In the quiet starry space, Erza calmly stared at the HOPE symbol in front of her. She could feel the profound aura radiating from the symbol.
Even though it was not too apparent, Erza was very happy that she finally left the dark world. That endless darkness was truly heart palpitating. There were no vicious traps or attacks as she had imagined, but that kind of quiet darkness was more cruel than any deadly strike.
Within the endless darkness where even one's body did not exist, she had almost lost herself once and sank into despair...
Even the path of light that had appeared behind her in the end was a cruel test. If Erza had really turned around and stepped onto the road of light, she would be going against her true heart and failed.
Fortunately, when her mind was about to enter the world of darkness, there was a voice which reminded her to stay true to her heart. And at that final moment, Erza chose to persevere on the route in her heart and gave up on the fatally attractive path of light.
An ordinary person could not imagine how much enticement a sliver of light would possess after walking in the darkness for such a long time. It was akin to a person about to die of thirst in the desert seeing a mouthful of sweet water.
That kind of enticement was irresistible, but fortunately, Erza had persevered in the end. She had her back to the light as she walked out… walking towards the path in her heart. And the path in her heart led her to the place she wanted to go.
'Was it Chasiel's voice?'
Erza pondered silently before let out a long sigh. It was truly a close call. Now that she had successfully passed the test, Erza realized that she had undergone a great change in terms of her willpower and mind.
She had surprisingly formed her own True Will! And it was as solid as a mountain. This was the most valuable thing she had gained so far.
With a strong will and mind, coupled with her talent and access to resources, Erza's future was truly limitless.
"Looks like the time I spent in the world of darkness was not short." Erza's gaze flickered. This steady and solid as a mountain mental aptitude was not something one could train in a short period of time. No matter how abnormal the flow of time in the world of darkness was, it should still take at least half a year.
Of course, this did not make Erza even the slightest bit astonished. When she was in the world of darkness, it was as if she had spent a hundred years there. Even if someone told her ten years had passed in the outside world, she would not find it unexpected at all.
After examining herself for a while, Erza finally focused all of her attention towards the HOPE symbol to her front.
As she concentrated, Erza discovered that there was a faintly discernible figure on the symbol which did not seem to have a fixed shape. It fluctuated from time to time. In the end, she vaguely saw the figure transformed into a twelve-winged angel.
Even though she never saw her before, Erza knew that the figure in front her was Chasiel, the Archangel of Hope.
Erza stood before the figure and respectfully bowed towards her. This kind of ancient existence was worthy of a respectful attitude. In addition, without her earlier warning, Erza might not be able to pass her test.
When Erza bent her body, the HOPE symbol actually emitted a strange buzzing sound. The indistinct figure squirmed as if it was slowly reaching out a hand to Erza.
Since Erza had successfully passed through the world of darkness, she could be considered to have already obtained the recognition of Chasiel. Hence, the figure now reached out a hand, evidently intending to complete the final step of passing on the inheritance.
Upon seeing this scene, Erza slowly nodded her head, the expression on her face like an ancient well without ripples. The world of darkness was evidently extremely useful in the tempering of her character. She was calmer than ever before.
Erza reached out her hand and gently touched the angel's hand. Immediately, the latter's figure squirmed and fluctuated, directly transforming into a splitting image of Erza.
It then moved forwards and entered Erza's body.
*BANG!*
Wave after wave of formidable ancient power immediately exploded around her body. As these waves spread outwards, countless golden figures suddenly appeared in the starry space. Each of them was praying and looking towards Erza with eyes filled with hope. Yes, she was their new HOPE!
An earth-shattering change also started on all over her body. Her hair grew longer, her body grew taller with curves at the right places, her skin… her voice… She was like born new as a higher being.
*BOOM!*
Erza's realm quickly advanced from the pinnacle of Early Knight Realm to the middle stage of Knight Realm… And it still continued to increase..
*BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!*
More and more explosive energies coming out from Erza's body.
In the end, Erza gritted her teeth and fought hard to limit her advance to the late stage of Knight Realm. Yes, the late stage! She was only half a step away from the peak of Knight Realm!
Erza forcefully suppressed her breakthrough as she knew that it was not a good thing to advance too quick. She needed to consolidate her foundation and solidify her realm first before making further breakthrough. Otherwise, there would be a serious repercussion in the future.
"I did not expect that the one who inherit my legacy would be a half demon." Chasiel's voice suddenly resounded in Erza's mind.
"Greetings… Master…" Erza was a bit confused how she should call Chasiel. In the end, she went with 'master'.
"I see that you are not nervous at all…" Chasiel was referring to the fact that she was an archangel, while Erza was a half demon.
"I believe that Master would not harm me. After all, HOPE is universal. It's not necessarily representing light."
"Indeed… Before I go, would you mind to answer one question of mine?" Chasiel's voice was getting weaker. It was clear that her remaining consciousness would dissipate once the inheritance ceremony was completed.
"Please ask."
"As I am transmitting the inheritance to your mind, I could see that in your memories… you had undergone countless life experiences in the samsara world, and you still remember parts of them. However, in every lives, in every scenarios, in every circumstances, you always ended up suffering and died alone."
"So I'm really wondering what push you to keep walking down on this path of life? Wouldn't it be a meaningless struggle?"
Hearing her question, Erza was silent for a moment before she smiled.
"You are mistaken. It's not every lives. There is still one life which we still do not know how it will end… My current life."
"Even if I failed a hundred times, a thousand times in the samsara world, it did not matter... I will succeed in this life."