A System That Beats Death

As the seas churned with great malevolence, a singular ship remained afloat while sailing such turbulent waters. As the conditions worsened with darkening skies and pelting rain, the captain grimaced.

"Typhoon approaching westward!", he announced. Hopefully, the expedition would be cancelled. He did not dare directly complain to the Empress but he also did not want to lose his life due to a royal's whims. He had heard that the Sea Empress feared nothing sent by man and was even indifferent to the tantrums of deities. Such arrogance would be her downfall and he did not want to be a part of it. As he was about to continue ruminating, he then felt a spine-chilling presence appear.

Turning his head, he once again saw the right hand man of the Empress. A mysterious individual that seemed to exude so much power that it seemed to be tangible. He did not dare make eye contact with him as previously, it gave him the sensation of a near death experience.

He then heard the Empress' response, "Continue regardless" and he begrudgingly turned the ship so that it would travel right into the heart of the storm.

They then felt it. A glimpse of the Sea Empress' true might. With a single snap of her fingers, an overwhelmingly oppressive force emanated from her. The pressure released not only deterred the elements but even visibly strained the ship's passengers who even began to have blood trickle from their mouths. At once, all of the silent complaints vanished into thin air and was replaced with existential fear.

The vehicle then passed through the storm unaffected and reached shore to their shock. Signaling for the crew to dock, she then disembarked from the ship by leaping from the deck directly onto the sandy shore along with the Avatar of her beloved.

Intrigued by the great wooden naval vessel near their island, quite a few natives were already gathered there. As the natives spoke their own language, Cascadea had been pondering how to communicate but the Avatar spoke first, "We are curious of the power residing within these islands" in their language. Cascadea then looked towards Atlas with an amused expression.

The natives had been cautious at first but became more welcoming once they heard that someone from the crew could speak their language.

Before she could make use of his translator ability though, the entire island then quaked. An elderly native then emerged from the crowd, clad in ceremonial robes of their tradition, and began to speak.

Atlas then translated to Cascadea, "He says that the Goddess d.e.s.i.r.es an audience with us"

She agreed and with Atlas alone, followed the native to a gigantic cave and entered. Then the being which the natives revered as their goddess ran towards Cascadea in an ecstatic manner.

"Master!", she shouted before squeezing Cascadea in a bear hug. A tangible barrier within her mind then cracked and the sealed memories started to overwhelm her.

_______

Meanwhile in the coliseum, Nanling and Wuyue waited patiently for Atlas' return. After an hour had passed, they finally turned towards the dwarf. The dwarf then shook his head and indicated that he had no knowledge regarding what was in the Legacy or how long the acceptance process was. After all, each scenario would cater towards the individual and the only thing he truly knew was that Legacy did not kill those that wished to possess it.

"What is the longest time that someone took to forfeit?", Nanling asked the dwarf.

"2 months. At the end, they seemed to have lost their sanity. However, the outcome completely depends on the choice of the individual. After all, they are free to leave at anytime", the dwarf stated in a matter-of-fact tone.

An ordeal intense enough to induce madness despite the option to leave at anytime... Nanling felt goosebumps rise on her arms. She did not believe that she was capable of such a trial.

She then took out the dwarven sword as it seemed to calm her when not held in combat. The dwarf then widened his eyes and said, "To think you ended up acquiring that fragment.."

"Fragment? Is this not the whole sword?", Nanling asked. After all, the sword likely originated from the Kingdom of Smiths so the dwarf in front of her should know of it.

"Indeed. But to think that you would have Ardyr's fragment"

"Ardyr!?", Nanling exclaimed in surprise.

Ardyr was the name of the First Sword Saint and was the first to establish order in a world of utter chaos. As the Sword Saintess, she was naturally privy to confidential information regarding the Mystical Blade Sect and knew that the Mystical Blade Sect's original purpose was to facilitate the development of prosperous nations. The First Sword Saint was pivotal in the founding of the Empire which eventually fell due to an unknown catastrophe. The First Sword Saint was said to have been unable to intervene as he himself had been hindered by two godly swords. One being his own and the other being a demonic variant.

The dwarf nodded.

"Then this is the sword of the Sword God?", Wuyue asked. No wonder it could unleash such an intense pressure and enough force to rival a sea of dynamite.

"Indeed, it is a piece of it"

As she was a history buff when it came to swords, Nanling then realized she could finally get the answer to the question that had plagued her mind ever since she had read the epic.

"Why did the First Sword Saint abandon the sword of the Sword God for that... sword?"

The dwarf inwardly chuckled.

"You should ask your companion. His sword reminds me of Ardyr's Fatebreaker"

A heavy silence ensued as the two truly began to comprehend the magnitude of their situation. She had unknowingly been granted a fragment of the Sword God's will and the person which she felt ambivalent about had the ability to surpass it.

As Wuyue understood that she was quite lacking, she decided to request Nanling's guidance. It was not that she ceded being Master's lover to her but her Master was involved in a situation that was beyond her and she needed strength to overcome these trying times.

After the second week of training, the coliseum started to crumble out of nowhere. Nanling and Wuyue immediately packed their possessions and began to leave but the dwarf did not follow.

"Are you going to let the Legacy die?", Nanling shouted at the dwarf. Even if his death was certain and close, he still had time. After all, it was a bad sign that that man had not left the Legacy yet.

He then beamed with an incredibly joyous expression.

"The Legacy has already been inherited", he stated before vanishing with the wind.