Crossing the Flowing Gold River

Outside the curtain of rain, all was silent. The Heroic Spirit Legion seemed to have vanished without a trace. "You're afraid I'll smash what's broken out of spite." Yaxiu spoke with absolute certainty. "That's right—the contract stipulates that I'm not allowed to discard or destroy the 'Soul Summoning' sorcery spirit, but its enforcement only comes down to the Void Realm meting out immediate punishment. In other words, if I decide I can stomach the risk of the Void Realm's penalty, then this contract is nothing more to me than waste paper—and too stiff to even wipe my ass with. "The Void Realm can only punish after the fact; it can't stop me mid-action. At most, it can kill me once the dust has settled. But if destroying the Soul Summoning sorcery spirit means death, and getting caught by you also means death, I'd certainly rather die at the hands of the Void Realm than let you, my dear lover, devour me hook, line, and sinker." Silence hung between heaven and earth as the reverse golden rain fell soundlessly toward the sky. A moment later, Denzel's voice slowly drifted over. "There is only one point that needs correcting. "In the 'generous plan' I prepared for you, I only left a single spot to walk out alive." Yaxiu frowned, his expression turning cold. "I'm guaranteed to die, which means..." "You must personally choose one person to die." The amusement in Denzel's voice could no longer be masked. "One living, one half-dead, and one completely dead. That is the ending I have prepared for you. Do you like it?" "...I heard that Heroic Spirits can only gradually regain their emotions by retrieving soul fragments from Hell," Yaxiu remarked. "I'm curious: with this sickening, foul attitude of yours, just what fraction of your peak grace do you actually possess?" "You understand us quite well. Proportionally speaking, one-sixth," Denzel answered cheerfully. "Have you decided who goes to her death? Your lover, or your little sister? "Oh, and as a reminder: if you kill your companion with your own hands, that counts as making her exit the Void Realm early. That violates the condition to 'remain in the Void Realm for three hours' and will cause her to be slain by the Void Realm—and I won't accept a death like that! You have to leave it to us. I want you to watch with your own eyes as my lovely retinue dismembers your companion limb from limb and devours her down to the bone." "...Did the Gospel Incarnation fish you out of a trash bin?" Yaxiu said in disgust. "Lucky for everyone that what you fancy is God. If you fancied a mortal, they'd have been tormented to death long ago. Whether you like someone or hate them, it's bound to be a disaster either way." "Oh, stop, I'm not that great," Denzel chuckled. "By the way, I like clever people who know when to yield, and I hate fools who say, 'No, even if I die, I won't let you have your way.' "So then... are you a clever person, or a fool?" The Empress's tone was brimming with arrogance. "Even if you've guessed my plan, so what? Do you actually have any choice?" Indeed. Yaxiu's situation hadn't improved in the slightest despite his sharp wits. This was an open conspiracy. If Yaxiu was terrified into losing his sanity by the Empress, he would naturally succumb to emotion and choose the latter; and if Yaxiu was clever enough to see through her scheme, reason would still dictate that he choose the latter. When there were only two options, freedom of choice ceased to exist. Anyone would be forced to pick the lesser of two evils. As Yaxiu fell silent, both the Sword Princess and the Witch looked back at him. Especially the Witch. Her hair was rapidly turning dingy, the Water-Born Line flickering between her fingers, and the emotions in her eyes grew increasingly turbid. She was practically like a kitten with all its fur bristled. If anything seemed amiss with Yaxiu, she would undoubtedly react violently. "It's hard to make a choice, isn't it? After all, they're your companions, and you have to pass the death sentence with your own mouth," Denzel suddenly said in an amiable tone. "I'm really not a bad person, my little lover. Why don't I give you a hand? "I'm sure you must be mulling over the possibility of a frontal breakout, aren't you? How about this: when you break out, I'll have my retinue focus their attacks on your two companions. All you need to do is send a glance or give a gesture indicating which companion you wish to discard. My lovely retinue will do the deed for you, tearing apart and devouring the one you abandon. Your companion will think she simply fell in battle, and you can comfort yourself with the thought that it was just the tragic outcome of a failed breakout attempt—something you never wanted either." At these words, the Witch's shoulders trembled slightly. Though she immediately turned away to keep her teammates from seeing her expression, Yaxiu and Sonia knew the breakout plan had been thoroughly aborted. On the one hand, the Empress Heroic Spirit's manipulation bordered on the level of a mind miracle, driving a wedge between them with effortless ease. On the other hand, the bond between the Witch and them had not yet reached the point of unconditional trust. A chill crept up Yaxiu's spine. He finally realized just what caliber of enemy he was facing. Even though she was only dealing with three sorcerers, the Empress Heroic Spirit had mobilized massive legions at all costs, exploited the terrain to corner them into a dead end, and relentlessly chipped at the cracks in their team's relationships just to gain the slightest edge... Though they hadn't formally clashed, and Yaxiu hadn't even laid eyes on her legion, he knew they had already lost. The battle between sorcerers had already ended before it even began. Yaxiu exhaled a breath of stale air. "Witch." "Mm?" "I know nothing I say will make a difference, because you feel I'm closer to the Sword Princess, and because you know the bond between you and me isn't strong enough for unconditional trust—perhaps it never will be, since bonds are largely a matter of fate." "Mm." "But I need you to trust me," Yaxiu said earnestly. "We have to work together to—" "Is there any damn use in saying all that?" Sonia suddenly cut in. "Witch, wrap a line around my neck." "What?" "If you feel the Watcher has abandoned you, slit my throat immediately. That kind of critical injury is enough to force me out of the Void Realm, violating the contract and subjecting me to its sanctions," Sonia said seriously. "I won't ask you to trust the Watcher the way I do. If you think he'll only save me, then I'll place my life in your hands." "Give me one too," Yaxiu said suddenly, his tone as casual as someone asking for a cigarette. Diya looked at them and nodded heavily. "Mm!" The Witch was true to her word. Two transparent Water-Born Lines wrapped around their necks, held in each of her hands like strings attached to human-head balloons. Although Yaxiu and Sonia didn't feel the slightest discomfort, they couldn't shake the illusion that their heads were precariously perched. "Alright." Sonia took a deep breath and tightened her grip on her hilt. "Then let's carve out a path of blood—" "Who said we're breaking out?" The Witch and the Sword Princess froze in shock as the sports car suddenly roared to life. The powerful acceleration pinned them to their seats, banishing every stray thought from their minds. Denzel's voice, fraught with shock and fury, rolled over them like thunder: "Little lover, get back here! Are you looking to die?!" "No, even if I die, I won't let you have your way!" Yaxiu retorted nonchalantly. As the Heroic Spirit Legion roared and charged, he drove the sports car straight into the Flowing Gold River zone! The instant they breached the curtain of rain, the sports car's 'Refraction Curtain Wall' rapidly crumbled, and even the vehicle itself began decaying and falling apart. Right then, Yaxiu reached both hands behind him. Understanding his intent at once, the Sword Princess and the Witch clasped his hands. Hues of red and blue rippled across the sorcerers' bodies, forming fairy-tale armor that looked as though it were colored with crayons. Armed Unit: Two-Color Anchor! The moment the sports car disintegrated, the three leaped forward in unison. The heavy flowing gold of time washed ruthlessly over their souls. Yaxiu and his companions felt their souls sinking like lead, their ability to think grinding to a halt as if rusted over. Yet when they tumbled onto the edge of the Flowing Gold River, immense joy surged through all three of their hearts simultaneously. Anchor activated! [Anchor: Whenever you suffer any external influence (physical attacks, mental shocks, curse debuffs, etc.) or spontaneously alter yourself (expending sorcery power, buffing yourself, etc.), there is a chance to trigger the Anchor effect. Once Anchor is triggered, for the next 5 seconds you cannot be influenced by the outside world, nor can you influence the outside world.] Although the chance was only twenty percent, within the Flowing Gold River zone, every single instant was accelerating the sorcerers' aging! In their 'Anchored' state, they could no longer feel the erosion of time. The Flowing Gold River appeared vividly before their eyes, its golden waters churning with the waves of history. Time sorcery spirits bathing and swimming in the river curiously watched the unexpected guests. Rare sorcery spirits such as Reverse Day, Listen to Month, and Fix Year kept their distance, yet couldn't resist poking their heads out from the water, showing not a shred of fear toward the sorcerers. "Move," Yaxiu said, noticing his voice had grown richer and more resonant. "We're crossing the Flowing Gold River."