Tonight, Alice joins the hunt.

—Oxygen has a melting point of -218 degrees Celsius. In this state, solid oxygen appears light blue.

Thus, death follows like a shadow—

She fell into darkness, plunging from darkness into even deeper darkness. Within the darkness lay pure nothingness, like a dead river, like an abyss, and she could only feel herself falling ever lower.

She fell, fell, plummeting to some unknown realm. Then—a female figure appeared before her.

She was an ordinary-looking woman, not beautiful, but not unpleasant either. She wore a well-fitting schoolgirl-style women's suit and non-prescription glasses. She reached out her hand, pulling her will back from the ever-falling abyss to clarity.

"What is your wish?" the woman asked.

Wishes? What wishes could I possibly have? Flora's mind was in chaos, but before she could speak, words she couldn't even comprehend herself uttered.

"I... want to kill the culprit who caused all of this. I want to kill Cheng Xin with my own hands!"

An incomprehensible wish escaped her lips. Flora didn't know who "Cheng Xin" was, nor why "she" harbored such deep hatred for her. She wanted to change her words, but she couldn't do anything about it. In her silence, she saw the woman before her nod.

“Then, you will kill Cheng Xin with your own hands. And in exchange…” She reached out and gently tapped Flora’s forehead. “Live on as the last person of the old world.”

Flora then plunged into deeper darkness, and from the deepest part of that darkness, she opened her eyes.

As if a jumble of memories flashed through her mind, she found herself transformed into a sociologist, a young doctor who had pioneered strange ideas. Everything before her seemed incomparably psychedelic and unreal, and she felt like a puppet living in a puppet manor.

She drifted with the current, from the ground to the sky—here, Earth seemed to have been transformed by humans into a cosmic ark. And outside the ark, there were three orbiting moons.

—The knowledge here is very valuable.

She became interested in the knowledge here, especially the knowledge of how this ark was constructed. So she spontaneously began to collect everything she could see—no, not actively; she realized that she was here like watching a movie in a virtual reality setting. She couldn't change the scholar's course of action, but as the scholar read the books, she was able to glean many valuable records from them.

She gained so much, so much. But when she awoke from the ocean of knowledge, she found herself, as a scholar, having ascended from Earth to the Moon, and then stolen a precious treasure from a laboratory on the Moon—the scholar had discovered a truth that chilled both her and the scholar to the bone!

This world is fake!

Everything in this world originated from the engineering and construction of those otherworldly gods!

The scholar clutched the treasure, the serpentine artifact. She gained power and wanted to escape from the moon. But as the pursuit of the otherworldly gods, especially the man surnamed Cheng whom she seemed to have seen somewhere before, drew closer, she discovered a woman blocking her path.

She fired without hesitation.

The next moment, her vision once again plunged into the abyss.

—That woman, the one who was utterly invisible, the one who was killed without offering any resistance. That was none other than Cheng Xin, the woman the previous one, even in death, couldn't forget and wanted to drag her to hell!

And so she fell into darkness, into darkness upon darkness. And then, at the very bottom of that darkness, the woman appeared before her once more.

"What is your wish?" the woman asked.

Flora saw 'herself' leap up, baring her teeth and claws, trying to grab the woman's collar, only to be frozen in mid-air by an invisible force. She had no power to act here, yet 'she' still let out a furious roar from her throat.

"You did all of this, didn't you! It was all a lie, wasn't it! Humanity's efforts, humanity's struggles, the Trisolaran civilization, the Wandering Star... it was all a lie, wasn't it! Tell me, wasn't it!"

"Your guess makes a lot of sense, Dr. Luo Ji. You have seen a part of the truth of this world."

"The destruction of The Wandering Earth, and that woman named Cheng Xin too..."

“There is some connection, Mr. Ping.”

"Is she dead?"

“She is dying, and the part of her who is ‘Cheng Xin’ has been completely destroyed by your hand.”

"...Looks like you're a man of your word. Hey, can I make a wish? I wish that all of you otherworldly beings would die?"

The woman did not answer, but simply looked quietly at 'her' and Flora inside 'her'.

"No... Then I want to defeat you, I want to gain the power to defeat you. The strongest, the invincible, I will defeat you, defeat you with this hatred!"

“There are two technical issues. First, your spirit and will are not above the level of mortals. The only way I can raise your power to the corresponding level is to have the ‘next you’ do it. Second, whether you can bring your memories and self away from the abyss of death depends on yourself, not on my power.”

“Is that so…” Flora felt herself take a half step back, but in the next moment, a realization dawned on her. She opened her mouth and uttered a whisper. “The death of new life…?”

“Yes”—the woman nodded slightly, and the next moment, the secret treasure she had stolen from the Gray Moon, the silver, snake-like object called SREES, appeared at her fingertips. “The death of rebirth, the new you will replace the old you, the new you possess infinite potential and are born the strongest. You will encounter them, you will fight against them, and whether you ultimately prevail still depends on you.”

"Is that so...? I agree. So, what's the price?"

"As the last person of the old world and the strongest god of the new world, live on."

The next moment, the silver snake devoured Flora. And she fell into darkness once more.

When Flora opened her eyes again, she found herself on a battlefield that resembled purgatory. Debris lay beneath her feet, and shards of stars fell from the sky. In that instant, she realized that she had been born from this magnificent battlefield, and that her body was overflowing with power.

I am the strongest. Because I am the strongest, I am the strongest. And my name is—

"Artesius".

Something was strange, unlike the previous two dreams. This time, Flora could clearly sense the emotions spreading within the heart of the deity named Artesius. And she called these emotions—

—Confused.

Where did I come from? Where am I going? What is the meaning of my life in this world?

He didn't know, and she probably didn't know either. And in this confusion, she wandered with Him through the vast and desolate wilderness.

They saw much: the ruins of fallen mortals, the last glimmer of the sea creatures and orcs, the vibrant new culture of the rising forest elves and goblins, and the rule of the dragon spirits, the titans, and the ancient gods, and the lands they ruled.

Artesius decided to create a new race as his servants, and so did she. As Artesius struggled with the direction of creation, the message given to her by Mangtlund regarding the creation of the War Angels unconsciously surfaced in her mind.

Thus, the Skywing race was born. As for whether the Skywing race was based on the War Angel, or whether the War Angel was a later improved version of the Skywing race... there's no need to delve into such trivial matters.

Because He was the strongest, and both He and She were the strongest. Yet, at the very top of the throne of the strongest, all He gained was pure loneliness and emptiness.

He longed for an enemy, an enemy from whom He could taste the joy of battle, even the pleasure of defeat. But at the point in time when those otherworldly gods had not yet appeared, He was destined to find nothing.

Since he couldn't find one, he'd just make one himself. As Altshu pondered this, Flora's thoughts drifted to the already extinct old humanity—and so, Altshu noticed those mortals. Those mortals who had been eliminated by the times, forced to eke out a living only in caves and underground.

He chose them, attempting to mold them into beings capable of bringing him defeat. Through those eyes that transcended timelines, he had even selected a target who should have been born much later—a boy, a leader of a human race, a man named 'Riku'.

That man carried a great deal of fortune, but this so-called fortune was nothing more than the attention of those in high positions. He became the protagonist of the story because of Altshu's gaze. And because he became the protagonist, he was anticipated by Altshu. Perhaps one day, he would truly make Altshu taste defeat, for this was precisely the future Altshu had hoped for.

However, the future that Altshu had hoped for did not arrive. Dragon Break descended. An alien god accompanied the start of the war, and when the war reached a stalemate, the group of Aping were completely unaware of it. The alien god that Luo Ji hated to the core also descended upon this world.

No, perhaps they were here from the very beginning. But that doesn't matter, because both Altshu and the now-vanished Luo Ji touched upon their desires. That grand war, that war where one could taste defeat, that war where one could fight against the gods of another world—it has already arrived.

Flora and Altshu experienced this war together, and she finally understood what true divine power was. She finally understood the true nature of the so-called 'Mangotlund'. Because on the other side of the war, she saw her through Altshu's eyes.

—Alice Margotrovid. One of the most powerful gods in the otherworld. And from the distant past when that world was still the Wandering Earth, her presence has been felt behind every major event.

She finally learned the biggest secret, but at the same time, she did not feel any hatred or hostility towards Alice. She was just a little regretful that Riku, who was chosen as the protagonist and the one who broke the walls of Altshu, did not shine in this final battle.

Is this her regret, or Altshu's regret?

She didn't know, and she felt it was unnecessary for her to know. Because she already had a premonition, and this premonition would reveal everything she wanted to know, and everything she should know.

Then, she witnessed Arthas's defeat and death, and in that instant of defeat, the transcendent vision he attained.

She saw everything that Altshu saw at the end. Then she finally learned a cosmic truth more terrifying than any conspiracy or calculation.

She saw Aichidra, and she learned of the connection between Aichidra and Cheng Xin, as well as the great deeds she performed upon ascending to sainthood. She saw the origins of these otherworldly gods, their actions, and even the Moon World that would be created in the future!

It turns out that everything was meaningless, and all value was given by others.

Even if Cheng Xin, whom A Ping hated, had never arrived, Earth would have been destroyed by civil war and alien invasion. But when Cheng Xin, when Ai Qi De La ascended to sainthood, all mortals on Earth except A Ping were resurrected and transported, and were given a new and stable destiny in a new world.

The otherworldly gods hated by Luo Ji only did their job to preserve and continue Earth's civilization before Aiqidra ascended to sainthood. No one died because of them, and Luo Ji's hatred for them was meaningless.

And Altshu… He desired war, and he obtained war. He desired defeat, and he obtained defeat. And even those dead Skywing races and other races were reborn in the future, receiving new, uninterrupted destinies in another celestial realm, separate from this Sacred Hunting Ceremony.

So, Artesius died peacefully, falling into the abyss of death along with Flora.

Deep within the Abyss of Death, Flora and Altshu once again encountered that ordinary girl in a simple suit.

“You kept your word.” Artesius looked at the woman… She was dead, her power and realm had vanished. What remained now was only the light formed from her will.

“Yes, I keep my word. The sequel to Luo Ji, the strongest god in the new world, Artesh. I keep my word.” The woman nodded, then asked Him, “So, what is your wish?”

“A wish… Ah, I do have a wish.” Artesius answered her question calmly. “I want all of this to have meaning.”

"I cannot fulfill such a subjective wish," the woman replied calmly.

“Then I’ll do it myself and make it meaningful.” Altshu nodded. “I’ll do it myself, I’ll complete it myself. I’ll give value to all this worthless stuff, I want to—achieve something.”

"Even if you achieve something, you'll be the next you. You'll become ordinary, you'll forget everything, and the only thing I can do is place the next you in a suitable position, the one where you're most likely to fulfill your wishes—are you willing to accept this arrangement?"

“Why wouldn’t I be willing?” Altshu smiled magnanimously. “I was born the strongest, so it’s not unreasonable for me to experience the journey from weakness to the heavens. Besides—” He clenched a fist that wasn’t real. “I believe I can do it, just as the previous me could, and the next me will surely be able to fulfill my ideal.”

"I want to achieve something, I want to give value to this emptiness. Traders, tell me the price for fulfilling this wish."

The woman nodded and reached out a finger to touch His brow.

"As the only living person in the world, live on."

Flora fell into darkness one last time. Because when she awoke, she became herself.

She became a baby, a baby named Flora. She watched this baby grow, develop, learn magic, and join Chaldea in a way that perfectly matched her memories.

She relived those past memories, the journey through the six singularities flashing through her mind. Finally, she arrived in Mesopotamia. She witnessed the opening of the Abyss and the war that swept through Heaven. She united all the forces on the land of Mesopotamia and attempted to make contact with other continents, taking five-minute naps between her tasks.

That sleep was forever dark. Because in the void of sleep, she, and only herself, probably saw that woman for the last time.

The woman who wore a simple suit and non-prescription glasses, whose appearance was as plain as her figure.

She nodded slightly to Flora in greeting.

"Nice to meet you, Flora."

“It’s been a long time,” Flora returned her slight bow. “What should I call you, trader?”

“Luo Ye,” Luo Ye replied calmly. “Or you can continue to call me a trader.”

“Loya…” Flora hesitated for a moment, “So, I’m here, I see you… Am I dead?”

“You’re not dead,” Luo Ye denied. “I just felt it was necessary for you to know all this at this time, because everything is coming to an end. The end of this universe is approaching.”

She stretched out her hand, and the next moment, a bird's-eye view of the entire universe appeared before Flora's eyes. It was a vast, boundless galaxy, and the boundaries of the galaxy were visibly fading into nothingness!

“Everything is coming to an end. The Sacred Hunting Ritual is about to reach its end. Everything in this universe will become worthless. Time will decay, and history will reach nothingness. And the time that will eventually arrive is approaching—” A projection of a watch appeared beside her, and the hands were three marks away from zero.

"Based on your subjective perception, there are three more days—at most three days."

Flora's eyebrows twitched slightly.

"So I have three days left... Ha, three days to save the world. I've really chosen an extraordinary life goal."

"Have you changed your mind, Artes?" Luo Ye looked at her quietly.

“I am not Altshu. I am not Luo Ji, I am not A Ping.” Flora’s answer was unwavering: “I am Flora and only Flora. My birth desire is to achieve something. It was in the past, it is now, and it will be in the future.”

“Then your path will be extremely difficult.” Luo Ye stretched out his hand, and the brilliance of the stars dimmed. Then, a withered solar system and a frozen Earth suspended between the Jupiter and Saturn stars replaced the previous scene. “Do you know what this world was like in the beginning?”