Chapter 9: The Legacy of the White Dragon, Alarion.
"Huo Yuhao. Very well, you came to my legacy to become my inheritor," the white dragon said to Yuhao with a dignified voice.
"My name is Alarion, the [White Dragon] that governed over the [Nihility]," the white dragon introduced himself, spreading his massive, beautiful wings, showing a majestic image.
"Nice to meet you, Alarion," Yuhao greeted the dragon in an awkward tone.
Alarion stared at Huo Yuhao for a moment with his vibrant sky-blue eyes.
"I see. That is why you have confidence in passing my legacy. You are a class holder and have the blood essence of the [White Tiger] in you, though it is severely diluted and full of filth," the dragon stated as he expressed his disgust towards Yuhao's [White Tiger] blood.
Yuhao's expression hardened for a moment. He did not expect that this dragon would immediately know that he was a class holder.
As if noticing Yuhao's expression, the dragon snorted.
"Relax, Huo Yuhao. You are not the only human that ascended to become a class holder. I have met a lot of them over the years. Your class is a bit special, but that is all."
"I see. It is just from where I am from, as far as I know, I am the only one that is a class holder." Yuhao decided to be honest this time and tell the truth.
The dragon just nodded.
"And can you tell me what you mean by having [White Tiger] blood essence that is filthy?" Yuhao inquired as he couldn't really grasp what Alarion meant.
"It means exactly as it sounds, child. I met several [White Tigers] over the years. They are considered divine or sacred beasts that can hold minor authorities over trivial elements like [Wind], [Thunder], [Metal], and [Storms]," the dragon answered Yuhao, whose expression hardened after hearing what this white dragon was saying. However, before he could say anything, the dragon continued.
"Yours, however, has a bit of [Light] attribute in it. However, it is, as I said, filthy. It is limited and will not help you much in your path," the dragon finished his explanation, and Yuhao looked enlightened.
"Well, no wonder nobody in Douluo Continent who has the [White Tiger] martial soul has shown its full potential. It turns out that it was rigged from the start," Huo Yuhao muttered to himself.
"Then how can I obtain your legacy?" Yuhao asked the giant dragon.
"My legacy is for you to absorb and assimilate with my blood essence and absorb my element," Alarion answered the human child in front of him.
"That is it?" Yuhao wondered if he was going to pass a trial or a test or something.
"Do not think that it is very simple. If it was easy, then someone would have already obtained my inheritance, and I would have entered the eternal rest already," Alarion said as he looked at Yuhao as if he were stupid.
Huo Yuhao chose to remain silent.
"While your soul is 'flexible' and can adapt to many changes around it, your body isn't. The process of absorption would feel like torture for you," the dragon stressed the difficulty of the trial, and he continued.
"My element is [Corrupt Light]. It is a paradoxical existence that shouldn't exist, yet it does. I was once the purest dragon that had the purest blood and the purest light element to ever exist in my universe."
"However, some unfortunate events happened, and the once pure [Light] element that represented peace and harmony became the light that annihilated most of my universe."
"In my realm, I was the strongest. I stood at the pinnacle of existence. But even then, I met my end after destroying everything in my universe and stood at the horizon of existence."
"Don't mistake this trial as easy, Huo Yuhao. That is the only advice that I am going to give you. If you perhaps want to back out from it, you still can. But if we start, there is no turning back," Alarion spoke to Yuhao in a serious tone, and he waited for the child's decision.
Huo Yuhao pondered for a moment.
'I mean, when I heard that the trial is just blood essence absorption, I thought it was going to be easy. But he is right; if it was easy, someone would have already acquired the blood essence and the [Corrupt Light] element. That element, I don't know anything about it, but how can the [Light] element be corrupted in the first place?'
The more Yuhao thought about it, the more uneasy he felt about the trial.
'No, stop hesitating. Ellie brought me here because she knows that I can probably handle it, and it would help me in the future.'
Huo Yuhao finally made up his mind, took a deep breath, and said, "Alarion, I will take your trial, but I have some questions for you, and I hope you can answer me."
"Very well. What do you seek answers for, Huo Yuhao?" the dragon simply replied.
"You said that my [White Tiger] is filthy. Does that mean you will erase it as I undergo the legacy trial?" Yuhao inquired.
"No. My trial simply adds my blood essence into you, and your [White Tiger] bloodline might be purified during the trial, making you gain more power. The inheritor of my trial shall acquire and not lose, child," Alarion replied.
"Okay, and how long would the trial last? I can't leave my mother alone for too long. I have to protect her, and our situation is not exactly good. A Godking is targeting me and her," Yuhao was worried that the trial would take too long.
"Time flows differently between realms, Yuhao. While the trial would last for decades or centuries here, it would be a moment in your world," Alarion cleared his doubts with this answer.
"Alrighty then, last question. You said your element is [Corrupt Light]. What are its properties, and how can I inherit this element?" Yuhao asked his final question.
This time, however, Alarion looked serious as he spoke.
"The element [Corrupt Light] is a paradoxical creation. It carries the properties of nurturing, healing, and purification, but it also has properties of annihilation, destruction, and corruption."
"The [Corrupt Light] is special. Its heat goes beyond anything in my universe, and a fragment or residue of [Corrupt Light] will shine till the end of time. It is overbearing; it dominates other elements no matter what they are and remains supreme over all of them."
"I defeated higher dimension beings that descended into my universe, claiming that it was not worthy and needed to be destroyed. I destroyed them with [Corrupt Light] and did not give them a chance for retaliation. From then on, no higher dimension beings dared to set foot in my universe, for I am the [White Dragon] that governed over the [Nihility]."
"For you to gain that element, you have to accept my blood essence first, and then I will engrave that [Corrupt Light] into you. It will burn you, destroy you, and rebuild you, so you can become the vessel that is suitable to hold it."
"As I said, it is a paradox that shouldn't exist, yet it does. However, it needs an anchor point to latch itself onto. After knowing all that, are you still willing to take my trial?" Alarion explained the properties of [Corrupt Light]. His tone was full of pride, and no one could really blame him. Such an overbearing element needs an equally overbearing user to wield it.
Huo Yuhao took a deep breath and simply nodded towards the giant dragon.
"Very well, inheritor Huo Yuhao. HAHA. Fortune always favors the bold. Struggle as much as you can; the longer you last in the trial, the more benefits you will gain. In my name and authority, as I, Alarion, the divine [White Dragon] that governed over the [Nihility], start your trial. Huo Yuhao, do you accept it?" The giant dragon laughed as he gazed at the puny mortal in front of him.
"I do accept your trial, Alarion," Yuhao answered the dragon. His tone was filled with burning determination.
Alarion nodded to him, moved his massive dragon claw, and tapped Huo Yuhao's chest. A drop of blood essence entered his chest, and Yuhao only felt pain.
"Calm down, this is just the start. As your body and soul continue to adapt, I will inject more of my bloodline essence into your body. Resist, young Yuhao, for as much as you suffer, you gain more power," Alarion spoke in a calm tone as he watched Yuhao squirm on the ground.
'I feel like I am dying. But I have to resist and stay awake with all my might. I will die if I let my guard down for a second,' Yuhao thought as he started using [Great Sage] to its full potential to give himself some breathing room.
He started creating more nanobots and injecting them into his body. They only had one task, and that was to help his body adapt to the blood essence of this overbearing dragon. He started getting up from the ground and sat there cross-legged.
"Marvelous. Truly marvelous," commented the giant dragon as he saw what Yuhao was doing with the nanobots.
They would be stuck with each other for a long time, and the more Yuhao persisted, the more he benefited.
A long time had passed.
"What do you mean a universe dies at a certain period of time, Alarion? How is that even possible?" Yuhao asked, bewildered by the information that his friend dropped on him.
"It means exactly what it means, Yuhao. There are universes that are called the [Prime]. Each [Prime] universe has a certain timeline that it follows to a tee and can't deviate from at all. However, when the [Prime] timeline is created, some irregularities happen and other 'routes' start forming," Alarion explained and continued.
"Think of it as a tree, where the [Prime] universe is the main trunk of the tree and other [Routes] are the branches. The branches always come from the trunk. Same thing for the [Routes]; they stem out from the [Prime] timeline."
"These [Routes] can either survive and branch out from the [Prime] timeline or fall and be erased from the records of the universe. And my universe was a [Route] from the [Prime] timeline, and unfortunately, its fate was to be a failed timeline and be erased from the records." The giant dragon continued explaining, his tone filled with nostalgia as he gazed at the [Nihility].
"When a being reaches a certain level of power, they understand and comprehend more than others. For me, who was the brightest dragon to be born in my timeline, after understanding such a cruel truth, I felt helplessness for the first time in my long life."
"But how can I, the brightest dragon with the purest [Light], accept such a thing? I gathered my kin and fought till the end. With each battle, more and more of my kin fell. And at one point, I lost control in one of the battles and ended up destroying everything on the battlefield, be it friend or foe," Alarion continued gazing at the [Nihility]. His tone carried sadness and sorrow that one would not expect from such a mighty dragon.
"We were reaching our end, and [Hope] was lost. That is until I made a deal with the [Nihility]. The [Nihility] would cut this [Route] from the [Prime] timeline, so my universe could continue living."
"The price I had to pay was massive, but it was worth it. My [Light] element, which was considered the purest, got tainted by the [Nihility] and changed to [Corrupt Light], which you are currently in the final stages of absorbing." The dragon paused for a moment and moved his gaze towards Yuhao.
He had changed over the years. While his physical age did not change and he remained in the body of a 6-year-old, his body was stronger than ever after he finished absorbing and assimilating all of Alarion's blood essence. His soul had grown to be nearly immortal as he continued absorbing the [Corrupt Light] element.
Alarion returned his gaze back towards the [Nihility] and continued explaining to his friend.
"I would have to govern over the [Nihility] for a period of time, and during that time, my universe would continue to exist peacefully. However, universes, like anything that exists in the omniverse, can die. My universe started dying, resources became scarce, wars were waged between races, and death and fire became the norm. It continued till I was the only one alive in my universe."
"As my universe dies, I would also die. No matter how powerful you get, you cannot exist in the [Nihility]. Universes and worlds are like a protective barrier against the [Nihility], and when the cover dies and [Nihility] arrives, death is the only outcome."
"But I feel at peace. I fulfilled my mission by governing over the [Nihility] and made my universe prolong its life by several millennia. Although I lost the purest [Light] element, I gained a more powerful element: [Corrupt Light]. After I pass the last spark of [Corrupt Light] to you, my contract with the [Nihility] would reach its end."
"I loved and received love. I ruled over my kin and led them to prosperity. And now my kin has left first before me, and now I join them in the [Nihility]," Alarion spoke as he handed the last spark of [Corrupt Light] towards Yuhao's chest.
It fused flawlessly into his body. Seeing this, the [White Dragon] smiled.
"Before I met you, friend, I thought I would not get a chance to pass my inheritance and would cease to exist. But seeing that you completed my inheritance, I feel relieved. The name of Alarion, the [White Dragon] that governed over the [Nihility], will live on with you, Yuhao." Alarion gazed at Yuhao, who had tears in his eyes. He was beyond devastated to know that the friend that he came to know and respect would perish.
"Do not be saddened by my death; it is the natural order of everything to meet its end one way or another. I annihilated my Karma using [Corrupt Light], so you would not be burdened by it. And take this with you, Yuhao," Alarion spoke as he handed Yuhao a pink diamond that shone with brilliant light.
"You always spoke about your mother and how you are going to strengthen her. Take this legacy inheritance. It comes from a lower dimension than this universe, but the owner of this legacy was the strongest in that universe. Of course, he can't match my majestic legacy at all, but it can strengthen your mother greatly," Alarion spoke as he started moving.
"I spent a great time with you, Yuhao. The last centuries were truly a delight, to say the least. Now it is time to say goodbye," Alarion spoke as he moved towards the horizon of [Nihility].
Alarion spread his massive, beautiful wings, and with one movement, he was in the air. He kept advancing towards the [Nihility], showing no fear or resentment. He only felt relief and peace.
"This is the horizon of existence. This is where I, Alarion, the [White Dragon], governed over the [Nihility]. Today, I join my kin in their eternal rest," Alarion spoke with a majestic voice that shook the realm.
He flew towards the horizon of the [Nihility] with a commanding charge.
*ROARRRRRRR*
A majestic dragon roar shook the realm, coming out of him.
*ROAR* *ROAR* *ROAR*
Several other dragon roars responded from the [Nihility], welcoming their last remaining brother.
"Goodbye, Yuhao," those were the last words spoken by Alarion, and his body disintegrated into white motes of light and entered the [Nihility].
"Goodbye, friend," replied Yuhao as he watched the death of his friend since he arrived on the [Douluo Continent].
The realm he was in started cracking, and a purple portal appeared behind him. That is the exit of the trial realm.
Yuhao held the pink diamond in his hand and a white dragon scale tied around his body and walked towards the portal.
The legacy space continued falling apart. He arrived in front of the portal and turned his head to gaze back at the legacy space. He memorized everything in his memory.
"Goodbye, Alarion," Yuhao muttered as he passed through the purple portal.
(Chapter 9: The Legacy of the White Dragon, Alarion. Finished.)
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An:
Oh man, this chapter is almost 2.8k words.
To be honest, I teared up a bit while I was writing this chapter. What are your thoughts on it? This chapter did not really have anything that progressed the plot much, but it gave Yuhao his first martial soul, his friend, and his first loss.
It was necessary for character development. Sorry if you did not find it appealing. We will start progressing in the plot a bit in the following chapters. Thank you, guys, for giving this story a chance. And don't worry, we will meet the Tuna of Finality in the near future.
Anyways, do not forget to comment memes, your thoughts, and most importantly, waifu pics.
That is all for now.
Bye.