I gain ten years' worth of cultivation every day, and even geniuses will only see my doorstep!

"Let's go," Qin Yuan said.

Lin Qing'er followed behind him. The two passed through the light curtain and left the Origin Sacred Domain.

The Sanctuary of the End has no flames, no light, no temperature. There is only a ball of black "fire".

That fire doesn't burn, doesn't emit light, and doesn't generate heat. It absorbs—absorbs light, absorbs heat, absorbs sound, absorbs existence itself. Get close to it, and you'll feel your life force draining away, your memories fading, and even the concept of "self" fading.

The moment Qin Yuan stepped into the Sacred Realm of the End, he sensed something was wrong. He looked down at his hands; they were still there, but their "presence" was fading. It wasn't that he couldn't see them, nor could he touch them, but rather a vague, indescribable sense of emptiness—his hands were still there, but he felt as if they no longer belonged to him.

Lin Qing'er's face turned pale. "Brother Qin Yuan, I feel a little dizzy."

Qin Yuan took her hand in his. The warmth of his palm was still there, but her fingers were trembling slightly.

A person emerged from the black flames.

It was a boy, no more than sixteen years old, wearing a black robe that was old and full of holes. His face was very pale, as white as paper, his lips were bloodless, and his eyes were black with no whites; the entire eyeball was pure black. In his hand he held a huge scythe, the blade of which was also black and did not reflect light.

Lord of Annihilation.

"Those who are alive should not come here," the boy said, his voice as young as his appearance, but with a weariness beyond his years. "This is the end, the graveyard of all things. You who are alive cannot get through it."

Qin Yuan asked, "How can we get there?"

The boy said, "To become a dead person."

Qin Yuan remained silent for a moment. "Is there no other way?"

The boy shook his head. "No. These are the rules. Only the dead are allowed to pass through the Sacred Realm of the End. Living people who enter here will be absorbed by the Flames of the End and become part of the End."

Qin Yuan looked at him. "You are not dead. You are alive."

The boy paused slightly. Then he smiled, a faint smile, like the last leaf falling in winter. "Me? I am neither alive nor dead. I am the will of the end. I have no life, so I do not need to die. I simply exist."

The black flames suddenly expanded, engulfing Qin Yuan and Lin Qing'er. The flames had no temperature, but Qin Yuan felt his life force rapidly draining away—not being drawn out, but dissipating on its own, like sand slipping through his fingers.

Lin Qing'er leaned on his shoulder, her voice growing softer. "Brother Qin Yuan... why did we come here?"

Qin Yuan's heart tightened. Had she already begun to forget?

"We're going to the pinnacle of all realms," he said. "Have you forgotten?"

Lin Qing'er frowned, trying hard to remember. "The Pinnacle of All Realms... what kind of place is that?"

Qin Yuan did not answer. He activated the Guardian Dao with all his might, and golden light enveloped the two of them. But the light quickly dimmed in the black flames, like a white cloth soaked in ink. The Guardian Dao could withstand attacks and laws, but it could not withstand "Ending"—because Ending is not an attack, not a law, but the ultimate fate of all things.

The Lord of Annihilation stood amidst the black flames, watching them. His expression remained unchanged, but a barely perceptible tremor flickered in his eyes.

“It’s no use,” he said. “The end is irreversible. She will forget everything, including herself. You will lose all your power and become an ordinary person. Then you will both dissipate together, becoming part of the end.”

Qin Yuan ignored him. He held Lin Qing'er in his arms, warming her with his own body heat. Lin Qing'er's body grew colder and colder, like a block of ice.

"Brother Qin Yuan..." her voice trailed off, "I'm so cold..."

Qin Yuan hugged her tightly. "Don't sleep."

Lin Qing'er closed her eyes. A thin layer of frost had formed on her eyelashes.

Lin Qing'er's memories are like autumn leaves, falling one by one.

First, she forgot about the Xuan Yuan Sect. The place where she grew up, the stream where she washed her medicinal herbs, the old plum tree she had watched over her entire life. These images vanished from her mind, like pencil drawings erased by an eraser. She remembered living there, but where exactly was "there"? She couldn't say.

Then she forgot about the Temple of War. The place where she and Qin Yuan fought side by side, the place where she first saw him injured. She remembered a man, very strong, who fought with all his might to protect her. But who was that man? She couldn't remember.

Then she forgot Nanzhou, forgot Taiyi Sect, forgot Qingzhou, forgot Xuanyuan Sect. Her life was like a book, being torn from the last page, page by page, thinning out.

Qin Yuan called her name. "Qing'er. Lin Qing'er."

Lin Qing'er opened her eyes. Her eyes were still clear, but her pupils were unfocused. She looked at Qin Yuan as if he were a stranger.

"Do you know me?" she asked.

Qin Yuan felt as if a knife had pierced his heart. He didn't shed tears, but his eyes reddened.

"I know you," he said. "I've known you for a long time. I've known you since you were a little girl."

Lin Qing'er tilted her head, as if pondering his words. "Then who am I?"

"You are Lin Qing'er. You are a disciple of the Xuan Yuan Sect. You are the reincarnation of the Azure Emperor. You are my wife."

"Wife?" Lin Qing'er frowned. "I don't remember ever being married."

Qin Yuan took a deep breath. He placed his palm on Lin Qing'er's forehead, and the power protecting the Heavenly Dao transformed into golden light, flowing into her mind. He attempted to fill the void in her memory with his own—he transmitted to her all the images of Lin Qing'er from his own memories.

By the stream behind the Xuan Yuan Sect, she squatted on a blue stone washing medicinal herbs, then looked up and smiled at him.

At the gate of Taiyi Sect, she saw him off, her eyes red, but she held back her tears.

Under the old plum tree of the Aoki Sect, she said, "I will come to find you when the flowers bloom."

Under the starry sky at the pinnacle of all realms, she said, "Wherever you are, that's where I am."

Every scene was a precious treasure in his heart. He unearthed these treasures one by one and placed them into Lin Qing'er's empty memory chamber.

Lin Qing'er's eyes slowly brightened. Fragments of memory pieced together in her mind, like a shattered jigsaw puzzle being reassembled. She saw that man, the man who had always been by her side. His name was Qin Yuan. He was her Qin Yuan brother.

"Brother Qin Yuan..." Her voice was hoarse, and tears streamed down her face. "I almost forgot about you."

Qin Yuan wiped away her tears. "You remember now."

"Mmm." Lin Qing'er nodded and held his hand tightly.

But the Lord of Annihilation's voice shattered this moment of warmth. "A brief recovery is meaningless. As long as she remains in the Sacred Realm of the End, her memories will continue to fade. Whatever you transmit to her, the End will absorb. The faster you transmit, the faster she will forget."