Spirit's Awakening: The Path of Lightning and Water-Chapter 340: A Confident Arrival

Taking a few steps to get away from the crowd, Lassim perched himself, leaning on the edge of a small, elevated outcropping overlooking the water and gondolas passing below. Lassim held the communication disc in his hand. The engraved runes on its surface pulsed faintly, reacting to the surge of his fused mana he directed into it to keep it charged.

Lassim tapped the communication disc lightly, activating the rune associated with Dorian’s contact. A soft glow emanated from the disc as the text interface appeared, and Lassim quickly typed out a message:

Lassim: I’ve arrived in Starpoint City. Where should we meet?

It didn’t take long for a response to appear, the letters forming on the disc’s surface in a swift flow.

Dorian: Already here? That’s unbelievable. Didn’t you leave the Tempest’s Cradle yesterday? How did you—

Another message followed immediately, cutting off the previous one.

Dorian: Never mind. Meet me at the Goddesses’ Pillars. It’s central—can’t miss it. We’ll talk there.

Lassim’s lips curved into a faint smile as he deactivated the disc and tucked it back into his pouch. He turned his gaze toward the city, spreading his spirit sense more towards the center between the towering structures of Starpoint that were glinting in the sunlight.

Lassim straightened from where he’d been leaning on the outcropping and began walking along the promenade that paralleled atop the Sapphire River.

The crowd bustled around him, the tension in the air from the disruption of the hundreds of businesses and mineral merchants was thick in the air. Most individuals he passed had some level or irritation across their expressions.

To not draw attention to himself, Lassim kept his pace steady and his stormy spiritual pressure carefully restrained as much as was possible. Occasionally, he glanced toward the river, the steady flow of gondolas catching his eye, but his focus remained on the landmark ahead.

The Goddesses’ Pillars grew nearer with every step with their imposing, holy forms unmistakable as Lassim weaved through the foot traffic. They were awe-inspiring.

On one side of a large plaza filled with people and snack stalls was a nearly perfect sculpture of Ava, the Goddess of Water and Famthar’s loving wife, stood with arms outstretched, her flowing robes carved in a mineral that was a gorgeous azure color to mimic the cascading waves of the Sapphire River. The statue itself was also enchanted with a water mana gathering array that caused water to spill continuously from her hands, merging seamlessly into the gap in the flooring beneath here into the channel below. The glow of the mana in her figure cast a soft blue light across the area and citizens looking up towards here as they admired the statue.

Opposite Ava across the promenade stood Moftia, the Goddess of Metal. Her statue exuded both strength and elegance, depicting her in a commanding stance. In one hand, she held her signature sword-tipped spear, its blade etched with intricate runes that glimmered faintly with silver and gold light. Her skin, rendered in gleaming molten steel, seemed to flow and ripple in the afternoon sunlight, as if alive.

Moftia’s presence was further emphasized by the base of her statue, which featured a detailed relief of stereotypically dressed miners entering the kingdom’s famed dimensional pocket—The Quarry. The statue served as both a tribute to the Goddess and of the source of the kingdom’s prosperity.

Lassim arrived at the edge of the plaza, his gaze swept over the area until it landed on Dorian, standing near the base of Moftia’s pillar.

Dorian’s expression shifted the moment he spotted Lassim, his surprise quickly giving way to both relief and disbelief as he hurried forward.

"You really are here," Dorian said, staring at Lassim with clear disbelief. "I thought I might have misread your message. How in the world did you get here so fast? You were at the Tempest’s Cradle just yesterday."

Lassim offered a small smile as he explained, "I’m just fast. I hope it’s not too much of an inconvenience to arrive so quickly?"

Dorian gave him a long, searching look before shaking his head with a chuckle. "Just fast, he says. Fine, I won’t question it for now. But you’ve set a new standard for ’quickly.’ Come on, let’s get out of the open. There’s too much to discuss, and this isn’t the place for it."

As they wove through the plaza and back into the crowd of pedestrians, Dorian gestured toward the towering statues.

"Beautiful, aren’t they? This plaza is the heart of Starpoint," he explained. "The Nobles built them as a tribute to the two Goddesses—Ava for the Sapphire River and Moftia for the minerals that fill The Quarry. They believed they needed to spend some of their wealth towards them as without them, the Stellanora Kingdom wouldn’t exist in its current state. They’ve created this as part of the kingdom’s mythos and it’s just been generally accepted by those of us who’ve lived here long before the pillar statues were built. This is also where people come to pray for blessings or leave offerings when they’re desperate. These days, it’s more desperation than anything else; in hope that some divine intervention talks some sense into those greedy bastards ."

Lassim glanced around, noting the offerings piled neatly at the statues’ bases. Freshly polished tools, small bags of unrefined ore, and ornate water vessels were stacked alongside handwritten prayers sealed with wax.

"See that area over there?" Dorian continued, gesturing to a spire with an empty area surrounding it in the distance. "Used to be full of open markets. Our company had our stall over there too. Now, most of the vendors are gone, forced to stop all their businesses by the Steel Snake Sect’s meddling."

Lassim listened quietly, his gaze flicking between the landmarks and the people. He noted the wary glances cast toward the Steel Snake Sect disciples that meandered around as if they were having relaxing days off, while the subtle tension in the air as citizens avoided crossing their paths was prevalent. The sect’s influence was evident, their presence looming in the city like venomous snakes in tall spirit grass.

"We’ll talk more when we’re back at my place, but remember this scene." Dorian muttered as they passed a small group of Snake Sect disciples, turning down a section of walkway that was arranged like a street with businesses on both sides.

Eventually, they arrived at the Duskvale Mining Company headquarters. After climbing a tall set of stairs, situated on one of the city’s elevated platforms, the building’s deep and dark wooden facade was adorned with carvings depicting miners and craftsmen at work.

Their tools glowing faintly with embedded mana runes to enhance and draw attention from the eyes of those walking by. They were carefully aligned and carved in such a way that naturally led the eye to the Duskvale Mining Company signage.

Dorian walked through the already open door and led Lassim through the currently quiet halls of the Duskvale Mining Company headquarters. a building precariously situated on one of the elevated platforms above the Sapphire River.

Inside, the atmosphere was subdued. Only a duo of clerks worked at their desks, mostly just staring at contracts currently in limbo while nearly 5 additional desks in the room for other clerks sat empty. The shelves lining the walls were half-filled, some ledgers and contracts left scattered around as if hastily looked over but left in stacks. A quiet tension hung in the air, like a cloud over the clerk’s heads.

"This way," Dorian said, leading Lassim toward a private office tucked near the back of the building. The room was modest in size and just as equally cluttered with papers as the previous room, its large desk covered in scattered documents, folders, and the remnants of what must have been desperate attempts to salvage contracts by getting minerals from other sources.

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Dorian gestured for Lassim to sit before taking his own seat behind the desk. He let out a weary sigh, running a hand through his hair as he began, "The Steel Snake Sect has brought us to the brink. The worst part is them spreading false rumors about us, and strong-arming smaller companies into backing down to flat out annul their contracts. And now, the only hope for those with good enough connections with the sects is the duels they’ve turned into a spectacle."

He picked up a paper from the desk and tossed it in Lassim’s direction. It was a contract, stamped with what Lassim assumed was the insignia of a noble house. The coat of arms was a familiar and recognizable format that even his families in the Aurora Kingdom followed.

"See this? That was our main source of income for the last fifty years—our lifeline—for the Quarry. It’s been ’paused’ indefinitely because the nobles want to renegotiate every detail under the Steel Snake Sect’s influence. It’s the same for every other mining company that hasn’t already surrendered to them. The contract with you for the Astrium Veinstone is just added to the list. It’s all a farce!" He slammed his fist on the desk.

Lassim skimmed the document, seeing the massive and insane total of five billion high-grade ESS, before placing it back on the desk. "So, the duels are their way of making this seem legitimate?"

Dorian nodded grimly. "Exactly. The duels used to be a fair system for resolving disputes, but now they’re just a tool for the Steel Snake Sect to parade their champion, Joryk Vrel, as an unbeatable force. Every week, they hold fights in the city’s floating arena. Anyone who dares challenge them in hopes of renewing their contracts on the pre established terms loses—spectacularly of course—and the nobles treat it as proof that their scheme is just and right."

"We agreed that I would participate for the contract you signed with Eno already. Have you entered me in yet?" Lassim asked, leaning back in the chair slightly as he studied Dorian.

"Well… About that. There’s a somewhat annoying process and the nobles oversee the roster to make the fights exciting. Competitors have to register days in advance, which means we’ve missed the deadline for tomorrow’s event. The next available duel won’t be for another week." Dorian’s frustration was still evident but he sheepishly added, "Though, I honestly didn’t expect you to arrive so quickly, or I would’ve prepared and submitted for you after our call."

Lassim shook his head with a confident smile as he replied, "That’s fine. It gives me a chance to observe this Fortress, as they call him."

Dorian blinked, "You don’t seem worried."

"Why would I be?" Lassim asked simply. "If his strategy is predictable, then he’s already at a disadvantage."

Dorian stared at him for a long moment before exhaling. "You’ve got confidence, I’ll give you that. But Joryk isn’t just strong—he’s demoralizing. I’ll just repeat it for you one more time in case you didn’t hear through the connection from yesterday. The way he fights is he hardens his body into something even high-grade weapons can’t pierce! Then, he turns the battlefield into a death trap with his [Metal Spikes] technique, and usually turns his opponents into pin cushions. Those that are quick enough to dodge, he just wears them down until they either surrender as they can’t break through his armour. Plus, he’s at the peak of the Spirit Transcendence stage! I can tell you’re only Spirit Ascension 8!"

"I’m not worried. It may not look like it, but I’ve actually beaten a Spirit Mystic level 1 opponent before," Lassim replied.

Dorian shook his head, "Yeah, and I’m the strongest man in the entire Stellanora Kingdom," he said sarcastically.

"But, I trust Eno with my life. He may not have told you, but he helped work for this company back in the day as a hired guard. I only had to pay him with access to minerals for him to study and develop his techniques. Quite cheap, but he helped ensure that those first caravans of supplies always made it to their destinations. Regardless if there were bandits or beasts or even other merchant companies trying to sabotage my startup, he was there. I hope, for both of our sakes, that you and him are right. Tomorrow, we’ll go to the coliseum. You can see what we’re up against." He said as he rubbed the back of his head.

"I had no idea, but that sounds like something Master Eno would do. He’s reliable like that," Lassim said, rising to his feet. "Don’t you worry! We’ll win this and I can help save all your other contracts too. I promise it’ll be over quickly as I’m quite strong."

The determination in his voice seemed to steady Dorian, who followed suit by rising to his feet as well.

"Dinner first," he said, motioning toward the door. "My family’s expecting us, and you can stay the night. We have a spare villa for guests that visit. Let’s get going."