Chapter 219: Return

In the afternoon, wind stirred the treetops, rustling loudly.

Kleine held a fountain pen, writing a letter; not far to his right, on the desk, sat a photo frame with a mounted photograph inside.

In the photo, a woman of sacred, untouchable grace—before whom all praise paled—stared blankly ahead, her eyes lifeless as a doll's, yet her very existence symbolized the finest form of life.

"Dear Mr. Azk."

"The war is drawing to a close; life is slowly returning to normal. Seeing the bustling streets, I recall my time in Tinggen, when I first joined the Night Watch team."

"The world has changed greatly…"

"I suspect that after the barrier lifts, those powerful beings will still descend, but the planet's end should not come—they dare not act recklessly."

"Yet their very existence is a disaster; unless they leave this planet, they might destroy a nation merely by turning over in their sleep."

"Sometimes I wonder: is being an extraordinary one a blessing or a curse? We spend our days fighting madness, already deformed along chaotic, twisted paths—but without such power, how could we protect our loved ones?"

"In every age, the masses are swept along by the tide; they create history, yet do not write it. For most, death comes without knowing why, and life has no purpose."

"A clear future does not mean I can stop and enjoy leisure; every gift from fate has already been priced in secret. I owe the future of a world, so I will strive to repay it—to the best of my ability."

"I am about to travel far, to a place beyond the edge of this universe, to become the Sequence One, the Weird Attendant. It will be wondrous and perilous."

"If you can, when you awaken, I invite you to come with me."

"Your eternal student, Kleine Mo Leidi."

After blowing the brass whistle to send the letter with the messenger, Kleine suddenly felt he had forgotten something.

Spiritual omens never arise without cause, yet Kleine could not recall what it was—important? Or not important at all.

"I seem to have forgotten who an important person was…"

Kleine decided to perform a divination.

He placed the twenty-two Tarot cards on the table, shuffled them randomly, then drew one according to spiritual guidance.

"The Emperor card? Lu Mingfei? No, wait—"

Even as a Sequence Two Angel, Kleine felt the illusion of cold sweat dripping from his scalp.

Kleine: "Su Lin, you'd better come back—there's a guy still locked in a cage."

Su Lin: "Who?"

Kleine: "The Witch's Flavor."

Su Lin: "Alright."

On a hidden island, the resurrected Rosell was staring longingly at the dark, towering peak of the Jin Zita within his mausoleum.

"Anyone there? Huh? Is anyone there?"

"Is there anyone at all!!!"

Rosell struck the barrier again and again, trying to alter the rules, yet still unable to escape; to ensure he remained imprisoned, he had willingly become the core of this seal.

Before the highest rule he himself established, and the prison forged by two deities and the Source Altar's power, he could only obediently remain a prisoner.

"Fellow countryman! I'm sorry! But the Fallen Mother God forced me! I had no choice!"

"Hey~ Can you hear me?"

"You don't have to let me out! Just give me some games and snacks! If another Witch shows up, fine—I've given up lust."

"Hey! Is anyone there?! If you don't let me out, I'll go berserk and turn into a baboon with curly hair!"

"Huff, huff~! Eeeehhh!"

How long has it been? Rosell felt his contamination had long since vanished completely, yet no one came to release him.

After his daily ritual of shouting, he used the Black Emperor's Law to temporarily revert his physical condition to that of an ordinary human, intending to try the hardest game—but accidentally spotted a game in the library called "Punish the Witch."

Morality has collapsed; society has decayed.

Why did I only notice now? It must be because the Fallen Mother God's influence ran too deep—I couldn't focus.

Games like this abomination should be deleted—deleted entirely.

Before deleting it, I must verify it first; as a benevolent monarch, I cannot wrongfully execute the innocent.

As white light flashed on the screen and Rosell waited for the loading to complete…

"Dad."

Boom!

In that instant, Rosell, in his mortal form, smashed the 64-inch plasma TV before him with a single punch.

The blood dripping from his hand and his murderous gaze were just as they had been centuries ago—the ruler seated upon the Black Iron Wang Zuo, the sovereign of the Intis Empire, Emperor Rosell.

He! Has returned!

"Dad, what's wrong? Are you alright?" Bernadette's voice brimmed with concern, laced with urgency—hard to imagine the mysterious Queen, who always remained calm in any situation, could ever be so flustered.

"I'm fine." Rosell gritted his teeth, muscles tensing in his arm. "Just a minor wound."

"You're here, Bernadette." Rosell tidied his disheveled hair from days of indulgence, revealing a genuine smile.

"At last, I can properly see you, my little Princess."

"When did you arrive?"

"Just now, when you were imitating a baboon." Bernadette's eyes were filled with worry; she glanced toward the shadow beside her and asked, "Uncle Zhongli, is my father alright? His spirit seems… not quite right."

Rosell's gaze sharpened—he suddenly realized Zhongli and Su Lin had been standing there in the shadows all along.

Zhongli answered calmly, "There should be no issue. His contamination has long been purged."

"Then why is he…" Bernadette looked puzzled at Rosell.

"There's still a little contamination! The Evil God's pollution is inside me—in the depths of my soul!" Rosell struggled back onto the high-backed throne. He tried to support his head with his right hand, but the pain was too great—he switched to his left. "Just a little more. Please, help me."

"Bernadette, leave for now. When the contamination is fully purged, I'll come find you."

【Zeroing】

【One million multiplied by thirty-three thousand three hundred thirty-three】

Su Lin, pressing buttons on a calculator, said to Bernadette, "It's fine, it'll be quick."

Seeing this, Bernadette could only nod, cast one last reluctant glance at Russell, and left.

"That's the only television left from ancient times," Su Lin said calmly. "The entire world has only this one."

After a moment of silence, Russell, clutching his injured arm, said, "Sorry, I can fix it."

"If apologies worked, what would the police be for?" Su Lin raised an eyebrow and snapped his fingers, dissolving each of the bindings formed from the power of Light Order.

"Then—"

"Help me with something in a while."

For the help of these fellow countrymen, not even one hundred tasks would be too much for Russell—if he could do them.

Of course, exceptions applied to anything involving Bernadette.

Zhongli sighed slightly, then dispelled the array he had set.

After the array dissolved, Russell saw two more people and a dog emerge from the corridor behind Su Lin.

One stood nearly two meters tall, with a kindly face; the other had long black hair cascading down his back, eyes like starlight, a smile on his lips—beautiful enough to topple nations.

Fuck! Something's wrong!

Russell instantly realized: even though he was now an ordinary human, his rank still remained—he shouldn't still be affected by "charm"! What the hell was this man?!

"Is this the Witch Empress?" the dog spoke human words.

Russell froze—he was still a transcendent creature.

But who was the Witch Empress?

"Dou Dou, show respect to a true god! You must call him Emperor Russell," Song Shuhang reminded him, then turned to Russell and said, "Emperor, could I take a photo and get your autograph?"

Song Shuhang didn't normally chase autographs or fandom—this was because Su Lin had recently posted a photo of Russell's handwritten signature, which he found highly collectible.

Russell blinked, wondering if these two were also fellow countrymen—how many survivors from the Old Era still remained in this world?

Russell looked questioningly at Su Lin, who introduced them: "Song Shuhang, Bai, and that Pekingese is King Dou Dou. They wanted to see you, the famous one, so they came along."

"Who the hell is spreading my business everywhere?" Russell frowned.

"Didn't you write it all in your diary?" Su Lin countered.

"When I get out, I'll burn it all," Russell felt utterly defeated. "Where's Zhou Mingrui? Why isn't he here?"

"He's traveling across the world using the traits of the Mysterious Servant, accumulating wishes," Zhongli observed Russell's current state, then pulled from his storage pouch the transcendent trait left behind after George III's fall. "I wish to make a personal covenant with you."

"What?"

"After you recover, you must secretly protect Zhou Mingrui before he becomes the Fool," Zhongli said calmly, his golden eyes filled with seriousness.

"Amon has already become a dual-pathway true god—he's under immense pressure."

"And we are about to depart."

Russell did not ask where Zhongli and Su Lin were going—he simply nodded and promised, "No problem."

After returning from the mysterious island to the Kingdom of Rune.

Inside Dorn Tantais's villa.

Zhongli said to Su Lin, "You left in such a hurry earlier—I never got to ask how your current state is."

"My emotions are more stable now. Occasionally I lose control, but it's better than before—when I was obsessively disciplined every day," Su Lin said. He still found this state more interesting; though he once retained humanity, that rigid senior-brother demeanor clearly wasn't his true nature.

"Once the effect of the Seven Emotions Tea fades, it'll be fine—shouldn't take long," Zhongli thought for a moment, then asked Su Lin, "Are you alright? You also have a share of George III's transcendent trait and singularity."

"Though it was meant to combat the Fallen Mother Goddess and the corruption of the God-Abandoned Lands, I consented to share Amon's light arts—imperfect, a shortcut, exploiting loopholes, but powerful. It might become a variable," Su Lin said, gazing calmly at the distant scenery.

"He won't abandon his bid for the position of the Secret Master just because of the power I've shown."

"Only by adding our own variables can we restrain him. Huang Tao wasn't the first variable—but he's currently the most useful one."

"Pity Amon was on our side back then—if he hadn't been, I could've just taken off his monocle."

Zhongli smiled slightly.

"You did this to help me escape the corruption—thank you."

"When we return, I'll host a banquet at Xin Yue Pavilion. Coincidentally, this year's Sea Lantern Festival is coming—I'd like to invite everyone to experience the customs of Liyue."

"Wasn't that the promise of the corrupted you?" Su Lin blinked, then laughed. "Remember to bring money."

"His promise is also my true inner thought," Zhongli said, turning to Su Lin. "At Xin Yue Pavilion, you don't need to bring money—you can charge it."

Moments later, watching Zhongli's retreating back, Su Lin no longer felt the urgency to leave as he had earlier that morning.

He entered a room, summoned a sheet of paper, picked up a pen, and drew a complex symbol blending "Invisibility" and "Observation."

Five seconds later, the full-length mirror Su Lin had retrieved from history grew deep and shimmered with watery light, coalescing into silver words.

"The most beautiful light in this world."

Crack!

The mirror shattered. Su Lin, relying on the Anchor of Holy Light, flashed to a deep location within the God-Abandoned Lands and retrieved the mirror's true body from Uroboros.

Adam was still in his final struggle with his human side—full integration would take at least several months.

Uroboros showed no reaction to Su Lin taking Arlothes; he remained seated in the same posture.

Su Lin took a photo of Uroboros—the white-haired beauty was, unfortunately, a man. The True Creator might be insane, but all his subordinates were stunningly beautiful.

"O Almighty, Supreme, and Vastly Benevolent God of Light! Your humble, loyal, and meek servant Arlothes is overjoyed to meet you."

"May I humbly ask—if you could return me to my master? After answering, you may ask me one question."

Arlothes's surface trembled visibly, like a keyboard warrior realizing someone had traced his IP.

Though aware of Su Lin's connection to Miss Kelaien, it felt uneasy around Su Lin—not because of Su Lin's combat power.

Others didn't know, but it had seen: inside Su Lin's body, a tiny, cloaked figure of light was stirring, its cloak's edge peering at it. Just what was this being now?

"No rush," Su Lin said cheerfully. "You know what I want to do."

After a pause, Arlothes's surface displayed text: "It's not very good… my master might object."

"Don't you find it fascinating?" Su Lin asked.

"It is indeed fascinating," Arodos replied. "If I refuse, what will you do? One question."

"The Abyss's Sea of Light Elements lacks a high-rank sealing artifact to plug the sea's eye."

"Your loyal Arodos is willing to serve!"

Earth of this world.

After emerging from the portal, Su Lin flew toward the location of his old home.

After confirming the future person was not at home, Su Lin entered through the community's main gate, took the elevator, and stood outside the door, falling silent.

Su Lin glanced at the door number—it was indeed his home.

Two door gods hung above it.

One had a back-turned six-winged form, clad in a classical long robe; the other radiated immortal aura, dressed in a purple imperial robe.

Both wore masks—clearly himself and Su Tuoni from the earlier TV broadcast.