Chapter 1243: 230. Wrath (Final)

“Cut the nonsense, hurry up.” Hamreign urged.

Heaven and earth overturned once again.

The boundless earth, carrying the violently surging and rolling mist, as well as the shattered sea with filth splashing everywhere, fell toward Hamreign.

She was far smaller than that pitch-black sun, therefore, if they collided like this, the result naturally would not be any different from that pitch-black sun.

Moreover, she did not have that kind of ability to reverse time.

Seeing this, the Love God became even more excited. The main course and the side dish, no matter in what order, He would not mind in the slightest......

“Sigh, if it were not for my lovely disciple, who would be willing to come and do this kind of hard labor for you?”

Outside the anchoring range of the old man’s corpse, Mela clenched her silver teeth and completely crushed the remaining lollipop in her small mouth.

Then......she spread both hands.

“Anchor.”

An invisible outline instantly spread outward. Its range was terrifyingly large, and in the blink of an eye, it unexpectedly included the anchoring range of the old man’s corpse as well.

“【Wait......】”

The Love God finally realized something, and all of His eyes trembled.

But it was already too late.

“Thank you.”

Hamreign said softly. These simple two words caused Mela in the distance to suddenly freeze for a moment.

However, Hamreign herself did not pay attention to it. She merely raised one hand, then extended one finger......it looked as though she intended to use that one finger to support the falling earth.

......This was naturally impossible. However, at the same time that she raised her hand, an unimaginably vast amount of magic instantly gathered. In an instant, the entire space distorted. The fluctuations brought about by the extreme condensation of that magic directly stripped the entire world of its colors.

Only black and white remained.

“【No——thou art a dragon, how couldst thou know this kind of magic?】”

The crawling monster retreated frantically, seemingly wanting to escape. Clear terror also appeared in those countless eyes.

However, nothing could be changed.

Hamreign’s fingertip gently moved.

It was as though, among the countless supports maintaining the existence of this world, a certain “thread” had been forcibly snapped.

Thus......

“All Things——Return to Nothingness.”

Along with her indifferent voice, some unimaginably terrifying rule began to operate within this anchored range.

At first, only a tiny black dot appeared.

The black dot was extremely inconspicuous, and it did not give anyone any terrifying feeling. But after merely a few breaths, the black dot rapidly expanded.

The mist, the filth, the crawling monster, the withered corpses, the falling earth......even space itself, all things in this world seemed to collapse toward the black dot. All tangible things were rapidly being transformed into intangible things.

This was a disaster countless times more terrifying than the destructive rainbow light and the falling earth. The entire world seemed as though it was about to completely end within this pitch-blackness. Even the light that briefly flashed together with the scarlet lightning could not escape the devouring of this nothingness.

“【This is not right!】”

The Love God frantically tried to escape, but the monster’s enormous body was both the source of His power and His burden.

He decisively abandoned this physical body. A malformed tumor rushed out from within the monster, but before it could fly very far, it had already been locked onto by that pure nothingness, dragged backward, and swallowed into it......

“【No——】”

A mouthpart unexpectedly grew directly from the tumor, followed by twisted limbs. The limbs unwillingly stabbed deep into the ground, plowing deep trenches into the earth, yet they could not rewrite His fate.

The Love God did not understand why He had still failed in the end. Clearly......clearly He had worked so hard.

This did not conform to reason!

......But no matter what, in the end, He could only let out that furious and grief-filled roar:

“【Muen Campbell......I understand......all of this is thy fault......I shall absolutely never forgive thee......absolutely!!!】”

“......”

......

A moment later, the world returned to silence.

When the anchoring boundary was released and the void point that devoured all things disappeared, the area where Hamreign was located had already undergone an enormous change.

The earth, the mist, the shattered sea......with her as the center, a vast region had completely disappeared. It was as though a piece of the world had been forcibly gouged out. Looking into the distance, the scene was terrifying enough to make one suffocate.

The shattered sea in the distance churned. Seawater and the filth within it were once again flowing and pouring into the hollow in the rock layers.

Judging from the scale of this hollow, which was many times larger than before, no one knew how long it would take for this place to be filled again.

Hamreign floated at the very center of this emptiness. Naturally, she did not care about such meaningless matters. She merely raised her head, her golden eyes flickering slightly as she looked toward the pitch-black sun that had once again appeared high in the sky at some unknown time.

Within the Black Sun, a figure sat high upon the divine throne, silently looking at her.

“Wait for me.”

Hamreign cracked her joints while floating upward:

“I am coming right now......to save you.”

......

......

The world was very black, very dark.

Muen opened his eyes and saw this indescribable space. Wherever he looked, it was completely empty, as though he had been exiled into a deathly silent land of nothingness.

Fortunately, this place was not completely empty. Not far away, the only light flickered like an old voice-activated lamp with poor contact. Beside that light source, a figure also stood there quietly, appearing and disappearing together with the light.

“This is......the world?”

Muen walked over, only then discovering that the light source was actually a planet. The surface of the planet looked like a canvas that had been splashed with water, with various colors bleeding together, making it impossible to see clearly.

But Muen was very familiar with all of this. This was not the first time he had seen such a planet......such a world.

“Yes, this is this world.” The figure gently nodded.

Muen secretly glanced over from the corner of his eye and discovered that even at such a close distance, he still could not see the figure’s true appearance.

Unlike Dragon Lady, who concealed herself with magic, this figure seemed as though the rules themselves did not permit them to be seen. No matter how hard Muen tried, he could not even distinguish whether the figure was male or female.

He only felt that the figure was extremely familiar.

“Is there any meaning in staring at it like this?” Muen asked.

“From your perspective, there is no meaning.”

“Then you......”

“From my perspective, looking at it is meaning itself.”

The figure extended a hand and gently stroked the planet, with tenderness and attachment.

Especially when stroking a certain pale region, he......or she used slightly more force, seemingly wanting to wipe away that bit of filth.

Naturally, it had no effect.

“......”

Muen remained silent, watching as the figure carefully stroked the entire planet.

“This world looks very fragile.” Only after a long while did he continue speaking.

“Yes, it is already on the verge of collapse.”

“Is it because of what happened a thousand years ago?”

“You could say that......”

“You could say that?”

“That event was the cause......but more importantly, there is the result it brought about.”

“The Demon God?”

The figure did not answer.

“Then......how much time do we have left?”

“......”

“Several decades?” Muen tentatively asked.

“......”

“Ten years?”

“......”

“Five years?”

“......”

“It cannot be......that we do not even have one year left.” Muen’s cheek twitched.

If they did not even have one year left, then what was the point of playing? They might as well give up and wait for death.

“No one knows how much time remains. We only know that the end of the world is approaching.”

The figure finally continued: “The damage suffered by the world is far more severe than you imagine. The threat you face is also not merely the Demon God. One important point among them is......the World Barrier is not permanent.”

“What?” Muen’s pupils contracted.

“It will eventually cease functioning one day, and that day......is not far away.”

“......”

Muen’s mind was shaken. Against the Evil Gods, the World Barrier could be said to be the strongest and most important layer of protection.

For a thousand years, it was the World Barrier that had kept all Evil Gods outside the world, allowing this world to continue existing......if the World Barrier disappeared, Muen did not even dare imagine what that scene would be like.

“I heard that you want to save the world?” the figure suddenly asked in return.

“......You could say that.”

“This is not an easy matter. Over the past thousand years, countless people have proposed their own methods of saving the world......they all failed.”

“I know it is difficult, but we still have to try, right?”

After remaining silent for a moment, Muen sighed: “Although I did not have this idea at the beginning, and thought that if the sky fell, the taller people would hold it up, now that I have already come this far, it seems that I have no choice but to try. Perhaps if I try a few more times, I might inexplicably find a solution like I did with Brother Withering this time?”

“Mm.”

The figure gently nodded: “Remember to complete the fusion with Eternal Clock as soon as possible. At that time, you will be able to see more of what you want to see......perhaps even everything.”

“Huh?”

“And......I will leave her to you.”

“Who?”

The succession of inexplicable words left Muen completely confused.

However, the figure did not give Muen any opportunity to ask more questions. A hand had already gently pushed against his back.

“Go back.”

She said softly:

“She is already waiting for you.”

......

......

Muen opened his eyes.

All the mist within his field of vision had inexplicably disappeared. The sky was unbelievably clear, the stars twinkled, and the bright moon also hung in the sky, shyly looking at Muen.

“Awake?”

While he was still confused, towering peaks suddenly blocked the starry sky. Muen froze for a moment before realizing that those peaks were actually......

“Cough, I am awake.”

Muen coughed awkwardly twice. Just as he tried to get up, he discovered that his entire body was in severe pain, as though he had just been trampled by a thousand elephants.

“Hiss......I......”

“Lie down. You are badly injured right now.”

A fair jade hand gently supported Muen’s shoulder, making him lie back down on the soft pillow.

Muen was stunned once again, because only now did he discover that the pillow beneath him was actually......a pair of full and powerful jade legs.

His gaze moved upward. The face covered in mist finally appeared beyond the mountain peaks. There was no longer the slightest coldness or majesty in those golden eyes. They merely looked at Muen gently.

“Dragon Lady?”

Countless fragmented memories returned to his mind, displaying themselves before Muen’s eyes like a kaleidoscope. Muen remained stunned for a long time before finally understanding the current situation.

“You......really came to save me.” He could not help revealing a smile.

To tell the truth, his previous actions had been a complete gamble.

If he had failed, he would inevitably have fallen into eternal damnation.

Fortunately, he had won the gamble. Thus, the heart that had been hanging high......could finally relax slightly.

“Since a certain detestable human begged me like that, if I still did not lend a little help, would that not make me far too heartless?”

The jade hand that had originally been gently stroking Muen’s shoulder suddenly turned into a heavy pinch, causing the heart Muen had just lowered to rise once again......but it was only a punitive pinch.

Afterward, that face completely lowered itself.

Looking at him.

“......”

Muen blinked. As though driven by some mysterious impulse, he raised his hand and gently reached toward the face covered in mist.

Following his movement, the mist gradually disappeared. Her true appearance......finally appeared before him.

That exquisite and flawless face was like a fantasy of moonlight falling upon a pearl for a thousand years. Beneath her ivory-white skin, extremely faint golden patterns could be vaguely seen flowing. The corners of her eyes bore faint red eye shadow, and several crystalline scales adorned them, further setting off the flawless white jade of her skin. Fiery-red hair flowed downward, and within that dense maple forest, a pair of curved dragon horns glowed with a dim bronze light.

Her golden eyes were brighter than ever before, yet there was not the slightest trace of majesty within them. They were instead extremely gentle, like a ray of warm morning sunlight.

Her temperament also no longer carried its former coldness, to the point that Muen could easily touch her cheek and the corner of her eye.

The sensation was incomparably real.

——In the past, the mist upon her face had not been there to conceal her majesty and wrath, but to conceal her weakness.

And now, she no longer needed to hide it.

“So beautiful.”

Muen blurted out.

Her golden eyes flickered slightly. In an instant, the bright moon and stars in the sky lost their brilliance at the same time, and Muen’s gaze could no longer move anywhere else.

“Muen Campbell, do you know what kind of fate has awaited those who signed contracts with dragons since ancient times?” Hamreign suddenly said.

“Do they die?”

Muen blinked.

“Countless times worse than death.” Hamreign’s tone grew slightly cold.

“Then that is wonderful......as long as I do not die, anything is fine.” Muen chuckled.

“......”

Hamreign suddenly lowered her head heavily. Their faces gradually drew closer, close enough that they could feel each other’s breath at the tips of their noses, as well as the breathing that was gradually becoming disordered.

“You will never be able to escape for the rest of your life.”

In the same cold tone as before, she spoke one word at a time......as though she wanted to carve these words completely into his heart:

“Forever......forever......forever.”

“Mm......”

Muen answered seriously: “In any case, I never intended to escape, did I?”

Their eyes met. A certain charming color gradually began to gather within them.

“Did you also deal with the Love God?”

“Mm.”

“Is He dead?”

“I am not sure. He is an Evil God, after all. He is difficult to kill.”

“Then how did I recover?”

“I used a few methods.”

“I hope they were better methods. My entire body hurts.”

“......”

“......”

As they continued talking, the two of them drew even closer, so close that they could no longer clearly see each other’s faces.

That inexplicably intimate atmosphere grew even stronger.

At just the right moment, the mist that had been missing for a long time finally returned, covering the stars and moon in the sky. With the onlookers gone, the world became even quieter.

An enchanting fragrance lingered at the tip of his nose, seemingly carrying some kind of magic that gradually made people stop thinking.

Muen instinctively began to raise his head......

“Cough.”

Hamreign suddenly sat up. Her golden eyes glanced toward some unknown direction, while she extended a hand toward Muen:

“In any case......from now on, we are true companions, fellow travelers who will never abandon one another. According to human etiquette......please take care of me.”

“?”

Muen felt that something was strange, but he could not say exactly what.

Even without the mist upon her face, this thousand-year-old dragon was still so skilled at concealing her emotions that even Muen could not tell whether the throbbing just now had truly been......

The corner of his mouth twitched. After remaining silent for a while, he still extended his hand and gently shook hers:

“Then......please take care of me?”

......

......

【Wrath progress: ninety percent......????】

【......】

【Sigh.】

A helpless sigh echoed through a deep space unknown to anyone.

【In any case......keep working hard, Muen Campbell.】

......

......

End of this volume.