Land of Magic

by Kirill Klevanski

  Dragon Heart Land of Magic

  Book VI

  By Kirill Klevanski

  Text Copyright © 2020 Kirill Klevanski

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book can be reproduced, or stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without express written permission of the author.

  Introduced by Valeria Kornosenko

  Translated by J. Kharkova

  Edited by Damir Isovic

  Cover designed by Julia Jdanova

  Illustrations by Valery Spitsyn

  Hello all!

  My name is Kirill Klevanski and you are reading my adventure LitRPG wuxia saga.

  The whole story is planned out and will have 2000 chapters. Now the story has almost 1500 chapters spanning 16 books. 6 books are translated into English and released.

  The beginning of the story (click the link):

  Dragon Heart: Stone Will

  Chapter 423

  “I knew you’d be here.”

  Hadjar was sitting on the edge of a cliff, his feet dangling in the air. There were clouds below him, and birds and other, much stranger, winged creatures occasionally flew past. Behind him stood a black passage in the mountain that served as the entrance to Underworld City.

  Two months had passed since his conversation with Rahaim. During that time, he’d become accustomed to his new abilities as a Heaven Soldier. He’d managed to grasp his new power, and the sharper senses that came with it. Even the odd change to his thinking was something he’d learned to deal with, for the most part.

  Nowadays, while looking at an object, Hadjar’s thoughts would often stray and turn into some deeply philosophical musings. Even the simple flight of a bird could make him wonder about the depths of the Sword Spirit’s and the Wind Spirit’s path for hours.

  He pondered Rahaim’s claim that, whatever he did in the future, he would never be able to return to the Wind Spirit’s path. There were two barriers in his way: the first one was the seal of the Sword Spirit, which, though very challenging, was still something he could overcome. The second was his inability to use the ‘true path of cultivation’, which meant harnessing the external energy of the World River.

  “I see you’ve broken through,” Hadjar said, moving aside.

  He took a pipe and some tobacco from the pocket of his new, silk blue coat, flicked a match, and a thin column of gray smoke rose up.

  Einen sat down beside him. The islander had become a little broader in the shoulders, taller, and... he’d dried up. He seemed to be striving to look like his favorite weapon — the staff-spear. He, too, now had the aura of a Heaven Soldier. Just four months after their battle with Ragar, Einen, using the insights and inspiration that he’d received during their journey to the library, had been able to find his Way and break through to the level of a true cultivator.

  It was a very impressive achievement, no doubt about it.

  “Sorry to keep you waiting, my friend.”

  “Don’t mention it.” Hadjar clapped his friend on the shoulder. “Besides, we’re going in the same direction. You were going to visit the Empire, weren’t you?”

  Einen stared up at the empty, endless sky. After all the time they’d spent together, Hadjar could easily read his friend’s emotions, despite his stony expression and always-closed eyes. He realized that the islander was worried about something.

  “Something’s bothering you,” Hadjar said.

  Einen remained silent. He rarely spoke. Einen would sometimes burst into a massive tirade, which was usually followed by a week’s silence only diluted by a meager smattering of remarks.

  “I’m concerned about our journey to Dahanatan.”

  “Why is the brave Einen of the pirate islands afraid to go to the capital of the Darnassus Empire?”

  The corners of the islander’s mouth twitched slightly — this indicated his extreme irritation and that he’d suppressed a smile.

  “Your sarcasm, barbarian, will lead you to the house of your forefathers one day. I hope I won’t be nearby at that time, forced to follow you.”

  “Are you serious?” Hadjar sighed sadly. “It really is as they say: only your true friends stand by you when times are dire.”

  This time, Einen actually smiled.

  “I’m not worried about Dahanatan or Darnassus. I’m worried about ‘The Holy Sky’ School.”

  “Rahaim has already written letters of recommendation for us. With them, we’ll be able to participate in the examination for inner circle disciples.”

  According to Paris and the Sage, there were a lot of different schools and sects in the Empire. All of them were divided into different ranks depending on their prestige and strength. There were so many of them that Hadjar hadn’t bothered to remember them all.

  It was enough for him to know that ‘The Holy Sky’ School was considered to be one of the best Schools in Darnassus, and quite possibly the best overall. Of course, there was a constant struggle for the title of ‘best School’ among the ‘Holy Sky’ School, the ‘Meltwater’ School, the ‘Quick Dream’ School, the ‘Moonlight’ sect, the ‘Last Day’ sect, and about seven family clans.

  These organizations were the Twelve Pillars that the power of Dahanatan and Darnassus was based on. The best cultivators from these organizations ruled the country.

  However, there was a strict division within schools and sects. Anyone, even a commoner, could take part in an entrance exam, but they only had the right to fight to become an ordinary disciple. In reality, after passing the tests and receiving a school or sect badge, they would become a servant. In exchange for the opportunity to attain the smallest particle of knowledge and resources, they did menial work and helped the more successful disciples, who were the true focus of the schools and sects, with their assignments.

  The next level of apprenticeship meant being a fully-fledged disciple. This position could be claimed by those who were nobility or had a recommendation from a fully-fledged disciple who already had a badge. For every ten ordinary disciples, there was usually only one fully-fledged member.

  There were two more levels above that. A person could become an inner circle disciple only with the recommendation of people with considerable authority in the Empire, or if the School’s Master decreed it. Getting the latter recommendation was considered almost impossible, as it was very close to attaining the most prestigious rank — becoming a personal disciple.

  Such disciples were given the rarest knowledge and resources, as well as mentoring from the best Masters of a School or sect. Despite the fact that most of the Masters had retired, they’d been very famous and prominent figures in the past. Their authority was on par with the high nobles of the Empire.

  “Are you really that naive, my friend?”

  Hadjar sighed, scratched his nose, then turned the pipe over in his hand and shook out the ash. It was immediately picked up by a cheerful wind and carried away somewhere to the west, where the vast lands of the Empire lay.

  Surprisingly, while Dahanatan and Darnassus had once seemed like something unattainable and even incomprehensible to Hadjar, now he couldn’t even remember the names of all the people he’d met along the way. It was especially sad to realize that, even after travelling so far and for so long, he’d still stayed at the very beginning of his path.

  “I know, Einen, that even with all our tricks, we won’t be able to look like sixteen-year-old teenagers.”

  Einen nodded.

  “Besides, my friend,” he added, “your bones are barely more than twelve years old. And mine are about nine.”

  The dragon’s heart had granted Hadjar his third rebirth. It had renewed his body and spirit. The countdo
wn of his age had begun from scratch. A similar thing had happened to Einen. His inhuman, purple eyes had been a gift from a Rainbow Fish. He’d earned this honor by rescuing a tiny fish out of a fishing net. He’d ended up rescuing one of the ‘children’ of that Rainbow Fish. Beasts on the path of cultivation could also have regular offspring, but they did so very rarely. His new eyes allowed Einen to see through the shadows.

  “I’ve already passed a similar test,” Hadjar said, recalling his examination when he’d joined the army of Lidus. “The artifact that was used there could only tell if a person was older or younger, but not their exact age.”

  “With all due respect to your ancestors, Lidus is truly a barbarian kingdom. I’m sure the best School in Darnassus has a slightly better artifact,” the islander emphasized the word ‘slightly’ in a mocking manner.

  Hadjar looked at his friend with a frown, but said nothing. He couldn’t argue with Einen. For all their harshness, the words were still true. Compared to the ‘Holy Sky’ School, Moon Lin’s Army had been nothing more than a beetle crawling along a branch.

  “You know, I’m probably just tired,” Hadjar said, shaking his head. “When the opportunity to take the easy way out came, I-”

  A slap to the side of his head silenced Hadjar.

  “Hey!” He said indignantly.

  Einen withdrew his hand. With the same unreadable expression still on his face, he continued to stare into the distance.

  “When a fish is tired, it falls asleep and floats up to the surface of the water belly-first. It seems to me like it’s the same among cultivators. We are Heaven Soldiers now, my friend. If we stray too far, we’ll disappear into the World River. So, it’s not time to let your fatigue overcome you just yet.”

  Hadjar once again didn’t argue with his friend. Einen was right. However, the realization didn’t make it any easier.

  “So what’s your plan, baldy?”

  “We’ll become ordinary disciples, and from there, we’ll gradually earn the titles of inner circle disciples, and if we’re lucky, we’ll then find personal Mentors.”

  Hadjar rested his chin on his hand and mumbled dejectedly:

  “By the High Heavens, it’ll be a long road.”

  Einen said nothing.

  “By the Evening Stars!” Hadjar snapped. “I’m not leaving here without those damned letters of recommendation! I’m also going to extort a decent amount of money from Rahaim!”

  Hadjar jumped to his feet, turned around, and headed back to Underworld City. Einen continued to sit on the edge of the cliff. He was smiling slightly.

  Chapter 424

  “I guess this is goodbye.”

  A few people were standing on the sand at the foot of the mountain. Tilis hugged Hadjar tightly, and he returned the hug. They stood like this for a few moments. When they parted, there was regret in their eyes, regret for the days, weeks, and months of friendship they’d missed out on.

  “I want you to have this.” The witch handed Hadjar an ornament.

  He took it carefully and wove it into his hair. Now three strings of beads hung down the right side of his hair: two from the Bedouin shaman, which protected him from evil spirits, and one, no less precious, from the young witch whose brother he might’ve been. He treasured the third string of beads even more than the first two.

  “I’m glad to have met such fine warriors,” Karissa said, holding out her hand. “Live free.”

  “Die well,” Hadjar and Einen responded.

  Paris and Ramukhan just smiled and saluted them. Receiving a similar response from the friends, they turned and walked back. Einen and Hadjar hadn’t liked the sorcerer from the very beginning. As for Paris, after their journey to the library, the friends couldn’t help but feel like the head of the Research Chamber of Underworld City had somehow deceived them. Maybe he hadn’t, but the feeling refused to go away.

  Only Shakh was left standing in front of the duo. Not so long ago, he had been a passionate boy, but now he looked like a grown man who’d been through a lot. His face was scarred, and there was determination in his eyes.

  “Are you sure you don’t want to come with us?”

  Shakh stared at the two friends for a moment and then shook his head:

  “I’ll go back to my hometown. I’ll tell my father how his brother died. I’ll tell Ilmena’s parents that she loved them.”

  “And then?”

  “Then…” Shakh exhaled. “I think Rahaim will agree to give me his caravan route. Or maybe I’ll just travel around the Sea of Sand. I’ll visit the Pearl and other cities.”

  Shakh suddenly smiled and held out his hand:

  “It was an honor to fight alongside you, Einen of the islands, and you, Hadjar of Lidus. However, this is my home, and this is where our paths diverge.”

  Einen and Hadjar reciprocated the gesture and mounted their desert ravens. “May the Evening Stars illuminate your path, Shakh of the Sea of Sand.”

  Without turning around, they spurred the beasts on and took off. Shakh watched them disappear, kicking up clouds of sand in their wake. Maybe he would go to the western border and begin his journey across the vast world one day, but not right now. He touched the scarlet ribbon around his wrist that Ilmena had once used to tie her hair, turned around, and followed Paris and the others.

  ***

  “Impressive, isn’t it?” Hadjar nudged Einen.

  The islander mumbled something unintelligible in response. They stood on the edge of a small oasis. It was so tiny that it looked like a freshwater pond. And yet, it was deep enough to water hundreds of red-painted elephants.

  After a week of mad racing, they’d managed to catch up with a noble caravan. The fare, even by the standards of the Empire’s Borderlands, was horrific— two Imperial coins per person.

  However, Hadjar had decided that Rahaim had to give them not just letters of recommendation (which had, in fact, turned out to be more or less useless to them), but also a huge amount of money — fifty Imperial coins. Each. So, Einen and Hadjar were now wealthy travelers. Considering that one of them had the Patriarch’s fortune stored in his spatial ring, it could even be said that they were very wealthy.

  “Who are you?” A caravan guard asked, nocking his bow.

  He was a stocky desert dweller wrapped in a white caftan and turban, and he radiated the energy of a practitioner close to becoming a true cultivator. Therefore, he was understandably a bit wary of two true cultivators suddenly coming up to his caravan.

  “Travelers,” Hadjar answered. “We’d like to buy two passenger seats in your caravan.”

  The guard chuckled derisively.

  “You don’t look like you can afford a piece of my elephant’s dung, let alone a seat. Get out of here!”

  Hadjar and Einen looked at each other, shrugged, and demonstrated that they had the necessary funds. The guard grumbled something and directed them to a person responsible for the sale of passenger seats. By nightfall, the formalities were settled and the friends had a private coach at their disposal. Unlike Rahaim’s caravan, it wasn’t drawn by desert mules. In fact, nothing pulled it at all. It rested on the back of a huge elephant.

  ***

  A journey that might’ve taken at least two years in a simple caravan lasted only a month and a half. On the morning of the fortieth day, after descending from their coach, they found themselves on the border between the desert and the Eastern provinces of the Empire.

  After thanking the caravan driver for taking care of them, they untied their desert ravens and rode toward the hills to the west. The sand was gradually replaced by dry ground. Small bushes started appearing, then tall bushes, and at some point, they found themselves in a coniferous forest.

  When they entered the forest, Hadjar stopped his raven for a few minutes. Closing his eyes, he took a deep breath. The pleasure he experienced at that moment was difficult to describe in words. It was like hugging your loved ones after a long time apart.

  They emerged from the und
ergrowth onto a broad plateau. There was a smooth, green valley below them. It was divided in half by a rapid, winding river. It lapped at the banks and turned a mill wheel. In the distance, the black smoke of a forge swirled. Numerous villages surrounded the cliff where an Imperial city stood, right on the border.

  “By the High Heavens…”

  “By the Great Turtle…”

  The friends gasped with delight. The city was so huge that it could easily accommodate two capitals of Lidus. Its huge towers and massive walls were decorated with long, red flags. Instead of spires, stone statues of dragons spreading their wings rose into the air. Rows of carts loaded with a variety of goods crept slowly over a drawbridge. A huge number of people riding creatures of all stripes stood in a queue.

  “Fucking hell,” Einen said.

  Since he very rarely cursed, Hadjar immediately followed the direction of his friend’s gaze. He was watching a black dot in the sky. As the dot grew larger, its outline became visible — it was a small sailing boat! Flying through the sky, the sailboat covered more than a mile every second! Soon, it left the two friends standing there, gaping, and disappeared behind the walls of the city.

  “Now I know why Paris smiled when we told him about the hundred coins,” the islander grumbled. “I think, Hadjar, that we barely have enough to pay for the journey to Dahanatan.”

  Hadjar swallowed and nodded a little stiffly. Paris had told them that their upcoming journey would be very simple and go by quickly, but that it’d be breathtaking. He’d promised that they would see things any mortal would have died to witness.

  “Let’s keep going.” Hadjar spurred his desert raven onward.

  They crossed the gorge and entered the city. The guards collected the toll, a quarter of a coin! For each of them! As they entered through a huge archway, they found themselves on an avenue so wide that it could comfortably fit six carriages side by side. The number of people of various nationalities and levels of cultivation was staggering.

  Hadjar, who was looking for a port on the map Paris had given him, had figured that they would need to sail down a river. However, just half an hour ago, he’d learned that the Empire could truly surprise him. When they reached the pier, it did so once more. Apart from the oddity of a small sailing frigate floating on a dense cumulus cloud that was moored to a pier, it really was a most ordinary port.