Chapter 663: The Supreme One

His mind was trying to comprehend what he saw, but that thing was too huge—so huge that his mind couldn't contain it.

"Ailisi Feier."

The four words that came from his mouth were hoarse, not sounding like his own.

His gaze remained fixed on that thing in the sky, unable to shift, and unwilling to shift.

"Did you see it?"

Ailisi Feier gave no answer.

She stood on the other side of the car door, her hand still resting on the door handle, but that hand had stopped moving.

Her silvery long hair fluttered in the night wind, and her red eyes reflected the golden figure in the sky; that figure burned within her pupils like two ignited flames.

Her lips moved slightly.

"Saw it."

The two words that left her mouth were soft, without fear or panic, just Calm.

Weber's hand slipped out of his pocket, trembling; he clenched it into a fist, his nails digging into his palm, and the sting brought him a little out of his daze.

"What exactly is that?"

The question wasn't for Ailisi Feier; it was for himself.

But he didn't know the answer; there was no answer in his mind, nothing at all, only that vast golden scene.

Perspective shift.

Winterwood City, another street.

Yuanban Shichen's boots struck the sidewalk, producing a crisp sound.

Sakura followed behind him, her purple long hair fluttering in the night wind; she wasn't holding a sniper rifle, that thing was too conspicuous to carry now.

She only carried a Handgun, hidden in the inner pocket of her school uniform jacket.

Shi Chen's footsteps suddenly halted.

Sakura's steps also stopped.

Her body leaned forward slightly, nearly colliding with Shi Chen's back, but she steadied herself at the last moment.

She lifted her head, looking at Shi Chen's silhouette; the ruby staff was still planted on the ground, but its rhythm had already become erratic.

"Father?"

Shi Chen gave no answer.

He stood there, looking up at the sky.

His chin was slightly lifted, his eyes indistinguishable in the streetlight's glow, yet that focus sent a chill down Sakura's back.

Sakura followed his gaze upward to the sky.

The black sky, a few stars, and a thin veil of clouds drifting slowly.

There was nothing else.

"Father?"

She called out again, this time a bit louder.

Shi Chen's hand moved slightly.

The ruby staff rose from the ground, gripped in his palm, his knuckles whitening.

His lips moved a few times, as if saying something, but the voice was too faint for Sakura to hear.

"Sakura."

The single syllable that left his mouth carried a heavy tone.

"Come stand behind me."

Sakura didn't ask why.

She took two steps forward, moved behind Shi Chen, stood there, and her other hand slipped into the inner pocket of the school uniform jacket, finding the Handgun's grip.

Shi Chen was still looking at the sky.

The ruby staff rose from the ground, its tip pointing at the thing he was watching in the sky.

The motion wasn't an attacking stance, but more an instinctive reaction, like someone reaching out in darkness to feel a wall, trying to locate themselves.

His hand was trembling.

Yuanban Shichen's hand was trembling.

Sakura saw the tremor, and her pupils contracted.

She had never seen Shi Chen's hand shake— not even when he was surrounded by insects in the church, nor when those Noble Phantasms rained down from the sky, his hand never trembled.

But now, the ruby staff's tip quivered in the air, like a leaf stirred by wind.

"Father."

Sakura's voice came from behind Shi Chen.

"What did you see?"

Shi Chen gave no answer.

His gaze remained fixed on that thing in the sky, his mind whirring rapidly, thoughts swirling like stirred vortices inside his head, making him feel a bit dizzy.

He saw Order.

Not the word "Order," but Order itself.

The figure hanging down from the sky was Order itself.

It was not a symbol, not a representation, not a metaphor—just Order itself.

He wasn't sure why he knew these.

Those insights didn't emerge from his mind; they seeped from that thing in the sky, like rain soaking into cracked earth, needing no collection—it just entered.

Shi Chen's hand dropped from midair.

The ruby staff's tip hit the ground, producing a faint sound.

His hand was still trembling, but he clenched it, clenching until his knuckles turned white, and the staff's shaft creaked softly in his palm.

"Sakura."

When that word left his mouth, his voice was much steadier.

"Can't you see what's up in the sky?"

Sakura shook their head.

Shi Chen was silent for a second.

"Then don't look."

Winterwood City, Abandoned Factory.

Yan Feng Qili stood beside the pile of discarded machines, his hands in the pockets of his black priest's robe.

On the vacant ground before him lay two people.

One was Sha Jin.

The once flamboyant, peacock‑like clothing was now smeared with dust and blood, its original color unrecognizable.

His face was covered in ash, lips pale, eyes closed, breathing so light that without close inspection you could not see his chest rise.

A few golden weights lay scattered at his side, their glow dimmed, like lamps about to go out.

The other was Jiantong Shen'er.

He lay on a heap of rags and dust, his clothes torn in several places, the exposed skin marked with red streaks as if something had strangled him.

Yan Feng's gaze swept over the two bodies, then rose, landing on the ceiling.

The factory's ceiling was high, so high that the steel framework above was reduced in the darkness to vague outlines.

The steel beams crisscrossed overhead, like a half‑woven net.

What is up there in the sky?

Yan Feng's eyes pierced the gaps in the steel, fixing on that stretch of sky.

Those gray eyes glowed in the darkness.

There was no expression on the face.

Then he heard a voice.

The voice did not come from above nor from outside the factory, but from the ground at his feet.

Sha Jin's lips moved, and two words slipped out, the sound so faint that if the factory weren't so quiet, it would be unheard.

"Taiyi."

Yan Feng lowered his head, looking at Sha Jin.

Sha Jin's eyes remained closed, lips slightly open, and after that word left his mouth there was no further movement.

Yan Feng's gaze lingered on that face for a few seconds, then rose, returning to the golden figure in the sky.