The entire Rift had fallen silent.
The river continued raging.
Water soared hundreds of meters into the sky.
A pillar connecting heaven and earth.
At its center—
A figure slowly emerged.
Green eyes.
Glowing like twin stars.
The moment those eyes opened—
The atmosphere changed.
The sky darkened.
The wind stopped.
Even the gigantic hand beyond the heavens became motionless.
The Cult Leader's smile disappeared.
For the first time in centuries—
His instincts screamed.
Danger.
Not danger.
Death.
The figure stepped out of the river.
Water rolled off Riven's body.
Yet those eyes were not Riven's.
That aura was not Riven's.
That presence was not Riven's.
The Cult Leader took a step backward.
Then another.
Then another.
Before suddenly turning around.
And running.
The battlefield froze.
The mighty Transcendent.
The man who had treated everyone as insects.
The man who stood beneath a god's shadow.
Was running.
As though his life depended on it.
The woman looked at him.
Then sighed.
"So he truly hurt this boy."
The next second—
She disappeared.
The Cult Leader's pupils contracted.
He immediately raised countless defensive barriers.
BOOM.
Every barrier shattered.
A hand gently landed upon his shoulder.
The Cult Leader's entire body froze.
Slowly.
Very slowly.
He turned around.
The woman stood beside him.
Expressionless.
"Where exactly do you think you're going?"
The Cult Leader's face turned pale.
"No..."
"No..."
"You can't be..."
His entire body trembled.
Then suddenly—
He dropped to both knees.
"My Lord!"
His voice echoed throughout the Rift.
"My Lord, save me!"
The heavens remained silent.
The gigantic hand remained motionless.
The Cult Leader's voice grew louder.
"My Lord!"
"I have served you faithfully!"
"I have gathered sacrifices!"
"I have prepared the descent!"
"Please save me!"
Silence.
Nothing happened.
The woman watched calmly.
Then she spoke.
"How amusing."
The Cult Leader looked toward her.
"The thing you're begging for?"
A faint smile appeared on her face.
"It isn't coming."
The Cult Leader shook his head.
"No."
"No!"
"My Lord would never abandon me!"
The woman's eyes became distant.
As though recalling a forgotten memory.
Then she sighed.
"The thing you call a god..."
"I buried him long before your world learned how to name the stars."
The Cult Leader froze.
Disbelief filled his face.
He refused to believe it.
He couldn't believe it.
Everything he had lived for depended upon that belief.
Then the woman revealed another truth.
A truth far more terrifying.
She looked directly into his eyes.
Then said:
"You already died."
Silence.
The Cult Leader froze.
"What?"
The woman continued.
"The Bishop died long ago."
"The ritual failed."
"The village died."
"You died."
Her voice remained calm.
"Everything ended."
The Cult Leader's face twisted.
"No..."
"You are nothing more than resentment."
"An incomplete thought."
"A lingering obsession."
"Over time your resentment gathered together."
"It copied your memories."
"It copied your form."
"It copied your purpose."
"And eventually convinced itself that it was alive."
The Cult Leader staggered backward.
"No..."
"No..."
"NO!"
The world shook.
Black mist erupted from his body.
His flesh began twisting.
His bones cracked.
His skin split apart.
The human shape disappeared.
What emerged was something horrifying.
Five mouths.
More than a hundred eyes.
Jagged teeth covering every inch of its body.
Pitch-black flesh that seemed to absorb light itself.
The creature screamed.
Its voices overlapped.
Hundreds.
Thousands.
Millions.
A chorus of madness.
"I AM REAL!"
"I AM ALIVE!"
"I AM THE CHOSEN OF GOD!"
The battlefield trembled.
Even the giant hand in the sky vibrated.
The monster charged.
Reality cracked wherever it passed.
The woman looked at it.
Then tilted her head.
"How disappointing."
The creature roared.
Black energy erupted.
The heavens darkened.
The ground collapsed.
The attack was enough to erase mountains.
The woman simply raised her hand.
Then spoke.
"Return to your rest."
Snap.
Silence.
The monster stopped.
Its body froze.
Then began turning into countless particles.
The mouths vanished.
The eyes vanished.
The screams vanished.
Within seconds—
Nothing remained.
The battlefield became silent once more.
Not only the creature.
Every surviving cultist vanished as well.
Like dust being carried away by the wind.
The giant hand in the sky slowly retreated.
As though afraid.
As though fleeing.
The woman didn't even spare it another glance.
Instead—
She looked toward the unconscious Association members.
Toward Lyra.
Toward the civilians.
Then she sighed.
"Such troublesome children."
She slowly brought her hands together.
Her eyes closed.
The world became still.
A gentle wave spread outward.
Unlike the previous attacks.
Unlike the previous pressure.
This power felt warm.
Comforting.
Peaceful.
The wave expanded across the entire Rift.
Every injured plant stood upright.
Every broken tree healed.
Every destroyed flower bloomed once more.
The battlefield itself began restoring.
Then the wave reached the Association members.
The Team Leader's gray hair returned to normal.
The wrinkles vanished.
The years sacrificed through his forbidden technique returned.
Mira's injuries disappeared.
Darius' broken bones healed.
Every wound vanished.
Even their exhausted Origins stabilized.
Then something unbelievable happened.
Their auras rose.
One Star.
Every single one of them.
The Team Leader's eyes widened even while unconscious.
Mira's cultivation... no.
Her Ascendant Realm increased.
Darius too.
Everyone.
The woman swayed slightly.
For the first time—
A hint of exhaustion appeared on her face.
Then she looked toward Lyra.
Her gaze narrowed.
"Are you coming out yourself?"
Silence.
"Or shall I remove you as well?"
A crimson light emerged from Lyra's body.
The Qilin Spirit appeared.
The moment it saw the woman—
It immediately lowered its head.
"Milady."
The woman's eyebrow rose.
"So you left descendants in this backwater world as well."
The Qilin coughed awkwardly.
"Even I do not know how they arrived here."
"But since they carry my bloodline..."
"I must protect them."
The woman looked at Lyra.
Then nodded.
"This girl's bloodline has potential."
The Qilin froze.
Potential?
Coming from her?
The woman extended a finger.
A green light appeared.
It entered Lyra's forehead.
Instantly—
Crimson runes appeared throughout her body.
The Qilin's eyes widened.
Impossible.
The impurities within the bloodline were disappearing.
The bloodline itself was evolving.
Returning closer and closer toward its original state.
The woman withdrew her hand.
"Teach her properly."
"Perhaps one day she will be useful to this boy."
The Qilin stared.
Then nodded immediately.
"It will be her honor."
The woman looked toward the distant horizon.
Then spoke quietly.
"And yours."
The Qilin's body trembled.
For the first time in countless years—
It felt nervous.
Then the woman closed her eyes.
Her body swayed.
The green glow disappeared.
Slowly—
Riven's consciousness returned.
His eyes opened.
"Huh?"
He blinked.
Then looked around.
The battlefield.
The Association members.
Lyra.
Everyone.
Alive.
"W-What happened?!"
A voice echoed from within the pendant.
Nothing.
Riven nearly jumped.
"Who was that?!"
The voice sounded tired now.
"I merely fulfilled my promise."
Riven immediately asked:
"Who are you?"
Silence.
Then:
"I am tired."
"I spent a considerable portion of my existence helping you."
Riven frowned.
Then remembered.
The deal.
"What do you mean my body is yours?"
Silence.
A faint laugh echoed.
"I shall explain after I wake."
Then—
Nothing.
The presence vanished.
At the same moment—
The Team Leader opened his eyes.
Mira sat up.
Darius jumped to his feet.
"What the hell?!"
Everyone stared.
Their injuries were gone.
Their life force was restored.
Their realms had increased.
The Team Leader looked at his hands.
Then laughed.
A loud laugh.
"Hahahaha!"
Mira looked shocked.
Darius looked horrified.
"WHY AM I STRONGER?!"
The civilians began waking up as well.
Confused.
Safe.
Alive.
Then Lyra opened her eyes.
Her first thought was simple.
I saw the Qilin lose.
Then what happened?
Her gaze immediately landed on Riven.
Standing there.
Completely confused.
The Team Leader approached him.
"What happened?"
Riven pointed at himself.
"Why are you asking me?!"
"I just woke up too!"
Silence.
Then the Team Leader looked toward the sky.
Looked toward the civilians.
Looked toward the healed battlefield.
Then laughed.
"Maybe God helped us."
Darius immediately nodded.
"Yeah."
"Must've been God."
Lyra stared at them.
Then at Riven.
Then at the pendant hanging around his neck.
For some reason—
Her instincts told her otherwise.
Far above the Rift.
Something ancient watched silently.
And for the first time in countless years—
It smiled.
End Chapter