Chapter 886: He Declared the Future (Thanks to Qiaqiahaohao for Two White Alliance Donations)

When the "Desecration Tablet" before Amon lifted, the white mist eroding Luo Saier and the Lamp God suddenly reacted, trying to retreat and withdraw into the Infinite Starry Void, but Luo Saier forcibly "pressed" it down, forcing it to slowly recede.

Similarly, the pale golden Lamp God struggled desperately, attempting to slip back through Hukou into the "Wishing Lamp," but Luo Saier gave it no chance, using the white mist and cyan light to bind it tightly before him.

Luo Saier turned his head toward the tomb of the "Black Emperor" below, "twisting" the distinction between inside and outside, and showed his eldest daughter Bernadette a smile both pained and satisfied.

He cried out loudly:

"Enjoy this world for me for a while!"

"Father!" Bernadette, the "Mystic Queen," cried out, her cheeks glistening with tears.

Luo Saier said no more, withdrew his gaze, and straightened his posture.

He continued resisting the white mist's retreat, gripping the Lamp God tightly, then lifted his chin and spoke to Amon with a solemn, resolute voice:

"Come."

Amon's monocle in the right eye instantly flared with strange light; He pressed both hands downward, driving the floating "Desecration Tablet" hard against the pale golden Lamp God and the Luo Saier embracing Him.

The chaotic sea, embracing all colors and possibilities, surged forth as a torrent.

Drawn by this pull, the white mist representing the Vortex Ritual, along with Perle, the "Shadow of the Beauty Goddess," and the miniature red moon within it, rushed swiftly toward the Lamp God and Luo Saier.

At that moment, within the vortex mist, a previously unexpanded light point rapidly enlarged, revealing a dim, dark scene—resembling Trill of the Fourth Era, yet seemingly representing an unknown land.

From within this scene, a slender, delicate, beautiful white hand suddenly reached out, seized the twisted arm of the "Shadow of the Beauty Goddess," and in a flash dragged the "0"-class artifact into its own light point; both vanished into the deep, blackish gloom.

Affected by this completed transaction, the miniature red moon, tainted by the "Great Mother," instantly appeared before the light point with the faint hanging figure, about to seep into it.

Amon was fully occupied exploiting the loophole and controlling the "Desecration Tablet," maintaining its stability, and could only spare a sliver of attention to interfere.

He failed to stop the disappearance of the "Shadow of the Beauty Goddess," but caused the miniature red moon to spontaneously shatter and dissipate nearly half of itself.

The remaining miniature red moon plunged into the corresponding light point, slipping into the body of the faint, hanging figure in midair.

The figure wrapped in bandages, thorns, and roses suddenly swelled in the abdomen, revealing distinct cracks; from these fissures, arms protruded—each covered in black, tar-like fluid, adorned with crimson eyeballs, skull heads, and toothed tongues—that tore through the figure's belly.

The next instant, the white mist representing the Vortex Ritual engulfed the pale golden Lamp God, and all light points within it extinguished simultaneously.

The Lamp God cursed wildly and silently, yet could only watch helplessly as the chaotic torrent, embracing all colors and possibilities, followed the weathered, dull gray "Desecration Tablet" surging toward him.

He was instantly submerged.

His body, composed of thick, pale golden light, rapidly disintegrated, reverting into countless golden fragments.

These fine, pure golden specks were swiftly washed away and erased by the chaotic torrent, leaving not a trace.

In the blink of an eye, the Lamp God remained only as an extremely faint, pale-blue-white glow.

This remnant, not fully dissolved by the chaotic torrent, retreated miserably through Hukou back into the interior of the golden "Wishing Lamp."

At this moment, Luo Saier no longer needed to bind the Lamp God or struggle to maintain his tight connection with the "Indefinite Mist."

He gazed at the chaotic torrent surging before him, lifted his chin again, and opened his arms, as if an emperor embracing his own world.

Instantly, the chaotic torrent, embracing all colors and possibilities, swallowed Luo Saier's figure as well.

The resurrected "Black Emperor"'s body rapidly disintegrated, quickly becoming insubstantial.

"Father…" Bernadette in the tomb below whispered again, but this time her voice was so low it sounded like a dream.

Almost simultaneously, beyond the barrier, the white mist covering a certain planet—like being struck directly by a second "Desecration Tablet" and the chaotic torrent—suddenly contracted inward to the star's core, revealing again the weathered land and dried seabeds.

Immediately afterward, the indefinite, dense white mist spread out once more, and the sky echoed with indescribable sounds.

This caused the extremely bright Astral Plane to be covered by thin mist, plunging the entire world into dimness.

The next instant, the white mist—whose size and state could not be described in words—detached from the planet it had occupied.

The planet shattered silently, spewing forth waves of rocks and gases in all directions.

Then, on the surface of the dense, indefinite, unseeable white mist, a chaotic sense embracing all colors emerged.

He suddenly shrank and vanished rapidly into the silent, pitch-black depths of the Infinite Starry Void.

………

On the streets of Trill, citizens saw the mist in the sky gradually dissipate, the sun restored to normal—neither blindingly bright nor dim as twilight.

They had not forgotten the series of anomalies; the cry of "The Emperor's Return" still lingered in their hearts.

"What has happened to this world?" Many citizens felt similar confusion.

Filled with this confusion and dread, they turned their gazes toward newsstands and nearby churches.

On this day, esoteric magazines like "Spiritualism," "Arcana," and "Lotus" sold out in Trill; whether the church of the "Eternal Sun," the "God of Steam and Machinery," or the "Fool," each was packed with worshippers.

Similarly, in cities across the Northern and Southern Continents—Beckland, Pelos Port, and countless others—the corresponding magazines were in constant shortage, and every church was filled with believers.

………

Above the Original Island, Amon descended to the height level with the top of the "Black Emperor"'s tomb.

He looked at Bernadette, the "Mystic Queen," who had just stepped out of the tomb, and spoke in a deliberately detached tone:

"Within sixty years, the 'Indefinite Mist' cannot return; one less danger awaits at the End Times."

"And as long as no new 'Black Emperor' is born, as long as human society's order has not completely collapsed, or this tomb has not been utterly destroyed, Luo Saier can resurrect from nothingness a hundred years from now; at that time, with three taints upon him, he will achieve preliminary balance and retain basic humanity and clarity."

Here, Amon laughed, changing his tone:

"This is the future He claimed—and His promise to you."

Before Bernadette could respond, Amon reached into the air, seized the newly appeared crown inlaid with numerous dark gems and the "Wishing Lamp," and tossed them both to the "Mystic Queen":

"As guarantee of the promise, the uniqueness of the 'Black Emperor' is entrusted to you."

"As long as you live, no new 'Black Emperor' will appear."

Bernadette caught the dim, dark crown and the "Wishing Lamp," and spoke in a low voice:

"I hope His claimed future will inevitably unfold."

Amon pinched his right monocle and smiled softly:

"That is not something I can answer for Him. My payment has already been received; the ritual was completed just now."

No sooner had he spoken than Amon, no longer possessing the status of a true god, slowly retrieved the "Desecration Tablet" and the other three beams of light, and vanished into midair.

………

Before the destroyed blood altar.

After the world's dimness and the mist above receded, the "Magician" lady turned her gaze toward the western sky.

As an angel closely linked to the Spirit World, she had already learned from the Spirit World what had just occurred and the fate of her Minor Arcana card.

"What happened?" asked the "Justice" lady.

The "Magician" lady's expression was complex, her tone tinged with sigh:

"That demon god who preached in the name of Truth suffered a severe blow and must now sleep for decades."

"This is good—the greatest danger humanity must face at the End Times has been directly reduced by one; the 'Broker' will no longer roam about before the End."

"But Emperor Luo Saier has perished; he may only return after a hundred years—and…"

The "Magician" lady did not continue.

The expressions of the "Hermit" lady, the "Justice" lady, the "Judgment" lady, and other Major Arcana holders—whose hearing seals had been lifted—also grew complex.

………

In New Silver City, inside a room with ceilings five to six meters high.

Lu Mi had brought Fu Lan Ka, Jianna, Anthony, and the recovered Lu Jianuo and Ludewig to this place where they could ensure their safety.

Gazing at Lu Mi, with his black hair flowing, delicate features, Fu Lan Ka wanted to tease him, but sensed his mood was off.

She had always known Lu Mi had considered switching to the "Witch" path—for faster advancement, and since he could always return to the "Hunter" path later, reclaiming his masculinity—so she originally thought this decision to become a "Witch" was merely a response to the dangerous situation. But after careful observation, she now believed it was not.

If this were truly his own choice, Lu Mi's calmness would not hide such suppressed pain!

Thinking of this, Fu Lan Ka glanced at the sky outside, now restored to brilliant blue, and deliberately said:

"The Vortex incident seems over—good, good. The End has not come, the world has not been destroyed—we're still alive!"

As long as we live, there is still hope!

Jianna also hesitated before asking Lu Mi:

"Would you like to change clothes?"

Lu Mi looked at the two "Witches" and Anthony, then at Ludewig, who was devouring food ravenously and didn't care that his godfather had become a woman, and at Lu Jianuo, who occasionally stole glances at him, and spoke in a low voice:

"I'll explain the details later—I'm going somewhere now."

"Alone?" Jianna asked.

Lu Mi gave a slight nod.

Fu Lan Ka said nothing, pulled from "The Traveler's Satchel" a black cloak she had bought while posing as a "Witch," and tossed it to Lu Mi.

Lu Mi donned the cloak and activated the black sigil on his right shoulder.

He "teleported" to a deep valley, where stood an ancient church with a water-black surface, carved with human skulls.

This was the first church built by the "Aurora Sect" for the "True Creator."

Lu Mi entered the deep black church, walked step by step to the massive black cross at its center; no humans or unknown entities blocked his path.

Stopping, the black-cloaked Lu Mi gazed at the male statue hanging upside down on the cross, his eyes moving from the rusted iron nails piercing the statue's body and the crimson blood staining around them, downward, to the face—features blurred, eyes sharp and clear, tightly shut, as if bearing all pain and guilt.

After gazing for several seconds, Lu Mi spoke in a low, resonant voice:

"One day, I will truly stand before you and give you my answer."

With that, the black-cloaked Lu Mi turned and walked toward the church's exit.

Simultaneously, countless blazing white fireballs shot out from around him, flying toward different parts of the church, toward the male statue hanging upside down on the black cross.

BOOM!

Stone pillars collapsed, windows shattered, corners ignited.

BOOM!

The massive black cross exploded into fragments; the hanging statue crashed down, shattering into many pieces.

The statue's head separated from its neck, rolling a few times and becoming coated in dust.

Its face turned directly toward Lumian's back, walking through the collapsing church and blazing flames, his black hair and cloak billowing, eyes tightly shut, as if bearing all suffering and guilt.

God loves the world.

(End of this volume)

PS: Thank you to Qia Qia Hao Hao for the two Silver Alliance supports~

(End of this chapter)