Chapter 40: Chapter 22: Strings of Time, Sounds of Space_5
"Is that so..." Hexia wanted to say something, but by now she had no strength left.
Blood slowly dripped down; even though she wished her wound on the chest to heal, it was cursed by the black crystal sword edge, unable to close up.
In the end, was I wrong, shouldn't I have persisted so meaninglessly...
Her consciousness grew more and more dim, and flashes of scenes passed through her mind, those were the moments of her recent work at Dream of Glazed Glass.
Belfeng, Andusia, Botis, Vurowus, Deklabi... They all took good care of her, patiently taught her the tricks of life and work, helped her dress up, made delicious food for her. In those few short days, she had felt a warmth that she hadn't experienced in a long time.
Humans are such greedy and foolish creatures; once they've tasted something delicious, they can't bear to let it go; once they've experienced such beauty, they're no longer content to die.
After a long absence, Hexia recalled a nursery rhyme from her childhood, the ending theme of a cartoon. She had long forgotten the story of the cartoon, but the slightly sad lyrics and tune were forever etched in her heart.
...
"From when did I start"
"To be afraid to cry out loud"
"Those few friends who give me a headache just thinking about them"
"Do they still love to play tricks on people as before"
"Heavens and earth turned upside down~~"
"Running forward with all my might"
"For fear of getting lost"
...
"Breaking through the finish line to the cheers"
"No one is there to dance with you anymore"
"The noise from the attic has stopped urging"
"The faded trophy's gilded letters"
"Emit a faint glow"
...
What is this!?
Temisia stepped back several paces, staring at the strange sight before her. Numerous faint golden specks of light like a delicate veil appeared beside Hexia, and her form and everything around her rippled like the surface of water.
[Space is like the strings of a guitar, time is like the notes of a song, the rhythm of the world is already resonating]
Time twisted at this moment, like a movie reel arriving in a rush. The blood that had spilled on the ground flew back up, then converged at the wound. The sword edge implanted in her chest withdrew on its own, then faded away, as the torn wound healed as if it was never damaged; even her torn dress returned to its clean state, without a sign of disarray.
Hexia closed her eyes, scenes from her memory playing backward, her entire life's experiences receding as if in reverse, each scene flashing by.
Exams, class, studying, school, shopping, cooking, sadness, happiness, writing, listening to others, watching TV, middle school, childhood...
Wait! What is that...
Suddenly, she stopped at one scene in her memory – it was when she was 10 years old, at a time when her sister had gone to high school and she herself was at home.
"Hexia, do you know why mom's hair is black?" One summer evening, her mother took her for a walk in the park.
"Because grandma's hair is also black." Hexia replied earnestly and intelligently.
"That's right." Her mother smiled and stroked her head.
"But it's not just that, where did grandma's black hair come from?"
"This... I don't know." Hexia shook her head.
"Because our family actually comes from the ancient Eastern Continent, where all the people had black hair and dark eyes. However, the people of the Eastern Continent were in the minority due to wars during the Fifth Epoch, and later they joined various countries."
"Many traditions and customs have been lost. Nowadays, I rarely make noodles at home, and I can't even speak or write the characters from The East. But some things have been preserved. Do you want to learn them, Hexia?"
"I... I'm afraid I won't be able to learn it. Maybe sister should learn it first, and she can teach me after she knows."
"No problem, there's no issue if you learn it first. For her, she might not need it anymore." Her mother said with a bitter smile. Temisia's school is the top one on the planet, and such outdated skills are probably beneath her.
"Actually, I don't know much either, just a set of swordsmanship; normally, if you learn it, you can also exercise your body."
"Originally, there should have been a matched mental method and a Cultivation Mystique for the Transcendent Profession, but all those were lost." No wonder her mother said her sister might look down on it.
"Watch carefully, Hexia, I will only demonstrate it once." That evening, her mother simply demonstrated with a stick, and indeed, there was only one time. After that, her mother never mentioned it again, probably thinking it wasn't of much use.
But as with all skills, there is a reason for their creation; the traces and clues of the designer's thought process from the old times are still evident. Those minute details in the flow of time were magnified layer by layer at this very moment, and then became exceedingly clear.
Deducing the shape from the outline, the cause from the trajectory, the framework of the mental method from the name of the moves, countless thoughts emerged in the overlapping times, as if the interrupted melodies and chapters were being completed again, and everything became clearer and clearer.
What seemed like only a few seconds to an outsider, Hexia felt as if she had lived years. Countless figures wielding swords vanished in a flash, each move and corresponding skill finally taking shape and branding it into her heart.
This might be something entirely different from the original, but it is nonetheless powerful.
In an instant, the light dissipated, and everything returned to the way it was before, with both standing across from each other in the crystal-filled underground.
"Although I don't know what method you used, even I understand that this ability to reverse time cannot be casually activated," Temisia said, looking at the black-haired, blue-eyed girl before her.
"How many more times can you persist, Hexia?" Suddenly, her figure teleported, vanishing from the spot.
Once again, she appeared behind Hexia, stabbing out with her sword, but Hexia charged toward the place where Temisia had just been standing, dodging the sword stab.