At night, Hexia walked along the deserted mountain path, the night wind blowing incessantly.
The day's classes were already well learned, and with ample ti today, she was going to et that special 'teacher'.
Although the road was pitch-black at night, it did not pose a problem for her. The perception ability attached to her profession allowed her to easily avoid stones and traverse the grassland filled with the sounds of insects.
This was the place. She ca to the edge of a cliff, leapt lightly down, and then a faint white light erged on the surface of her body, making her lighter. Finally, she landed next to a lake shrouded in mist.
She took a few steps forward, jumped lightly, and ice flowers erged one by one along the lake's edge. She then easily stepped over them, moving towards the center of the lake.
However, today there was no small ice island in the lake, indicating that the 'teacher' was currently in hibernation.
Over the recent period, Hexia had beco familiar with the Ghostly Lady's way of life. She thought for a mont, extended her hand, and soon a small vortex ford in the lake water. As she did not possess the ability to manipulate water currents, this thod of controlling liquids through a universal formula was inefficient, yet it sufficed for now.
A few ice blocks took shape in the water, colliding with each other in the vortex, making a crisp sound like wind chis or bells.
Before long, icy blue light blossod from the lake bed, and then the Ghostly Lady erged from the water, with a small ice island appearing.
"Hexia has arrived." Her skin and the dress she wore were as snow-white as her gown, which fluttered like a shadowy fignt in the night, emitting a faint ghostly glow.
"I've disturbed the teacher's rest," Hexia nodded.
"It's fine. It would have been worse if you had waited outside foolishly," she shook her head. It was just a brief rest, she could wake at any ti.
After saying this, she looked at Hexia with a hint of curiosity.
"You seem to have undergone so training recently, your deanor is a bit different from before."
"Uh, it's related to etiquette training," Hexia replied.
"Mhm, I can tell. Although thousands of years have passed, so things amongst humans remain unchanged."
"These things, well, they don't really matter," in her view, they were trivial. However, she understood, Hexia was not yet powerful and was unable to have everyone recognize her; such training could indeed be beneficial.
"Co here," she said, beckoning Hexia closer.
Her slightly chilly palm grasped Hexia's wrist, bringing her into the lake water once again.
The icy water washed over her body, and gurgling sounds filled her ears. Soon after, a swath of white light appeared before her eyes, and Hexia saw a completely different world yet again.
The sky seed to be afla, with falling flas everywhere. This was a battlefield with no recognizable ti or season.
Elves rode fiery red birds soaring through the sky, their deep red plumage fanning against the setting sun. Flas continuously fell from the sky, the world seemingly apocalyptic, with burning ruins everywhere, wailing corpses, and broken flags and longswords.
The Elves' terrifying opponents were skeletons pushing steel chariots across the battlefield.
On the chariots were giant crossbows operated by twisted and indistinct monsters who wound the crossbows, then let the bolts fly. They surged through the sky, bringing down Elves and birds alike.
On the ground, Elf Knights in Silver Glyph Armor ford ranks to the sound of horns, their shining curved swords reflecting the burning sky. They were silent as they lined up on the hills, then holding the curved swords high, rode down upon elk with great force.
The curved sword slashed like spilling silver snow, sharply cutting through even the rank and file enemy chariots, slicing down monsters and skeletons alike.
The disorganized skeleton formations crumbled like dry wood beneath the sweeping army with silver blades, which passed over the dark land like a silver crescent moon, crushing row after row of skeletons and monsters to pieces.
However, such brave and fearless charges could not alter the course of the battle, for what lay ahead was a boundless vista extending to the horizon, a sea of millions of bones from countless corpses.
Purple wisteria crescent flags were raised high on the dark land while cries of lant echoed from the sky. Like dark clouds, ghostly attackers approached from the horizon, their features distorted in wailing. Their piercing cries made it impossible to sleep.
These ghosts charged towards the Elves riding the red-feathered birds in the sky, facing the falling flas. Then, one after another, bodies and feathers fell from the sky, and the ground was littered with countless more corpses and burning flas.
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The living wielded their War Blades in fierce combat, while the dead marched through flas, with no surrender, no escape, no space for compromise; both sides, long entrenched in a sea of enmity, offered up countless lives for victory.
One after another, the Elf Knights, exhausted, were torn from their forest deers and fell amidst rust-stained longswords and a sea of bones; the situation gradually tipped to one side, forcing the elves to montarily retreat, seeking to regroup and restore their strength.
The living side gradually receded from the battlefield, yet the sea of corpses and bones continued to advance; tirelessly traversing mountains and ridges, heading towards distant ranges where the silhouette of a giant tree lood.
Soon after, black-robed wizards arrived at the recent battleground, waving their wands and chanting desolate Curse Spells; the previously fallen Elf Knights then stood again, grasping their fragnted Slashing Blades and remounting on horses pieced together from skeletons and flesh, and then they moved forward.
War, death, resurrection, an endless cycle; this death army stretching thousands of miles traversed peak after peak, constantly advancing towards the giant tree, until the end of the world, until everything was destroyed, whether it be foe or friend.
Surrounding everything, a white light erged anew, and all began to blur, while Hexia could only rember one last thing: the wisteria new moon banner fluttering beneath the burning sky.
After a long ti, she awoke from that cruel and epic war.
Lying against a small iceberg, she braced herself on the ice and stood up.
"What was that scene just now?" She really wanted to know when that war took place, what it was for, who exactly were the sides involved, and why those silver-haired elves were different from today's elves, among other things.
"The scene you just saw was from the Second Age," the Ghostly Lady explained while sitting on her icy throne, supporting her head with one hand.
"In your textbooks nowadays, they gloss over that era, ntioning only the rise of the rcury Dynasty and how the elves gradually faded into obscurity. The details of the terrible slaughters that took place are perhaps no longer of concern to anyone."
"That's true." Hexia turned back to look at the Ghostly Lady. She knew her teacher's intention was not just to show her the severity of a great battle.
"Very astute, Hexia," the other spoke softly.
"Many truths, if rely conveyed by another person, are not deeply felt, or they may even be t with resistance."
"So I won't deliberately guide and instruct you on what to do; I just want to reenact those shocking historical scenes for you."
"The more you see, the more you know, the better you'll understand the reasons behind the current situation and the truth hidden beneath the complex facade."
"In this era, witches famous in the Second and Third Ages no longer exist; the power of an individual is far less than the strength that cos from a group. If you are determined to beco a Songstress, you will inevitably face choices in the future."
"What do you want to bring to everyone, or rather, what do you want to achieve?"
"A song without purpose, without emotion is just noise. You will inevitably face a decision, deciding your own direction forward, and the direction in which you lead others."
"You once asked why, despite being so powerful, I chose to live in seclusion. That's because my ti has ended. Even though I am still alive, I no longer fit to interfere in the world of today."
"As the old give way to the new, if one insists on clinging on, they beco nothing but a botherso old woman," said the Ghostly Lady, a hint of nostalgia in her eyes, as if she were not speaking her own words but echoing those of a friend.
My choice, huh… Hexia sighed.
To be honest, even though she was dissatisfied with the Federation and society at present, she felt it presumptuous to change it, at least until she ca of age and gained a fuller understanding and grasp of society.
"I don't know, just like I don't know what I will eat tomorrow, or what fish I will catch. I understand everyone has high hopes for , but at the mont, I am not suited to speak without due reason."
Hexia shook her head. She was gradually becoming aware of her remarkable talent, but asking a re 16-year-old to shoulder it all was too much.
Perhaps she would take many detours and make many mistakes before slowly finding the right direction.
She was not a confident child; past experiences had taught her not to speak lightly and just do her best.
Seeing her this way, the Ghostly Lady couldn't help but smile, "That's fine, I'll wait patiently for you. And if you happen to die carelessly, I can resurrect you as a ghost, and you can continue your journey."
"Ah, that would be too pitiful," Hexia covered her head.
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