"I wonder if my father is still around here somewhere?" Hang asked. As they walked through the tall bushes, their minds were elsewhere. They wanted to find the others and return to the Yellow City. Of course, the fact that some had died would not surprise them, but they knew they would soon see with their own eyes who had truly succeeded in claiming their inheritance.
At the same time, they felt a swell of gratitude. It would be accurate to say they had no hope when they first set out on this journey. Although they weren't sure why their father had been so insistent, they realized he had once again made the right choice.
"Our inheritance was only a small part of the whole. When we meet the others, try to figure out who obtained the true legacy," said Mais. The twins nodded in agreement. Mais wasn't exactly their leader, yet he had saved their lives many times. If Mais wanted to find out who held the true inheritance, they weren't going to withhold their help. Besides, they were just as curious to know who had succeeded.
"I hear human voices. I think it's our gr—"
Before he could finish, they emerged from the tall grass, and Mang's jaw clamped shut. There were many bodies scattered across the ground. They could see Ulam standing firmly on his feet, his clothes looking remarkably intact after all that had happened—as if he hadn't fought at all. On the other hand, amidst the many corpses, a young man was bent over one in particular, weeping over its head. The twins stared in shock. Mais could not see, but he could smell the stench of dried corpses.
"Some parts are missing."
Many of the bodies had been partially eaten by monsters, making them difficult to identify. At that moment, Hang, his face pale, nudged his brother Mang. He pointed to a body whose face and half of its torso were gone.
"That... isn't that Dad?"
It was Master John's lifeless body.
They rushed from Mais's side and leaned over their father, beginning to wail. No one could have expected otherwise. These men were in their thirties and had always been by their father's side—a figure they considered indestructible, a genius who had always ensured they came out unscathed. Why couldn't he save himself this time?
If he hadn't come here in the first place, he might have lived. He had no chance of inheriting anything anyway. Still, he had come to help his children. He had died for that. The twins knew their father didn't have long to live, but to see him die for them—to see his body brutally torn apart before their eyes—was unbearable. There was nothing to say except that the pain was absolute.
Mais wasn't sure exactly what had happened, but he could guess. John was dead; that much was clear. And the person crying somewhere ahead must be Evra. Apparently, he had survived. Mais was glad for him, but judging by the intensity of the sobbing, things had not gone well for his brother.
But Malehit was a 5th-level Sage. Had other experts killed him? It was all so confusing.
"You look surprised."
Suddenly, a voice rose from near Mais. Mais raised his eyebrows, turning his head slightly toward the corner where the voice originated.
"Were you at the 4th door?"
"No, I was at the 5th."
The newcomer was Daniel Gama. Many things about him had changed, but to Mais, his voice remained the same. Still, Mais could sense a shift in him through the change in his aura. Daniel Gama had previously been significantly weaker than Mais in terms of cultivation, but now, something was clearly different.
Daniel looked at Evra once more. "The person he is crying for is not his brother, but his father."
Maria and Kasuur arrived from the opposite direction. At that moment, Ulam felt like a small child, unsure of what to do. Yet, among those present, only Daniel and the twins were older than him.
Maria and Kasuur knew much about what had occurred. However, they were unaware of Yahut's arrival and had to piece together that Malehit was no longer alive.
Ulam stood in the middle of the clearing with a somber expression. Whatever had happened in there, Evra had saved his life. He had fought Gomez and passed the first test alone. Ulam hadn't been able to pass even one test on his own, yet in the end, he had obtained one of the main legacies. Because he was weak, the stronger cultivators hadn't paid him any mind. If it weren't for the mental confusion caused by the third test, it would have been impossible for Ulam to succeed.
Ulam had completed the second test through sheer willpower, but the effort had caused him to lose consciousness. It was only thanks to Gomez that he had reached the end. The willpower he had shown only covered a few hundred meters; he had needed much more than that to reach the finish.
Trying to stay away from the blood, he reached Evra. Evra was only sixteen years old. Still, he had fought remarkably well in this inheritance battle and had ultimately survived as one of the strong.
Ulam placed a hand on Evra's shoulder. He knew the young man was filled with pain and anger. Evra turned around sharply, but the fury on his face didn't turn into hatred. Instead, seeing Ulam reminded him of the choices he had made. Ulam nodded to him and pulled him closer, helping him up before doing something Evra didn't expect.
He hugged him.
How should Evra feel? Should he pretend he didn't know what had happened? He knew he couldn't. He shouldn't. Still, resting his head on Ulam's shoulder, he bowed his head in shame. Tears soaked Ulam's clothes.
"Isn't this sword mine?"
When Kasuur and Maria arrived, Kasuur spoke these words, and Maria immediately nudged his large belly with her elbow. Kasuur looked at her as if to ask, 'What's wrong?' In his mind, he was right—the sword next to Evra was his mid-level Sage weapon.
Maria didn't explain. Her face was pale, and she was frowning with surprising intensity. It was clear that Kasuur wasn't the source of her misery.
Evra left Ulam's embrace and looked at the sword. Now that he thought about it, he remembered that the weapon truly belonged to Kasuur. He just didn't understand how it had fallen into Malehit's hands. After what had happened during the trial, he felt hesitant to give it away. It was a sword without even a scabbard, and it was obvious it wasn't his.
After a few seconds of hesitation, Evra pulled the sword from where it was tucked. It wasn't even tied properly. It was a mid-level Sage weapon—not cheap, nor easy to find. Yet, Evra was prepared to simply give it up.
As Ulam looked at the sword held out before him, he felt a strange hunger. For some reason, he felt as if he could eat the sword. No, not the metal itself, but something within it... Origin Energy?
Then he glanced around. The people beside him had turned into simple spheres of light. One light was weaker than the other two. One was slightly larger than its neighbor, but the middle one seemed purer.
When Ulam blinked, everyone returned to normal.
'What just happened?'
Meanwhile, Kasuur reached out but did not take the sword. Instead, he pulled out a scabbard, sheathed the blade, and handed it back to Evra. When Evra opened his mouth in surprise, Kasuur pointed to another scabbard at his own waist and laughed. Kasuur no longer needed the intermediate Sage weapon.
But Evra found no joy in this. He couldn't find a reason to be happy while standing over his father's corpse.
"The sword belongs to Mais. You should actually ask for his permission to use it," Maria interjected. She wanted what was best for Evra, and while talking about such things over a corpse felt wrong, she wanted Evra to keep the weapon. The only way was for Mais to grant permission.
Mais... Maria remembered him as a strange, complicated person.
Mais and Daniel overheard her. The one-eyed young man looked at Mais with suspicion. It was surprising that the sword belonged to him; it seemed this blind youth held many secrets.
Daniel helped Mais walk over. The white-haired young man's unusual appearance drew suspicious looks from everyone. Daniel had lost an eye, and small scars marked his face. He was covered in grime. If it weren't for his wrinkled skin, he would have been difficult to recognize.
"The sword is yours. In exchange for one favor."
Evra wasn't going to bargain over his father's body. He knew the sword was his now. "What favor?" he asked anyway.
Mais gave a slight smile but didn't answer. This favor was a debt—a debt not for today, but for the future.
Evra glanced at Mais in silence, not dwelling on it further. He bent over his father and began to cover the remains.
Kasuur approached Mais, and the two began walking away from the group, Daniel following them. Maria stayed with Evra.
"Does the sword have a name?"
Kasuur turned in surprise, but Mais and Daniel kept walking. Mais didn't answer. Evra kept looking back. It was impossible to know if this disrespectful attitude bothered him; Evra couldn't have looked any unhappier. After a moment's hesitation, Kasuur followed them. Kasuur knew the truth: the sword had no name. Even if it did, Mais didn't think it necessary to share it.
'It's just a Sage's weapon. How could it have a name?' Daniel thought.
Mais, however, had far more interesting thoughts in mind.