Chapter 86: Zocoat's Linear Pocket Watch

In the desolate starry sky, the density of planets was extremely low; a sparse handful of stars were scattered across this border of the universe.

"How long have we known each other?" The man's battle armor was covered in cracks, with debris flaking off from time to time; the fragments on the armor dissolved into energy and vanished before they could hit the ground.

His eyes were weary, his long-unmanaged hair hung by the corners of his eyes, and the corner of his gaze rested on the sweet-looking girl beside him, who appeared to be about fifteen or sixteen.

The girl wore a long black formal dress, like a vivid black rose; one hand hung limply, and her jade-white skin bore web-like marks.

"607 years," she said softly. "That Spring Festival 607 years ago was the first time I saw you, my distant cousin."

"But we don't share any blood relation — your mom and my mom just got their wires crossed while chatting." The man drew a slender purple sword from the shattered void; dark, profound energy surged and roared, and as this weapon, exiled in chaotic spacetime, came into the world, an omen of primordial chaos descending appeared across the entire universe.

"Never thought that after twelve years I'd get tangled up with you in so many ways — life really is unpredictable…"

Shasashasa—

On his other side, several hundred powerhouses of different races raised their weapons and stared ahead.

One hundred thousand light-years away—

A colossal beast, vast as a star domain, was continuously collapsing as it lunged, carrying the world-annihilating power of Returning Ruins toward a barren planet.

The man gave a casual swing — nothing visible changed — but the beast split clean in two, exploding into two bursts of energy.

"Fala."

A fiery-red figure answered the call, stepping out, shifting from illusion into reality.

"How's the Western Realm Gate?"

"Destroyed."

A tall girl with straight, fiery-red hair and slanted bangs across her forehead flipped through the pages of the book in her hand, until one page overflowed outward with the intent of destruction and collapse.

"You really don't need me to record you?" Fala shot a glance at the man ahead. "Living as part of my collection isn't bad, you know."

"You could even have a child."

"With me."

A streak of azure divine light shot toward Fala; before it could make contact, it transformed into a book's frontispiece and drifted gently to the ground.

"There's something I've been wanting to say for a long time."

The man took two steps forward:

"Luo Shengying, your temper is way too violent — it's just like that thing that was popular in anime a few hundred years ago, what was it…"

"Oh, I remember now — just like a tsundere little loli, even though you're already 622 years old."

He paid no attention to Luo Shengying, whose eyes had grown sharp as a blade, and instead spoke on his own to the other girl — Fala, with her fiery-red hair:

"And you, Fala — you've been wanting to make me a collectible for 593 years now. You're just a collector freak; every thing you like, you want to keep."

"Just for some library fragment you got from god-knows-where, you hit me with a forbidden curse the first time we met!"

"The yandere type is already passé, sis — and it's all because of you two…"

"I'm goddamn 630 — no, 637 years old! And I'm still a virgin!"

The man's eyes were vacant, his tone mournful; the scene was truly one to make listeners weep and onlookers grieve.

Someone off to the side let out a laugh.

A hand shattered space and clamped around the neck of a handsome man with golden hair and green eyes.

"Maierkeqiao Nanfeng, something funny?" the man said, his tone unfriendly and laced with a chilling killing intent.

"Yes, my Commander-in-Chief," the golden-haired, green-eyed handsome man replied candidly. "Because I have seventeen wives, and they all get along harmoniously — hahahahahahahaha."

"Cluck cluck—"

The man squeezed hard, turning the golden-haired man's laughter into a strangled squawk.

The comical moment briefly eased the murderous atmosphere.

The man hurled the golden-haired man away, sending him crashing through a stone mountain ten kilometers off.

He withdrew his right hand from the rift and continued complaining to the two women:

"You two are too outstanding! I've lusted after your bodies — I admit it, I'm despicable."

"But how long are you two going to keep this up? Stop toying with me, will you?"

"I don't want to be part of this jealousy drama anymore."

"For several hundred years now, the moment I touch one of you, the other beats me up."

"Of course," he shifted his tone, his voice growing calm, "actually none of this matters anymore. After all, at my level of cultivation, mortal desires aren't all that important."

"How much appeal can flesh and blood on a skeleton really have?"

"All things grow, are born and perish in strife; only heaven, earth, and the cosmos are eternal."

"Therefore, the beauty of the soul alone is worthy of admiration."

"Your souls, in my eyes, both radiate light — like the most exquisite works of art in the world." Rainbow-colored light flowed through the man's pupils. "And set against those rotting, deformed souls out there, you two are simply too beautiful for words."

"Look." The man pointed his sword toward a direction ahead. "The evil beasts are coming."

In the endless dark starry sky, at some unknown point, space had twisted like a crumpled rag.

After countless instantaneous spirals, thirteen figures stepped out from where the cosmos had twisted and shattered.

One was a formless, colorless chaos, deformed all over, yet with every writhing motion one could glimpse the creation and destruction of worlds.

One had twelve wings on its back, half pitch-black and half pure white, sacred and majestic; wherever its gaze fell, all chaos turned to order.

One was an elder in imperial robes, with an immortal's bearing and Daoist bones; a precious gourd hovered behind him, flickering between void and substance, while yin and yang energies coiled around his body — like an Immortal King descending.

Each and every one of them was a Cosmos Sovereign — the pinnacle existence of their respective worlds.

"Destroying the realm gate is meaningless."

A gorgeously dressed woman of indescribable beauty spoke in a cold, clear voice; as she opened her mouth, the sound of the Great Dao resonated.

"The last Hess Realm Gate has also been destroyed, but that merely buys you a little more time to cling to life."

"Even if you haven't reached Breakthrough Realm, six Cosmos Sovereigns alone cannot stop the tide."

An old man said with a smile, "You and I fighting here has no meaning whatsoever. Every demise of a Sovereign is merely a brief slumber."

"At most, it's waking once more from an anchor point in the river of time, taking a bit of effort to return to the present."

"The destiny of this world is to open the great door ahead for us. Everyone, can we sit down together and have a proper talk? I think you too are quite interested in the road ahead."

The man paid no attention to the thirteen Sovereigns above, treating them as air, and continued along the previous topic, speaking to the two women:

"So, I feel this youthful romance drama of ours should be about wrapped up. If we count only by this world's time, I'm already 637 years old."

"I'm truly sick of it."

"You two stop keeping me company, and you lot too." He pointed at the hundred-plus powerhouses. "Remember, give the original Earth descendants a bit more care. I quite like their way of thinking and acting right now, so I'm willing to risk my life for them."

The man jerked his thumb toward the thirteen Sovereigns in the cosmic void.

"That bunch of arrogant idiots think I'm stalling for time to buy the living beings of this universe a chance, but they don't know—I intend to slaughter every last one of them."

"I blew up the Realm Gate because I was afraid I wouldn't be able to stop myself from butchering their world."

When the man finished speaking, the crowd fell utterly silent, until a beast-like creature with three horns on its head and pale-blue scales resembling a giant wolf said, "We don't know about any of that you just said…"

"Didn't we come here to risk our lives alongside you?"

"Take a rest." The man said with a look of disdain. "Setting aside those other few cheaters, if everyone else combined could pin down even one, that'd be doing well. Enough, one person risking his life is plenty."

"Oh right, when you lot head home later, remember to bring Maierkeqiao? Nanfeng along—he's over there."

【Manifestation Points:】

If it weren't for these idiots coming to this world to stir up trouble, using these points for cultivation, after one yuanhui he might have been able to transcend.

There's no time… If I want to cut the weeds and dig up the roots, there's only one way.

【Ultimate Sublimation】

【Manifestation Points: 0】

Withering and flourishing in an instant, the cocoon breaks and a butterfly emerges.

All the years, transformed into a single instant of dazzling, eye-catching Primordial Light.

All existence, merged into the present body, the foundation turned into burning firewood.

Casting away the possibility of Nirvana, Ultimate Sublimation!

No one knows when this battle ended—maybe only ten minutes?

They had imagined many times how brutal this battle would be, what would happen if they won, what would happen if they lost.

From the moment they left their respective worlds and races to join this hundred-strong squad of the strongest, they had imagined many possible endings.

Only…

This possibility…

Commander of the 27-Realm Alliance Army, original Earth descendant, Su Lin.

With one hand, he crushed the skull of the last enemy Sovereign; that Sovereign's soul turned to dust in his grasp.

"Sorry, Xiaoying, Fala." Su Lin's body began to overflow with specks of light; in the universe, the sound of the Great Dao was like music, unceasing like threads.

"Let the story end here."

"He's about to dissolve into the Dao…."

"Where did Hedaozi go?" A man in tattered clothes stepped across space, grabbed a middle-aged man in a long robe behind him: "Your Wondrous Spirit Pills, hand them over!"

"It's useless…."

"His Dao has burned out…."

Hedaozi watched with complicated feelings as Su Lin dissolved into the Dao in the distance.

Fala and Luo Shengying came to Su Lin's side; Fala attempted to turn Su Lin into a book.

"Save it." Su Lin smiled. "There's nothing left worth recording."

"Don't cry, alright?"

Luo Shengying stuffed something cold into Su Lin's hand. "Remember? This is what you gave me on the day Earth was destroyed."

"It's useless… I have no past." Su Lin looked toward his own river of time; only faint traces remained there.

But it was quite splendid…

Just a few more regrets…

I thought I was the protagonist of a slice-of-life story—how did it end up like this?

"Even if I could start over, I wouldn't want to take over everything belonging to another version of myself. That's just a Fake World line."

"Fala, stop crying. You've never cried before. I like your Bingshan face—hurry, look at me with that lofty gaze of yours."

Half of Su Lin's body had already dissolved into the Dao; spiritual energy in this universe surged wildly, and in the future more living beings would travel further along the path of the Dao.

*Snap*

It was an antique silver pocket watch. Luo Shengying flipped open the pocket watch, grabbed the only hand Su Lin had left, and a barrier sent Fala flying.

Fala sensed something was wrong, drew out a book; the pages scattered, transforming into various strange sights that struck at that barrier.

Unexpectedly, Luo Shengxue, whose cultivation was lower than hers, was completely unaffected.

Luo Shengying's aura kept climbing; black lightning ravaged the void.

"…." Hedaozi pulled out a cloud-patterned pill. "At the very least this can save Luo Shengying, if she's willing to keep living."

"Xiaoying…."

Luo Shengying pulled Su Lin into her embrace, gripped Su Lin's thumb and placed it together on the second hand, staring fixedly into his eyes: "You're mine!"

Her tone was calm, her voice light and clear.

Luo Shengying stuck out her tongue and made a face at Fala, then pressed the button on the pocket watch.

"607 years ago! January first!"

——————————

January 1, 2023 AD.

Luo Shengying woke up on the bed wearing a dinosaur pajama, her smooth black hair falling over her shoulders.

She looked around in a daze, then remembered this was her old room.

She glanced at the pocket watch in her palm; it was spinning counterclockwise.

The room was filled with her favorite plushies — Doraemon, Winnie the Pooh, Donald Duck.

Warm-toned wallpaper, a typical maiden's boudoir.

Some plushies were placed by the bed, some on the shelf; in the corner not far from the bookcase, a brand-new desktop computer sat on the desk.

This was the reward her parents had promised her for ranking first in the final exams of her first semester of Gao Yi.

A brand-new computer capable of running big games.

In those days, her family's finances were still fairly decent.

A frail body.

That was Luo Shengying's assessment of her current state.

She couldn't even smash through a single reinforced-concrete building.

Su Lin hadn't lied to her — a few hundred years ago, when Earth had just been destroyed, she'd thought it was a trick to coax little girls.

"If you want to escape, then escape. Go back to the past, be your fated heroine. Only everything in this timeline will have nothing to do with you."

On the original Earth's orbit, Su Lin stood atop an iron tower floating in the cosmos, holding out the pocket watch to her.

That pocket watch really could send her back to the past.

She adjusted to her current body, got out of bed and slipped on cotton slippers, a faint blush on her cute little face.

She'd been in the air-conditioned room too long; her face was a little red.

Walking to the bedroom door, she felt a little nervous….

Dad… Mom…

A trail of clear tears slid down her face.

Inside she was a little thrilled, because in a moment she would see the parents she hadn't seen in several hundred years.

But Su Lin…

Had he come back?

Anxious and excited feelings — Luo Shengying pressed her lips together.

Just like that, she stood before the bedroom door for over ten minutes.

"…"

Wiping her tears dry, Luo Shengying, with a faint smile, gripped the door handle and pulled the bedroom door open.

At worst, after seeing her parents she'd return to the future and accompany him in his dissolution into Dao.

Leaving together with him would be fine too.

Her parents were watching TV — a football match was playing — and in front of the coffee table sat a plate of peanuts and shredded squid.

"Dad… Mom…"

Those two words, both strange and familiar — Luo Shengying had almost forgotten how to pronounce them.

"Oh my!"

Luo Shengying's mother, Su Bizhu, hurriedly stood up.

"Baby, why are your eyes red?"

She ran to Luo Shengying's side, touched her face with her hand, and asked worriedly, "Who bullied you? Tell Mommy, what's wrong?"

"Mm… wu…"

Her emotions slipped out of control again — she was no longer that peak Cosmos King Luo Shengying; she couldn't even control her own feelings.

"Mommy!"

She hugged her mother and cried bitterly; her father, Luo Chenglin, also sprang up from the sofa with a whoosh.

After crying for roughly several minutes, Luo Shengying finally stopped sobbing in her mother's arms.

"It's nothing… really…" she said in a choked voice.

"Really nothing?" Luo Chenglin was a little worried. "Good girl, if there's anything, tell Daddy, don't be afraid."

"Dad, Mom, are we going back to the hometown for New Year?" Luo Shengying asked.

"That's right, we haven't gone back in five years." Su Bizhu, thinking her daughter didn't want to go back, said, "If you don't want to go, that's fine too, we'll just stay in Suzhou."

Luo Chenglin had just been about to say something when his wife glared at him, and he instantly went silent.

"Dad, can you help me ask — your cousin-sister-in-law has a second aunt, and that second aunt has a daughter named Liu Yumei. Help me ask what Liu Yumei's son's name is."

Luo Chenglin and his wife exchanged a look, checked the time — it wasn't too late — so he made a phone call.

"Okay, mm, nothing, nothing, mm."

"Okay, bye cousin-sister-in-law, come back for New Year and play mahjong."

Luo Chenglin hung up the phone and told his daughter, "They say his name is Su Lin, graduated from college half a year ago."

"What's wrong, daughter? Do you know him?"

Luo Shengying's face lit up at the words. "Thank you, Mom and Dad! I'm going to bed first!"

She ran back to her bedroom, hugged her Doraemon plushie, and smiled.

"What could be so happy?"

A familiar voice sounded by her ear.

Without thinking, she answered, "Su Lin is still alive."

"Of course I'm still alive — what nonsense are you talking?"

"..."

"..."

She turned her head to look, and a half-transparent figure stood there looking at her.