Su Ming'an walked forward, his cheeks pale like a stone statue, only his lips retained a faint red.

Staring at the church draped in gold and blue, for a moment, he felt as if something had overlapped at this moment.

He had a flash of inspiration in his mind and suddenly realized something.

The moment he realized this, a strong shock made him stand still in place.

"Wait..." he murmured in disbelief, terrified by the fact he had just realized.

At this moment, the deity announced to all the people of the Holy City, their voice rumbling and echoing:

"Everyone, the Holy City has ascended to beneath the starry sky—from now on, we will forever float in the high skies."

"Dieying is gathering all its strength, trying to prematurely merge ten thousand world lines and completely destroy The World of Old Days. Our response method—separation. Let the Holy City rise into the sky, completely breaking away from the limitations of 'The World of Old Days.'"

"At this moment, we have completed our ascension."

"There is no need to panic, under the arrival of the new god, the crisis in the sky will surely be resolved. All you need to do is continue praying, supplying strength to the new god."

"This Holy City will be given a new name. We will no longer name this floating city the Holy City, but rather give it a name that better suits it."

"Because it soars high above, shrouded in clouds and mist."

"The Holy City is officially renamed—"

Su Ming'an felt his heartbeat almost leap out of his throat.

His whole body tingled as if electrified, feeling terrified yet expectant as he waited for that answer—

The deity's voice was extremely calm:

...

"—Yun Shang City."

...

...

[Beneath the grace of light and love, may we raise the light of faith, speaking our prayers with devout voices—]

[May the omnipotent Cloud City God listen to our wishes above the Holy City, granting courage, wisdom, and decisiveness to Soul Hunt! Granting selflessness, justice, and eternal life to the Tulip Princess!]

[May You grant Pulaya refreshing spring rains, prosperous trade, abundant fish catches, the purity of marriage!]

[Overlooking the clouds, never to fall, Cloud City God! The white bird shall guide us, the black bird shall remember us, may you thrive, may this hymn soar into the nine heavens, until the end of eternal time!]

[Life after life, forever and ever.]

[Praise to You! God!]

[—Pulaya·Prayers of the Church of Light]

...

[Su Rin never knew who took Pulaya's World Origin. No one knew why the Yun Shang City appeared above Pulaya.]

[—In the past, who lost the World Origin? And which deity built Yun Shang City?]

[Since the beginning of time, Yun Shang City seemed to have always been there. Lonely, pure white, without a soul. The legend that 'Yun Shang City has a god' has also been passed down from generation to generation, Su Rin grew up listening to this legend.]

...

["Young Captain, look up." Sea Monster pointed to the sky.]

[Su Rin looked up and saw a circle of shadows floating above the sky.]

[That is the legendary city within the clouds, protected by a god, not eroded by storms.]

[Yun Shang City used to be inhabited by gods.]

[Yet somehow, only an empty white Holy City remained.]

[This is a myth passed down for thousands of years...but the blanks within the story always existed—]

[—The god left.]

[—Where did the god go?]

...

At the moment when the secret was revealed, Su Ming'an shivered.

He looked down at this floating city—suddenly realizing, the undeniable truth had finally fallen like a hammer.

He had never considered this possibility.

—Thousands of years after The World of Old Days... when all stories are hidden, when the people of this era have completely perished, when the story of humanity resisting Dieying with utmost wisdom concludes... after such peaceful living for thousands of years... on an island... a civilization named Pulaya was born.

On that island filled with enthusiasm, simplicity, and struggles, another epic story emerged.

—The god who once saved this world over millennia, as a brand new savior, stepped onto that island bathed in the passionate blood of Soul Hunt.

The sea people of Pulaya often looked up in wonder, gazing at the Holy City that has hung alone in the sky for millennia—why did that Holy City come to be? And which deity crafted that city that never falls?

They passed down stories, passing on a seemingly plausible myth. No one knew why the Holy City floated there, just saying that it must be the handiwork of the god.

—Indeed, it was the god.

Thousands of years ago, Su Ming'an witnessed the renaming of "Holy City" to Yun Shang City. After the story of The World of Old Days ended, washed by the years, thousand generations of Holy City people naturally disappeared, leaving only an empty floating city. It aimlessly drifted, shrinking as resources depleted... until it floated above Pulaya.

—A savior named "Su Rin," piloting the hope airship of all Pulaya, landed on this now deserted island, glanced at the pollution left behind on the island... and a standing church.

The entire ship of sea people died from poison gas, their deathly hatred prompted Su Rin to use "emotions," a similarly sourced power system, to become a god, becoming the Cloud City God.

He compassionately overlooked the ancestral land of Pulaya, residing in the great church, manipulating the conflicts between Soul Hunt and the Soul Clan with hatred, using "malice" to construct a Storm Barrier to fend off the Sea Monsters.

[The Republic], corresponding to [Storm Barrier].

[Emotions], corresponding to [Malice].

—They are originally from the same source, and thus have similar structures.

No one knows how much time and experiences have elapsed between these two stories. But one thing is sure—

From the very moment Su Rin set foot in this instance—

He had already arrived at...

[His unreachable homeland.]

...

[With wishes spanning a thousand autumns, ending the reincarnation of a hundred generations.]

[Netherworld sacrifices fire, bodies carry heavy souls, kingfisher weaves red, soldiers enter the underworld.]

[—From the depths of Nine Serenities, old friends arrive.]

...

The silence rang in Su Ming'an's ears.

Locking the clawing shock within his chest, he was speechless for quite a while. Staring at the eternally standing church, he carefully recalled the murals of the church in Yun Shang City. After the long years and the alternation of new gods, he could not discern the differences between the two.

He never considered this possibility.

He never thought… that civilizations might really be connected in some way. Upon careful reflection, Pulaya's scope is limited to a small island, beyond the island is a region full of places players have never ventured.

"Su Rin." He called softly.

Since the instance began, it had always been difficult to call upon Su Rin. But now, he just lightly called out, and there was someone by his side.

He recalled the last loop, when Su Rin came to kill him, it was also that swift, as if the tower was not an obstacle in Su Rin's eyes, or perhaps... Su Rin had merely returned home.

Although currently, even the concept of "home" had not appeared.

Su Rin took a step forward, seeming somewhat hesitant, or perhaps a bit timid. The emotion of "timidity" had almost never appeared on his face, but at this moment, Su Ming'an could see some of it.

He didn't know whether to be surprised, or to feel... sad.

It turned out that after wandering for so long on his own "homeland," he hadn't recognized it at all. The World of Old Days at this point, ten thousand years later, bore almost no similar traces. Except for this floating Holy City.

"So... time is... sliced." Su Rin just said that one sentence.

In this way, the instance of the World Game actually bore a striking resemblance to the situation of the World of Old Days. The World Game sliced the current time and the time of "Pulaya," dividing them into two instances presented before the players. As if slicing ten thousand world lines.

Could it be that the World Game is also for...

A kind of, [Rescue]?

The story belonging to Pulaya should have also been observed by the Deity and Dieying. They understood that millennia later... there will be a civilization belonging to "Pulaya." Su Ming'an had also long stepped into that land filled with scars and blood. However, due to the confidentiality rules of the World Game, the Deity could not speak it out directly, but could only use indirect means to let Su Ming'an understand—

"Su Ming'an has long existed in this world."

"We have already observed the 'future'—Pulaya."

...

[Welcome players to the Tenth World!]

[Your identity is detected as: Su Ming'an.]

...

[In the relics, Su Rin held an oil lamp, walking forward.]

[He saw a stone tablet with blurred writing, the text on it looked ancient.]

[Su Rin softly read out: "This... is... a struggle... that will lose sovereignty..."]

["Su..." He wiped away the dust and continued to read the words on the stone tablet:]

["Su... Ming... An."]

...

["People give you flowers out of reverence, people want to bind you with chains out of fear... this is essentially the same emotion. Your attachment and your slaughter will only lead to the same result... because everything has already happened..." said the Deity.]

...

Old God Su Ming'an, heir of the Cloud City God Su Ming'an.

—The [past] you experienced is the [future] of this civilization.

Who said "an instance can only be limited to one civilization"?

—The World of Old Days tells you how far-reaching the breadth and depth of civilization is, how many crises a civilization will face during its development. And each time, it can always propel humanity forward, united in strength, together overcoming adversity.

Pulaya is on the brink of destruction, and it is the Knight of Light stepping out, thousands of soul hunts sacrificing themselves to stand before the sea monsters.

The World of Old Days is on the brink of destruction, and it is God Su Ming'an stepping out, millions on the world lines of humanity splitting themselves, stacking corpses, swimming an ark. It is far larger than a mere island; Pulaya, an island yet to appear, is just a tiny part of it thousands or tens of thousands of years in the future.

Yet despite this, mankind's admirable resilience and spirit of sacrifice remain unchanged, passed on across generations. The millions of soldiers from the World of Old Days Su Ming'an has seen, possibly one thousand or ten thousand years later... could very well be an ancestor of a brave soul hunter in Pulaya.

They shout similar slogans, navigate similar arks, raise similar swords and shields.

They bleed the same blood, uphold the same determination, ascend the same city.

They write in different texts, speak different languages, yet witness the consistent Deity throughout the centuries.

—It is named the [Holy City] thousands or tens of thousands of years ago.

—It is named [Cloud City] thousands or tens of thousands of years later.

—He is called the [Old God] thousands or tens of thousands of years ago.

—He is called the [Cloud City God] thousands or tens of thousands of years later.

...

It was Su Ming'an who, as the "long-lost god" in Pulaya's mythology, first accomplished the ascent of Cloud City, setting the condition for Su Rin's divine ascension thousands of years later, allowing Su Rin to become a god. After Su Rin became a god and sought an heir, Su Ming'an returned to Pulaya as the new Savior, taking on the title of "Despicable heir" passed down by Su Rin, saving the Pulaya civilization.

Thousands of years ago, thousands of years later. "God"—for only the two of them.

Cause leads to effect, effect returns to cause.

[Where did the God go?]

—The Deity resisted Dieying thousands of years ago, and the story ended, hence He disappeared.

[Who lost the source of Pulaya's world?]

—The Deity preserved the world source through a wager thousands of years ago. Over tens of thousands of years, civilization underwent untraceable evolution. The Deity disappeared, and all the people on the Holy City naturally perished, the world source also eventually depleted. After this, Pulaya became an instance.

However, Su Ming'an brought new life to Pulaya, continuing its legacy. Sooner or later, a hero will find a way to reclaim the world source.

Thus passing the flame on.

—Generation after generation, mankind's heroic spirit of resistance, passed on without cease.

Gears interlock, generations rotate.

...

—Is this the prologue of an era, or its end?

—Is this the end of an instance (the tenth), or the beginning of another instance (the seventh)?

Su Ming'an walked forward, holding the Sword of Destiny.

It seemingly symbolized—the unchanging will of humanity.

Li Mingyue lastly asked him, whether he wanted to turn back, if he put down the Sword of Destiny in his hands and gave up becoming a god, he could still retain himself.

However, He simply shook His head, with a face as white as a sheet, and smiled.

The blue-golden bands of light coiled around Him, like a Morning Star, at the moment crossing the critical point between man and god, pure white tendrils turned into wings, flaring behind Him, with the sound "swoosh"—

His long black hair reached His back.

"—I hope they find happiness, and that this happiness is unrivaled, unique."

Underneath the drifting black hair, He did not look back.

...

[Later, I dreamed of a better ending... Lv Shu healed his illness, found new friends. Yuanyuan bid farewell to her family and became a famous e-sports player. Yamada Machiichi, wearing a Lolita skirt in the sunlight, traveled happily across countries. Lu drove the aircraft carrier of his dreams. Eni continued to enjoy life as a carefree little noble. Mo Yan became an accomplished artist. Su Rin returned to his hometown and strolled in the sun-drenched mountains and fields... They all found happiness.]

[As for Su Ming'an.]

[...]

[... Who is Su Ming'an?]

...

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