Igrion, the Ember-Smith
It was a choice Ji Wuye had made in the past timeline as he gazed up at the statue of Igrion. 'What a memory,' he thought to himself. The reason he had chosen Igrion in that timeline was simple.
Varkos's statue appeared too domineering. And Orvus's seemed overly refined—both gave off an air of inaccessibility. In the end, he had chosen Igrion. 'How silly, I felt quite excited back then,' he mused, letting out a soft snort of amusement.
Each Titan Lord, once chosen, would bestow a unique effect upon the weapon forged in their name. In the previous timeline, Ji Wuye's decision to align with Igrion coincidentally granted his weapon an effect akin to Sword Aura—an enhancement powered by elemental energy.
This unexpected boon boosted his confidence at the time and became one of the factors that allowed him to create the Eternal Bde Art.
'But an imitation is still an imitation,' Ji Wuye admitted inwardly, his expression hardening as the pleasant memories gave way to darker ones. His fingers curled into a tight fist at his side. Despite the power he had gained, he had still failed… failed to protect what mattered. He had lost too many.
For a brief moment, his crimson pupils rested on the towering, mountain-like statue of Igrion, his thoughts drifting as he lingered in regret. Then, shaking himself from his reverie with a sharp intake of breath, he snapped back to reality.
"But it's different now," Ji Wuye said aloud. Without hesitation, he strode forward, this time toward the path where the statue of Varkos stood.
…
Once he chose Varkos, immediately the terrain ahead was an entirely new world, one that transitioned into a mountainous wastend. Towering bck-iron spires pierced the sky like the ribs of a fallen god.
Rivers of liquid adamant coursed through deep trenches, their dense, blue glow contrasting with the typical fiery hues of molten va.
The metallic streams moved with hypnotic sluggishness, their surface occasionally rippling as gas bubbles rose and burst with soft, melodic pings that somehow carried across the scorching ndscape.
Yet, despite the cooling visual effect of their light—casting ethereal blue shadows against the bck iron formations—the heat in the environment remained just as intense, distorting the air into wavering mirages that danced before Ji Wuye's eyes.
The heat was intense, enough to make anyone dizzy if exposed for too long, the kind of oppressive, suffocating warmth that seemed to press against one's lungs with each inhation.
But for Ji Wuye...
Unlike when he first arrived on this floor, it was no longer intense enough to make him dizzy. Instead, it felt more like a gentle warmth—or rather, a light, comforting heat against his body, like sunlight on a pleasant spring afternoon.
'Perfect,' he thought with a confident nod, the corner of his mouth lifting in satisfaction. This was one of the main reasons he had saved up and eventually purchased the Unbreakable Vajra martial art.
The Unbreakable Vajra was jack of all trades—that was what made it so valuable. A martial art that proved useful in almost any situation.
However, unlike his heat-hardened skin, his white martial robe with dark blue stripes was starting to bcken. The fabric appeared as if fire were smoldering beneath it, slowly burning through. The edges of his sleeves had begun to curl and shrivel, thin wisps of smoke rising from the hems.
As for the solution...
SWOOSH!
A dazzling blue light fshed, momentarily outshining even the rivers of adamant. Out of nowhere, a jian materialized in his grip, its bde catching and reflecting the azure glow of the environment.
SWOOSH!
In addition, another blue light enveloped Ji Wuye's body, starting at his shoulders and cascading downward like liquid sapphire, as another item took shape. The light wrapped around him like an embrace, solidifying into flowing fabric that seemed to dance with invisible fmes of its own.
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[!] You have equipped the Cloak of Fme!
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[!] The lingering sentiment of Iskarel, the Fire Dancer, protects all wearers from any fire-reted elements!
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[!] At his final dance, Iskarel also blessed the wearer with extreme tolerance to cold-reted elements!
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A cloak appeared, resembling charred bck silk with glowing golden embers dancing across its surface. The fabric rippled and swirled around him like smoke given form, each fold revealing new consteltions of amber sparks that pulsed with an inner rhythm.
The embers left no trail of heat or ash as they moved, only ephemeral afterimages that faded like dying stars.
Along its hem, strange ancient characters were inscribed, pulsating with a heartbeat-like cadence.
And then, surprisingly, instead of overpping with his white martial robe, the cloak began to merge with it.
The robe transformed completely before his eyes, its white and blue hues bleeding away as if being consumed from within, repced by the texture and appearance of charred bck silk adorned with golden embers.
The transformation crawled across the fabric like living shadows, remaking each thread until his entire garment had become something new entirely.
This was exactly why Ji Wuye had obtained this cloak.
But, as he examined the strange glowing characters reflected in his crimson pupils, their light casting tiny golden pinpoints in his eyes, "Wow, I didn't expect it to merge," he said, both amused and baffled, his fingers tracing the seamless transition where cloak had become robe.
His lips quirked into a half-smile as he admired how impressive his transformed robe now looked.
Then his attention shifted back to the scene ahead, where, at the heart of it all, it stood.
"So that's the anvil," Ji Wuye murmured.
The Titan Anvil of Varkos—a colossal forge constructed as if it were a fortress. Enormous mechanical hammers, hundreds of meters tall, rose and fell in powerful, thunderous rhythm, each impact sending vibrations through the ground.
Sparks the size of carriages erupted with each strike, cascading down like metallic waterfalls before dissipating into the heat-hazed air. The anvil's surface gleamed with an obsidian sheen, occasionally revealing blood-red veins when caught in certain angles of light.
Every Titan Lord had their own distinct ndscape and unique anvil. And for Ji Wuye, this was like experiencing something entirely new.
It reminded him of the awe he had felt the first time he gazed upon the nd of Igrion.
It was then...
BOOM!
The sound was so profound it seemed to momentarily stop time itself. Out of sudden, the sky above—bright yet veiled by dense silver clouds that churned like molten metal—was suddenly torn open. The rift sshed across the heavens like a wound, edges ragged and bleeding prismatic light that spilled into the normal atmosphere.
A massive rock, the size of a boulder, began descending slowly from the heavens, surrounded by a dazzling array of multi-colored light that spiraled and danced around it.
Gazing at the dazzling and magical sight before him, Ji Wuye narrowed his eyes and muttered, "Celestial Ore."
However, rather than simply standing there to watch the rare spectacle of the falling rock, he immediately began moving toward the spot where the ore was likely to nd.
