Chapter 2394: Not Betraying the World but Betraying Xiaolan
From the pinnacle of the sky, the Ancient Dragon Empress plummeted back down to the mortal realm.
Billions upon billions of beings faltered upon seeing this,
“Heavenly Disciple Ancient Dragon Empress!”
“Heavenly Disciple!”
“This… Has she failed?”
Most beings were exclaiming in shock and astonishment.
Those who had weaker hearts were already clutching at their chests, and it was as if their heartbeats might stop at any moment. They truly couldn’t endure such a wild roller coaster ride.
Meanwhile, Xue Yan dashed forward to catch the plummeting Ancient Dragon Empress in her embrace. At the same time, she frantically used her ice-cold power to seal the fatal wounds suffered by the Ancient Dragon Empress.
“Xue Yan…” the Ancient Dragon Empress murmured as she opened her eyes with great difficulty. There was pain and guilt on her face, and she said, “I… I betrayed everyone’s hopes…”
“Hush,” Xue Yan said with a soft shake of her head. Her voice was gentle as she continued, “You already tried your best.”
However, the Ancient Dragon Empress was still overcome with an overwhelming feeling of guilt and agitation. She turned her eyes toward Chen Chen.
Chen Chen also looked toward the Ancient Dragon Empress, and upon seeing that she could still survive, a consoling smile spread across his face. He then turned his gaze back toward the sky, with his expression becoming increasingly solemn.
The Heaven Crushing Sect had fallen at the final hurdle.
The Heavenly Dao had been comprehensively destroyed, and the entire world was now on the brink of destruction.
The sky was filled with spatial fissures, with devastating currents of chaos starting to seep out from within them and sweeping across heaven and earth, furiously terrorizing the continent.
A great calamity ensued again. Among the billions upon billions of beings, some fled, while others fell to their knees in despair. There was lingering hope in their eyes as they gazed at the picture of the Heaven Crushing Glazed Palace.
However, Cyril had already died, and the Ancient Dragon Empress was also on the verge of death. Chen Chen was in a better state, yet at this moment, his severely wounded essential power meant that he could barely wield any power.
Who else could save this heaven and earth?
Even though they were facing the destruction of heaven and earth, the beings of the continent still didn’t descend into mindless despair. There was still a flicker of hope in their eyes—a flicker of hope named darkness.
They looked up at the live stream in the sky, awaiting the return of that one person.
This was a living legend of the entire Tai Chu Continent.
After a short moment, and as if sensing the imminent destruction of the Tai Chu Continent…
Within the void of darkness, the space suddenly started to churn!
A man in white slowly walked over from the distance.
He quickly reappeared in the sky of this heaven and earth.
At this moment, the chaotic heaven and earth suddenly fell silent.
The man stood tall and proud, and his dark eyes were limpid and gentle. As he gazed at those waiting for him, he smiled and said, “I haven’t betrayed everyone’s trust. I’ve won.”
Xu Xiaolan’s eyes were already hazy with tears, yet she still gazed at the man in white before her. “An Lin… Welcome back.”
The eyes of all the disciples and elders of the Four Nine Immortal Sect also reddened in emotion.
“Welcome back, Sect Leader An Lin!” they shouted in unison.
“Sect Leader An Lin is an invincible God of War!”
“Sect Leader is as brilliant as the sun and moon, and as eternal as heaven and earth! Sect Leader is undefeatable!”
These familiar words, these words that were spoken from the bottom of everyone’s heart… At this moment, they all converged together to shake the heavens.
An Lin couldn’t help but smile upon hearing this.
He gazed at those familiar faces. These were his fond disciples, there were his adorable pet beasts, there were his loyal servants, and these were also his trustworthy friends… Oh, what a wonderful sect this was…
An Lin’s gaze gradually became hazy.
He truly didn’t want to leave them.
However, had he not done everything to save this very group of people?
At this instant, the members of the Four Nine Immortal Sect and their Sect Leader all silently gazed at each other.
This was like a silent farewell.
It was also at this moment that a fragrant breeze suddenly swept over.
Jade robe fell into his embrace, bringing with it a boundless softness and warmth.
Xu Xiaolan had leaped toward An Lin, and she was tightly embracing him.
“An Lin… don’t leave me. Promise me, don’t leave me again! Don’t sacrifice yourself again! You’ve already done enough for this world. Let us live together in happiness in the future, okay?” Xu Xiaolan sobbed in a pleading voice. Her embrace was tight, and it was as if she were afraid that An Lin might vanish at any moment.
An Lin’s gaze became extremely gentle, and he also wrapped the woman before him in a tight embrace. As he experienced her warmth, all of his reluctance and feelings transformed into the most heartfelt embrace.
“My life has already been filled with enough splendor…” An Lin suddenly said.
The woman in his embrace shuddered upon hearing this. She looked up with teary eyes, and she frantically shook her head as she said, “No… don’t. You already promised me, didn’t you? You promised that you would accompany me forever. You promised that you would become Dao partners with me and host a wedding for the ages. Have you forgotten? You can’t break your promise…”
She was an extremely independent woman, yet at this moment, she was like a lost child. Her body was trembling, and her tears were unstopping. She continued to plead with An Lin.
An Lin opened his mouth as he gazed at her, yet he realized that there was nothing that he could say.
He hadn’t betrayed anyone in his lifetime. In the end, however…
He had still betrayed Xiaolan…
With his life essence erased, he could no longer become a Heavenly Dao that possessed awareness.
His heart shuddered violently.
Darkness suddenly covered the sky and swallowed the entire universe.
The fractures in the sky were mended by this darkness, and the wanton currents of chaos were also engulfed by this darkness. All signs of a catastrophe were suppressed by this darkness.
The tumultuous heaven and earth fell silent.
Everyone looked up, gazing at the dark sky. However, they didn’t feel any fear. Instead, they felt a sense of tranquility and peace.
They had clearly still been facing an apocalypse and panicking in terror just then.
Now, however, all of their negative emotions had been soothed by the darkness before them.
Such gentle darkness…
This thought involuntarily arose in everyone’s mind.
The man in Xu Xiaolan’s embrace suddenly became intangible and transparent.
“No…!”
Xu Xiaolan exclaimed in panic and fright. She tried to embrace An Lin again, yet all that she could grab was empty space.
An Lin could feel everything disappearing from before him. His body didn’t listen to his commands anymore as it slowly rose into the sky.
“Master!”
“Big Brother An! Woof!”
“Master! Don’t leave us!”
“Sect Leader!”
As if realizing something, tears instantly trickled down everyone’s cheeks.
Some even tried to drag him back, yet their effort was all for naught.
Refusing to listen to his commands, An Lin’s body continued to drift toward the sky.
It was also at this moment that the ring on his finger flashed. A peculiar black orb materialized in heaven and earth before surging toward the sky and exploding. It formed a connection with the Tai Chu Continent as well as countless different worlds.
“This is… the nascent form of the Heavenly Dao? I never imagined that such a matter would exist. An Lin… ultimately can’t escape the fate of becoming the Heavenly Dao…” Chen Chen exclaimed. There was astonishment in this voice, yet this couldn’t conceal his feeling of desolation.
“Using his body to mend the heavens, using five Supreme Heavenly Gods to recreate the land, and using six Supreme Heavenly Gods to recreate the Heavenly Dao. This is the most perfect way to mend the heavens, right? Apart from having to sacrifice his own life… Sigh… There’s no need for us to participate in mending the heavens…” Nuwa couldn’t help but sigh as she witnessed this scene.
“Is this An Lin’s fate?” Daolord Lu Ya remarked. He discovered that he couldn’t do anything at all. There was an expression of sorrow on his face.
Anyhow, An Lin recognized that orb of darkness. Both this and the Evil-Slaying Sword had been left to him by the previous Heavenly Darkness God. However, he had never understood the use of this black orb. After investigating it for a long time, he still hadn’t made heads or tails of it.
At this moment, he finally understood what it was for. As it turned out, it was for him to sacrifice himself to mend the heavens. The previous Heavenly Darkness God had truly planned everything to a tee…
However, An Lin wasn’t agitated by this. Instead, he found it to be quite alright. At the very least, he could guarantee the success of mending the heavens. He would die a worthy death.
His body slowly drifted toward the sky.
He was leaving everything behind.
His power, his Dao power, his divine sense, and also his memories.
He truly didn’t want to leave everything behind.
The appearances of those close to him gradually became distant and hazy.
Perhaps they had become hazy.
Or perhaps he had become hazy.
The woman in jade frantically tried to grab onto his hands, yet her hands passed through him time and time again. However, she still stubbornly persisted, just like how she had painfully waited for him for one hundred years. After setting her mind on something, she would pursue it with all her might…
There was also Da Bai, who was trying to leap onto him. However, his lunges were bound to yield no result, and he could no longer carry his master to soar through the sky. There were also beautiful women rushing toward him, yet they passed through his body as if he didn’t exist. Then there was also Xiao Hong, who was as dazzling as the sun. She tried to draw him back with her light, yet why was her radiance becoming weaker and weaker? The adorable ball that only knew how to speak in four-word idioms seemingly discovered how to speak in more than four-word idioms. However, An Lin could no longer hear his words clearly. And that large black dragon… It appeared so black…!
An Lin understood that his adorable companions were unwilling to leave him. He had initially thought that death would be a terrifying thing. However, after seeing his companions trying so hard to grab at him, he suddenly felt a feeling of warmth and gratitude. He felt peaceful and at ease.
To a true cultivator, his life was perhaps too short.
However, An Lin felt that his life was extremely wholesome.
Just like that, he would wave goodbye to the world…
His world descended into darkness…