Chapter 691: Finale VI — Family Portrait (The End)
Chapter 691: Finale VI — Family Portrait (The End)
"Shhk—"
It was as though that single sound were the only thing left between heaven and earth.
The pitch-black spear blade pierced effortlessly through Firmament's skin. Its tip sank into his throat and burst out the back of his neck, trailing a string of blood like pearls.
Firmament's hands caught the weapon, yet in the end he could not stop the blade from driving forward; all he could do was clutch the shaft in a death grip.
Thick veins bulged across the backs of his hands.
With his source damaged and his life slipping away, his face aged rapidly.
He stared at Yan Jing, his eyes like shattered glass—nothing but jagged gray fragments.
"I..."
He parted his lips, and blood surged uncontrollably from his throat.
Fresh blood poured back down his windpipe as agony crawled up his throat, choking him in his already weakened state until he could barely force out a sound.
Yet fierce malice surged into his eyes, and the hands gripping the spear shaft trembled unceasingly as he forced out one syllable after another: "I still have one last move."
"Only after you deal with this final move can you truly call yourself the winner."
"Otherwise..."
"Otherwise..."
His eyes grew dimmer and dimmer, their light fading away as his voice sank to a whisper.
Those two sentences seemed to have drained the very last of his strength.
Still, the hands gripping the spear shaft kept trembling faintly, as if refusing to let the story stop right here.
There had to be a proper ending.
"Otherwise..."
"Even though I lost..."
"You haven't won either."
As the last word fell, his body abruptly went limp.
His gray eyes shattered completely, losing the last spark of light that held his consciousness.
The skin of his hands gradually turned an ashen, bluish gray.
"..."
Yan Jing did not pause. A beam of light shot from his fingertip and sank between Firmament's brows.
He had vaguely guessed what Firmament meant by that final move, but only after sweeping through Firmament's memories did he confirm it completely.
His opponent came from a great clan of the outside world and had hidden Dao Protectors backing him.
More than that, Firmament had already sent out a call for reinforcements the moment this decisive battle began.
Two Dao Protectors would arrive in two days.
Fortunately, requests for reinforcements like this were always carried out in secret. From what Firmament knew, the two Dao Protectors would not notify anyone else before successfully retrieving him, preserving his final shred of dignity.
It also ensured that if they failed to retrieve him, they could treat the distress call as though it had never existed and avoid punishment from their clan.
That was good news. It meant that in the short term, the two on their way would be the final hurdle of this entire crisis.
Only, the timing...
A thought struck him. He calculated the time, and his pupils contracted.
It was already the second day...
Suddenly, a voice rang out beyond the pure-white domain.
It echoed across the entire world.
Yan Jing looked out toward the world beyond, his eyes flickering.
"I am dead!"
Hearing that voice, the Deities outside all paled in shock.
It was Firmament's voice.
None of them had imagined that the next time they heard Firmament speak, it would be under circumstances like these.
"I came from the outer realms. Call it misfortune or call it opportunity, by chance I fell into this land and ruled over this world for ten thousand years."
"All I plotted and sought was nothing more than the laws of this place. In my eyes, this world was bound to hold a deep secret. Even when Heavenly Prodigies of the outer realms passed by or cast their gaze here, they lacked my discernment and naturally could not see through it—allowing this world to remain in peace for tens of thousands of years."
"Yet I never once regarded myself as a native of this world. Much as I loathed the clan that bore me, I still held the [Sea Cluster] as my homeland."
"Never did I expect to perish in this world. I am neither willing nor resigned to such an end."
"Yet having stepped onto this path, there is no turning back."
"Those of you who once stood at my side all carry my forbidden curse within your bodies. If you wish to fight for survival, only one final road remains."
"The difference between this man and me is that he has far too many attachments."
"On the path of cultivation, victory goes to those who strive ahead first. This man is weighed down by too many ties and concerns, and none of those he cares for possess the strength to protect themselves. If you can seize this chance, you may yet win yourselves one last sliver of life."
"As for him, you need not worry. The protectors of my Dao path are already on their way; this man will stir up no further waves."
"My life ends here."
As his voice faded across the sky, countless specks of spiritual light seemed to glimmer in response before slowly drifting away.
Outside the white domain, the Deities were shaken to their core—especially those who had sided with Firmament, who were now completely beside themselves with panic.
Firmament had lost.
And judging by his dying words, they didn't even have the chance to surrender.
The forbidden curses inside them had already taken effect, as though an unseen hand had seized their souls and was peeling them apart thread by thread.
As they felt their souls gradually disintegrating, true terror set in. None of them wanted to die like this.
"Kill!!!"
Several Deities charged straight down toward the lower realm.
Just as Firmament had said, if they could capture the people Yan Jing cared about, they would still have one last slim chance to survive.
Yet some of the Deities lost their nerve and looked toward where Yan Jing stood, hoping he might lift the forbidden curses inside their bodies.
After all, since Yan Jing had been able to slay Firmament, he could surely undo the curses just as Firmament once had.
Before they could even step forward, however, Yan Jing's figure flashed out of the pure-white domain and shot straight up into the sky above.
"Boom—"
It was as though the gates of world-ending ruin had been thrown wide open.
A colossal vortex revolved slowly across the vault of the sky.
Ripples churned around the vortex like the foaming edge of ocean waves, kicking up boundless illusions—and beyond those illusions lay a new world none of the Deities had ever laid eyes on.
Merely glimpsing a single corner of it left the Deities so stunned that their pupils trembled, rendering them utterly speechless.
Countless brilliant stars stood clustered across a vast cosmos while immense waves of energy flowed between them. A river of stars drifted slowly along, and resting within that galaxy was a crimson star so blazing hot that a single glance stung the eyes. Innumerable figures sat cross-legged around the firelight radiating from that celestial body. Farther out lay boundless, pitch-black seas, countless floating tombstones, and myriads of suspended white bone swords...
The next instant, two figures hurtled out of the vortex and collided head-on with Yan Jing.
The tremendous impact stamped a stark black ring directly across the sky.
It looked like an eggshell cracked cleanly around the top by an egg topper.
Fierce gales poured in through the black circular seam, threatening to rip the entire sky right off.
"Whoosh—"
As the Deities felt that howling gale, an all-out battle erupted the very next instant as if by unspoken agreement.
The Deities standing on Firmament's and Yan Jing's respective sides lunged straight at one another.
If any Deities on Firmament's side had still clung to wishful thinking—hoping Yan Jing might have the power to lift their curses—the arrival of those two figures snuffed that hope out completely.
Whether Yan Jing himself could win was now an open question, leaving them with only a single road to take.
"Kill!!!"
A Deity roared in fury, "He has ties holding him back! Seize those people, and he'll have a weakness!!!"
"Numbers are still on our side in the end!!! Kill!!!"
The two sides clashed in a frenzy.
Within moments, the disparity became clear.
Previously, the majority of the Deities had stood on Firmament's side.
While the Deities on Yan Jing's side carried his blood within them, their enemies carried Firmament's forbidden curse. Both served to amplify their strength, making it impossible to tell right away which side was stronger individually.
When they paired off one-on-one, however, the difference in numbers proved decisive.
With no one left to block the extra Deities on the opposing side, those unengaged broke away abruptly and plunged toward the lower realm.
With the power of Deities at their command, they were certain that as long as they located Yan Jing's people, capturing them would be effortless.
All at once, countless towering phantoms plummeted to the earth like world-sweeping specters, unleashing a brutal purge and slaughter.
"..."
"..."
High in the air, a man and a woman faced Yan Jing across the void.
The energy surrounding both sides slammed together, bending into taut arcs that ground relentlessly toward the center.
Looking at Yan Jing, neither the man nor the woman spoke.
To the two of them, there was simply no need to waste words on the person in front of them.
They had only come to retrieve the scion of their clan whose path they guarded; saying a single word more would be a waste of breath.
By comparison, they were mildly curious to hear what the man before them might say.
As the very first person to "welcome" them, he must hold no small standing in this world.
Yan Jing raised his head, looked at the two figures across from him, and drew in a deep breath.
Then, he spoke slowly.
"Before you came here, you didn't tell anyone else, did you?"
"..."
"..."
The expressions on the man's and woman's faces gradually turned peculiar.
Those words from across the way—if they thought about them any deeper, the meaning could not have been more obvious.
Translated plainly, it came down to roughly this:
After I kill the two of you, there won't be any follow-up trouble, right?
The man facing them didn't take the two of them seriously at all; he was already thinking about the aftermath of killing them.
The man's face turned icy in an instant.
Though the corners of the woman's lips curved upward, the fury in her eyes burned even hotter than the man's.
The man raised his hand. A flash of blade-light appeared in an instant and dropped abruptly, grazing past Yan Jing's body before plunging into the boundless earth below.
The next instant, the entire land beneath them split open.
A colossal chasm tore across several thousand li of the continent, irresistibly calling to mind the massive rift that spanned the Inner World.
Gazing at that chasm, Yan Jing felt a fresh flash of insight.
What he was doing right now was enough to reshape this world; his every move left its mark upon heaven and earth.
Even if future generations beheld this scar, they would never be able to imagine the ferocity of today's battle.
They would only marvel at the shifting of heaven and earth.
Before he knew it, he had already come this far.
All the more reason never to give up now.
Just a little further.
Just one last step.
Then he would have his peaceful life.
"Come."
He raised his hand and unleashed his full strength.
Ring after ring of dark ripples spread outward.
Under the gaze of the man and woman, Yan Jing's body underwent a violent transformation visible to the naked eye.
Ink-black weird energy surged outward, and his crimson eyes snapped open...
Fear Stance First Layer.
A pitch-black throne of Thorns descended slowly, while a towering giant tree pierced through heaven and earth...
Fear Stance Second Layer.
Between his brows, a dark-green leaf mark flared to life...
Fear Stance Third Layer.
And then...
The Fourth Layer!!!
Around Yan Jing's body, translucent currents of energy rose like turbulent eddies of space and time. When the black weird energy deepened to its absolute limit, what remained was a color nearly invisible to the naked eye—as though some substance existed there that drank in all light and brilliance.
The ink-black weird energy, the throne of Thorns, the towering giant tree, and the mark between his brows all manifested at once, each steeped in that same light-devouring hue.
Piercing shrieks of agony echoed from beyond the sky.
It was as though one terrifying entity after another were bleeding out in some unknown void. In Yan Jing's crimson eyes, mountains of corpses and seas of blood were reflected, until the red slowly darkened into black.
The Fourth Layer of Fear Stance.
There were no flashier changes beyond that.
Yan Jing simply opened his eyes slowly, yet that alone spoke volumes. As he stood now, he was an entirely new existence.
Gazing at Yan Jing now, the man and woman showed wariness in their eyes for the very first time.
Before the two could make a move, however, the space around Yan Jing shifted once more.
Above his head, a Bone Crown slowly materialized, trailing wisps of light like a curtain. Every strand of light corresponded to a bloodstain upon the Bone Crown, and every stain represented a great entity he had slain.
The brightest mark among them was veiled in a faint layer of mist.
It came from the mighty adversary Yan Jing had just cut down.
Firmament.
Behind his back, a pair of sky-blotting wings unfurled.
Massive white bones bore the scars of time and death. From those gouges sprouted pitch-black feathers that thickened and overlapped until eye after eye opened among the plumage, and writhing tentacles grew beneath each gaze.
At this moment, the power of the Fear Bird and the power of the Chongming Bird overlapped, unleashing two mighty fluctuations at once.
Across from him, the man and woman could no longer keep their composure.
They felt Yan Jing's metamorphosis. The aura radiating from him now far surpassed what it had been moments ago, even giving the pair a faint sense of danger.
More unbelievable still was the aura on the Bone Crown atop Yan Jing's head—it belonged unmistakably to the very person they had come here to retrieve.
The bloodstain beneath that veil of mist exuded a thick aura of death, as though mocking the two of them in silence.
'He's already dead?'
Neither of them could believe that a member of their own clan had died in a desolate backwater like this.
Yet...
The next instant, four distinct auras surged simultaneously around Yan Jing's body!!!
Immortal qi, mortal qi, Divine Heart, and Demon Blood.
Four different auras blossomed around him all at once.
Cold sweat broke out across the foreheads of both the man and the woman.
And it still wasn't over.
Yan Jing raised both hands.
Into one hand came a Paintbrush emerging through the shattered void, its shaft traced in blood-red and its bristles steeped in ink, hovering between illusion and reality.
Beneath his other hand, invisible piano keys seemed to surface at his fingertips. With a light brush of his fingers, a cascade of notes rang out as though drifting from the most distant antiquity, carrying an everlasting aura.
Behind him rose a Compass vast enough to sever heaven from earth. Dense markings surfaced all around its rim, each graduation corresponding to an entirely new path.
That, too, was the "legacy" Firmament had left behind.
Originally, Universal had held only the handful of paths belonging to Yan Jing.
Now, it held all of them.
As it faced the man and woman, dozens of pointers on the Compass spun rapidly before locking into their rightful places.
The expressions of the pair across from him changed drastically.
They could feel their own Pathways being weakened—and even their cultivation realms were dropping!!!
Across from them, Yan Jing rose higher and higher on that tide.
Until he achieved a complete, across-the-board breakthrough!!!
Yet...
It still wasn't over!!!
Not even close!!!
In a flash, a domain expanded from between Yan Jing's brows.
It was no longer the pure-white domain he had deployed before.
Instead, it was a world brimming with vitality. Fresh flowers and tender shoots carpeted every inch of the ground, while rich, nearly tangible life energy bubbled up from the heart of every bud and stamen. A single breath of it was enough to prolong one's lifespan, as if one had stepped into a profound realm of true longevity!
Yet that life energy bypassed the pair across from him entirely. Worse still, the two stared in horror at their own skin as white vapor bubbled out of their pores and dispersed into the surrounding world.
Godhood Rite!!!
Longevity Realm!!!!
What stood before the two of them now was Yan Jing's true complete form.
A complete form that even Firmament had never seen.
To keep his abilities from being learned by Firmament—and to learn Firmament's abilities in turn—Yan Jing had held back his full arsenal during their fight.
Now, however, things were different.
All Yan Jing needed to do now was dispose of these two as quickly as possible.
"Are you ready?"
Seated upon his throne, Yan Jing spoke slowly.
His voice reverberated like a divine decree!!!
The massive black spear blade materialized beside his palm, the wings behind him held up the clouds and the vault of heaven, and ink-black weird energy flowed unchecked like rushing water.
Solemn and composed, Yan Jing looked like a true monarch pointing all things toward their appointed fate.
In a daze, the pair across from him saw countless threads burst from their own bodies, winding tightly around the spear blade opposite them.
All this takes long to describe, yet in reality it happened in the blink of an eye.
From the moment wariness first rose in their hearts to this very instant, scarcely a breath had passed.
It was already too late...
"I create..."
Yan Jing parted his lips softly.
Both of them felt a searing pain between their brows. The man's heart pounded wildly as his source sensed a mortal threat and burned at its absolute limit; the weird energy inside him rampaged like magma, activating his trump card.
Countless images flashed before his eyes.
Scenes of everything that had just transpired in this place took shape, seeking out a final path of survival for him.
At last, he saw it—and heard it.
The dying words left behind by Firmament.
"This man has not severed his mortal ties!!! His family and loved ones are still in this world!!! The false gods of this world have already gone after them!!! We only need to stall him!!!"
Seeing their path to survival, the man shouted at once.
Beside him, the woman caught on immediately. Transparent ripples of mental power spread from between her brows, inscribing a warning toward Yan Jing: "Our battle won't end anytime soon!!!"
"Once the false gods of this world find your closest friends and kin, it will be too late for everything!!!"
Feeling those powerful mental fluctuations, however, Yan Jing merely curved the corner of his mouth into a faint smile.
"So what are you getting at?"
"..."
The two exchanged a glance and both drew in a deep breath.
"We can talk."
"..."
Yan Jing chuckled.
"There's no need to talk."
"But since you want to stall for time, I can give you a little."
Yes, Yan Jing had changed his mind.
Within the Longevity Realm, barrier after barrier rose up, severing all contact between the pair and the outside world.
Both of their minds raced.
As far as the two of them were concerned, Yan Jing was making an obvious blunder.
If Yan Jing made peace with them and let them leave, he could still free himself to deal with the false gods rampaging through this world.
Even though the two of them would certainly return with reinforcements later, that would still beat staying right here and doing nothing.
For a moment, neither of them could figure out what Yan Jing was thinking.
...
...
The lower realm.
Old Master Liu and Chen Nian sat cross-legged on the ground, both staring in a daze at the playing cards scattered between them.
Beside them sat a black box that looked like a card case; it seemed they had only just started their game a short while ago.
Right now, however, neither of them was in any mood for cards. A look of bewilderment and disbelief lingered in both their eyes.
"Say, is there any chance the two of us are seeing things?"
The Old Man looked at Chen Nian and spoke slowly.
Chen Nian nodded, feeling that was indeed a possibility, so the two of them tilted their heads back and glanced up at the sky again.
High in the heavens, Yan Jing sat enthroned within the vibrant Longevity Realm like the lord of all gods, his presence overwhelming, while the golden radiance of the Longevity Realm blazed around him like a scorching sun.
Both of them knew Yan Jing; they had run into him plenty of times in the Inner World and were on good terms.
By rights, when one man ascends, his friends and allies rise with him—now that Yan Jing had made it this big, the two of them ought to be thrilled.
Yet the longer they looked, the stranger it felt.
As the Old Man stared at those Thorns, the longer he looked, the more they resembled the Thorns of his own good brother.
And when he turned his eyes to that Paintbrush, the longer he stared, the more it looked like the Paintbrush of his own Young Master.
'Something's not right here...'
'Something is very, very wrong.'
He had practiced martial arts his entire life, training his eyes right alongside his fists, and he refused to believe his sight was failing him.
Across from him, Chen Nian took an even more precise approach.
To him, the figure up there looked a bit like Yi Ji, a bit like Xue Mo, and even carried a trace of that Mr. Luo.
Gut feelings were unreliable, though.
So he switched on his analysis device and aimed it at Yan Jing high above.
Roughly half a minute later, the analysis results came back.
Faster than pre-made dishes coming out of a restaurant kitchen.
Staring at the results on the screen, he too fell into silence.
The analysis device had undergone a full diagnostic just today; there was no way it was malfunctioning.
Which made it painfully obvious where the real problem lay.
"..."
He raised his head, glanced at the Old Man spacing out across from him, and opened his mouth, but in the end he didn't say a word.
He didn't know what to say.
The two of them just kept sitting there like that.
They sat there until several Deities had already closed in and stood directly behind them.
"It's them..."
A Deity spoke, the voice sounding like churning fragments of runes and ancient Sanskrit chants.
Its meaning could be grasped directly, even if the sound itself defied comprehension.
The other Deities beside him also sensed the tight bond connecting these two men to Yan Jing high above, and a wave of elation swept through their ranks.
They had expected a long search, never imagining they would find their targets this easily.
The pair hadn't even bothered to hide, and what was more...
They were just two beings who had barely broken through to the Demigod Realm.
The Deities looked down at the two men surrounded in the center as though eyeing a pair of lambs waiting for the slaughter.
Yet the two made no move at all, sitting there blankly on the ground.
The Deities paid it no mind, assuming the pair had simply been scared stiff.
"Strike!!!"
A Deity roared.
In an instant, the wind and clouds churned as weird energy surged wildly.
"Sigh..."
With a deep sigh, Old Master Liu stood up.
He had accepted it.
He had accepted the fact that his sworn brother was actually his own Young Master.
What else could he do?
He had no choice but to accept it.
All he could say was that his Young Master was far too good an actor.
Back then, the boy must have been too worried to leave him on his own, which was why he had followed him all the way to Old Sin City under another guise.
Beside him, Chen Nian stood up as well.
He had accepted it too.
He acknowledged Yi Ji as a true friend.
So nothing Yi Ji pulled could really surprise him anymore.
When he really thought about it, there wasn't anything unacceptable here anyway.
It just meant his good brother happened to be the older brother of the girl he had once liked.
'Does that make him... half a brother-in-law?'
'A former one, at that.'
'Whatever, we can just keep our titles separate from now on.'
Now that both of them had come to terms with it, dealing with the trouble right in front of them took priority.
"Phew..."
Both men let out a long breath.
Then, at the exact same moment, they raised their eyes.
The next instant, something happened that made every Deity's face change color.
Terrifying divinity erupted around the two men.
The will representing divine authority blossomed between their brows.
The Deities were stunned.
This was the power of a Divine Throne!!!
These two weren't at the Demigod Realm—they were Deities just like them!!!
More than that...
One burst of divinity after another flared into the sky.
Three Divine Thrones hung high above both the Old Man's and Chen Nian's heads.
Martial Dao, Technique, Strength.
Mechanization, Metal, Precision.
Yan Jing had specifically set these aside for the two of them the very first time he forced the Deities to surrender their Divine Thrones!!!
Even back then, he had already anticipated that things might come to this!!!
"Back when that brat—uh, the Young Master said he'd take me to conquer the world, he never mentioned it'd be this thrilling."
The Old Man swept a leg back, drawing power from his waist as his spine stretched like a waking dragon, settling into his stance.
Beside him, Chen Nian said nothing, but his body shifted and transformed in the blink of an eye into a colossal beast of steel.
Divine might surged across the land!!!
An all-out battle was about to erupt!!!
...
...
"Where... Where are they..."
Countless voices seemed to cry out across the sky.
Overlapping phantoms of Deities streaked through midair like a plague of locusts; the mere divine pressure radiating from their bodies was enough to pulverize everything below.
They drifted east and west before finally surging south in a single tide.
There, they sensed the region tied most deeply to the man high in the sky.
In an instant, every Deity made straight for the heartland of [Yueyin].
"...Deities..."
Shen Youran stood atop the tallest building in Yueyin, watching with unyielding resolve in her eyes as the vast army of Deities hurtled toward her.
She drew in a deep breath, and radiant divinity blossomed between her brows.
The authority of a Divine Throne manifested.
Unlike Old Master Liu and Chen Nian, who each held three Divine Thrones, Shen Youran had only a single Divine Throne hovering above her head.
In truth, Yan Jing had given her three Divine Thrones as well.
But her own Tier was too low and her talent insufficient; she simply could not hold all three.
Just accommodating one was already pushing her limits.
Misfortune.
That was her current Divine Throne.
By any normal measure, leaping straight to become a Deity when she hadn't even reached the Third Tier was already an immense stroke of luck.
Right now, however, a lone Divine Throne was clearly outmatched against the overwhelming host of Deities charging toward her.
Even so, Shen Youran had no intention of taking a single step back.
Since Yan Jing wasn't here, it naturally fell to her to guard their home.
She would hold the line until Yan Jing returned.
Even as the crushing pressure from the oncoming host washed over her, she clenched her teeth, her gaze unwavering.
Yet just as the divinity around her erupted, a figure materialized out of thin air between her rooftop and the oncoming calamity of Deities.
It was a woman wearing a red sweater paired with khaki jeans. Her curly orange-red hair glowed like roasted tangerines, and her features were gentle and soft.
If Shen Youran was the sultry, commanding older-sister type, then this woman gave off the immediate warmth of a caring, understanding big sister.
At this moment, however, that gentle big sister was radiating intense killing intent.
"Hum— Hum— Hum—"
The brilliance of three Divine Thrones flared to life.
Longing, Years, Tenacity.
Wen He's lips curved into a smile as she looked toward the Deities opposite her, as though eyeing a pack of unruly children who needed a good lesson.
"If Miss Shen gets hurt, there's a high chance Xiao Jing will be upset, and I can't allow that to happen."
Speaking softly, she reached out a hand as countless motes of divine light gathered in her palm.
'Miss Shen... Xiao Jing...'
Shen Youran was taken aback. The woman in front of her clearly knew both her and Yan Jing—and was on very intimate terms with him.
Before she could sort out what was going on, another figure plummeted from high in the sky.
When the billowing dust slowly settled, a figure emerged at the center of a spiderweb of cracks.
It was another woman.
She wore her hair tied up in two little buns, and her frame was noticeably shorter than Shen Youran's and Wen He's. A cyan qipao clung tightly to her slender figure, while on her frost-cold little face sat a pair of eyes as clear and translucent as glass.
"You're here~"
Looking at Fei Yu, Wen He spoke softly, her tone brimming with affection.
Fei Yu's frosty expression softened slightly as she said in a quiet voice, "Greetings, Young Mistress."
"Oh my~ Don't call me that, don't call me that~"
Wen He laughed, her eyes curving into crescents. "You don't mean it anyway."
"..."
"..."
The atmosphere stiffened a little, though Wen He didn't seem to notice and went right on speaking. "Every time Xiao Jing and I were about to get intimate, I still remember a certain pair of little hands..."
"..."
Fei Yu's expression didn't change as she replied slowly, "The Young Master is still young and bears heavy responsibilities. It wasn't appropriate to share a bed at a time like that."
"Hehe~" Wen He chuckled and let the matter drop.
Behind them, however, Shen Youran stared at Fei Yu—who had likewise unleashed three Divine Thrones—and started to panic for real.
'How did yet another woman connected to my Xiao Yanzi pop out of nowhere?!'
'Just how many women has that guy Xiao Yanzi been seeing behind my back?!!'
What was more...
She saw Fei Yu turn her head and cast a brief glance her way.
Clearly, this woman knew about her too.
'Why do they all know about me, while I don't know a thing about them...'
'Come to think of it, doesn't that mean...'
'Xiao Yanzi actually cares about me the most?'
Shen Youran's train of thought took a sharp turn in a very strange direction.
Right at that moment, the terrifying divine might ahead collided in full force.
...
...
"Yi Ji... Yi Ji..."
Down in the cellar, Mantou tilted her head back blankly, peering through a crack overhead at Yan Jing's figure in the sky, her head feeling a little fuzzy.
Ever since Yan Jing cured the illness in her head last time, everything had felt so much clearer to her.
Yet as she looked at Yan Jing in the sky right now, her head felt all muddled again.
'Yi Ji...'
She didn't understand why her Yi Ji had changed his appearance.
Still, she was completely certain that it was Yi Ji.
Taking a deep breath, she ducked her head back down, wrapped her arms around her knees, and crouched there obediently.
Just as Yi Ji had instructed, she had to stay hidden right here and not go anywhere.
Right until Yi Ji came to find her.
"Huff... huff..."
The cellar was so quiet that she could only hear the sound of her own breathing.
Suddenly, however, a shadow fell through the crack above.
Mantou swallowed hard.
Before she could even budge, a massive eye snapped open right across the gap.
Its golden pupil was terrifying to behold, and an ecstatic laugh rang out immediately after.
"Right here!!! Found one!!!"
The next instant, the entire layer of earth above the cellar vanished.
Fierce wind whipped at Mantou's clothes as daylight flooded into the cellar.
Squinting, she huddled in the corner and stared up in helpless confusion at the ferocious-looking Deities overhead.
"A girl!!!"
"And the bond between them is extraordinarily deep!!!!"
A Deity bellowed like a wild beast.
"She must be even closer to him—she's a vital bargaining chip!!!"
"Then what are we waiting for?! Grab her now!!!!"
One impatient Deity reached out a massive hand to snatch Mantou.
'What do I do now...'
Mantou blinked her big eyes, a trace of confusion showing in her gaze.
Yi Ji had only told her to hide well; he hadn't said what to do if she got found.
'Am I supposed to stay completely still...'
The very next second, however, that huge beast-clawed arm snapped cleanly off with a sharp crack, reappearing several hundred meters away before crashing to the ground.
The Deity who had reached for her let out an agonized howl.
Both the remaining Deities and Mantou froze in bewilderment, having no idea what had just happened.
"Swish—"
A figure no bigger than an apple darted in front of Mantou.
"Whoa, whoa, hold on there, everyone."
Dressed in a sharp suit and leather shoes, Papa Rat bowed slightly toward the Deities.
"Nice to meet you all. The name's Big Rat."
"I don't know what this is all about, but the girl behind me is my daughter-in-law. I think you folks have got the wrong person."
As his voice fell, the divine radiance of multiple authorities blossomed above Papa Rat's head.
Theft, Myriad Beasts, Lifespan.
"D-Daughter-in-law..."
Behind Papa Rat, Mantou's eyes lit up the moment she heard those words.
She was... she was super smart now.
She knew what "daughter-in-law" meant.
This cute little rat in front of her had to be... had to be Yi Ji's dad.
Which meant Yi Ji's dad recognized her as Yi Ji's... w-wife...
Steam practically billowed from the top of Mantou's head as her entire face flushed crimson, nearly lifting the electric vehicle helmet right off her head.
In that split second, battle erupted between Papa Rat and the Deities.
With effortless grace, Papa Rat seized the absolute upper hand, pinning the opposing Deities down completely.
However...
Perhaps drawn by the remarkably dense bond between Mantou and Yan Jing, more and more Deities kept converging on the area.
"Wait a second... Making an old-timer like me do the heaviest lifting doesn't seem quite right, does it?"
Papa Rat blinked.
'Why didn't he send that strapping old geezer and that lively robot over here instead?'
Forget it. Spreading his arms wide, he unleashed his divine might in full. Phantom hands reached out from midair—stealing abilities, unleashing techniques, defending, and counterattacking to meet every move thrown by the surrounding Deities.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!—"
Deafening booms reverberated across the sky.
For a time, Papa Rat actually held off the assault of every single Deity on his own.
Fine beads of sweat broke out across his forehead.
Clearly, this was no easy job.
Worse yet, even more Deities were swarming in from the distance.
Seeing Papa Rat straining under the pressure, Mantou hurriedly gripped the wall beside her and pushed herself clumsily to her feet.
This was Yi Ji's dad; she couldn't let anything happen to him.
She had to... had to protect him.
Then...
Time to start.
Brilliance flared between her brows.
In an instant, one divine authority after another manifested, filling the entire sky with a kaleidoscope of colors within just a few seconds.
At first, the Deities didn't pay much attention, but as more and more colors unfurled across the heavens, the surrounding Deities froze in their tracks and stared in stunned disbelief behind Boss Rat.
"Scared you, didn't I?!"
Papa Rat pressed his lips together, pulled a silk handkerchief from his suit pocket with practiced elegance, and dabbed the sweat from his forehead.
He assumed his own ferocious outburst had terrified the surrounding Deities—until he turned his head and realized something wasn't right.
Even someone as composed and suave as he was nearly lost his cool.
'Holy crap!' he thought.
'This son of mine is playing favorites way too hard!'
'And this daughter-in-law of mine is clearly a ruthless heavy hitter!'
'Why did I even need to step up in the first place?!'
He cleared his throat twice, hopped onto Mantou's shoulder, and patted her Electric Helmet.
"Take over for me, daughter-in-law. I'll rest for a bit."
"...O-Okay..."
Mantou nodded hard.
Everything else sounded muffled to her ears right now; all she could hear was Papa Rat calling her his daughter-in-law.
'Daughter-in-law... daughter-in-law...'
Her little cheeks burned redder and redder, and her head spun so much that she couldn't hold back her strength at all when she struck.
Terrifying weird energy swept across the sky. The Deities who had looked so ferocious moments ago all paled in terror and scrambled to flee into the distance.
However...
...
It seemed a little too late for that.
...
...
Inside the pure-white domain.
As the man and woman waited anxiously, Yan Jing—who had been resting with his eyes closed—slowly opened them.
Seeing this, the man perked up and asked eagerly, "Have you thought it through?"
"Dragging this out any longer won't do either of us any good."
"Those weaklings down below might not last much longer against the assault of the false gods."
"..."
Yan Jing looked at the pair and suddenly smiled.
"I've thought it through."
As his voice fell, he raised his hand.
The black spear of unfathomable weight rose into the air beside him. Tens of thousands of strands of weird energy shuddered in unison like thunderbolts, flashing and leaping across the high heavens until they crushed the surrounding fabric of space and time.
The threads of fate around the man and woman pulled taut in an instant. Alarm bells screamed in their minds, and without a shred of hesitation they bolted backward—yet before they could get far, Yan Jing slowly parted his lips.
"I create..."
"..."
'Here it comes!'
'Here it comes, here it comes!!!'
Their breath nearly froze in their throats.
Yet Yan Jing seemed completely blind to every technique and defense they threw up.
He simply said in a calm voice, "A world where neither of you will ever exist."
With the fall of that final word, the pitch-black spear wrapped in the threads of fate shot forth. Tearing through the void and shattering the thunder, it trailed clouds of life force and drove straight through the chests of both the man and the woman with an authority that brooked no refusal.
"Squelch—"
The spear tip ground through flesh and bone, the sound crisp and strangely melodic.
Their figures froze completely in place.
Countless abilities hammered against the shaft of the spear, yet none had the slightest effect.
All they could do was watch helplessly as they...
Were utterly annihilated.
It was as if a breeze blew in from afar, scattering the ashes of their bodies, scattering the Deities torn to shreds in the world outside, scattering the shattered clouds and rain, and scattering the souls of the fallen.
Everything seemed to find its final resting place upon the wind.
The storm passed, and the sky cleared.
Sunlight pierced through the vanishing mist and spilled across the devastated earth below.
It had been a brutal war.
Countless innocent lives had perished in its wake.
And countless survivors now raised their heads to gaze up at Yan Jing in the sky.
The Deities that had surrounded the heavens were gone.
Those still living lay prostrate at his feet; those who had died slumbered beneath the earth.
He had become the supreme existence at the very pinnacle of the world.
And the only one.
He lowered his head, looking down at the shattered world below.
His gaze pierced through the Surface World and reached all the way into the depths of the Inner World.
Weeping, cheering.
He heard it all.
He could have simply left it all as it was.
But...
He had made a promise to a certain damned River.
So he raised a sphere of light in his hand.
It was a remarkably unassuming orb; compared to the dazzling radiance around his body, it looked like a firefly beside the bright moon.
Yet the moment that sphere of light appeared, every gaze in the world seemed to lock onto Yan Jing's hand.
Onto that gentle warmth.
"..."
Yan Jing looked down, his gaze sweeping across the land as if taking in every single face.
"I create..."
He parted his lips, and both the earth and the wind fell silent to listen to his decree.
Everyone fell quiet.
Looking up into his eyes with hope.
"I create..."
"A world as it was before."
At last, he spoke the words.
The orb in his palm slowly gave off a soft glow.
Amid the hopes of all living beings, that light grew brighter and brighter.
From a flickering candle flame it swelled into a lantern, from a lantern into the glow of dawn, and finally... it became a sun.
Enveloping everything below.
Departed souls would be reset, and shattered lands would return to how they began.
Everything began to turn back.
So long as it had Yan Jing's permission.
Yan Jing narrowed his eyes slightly, glimpsing a patch of soil deep within the earth that was thanking him over and over again.
At last, he smiled.
A brand-new world was being built.
...
...
"Come on, come on!!! Scoot a little closer to the center!!!"
A young boy in a suit blinked the single eye on his face, holding up a camera as he directed the figure across from him.
If anyone had seen clearly who was sitting across from him right now, their jaw would have hit the floor.
Because the man sitting there with a gentle smile in his eyes was none other than Yan Jing, who not long ago had merged the two worlds into one and become the sole true lord of all creation.
Right now, Yan Jing wore black dress pants with a crisp white shirt neatly tucked in and a tailored black trench coat draped over his shoulders, looking every bit like an ordinary handsome guy on the street.
Hearing One-Eye's instructions, he took hold of the tall stool beneath him and shifted a little closer to the center of the two rows of chairs.
"There! That's perfect!"
One-Eye nodded in satisfaction.
He tilted his head, peeking out from behind the camera to look at Yan Jing.
"Boss, when are the others getting here?"
"Should be any minute now."
Yan Jing glanced at his watch.
This was the time he had set for everyone to meet.
"Someone's here."
Fei Yu's figure appeared by the first chair on the left in the second row.
"Young Master."
She gave Yan Jing a slight nod.
"Ah, Xiao Yu..."
Yan Jing offered a warm smile, but Fei Yu turned her frosty face away without another word, leaving him to rub his nose awkwardly.
Everything since the great battle had been wonderful—except that the fallout of having all his secret identities exposed still hadn't blown over.
That was why he had specially called everyone together today to take a family portrait.
Cold as Fei Yu looked right now, her reaction was actually the mildest of the bunch.
After all, she had been the very first to see Yan Jing's identities exposed, so she had already made peace with it; otherwise, she wouldn't have been the first to show up.
Her cold expression was really her way of helping him smooth things over.
As for why she was giving him the cold shoulder, that was mostly an act for the others' benefit.
Sure enough, right after she arrived, another figure strolled in.
Wearing a white trench coat and a face mask, Chen Nian walked over at an unhurried pace and took the seat directly in front of Fei Yu.
"Hello, I am the Young Master's maid."
"My name is Fei Yu."
Fei Yu spoke in a quiet voice.
"Nice to meet you. I'm your Young Master's friend, Chen Nian."
"Though I suppose your Young Master also counts as half a brother-in-law to me."
Smiling, Chen Nian completely ignored Yan Jing eavesdropping from his stool and held out a hand to Fei Yu.
Right on his heels came Wen He.
"Oh my, here I thought I'd be the first one here."
Wen He walked over with a beaming smile in her eyes.
She had originally planned to be the first to arrive and help her Xiao Jing out of an awkward spot, so seeing two people already seated, she stepped right out.
"Hello there, I'm Xiao Jing's older sister, Wen He."
Wen He smiled warmly.
"Of course, you could also count me as half a mother to him."
After exchanging greetings, Wen He naturally took the seat behind Yan Jing to his left.
As if by prior agreement, she too refrained from striking up a conversation with Yan Jing in his seat.
Moments after she sat down, a voice piped up beside her.
"Good day, lovely lady."
"Oh my, hello there."
Wen He looked at Papa Rat sitting in the next chair in his sharp suit and leather shoes, pleasantly surprised.
"I'm this rascal's father."
Papa Rat said softly, "I hope he hasn't caused you any trouble."
"Not at all, Xiao Jing is a very good boy."
Wen He smiled.
While the two were chatting, the Old Man's voice rang out.
"Coming, coming!!!"
He strode in with meteoric steps, clearly dressed up for the occasion in a blue-and-white cloth gown with every frog button fastened neat and tight, his hair combed slickly back without a single stray strand.
"Good day to you all."
The Old Man cupped his fist toward everyone.
"Liu Fu, butler to my Young Master."
Having said his piece, the Old Man took his seat as well.
He sat in the first chair on the far right.
That left only two empty seats.
One on Yan Jing's left, and one on his right.
Those were the spots for Mantou and Shen Youran.
Sensing the mountain of pressure weighing on Yan Jing's shoulders, everyone wore a knowingly amused expression.
They all cast teasing glances his way.
For once, Yan Jing's palms were actually sweating.
He opened his mouth, then closed it again, not knowing what to say.
Out of everyone here, Mantou and Teacher Shen had known the least about his other identities.
Mantou was one thing, but Teacher Shen...
He didn't even know if she would show up.
After what felt like a small eternity of waiting, two figures finally walked over hand in hand.
Seeing the two of them together, Yan Jing let out a breath of relief.
Leave it to his Mantou to find a way.
"Come... come on, Big Sister Shen... this... this way..."
Leading Shen Youran by the hand, Mantou walked toward where everyone was seated.
Spotting Yan Jing, she broke into a happy smile.
"Yi... Yi Ji!!!"
'I knew I could count on Mantou...'
Moved nearly to tears inside now that someone was finally talking to him, Yan Jing smiled back.
The very next second, however, Mantou held up Shen Youran's hand.
"Big Sister Shen... th-this is the Yi Ji that Mantou told you about... He's Mantou's... h-husband..."
!!!
Looking at the beet-red Mantou and an increasingly silent Shen Youran, Yan Jing felt his heart skip a beat.
Thankfully, Shen Youran didn't say anything in the end. After Mantou sat down on Yan Jing's left, she naturally took the seat on his right.
"Alright, everyone's here, right?"
Seeing every seat filled and sensing the peculiar tension in the air, One-Eye just wanted to snap the photo as quickly as possible.
Unexpectedly, Wen He spoke up from behind Yan Jing just then. "Wait a moment!"
"..."
Everyone turned to look at Wen He.
Wen He looked toward Shen Youran in her seat and said with a beaming smile, "This young lady hasn't introduced herself yet."
"I..."
Shen Youran froze, parting her lips without knowing how to introduce herself.
'Who should I say I am to Yan Jing?'
She didn't seem to hold any official, intimate title at all.
Yet if she introduced herself as Yan Jing's investor, she couldn't bring herself to utter such cold, distant words.
Seeing the atmosphere sink into silence, Yan Jing drew in a deep breath, just about to speak.
Suddenly, Mantou piped up beside him, "I... I know... Big Sister Shen is... Yi Ji's wife..."
!!!
The Old Man's and Chen Nian's expressions changed at the exact same instant, both of them looking at Mantou with sheer heartbreak in their eyes.
This silly girl had no idea that a man was something you had to fight over!
At the same time, both men glared indignantly at Yan Jing.
Their eyes practically branded him an absolute beast.
Beside him, Shen Youran blushed crimson, seemingly even less able to speak than before.
Wen He smiled faintly; that was the exact reaction she had been aiming for.
Before she could say a word, however, Mantou spoke up again, "And... Big Sister Wen He... and... Big Sister Xiao Yu... you're... you're all Yi Ji's wives too, right..."
"I... I know all about it!"
This time, it was Wen He and Fei Yu whose faces turned red.
Mantou wasn't finished yet; she turned to look at Chen Nian and the Old Man.
"Big Brother Chen Nian is the older brother, and Grandfather Liu is the grandpa."
"And, and Papa Rat..."
She looked at Boss Rat.
"He's... he's Yi Ji's dad..."
"Everyone... everyone is one big family."
"I know it... Yi Ji... Mantou... Mantou is super smart now..."
"Yi Ji called everyone here today... to take a family portrait... r-right...?"
"..."
The air fell quiet once more, only this time the awkwardness was gone.
As he gazed into Mantou's crystal-clear eyes, Yan Jing's stunned expression gradually melted into a gentle smile.
Those eyes were just as beautiful as the first time he ever saw them, shining like the stars and the moon.
"That's right."
He patted Mantou's head.
"Everyone here is family, and today is the day we take our family portrait."
"I've never had a family portrait before."
"Heh, I picked out my finest outfit for today," Old Master Liu chimed in.
Right after that, everyone else opened up and started chattering away.
"Isn't that outfit the exact same as the one you wore before?"
"Like you're one to talk, kid! Aside from wearing white every single day, what else do you ever wear?"
"Heh, and here an old-timer like you is mocking someone else's fashion sense when you wear an undershirt beneath a trench coat."
"What do you know, little girl Xiao Yu? Looks to me like you picked out your dress pretty carefully today too. If you ask me, you had all those chances back then and didn't make your move—it's too late for regrets now..."
"Keep talking if you're so fond of it, sir. I brewed some Herbal Tea. Once your throat gets parched from all that chatter, you can drink a few extra bowls later."
"Was Xiao Jing well-behaved with you when he was little? I'd love to see his childhood photos."
"Well-behaved? What did he ever have to do with being well-behaved? He was a little punk with dyed blond hair when he was a kid. Here, take a look..."
"Ahahaha, he really had yellow hair—and black roots showing through, too... Here, let me show you mine. I have photos of him from when he was little as well—he was adorable..."
"Big Sister Shen, are you happy? Why are you crying?"
"I'm happy, I'm so, so happy. Come here, Mantou, let me give you a hug..."
...
Watching everyone across from him dissolve into lively chaos, One-Eye—who had been about to tell them all to say cheese—felt a sudden stir in his heart.
His finger pressed down on the shutter.
Freezing this moment forever.
In the frame, everyone was laughing together in a cheerful tangle, while Yan Jing alone sat upright in the center, smiling gently into the lens.
Completing the family portrait that had been missing for ten thousand years.
Savoring the ending he had pictured in his heart countless times.
Today—this moment, this very second—was the happiest moment he had ever dreamed of.
As for tomorrow...
Tomorrow would be even better.
(The End)