Timeless Assassin

Chapter 1036: Budding Friendship

(Meanwhile, Su Yang and Veyr’s POV, The Time Stilled World)

*CLANG*

*CLANG*

*Pant*

*Pant*

The last exchange had left both men badly drained, as the training ground around them bore the marks of their latest sparring session, with cracked stone, scattered dust, and dozens of shallow trenches carved by hurried footwork and redirected force.

After several long seconds of simply standing there and trying to steady their breathing, both Su Yang and Veyr finally dropped down onto the battered ground side by side, their chests rising and falling heavily as sweat rolled down their skin while the strange sky of the Time Stilled World hung quietly above them.

Between them lay a single bottle of stamina restoration potion, and after uncorking it with tired fingers, Veyr took the first swig before passing it over without ceremony, as Su Yang accepted it just as casually and drank from the same bottle like a man too exhausted to care about such things.

For a while, neither of them spoke.

They simply sat there in silence, catching their breath as the potion slowly began to warm their limbs and clear the heaviness gathering inside their muscles after yet another brutal round of Monarch-tier sparring.

"If you do not mind, Sparrow, there is something I wish to ask you," Su Yang said, as he finally broke the silence while keeping his eyes fixed on the empty distance ahead.

Veyr raised an eyebrow slightly at that, though he said nothing at first and merely gestured for him to continue.

"We are both Monarch-tier warriors, and yes, I understand that both of us should focus on reaching the absolute peak of Monarch-hood before even thinking about the realm beyond..."

Su Yang said, as his tone grew quieter and noticeably less playful than usual.

"However, does it not ever depress you that no matter how hard we train, no matter how many years we dedicate to this path, we will most likely never become Demi-Gods?"

Su Yang asked, as Veyr listened quietly for a moment, then let out a small shrug as though the question did not weigh on him nearly as much as it weighed on the man beside him.

"If there is one thing life has taught me," Veyr said, as he reached for the bottle when Su Yang handed it back, "it is this... never say never. Because no matter how much you think you understand the world, you still do not know what surprise life might throw your way tomorrow."

Su Yang visibly frowned at that answer, his face twisting in the way it always did whenever Veyr said something that sounded more like the words of a philosopher than a soldier.

"You know, sometimes when I talk to you, I feel less like I am speaking to a normal human and more like I am speaking to some wandering prophet who got lost and accidentally wandered into a training field," Su Yang said, as he clicked his tongue in frustration. "Because your endless optimism is honestly something that depresses me to no end."

Veyr chuckled softly at that, though he did not argue.

"Do you even know the ingredients required to make a Demi-God Breakthrough Potion?"

Su Yang continued, as his mood shifted more fully into seriousness while he leaned forward and rested his forearms across his knees.

"Those materials are some of the rarest and hardest resources in the entire universe to obtain, and unless both Kaelith and Mauriss somehow owe you massive favors, gathering them is next to impossible."

He paused briefly before continuing, his voice turning quieter.

"Even the Su Clan God, over the course of a thousand years, could only gather enough materials for a single Demi-God Potion," Su Yang said, as bitterness began to creep into his voice.

"And my father has already used that one to ascend, so unless fortune suddenly decides to smile on me for the first time in my life, I doubt there is much hope left for me."

Su Yang complained, as Veyr studied his expression for a while before letting out a deep sigh.

*Sigh*

Over the past few months, Su Yang had slowly begun to grow on Veyr.

When they had first met, Veyr had found the man insufferable, arrogant, spoiled, and far too comfortable with his own status, but months of crossing blades daily had gradually chipped away at that impression, until what remained was something simpler.

Su Yang was still proud.

Still reckless.

Still far too fond of hearing himself talk.

Yet beneath all that, he was not a bad man.

In fact, in a way that Veyr had not expected, the young master had proven himself to be decent company.

"There is always hope if you are willing to keep searching for it," Veyr said, as he placed a reassuring hand on Su Yang’s shoulder and gave it a small squeeze.

"Just like you, I too once reached a point in my life where I believed there was no hope left at all.

I thought survival itself was impossible, and even after I had already made peace with death, somehow... against every expectation, I still found myself alive."

His eyes drifted upward for a moment as old memories crossed his mind.

"That is why I can say this with confidence ..... Nothing is impossible."

Veyr said, as Su Yang let out a long sigh at those words, though this time there was less irritation in it and more reluctant thought.

"Well... technically, it may be possible if your lord and my good friend, Leo, one day decides to teach me that space tunneling technique of his," Su Yang said, as a spark of excitement suddenly returned to his face while he clenched one fist and slammed it into his open palm.

"Because if I somehow learned how to tunnel into Granada and the Eternal Garden while Mauriss and Kaelith are away, I could probably steal the ingredients needed for a Demi-God Potion without too much trouble."

Su Yang theorized, as Veyr’s expression turned cold almost instantly.

"His tunneling technique is a Cult secret!"

Veyr said without even the slightest trace of humor in his tone.

"And unless you are offering something of equal value in exchange, which I do not believe you can, unless you intend to submit the entire Su Clan under Cult rule... then no, I do not think that will happen."

Veyr said coldly, as Su Yang clicked his tongue in annoyance and leaned back again, though the earlier excitement had already drained from his face.

"Tch... and here I was thinking your optimism had no limits," Su Yang said, as he shot Veyr a sideways look filled with mock disappointment.

Veyr only shrugged once in response, completely unmoved by the jab.

"My optimism is for life," Veyr said, as he finally took another sip from the potion bottle before handing it back again. "Not for handing out military secrets to rich young masters who think burglary is a valid cultivation strategy."

He jibed, as his words earned a short laugh from Su Yang despite himself.

*Chuckle*

For a few moments after that, the two men sat there quietly once more, sharing the last of the potion and letting the exhaustion settle into something more manageable while the training field around them slowly returned to stillness.

Then eventually Su Yang leaned back fully and closed his eyes.

"You know, Sparrow... for a nobody, you really do say some annoyingly memorable things," Su Yang said, as the corner of his lips curled upward faintly.

Veyr smiled at that, though he said nothing further.

Because for now, words were unnecessary.