Watching, Dylan sighed in relief. That’s the troublesome part done. He intended to kill the remaining five murderers on this journey if the chance presented itself. Even if his enemies could reincarnate, Bao had been extremely upset to lose her mortal form. There was merit in causing such anguish. With Lin’s safety in Yaozu Gao’s hands, reprisals are no longer a concern.