Chapter 580
"Cough, cough... We need to get back to the well... Our water is running out..." A middle-aged man, who had lost both arms, coughed as he spoke. "The God of the Dead Star... is about to give in..."
The man slowly raised his head, gazing at the figure shrouded in tattered robes before him, and let out a soft sigh.
Ever since the God of the Dead Star had succumbed to a tangible death, he, as the village chief, had begun to compress the living space along with the others, trying to ensure that as many people as possible could survive.
With only the corpse of the God of the Dead Star and a few divine messengers left, they could no longer venture out to explore the periphery as they once did. All sources of survival supplies had been squeezed to their limits, and the few places where water could be obtained had been completely cut off.
With the death of the God of the Dead Star, the situation had become dire; there was no longer any need for anyone to continue holding on. Annihilation was merely a matter of time...
That was how it was supposed to be.
But the girl before them had become a new symbol of hope for most, not because she had the power to protect everyone, but because, in the days leading up to the God of the Dead Star's demise, she had been the one who declared she would pierce the heavens—a messenger of the Outer God.
That silhouette had left a glimmer of hope in a village that was otherwise steeped in despair... even though the vast majority had already perished due to monster attacks, resource scarcity, or even voluntarily giving up their resources.
Now, those who still lived were essentially sacrificing their own flesh and blood for the divine messengers to create "wax"...
But as the flames burning on the God of the Dead Star dwindled further, the last remaining source of water had also been severed by the encroaching darkness... Hope seemed to have been completely extinguished.
The continuous fading of the God of the Dead Star and the relentless advance of darkness felt like a countdown to death, driving most people to the brink of madness. Those who remained sane were mostly children born during this dark age.
They had never seen the light and could endure the darkness better; it was the ones who had glimpsed the light that had gone mad.
At this moment, Hei Ni was tormented by a mental chaos in her mind, her incomprehensible murmurs gnawing at her sanity... Especially as the darkness drew closer, the silence of unanswered prayers pushed her spirit to the edge of collapse.
Her mouth trembled, seemingly repeating the incoherent whispers in her mind, uttering words she could not comprehend.
"(Ansu language) She is... the embodiment of the future mirror..."
"(Ansu language) She is... the echo of the ancient empire..."
"(Ansu language) She is... the moment when the pendulum stands still..."
Amidst her incessant prayers, her emotions seemed to settle into a strange calm, as if she sensed a faint hum coming from a certain direction.
"Hei Ni... Don't go over there!"
The village chief shouted towards her, his call drawing the attention of most others, who turned to look at the figure moving toward the edge of darkness.
Thud—
At the very edge of the darkness, Hei Ni unconsciously knelt, her eyes fixed on a certain point.
In the depths of her being, that direction called to her, and even the terrifying creatures lurking in the shadows seemed to pause in that moment.
"What is... that?"
A hoarse voice from one of the divine messengers broke the eerie stillness.
At that moment, Hei Ni's sunken eyes were brimming with tears.
In everyone's sight, the seemingly eternal, all-consuming abyss of darkness above them was pierced by a beam of silver light far in the distance.
Boom—
The ground began to tremble... No, it wasn't the ground shaking; it was the entire sky that quaked...
The black sky in the distance began to show silver cracks, which rapidly spread, and with the violent tremors, countless stones came crashing down.
The horizon was torn open by these silver fissures—a beam of orange-red light shone through the minuscule gap in the sky.
The fissures widened, and the entire Abyss felt the terrifying vibrations. All living beings stared in shock at the expanding cracks in the sky, while the light, resembling crimson blood, pressed forth, spreading across the entire Abyss.
The dark creatures screamed and roared; to them, this light was an absolute nemesis. Some creatures directly exposed to the light were torn apart, their flesh and fat igniting violently until they were completely consumed.
For the first time, the Abyss, sealed beneath the earth, was fully exposed to the true heavens above.
...
"Detected that the host's sanity has reached its limit; forcibly retreating from the Old Days."
"Detected that the host's mental pollution will greatly affect reality; initiating random timeline jump for pollution clearance."
"Jumping to the Past - Random Date - Day 3210."
"Past."
"Year 732 of the Holy Era, October 11, 11:00 AM."
"Countdown - 23:59:59."
Black, silver, and red lights swirled before Xia Er's eyes.
At that moment, she felt as if she were completely intoxicated; her "calm thinking" merely ensured that she was indeed thinking, yet even she did not know what she was contemplating.
"Y-you... who are you?!"
A startled voice rang in Xia Er's ears. She squinted with all her might and saw the system panel before her.
At that moment, Xia Er's energy was insufficient to respond to the startled cries; her gaze was entirely captivated by the system panel, and she instinctively read through it.
Forcibly retreating from the Old Days...
In her final moments, she had shattered the flesh that blocked the fissure using the deadly blood of the Overlimit...
Xia Er felt as if the fissure were a crimson vertical pupil staring at her, but soon, she lost all sense of perception. The chaotic murmurs in her mind had reached a peak of confusion, and she lost consciousness...
Before she could retreat, Xia Er never saw what lay above the heavens.
Have I changed reality...? Have I successfully left my mark...?
In a daze, Xia Er slowly closed her eyes, feeling the flames in her mind that symbolized the altar. When she saw the altar, her heart sank slightly.
The three flames that once symbolized the altar had dwindled to just two...
Did Hei Ni fail to pass on the altar...?
This outcome left Xia Er feeling disheartened. She slowly opened her eyes, took a deep breath to calm herself.
Soon, she noticed a strange blonde girl standing before her.
Where is this...?
A simulation of the past?
Day 3210? Nine years ago?
"Y-you... who are you?" The blonde girl looked at Xia Er with fear in her eyes. After a brief moment of eye contact, she turned and ran out of the room without hesitation. "Daddy! There are bad people in my room..."
The girl's bright voice faded as she ran further away, and Xia Er scanned her surroundings.
She... seemed to be in a room.
She walked over to the window and looked outside.
From this height, she was probably on the third floor... Where is this...?
Ansu City?
If this is a simulation of the past, nine years ago, I couldn't possibly be in Ansu City.
Moreover, this location, with its familiar buildings... This was clearly the room on the third floor of the Adele family nine years later, only now it was occupied by someone else.
Is this the coordinate before I entered the Old Days...?
Xia Er had no intention of lingering here; she had some things she wanted to verify.
She glanced at the full-length mirror beside her and saw her current appearance.
Her clothes were still from before she entered the Old Days, and her wounds had disappeared, though the places where she had been injured still ached faintly.
Confirming that her attire wouldn't draw too much attention, Xia Er pushed open the window and leaped down.
Thud—
Xia Er landed steadily on the ground, turned, and quickly walked in the direction of the Order of the God of Order, as recalled in her memory.
She needed to find the materials she had once read... She wanted to see how this world had changed due to her actions, and whether her actions had caused any deviations in the original history...
Xia Er swiftly navigated through the streets. Over the past nine years, the streets of Ansu City had hardly changed from what they would be nine years later; only a few buildings had yet to be constructed, and it was not enough to confuse Xia Er.
Table of Contents
