Chapter 17: Huo Yun'er's Legacy Trial.
When Yuhao got out of the stigma space, he stared at the ceiling for a while.
'So, now I have a godlike being inside me. Hmm, cool. I'm glad it's Kiana and not some old man. Tuna is superior,' Yuhao thought as he recalled his interaction with the tuna.
'But if someone like Kiana couldn't escape her universe's end and someone like Alarion could only delay his universe's demise by making a contract with an abstract concept, it really shows how the [Route] timelines are truly brutal.' Yuhao sighed and hoped that his [Route] timeline would be close to the [Prime] timeline where he only has to worry about a control freak in the divine realm and not the universe ending.
'Enough, no more bad thoughts.' He slapped his cheeks with a bit of force to stop his thoughts from running wild.
'And about the two beings in my spiritual sea, I think I know who they are, but I'll wait until they recover. They regain their strength, and I gain accelerated growth for my spiritual power. It's a win-win situation,' he noted as he returned his gaze to his mother.
Her whole body was covered in sweat, her hair stuck to her face, and her clothes outlined her figure. He shook his head and connected with the nanobots in her body; they seemed to be overworking to help her body adapt to whatever trial she was undergoing.
Alarion gave him a pink crystal diamond that carried the legacy of one of the strongest beings in a lower dimension. Keep in mind that a lower dimension is relative to Alarion's dimension, so its upper limit is leagues above the Douluo Plane.
"I hope you pass the legacy trial, Mom. You have to get stronger too," he whispered to her as he kissed her forehead and covered her with a light blanket.
He lay beside her and gazed at the ceiling, thinking about their course of action.
'Okay, gather supplies in [Heavenly Soul Capital City]. I have [Golden Rule], so I should find some good stuff while wandering around. And then we world travel.'
'The first thing we do is find the condition of the world we travel to. It will be a failed [Route] where the protagonist is either dead or never born. I need to know the condition and assess our course of action,' Yuhao noted mentally.
'Also, there are talented people in that world, and they're worth recruiting. I need to assemble a force that will fight with me, and talented people are always welcome.'
'After we get settled, I need to condense the first blood ring for the [White Dragon of Nihility] martial soul and then make Ellie give me two rings for the [Monster Slime] martial soul.'
'[Monster Slime] martial soul will be the foundation for the force I assemble. From potions, pills, weapons, etc., I was thinking of [Alchemy] as the first soul ring of this martial soul,' Yuhao pondered soul rings for this martial soul.
[Alchemy] is a diverse field. It is mainly split into two factions: [Eastern Alchemy], which focuses more on pills and medicine in general, and [Western Alchemy], which focuses on material transmutation, life creation, and bypassing the rule of equivalence exchange.
The skill [Alchemy] will fit in nicely with the innate skills of his [Monster Slime] martial soul. He can use [Predator] to consume herbs and materials to make medicine, pills, weapons, etc., and he can change material decomposition and transmute it into any material he desires.
Yuhao nodded to himself; he quite liked that idea. And that brings us to the last issue: 'The stigma.'
Kiana told him that he would need to train using its powers for his body to adapt and evolve to the point where he could accept a Herrscher core without dying, and she would be the one supervising his training in that area.
'I also need to train in some martial arts for close combat. I can't have a [Mage] build now, can I? I have the [Nanomancer] class, and the previous wielder was quite skilled in all types of combat. I can't disgrace her legacy like that; otherwise, she would destroy my ass quite literally.'
(Shiro nods her head in satisfaction.)
Yuhao shivered for a moment, feeling like he had avoided a disaster. He breathed a sigh of relief and chose to sleep. He had been running around since he reincarnated here, and this was his first proper rest on a comfy bed.
He closed his unique eyes, calmed his breathing, relaxed his body, and let it sink into the mattress.
"Goodnight, Mom," he whispered softly into the air.
"Goodnight, Kiana," he said to the tuna living in the stigma space.
"Goodnight, Yuhao," replied the beautiful tuna as she yawned. She didn't really need sleep, but well, can you say no to a good night's rest? Thought so.
The room sank into calm silence as the moonlight seeped through the window, dimly lighting the room as Yuhao and Yun'er rested.
…
[Huo Yun'er's trial POV.]
Huo Yun'er did not know what happened. One second, she was hugging her son like a pillow in bed, ready to get some good night's rest. But the next second, everything turned completely white, and she found herself on a battlefield.
Yun'er was stunned and started panicking.
"Hao'er!" she screamed her son's name. If she was transported here, there was a high chance that her son was also here.
"Yuhao, can you hear me?" she screamed again. She observed the battlefield filled with human corpses and the carcasses of unique beasts scattered around.
Blood flowed like a river, the sky looked red with dark clouds hovering over the battlefield, and the scent of death spread through the area, nearly causing her to suffocate from the stench.
A red moon shone ominously on the battlefield. A moon should have a soft silver glow to illuminate the darkness of the night, but this crimson moon's light devoured the fallen souls and annihilated the dead corpses to oblivion.
"So, you are finally here." Yun'er was startled when she heard a gentle voice from behind her. As she turned her head, she felt dread from the deepest part of her soul.
What was in front of her was a huge crimson bird that towered over her. Its golden eyes pierced through her soul, and she felt paralyzed. It stared at her for a while and finally 'spoke' again with a gentle, noble voice.
"Hmm, you indeed have potential for the trial. I hope you can pass it," said the crimson bird.
Huo Yun'er's heart dropped. A beast that talks only means one thing in her mind:
A hundred-thousand-year soul beast.
For Huo Yun'er, whose worldview was still constricted by Douluo knowledge, she thought the giant bird in front of her was a hundred-thousand-year soul beast.
They are known to possess intelligence similar to humans and can converse normally in words if they wish. But that's not the point. Why did that beast appear in front of her? Where is she? And where is Yuhao? These questions flooded Yun'er's mind.
"What is your name, child?" the crimson bird asked as it tilted its head at Yun'er.
'Calm down. I don't know what is happening, but I hope this is a dream and I wake up next to Yuhao,' Yun'er reasoned to herself as she gazed back at the noble bird in front of her and replied.
"My name is Huo Yun'er, Senior Bird," she replied. It sounded dumb, but that's what she could think of at the spur of the moment.
After all, suddenly finding yourself in the middle of a battlefield with a giant bird gazing at you with a piercing gaze is not exactly a pleasant situation now, is it?
The bird nodded at her.
"Huo Yun'er. A good name. Well, it would be rude if I didn't introduce myself. I am Velana, the [Vermillion Bird] that ruled over the [Crimson Realm]," the crimson bird introduced herself as she spread out her massive wings.
Yun'er did not know how to react. Why was this beast talking to her normally? Why wasn't she already dead? Or better yet, why wasn't she waking up from this dreadful nightmare?
As if noticing her inner struggle, the noble bird looked amused and 'smiled.'
"Relax, child. This is a legacy trial—a place where you will undergo my trial and inherit my powers. And if you're wondering why you're here, it's simple, really. Your son is the one who sent you here."
Huo Yun'er was baffled. Legacy trial? Gaining power? Nothing shocked her as much as hearing the giant bird mention her son. How could her cute and adorable son send her to this dangerous place? And the [Vermillion Bird]'s next words answered her.
"Your son sent you here because you are weak. He was worried that you would drag him down in his journey."
"Your son is not simple, Huo Yun'er. He underwent a similar trial guarded by a being far more noble and powerful than me, and he passed it. He passed the trial of Alarion, the [White Dragon of Nihility], the most powerful existence in our universe."
(An: The [Vermillion Bird] and [White Dragon] are from the same universe; it's just different worlds. A universe is home to multiple worlds and planets. Alarion's world was in the highest dimension, while Velana's world was a dimension lower.)
Yun'er was flabbergasted. What is this giant bird saying? Her son passed a dangerous trial? When? Where was she when that happened?
Velana just 'smiled' and shook her head.
This is going to take a long talk; well, they have all the time in the world for Yun'er to catch up.
(Chapter 17 finished.)
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An:
A bit of a shorter chapter today. Only 1.6k words without the author's note.
We finalized the future plan, and I'm rereading certain parts of the light novel for the world they're going to travel to refresh my memory.
Huo Yun'er will start to be useful, instead of just a Yandere mom.
I decided to combine some ideas for her legacy trial.
I was torn between [Monarch of Plagues] from [Solo Leveling] and [Chang Li] from [Wuthering Waves], and in the end, I combined the two.
It is an OC legacy, inspired by [Crimson Moon] from a fanfic called [Fate/Ultimate Antagonist]. Read it; it's super good. I binged it in a weekend, and I was experiencing peak cinema while reading it.
Velana is OP, but not as much as Alarion. Can't have my MC be outdone by his mom. Because if that happened, Yuhao would kiss his freedom goodbye. She is a Yandere mother, after all; she needs to be either tamed or converted to a Goudere.
And as you might expect, the name Velana is inspired by Venelana Gremory from [Highschool DxD].
Her abilities will be revealed in tomorrow's chapter, and they should world travel in the next chapter or the one after it, hopefully.
Also, Yun'er's [Spirit Eyes] should evolve. What are you suggesting for her evolution? Or should it just increase its quality and name without any innate skills? Let me know your thoughts on the matter.
The training arc will begin, and we can get some martial arts to train and all. Suggest some of the famous ones.
Don't forget to comment on memes, share your thoughts, and most importantly, post waifu pics.
That's all for now.
Bye.