Chapter 159: Fall into the Abyss with Me (Two-in-One)
At the end of the tower, the silhouette of a boy stood in the frozen dusk, resembling a stone-carved sculpture against the black background.
The illusory Abyss transformed into ocean waves, crashing against the towering giant and shattering into dim yellow foam.
Crack, crack—
It was the crisp sound of rocks splitting, emanating from Rast’s body, reverberating across the vast expanse of the tower’s summit.
His exterior was cracked with dim yellow fissures, leaving his form in shambles, but those cracks would quietly heal and then split again…
In just a few minutes, this cycle of cracking and healing repeated hundreds, if not thousands, of times.
Rast’s body was not like Akshia’s, who flowed with the bl**d of the God of d*ath… The same divine bl**d allowed her to perfectly contain the full authority and power of the Ancient God without any side effects.
He was merely an ordinary human, and at this moment, the cracks continuously appearing on Rast’s surface… were the backlash he had to endure by carrying the supreme will of the Ancient God in his humble human body; each break and healing was a process of transformation.
Like a damaged porcelain, it shattered repeatedly due to exceeding its limit, yet some grand force forcibly gathered the shards, healing it, restoring it to a complete humanoid form.
All that remained on that broken porcelain were cracks that looked as if they had been forcibly stitched together with inferior glue—
Just like the memories that were eroding with time in Deep Blue Harbor, and the ideal named “Guardian” that still existed in the desolate heart of the crimson wasteland.
At the same time, those broken dim yellow halos were manifestations of the mutual devouring and slaughter of human and Ancient God souls within Rast’s spirit world.
Before the glow of dusk completely occupied this body, no one knew the outcome of this war in the spiritual world.
…
Although an immensely intense and dangerous soul battle was erupting in the heart world, at this moment, the tower in the real world fell into a brief silence.
Only the sounds of the overly twisted growth of abundant branches and the cracking sounds from the stone-carved sculpture remained… merging into the chaotic wind and waves, becoming the main theme of this world.
Uncertain how much time passed, the sounds of the abundant plant’s growth finally ceased.
All the rooted plants, their lush branches resembling a small forest, suddenly converged, merging into one.
The distortion of flesh and the endless division of cells were forcibly severed… leaving only the elder, resembling a gardener, who walked out from the prosperous forest.
The face of the Avatar of Abundance, Noah, clearly paled a few shades.
The earlier flesh distortion and the division chain born from radiation… even from the perspective of his position as Gravekeeper, he had never seen such means.
In the end, he had to forcibly sever all the abundant magical power that had suffered distortion pollution, infected by the “cancer cells,” just like a cancer patient removing a tumor.
Only then did he manage to forcibly curb the uncontrollable cellular division chain.
And Noah paid a hefty price for this; the remaining power in this Avatar of Abundance was now less than half.
However, even so—
Even though the cost to suppress the distortion pollution was immense, the remaining power of abundance was barely half, and it was even a bit strenuous to maintain the status of legend.
But to k*ll Rast, who was also mentally eroded by the remnants of the former God of d*ath and had previously suffered a heavy blow from the Flesh Flower… was more than enough.
The lush branches surged, and the verdant, vibrant Abundant Domain quietly expanded.
Noah stepped forward.
Until he reached the end of the tower, gazing at the black-haired boy before him, whose body was constantly shattering and cracking in the solidified dusk.
“Rast.”
Noah calmly spoke, uttering the name of the boy before him.
This was the first time he addressed the human boy in such a tone, not from a lofty legendary perspective looking down on an ordinary transcendent, but from a relatively equal stance.
“I must admit, your actions greatly exceeded my expectations.”
“With a mere Fourth Tier human body… you managed to scheme against both me and the remnants of the old God of d*ath, forcing a half of my legendary status into such a desperate state.”
“I must take back my previous evaluation of you—”
“Cecil chose you as his successor and passed that Flame Seed to you… it was not a foolish choice.”
“Your temperament and drive are worthy of the title of his successor.”
“However—”
Noah’s words paused for a moment.
“You are still too arrogant, just like your predecessor Cecil and all past Guardians.”
“As the weakest among the three parties in this chess game, you should have been cautious and acted according to the situation, yet you made the most arrogant move, declaring war on both me and the remnants of the old God of d*ath.”
“If you had chosen to feign cooperation with either of us… prioritizing inciting internal conflict between me and that old God of d*ath’s remnants, while seeking survival in the gaps and reaping the benefits—”
“Then perhaps, the course of this entire chess game, and even the final outcome, could have been rewritten.”
Noah looked at the boy, frozen like a stone sculpture, his body continuously cracking and healing, and slowly extended his hand.
A verdant aura gathered at his fingertips.
Then, Noah pointed at Rast’s left chest, intending to completely pierce his shattered heart.
But—
Noah’s finger movement froze in midair.
Boom—
The originally stagnant dim yellow halo suddenly erupted at that moment.
Manifesting in the void as a massive hand of dusk that tightly grasped Noah’s finger.
Below the high cliff, the Abyss, which had calmed slightly, suddenly boiled up.
The illusory water curtain shot up into the sky, like a dark River of the Dead, hanging down from the very apex of the heavens.
However, in the face of such a change, Noah’s expression remained calm.
“Regaining control over his own body and being able to briefly summon the power of the entire Abyss, turning the remaining divine power on the God of d*ath’s remnants to his own use.”
“In other words—”
“The battle against the remnants of the God of d*ath is also where you have the upper hand.”
Noah’s words rang out plainly.
“With a life experience limited to just a few hundred years, the soul and will condensed… unexpectedly triumphing over the remnants of the Ancient God who have existed since the Age of Gods, even when eroded into one’s heart world.”
“I must say, once again, you have exceeded my expectations.”
If the heart world were invaded by that past God of d*ath’s remnants, resulting in a desperate battle where both sides had no retreat and could only win by devouring each other’s souls.
Even Noah himself would have no guaranteed victory.
Despite being imperfect due to time and long slumber, the other side was, after all, a true Ancient God… and although Noah, as a Gravekeeper, possessed a perspective resembling that of a god overlooking the mortal world, he could not be certain that his own soul had no weaknesses or flaws that could be broken through by the God of d*ath’s remnants.
However, the more it was like this.
The more curious Noah became about Rast’s ultimate purpose in such behavior—
Choosing to challenge both the Gravekeeper and the old God of d*ath while actively placing his weakest self in the most dangerous and unfavorable position.
This was undoubtedly a foolish choice; even though the Guardian’s stance was bound to be irreconcilable with that of the Gravekeeper—there was no fundamental conflict between the Guardian and the old God of d*ath, and there was no need to confront it so early.
Previously, he thought this was purely Rast’s foolish obstinacy, but a purely foolish person couldn’t possibly force a legendary half-body into such a desperate situation.
Rast must have had his reasons for doing so… but after thinking it through, Noah couldn’t understand the motives behind Rast’s actions.
Every living being possesses the instinct to seek advantages and avoid harm, born from the history of life’s evolution; it is engraved in the genes of every creature, whether it’s an inconspicuous blade of grass by the roadside or a high-ranking deity—there should be no difference in this point of “seeking advantages and avoiding harm.”
Yet Rast defied this law, choosing to relinquish the originally safe ascent to godhood without seeing any tangible benefit… instead placing himself in danger through this means of offending both sides.
“So, what have you ultimately gained?”
“Does such behavior hold any significance for you?”
The aged words lingered in the air; this was merely Noah’s low mutter; he did not expect Rast, still battling the remnants of the God of d*ath in the heart world, to respond to this question.
However, unexpectedly, his question was answered.
“Of course it is meaningful… Your Excellency Noah.”
The fragmented syllables echoed at the tower’s peak.
That was Rast’s voice, but compared to his previously clear tone, his voice now sounded incredibly hoarse… mixed with the sounds of wind and tide at the high cliff, as if it were the wailing of a vengeful spirit returned from the underworld.
“A temporary feign of cooperation with the God of d*ath and even taking a step back to negotiate is certainly a safer option… but doing so also means that everything left behind by the God of d*ath, whether it be Paradise or the Abyss, will continue to exist.”
“Even though I prevented the resurrection of the God of d*ath during this ascension ritual, as long as those remnants left by the God of d*ath still exist in the world, in a few years or even in the next era… there will inevitably be a second wave, a third wave of people coveting the God of d*ath’s throne.”
“At that time, the events of today will undoubtedly replay once again.”
“And Akshia will inevitably fall into a new cycle, either as one of the necessary keys to ascension or as a hybrid vessel for the resurrected god and human—forever unable to escape her fate as the ‘perfect vessel of the God of d*ath,’ the ‘last key to ascend the divine throne.’”
Rast’s originally handsome face now appeared extremely pale, like weathered ceramic, filled with fine web-like cracks.
Each time he spoke, shards of flesh would fall from his face, carrying the ashen remnants of his pallor.
“And the meaning of what I do is to completely bury the remnants of the God of d*ath and everything he left behind… whether it be the Abyss, Paradise, or the countless dead.”
“Because only in this way can Akshia break free from the cycle of fate, no longer as the ‘perfect vessel of the God of d*ath,’ the ‘last key to ascend the divine throne…’”
“But as a normal, ordinary girl.”
…
“Just for… this absurd reason?”
“For a woman who doesn’t even count as your beloved… you would let yourself fall into such peril?”
Noah gazed at the broken figure of the boy before him, unable to help but shake his head slightly.
“So—”
“I truly can’t understand the Guardians.”
“I can’t understand your insistence, which lacks reason and meaning.”
“I can’t comprehend that heavy burden named ideals and mission that you carry willingly, which resembles a dream bubble that could clearly be discarded.”
Boom—
Before Noah’s words fell, the verdant light suddenly shone.
It pierced straight into the chest of the boy’s broken form and then blossomed.
This was Noah’s offensive, a full-force strike of his incarnation, the legendary power of abundance exploded within Rast’s body, aiming to obliterate all his vitality.
After a brief conversation, Noah understood that he could not comprehend the thoughts of the person before him, just as Rast equally could not comprehend Noah.
In fact, they did not need to understand each other; the positions of the Gravekeeper and the Guardian were inherently irreconcilable, continuing until d*ath.
Previously, Rast had, in a manner Noah couldn’t understand, left behind a life from the bloom of the Flesh Flower.
So, this time, Noah learned from the previous lesson.
If reviving once leads to another killing, reviving a hundred times means killing him a hundred times… until every cell and transcendent factor that constitutes the human boy before him is annihilated, turned to ashes, rendering any revival or survival means impossible.
The verdant blade pierced through Rast’s heart, the legendary might shattered the dusk, slowly obliterating the power of the Abyss.
Even though a significant portion of the power of this incarnation had been consumed to suppress the flesh distortion, and even though Rast had inherited control of the Abyss from the remnants of the God of d*ath, it was still the majority of divinity remaining with the God of d*ath…
Noah was still in an absolute upper hand, possessing absolute initiative.
This was the majesty of being legendary, the insurmountable gap that crushed non-legendary transcendent beings… only a legend could counter a legendary.
Even if Rast used so many methods to weaken Noah and reinforced himself with the Abyss.
But the final result was merely that Rast had the ability to hold on for a few more seconds in front of him, to bounce back and forth a few more times… it would not influence the ultimate outcome of the battle in the slightest.
However, pierced by Noah’s blade and feeling his vitality slowly being extinguished.
Rast made no move to counterattack.
“That’s right…”
The boy’s hoarse cry sounded again, like a demon returned from hell.
“It is indeed an incomprehensible and meaningless insistence, Your Excellency Noah.”
“What we call ‘Guardians’ are just a group of fools who actively wear the shackles named ideals and bear the chains of missions to pursue a dream bubble.”
A faint light suddenly flickered in his pitch-black eyes, which were like a tranquil pool.
“However, it is precisely because we bear these heavy shackles that could crush someone…”
“Therefore, we cannot lose.”
Boom—
The Abyss rumbled, the river of dusk hung upside down.
The River of the Dead transformed into crimson-gold chains, manifesting in the void as a cage, firmly imprisoning Noah’s body in place.
Then.
Noah saw a small silver-white rune suddenly appear in the boy’s dark eyes.
It then began to spin extremely slowly.
This was something Noah had never seen before; within the calculation rune flowed countless bytes of 0s and 1s.
The rise and fall of the waves suddenly ceased, leaving only the boy’s metallic voice echoing in the wind and tide.
“Fall into the Abyss with me.”
(End of Chapter)
