"I swear, on the powers of this world, that I, Ban, will not do any harm to you..." As she spoke, her chest began glowing.
She continued to speak and as she did the glow grew to a massive scale until she finished and the light shot down. Like upside down fireworks they shot down into the ground then vanished.
The light simmered underground before shooting back up in chains of light. Those chains wrapped themselves around Ban and was absorbed into her skin. They vanished and Yan's defences lowered, "It's fine Hamar," she dropped her hands, "Be wary but from what I can tell there was no loophole for her to easily break the oath."
Hamar continued looking into the sky as he pondered, "Oath..."
He heard Yan speak and made a theory in his head, 'On this world...to swear upon this world, is this not against Yi Sect's beliefs? Surely they would have a way to break the 'oath' if it's related to the World. Their whole belief is on removing themselves from this world so surely an oath borrowing the powers of the world shouldn't be infallible...'
Hamar put his hand out in front of Yan, "Be cautious still... Allow me to go first. I'll go and if she does anything then you can do something from out here."
Yan thought for a moment before she relaxed and stood proudly, "I'll wait for you here. Do what you need."
Hamar smiled awkwardly, if only he knew what he needed to do. He knew there was something here but 'what' he would need to find out himself. He jumped off the treetops and using his colourless aura he flew threw the sky upwards, to the side of Ban.
He turned his head, "Thank you," then he turned to leave. However, Ban had other ideas. She grabbed Hamar's robe and tugged slightly, and in a quiet mumble she said one thing, "I hope you succeed..." Then she let go. Hamar paused for a moment but ultimately turned and flew into the Time Pool. He entered through the rupture of space and as soon as he entered, he felt the air shift.
The space was completely isolated from the outside, he imagined that if Yan did need to help it might not work unless she entered herself. As he thought back to Yan's promise to help him, he felt a pressure come down into him. He thought back to Ban's words, he sunk further. Instantly, he went from floating in the sky above the raging water to wading in the waters. As the water rushed through him, he heard voices.
Voices of the past, his thoughts began to switch. He lost his train of thought as became drunk with memories of the past. He recalled times of sadness, times of happiness, times of anger, times of grief, times of relief... Every thought, every recollection he sank deeper and deeper. He thoughts became like tar, unmovable. He opened his eyes as he was deep in the waters.
They rushed deep and as he was being pushed by the waters, he saw something down below. Deep under the waters, he saw a person. Someone with their hand clinging for help. A person with many faces. They were young, old, tall, short, they were made up of various forms shifting endlessly. From happy to sad and all those emotions in-between the person cried out for help. Their hand outstretched into the water, "Help me!"
Hamar's heart clenched, he knew this person. Of course, it was Hou, the friend he was doing all of this for.
If not for Hou, he would've stayed in his small town for all his life. If not for Hou. He would've been a washed out old guard. A talent at swordsmanship left to rot and die. But because of Hou, because of him he not only survived but thrived. He gave him the power he so desperately needed, the opportunity to have his talent and love for swordsmanship flourish.
If not for Hou, none of this would be possible. Hamar saw him and something within his mind clicked. He smiled gently but didn't reach out his hand for his friend, "This isn't real...this is just an illusion, no...an echo. It's as The Oracle calls it...merely 'Echoes of the Past'"
His eyes flashed with a sad expression and a tear formed. It fell down his cheek within the 'water' and dropped down. It touched Hou's outstretched hand and the echo of his friend vanished. A golden light surrounded Hamar and a crown formed around his forehead. Hamar looked up, his eyes were vacant no more. Thoughts turned from sluggish to racing.
"I see now..." Hamar pulled out his Sword Soul and grabbed it with both his hands. He raised it upwards as his thoughts became clear.
He swung downwards and with that simple swing, he cut through the waters. They split into two and then his sword did not stop moving. It curved upwards, sideways, loop, down again...the sword became a flurry of echoes of each other. Then finally, it slowed and Hamar dropped the sword down again.
This time the waters froze before shattering. They shattered into shards of glass before moving like a flock of birds and into a specific form. They turned into a sword which then shrunk and merged with Hamar's own Sword Soul. As the two forms merged, he became familiar with the river's water.
'The Time Pool is a special part of the world. It was supposed to be a part of the world no mortal should encounter but due to various circumstances it opened up.'
Hamar floated out of the rupture in space and as he did it healed itself, he continued to understand the Time Pool and what this would mean to him. The world would keep all of history into the Time Pool. But not reality, merely an echo. If he reached deep into the waters and grasped Hou nothing would happen. He could not pull him out, he would just sink deeper.
Now that the Time Pool had merged with his Sword Soul, all of the past echoes would become part of his own power. The sword would never weaken or be destroyed. The laws would always recover. Every time someone thought of the past, the laws would be generated and heal his own weapon. Additionally, Hamar felt that if he stabbed into something that offered power to the Time Pool he would gain a certain amount of knowledge from that person.
"This will help my comprehension significantly!"
He opened his eyes, and looked towards Ban who had fallen to her knees in the air. Instantly, his mood shifted to sadness. He could instinctively understand her feelings. It was something he felt himself, that feeling of bringing back to past. He had just broken that hope. 'I'm sorry for doubting your sincerity...'
Her eyes flooded with tears as she realised something, she wailed, "IT WAS FAKE!"