Morax opened his mouth, but no words came out.
After a long while, he finally forced a single word out from between his teeth.
"Yes."
When the assembled Adepti heard Morax confirm that this Jiang Yan had only been a clone, they all let out a sigh of relief.
"Honestly, that Jiang Yan…"
Guizhong spoke with a hint of reproach.
"He really gave us a scare."
Morax stood there silently, his eyes vacant.
"Rex Lapis?"
Cloud Retainer was the first to notice something was wrong with Morax.
"Jiang Yan…"
"Jiang Yan, he…"
Morax muttered under his breath. It was the first time Guizhong and the others had ever seen him like this.
"What happened to Jiang Yan?"
Guizhong's heart, which had just settled, leapt back up again.
At that moment, an ominous feeling surged into everyone's hearts.
"When Jiang Yan left back then… he told me something."
Morax seemed to be forcing himself to face reality, struggling to keep his voice steady.
"As long as the clone exists, he exists."
"But if the clone disappears…"
He couldn't finish the sentence.
At this point, the Adepti finally realized the true gravity of the situation.
"W–what did you say?"
Guizhong stared at Morax in a daze.
"Now that the clone is gone, then Jiang Yan…"
Cloud Retainer murmured. She tried to take a step forward, but staggered and fell to the ground.
"Hehehe… impossible!"
"Absolutely impossible!!"
Azhdaha burst into laughter. He threw an arm around Morax's shoulder and said with a grin:
"That kid Jiang Yan has all kinds of bizarre tricks up his sleeve."
"How could he possibly be dead? Rex Lapis, you're joking, right?"
Though Azhdaha was smiling, his eyes were fixed intently on Morax.
"You're joking, right? Morax!"
"That brat—how could he be dead?!"
"Impossible!"
Azhdaha turned around and walked away.
"Where are you going?"
Morax asked, not even turning his head.
"To find him! That brat—this time his prank's gone too far!"
Azhdaha's voice echoed from afar.
"Come back. You won't find him."
Morax spoke in a low voice.
Azhdaha's departing figure froze in place, his body trembling uncontrollably.
For a time, no one could accept the sudden news of Jiang Yan's death.
Everything had been fine—how could this happen so abruptly?
Ganyu, still kneeling on the ground, quietly looked at Morax. At this moment, she was eerily calm.
"Where did Jiang Yan go?"
She spoke softly, her voice devoid of emotion.
"I don't know."
Morax shook his head, then looked up toward the sky.
"But perhaps… there is one who knows."
…
Half an hour earlier.
The Abyss.
After two thousand years of battle, the Abyss had already become utterly shattered.
Cracks covered the surrounding rock walls, spreading downward toward an endless black ocean.
Yes—an ocean of black.
Above that pitch-black surface, a lone figure stood silently.
It was Jiang Yan.
At this moment, his entire body was shrouded in darkness, countless black spears piercing straight through his torso.
These spears seemed to grow directly out of the black river itself, fused as one—equally pitch-black.
In his hand, he held a severed head.
Judging by its ferocious appearance, it was unmistakably the Lord of the Abyss.
Jiang Yan was panting heavily, his body trembling nonstop.
At that moment, black mist surged from his hand, and the head of the Lord of the Abyss vanished.
It did not reappear.
Only a voice filled with resentment echoed from all directions.
"Brat, this time I've fallen at your hands. But one day, I will return!"
"The Abyss will never perish!"
After two thousand years of struggle, the Lord of the Abyss had finally reached the limit of its resurrection cost and could no longer revive.
Yet it was right.
As long as the Sea of Quanta still existed, as long as it continued to erode reality, the Abyss would continue to exist.
And the Lord of the Abyss would eventually awaken again.
At the very least, however, for a very long time to come, it would be unable to reappear.
"Heh. Worst case, I'll just fight you for another two thousand years."
Jiang Yan coughed up blood, the corners of his mouth lifting into a smile.
The Lord of the Abyss said nothing more, merely snorting coldly before vanishing completely.
As it disappeared, the spears that had pierced through Jiang Yan also faded away.
Jiang Yan staggered. In that final, desperate battle with the Lord of the Abyss, he had endured extreme Abyssal corrosion.
At this very moment, the power of Abyssal corruption was clashing violently within his body against the purifying power of the Horse Talisman.
He wanted to activate the Time Gem and directly rewind his body back to a perfect state.
But right now, his body felt unbearably heavy—he couldn't move at all.
After two thousand years of battle, both his body and his mind had reached their absolute limits.
"Good thing I have the Dog Talisman."
Jiang Yan let out a breath of relief. At the very least, his life was safe.
He wouldn't die—but how long it would take to recover his body would depend on the Horse Talisman.
So tired…
As Jiang Yan finally relaxed, an overwhelming wave of exhaustion instantly crushed his mental defenses.
His eyes lifted—then drooped.
Slowly, they closed.
In that case… he'd rest for a bit.
Just for a little while…
As Jiang Yan closed his eyes, his presence vanished along with it.
[Such a reckless brat.]
The system's voice suddenly echoed in Jiang Yan's mind.
[But… well done, Jiang Yan.]
[Rest well. Leave the rest to me.]
Like a gentle elder, the system carefully protected Jiang Yan's consciousness.
Since the very first time it met Jiang Yan, the system had always tried to minimize its own presence.
Though it possessed its own consciousness, it had never interfered with any of Jiang Yan's decisions.
If anyone had truly borne witness to Jiang Yan's growth, then if the system claimed second place, no one would dare claim first.
[You six… aren't you being very obedient.]
The system's voice was calm. As it spoke, the six Infinity Stones on Jiang Yan's right hand faintly flickered.
As if in fear.
[Over these two thousand years, Jiang Yan has invoked you countless times.]
[Yet you failed to properly fulfill your duty of protecting him.]
[Granting you to Jiang Yan was already an honor.]
[If I ever find again that you fail to protect him… then you will have no reason to exist.]
[After all, the Marvel Universe doesn't only have your six Infinity Stones.]
The system's voice was utterly indifferent, devoid of all emotion.
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