The comments said I was deeply affectionate, I just added points by using an alternate account.

Baal, unusually, did not speak at this moment. Standing before Him now was the same dried corpse from before.

Baal remained that shapeless mass of black mist.

The phantom image, resembling a dried corpse, emanated a faint, gentle golden light that flickered intermittently.

"You're awake."

Barr's voice carried a hint of amusement, as familiar as if they were old friends reuniting.

"I thought you were going to sleep until the world was completely rotten."

The phantom of Yan had no facial features, but Baal could feel a pair of calm eyes watching him, just as they had in life.

"I am not asleep, I am annihilated, I am already dead."

Yan Gu's calm and peaceful voice rang out directly.

"It is the power on your side that has disturbed my tranquil peace."

"Don't blame me."

Barr scoffed.

"It was you humans who dug your bones out of the grave and then tried to force clothes that didn't belong to you onto your own children."

His tone was full of disdain.

"The child is innocent."

Yan's voice remained gentle: "She shouldn't bear this consequence."

"So you gave her the name of power, borne the final consequences yourself, and then vanished into thin air."

"How great, how boring, how...stupid."

"Is it worth it to cling to these ridiculous rules and turn yourself into dust?"

The illusory figure calmly replied, "But you, too, have locked yourself up, willingly becoming a caged beast."

There is no difference between you and me.

Baal's laughter stopped: "I'm not like you."

His voice deepened, tinged with a hint of embarrassment and anger: "I'm just annoyed. There are endless heroes to kill and leeks to cut down. It's too noisy. I just want to get a good night's sleep."

"Don't talk about me, what about you?"

Barr immediately changed the subject, with a rare hint of curiosity.

"And what is it for?"

"To protect humanity? Don't be ridiculous. Do humans need protection? If we're about to perish, new heroes will just emerge."

The phantom of Yan remained silent for a moment.

Golden dust floated slowly around him.

"What I'm protecting isn't humanity."

"It's the story itself."

"ha?"

Baal's laughter was full of absurdity; He had lived in the modern world for too long and could no longer understand the language of these ancient people.

"On either side of the scale, there is only black and white, only this and that, yin and yang in balance."

Yan's voice rang out leisurely.

"But what the world needs is never an absolute balance of power between the two sides."

"What it needs is the existence of the scales themselves."

"It's a story, and we can continue telling it."

The phantom of Yan raised its arm, its withered fingers pointing at Baal: "Your existence has given the story its dramatic twists and turns."

He then pointed to himself.

"The existence of the hero gives the story the excitement of reaching its climax."

The phantom of Yan turned to Baal: "Do you know what will happen once the story stalls?"

"At that time, there will be neither demons nor heroes."

"There was no struggle, and no hope."

"Without you, there is no me."

"Everything returns to nothingness."

"That's the real end, the greatest boredom you've ever mentioned."

Baal looked at him with interest: "Interesting. This isn't something you would say in life. What did you see after you died?"

"I was once a hero in a story."

Yan said slowly.

"Now, I am merely a torch."

His illusory silhouette became increasingly transparent.

"I have burned out; the new hero is yet to come."

"Baal, your long-cherished wish has also been fulfilled."

"Hey!" Baal's voice did not stop the disappearing figure. Baal could clearly feel that Yan had really disappeared.

This once-powerful figure, who dominated his era, has finally succumbed to the passage of time.

...Leaving without answering Lord Baal's question, just as impolite as he was in life.

He looked at the spot where the words had disappeared, trying hard to understand the meaning behind them.

What does it mean when one's long-cherished wish is fulfilled?

What is your long-cherished wish?

Even Balben had a hard time finding an answer to this question. For an old man like Him, there was nothing that He could not obtain.

No, no, we should analyze it from the beginning.

The brave man, the devil.

If you want the story to continue, you can't escape these two characters.

With the complete death of Yan, a vacancy has been created for the hero. A new hero will likely emerge from among the new generation, while old Baal will remain the Demon King.

……?

Baal suddenly realized that getting rid of the identity of the Demon King was also His wish.

……

"It's completely stable here."

Huo Qixing stared at the unmoving compass needle in his hand, muttering to himself, confirming this unbelievable reality.

Su Yuehe withdrew her gaze and glanced at An Changqing, who was supporting her arm, his palm providing a steady warmth.

She shook her head to indicate that she was alright, then took half a step forward, letting go of his support.

An Changqing's finger paused in mid-air for a moment before finally retracting it.

He looked at Su Yuehe's profile, and beneath that paleness, something he had never seen before had surfaced.

"How do we get out?"

Qin Wu broke the silence, supporting the limp Yanjing Academy student as he said, "The entrance has disappeared."

All eyes turned to Su Yuehe.

The bell also needs to be tied.

At this moment, the most unfathomable person in the group has been replaced by this Huaqing genius who has just returned from the brink of collapse.

Su Yuehe did not speak.

She closed her eyes, feeling the power within her body. The former rage had completely faded away, leaving only a gentle flow.

The feeling was wonderful; a part of my body that had been lost for a long time was found and fit perfectly without any rejection.

She opened her eyes again, her gaze falling on the open space at the edge of the camp. A golden character lit up and then went out deep in her pupils.

"Door"

A ripple silently spread through the space before everyone's eyes, and a circular entrance with a flowing blue halo appeared out of thin air, exactly the same as the one they had entered through.

"this……"

Wang Shuo's gaze shifted back and forth between the door and the nonchalant Su Yuehe, feeling as if his worldview was being repeatedly shattered and reshaped.

"Let's go."

Su Yuehe's voice was soft, but her words were clear.

An Changqing walked in front without hesitation, followed closely by Long Ao and Qin Wu, who were protecting two students from Yanjing who were not in good condition.

Chen Guan walked at the end of the procession.

The girl paused as she passed Su Yuehe.

"Chen Guan"

She called out to him.

Chen Guan stopped, his left hand still in his pocket, and simply turned his head to look at her.

"Your hand..."

Su Yuehe's gaze fell on his arm; she seemed to have noticed something unusual there during the earlier chaos.

A fleeting black light appeared, and only after it passed did I regain a clear sense of control over my body.

"It's alright, it's nothing, it's just that I might have to trouble Dr. Zhou when I get back."

Su Yuehe's lips moved, but she ultimately didn't ask any further questions.