The heavy stone door slowly slid open amid the grind of mechanisms.
The frigid morning wind of the Land of Iron, mixed with icy frost and snow, poured through the doorway into the depths of the altar. Hyuga Xiao stepped out of the Time Chamber, his military boots striking the bluish-gray stone floor with a crisp echo.
He took a deep breath of cold air, and the stifling sensation lingering in his lungs from the chamber was swept away. In its place came the biting chill of the wind and the uniquely bitter scent of snow cedar in the air.
Less than half a day had passed outside, but he had already spent several long days within the chamber. In his mind, the two Humanity Anchors representing Kurenai Yuhi and Samui glowed with a gentle warmth. Solidifying these anchors had consumed an enormous amount of his mental energy, but the effect was obvious. The Divine Erosion that had once made him see all things as ants and wish to erase every emotion had finally been forcibly put on pause. This long-lost sensation of being human put Xiao in a rare good mood.
"Lord Hyuga."
A steady voice interrupted Xiao's thoughts.
In the snow outside the altar, Mifune, general of the Land of Iron, strode over with one hand resting on the hilt of his samurai sword. A layer of white frost covered his brows; he had clearly been waiting here for quite some time.
"Your aura... has changed again." Mifune keenly sensed the change in Xiao. If Xiao had previously been like a sharp blade hidden in its sheath, he now resembled a bottomless frozen lake. Even the falling snowflakes around him were ground to dust by an invisible gravitational field when they came within three meters of him.
"I