Chapter 963

Because this was the warmth he had longed for countless times but could never obtain during that fifty-thousand-year-long road of time—a road he had spent ten thousand years walking.

Meanwhile, the countdown on the System had entered the red; his time was truly running out.

Bai Ge looked at everyone with reluctance and spoke.

"Mobius, I know you're a gentle person, Snake, so go ahead and pursue our Infinity."

"Eden, I am someone who cannot get drunk, but your singing is the only treasure in this world that can intoxicate me."

"Aponia, you are no longer a slave to fate, but the eyes through which I see fate."

"My lovely Pardo, you must live every day happily, you hear me?"

"Little Griseo, your Bai Ge has returned to the color you like, hasn't he? Next time we meet, please paint to your heart's content on my wings again."

"Sakura, you must take good care of yourself; you are also someone who tends to push yourself too hard."

"Vill-V, my dear great inventor, I like you, and I like every one of your personalities."

"Mei, I know you are a romantic, so… if one day you truly become an enemy of the stars, you must remember to bring me along."

"Hua, you have never been an ordinary person; I know just how extraordinary your future will be."

"Kevin, Su, don't go having boring fights over child custody in the future, okay?"

"Kalpas, everyone actually knows about the gentleness you hide beneath that mask. Thank you for treating me like a brother."

"Kosma, sometimes don't overthink things, just bravely speak your heart. There's no need for longing; you are already a very remarkable hero as you are now."

"Finally, my good Elysia, our promise has been fulfilled. We have traveled to every city in the world, but… I still want to go to even more places with you."

Bai Ge activated his remaining sliver of Authority of Origin, constructing 15 magnificent crystal flowers of different colors, letting them drift into the hands of everyone, including himself.

"Don't go, Bai Ge, we can't be without you."

"Mm, I can't be without you all either."

"Next time, we will never let you get hurt again, and we will never let you bear everything alone again!"

"Live on—this is what we want to tell you. We will always be your comrades, companions, and family, Bai Ge."

"We will come to find you. No matter how distant the future you are in, we will come to find you!"

The Flame-Chasers held the crystal flowers in their hands, speaking as if making a vow.

They looked at the white-haired youth before them, whose body had reached the limit of collapse, yet who still smiled at them.

Each of them secretly made a certain resolution in their hearts.

Bai Ge only felt that he was very lucky and very happy. He was about to welcome an end, but surrounded by the people he loved, he felt unparalleled satisfaction and warmth.

"I should go back now. Goodbye, everyone, and goodbye, Previous Era. From now on, the stars will shine because I have been here; from now on, beauty will be eternal because I have never truly left!"

After giving his final blessing to everyone, Bai Ge's body turned into shattered crystal and finally dissipated completely.

After he vanished, everyone returned from the Golden Theater to the Elysian Realm. Countless items suddenly appeared: memory albums, golden wine glasses, expired instant noodles, the Mask of the Mad King, the snake's meat-toys, forget-me-not flowers…

These were all the mementos Bai Ge had accumulated from past cycles. There were many, many of them, but that was only natural, as he had accumulated them over a full 12 cycles.

Looking at these items, the Flame-Chasers' eyes grew wet once more. They picked up the items related to themselves, deciding to wait until the future to give them back to Bai Ge.

Elysia tremblingly picked up the albums one by one. Looking at the photos she had taken herself in the past, looking at the smile of the white-haired youth in them, she could not stop her weeping.

However, besides the albums, she had one additional gain: a marriage application form.

It was a memento she had given to Bai Ge in the first cycle, and now, all the information for both of them had been filled out.

On this day, Elysia's weeping echoed throughout the Elysian Realm.

……………………

……………………

Several hours later, in space near the lunar surface.

"Human… Bai Ge…"

The Herrscher of Finality regained consciousness.

After ten full days of self-recovery, the system crash caused by the Sword God had ended, and the Honkai energy she had lost had been fully replenished through the Imaginary Space she was connected to.

With the destroyer of civilization awake and the savior gone, there was no one left in this world who could stop her from resetting the time of the Previous Era.

Yet, in those brilliant golden eyes, although they were still filled with noble, sacred, and inviolable divinity…

Just like the other Herrschers, the Herrscher of Finality was no longer a puppet of the Honkai.

Therefore, no one knew.

At this moment, the Current Era was once again experiencing a crisis.

Because the Herrscher of Finality hesitated.

"…………"

This goddess of Honkai raised her hand, looking at the azure planet before her, but she delayed in activating her authority to rewind time to the dawn of civilization.

She recalled the 12 confrontations with the white-haired youth, as well as the words he had spoken.

"The value of civilization is not determined by whether it can withstand the embrace of Honkai. You have never walked upon the earth, never appreciated nature and art, and never witnessed the beauty and ugliness of human nature."

"Herrscher of Finality, since you have never felt the beauty nurtured by civilization, you have no right to judge it."

"…………"

The words of a youth had caused a god to waver.

This was something that should have been absolutely impossible.

Yet, having been planted with the seed of humanity and freed from the control of Honkai, the Herrscher of Finality felt deeply restless after recalling Bai Ge's words.

"What is this feeling, exactly?"

Of course, there were simply too many things Bai Ge had done to shake her; this was just one of them.

The Herrscher of Finality wore a complex expression. She raised a hand to touch her lips; although ten days had passed, the sensation of that kiss seemed to linger there still.

At the same time, she took off something from the top of her head—it was a gift in return for that kiss, a beautiful crystal crown ornament.

Even during her system crash, she had been able to sense her own situation, and the Herrscher of Finality found it very strange.

Clearly, she had felt nothing at the time, so why did she feel a sense of agitation now when recalling it?

But thinking about it now, Bai Ge had already taken away too many of her "firsts."

The first time she met an opponent who could fight her to that extent, the first time she was hugged, the first time she was kissed, the first time she received a gift, and the first time she was pranked, and so on and so forth.

"But my mission must be fulfilled."

The Herrscher of Finality said firmly.

Although the control of Honkai was gone, the mission she had performed countless times had long since become the instinct of the Herrscher of Finality. After hesitating for a moment…

She still moved to activate her authority on Earth.

Suddenly, a massive crimson-gold cross emblem appeared on the surface of the Earth. This was the mark of Honkai—the Death Spot—that only appeared when a Herrscher's Honkai energy was released to a level sufficient to destroy the world.

Then, the authority of time was activated, everything on the Earth's surface was wiped out, and the skyscrapers of the Previous Era rapidly diminished.

Soon, human civilization vanished, leaving only the vast Honkai energy filling the entire planet, and a new world consisting only of mountains, forests, and rivers after returning to the primordial state.

Even with the assistance of the 4th Divine Key, Echo of the World, to improve the environment and accelerate the progress of civilization, it would still take tens of thousands of years for the planet to develop into an environment suitable for human life.

"Mission, complete."

The Herrscher of Finality looked at the scene she had created. The ripples in her heart were not very large, as this was an unknown number of repetitions, but if it were the past her, not even this ripple would have emerged.

And after completing the mission given by Honkai, logically, she should have returned to the Cocoon.

Yet, the Herrscher of Finality did not do so.

"Just as you said, this time I will witness this world with my own eyes, witness human civilization. And… I must take proper revenge on you, you blasphemer, Bai Ge."

The Herrscher of Finality narrowed her eyes slightly, raising a hand to gently stroke the peak of her chest. Even though 11 cycles had passed, that sword strike that ignited the sea of stars remained fresh in her memory.

Even though the wound no longer existed, the memory would not forget. This goddess of Honkai had received more than just gifts, kisses, and hugs from Bai Ge.

She had also received immense humiliation and defeat!

12 times! A full 12 times!

As a god, she had been spared 12 times by a human youth! This was simply a supreme humiliation!

"Just you wait, Bai Ge. I will come to see you. The era fifty thousand years later, right? Then I'll just sleep until that moment. Anyway, I have… no interest in the civilization before you were born."

The Herrscher of Finality's body shrank, changing from her original thousand-meter height to the size of an ordinary human, and then she flew toward the reset Earth.

Like a certain planetary-level Honkai beast, she entered a deep slumber.

……………………

Three days after Bai Ge left.

Now that the civilization reset was complete, the outside world, filled with the Finality's massive Honkai energy, had become a terrible world where life could not persist.

Except for a few Fire Moth bases protected by special means, used specifically for the Current Era to "archaeologize," only the Elysian Realm remained unaffected.

"This state has lasted for three days? Is Elysia really going to be okay like this?"