Heaven and earth lost their color; all things returned to silence.
Only the residual waves of destruction silently recounted the divine war that had just erupted—a war that surpassed all mortal comprehension.
At the center of the collision, light, energy, and dust mixed into a chaotic, lethal vortex that persisted, unable to subside.
Who won? Who lost? Who... was still alive?
When those three forces—powerful enough to rewrite the world's rules: the ultimate burning of the Finality, the return to nothingness of the Ocean's Origin, and the destructive slash of Frost—slammed against each other, the result was not merely an energy explosion, but an act of destruction targeting all existing matter and laws.
Lu Jingming's pupils instantly contracted to the size of needle points.
His spiritual senses screamed frantically, warning him that the engulfing torrent of destruction far exceeded his previous estimation of its power.
This was no ordinary shockwave; it was a mixture of spacetime turbulence and pure annihilation force triggered by the collapse of laws.
Without any hesitation, and without even time to issue a warning, the power within his body began to operate and burn at an unprecedented speed.
"Ultimate Deification."
A low shout activated the power of his Divine Seat, and Lu Jingming's aura instantly became ethereal, profound, and non-human.
The emotions in his eyes were replaced by absolute rationality and divinity; his hair moved without wind, surrounded by speckles of starlight.
Almost simultaneously, he abruptly stretched out his arm and pulled Cerydra, who was weak from fully unleashing the Decree of Law and small in stature, into his embrace.
"You—!"
Cerydra was caught off guard, her delicate body stiffening abruptly.
As the exalted Empress governing Law, when had she ever been in such close proximity to anyone?
Especially being forcefully embraced by a man like this.
An instinctive surge of anger and resistance immediately welled up, and the residual power around her subconsciously threatened to erupt and push this hateful fellow away.
However, just as her power was about to burst forth, the corner of her eye caught sight of the pure white destruction that had already descended and filled her vision.
It was an absolute domain of death where even light, sound, and space were crushed and annihilated.
She clearly felt that her currently extremely weakened Soul Servant body, if directly exposed to this destructive torrent, likely wouldn't last even for an instant before being completely wiped out, along with her soul imprint, like a bubble in the sun.
All her struggle and anger instantly dissolved in the face of this genuine threat of death.
The hand she had prepared to push Lu Jingming away paused slightly in mid-air, finally dropping down listlessly.
Her taut body relaxed the moment she realized his intention.
She merely turned her head slightly, averting her gaze to avoid direct eye contact, but her secretly reddening earlobes betrayed that her inner state was far from the surface calm.
And at this moment, Lu Jingming had no time for anything else.
He extended his free right hand in a virtual grasp and whispered, "Abyssal White Star, release."
Buzz—!
The divine artifact, intertwined with creation and destruction, emerged as commanded. Not in the form of a spear, but instantly decomposing and restructuring into an intensely solid, slowly rotating black and white sphere of light, which completely enveloped the tightly embracing pair.
On the surface of the sphere, the black part continuously swallowed and dissolved the destructive energy that slammed into it, while the white part continuously released surging vitality and protective power, repairing the sections of the sphere that were being eroded.
In the next second, the destructive frenzy utterly consumed the small light sphere.
"Rumble—!!!"
All external sound vanished, or rather, sound itself was annihilated by the force of destruction.
Inside the light sphere, one could only feel an incomparably violent vibration and immense pressure that seemed to rip the soul apart.
The black and white sphere of light was like a small boat in a raging ocean, violently struck and tossed by unimaginable force. The light barrier rippled wildly, flickering on and off, as if it could shatter at any moment.
Lu Jingming frowned, shielding Cerydra even tighter, pouring all his effort into maintaining the stability of the sphere.
In the state of Deification, his power poured out like a floodgates opening, rushing into the Abyssal White Star.
Cerydra could clearly hear the strong and rapid heartbeat coming from his chest and feel his body slightly trembling from the immense pressure, but the arm wrapped around her was steady as a rock, not loosening in the slightest.
In the face of absolute death, time lost its meaning.
After an unknown duration, perhaps an instant, perhaps an eternity, the world-shattering tremors and impacts from outside finally began to gradually weaken and subside.
Lu Jingming's tightly wound nerves slightly relaxed. The ethereal divinity around him slowly retreated inward, lifting the Deification state, his face showing a trace of exhaustion.
With a thought, the black and white light sphere outside dissolved into specks of light, reforming into the Abyssal White Star, which he stored away.
Then, what was revealed beyond the sphere was the true scene of—The End.
The first thing they felt was silence.
A chilling, absolute silence that had stripped away all sound. The sound of wind, water, and even rolling dust had vanished.
Looking out, the sky was no longer a familiar color, but an eerie, dark, and murky blend of dust and residual energy, like a festering wound on a dying behemoth.
The once thick clouds were completely swept clear. High up in the extreme sky, the cold expanse of the cosmos was clearly visible, its starlight casting an indifferent glow through the polluted atmosphere.
And the earth...
Where was the earth?
The mountainous region, where the City of Slaughter was originally located, filled with strange, jagged rocks and deep ravines, had completely disappeared.
In its place was an endless, glass-smooth, pitch-black plain.
This plain was not formed of soil or rock; rather, the entire surface had been instantly melted and vitrified by the extreme high temperature and pressure, then cooled into a glassy ground that emitted a faint, radioactive luminescence.
It was so smooth that it reflected the murky colors of the sky, stretching to the limits of vision without any undulations or traces of life, only absolute "flatness" and "barrenness."
In some places, dark red, vein-like lava networks remained, slowly flowing beneath the vitrified surface, emitting the last of their heat and the smell of sulfur.
The air was thick with the strange odors of ozone, ionized air, and rock that had been vaporized. Inhaling it felt like a burn in the lungs.
Further away, in the original core area of the collision, space was still extremely unstable. Twisted, black-lightning-like spatial fissures flickered in and out of existence, devouring the sparse remnants around them.
Occasionally, energy currents that had not been completely annihilated drifted like will-o'-the-wisps, making sizzling sounds.
This was a corner of the world that had been "killed."
The terrain was permanently rewritten, and even the laws seemed broken and incomplete.
Only the cold, high-up starry sky, witnessing all that had occurred, remained eternally unchanged.
Lu Jingming surveyed the scene, which looked like the aftermath of both creation and destruction. He took a deep breath of the air filled with the scent of death and destruction, and slowly exhaled.
He looked down at Cerydra, who was still quiet in his arms but whose eyes were equally shocked by the doomsday landscape.
"It seems we made a bit too much of a ruckus."
He forced a smile, attempting to recover his usual relaxed tone, though a hint of exhaustion was undeniable.
Cerydra didn't respond immediately. She just quietly looked at the scarred earth a few more times, as if to brand the image onto her soul.
Then, she moved slightly, signaling Lu Jingming to release her.
Lu Jingming graciously let go of his arms.
Cerydra retreated half a step, adjusting her slightly disheveled robes and crown. When she looked up again, her face had recovered the dignity and composure of the Empress of Law, though a hint of indescribable complexity seemed to flicker in her deep eyes.
She didn't look at Lu Jingming but gazed toward the core of the destruction, saying softly, "The cost was great, but... we won."
Cerydra's gaze swept over the fragmented void that was slowly repairing itself and finally settled on the two figures walking side-by-side out of the core of the energy turbulence.
It was Hysilens and Jingliu.
Neither of them looked pristine at the moment.
Hysilens's azure battle skirt was torn in several places. Her exposed skin bore scorch marks from the Finality's flame and cracks from the Frost's freezing. Her aura was erratic, clearly indicating immense depletion.
Jingliu was in slightly better condition. She had reapplied her black veil, concealing the crimson eyes she had revealed earlier, but her pale face showed that she was equally strained. The Ephemeral Blossom Sword forged from solid ice even had a faint, almost imperceptible crack.
However, their posture remained upright, and the light in their eyes had not dimmed. Instead, it was sharper and deeper, like steel that had been tempered.
And the most striking sight was Hysilens's left hand.
She had not returned empty-handed but was holding a longsword, entirely dark red and emanating an aura of endless slaughter and judgment—it was the Asura Demonic Sword, previously wielded by the corrupted Kevin.
The demonic sword trembled slightly in her grip, its dark red light flickering like breath, seemingly still struggling. But the Origin Power of her own Ocean Half-God status and a wisp of Void aura, which wrapped around Hysilens's hand, suppressed it like the strongest shackles, making escape impossible.
The suffocating figure of the corrupted Kevin had completely vanished without a trace.
Not only was his physical form annihilated, but the tainted core that had spawned him had also been completely purified and erased, leaving no remnant.
Furthermore, everyone present could clearly feel that simultaneously with the subsiding of the terrifying collision, the source of the Douluo Star beneath their feet suddenly became much more active and robust.
A subtle vitality was quietly surging like a spring from the depths of the earth that had just been ravaged by destruction.
Everything silently yet powerfully proclaimed the final outcome of this brutal battle.
Victory belonged to them.
Cerydra looked at the Asura Demonic Sword in Hysilens's hand, a symbol of ultimate authority and power. A flash of understanding crossed her eyes, quickly followed by her usual composure.
She nodded slightly, acknowledging the two returning comrades.
Lu Jingming regained his smile. He walked a few steps forward, his gaze sweeping over Hysilens and Jingliu, finally landing on the Asura Demonic Sword. He chuckled:
"As expected of a Super Divine Tool, it's still intact after facing that kind of power."
Hysilens held the Asura Demonic Sword and walked up to Lu Jingming and Cerydra.
She paid no attention to Lu Jingming's exclamation but looked seriously at Cerydra:
"Cerydra, I have fulfilled my mission, and we owe much to your Decree of Law; otherwise, the final outcome would have been unknown."
Cerydra calmly responded, "This is the result of our combined effort, Sword Cavalier."
Hysilens nodded and offered the Asura Demonic Sword forward.
"Cerydra, this demonic sword embodies the authority of slaughter and judgment. I believe you can wield it."
She showed no reluctance, as if she were handing over a common weapon instead of a Super Divine Tool that could tempt even a God King.
Cerydra didn't immediately take it but looked at Jingliu, as Jingliu had also contributed greatly.
If it were Jingliu, inheriting the Asura God's Divine Seat would also be fitting.
"I don't need it. The sword in my hand is sufficient," Jingliu shook her head. The Asura God's Divine Seat was indeed suitable for her, but she had her own path, and the path of the Sword Dao was her true way.
"We're all on the same side, no need to be polite, Your Majesty the Empress," Lu Jingming said with a smile.
Cerydra didn't refute Lu Jingming's claim of being "on the same side" and accepted the Asura Demonic Sword from Hysilens's hand.
Rewinding the clock slightly.
Just as the divine war raged high above the City of Slaughter, another battle of purification quietly began in a deep valley not far from the original Heaven Dou City.
This valley was now enveloped by a thick, sickening aura of negative energy.
Gray and black mist churned ceaselessly, blocking the sunlight. The air was filled with despair, hatred, distortion, and madness.
What was even more chilling was that the scene in the core area of this tainted land was seven parts similar to Sea Abyss City.
However, the buildings here were twisted and gloomy, like a dark reflection left behind after all beautiful things had been desecrated.
This was a powerful Taint Core born using Sea Abyss City as its blueprint.
Three figures, completely ignoring the negative corruption potent enough to cause a Titled Douluo's mind to collapse, quietly appeared at the valley entrance.
Leading them was the Silver Dragon King Gu Yuena, with silver hair and purple eyes, her posture peerless.
She felt the incredibly foul aura inside the valley and slightly frowned.
To her left was Castorice, dressed in a pristine white dress embroidered with flowers. She gently stroked a small, white flower with slightly curled edges that appeared out of thin air, feeling the sorrowful wails emanating from it, and quietly said:
"The 'death' here is filled with resentment and defilement."
To her right was Firefly, who had transformed into Sam. She looked at the twisted "Sea Abyss City," a cold light flashing in her eyes.
"Target confirmed. Commencing cleanup."
Her voice, channeled through the armored mask, carried a metallic hum.
They had come by Lu Jingming's command, not only to eliminate the hidden threat in the heartland for the soon-to-be-unified Spirit Empire but also to purify the Taint Core and convert the negative energy into nourishment for the planet's advancement.
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