Rein's mind was expanding. He once thought that all he desired was to rescue his younger brother, and seek revenge against the forces that had destroyed the Golden Desert Town.
Yet now, he realized that the world itself is a long string of interconnected events, one event leading another, cause and effect, eventually resulting in himself. The Golden Desert Town's destruction is linked to the succession battle for the throne in Minhr Nation.
The Minhr Nation's rulers, the Dingien Clan, and its competing scions, maintain a connection to both the Hall of Heroes, the Fusion Sect to the southern seas and other lesser forces due to various reasons. The Fusion Sect likely belongs to another human faction.
Even the other clans in the Minhr Nation, such as the Xuere Clan, have ancient historical origins from a previous era of conflict.
As for the devils? They seem strangely influenced by the demon beasts' magic yet they also began as humans, and must be linked to an ancient era.
Rein could not fully piece together the whole picture, but he now sensed a strange connection, a chain of events that eventually led to the Golden Desert Town and his family's destruction.
Thus, his heart wished for more than simply finding his younger brother. A will that he never noticed within himself desired a different world. A better world. A fairer world.
He closed his eyes to obscure the new flame within. Perhaps this will always existed within him, and has always been the source of his internal feeling-- that his parents and himself had been unjustly expelled from their original family house or clan.
As for Suey? Her change in appearance was certainly a bit of a shock at first. However, knowing what he knew now, he saw her as a victim of circumstances as well.
Deep down, he felt a tenderness towards her. Is that love… or pity? Or both? Or perhaps, he really had been seduced. Rein dismissed these thoughts. He recognized the will within him. Its source, he knew not. A forgotten or erased memory, perhaps. What he did know was that it was true. And if it was originally a bud, it began to blossom, as if given life by the knowledge of the sun.
Rein knew. To stand beside Suey would mean to stand against most of the world itself. It meant to stand against the very heavens.
There must be a reason that the fallen gods had cursed demon beasts and humans to not be capable of creating halfbreeds between them. Xune had broken the curse on Suey's ancestors, that much must be true.
As for the current powers in existence, the many human factions and demon beast factions would certainly not allow the half-breeds to exist.
As for why Rein was certain of this? Simply his observation of the nature of the mind.
The lands where the Minhr Nation bordered the Zoh Empire to the east had changed hands many times due to the historical conflict between the two. As a result, the inhabitants there often have mixed blood. Rein knows that most of Minhr's people see these people as untrustworthy. The Zoh Empire also holds discriminatory beliefs towards these 'half-bloods'.
As Rein considered the history of that area, a dangerous thought entered his mind. Would the world not be a better place if these mixed bloods reigned supreme? At least, in his mind… if those half-Minhr half-Zoh population carried strong ties to both nations, in theory, they should have the desire for both nations to thrive. Perhaps Xune thought the same when he created the half-breeds. However, Rein felt this thought to be somewhat extreme.
Rein opened his left eyelid a hair to take a quick glance at the jailed Suey. He could not ignore the will within him that pushed him forward. Rein finally understood. This is fate-- undeniable from the heart and mind. To overturn the current heavens, to take much of the world as his enemy. After all, he himself could be said to be half-dragon half-man.
For a single breath, his mind was in turmoil at this realization. However, Rein soon calmed himself. He realized there was no point in feeling apprehensive. If he succeeds, then he would. If he fails, then so be it.
It was only now that Rein began to understand Master Yirn and his half-senior Chenhr's teachings. He needed to remain in the shadows, and avoid the eyes of the heavens. Or he would be crushed before he could even grow.
His will hardened within, and as it did, the remnant will of the draconic metamorphose bead resonated, the lightning draconic energy within his veins inundating with a sizzling excitement.
All of this was unnoticed by others, with the exception of Sir Godeyes.
"Hmmm?" The man suddenly opened his third eye to bathe Rein in a golden light.
As he was covered in the golden light, Rein felt the treasure necklace melded into the skin around his neck heat up in resistance.
Rein held a confused expression at Sir Godeyes, who retracted that golden light with a shake of the head. To his relief, this treasure necklace gifted to him by Master Yirn held up against Sir Godeyes' probing. If origin abilities are said to be 'absolute', then Sir Godeyes' failure can only be due to an insurmountable gap between Master Yirn's abilities and Sir Godeyes.
The metallic caravan travelled speedily on flat ground southward. They encountered a demon beast group heading towards the Xuere Gap, but the white-cloaked man riding on top of the mechanical puppet pulling the caravan jail simply flicked his sword.
A solid dense aurae blade slashed through the whole group of demon beasts and completely annihilated them. Rein could not hide his disbelief, having seen this attack through the slits of the caravan walls.
"Sword intent, young man. A perfect combination of pierce and slash intent," Geihr praised with pride. "A discovered art of our House of Origins."
Rein recalled learning of pierce, slash and blunt intent under Blacksmith Rahr. Weapon edges are designed to enable advancers to better express these sorts of abilities. It is said these intent carried the strength of an advancer's will… for it to come from the House of Origins, that can only mean that there exists an origin ability of extreme intent, Rein concluded.
They soon slowed as they entered the Evergreen Mountains to the south of the Xuere Gap. Rein peered out of a small slit on the side of the caravan jail to see them travelling up a narrow mountain ledge with a steep slope on one side.
"Has the carrier of 'Retrace' been notified?" Sir Godeyes asked.
"Yes," the white-masked man replied. "We have utmost belief in your tracking abilities, and thus sent a member to inform the man named Xeeseir of the meeting point prior to our setting out this morning."
"Good. Good!" Sir Godeyes smiled.
Geihr did not partake in this conversation. Instead, he was now heating a long metallic rod with a stamp on its end. He placed this stamp end into a container that magically carried high heat within, and once he withdrew this metal rod, the stamp on the end had turned white hot.
"Young man. This is an opportunity to get revenge on this demon fox. This is a stamp to mark all research subjects of the House of Origins. Since this demon water fox will soon be sent to our facilities, I intend to mark her now. You are free to do so in my place," Geihr said as he handed the metal rod into Rein's hand.
"Please. I was sincere!" Suey's eyes stared with fear at that red hot end of the metal rod, now in Rein's hands. Her eyes became wet as a tear rolled down her left cheek.
"You deserve it, demon slut," Rein uttered as he gripped onto the metal rod, putting on a mask of disgust. He knows that Suey's mind must now be frail, but he himself cannot flinch in the current unfavorable circumstance.
"That's right, young man," Geihr encouraged. "Demon foxes will use tears to draw pity from your heart. Do not succumb to their wiles! Hah…. perhaps once we and the Halls are done with her… she will become an exotic pet for some gods for a good price."
Rein suppressed his own inner turmoil, putting on a determined face. As Rein stabbed towards Suey with the metal rod's white hot stamp end, a voice suddenly interrupted his actions. How fortunate, Rein sighed internally with relief.
"You arranged for us to meet elsewhere, but here I am. As you demanded! Now, though I may not have known this brother of mine for long, I can tell that he has a noble soul. As such, he is to be allowed to go free." That was Xeeseir's voice!
"Capture him," Sir Godeyes lazily gestured at the white-masked man.
The white-masked man exitted the caravan, to see Xeeseir standing in front of their path, blocking the narrow mountain path with a steep rocky slope to their right. The other House of Origin member guiding the mechanical puppet was already facing Xeeseir with his sword drawn.
With the two of them, Xeeseir's eventual capture was all but guaranteed. After all, these two white-robed men knew from the research of the House of Origins, the method to deal with Xeeseir. They had prepared themselves. Also, they held two hostages.
"To confront us here… I thought that you would have taken more time to prepare yourself," the white-masked man sneered. "The same as all of your predecessors-- you are just as brainless, running headlong into our hands simply because of a captured friend."
"Let me keep it simple," the other House of Origin member continued. "Surrender yourself and your brother can go free. Otherwise, they will lose their lives as you resist."
"I suppose that it is simply my fate to be threatened in such a manner," Xeeseir smiled in answer. "But you've miscalculated. For I am not alone."
"So, in the end, you failed," a derisive voice sounded in the air, its source from a higher elevation. "But I will at least give you some assistance, half-junior." Rein recognized this insulting and mocking voice! It was his half-senior, Chenhr who he had trained under while residing with Master Yirn in the Bleak Mountains!
"Who are you?" Geihr hollered as a man in leaf-green robes appeared on a higher point up the mountain side to the left of the path.
The green robed man punched, and a dense aurae cloud shot towards the metallic caravan jailhouse like a bright meteor descending from the sky.
"Pathetic," Geihr scoffed. "This prisoner transportation caravan has been proven to be--" his words were caught in his throat as the unbelievably dense meteoric aurae blast struck the side of the metallic caravan, sending it sliding off the mountain path!
The caravan then tumbled down the steep mountain side, spinning as it bounced off the rocky slope!
Within the rotating and bouncing caravan rolling down the mountainside, Rein entered full alert once he recognized the voice of his half-senior brother. Was the time to take action now?
No. Rein controlled his impulse. Though his physical strength might not be restrained by the cuffs around his wrists limiting his aurae, his opponents seem to be in the outer realm, with unique strengths. He could not be careless, recalling the teachings of his half-senior Chenhr.
Suey's eyes filled with a newborn hope. For her, now that the future had changed, she knew less and less of the chain of events that followed.
When she gazed into Rein's eyes, she now recognized a will hidden within had awakened, one that existed in many visions of the future Rein that she had seen. Ever since their capture, Rein had expertly hidden his intentions-- a result of his training for business transactions during his mortal days.
As such, Suey nearly believed that Rein truly abandoned her upon discovering the truth of her identity. She assumed that Rein's discovery of her as a half-breed was too early in the timeline. She believed that Rein had only cultivated his 'future' will as a result of future experiences.
Now, she knew that Rein was only acting, obscuring a long held will within himself. She began to sob in relief within her corner.
As for Rein, his focus was on the remaining three white-robed men within the caravan. While his hands might be cuffed, and his aurae arts subdued, there was one thing that could not be controlled.-- his tempered draconic body of unexpected physical strength. That tempered body might weaken if he was trapped in an aurae-less environment for a long period of time. However, he had only been cuffed recently.
As the metallic jail caravan continued to tumble down the steep slope, Rein patiently waited for the right moment, which he trusted his half-senior Chenhr to deliver. Currently, the three white-robed men held little-to-no suspicion towards him, only believing him to have been potentially influenced by a supposed demon fox seductive art.
The three white-robed men used their four limbs to stabilize their floating forms within the rotating internal caravan. As for Rein, he could only rely on his legs.
As for why Rein felt that he could somewhat influence the current situation? Within the tumbling caravan, space is small and coordination difficult. Even an outer advancer or a telekinetic advancer would find it difficult to fully express their advantage in such tight spaces against a lower-realmed opponent, if surprised. Rein intended to take full advantage of this.
The tumbling rate of the caravan began to slow as the rocky steep slope evened out onto a more gentle grassy slant. Only to receive another aurae blast from the green-robed man that Rein knew to be Chenhr, accelerating the caravan's spin once again.
The inscriptions protecting the caravan and securing Suey's jail flickered ever so slightly. The power crystal supplying aurae to those inscriptions had been gradually expended by the inscriptions maintaining the caravan's structure as it tumbled down the steep rocky slope.
This detail was noticed by Rein, but also by the other three white-robed men within the caravan.
Another aurae blast from Chenhr struck the caravan once again, causing the inscriptions to flicker once again.
"I…Impossible! This caravan's durability has been tested extensively by early telekinetic advancers! Wait…no! That's the origin ability named 'Endless Well'!" Geihr agitatedly analyzed. To create such a dense aurae blast that could overwhelm this metallic caravan's systems-- it must be that origin ability in the records!
A previous member of the House of Origin had captured a previous carrier of this origin ability, and from research, discovered many methods to potentially increase the aura concentration within one's body!
Many advancers had used those theories to create unique advancer arts pertaining to qualities of endurance!
"We cannot allow him to destroy the caravan. I will intercept the green-robed man! Protect Sir Godeyes!" Geihr moved towards the exit at the back of the caravan.
This was when Rein took action, placing himself awkwardly in Geihr's path within the spinning interior.
As his hands were still cuffed, he simply pushed off with his feet to ram his shoulders into Geihr. He could not use his 'Frog Leg Release' art due to his aurae circulation being suppressed by the cuffs, but his tempered body was still explosive.
Geihr was not some fool. He saw hints of Rein's actions, but due to Rein's sudden action, only had time to wrap himself in a cloud of metallic-based aurae shell. Rein's shoulder charge sent Geihr crashing against the front of the caravan's interior as they continued to tumble down the mountains.
Rein doubted that Geihr was in any way hurt. His own shoulder felt sore after the contact, after all.
As such, he turned his attention to Sir Godeyes, and with a well-timed kick off the spinning wall, pushed off towards the man.
Sir Godeyes saw Rein coming, but there was limited space to dodge into, and thus he could only form a wind-based lime-green shell defense as he braced himself. Previous users of the origin ability, 'God's eyes' always had frail bodies, and this is well-documented. Rein had seen these records while training under Master Yirn, and thus dared to take such action.
When Rein's bulky form crashed into Sir Godeyes, the sounds of bones snapping could be heard as Sir Godeyes screamed in soul-rending pain. Though his aurae shell was strong enough, his interior was too soft and weak to even tolerate the smaller percentage of forces transmitted through his aurae shell.
"Sir Godeyes!" The third white-robed member remaining within the caravan exclaimed in consternation as he quickly held onto Sir Godeyes and positioned himself to protect the man from further injuries.
Rein's attack was too sudden, too unexpected. After all, in their eyes, Rein was about to brand the captive half-breed just a moment ago, displaying no resistance to the idea and even seemingly the desire to do so. Had all of that been just an act?! If so, it was too flawless of an act!
Rein returned his attention to Geihr, who was shaken by the initial shoulder tackle, but very much unharmed. Rein recklessly headbutted Geihr's aurae-encased head. His goal was to hopefully knock out the man.
A metallic echo sounded as Rein felt dizzy himself from bashing his own head against Geihr's metallic-based defense. Still, he could see Geihr's eyes become unfocused. Rein took this opportunity to reach for the totem key on Geihr's waist to free himself.
Geihr, however, was no weakling, or an imbalanced advancer like Sir Godeyes. He recovered immediately. Then, with a slight shift of the body and a single palm sent Rein crashing against a caravan wall.
Rein felt an invasive aurae pour into his body, sending the draconic lightning in his veins into a rage. This invasive aurae was a formless flow of energy that attempted to climb up his body into his head, and Rein found himself temporarily unable to control his body.
Luckily, the orange draconic lightning within his veins had a hidden strength, going toe-to-toe with the invasive formless energy. The ancient will within the draconic lightning gradually suppressed the invasive aurae injected by Geihr.
At the same time, Rein's timely interference indirectly saved himself, for it allowed his half-senior Chenhr to deliver the final blow to this supposed well-tested caravan jail.
A flurry of aurae blasts generated by Chenhr's chain punches caused the inscriptions on the caravan to flicker before dying. Then, a few more aurae blasts struck, and when combined with the contact of the caravan still tumbling over and against the ground, caused the rolling box to deform, further weakening its structure.
"Protect Sir Godeyes!" Geihr commanded the other white-robed man. He no longer cared about Rein or Suey, as his attention turned to the green-robed man that is Chenhr. He began to gather his aurae in preparation to face Chenhr in his peak state.
Even then, he was shocked to suddenly discover that Rein had regained his movement, with a leg whipping like a dragon's tail. The reason for his shock stemmed from the fact that his palm was filled with an invasive will that he had tempered over many years. It is a special art named 'Subjugating Palm' that delivers his tempered will into his opponents. The skill erodes the will of his opponents, subjugates his targets through sending their minds into a stupor. It is especially effective against young and inexperienced targets.
Rein had prepared a martial skill named dragonkick while Geihr's eyes were drawn to Chenhr. This skill belongs to his draconic martial art. This kick was named for it used the leg to imitate the movement of a swinging dragon tail, a wide rounding kick of gathered momentum.
His leg swung through the air and struck a weakened point on the deformed caravan wall. The metallic caravan finally shattered and all five figures originally within were thrown out as the caravan opened up and pieces of its walls were flung in many directions.
Rein immediately regained his bearings, and Suey, still somewhat teary, wrapped her cuffed wrists around Rein's neck, and wrapped her legs around his torso. Rein began to leap away using simply his physical abilities, with the magical cuffs still around his wrists.
"Foolish youngling--" Geihr sneered as he, too, recovered his bearings then waved his arms in the air, sending his aurae tendrils piercing towards Rein, momentarily forgetting Chenhr's presence in irritation.
Yet, the very next moment, he retracted his tendrils to block a number of aurae blasts from the Chenhr, and was forced to take a deep breath to calm his agitation as he turned to face the leaf-green-robed man.
"They say that the carrier of 'Endless Well' has been reborn, and now serves Blasphemer Yirn," Geihr said as he narrowed his eyes at the green-robed man. "Is it truly his intention to interfere in this matter? The creator of our House of Origins was once his follower, and we have never spilled blood against one another."
"So you know of me," Chenhr replied slowly. "However, do not misunderstand. My actions are not against you specifically, but the Allfather."
"The Allfather?" Geihr frowned, wondering how the Allfather might be connected to the current situation.
"Indeed," Chenhr's teeth gleamed as he grinned. "As long as you three do not interfere with Xeeseir's fight against those two, I will not act."
"You think yourself capable of preventing our involvement?" Sir Godeyes spat. He was not at all pleased to have his brittle bones shattered. He had always been self-conscious of his weak body.
"You can certainly try," Chenhr shrugged nonchalantly.
Geihr's was flustered. The so-called' 'Endless Well' origin ability, was also given other names. All these names communicated one quality-- an endless supply of aurae.
The only weakness of 'Endless Well' was that its users struggle to climb the advancer realms. The origin ability simply absorbed too much aurae from the carrier, thus making it difficult and slow for the user to gather aurae to transform themselves and climb levels.
Geihr was naturally weighing options in his mind.
"Then you will not block me if I recapture those two ants?" Geihr tested.
"Hmmm… you seem to be using those two helpless ants as hostages to threaten Xeeseir," Chenhr was bemused. "As such, I will have no choice but to interfere."
"And if we capture those two without using them as hostages?" Geihr continued to push.
"Hahah!" Chenhr chortled in amusement. "Do you think I am a naive child? If Xeeseir considers these two to be his companions, would it matter whether you directly used them to threaten him or not?!"
An impasse. Meanwhile, Rein had already carried Suey a good distance away.
Chenhr leisurely stood his ground. On the other side, Geihr's face twitched as he controlled his anger, while Sir Godeyes barely remained on his feet, supported by the other white-robed man.
Geihr's hesitation was not only due to Chenhr's unique strength, but also, the potential presence of Blasphemer Yirn. Geihr understood the source of this title of Yirn's. It is said that Yirn has a habit of interfering with those who sought true godhood. This is the reason why the Allfather desires to hunt down the man.
As for Yirn's relationship with the House of Origins? Neutral. The House of Origins associated origin abilities with gods, and as such, have much respect for the existence that is Master Yirn. After all, legends have it that Ancestor Yirn caused the fall of the ancient gods. Their leader was once a disciple of Ancestor Yirn as well.
However, the House of Origin also sought to understand origin abilities, hoping to use this knowledge to gain true godhood. And there lay the disagreement between Yirn and his past disciple.
Sir Godeyes understood all this as well, and could only stare hatefully at Chenhr. After all, the more he contributed to the House of Origin, the more benefits he would receive for strengthening his body. Chenhr effectively stood between him and a stronger physical body.
Meanwhile, up the mountain slope, Xeeseir faced off against two unnamed white-robed men, one of them wearing a white mask.
To the two white-robed men's disquiet, Xeeseir was no longer using a bow as per their investigations. Instead, Xeeseir carried an ancient heavy greatsword on his back.
Xeeseir's origin ability is 'Retrace', returning the power of advancer magic through its original pathway to the user in destructive fashion. Its weakness was that Xeeseir remained vulnerable to pure physical attacks.
Based on their most recent information, Xeeseir should not own any greatsword, a thick and heavy one at that. The two sensed that someone had interfered.
Xeeseir withdrew the heavy greatsword, marvelling at its durability. He had received this treasure from a green-robed man, and was also given an unique pill of unknown origins, which he now promptly consumed. The green-robed man had informed him that the pill required combat to display its efficacy.
The two white-robed men nodded at one another and each of them withdrew two devices, a crossbow and a metallic lotus. House of Origins had prepared many physical devices that did not require magic to operate, simply for capturing Xeeseir and bypassing his origin ability.
The two white-robed men threw their lotuses high into the air, and the metallic petals opened up to reveal a thousand tiny holes. A mechanism rattled as multiple metallic needles shot out of those tiny openings, showering down upon Xeeseir a rain of death!
Xeeseir planted his heavy greatsword into the ground by the tip,and smacked his palm against its surface. The inscriptions upon the treasure sword lit up, and the heavy greatsword's size expanded, transforming into a large impenetrable shield pillar against the shower of needles, protecting Xeeseir behind!
Pinging noises sounded as the needle struck the surface of the heavy greatsword, before falling to the ground harmless. Xeeseir saw that the tips of these needles were dipped in some sort of violet liquid poison, no doubt, to immobilize and capture him alive for future experimentation.
The twinging sound could then be heard as an arrow pierced towards Xeeseir from a different angle. One of the white-robed men had employed his outer realm powers to fly aside and bypass the block of the oversized greatsword, before firing his crossbow.
Xeeseir sneered as he gripped onto the heavy greatsword. The inscriptions upon its surface lit up again as the greatsword miniaturized into a one-handed blade, making it easy to swing in Xeeseir's hand. Then as Xeeseir swung his arm, the heavy greatsword expanded again, easily smacking the crossbow arrow aside!
The two white-robed me glanced at one another in shock. The greatsword in Xeeseir's hands must be a unique treasure of ancient times!
As Xeeseir fought, he discovered that the green-robed man's words were true. He began to feel increasingly powerful. The past psychedelic substances he had consumed failed in bringing him past the peak of the inner realm. Now, he felt that limit loosening!
His aurae flowed and wrapped around his body, and began to fully solidify. A detail noticed by the two white-robed men. This sent their hearts into panic.
"Quickly, Linhz! Once he fully enters the shell realm, his origin ability will definitely transform!" one of them yelled.
Xeeseir was pleasantly surprised by his rising strength. What was that unique pill? He could not tell. Why did the green-robed man give him this treasure greatsword? His heart felt as if he had always wielded a heavy greatsword such as this one.
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Meanwhile, in the heavenly realm of white and gold, where buildings and towers formed a sphere with gods and goddesses walking upon its walls in all sorts of orientation, a beautiful woman sat within a pearl dome.
Her jet-black robes decorated with pearl white seams and lines were expertly crafted. Her appearance was also immaculate, like a perfect doll with soft lilac eyes and wavy soft hair that glimmered with all colors that exist in the universe.
Within the pearl dome, her eyes fixated upon an increasingly hazy star in the image of the starfield within the dome-- the fusion star that represented the fusion realm.
At the same time when Rein's will solidified, the fusion star's light suddenly became nearly-concealed under the haze, sending the observing woman into a panic.
"Nine-tails!" She presumed-- Though she had defeated the nine tails in an era long past, the demon beast had dissolved its essence, which occasionally reappeared in a line of descendents to cause her trouble. Her intuition wasn't completely accurate, but it cannot be denied that a half-demon fox did have influence in awakening Rein's will.
"Allfather!" Her voice called out through her divine sense.
She simultaneously lifted her right hand and five red strings of aurae shot forward into the haze that now covered the fusion star in her starfield.
Then, her eyes widened once again as her heart sensed another unexpected source of foreboding sensation.
"You think you can free yourself?" She yelled at the fusion star. "You stubborn oaf betrayed my love, betrayed the Allfather's sincere heart! You only deserve to experience your many lives under my watch, until you recognize your obstinate naive righteousness to be foolish!"
Her left hand now lifted into the air as well, and another five red strings shot from her fingers into the haze obscuring the fusion star!
The Allfather's figure flickered into existence behind her.
"Spyn. So it has started," he calmly said.
"Allfather! It is still under my control! I only fear 'his' interference. He, too, must be here!" Spyn replied as she pulled on her ten taut red strings through her fingers.
"Perhaps. Perhaps not," the Allfather, dressed in his jet-black robe covered in gold and silver lines, said. "Do not blame yourself for failure, or believe yourself infallible. The thousand realms have always cycled between order and chaos. A new cycle is beginning. We have survived many cycles, each cycle an opportunity."
As he said this, his body began to split into many different versions of himself! Some of these clones are younger, some older, some decrepit, extending to all sorts of states of being. All these figures leapt away in different directions, towards portals into various realms.
"Allfather… is it truly that time?" Spyn wistfully asked.
"You know this to be true in your heart, Spyn. It has happened many times before, and cannot be avoided. Another era of turmoil, for new geniuses to rise and fall and fall has arrived," the Allfather answered.
"Even then,' Spyn pursed her lips as she refocused her sights on the hazy fusion star, "You will not be able to escape my grasp!"
____________________________________________________________
At the same time, in the Fusion Sect that existed on a lengthy vast island off the southern coastal tip of Minhr nation, a wizened old man with a long white beard was playing a game of chess against nobody, under a gazebo with a scenic mountain and sea view. That board of checkers is a tool linked with the 'waves' of the world, and the wizened old man often played against his 'invisible' foe to 'see' the world.
His hand picked up a piece, then froze as he found himself unable to place his next move. That piece slipped through his fingers and clattered as it bounced across the board.
The old man stood up, and though he appeared ancient, his back was still straight and strong. His hands reached up and tied his long white hair into a bob, which he secured with an ornamental crown. His robes consisted of five colors-- fire, metal, water, wood and earth.
His body flickered and he reappeared inside the Fusion Palace on the tallest peak of the mountainous island chain.
A few breaths later, a crier entered and announced, "Ancestor! The lesser heavens have sent envoys, requesting permission to discuss conditions of entering the Fusion Realm."
"Welcome them," the white-haired Fusion Sect ancestor answered as his eyes narrowed and his forehead wrinkled. The lesser heavens of humanity have been cooperating for some time to avoid being swallowed by the greater heaven. But they are only convenient allies.
_______________________________________________________________
Back in the northwestern edge of the Evergreen Mountains.
The two white-robed men flew around in the air, taking advantage of the outer realm capabilities to fire crossbow shots from a variety of angles. However, they dared not employ any aurae abilities, fearing Xeeseir's 'Retrace' origin ability. Especially that heavy greatsword, which Xeeseir's aurae shell extended to wrap around, capable of transmitting Xeeseir's 'Retrace'!
These two men clearly are not on the level of Ailehr's peak strength. At least, Xeeseir estimated that these two white-robed men must only be at the early outer realm, and thus had yet to truly develop the overwhelming presence of one reaching close to the telekinetic realm.
When it comes to advancer realms, power rises exponentially. Thus, a peak inner realm advancer is in fact, closer in power to an early outer realm advancer, in comparison to an early outer realm advancer pitted against a peak outer realm advancer.
As he fought, Xeeseir's complete aurae shell further solidified, the aurae cloud surrounding his body becoming ever more dense.
Yet, just as he was about to successfully enter the shell realm, five red strings suddenly appeared from the void and zigzagged towards Xeeseir!
These five red strings wrapped themselves around Xeeseir's body, and he was shocked to discover that upon contact with these red strings, he detected within his body the existence of many similar red webs limiting his strength! Many of these red webs seem partially dissolved by a sort of magical liquid, which Xeeseir recognized to be sludge of the pill that he had consumed.
Most alarming for Xeeseir was that after coming into contact with these five red strings, he also sensed similar strings wrapped around his own heart!
Xeeseir suddenly understood. These red strings had always existed within his body, preventing his progress. They must have been placed there a long time ago!
At the same time, five red strings appeared in the skies above an area at the foot of the mountain slope.
These five red strings appeared directly above Rein's and Suey's heads! At first, these five red strings darted towards Suey like the head of a snake going in for a strike, only to suddenly pause and turn around, gazing in a separate direction.
The five strings then suddenly darted towards the southwest, only to pause midair and face Rein and Suey once again. Then those five strings came towards Suey before turning to face southwest again!
Rein blinked his eyes in bewilderment, and he knew these five red strings weren't good things. He could feel Suey's body trembling in fear against him.
Still, he fearlessly took advantage of its 'hesitation'. He exploded off his feet with physical strength, and took this opportunity to thread the length of a red string through the cuffs around his wrists.
To his joy, the cuffs were like butter under a hot knife, effortlessly sliced apart by his movement against the red string.
He understood that Suey held a deep fear of these red strings, and thus chose to break her cuffs with his now-freed aurae.
The orange draconic lightning in his veins roiled in fervour as he sent its harsh energy into the cuffs around Suey's wrists.
The cuffs lit up in resistance, but such inscriptions require continuous aurae supply. The small power crystals supporting Suey's cuffs were gradually drained, as the inscriptions on the cuffs dimmed.
Yet, the aurae within those power crystals was of a much higher volume than Rein expected. Rein recalled the aurae blast that Chenhr used, and this half-senior of his had even given him the manual to practice it.
Rein carefully controlled the orange draconic lightning energy within his veins, gathered it, compressed it, then imagined a funnel accompanied by a force squeezing water through that narrow funnel.
He released a concentrated burst of draconic lightning that rushed into Suey's cuffs, and the inscriptions lost their light, then the cuffs separated into two.
Rei sighed in relief, but was also filled with a deep sense of weakness and exhaustion after having executed the skill.
Suey's eyes continued to be fixed on those five red strings that scuttled towards her then the southwest repeatedly in indecisiveness.
Eventually, the five red strings split into two and three. The two red strings determinedly rushed towards Suey, while the other three curved into the southwest.
Those two red strings initially appeared somewhat slow, and Rein easily dodged now that he had regained access to the lightning aurae within, which boosted his explosive acceleration and speed.
However, he soon discovered that the two red strings moved in a unique pattern. He escaped from them time and again, but the movement of those two red strings kept him trapped within a specific area. Soon, he was surrounded by a web of red strings, made up from the lengths of the two strings!
Accompanied with a weakened body, Rein knew he would not last long, and was uncertain of the potential effects from being struck by the red string.
The red strings might slice through their bodies as it did when Rein pressed the cuffs against it. However, that might very well be simply the red string's innate protection against one that attempted to 'attack' it. The one pulling the red strings may have different intentions!
At this moment in time, Rein found himself apologizing to Suey.
"I'm sorry. For what I said in that caravan," he began.
"Don't," Suey interrupted his words. "I understand. Now is the time to leave me behind. These red strings are searching for me. Not you. You must remain in the shadows. My twin sister will recognize you. She should have already called for assistance."
But Rein was unfettered. He could not allow Suey to fall alone. Rein laughed at himself. Indeed, his half-senior was right in the end. He will always have a streak of self-destructive recklessness within him.
Rein formed a circle with his hands. His teleportation origin ability will likely be sensed by the one behind the red strings. Yet, he had no choice but to employ it to save Suey from these red strings.
Then, he would no longer be in the shadows.
However, before he could activate his magic, Xeeseir suddenly appeared, pursued by the other two white-robed men!
Xeeseir was wrapped in a completely aurae shell of his unique qualities, and that shell now extended to cover the heavy greatsword.
Five other red strings repeatedly attempted to secure Xeeseir's form, but upon coming into contact with his shell, recoiled in pain. Xeeseir was returning the attack of those red strings back to their source!
A swing of the heavy greatsword, and the reflective shell encasing the weapon caused the two red strings surrounding Rein and Suey to scatter!
"Brother. This is my time, my fight. It is not yours yet!" Xeeseir rested his thick and heavy greatsword upon his shoulder as he stood tall.
"What do you mean?" Rein asked, not understanding Xeeseir's meaning.
"It is hard to explain," Xeeseir replied as with another swing of his aurae-shelled greatsword, he sent approaching red strings recoiling once again.
The pursuing white-robed man threw a number of metal lotuses into the air and thousands of needles sprayed out. Xeeseir performed some odd movement that accompanied the size of the heavy greatsword expanding and contracting in a cycle, knocking the attacking needles to the ground.
"When those red strings clung onto my body, I seemed to recall versions of myself. Were they truly myself?" His eyes glimmered as he gazed at the heavens. "Perhaps they weren't. Perhaps it was simply our similarities that allowed our souls to resonate across time. So a scholar once surmised."
"However, at the moment, I came to understand a great many things."
"Take your wonderful lady and leave, Rein! Do not feel sorrow or pity for me, for my soul itself has been trapped by these red strings since time immemorial," Xeeseir stated as he sneered at the heavens. "If I successfully free myself, I only hope that you will find that different version of myself in the future, and let me live long enough to become more than a shell advancer!"
Rein struggled to understand the situation, but he trusted Xeeseir's words to be true. Time and again, Xeeseir had shown his trustworthiness. Still, he hesitated to leave. How could he?
"Scurry along, Rein," Master Yirn's voice now boomed within his head. "You are nothing but a rat scampering about under the feet of giants. You offer little and stand no chance. If you truly wish to upend this world, then hide yourself. Bide your time. Cultivate your strength, without forgetting that light within, without dulling your blade."
"This is but one of many servants under the Allfather. And the Allfather is only in control of the greater heaven. There are many other lesser heavens across the realms, all standing against your will."
Rein could only accept his helplessness once again. He felt as helpless as he was during the Golden Desert Town's destruction. Once again, a rat scurrying away for his own life.
Thus, he leaped away. Reality was harsh and unkind. He could not do anything against those red strings. He would only be a burden if he stayed. Xeeseir was only able to resist those red strings because of his 'Retrace' origin ability.
Perhaps some may view Rein's escape as shameful. But it is completely wishful thinking to believe that he could in any way, contend against monsters that have been around for many eras. He is but a young adult in age, a baby that had barely begun walking in the world of advancers.
"Go southwest," Suey gently whispered. "If Jory has called for reinforcements, then those three other red strings, projected across the vast void, will be forced into dissipation."
Rein accelerated southwest-- that was the direction of the other three red strings. He glanced back at Xeeseir's battlefield.
One of the white-robed men was pierced clean through by a red string, his face pale as he tumbled limply from the skies down onto the ground with a loud thump.
The other white-robed man now understood that the Goddess of Fate, controlling these red strings, did not appreciate their involvement, and backed away, abandoning the task of capturing Xeeseir.
Those two red strings, however, were not so easily blocked from pursuing Suey by Xeeseir, and twisted through to chase their foe.
That was when upon an uninhabited mountain peak of the Evergreen Mountains, a murky-green-robed man stood up with a finger pointing to the heavens. This was none other than Master Yirn! Master Yirn stabbed upwards with a finger!
Those two red strings faltered. The sounds of combat faded as Rein, dispirited, escaped with a trembling Suey.
___________________________________________________
In the home realm of the greater heavens controlled by the Allfather.
Spyn's eyes suddenly dulled as her mind lost focus, drawn into an illusion. In that illusion, she was still controlling those red strings, when in reality, her red strings had ceased their actions. Three of the red strings extending from her left hand snapped.
"Yirn," Allfather spat as he stood behind Spyn. "You vanished after the gods fell, only to reappear when the human factions lost sight of their purpose, turning against one another. Nothing but an opportunist!"
He placed his hand onto Spyn head, and his aurae flowed to contend against Master Yirn's interference.
Spyn woke up with a start as her eyes cleared. Naturally, she was infuriated. The muscles and veins in her hands and forearms tightened as she regained control of her red strings, only to find her perception still muddled in a fog.
"The distance is too great. Focus on one single target. The weak descendants of the nine tails can be dealt with in the future," Allfather commanded.
Spyn focused her perception, and discovered that with one target in mind, the interference from Blasphemer Yirn became less obstructive.
Though her perception was still somewhat hazy, she could now detect the vague existence that is Xeeseir, again. In her mind, she had another name for this man-- Guan!