When the light faded, Nian Shi stood alone in the empty void.
His divine sense swept outward, scouring every inch of space for any trace of escape. Any lingering presence.
Nothing.
Yun Qianxue—gone.
Lin Xinyao—erased.
Lan Hanyu—vanished.
Yue Yun—annihilated.
Every last one of Yun Lintian's loved ones had been wiped from existence.
A cold smile curled Nian Shi's lips.
"I hope you enjoys the gift I've prepared for you, Yun Lintian."
With that, his figure dissolved into silver mist, leaving behind only the hollow echo of his malice.
***
**
*
Far away, in a realm untouched by the battle—
A place resembling the Misty Cloud Sect's sacred peak—
Snow fell in gentle silence.
Then—
Rip—
A tiny spatial rift tore open.
From it fluttered a single, almost invisible fragment of ice.
It landed softly on the snow, indistinguishable from the rest—
—until a faint, childlike voice whispered from within.
"Mom…"
It was Bing'er.
