A System That Beats Death 18 Departure

On a secluded hill away from any sign of civilization, two people sparred relentlessly. The bright sun shone radiantly, emitting light and heavy heat. Sweat formed on her flawless jade skin as she contemplated which move to use against her opponent.

Propelling herself forward, she feinted a direct thrust, only to proceed with an upwards slash. Predicting the action, he avoided it through a sidestep and countered with a strike. Pivoting her nimble physique to dodge the air piercing strike, she then rushed forward. With astonis.h.i.+ng speed, she manipulated the momentum of her body to enrich the force of her blow. As the steel reached the top of head, he drew his blade and negated the strike. The resulting shock wave tore through the terrain, cracking the earth, and generated high velocity winds.

Failing another session, she stumbled a bit before smirking. She then tackled Atlas who willingly fell on the gra.s.s. She could feel the earthy scent of dirt, the piney scent of gra.s.s, and Atlas' unique smell calm her down.

"I'm exhausted", she muttered.

"We've barely warmed up", Atlas retorted.

"You just have too much stamina. In and out of bed", she said somewhat resentfully while rubbing her sore waist.

Atlas could only smile awkwardly before trying to convince her again, "Come on, get up. You have less than 3 years".

She then pouted, "Since we only have 3 years together. Why not spend it leisurely?".

After using the talisman, the Ring of Resolve informed her of her peculiar condition and that she had to journey in other worlds to heal. This was her tribulation and Atlas could not go with her yet. It was all due to her decision to sacrifice memories instead of power which meant she would forget specific information about Atlas and memories of her would also be affected.

Remembering this made her depressed again and he could feel her pervading melancholy. Sighing as this became a reoccurring issue, he caressed her newly braided hair.

"I would've chose power as well. What you learn right now can carry over and our bond won't break this easily", Atlas said trying to console her.

Enjoying his touch, she was tempted to purr but that would be too embarra.s.sing so she laid on his lap instead.

"What was your life like in your original world?", she asked wanting to know more about him.

"Hmm. Boring and dull", he stated without hesitation.

"That's too vague. What about your family? What was the world like?"

"I destroyed them. The world though... lacked excitement and only had the development of technology as its sole merit"

"Technology?"

"You could call it the evolution of tools"

"Lacked excitement... Was it too peaceful for you?", she asked.

He nodded slightly surprised by her insight.

Noticing his subtle reaction, she kissed him to elicit a reaction. Seeing him reflexively avert his eyes made her grin in satisfaction.

"You seemed to be experienced in teaching. Did you have any disciples in your past lives?"

He nodded as he thought of Riri who he a.s.sumed should be the Empress by now.

"Was she female?"

Atlas nodded again, oblivious to her chilling smile.

Grasping his hand, she then demanded, "Teach me what you taught her"

Motivated to claim dominance over Atlas, she couldn't help but feel wary of her Senior. In another world, Riri sneezed as she played with her little Shen.

"Are you sick, mother?", the little boy asked.

Riri shook her head and said, "I just thought I felt your predecessor's presence" and gave her son a head pat.

"Sure", she was going to have to learn how to survive on her own anyways, he thought.

A week later, he reviewed her progress. Compared to Riri, she was a heaven defying genius but then again she wasn't pampered in the same manner that Riri was which dampened the magnitude of the achievement.

Self-defense lessons were pointless as she already had the capacity to kill. Through their sparring, she had already mastered the basics of swordplay. Surprisingly, she was better than him at hand to hand combat which was an awkward revelation that excited her. He soon realized that Combat referred to adaptability and instinct in battle rather than general skill in combat.

[Skill Unveiled: Martial Arts C]

With a swift kick, he attempted to disrupt her balance. She smirked as she effortlessly somersaulted over him. Being unable to react fast enough, he then felt her headlock him using her legs.

He then decided to modify her learning regimen.

"Teaching you what I taught her is pointless as you're not pampered like she was"

"Then pamper me in the same way she was pampered", Kirei jested.

"...You would have to ask her servants for that", he honestly replied.

"Now time for payback", he said with a sinister grin as he brandished a wooden sword.

As the kegare left by Haruto's defeat interfered with the influence of demons over this human realm, the nights were no longer as long and varied while days became warmer than usual. This was good for the human economy, however it still took a toll on those not used to the unprecedented heat.

Kirei stretched in frustration while fanning herself. The night dress clung tightly to her delicate and lithe figure while emphasizing her bosom which had been collecting perspiration.

Atlas was enticed but as always, restrained himself.

"Don't you have any ability to stop the heat?", she bemoaned. "I can't function like this" she said as she felt like she was getting a heat stroke.

Atlas then remembered his newly acquired ability and nodded. Giving into his temptations as she was already his, he closed in on her.

"It's too warm for us to do that", she bewailed and began to push him away but instinctively retracted her hand in surprise. His chest was very cold which would've delighted her if she didn't feel concern over his well-being first.

"are you alright?", she stammered while panicking as she put her hand on his forehead, worried that he was ill.

Atlas chuckled at her concern before grabbing her and pa.s.sionately ravaging her mouth with his frosted tongue.

She s.h.i.+vered in pleasure from his touch and the cold which chilled her scalding body. After that, she would always cuddle with him while sleeping regardless of the temperature and refused to let go.

Am I an air conditioner to her? He then laughed at her actions before giving in.

Understanding that he might not be able to go with her, he taught her how to wash clothes, find a water source, and find her own food. His abilities probably wouldn't cross over and her reliance on them might be detrimental. His advice was accurate despite being born in a rich family in his original life as he was sent to a remote village by his cruel siblings right before he retaliated and crushed the family.

Curious about the origin of their engagement rings, he had fiddled with them and found a hidden function. Her ring also had a storage function which was probably how she was supposed to retain her valuables throughout her travels.

Immediately, he packed her ring with food, water, clothes, a note, and a few instructions which would improve her chances of survival and standards of living.

Her heart warmed upon seeing his affection and she couldn't help but feel blessed.

They went to a few towns to check on the progress of humanity after the absence of demons instead of shopping.

On one occasion, Atlas examined a newborn infant with the l.u.s.t Visor. He stared in shock as the newborn somehow bedded over 2000 different partners throughout its previous incarnations.

Sensing the seeping Soul Energy, Atlas shook his head in disapproval.

That harem lord is going to be punished for his actions, he thought as he sensed the coagulating depravity.

They left town soon afterwards as they already had everything they needed. Atlas could cook, make clothes, and even furniture while she didn't have much to do which slightly frustrated her as she felt like competing for relevance in their relations.h.i.+p. He had noticed her strange gaze as they walked away from town but could not discern the emotion so he ignored it.

As he honed her swordsmans.h.i.+p, she would test and train him in Martial Arts.

[Martial Arts C Upgraded to B(Effort)]

She realized she derived pleasure whenever she was able to one up Atlas as despite being the more powerful one, he was mostly reserved and shy towards affection. Amused by his reactions, she would tease him and even provoke him seductively.

After finis.h.i.+ng another round of Soul Imbuement with captured souls, he began his 125th tempering cycle.

[Blood Manipulation(Extent: Area of Perception)]

Noticing the smell of blood, she approached and whispered into his ear, "Do you want my blood too?"

He then looked back to see her teasingly shed her clothes and gulped.

She had already learned how to cook from him and even though it wasn't as good as his, she could tell that it was still leagues above a professional's. She had also realized that he actually was sterile as despite conducting their nightly ritual everyday and unprotected, she was still unaffected. She preferred it that way though as an infant would only take away their time together. Atlas was her lover not the child which she thought would grow up feeling inept as anyone would be with such a heaven defying father.

3 years had finally pa.s.sed and she could only reminisce. She recalled their first meeting, his tailoring, the battle, their bonding sessions, and his teachings. As she faded away like a drifting mirage, he could only smile as she cried while they embraced.

[Memories of Atlas Being Erased...]

[Recollection of Kirei Being Erased...]

She awoke in a cage that her body was locked in. The former owner of the body was sold for money and had just narrowly escaped being defiled. The locked door then swung open and she was dragged to a stage on deck where the pirates drooled upon seeing her heavenly countenance.

The pirate who held onto her growled, "If I wasn't desperate for money, I would've taken you right there and then"

To his surprise, she then glared at him disdainfully as if he was a c.o.c.kroach to be crushed.

She then remembered her ring and impulsively kissed it as it was her family tradition.

As her bid increased to above 2000 Gold Coins, the pirate auctioneer wanted to spice things up. Preparing to partially strip her, he went forward only to have his hand amputated.

He stared in shock at the terrifying ent.i.ty which exuded an intense feeling of death.

He is still here with me, she thought as she gazed upon the figure lovingly.

Atlas' Avatar remained indifferent as he nonchalantly slaughtered the entirety of those who dared covet his beloved.

She then noticed that she was allowed to choose 5 of his abilities to use. She chose Aura of Purification, Pure Water Generation, and Combustion for practicality while Minor Healing and Spirit s.h.i.+eld reminded her of his affection.

Donning the phoenix kimono, she looked down upon the degenerative pirates and decided to usher in a new era. I must become strong for him, she thought as he probably also had the ability to use her abilities but since she currently had none, she would work hard to acquire them. She then took over their pirate fleet and began to conquer the oceans and coasts.