[Teammate (Lv Shu) has died and cannot be resurrected.]

[Teammate (Noel) has died.]

[Observer (Yuanyuan) has died and cannot be resurrected.]

[Temporary Teammate (Lu Meng) has died.]

[npc (Li Yuxuan) has died.]

[npc (Yi Zhongyu) has died.]

...

The blade fell, and crimson blood flowed from the index finger.

The blade struck the shoulder, revealing a wound so deep that the bone was visible.

The blade cut along the skin, and a blood vessel was slowly severed.

Su Ming'an seemed to be doing experiments, testing his healing ability over and over, treating himself like a soft piece of bloody tofu, watching the tofu gradually leak fresh red blood.

He felt no pain, as if he were enclosed in an invisible, colorless box, even the sense of reality disappeared.

...

[buff (Word Spirit—No Pain, No Feeling, Undying): Fatal injuries will not cause death, no blood will be shed. Tiny wounds will heal quickly.]

[Source: High-dimensional (Dieying)]

...

Dieying tilted its head, looking at him, its non-human visage shrouded in the star sea, with a shimmering beauty as the cold wind blew.

If it were any other instance, this Word Spirit should have been the sincerest blessing—no pain, no death, the things humans fear most would vanish.

But Su Ming'an only felt a numb dullness. He looked down, the aftershocks of the explosion were still raging, the originally calm air shattered by the vibrations. Among the holy white ruins, engravings and statues were destroyed all over, like broken white marble.

Lava-like heat and black smoke intertwined, the scene blurred and chaotic, the fire illuminating the surroundings.

Everyone outside the Old Divine Palace was stunned, not knowing what to do. Some called out as they approached, only to be driven back by the overwhelming flames. Some covered their faces and knelt, clasping their hands together, muttering prayers.

"Deity... Deity..."

Su Ming'an landed on the ground, choking smoke greeted him, wood, white jade, bricks... various materials burned under the high temperature, emitting an unpleasant smell. He walked forward, heavy ruins piled up before him like a mountain.

Dieying still hovered in the sky, seemingly awaiting his decision, though there was no need for one.

This was a clear plot. Dieying practically handed victory over to Su Ming'an; as long as Su Ming'an ignored the Old Divine Palace and proceeded step by step, mankind's victory was almost assured. But would Su Ming'an ignore it?

Just as at the beginning, Dieying was also a clear plot—if only Su Ming'an stayed by the Deity's side for twenty days, Dieying would have few opportunities to act. But would Su Ming'an be content with gaining the lowest level of a Perfect Pass?

Laziness turned out to be a shortcut to victory, such an unusual path to success in The World of Old Days.

This scheme was effective only for Su Ming'an; it would not work on Mizushima Kawa Sora, Edward, or Eni... This level of understanding was as if... Dieying had opposed Su Ming'an countless times.

Su Ming'an reached out his hand, the special effect of [Hand of Redemption (Red Level)] blossomed the Manzusha flower at his fingertips.

Hiss, hiss, hiss, the sound of Puppet Threads arose.

They seemed to have spirituality, probing deep into the ruins.

Su Ming'an had never told his teammates one thing.

Whenever he was close to his teammates, he would always use the Puppet Threads skill he copied with [Hand of Redemption] on them, then release it once they were distant. He wasn't aiming to "control" them, but merely wanted to hold onto them tightly. Afraid that if they moved a little further away, they would suddenly vanish.

The formless, intangible Puppet Threads pierced through their chests, silently connecting Su Ming'an with them. Su Ming'an's five fingers tightly clutched the ends of the Puppet Threads, the other end connected to five or six beating hearts.

He would never tug them forcefully, only occasionally moving his fingers to confirm the presence of force from the other end, ensuring they were still there. Like dropping anchor after anchor.

Hiss, hiss.

The first Puppet Thread transmitted force, and he moved forward to discover a ruin beneath a pile of white jade, where the white wings of an angel statue seemed to pierce something, the ground spreading with blood red.

He shattered the wings, revealing a few strands of white hair under the pressure, the white hair soaked in blood, like a few silent, blooming crimson plum blossoms.

His index finger twitched, the chest impaled by the wings was soon pulled out, revealing half of a broken heart, and the first body "stood up," the chest still bleeding, even the saber at the waist stained red.

Su Ming'an wiped away the blood on his face as if cleaning dust off a statue.

Then came the second Puppet Thread, this thread wrapped around his thumb, leading into the flames, where the sky was nearly burned red. The heat wave blew against him; he dared not unleash Spatial Vibration, fearing to destroy the body, so he walked into the flames empty-handed.

Crackle, crackle.

The flames scorched his skin, quickly ulcerating at a visible speed, emitting the aroma of roasting meat. Not feeling any pain, smelling this aroma, he oddly felt as though he were eating roast meat.

He squatted down, moved aside a heavy stone pillar, revealing a black-haired girl underneath. Her skin was only slightly charred, still retaining her appearance in life.

Su Ming'an moved his thumb, and the girl also "stood up," following behind him.

The third Puppet Thread connected to the owner of the Puppet Threads skill. When Su Ming'an first used the Puppet Threads on Noel's heart, Noel seemed to sense something but said nothing.

When Su Ming'an found him at the end of the thread, he paused, not expecting to see such a scene—a golden-haired boy sat peacefully in the central area of the Old Divine Palace, not on the throne but sitting beneath it, his back resting against the side armrest, head resting on the armrest, strands of golden hair lay smoothly, layer upon layer, draped over the golden-white cushion.

The angel statues on either side of the throne had each had half of their wings burned off, the remaining half-wing misalignedly spread behind the boy, creating a visual discrepancy. As if the boy had become a side-winged angel beside the throne, the snow-white wings spread wide in the blazing fire.

At the moment of the explosion, he must have specifically chosen his final position. Or perhaps he knew Su Ming'an would definitely turn back to save him, so his face was extremely calm, as if he had fallen into a long dream.

He didn't even die from the explosion, a Blue Rose Scepter pierced his chest through the heart and nailed into the throne behind him. The Blue Rose seemed almost naturally integrated with the throne, blood dyeing the pure white throne red—it was at the moment the temple fell that he nailed himself to the throne.

With his mind somewhat blank, the first thought that came to Su Ming'an was somewhat absurd.

...Noel actually wanted to choose a beautiful way to die in the end.

For a moment, he wondered—did Noel ever use Puppet Threads on their bodies, confirming their presence? But Noel, like him, never mentioned it, nor ever used them.

Su Ming'an pulled out the Blue Rose Scepter, the scepter almost stained red with blood, transformed into a Red Rose Scepter. Just like a nightingale pricking its heart with thorns.

He guided Noel out of the flame-engulfed temple.

The ring finger and pinky, the temporary connection between Lu Meng and Li Yuxuan.

When Su Ming'an returned to the starry sky again, he stood on the mechanical wheel, followed by five people. Pure white tendrils extended from his back, lifting them like daffodils. They stood, just as in life.

"What are you doing?" Dieying's eyes showed confusion.

"Breaking through with companions," Su Ming'an said.

"...with five corpses?"

"No, they are right behind me," Su Ming'an said.

If Su Ming'an said it was to prevent further burning of the corpses, Dieying could understand. But Su Ming'an's answer revealed something to him.

"I suddenly remember, for you players, this is a world of SAN value. And your... your previous value was already very low." Dieying said, "Sorry, I think I've driven you mad."

Except for that time of Lin Guang's nuclear explosion, Su Ming'an had never faced such a situation. The people he cared about were all dead, including two who couldn't be resurrected.

Moving forward meant being completely alone. Moving backward carried the pressure and weight of the entire world, even risking being taken by high-dimensional beings.

He pulled at the puppet threads, manipulating his several vests, taking them away from the flames and ruins. The white tendrils bloomed behind him, blurring the line between life and death, plunging into a mad and grand spectacle.

Snow-white puppet threads trailed behind him, like drifting white snow, like white gauze wafting in the air.

His eyelids slightly lowered, the white snow brushed past his face, giving a comforting and courteous cheek kiss.

Ssss, ssss.

Everyone seeing this scene thought the deity had gone mad. Treating the dead like living companions, commanding them to follow him.

Dieying originally thought Su Ming'an would decisively use the Ring of Time, to save teammates again and again, so he could further break this balanced battle, even take Su Ming'an himself away. However, Su Ming'an seemed...

His eyes tightened, wanting to persuade.

At this moment, a sharp voice came through:

"—Dieying! Take me away! Exchange my life for his, use my life to free him. I beg you—"

"Invade the World of Old Days, take away this civilization, whatever… just spare him! Spare him!"

Dieying leaned down to look.

On the ground, Xiao Ying shouted, a helpless panic on his face. He seemed not to expect Su Ming'an would value teammates so much, even willing to forgo victory.

He had personally set down the explosives, triggered this unprecedentedly horrible explosion. The first to suffer painfully, surprisingly, was him.

Su Ming'an looked down, his bloodshot eyes blinked slightly, and he said softly:

"You are, my most... unforgivable person, Xiao Ying."

...I can't understand why you would betray me.

...I once imprisoned your freedom, but later I also returned it to you. I once personally pushed you into the Black Mist, disgracing you, but you said it was just forced by circumstances.

...But why, after forgiving everything, would you cooperate with Dieying to push me into the abyss? Clearly, you are also from the World of Old Days, why be so ruthless to your own world?

Hearing Su Ming'an's words, Xiao Ying's face showed cracks.

He trembled, reaching out, wanting to hold Su Ming'an, but the distance was too far, he couldn't even touch the blooming white tendrils in the sky.

"...But." his lips trembled: "...I have a wish I must fulfill, Dieying can give it to me."

His voice now only held pleading. The once commanding Shadow now like a fragile child, the light in his eyes dimming little by little, as if flames were burning his soul.

Su Ming'an is the lighthouse in the sea, bright, wise, resolute.

But for Xiao Ying, it was Su Ming'an who imprisoned his freedom and forced him to remain in the Holy City. Even his life's end was due to Su Ming'an.

When making the deal with Dieying, he struggled repeatedly about betraying Su Ming'an. But the temptation Dieying offered made him unable to refuse.

He pondered many win-win outcomes, wanting to satisfy both his desire and Su Ming'an's safety, but none could be realized. Now he accomplished cooperation with Dieying, got what he wanted, yet why was his mind not at peace amidst the noise?

He took out the black bird sculpture he always carried against his chest and kissed it.

This was a gift Su Ming'an casually gave him on the seventh day of the instance, a roughly made craft item, costing only seven or eight yuan, just to brush him off. But at the bottom of the sculpture, there was a line of small words.

—Just because of this line of text, he kept kissing this roughly made item repeatedly, as if it were his most precious soul, caressing it day and night, loved it dearly. This line of text, too, was the reason he finally agreed to Dieying.

"Why? What did Dieying give you that made you betray the world?" Su Ming'an said indifferently:

"Endless wealth? A step to ascend to high dimensions? Extremely powerful weapons? Or some grand vision?"

What humans want are no more than these. Their desires often float on the surface.

Xiao Ying silently kissed the black bird sculpture, without answering.

With a ssss, Su Ming'an's puppet threads reached out, grabbing the black bird sculpture. Xiao Ying immediately rushed to grab it, but the black bird sculpture soon fell into Su Ming'an's hands.

"Don't look..." Xiao Ying pleaded.

Su Ming'an glanced at Dieying, Dieying showing a face ready to watch a good show.

Ignoring Xiao Ying's plea, he flipped over the black bird sculpture, looking at the bottom. Curious about what kind of words could make Xiao Ying love it dearly, even betray the whole world for the related temptation? He himself had forgotten what was written at the bottom of the black bird sculpture, it was just something he casually gave away.

At the moment he saw the words, he too showed brief astonishment, his expression blank for a moment.

At this instant, he suddenly understood why Xiao Ying never valued this world.

He also suddenly understood why Xiao Ying always stayed away from the world's mainline, without any sense of responsibility.

All became reasonable.

At the bottom of the sculpture, only a line of calm words:

...

[—Made in China]

...

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