Chapter 1024: Weng Falos 3.0 (70)

If Weng Falos's Heichi disaster stems from a stellar core, it at least offers a possible origin for the birth of the Black Hole calamity.

"At the root, the source of Weng Falos's disaster still lies in Heichi; as long as Heichi is not eradicated for a single day, it will keep corroding other Titans— even Demigods who have held divine offices are at risk of infection."

"I get it, I get it!" Xixi Fu shoved a huge mouthful of chips into her mouth and said vaguely, "So that's like only suppressing the skeletons that appear in the Black Hole, but not investigating why the Black Hole expands, right? What was that saying again? Oh right—'Treating the symptom, not the cause'!"

"It's rare that Xixi Fu's metaphor is so spot‑on," Ling praised with a smile. "But you're right; I think the Fire Pursuit Journey, after dealing with several especially aggressive Titans and merging the fire seeds, should slow its pace and first investigate the cause of Heichi. Unless the 'Recreation of the World' in the divine edict can eradicate Heichi."

——

"Lord Genaeus… what do you intend to do?"

Genaeus replied calmly: "Courage, glory, sacrifice, resilience—they are all extensions of me… From the whispers of the soul fragments, I have reached a conclusion—Nicadoli's soul has already rotted, with no chance of redemption."

Xing: "How shall we stop it?"

"There is only one path. The seal that bound divinity has been lifted. If we complete the soul‑forging here, Nicadoli can be restored to wholeness. You will battle a near‑apex Titan; simultaneously, the glory of god‑slaying will blossom before you."

"…And you, Lord Genaeus?"

"I will return to the source, becoming a fragment of Nicadoli's divinity," Genaeus said calmly, gazing at the statue before him. "Corrosion will probably engulf me, but to end the madness, this step is unavoidable."

"Are you willing to sacrifice for a… future you cannot witness?"

"That is my origin, my mission. I am not mortal, and I do not fear death—yet, do you intend to mourn for me?" Genaeus turned his head toward Xia Die.

Xia Die lowered her eyelids: "All partings in this world are sorrowful, sir."

"We have known each other only briefly, yet I have learned much from you. So, before I depart, let me teach you a lesson—" Genaeus said solemnly, word for word, "Do not despise your gifts, do not hate death. The greatness of the journey, the grandeur of the epic, stem from the fact that all things have their time to pass."

——

Slash Crimson Eye.

"The grandeur of the epic is because… all things have their time to pass."

Tazmi repeatedly chewed over this sentence, and for a moment felt goosebumps all over his body.

What this Titan of Conflict sought to convey was not merely an attitude toward death, but a discussion of life's meaning. Because all things have their time to pass, what they do now seems especially significant.

"Hey hey, have you noticed something?" Leonae tipped his head, downed a mouthful of wine, wiped his lips and said, "If they now restore Nicadoli to wholeness, it's tantamount to altering the timeline; from a certain perspective, Xing and Xia Die… directly rewrote causality!"

"Huh? But… isn't this a memory space? How can one traverse time and alter causality?"

"No, listen carefully; they are still within the memory space created by Mimi." Leonae raised his hand toward the sky; above the statue, the sounds of Bai E, Wandi, and others battling Nicadoli kept echoing, especially Nicadoli's roar, resonating over Xuanfengcheng.

"Memory" and "reality" are interweaving, even influencing each other.

"If this were time travel, then Wandi's battle hasn't occurred yet," Nageta exhaled a ring of smoke, eyes complex as she stared at the sky: "In fact, within the 'Memory' they help Nicadoli assemble his divine soul to wholeness; that act can affect the Nicadoli existing in reality centuries later. This can no longer be answered by 'miraculous feats'…"

"Genaeus is right; Olronis's power could never achieve this, but is this Mimi's power? Or the power of Xing after being glanced at by Fu Li? It feels completely different from the 【Memory】 destiny power displayed by the Black Swan earlier…"

——

"…As the embodiment of 【Conflict】, yet you tell me about the world's magnificence? How ironic…"

After hearing Genaeus's words, Xia Die's brows furrowed slightly, seeming unwilling to accept his view.

Genaeus: "Only when placed in Conflict can civilization grow. Humans are born to despise suffering, yet only suffering can teach one to stand firm…"

At this moment, the sounds of the ongoing battle in reality kept echoing, and Xing also realized they could not delay further, stepping forward and saying, "If we must fight you… then let us fight."

"She understands the meaning of battle better than you; perhaps she can be your inspiration. If you die beneath my spear, you need not try to grasp these words; if you can bury me… promise me, you will use the fire seed as fuel, raise a blaze, and continue to resist Heichi."

Xia Die solemnly nodded: "I… on behalf of all the Golden Descendants, accept your request."

Genaeus gave a slight nod.

He abruptly turned, facing the silent statue behind him, chest out: "I am the Divine Punishment Spear, Nicadoli—messenger of the chaotic world, embodiment of Conflict!"

Like clashing blades, iron fire forged, each word rose as a proclamation from the abyss:

"Remember— I am the necessary scar of this world!"

Boom—!

The statue's sword blade suddenly emitted a golden lightning, instantly engulfing Genaeus!

Accompanied by his roar, Xing suddenly felt the stone slab beneath his feet emit a deep rumble, slowly rising as if an invisible palm lifted the altar, pushing it into a higher void.

And in that instant—

Xing suddenly sensed the world before his eyes shift— as if the tapestry of time had several warp threads abruptly pulled, causing two previously unconnected temporal planes to suddenly overlap.

Dan Heng's shadow swept past her, passing right through her arm.

It was not a solid form, yet not merely an illusion. Xing looked up to see Dan Heng, Bai E, and others locked in combat with Nicadoli, and they clearly sensed his presence.

"Did you hear that?"

"What?"

"They're back!"

High above, as Nicadoli descended wielding a blade, Genaeus suddenly surged from behind the crowd, staunchly blocking the strike.

At the instant the two blades crossed, time seemed to freeze… reality and memory overlapped, past and present merged. Xing and Xia Die's figures returned to the crowd's sight.

Genaeus slowly looked back.

"Defeat me—give me the ending a warrior deserves."