Tonight, Alice joins the hunt.

The essence of good fortune lies in the attention of those in high positions. It's like a child noticing an ant in an anthill and then, perhaps casually or playfully, helping that ant remove obstacles, find food, and eliminate competitors. This might be meaningless to the child, but for the ant, it is undoubtedly a stroke of great fortune.

So—in the great war of all races back then, who paid attention to the human sages who were in an absolutely disadvantaged position?

Adam had guessed a lot, and the data recorded on the Tree of Life diagram allowed him to guess even more. And when the Saint Hunting Ritual began and the endless world of resources opened up, he knew that he had gained a second, and perhaps last, chance to defeat Chu Xuan.

So he came here, and he waited for this opportunity.

As he patiently waited, until Chu Xuan went to the other world stage and Alice fell into 'contemplation', he knew that his time had come.

He knew, of course, that the White King's appearance in the right place with the Holy Lance was Alice's arrangement. He knew, of course, that Yuzuriha Inori and Logandao's participation in the battlefield was at the behest of the two Chu Xuans. He knew, of course, the true nature of this war. He knew, of course, why Alice was there 'thinking' before the war even broke out.

Luo Yinglong's infiltration couldn't be kept secret, and the Human Completion couldn't possibly be either. Even his own true godhood and the contract with Song Tian couldn't be hidden from Chu Xuan, and it's very likely that even Alice wouldn't be fooled. And if he wasn't mistaken, then Alice and Chu Xuan's final... perhaps not final, contingency plan was already brewing. And before his final, hidden plan could be completed, he would face utter defeat.

They will seize and divide their spoils, just as they arranged for their teammates to divide the pure spiritual light they gained through Human Completion. In other words, as long as the plan continues in this way, they won't make a move until they feel they've extracted enough benefits.

Alice's plan won't be activated before I reach the final step. And Chu Xuan won't show himself before I reach the final step. And that's enough; as long as my plan reaches the final step, that's enough.

Because Chu Xuan is not invincible; besides themselves, there is another being who can exert absolute restraint on him!

....................................

The triple rings shattered before Adam, accompanied by a satisfied sigh, and the magical blade that Song Tian had transformed into vanished into nothingness. This was not an attack, but a sacrifice; the ultimate goal of the Tree of Life diagram was to reach the legendary sixth level by gathering the light of revived minds. However, in reality, there was another method.

That is sacrifice, that is assimilation. Conceptually, this is the path of the Fire Sword, used to access the higher beings, as the key to unlock the door to the divine, which exists only in theory. Human actions, to draw the attention of the Supreme Being!

He wants to use this method to contact the original people!

Above the myriad seas, a crimson torrent surged. A thin, deep red stream, drawn by the ritual, flowed downwards, only to be blocked by other supreme beings just before it touched this resourceful universe!

It will take it a certain amount of time to arrive here. And before that time arrives, Chu Xuan and Alice's backup plan before they fall into contemplation would have been enough to completely destroy the ritual that summoned it and Adam, who presided over the ritual.

They should have appeared; they should have shown up at this time to reap the rewards.

But... it didn't happen.

Nothing happened.

Far from the battlefield, deep within the void, Anastasia, clutching her doll, gazed in bewilderment at the outer reaches of Earth she was traveling to. For a fleeting moment, she felt as if she wanted to do something, but ultimately stopped herself.

She seemed to hear Flora's call, a connection etched into the contract. Though she didn't understand why Flora would call her when she'd never seen her before, she quickly forgot it all.

—At the distant border between this world and the other, Chu Xuan stood at the edge of the world. He seemed to want to take a step forward, but then stopped.

"I must say, Adam's move was quite impressive. He really hit your weak spot." The clone Alice, dressed in a blood-red dress, appeared with a smile at the edge of the two worlds, watching Chu Xuan, who was about to enter but hadn't yet, with great interest. "It's rare to see you like this. I'll have to remember it for later."

“Yeah, I underestimated him.” Chu Xuan pushed up his glasses. “I was misled by Jun. My original calculation was that as long as I didn’t reach the fourth level, I wouldn’t be affected by Jun. I didn’t expect that I would still fall short by a little. But falling short is falling short, and that’s amazing. Adam, you’re amazing.”

The clone Alice smiled gently.

What is the essence of a reincarnator? The essence of a reincarnator is the reincarnation of a deceased saint. And Chu Xuan's previous life was Jun, the saint of the inner universe, Hongjun who merged with the Dao!

Why did Hongjun merge with the Dao, and why did he die? It was because he became aware of the existence of the Primordial Beings, and he was unwilling to become a pawn of the Primordial Beings, yet he was powerless to die!

Adam's actions diverted the already constrained power of the Primordial People from other places, allowing him to replace the already dead Gu and Jun and become another pawn of the Primordial People!

The power of the original humans was limited in its allocation to this multiverse before the game was resolved. When Adam became a piece, the ancient and the powerful had a chance to break free from their control. And precisely because of this, even though they were long dead, their remaining influence would not allow Adam's plans to be thwarted!

—Chu Xuan would never be misled. But Jun could mislead him.

—Chu Xuan is absolutely capable of seeing through all of Adam's plans. But Jun will prevent him from seeing through this final step.

—Chu Xuan is absolutely capable of devising a solution before the irreversible trend takes hold. But Jun will not allow him to implement that solution!

"I lost." Chu Xuan pushed up his glasses, and in the next moment, all the restrictions on his body were released. He thus transcended the mortal stage and reached the fourth stage, possessing the Light of the Soul.

"I'm very angry right now," he said calmly.

“Yes, me too,” the clone Alice replied with a smile. “After all, you’re not the only one who’s encountered a similar situation.”

“So…” she tilted her head slightly. “Let’s have a fight, Chu Xuan, the real one. That way, we can both find a way out, since we’ve both been dragged down here by each other.”

“…Boring.” Chu Xuan turned his head away, refusing to look at her.

But the flames of war spread between these two realms.

And so, the crimson torrent arrived in this world. Just before it touched Adam, a small wisp was guided by him into the void, heading straight for the observatory where Alice resided!

He had to do this, because it was interference from the original human, and also his inevitable choice. Because he wasn't Jun, he couldn't bear the entire torrent of blood, so he had to share the burden. And it was precisely for this reason that Alice… Luo Ye wouldn't let the clone Zheng Zha come over, and that's why he stopped Alice's plan!

Because this is the only power that can awaken Alice before she comes to a conclusion!

The next moment, Alice opened her eyes.

Adam's voice then rang out in the multiverse.

"I am Adam, the original man Adam." He allowed the crimson aura to envelop him, yet his heart overflowed with the exhilaration of victory. The Reincarnator's wristwatch vanished from his wrist, and his physical form was forever separated from this universe of resources.

"To defeat you, Chu Xuan."

"I will pay any price."

—These were the last words he uttered as the free will of the individual 'Adam'.

Chapter 100, Part 2: The War in Heaven - The End

The crimson aura vanished like a phantom before it touched Alice, and the next moment she left this wandering Earth and arrived at the Great Library from the void beyond the universe.

“You’re here, Alice.” Patchouli glanced at her. “Is everything going well?”

“It’s not going well.” Alice shook her head slightly, but a slight smile played on her lips. “I haven’t figured out the answer. Even now, I don’t know what value mortals have over gods.”

"But you're laughing."

"Really?" Alice scoffed and grabbed Patchouli's outstretched hand.

"Let's end this battle."

She was indeed smiling; she was genuinely joyful. Even though Adam's final move had thwarted all her previous preparations and shattered her chance to seize the final fruits of the universe, her heart remained joyful.

—Luo Yinglong's Immortal-Slaying Sword merely hastened the universe's demise, while the resources used to create almost the entire universe actually gathered within the fragments of the Tree of Life diagram as the Immortal-Slaying Sword Formation unfolded. And all of this vanished with Adam taking his final step.

Why were the True Gods targeting Adam alone? Was it because of his mocking face, or because his completion ritual, which wasn't particularly effective against the other True Gods, had offended the other members of the reincarnation teams? No, that wasn't the case. Apart from Zheng Zha, who genuinely wanted to thoroughly defeat him, the other True Gods only wanted the remaining fragments of the tree diagram. And if they wanted those fragments, they had to eliminate Adam.

Now, Adam no longer exists.

She had already prepared a solution. It was a power entrusted to Anastasia that would trigger at the opportune moment even when Anastasia wasn't present—her reason for having Anastasia kill Enkidu several times was to conceal the existence of this power. After all, she couldn't hide the manipulation of Anastasia, but she could mislead the other true gods, making them believe that Anastasia was merely a specific loop switch she created, or focusing their attention on why Enkidu was always the chosen target.

However, in reality, Anastasia's killing of Enkidu, thus initiating the loop, was completely irrelevant. It was all merely a means for Alice to conceal her true power. Unfortunately, this power was forcibly interrupted by Loyal before it could function successfully, thus allowing Adam to complete his plan.

Alice knew why Luo Ye had interrupted the triggering of his power. It was because Adam, during the initiation of the ritual, had diverted a portion of his crimson destiny to himself—he had to do this, because if he wanted to retain even a sliver of his self… no, if he wanted even a sliver of a chance to revive himself in the distant future, he had to divert it. And among all the reincarnators present, only by diverting his destiny to Alice could this diverted destiny be extinguished instead of circulating outside and returning to Adam.

—Because Alice is the daughter of Shenqi, and a pawn of Shenqi. And no matter how much the gaze of the original people falls upon her, it will be blocked by Shenqi.

Alice rubbed her forehead.

She felt Adam couldn't possibly guess so much. There were many things she herself had only just figured out. Even she herself only vaguely suspected that behind the crimson fortune lay someone with a different stance from Shen Qi, and that Luo Ye was related to the multiverse itself. If Adam wanted to know so many secrets… unless he secretly contacted Luo Ye.

Adam's final move definitely involved a huge gamble, just as he probably didn't know if he could divert the crimson fortune before taking that last step—if he failed, then Luo Ye in the distant other world would surely make him and his fragment of the tree diagram spoils of war for the Central Continent Team. Since he succeeded, he was entitled to gamble a second time, to gamble on whether his own will would still remain after the fortune was diverted.

She didn't know if Adam ultimately succeeded. Perhaps he did, perhaps he didn't, but it was all ultimately irrelevant. Because Adam was gone, and as one of the unspoken, tacit partners in this transaction, Alice was able to awaken from the question of 'judging whether humanity is of value to God'.

Only in this way can she escape the two options—'mortals are useful to gods' and 'mortals are useless to gods'—both of which are related to the great cause and effect. This would allow her to choose a third solution that didn't originally exist!

That is—'Let it be.'

No answer is also an answer. And such an answer is to let mortals decide their own worth. Her conclusion is that even if Gaia and Shinki win the final victory, they will give mortals time to prove themselves. This will allow them the opportunity to prove whether they are worthy of remaining as inhabitants or destined to be annihilated as enemies of all things!

This is good; it's good for everyone.

Alice fulfilled her duty, avoiding the consequences of her choice. Her human teammates and her non-human companions wouldn't be automatically opposed to her because of this. She didn't need to bear any hatred, and mortals didn't need to accept her 'arrogant' handouts, but were entitled to earn everything with their own hands.

For the first time, Alice felt that being arranged by Luo Ye wasn't such a bad experience. If possible, she even wanted to pick Luo Ye up and kiss him—but that was just a thought. She felt that if she met Luo Ye now, it would probably be a little awkward.

—Thoughts flashed by in an instant, and then Alice and Patchouli had already arrived at the main battlefield.

The true gods of the Central Continent Team have recovered to their peak condition, while the two opposing reincarnators are trapped in the central area of ​​the battlefield and neither side makes a move.

The universe's destruction is imminent, with only minutes remaining. The area destined for nothingness has shrunk from the Ikobo Belt to the asteroid belt. Even if they do nothing, the reincarnators will soon be unable to remain in this world.

The fragments of the tree diagram have completely disappeared with Adam's departure, and now, the battle itself is actually of little significance.

Alice glanced at Sirin, who had already turned back into a lazy bum, and Zhao Yingkong, who also showed signs of becoming lazy, before finally turning her attention to Zheng Zha, who was constantly rubbing his hands and looked like he hadn't had enough fun.

“You decide, Margot Lloyd.” He seemed to be about to take action, but looked somewhat unmotivated.

Alice nodded and looked at Ex and Sesshouin Kiara.

"The battle for supremacy is over, resources are exhausted, and this universe is about to face destruction." Her voice echoed in the empty space: "The final battle has not yet arrived, life and death are uncertain, and there is no reason for us to continue fighting. Please retreat now, or shall we spar one last time in this final moment?"

“Retreating without a fight is not my style.” Ex raised her lightsaber, her gaze calmly surveying the many adversaries before her. “Besides, there is no more time or timeline to teleport in this universe now. In other words, even a true god would obediently return to the cycle of reincarnation after being slain here. And I think I can at least take one with me.”

Alice looked at Sesshouin Kiara.

The latter did not answer, but simply smiled and gestured with a flower in his hand.

The next moment, Sesshouin Kiara's form disintegrated into putrid blood—her form had been slain once during her battle with Luo Yinglong and then reformed by the sun. But the sun had long been a part of Alice!

She vanished, and then Exus survived for about half a minute under the combined might of the Central Continent Team's ultimate technique, the "Great Gang-Up."

The battle didn't introduce any unexpected changes; after all, it was the final battle, not the end, and there was no need to reveal any special trump cards. Alice didn't even use her true form's powers, simply using the lightning and fire controlled by her alias, Mangtlund, to smoothly deal with Ex, leaving the latter slightly... disappointed as she left.

She had already witnessed the powers of almost everyone in the Central Continent Team, and her desire for a final battle was simply to gather information about Alice. Unfortunately... Alice wasn't in the mood to indulge her delusions.

Her physical form died, and that was the end of it all. But before she returned, there were still some lingering effects.

..............................

Earth lies between the heavens and the abyss.

While Flora was busy managing the many affairs on Earth, somewhere inside the Chaldean stealth ship, a girl in Chaldean work clothes who had been dozing off on a table suddenly opened her eyes.

Her name is Mabel Macintosh. She's one of the staff members transferred from Seraphines to Chaldea. She's nothing special in this world, but as a European, she has a Japanese name. And the full name of that Japanese name is—

— Sesshouin Kiara.

Ah, that's right. Wherever there's a Moon World, there's bound to be Sesshouin Kiara.

When Exus was knocked down by the overwhelming attack, a myriad of colors quietly appeared in the girl's eyes.

She blinked.

Unlike Ex, who sought to uncover Alice's secrets, Sesshouin Kiara simply wanted to seize resources. The fragments of the tree diagram were lost; it didn't matter. Earth, once the tenth elemental, was still here. Even if a native fourth-generation member appeared out of nowhere, even if she deliberately eliminated her true form to avoid detection by the Central Continent Team, leaving only a wisp of divine consciousness barely reaching the transcendent level to lurk here, she was confident that over the long years to come, she would gradually master this lonely planet, then transform all resources into a part of herself and devour them.

Ah, that's right, it's all hers, all of it by her alone. After all, look, it's such a waste to let food rot on the ground.

She licked her lips and stood up from her seat. In her memory, she was the only living person around, and what she needed next was—

'Pfft—' She was stunned.