Sworded Affair

Chapter 168: Time Flies

[Welcome to the final bastion of humanity in the year 2521, in the land that magic forgot. Welcome to Arcadia.]

“Any hints for the crowd?” Emma asked, craning her neck as she tried and failed to see the top of the colossal eye.

[I'll be happy to discuss specifics after you clear the dungeon. Anything I tell you before then risks altering the timeline, which would in turn change the obstacles you face.]

“Right. Can I redeem my rewards while I’m here?”

[Of course. You received them in the present, so they are available for redemption in the future. It was only while you were in the past, that the System had a bit of trouble.]

“Sure, let’s go with that,” Emma agreed, pretending to understand how that worked.

[Qilin’s Antler selected!]

It didn’t take much thought for her to grab the Antler, in the end. While a second method of teleportation was tempting, Emma wasn’t convinced by one that guaranteed danger at the exit point; meanwhile, the less said about the Green Hat, the better, especially where Chinese mythology was concerned. Upon selection, the level up prompt vanished from Emma’s interface, while a long, black horn the size of her forearm appeared in her hands.

[Qilin’s Antler: An antler from a celestial being last seen during the Warring States era. A rare and prized material for crafting and alchemy alike, or a source of great wealth if sold at auction. Just don’t show this to any of his relatives, they really won’t like it.]

The description was unchanged, and likewise, Emma couldn’t feel any immediate use for it, except maybe for stabbing someone with it.

[Qilin’s Antler stored.]

That was fine though, as it was primarily crafting material, so she was happy to put it away, and take a better look later as a Chandler; the more important choice in this case was the second.

[Select one of the following four Titles:]

Given her quest to investigate the situation concerning the Azure Heaven Sect, Emma’s first inclination was to take The Righteous for the immediate reputation gain with the Eastern Alliance. Except, this wasn’t an urgent matter, and she was already reasonably well-connected thanks to her heritage, so she was fairly confident in forging those connections the normal way, if necessary. Likewise, she saw no path in which she joined a Sect: her own growth was quick enough thanks to the System, such that she felt no need to be tied down in such a way. The same logic applied for The Demonic: rapid growth was nice, but she already had that, so there was no need to double down and be hunted for it. Accordingly, both opposing choices were eliminated, leaving only two to pick from.

[You’re actually considering taking The Atheist?]

Emma was: not because it was any good, indeed, the title didn’t come with any benefits at all. Even so, a small part of her brain wanted it, purely because she’d been told not to take it, demonstrating the enduring allure of the forbidden across human history. She wasn’t quite that far gone, however, and ultimately locked in the choice most likely to be immediately helpful to her.

[The Obscure selected!

The Obscure: You walk your own path, untouched by the designs above. This title will disappear upon acceptance, replaced with a random boon beneficial to your present circumstances.

Title is ephemeral, and disappears, leaving a boon behind.

Weapon Enhancement - Flying Sword unlocked!

Flying Sword: Epitaph can change size, and fly up to 60 miles per hour. Passenger optional.]

“Huh. Well, that’s certainly useful.”

[More convenient and less fragile than a bird for sure. It’s even bound to your summoned sword, so you can’t lose or break it either, unlike many newly risen Core Formation Cultivators who try to fly for the first time, only to embed themselves into the nearest mountain.]

“Watch out for mountains, got it.”

Wasting no time, Emma summoned Epitaph, the blade appearing in her hand as always. This time though, she willed it to rise, and the blade obeyed. It grew as it took to the air, the blade lengthening and thickening, from a lithe form Emma could wrap a hand around, into one wide enough to plant both feet horizontally across with inches to spare. She took a moment to marvel at the change, before ordering the blade to ground level so she could actually get on. She felt her feet lock in place, an invisible grip keeping her planted to the sword, an automatic process that required none of her attention, unlike similar manoeuvres she could do manually. Satisfied that she wasn’t going to plummet to her doom, Emma willed her blade upward: it was time to fly.

“Woah, this feels weird,” was her first impression.

Emma had taken to the air many times now, but always inside the form of a bird (or an aeroplane), going back further before the apocalypse. There was a difference between mimicking the gifts of nature and science, and what she was doing now: genuine magical flight, straight out of a Xianxia novel.

[Status condition: Nausea resisted.]

Thankfully, she was still resistant to status conditions, else vertigo would have been an unpleasant surprise: as it was, Emma’s rise was both smooth and swift. Within seconds, she was clear of the ground floor, and climbing with every moment. A minute later, and she’d already cleared the lowest of the skyscrapers, and was steadily approaching the tallest spire off in the distance. Nobody in the buildings seemed to notice her, nor did any of the airships flying overhead. The oversized eye, however, turned to face her. The pupil dilated, and then there was light.

[One With Everything activated!]

Emma crashed to the ground, more or less back to where she started.

“I thought this was supposed to help,” Emma complained, picking herself up and calling Epitaph back, the latter having fallen into a nearby bin.

[Help to move around the dungeon, yes, not to skip almost the entire dungeon. This is a spacetime anomaly, not Games Done Quick.]

“Now you tell me.”