The sound of clattering teeth resounded in a space devoid of light, combined with the crackling of a voracious fire.
The cave was chilly, with only a few sparks of flame maintaining the atmosphere above freezing temperature. Even so, such was not enough to melt the ice that coated Jenny's arm before she lost control of it forever.
So, to not become an amputee, Jenny employed the assistance of Fire Magic. She summoned flames, encompassing the entirety of the cave in blinding light and burning fire.
However, despite the intense heat that the cave now radiated, Jenny still could not melt the ice on her arm. It was as if the ice was now a part of her existence as if only death would do them apart.
Jenny clenched her teeth, pained by her own decision. Not only were the bones in that arm broken, but the ice was also causing ice burn. If she let it continue, she might receive organ damage through hypothermia.
Was there any way to melt ice other than flames?
'Perhaps Yang Qi…' Jenny muttered internally. 'But I have no leads on how to develop such an ability.'
She recalled her father's words, repeating them over and over in her mind until they were permanently etched into her mind. However, despite that, she found that it did not help in any way.
Jenny dispelled the raging flames, leaning back while avoiding contact with her ice arm. It seemed a single touch would cause intense pain. 'Well, at least my nerves haven't completely been destroyed.'
At least the ice arm was not entirely numb.
Yet.
'There's nothing I can do,' Jenny quickly concluded, releasing a sigh. Dangerous emotions flashed across her eyes, following the rise of a determined expression that only she could conjure in such a state.
Yin Qi was both a blessing and a curse.
The physical meaning of her father's words was quite simple.
'In the dance of opposites, the outcome will be their connection.'
The opposites were most likely Heaven Chi or Yang Qi, while the connection was most likely referring to the balance between Yin and Yang… Perhaps the Human Chi. That was the basic interpretation of his words.
But Jenny believed it was more profound than it seemed.
She wasn't certain how, or why, but her father was attempting to convey a message. She had noticed his gentle gaze, which he never cast upon anyone but his family. He was not a good man to those he did not respect.
He was quite cruel.
Jenny was aware of that, and frankly, shared that quality. Although untrusting of those traits during her initial stages in Heaven's Spire, a certain crimson-eyed man had helped her understand.
Even if she was a kind, generous soul that day, no one would give a flying fuck.
At least, not in the tower.
So, to become her own entity, and to follow in her father's footsteps, she needed to grasp her own fate. Fate… Fate was not malleable… it was not soft. Changing it was not within the capabilities of mortals.
Yet, many strived to do so.
The ambitions of everyone differed vastly. However, their foe, their obstacle, were always the strings of fate, the ones preventing an entity from tearing through and grasping their own strings.
To not be manipulated by the world is to manipulate the world by oneself.
Jenny was not on that level yet.
However, to not be completely suppressed and be unable to resist, she needed to make some questionable decisions. Life was not an upward spiral of pleasure and happiness. One could not achieve power through pleasure.
Only suffering could do that.
As Jenny held Nightshade in her arm, her eyes radiating an air of indifference, she felt hesitation. No one would find her body if she were to die in such cold. Perhaps only her bones would remain.
Her name would be wiped from Heaven's Spire before it could even be known.
She would completely disappear without any remarkable achievements, much like a lot of people she'd known in her life.
Her body trembled as a wave of fear rushed across it, attempting to corrode her mind. However, Jenny was aware that if she did not do this, the chances of losing her life were incredibly high. The ice arm was necessary to defeat the bear, as Jenny did not possess the sheer destructive power needed to achieve such an outcome.
However, now that blessing was turning into a curse.
She did not wish to perish.
At least, not before she achieved her goals.
She shut her eyelids tightly, straining her face. Suddenly, she imagined the paradise she could reside in once her suffering was over. Whilst imagining such a scenario, she swung Nightshade unconsciously.
The blade collided with the edge of the ice arm, near Jenny's shoulders.
Slice!
The magical artifact immediately cut through Jenny's soft flesh. Due to the power contained within the blow, slicing through bone was not too difficult, either. However, she still needed to remove the humerus.
As soon as the ice arm fell to the ground, a shrill scream escaped Jenny's lips.
The dreams of paradise turned to shit. The only thing that remained in Jenny's mind was the urge to commit suicide, which she somehow resisted by punching the ground to somehow equalize and balance the pain.
Her mind collapsed, while the ability to think rationally vanished.
Lying on her stomach, Jenny buried her face into the ground, rubbing against it while tears flowed out of her eyes. Her eyes were bloodshot, while sobs and screams were all that resounded across the cave, straying away from other lifeforms.
Nightshade peacefully sat, glowing intensely for an unknown reason.
As Jenny suffered a severe hemorrhage, she desperately ripped pieces of her clothes, tying them atop the injury while utilizing healing magic, which wasn't very effective. She also resisted the urge to use Yin Qi, fearing the same outcome.
The trauma to muscles, blood vessels, nerves, and connective tissues was severe.
