Time Guardian Power

'Malygos?'

Nathanos took the stone. At first, he didn't notice anything unusual. After examining it closely, he asked, "What else did the person who gave you this say?"

"He didn't say anything else, just emphasized that you and I had to meet. I think... he probably wants you to help the Dragonmaw Clan."

"I never help anyone for no reason unless I get something in return," The Witherer said, his eyes still fixed on the amber stone. He pointed it at the moon, which was high in the sky, and by the moonlight, he discovered that there was nothing hidden inside the stone.

"Why not break it? Maybe only by breaking it can we find out what's inside."

"What if what that person wants from you is this amber stone itself?"

Grot's expression turned extremely ugly. But there was no contempt or anger in Nathanos's tone. In fact, his voice sounded more rational than when the Orcs had first met him.

"Amber, have you ever seen something like this before?"

"Of course, raw amber can usually be found underground under pine trees."

Nathanos closed his eyes and murmured, "Yes, these kinds of stones often contain small insects or leaf fragments. There's almost no amber that's completely empty inside. That's what makes this stone special."

The Orcs's eyes widened as he watched Nathanos pull a dagger from his boots and carve a line into the hand still covered in flesh and blood.

Dark purple blood dripped onto the amber stone. Grot had expected the blood to run along the stone's surface and cause some kind of reaction, but in reality, the blood was completely absorbed. The first drop of blood flashed with a faint light upon contact with the stone, then was absorbed, turning into streaks of black marks, resembling poison seeping into human skin. As more blood dripped, more streaks appeared. They combined to resemble the intricate network of veins in a human body.

"In the middle, there's no trace of your blood." Grot stared at the stone in utter astonishment. At the very center of the amber stone, there was a patch of the same color as the stone, untouched by blood. The Witherer saw it too; he was certain that was what Malygos had intended for him.

The Witherer squeezed the stone with its still-fleshful hands. Now, what appeared to be cracks in the blood had become cracks, and they continued to multiply.

After a crisp, loud cracking sound, the thing hidden in the stone finally revealed itself. Nathanos examined the little object, carefully scraping away the useless shards of stone.

Before him lay a smooth, flawless hexagonal crystal. Holding it in his hand, the Witherer could feel a slight chill. Grot held his breath, awaiting Nathanos's next move.

"This thing..." The Undead's voice trembled, and his body shook. "The power it contains is beyond my comprehension." Nathanos said, slowly and carefully closing his fingers to grasp the mysterious fragment.

His eyes widened in shock. He couldn't even control his own body. Everything he had experienced, all the trials and tribulations, flooded his mind. He had never forgotten the past, but never had it been so clear, as if these memories were sealed away in fragments. Yet, he felt neither sadness nor anger; a strange longing seized his thoughts, a longing that manifested in two words: Change!

Change what happened in the past, change your own destiny.

However, he immediately realized that such thinking was extremely foolish and dangerous. He was now the leader of the Forsaken, commanding a vast army and with ambitious plans at his disposal. There was nothing wrong with his current situation. Nathanos had sworn never to let the past bind him again.

He wanted to let go of the crystal, which was burning his mind.

"I... don't need... to change."

Nathanos gritted his teeth and said these words, which should have been roared out, but were stopped by something hidden in the crystal.

'Nathanos?'

'Malygos?' The Witherer heard the voice of the Infinite Dragonlord.

Feel with your heart, feel what you hold in your hands.

Why? Why are you giving me this?

That's not your memory, the Witherer, but your time.

The Undead was confused, 'My time? Why is my time trapped in this stone?'

"Because I can no longer help you fight Nozdormu. My time is almost up. But your existence must not be discovered by the Bronze Dragon. This crystal comes from the Bronze Dragon's sacred artifact, the Hourglass of Time. I extracted it and hid all the time and a portion of the Time Guardian Power, which the Bronze Dragon had collected about you, within this crystal."

'The Time Guardian Power?' Nathanos couldn't discern the King of Eternity's current predicament from Malygos's tone, but these decisive words reminded the Witherer of his previous visit to the End of Time, where he hadn't witnessed the fate of the Bronze Dragon Aspect Nozdormu. Had Chromatus's death not altered the Time Lord's destiny?

'That is, the power bestowed upon the Guardian Dragons by the Titans.'

'I don't need that kind of power; I'm no longer going to do anything foolish to change my fate.'

"Listen to me, the Witherer. The only threat you've ever faced has always been time, and your greatest enemy is also time. The managers of time want to eliminate you, and you can only fight them by mastering their power. I don't expect you to reverse the past. I simply want you to be able to protect yourself before you gain truly great power."

Nathanos nearly burst out laughing upon hearing this; Malygos actually thought his power insufficient. 'Then let Nozdormu face me. One of the Guardian Dragons has already fallen; he might be the second.'

'And after you beat him? Have you considered whether your body can withstand the impact? Look at your left hand.'

"You don't need to worry, I've already found a way to restore my body." The Witherer suddenly realized something, "Can I use the power you gave me to control the speed at which my body decays?"

No, the Time Power cannot affect the one who controls time.

Nathanos was disappointed and even more disdainful of the crystal he held in his hand.

"The method you're talking about is that ritual? Energy, a special location, and bloodlines... Can you really bring yourself to do it, Nathanos?"

Malygos's words felt like a punch to the chest to the Witherer Wither.

'You... know?'

'Answer my question about bloodlines: would you harm your own son?'