DefianceNovels

Chapter 1,349.

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“Dad, look! Someone’s walking around inside Grandpa Hetcher’s house!”

Beene found his daughter seated at her usual spot in the second-floor window’s culvert. He inwardly sighed at the schoolbook in her lap. It had been passed between multiple families before his father won it playing cards. It had taught two generations of children letters and numbers before reaching Helisent’s hands.

The book looked like exposure to sunlight would ...

Chapter 1,348.

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Zac—or rather Everit—had been crippled.

Lawkeepers lived lives full of danger, at least the greedy or ambitious ones. The [Peregrine Gondola] had brought Zac to a timeline where one of Everit’s missions had gone sideways. Instead of catching the fugitive, he’d been lured into an ambush. Everit managed to kill the offender and his companions, but it cost him everything.

A Lawkeeper who lost their cultivation could s...

Chapter 1,347.

Become a patron to read ahead.

It was as though Janos had discarded his real persona the moment he stepped onto the gondola. It left Zac feeling like he was looking at a stranger. He still brought out a blank Information Crystal and copied the introduction of [Foreign Gods]. Vilari still had the book where Zac first saw the term Ancient Arcana, but Zac knew the important parts by heart. Additionally, Zac included most of what he’d gathered about the Stellar Wanderers,...

Chapter 1,346.

Become a patron to read ahead.

A barrier of faith had already appeared, blocking access to the gondolas. Zac was green with regret from having used both [Eye of Desolation] and [Arbiter of the Abyss]’s spectral chain to guarantee a quick kill on Xinyi’s doppelganger. He’d seen the gondolas just ahead and that none of the sealbearers nearby were too powerful. Zac had lowered his guard, leaving him with fewer options when this new threat had ap...

Chapter 1,345.

There was no time to get a proper understanding of the situation on the other side, though the memory domain’s shimmering wall in the distance proved they’d found the right place. The Spatial Tear was rapidly closing while the existential decay in the house recovered. Zac turned into a streak of death and squeezed through while Janos created an illusion of himself on the other side and swapped places.

The Peregrine Ocean’s scent filled Zac’s nostrils with nauseating intensity th...

Delay announcement

As mentioned in Monday's chapter, this week's releases will be a bit erratic. Unfortunately, the past days have turned into a perfect storm of problems stacking on top of each other, making a bad situation worse. I'd hoped to release a chapter today and another tomorrow, but it's simply not tenable. I'm planning to release the week's second chapter tomorrow. The final chapter is tentatively on Sunday, with a possibility of next week turning into a 4 chapter week.

I'm sorry about the del...

Chapter 1,344.

A/N: We're kicking off March with a bang, in my case literally as I managed to break my toe against my bed's leg. The spice must flow, and it shouldn't affect the releases too much. However, the posting times might get a bit erratic this week. Anyway, thank you for re-upping, and welcome new patrons!

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Activating [Arbiter of the Abyss] ballooned Zac’s body to nearly four meters—that part hadn’t changed since the skill reached D...

Chapter 1,343.

This close, Zac could tell his opponent had greatly overdrawn his source. His turbid mind was struggling to grasp what was going on, seeing as there was confused jubilation on his face. Did he think Zac had given up on the challenge, not even entering the maze? After all, the two struck completely different images, with Zac looking as clean and whole as when he flew to the altar.

Zac gave the challenger an ambivalent look before turning away. His anger had mostly dissipated over the pas...

Chapter 1,342.

The organizers made no effort to quell the clamor and reestablish the solemnity of the occasion. If anything, they welcomed it. Zac’s face scrunched with annoyance upon seeing concession stands appearing among the F-grade cultivators and Mortals at the back of the square. He’d been turned into an opening act, though he’d be a fool if he couldn’t notice there was something else going on.

The Transformation Docks were undergoing a metamorphosis that started with an enormous influx...

Chapter 1,341.

The Peregrine Ocean’s herbal scent permeated the dense mist, surpassing yesterday’s visit to the docks. The fog wasn’t harmful, though an unusual sense of déjà vu hit Zac as he descended the mountain. Zac only needed to leave the First District to confirm the source of the immense amounts of Imperial Faith wasn’t an influx from the land or the countless memory lanterns.

A shocking number of cultivators filled the streets. The Transformation Docks had only been bustling as far ...

Chapter 1,340.

There was much to do and very little time. Zac could picture the race to the docks the moment the Theomore Dynasty shared whatever helpful hint they possessed. Half the gondolas would be gone within minutes, and Zac couldn’t lag behind. Today was his last chance to squeeze the Transformation Docks for all its value before setting off.

Zac could also feel the trouble brewing. It could be Xiphos or the Magistrate exposing his identity or something related to Astora Theomore. It could be...

Chapter 1,339.

“You could simply move on to the next stage,” Esmeralda suggested. “Things should be set up the same way around the other courts. That means the clock started ticking the second the Hollow Court got its halo. Three weeks have passed already. If you wait too long, your other side won’t have time to participate in the challenges.”

“We haven't reached that point yet,” Zac said.

The challenges should still be ongoing around the Transformation Docks. They’d heard they w...

Chapter 1,338.

Seizing Everit Draom’s lantern wasn’t a chance encounter like stumbling onto Tam Brooks’ lantern inside the storm. It was the result of hard work. Everit was actually one of the leads Zac found during his first visit to Dawndeep Bastille, and it had taken another memory domain to narrow down the search.

The effort made the discovery all the more rewarding. Everit’s lantern was unmatched in ferocity. Only a few standouts they’d seen inside the inner region could compare. It hel...

Chapter 1,337.

“Holy crap,” Zac mumbled with awe.

Zac could only identify one pile without Esmeralda’s assistance: the neat stacks of Cosmic Crystals. There were exactly a thousand Middle-quality Cosmic Crystals, nearly half of them attuned. The ten High-quality Cosmic Crystals were all unattuned. Together, the stacks were worth over 30 C-grade Nexus Coins.

The High-quality Cosmic Crystals were technically worth less than the pile of Middle-quality crystals, but most C-grade factions would...

Chapter 1,336.

A streak of blue light appearing out of nowhere announced the next round of torment had begun. It tore straight through the podjumper’s barrier, and its plating fared no better. Upon reaching the compartment, the light transformed into a corrosive gas that targeted all organic matter. Zac swung [Death’s Duality], cleaving the vessel in two. Six chains rushed through the gap to rip apart six flying array disks waiting outside.

They were only the tip of the iceberg; d...

Chapter 1,335.

A/N: A small continuity announcement. I've been fiddling with these POV chapters over the weekend as they're the end of what'll be book 16. I've decided to make a slight change. Today's chapter will be placed directly after second half of Emily's POV, with Janos getting his own chapter instead of being split up. Finally, Janos and Joanna will switch positions.

I'm going to keep things as is here on Patreon to avoid any confusion. I'm just l...