Chapter 951

Chapter 951

After they had established a foothold on Waral, a relatively populated moon under the control of the Numerological Compact, the Lower Realms Alliance was able to observe many things first hand they had only heard about.

The Numerological Compact had an iron grip on their systems, but their overall population was actually in the minority. As far as cultivators went, the Numerological Compact made up less than ten percent of the population. The majority of the cultivator population- around seventy percent- were previously unseen free cultivators from other sects. As for the remaining twenty percent, they were enslaved to be used directly as power sources.

At the moment, Devon stood in the midst of a dead city- not that its people had perished but the city itself. The people lived, but nothing else did except a small number of animals and stray plants in parks that had been established. Even then, those parks seemed drained of life, and they certainly possessed no natural energy to speak of.

Though he had only observed it briefly during the conflict, the city was filled with formations providing all sorts of conveniences. Those same formations were now lacking power, making the city feel empty, despite all of the people around.

They had temperature control, something Devon had only seen rarely before Ruteras technology became prominent- most cultivators endured any natural temperatures as part of training and at best limited such control to small areas.

Many other systems replicated what he had seen elsewhere, with some features being more prominent via formations or technology within the Alliance. Water produced via formations had become more common than pumping it through pipes via pressurization- though very few places exclusively used the former as it had to take water from the air for it to be real. Most material formed directly from natural energy was transitory, existing only long enough to complete its purpose.

Industrial production facilities were also something Devon sensed- no longer active, but with many partially built components for what seemed to be pre-fabricated formations. There were also military construction facilities, where there were half constructed ship segments- previously powered by the very people those ships were going to contain.

Only a few small parts of the city were still powered, but that was not because their sources of energy were any more ethical. Instead, they were simply made up of smaller groups of cultivators bonded to energy draining devices. If Devon had anything to say about it- and he very much did- they would be freed immediately.

Even though Devon took in the situation calmly and rapidly, the city was anything but calm. The Lower Realms Alliance had after all just attacked and taken out their highest power structures. The moon only had ten or so larger cities, with people packed together to take advantage of their power sources. The others were no doubt making plans on how to respond, while the citizenry of the current city were acting in confusion.

Those who had been used as batteries were mostly unconscious after being disconnected from the now completely destroyed central power station. Leaving them laying on top of rubble wasnt necessarily polite, but there were more urgent situations that had to be taken care of.

With most of their artillery useless, some of the local cultivators were attempting to attack the incoming ships directly- but while they had numbers, they didnt have the range, coordination, or ability to concentrate their firepower.

It was still a situation that needed to be dealt with, however. Devon spread his energy out over the city. Lay down your arms or suffer the consequences. Stay out of our way and you will be treated fairly.

Some people made the sensible choice upon feeling the power of an Enrichment cultivators when nobody left in the city was even equivalent to Assimilation, withdrawing their attacks and trying to slink away. Devon didnt bother thinking about any of them, as it would be too much trouble to deal with them.

More important were those who thought it a good idea to move towards him, mostly Numerological Compact cultivators. Of course, even the majority of them knew better, but there were some foolish Life Transformation cultivators leading hundreds of Essence Collection cultivators. There were more of even lower cultivation.

Some of them tried to attack right away, launching attacks from over a kilometer away. There were a few of them who were proficient in such long range techniques, while others stretched the limits of their power. Devon could have easily moved to the side, but he was currently sheltering the unconscious mass of people.

His chains spiraled out, guiding the various energies inwards where they clashed with each other. Even those of the same sect couldnt prevent their energy from conflicting, erasing most of the momentum of the assaults. Then Devon turned the rest back on the stronger cultivators. VIsit n0(v)eLb(i)n.com for the best novel reading experience

And they would. No use wasting that enthusiasm and power.

Ashildr, what is the report on the citys status?

The formations are useless, she said. Which means no planetary barrier here, and weakened effects elsewhere. People are having trouble completing daily tasks like cooking.

... Did I make the wrong choice? Devon asked.

Aerona shook her head. No way. They brought this on themselves.

I have to agree, Ashildr confirmed. It is possible for those with the proper control to inject their own natural energy into the formations to activate their functions, but they did not make it easy on themselves by relying so much on slave labor. Basic survival isnt a problem for now, but with the natural energy here being somewhat lacking, theyre struggling.

I have to admit, Devon said. I only vaguely sensed the lower levels of natural energy here.

Have you not had a hard time recovering your expended energy? Ash asked. I certainly felt it, and you used more.

I am practically swarmed with devotion, Devon pointed out. Intense feelings from millions of locals- including some in other cities. Not many of those, but still. He shrugged. Id share if I could, but I think that mostly means other people need to show themselves more and myself less.

No, Aerona said. You need to continue to be active. These people need a strong leader right now. She put a hand on Devons shoulder, And I know you dont want to be a leader, which makes you quite suited for the task. You will listen to our guidance.

Devon nodded. Aerona had experience with both diplomacy and leadership. She was an elected empress of her home planet for a time, which is how they met to begin with. Ill certainly need help for anything that doesnt involve excessive use of power.

Speaking of which, Ashildr said. If you could survey the planet and confirm the locations of the Confluence cultivators and power stations, and anything else of note, it would be very valuable. Normal scouts have to fly outside the planetary barrier, for safety, but your World Encompassing Chains should work, correct?

Devon nodded. They will. And since Im not keeping my presence secret it will be easier.

I would suggest doing it as soon as possible. I know none of us have had much rest, but the Numerological Compact has been hard at work sealing the remaining cities into a new barrier. This is the best time to push through before they close it off properly.

Nobody would be getting much sleep in the near future. Even so, Devon felt invigorated for the moment, and he was going to make use of it until his fatigue caught up to him. Hopefully, that would be after reinforcements arrived and they got things to a stable state. Going all in on securing a single position might seem foolish at first, but it would be a huge blow to the morale of the Numerological Compact on top of their recent losses.

While the population of Waral wasnt anything impressive, that didnt meant it wasnt worth saving with their whole effort. And forcing the enemy to come to them might be worthwhile.