On my second playthrough, they were full of malice towards me.

The characters who were once under the control of the players who acted as "saviors" have been brought back. Although this is not a resurrection, but only a temporary summoning, it is enough.

This applies to both Liao Ji and these spirits of the past.

He revealed the truth about the "players" to these ancient spirits and, with the help of the player data collected by Anno, showed them the "true" appearance of the savior on Earth.

The purpose of doing this was to create the video that Liu Yang had seen earlier, which was also the most "appropriate" way for Liao Jineng to reunite.

Liao Ji thought this would be difficult, requiring him and Lena to do a lot of psychological work with these "spirits of the past".

To his surprise, the vast majority of the spirits of the past, these characters who were once under the players' command, did not show much reaction to this truth. On the contrary, many of the spirits of the past were more concerned about the players in another world.

Even

These players have shed their "savior" aura and have become, in essence, just ordinary people.

Not

Some players, such as struggling writers, unemployed people, and shut-ins, are even worse than ordinary people; they are complete losers.

Why are they able to be so tolerant and loving towards players, regardless of what players are really like in real life? It seems that in the eyes of these characters, players are always the only ones, the saviors.

Liao Ji, as a "player," might indeed not understand.

But what Lena said next made Liao Ji understand.

"If there were a leader on Earth who could work tirelessly, disregard his own interests, not embezzle a single penny, not even ask for a salary, not be corrupted by fame and fortune, and truly dedicate himself wholeheartedly to the country and his people, wouldn't you be like that?"

The player is indeed such a role.

At least that's the case for players in Falling, and that's enough for the characters to ignore all the player's other flaws.

Fortunately, the number of players in Falling 1 is not large. With tens of thousands of players corresponding to tens of thousands of worlds to go to, Liao Ji and Lena can barely handle it.

If it were an order of magnitude larger, this plan might not be feasible.

Even so, this is still a process that will take several months, meaning they will have to hold out for several more months under the "Source Lord's" offensive.

However, neither Lena, nor Anno, nor Styutia, Jiuyou, Zero, nor the many other ancient spirits who were summoned to resist the invasion of the "Source" had any complaints.

Because what Liao Ji was doing was precisely the meaning behind their struggle.

He wants to rekindle the bond between players and the world, which is also a process of mutual redemption.

Once the "saviors" who saved their world, they now hope to help those struggling with anxiety and insomnia, those depressed and withdrawn shut-ins, or those struggling authors who are constantly criticized. They hope to become a light in the world of "players," even if it's just in their memories, so that they can be occasionally remembered and gain some motivation and courage to move forward.

at last.

With the conclusion of the 9465th world, Anno's list of Fallen players was finally complete, and invitations for the Fallen DLC were sent out.

The reason why there are tens of thousands of players, but the final number is 9465, is because it subtracts deceased players and those worlds that have been completely destroyed by the "Source" beyond repair.

Liao Ji has done everything he could.

The remaining question is whether the players are willing to return and help them in the final battle against the "Source Master" for control of the World Tree.

That can only be left to "bonds".

Chapter 344 Goodbye Source Master

hum!

Holy light descended from the sky, piercing through the body of the "Source Beast." With a mournful cry, the Source Beast's massive body crashed to the ground, revealing the nun behind it, enveloped in holy light.

This is already the umpteenth Source Beast that Sthitia has killed.

The bodies of the source beasts after they die do not become corpses, but instead transform into specks of starlight that drift towards the sky above the world.

And there

The nun looked up and saw that since the world was invaded by the "Source Master" a few months ago, the sky had completely changed to look like it does now.

Sometimes lightning flashes and thunder roars, brewing a storm; sometimes it's a fiery red expanse, like a sea of ​​fire; and sometimes it's shrouded in darkness and shadows, resembling some kind of ghost realm.

Among these "strange phenomena" in the sky, one after another new bodies of source beasts appeared, and those terrifying mythical creatures appeared and disappeared. Or rather, these strange phenomena were reflected because the "source" surrounded their world.

Due to the rules of the World Tree, and the existence of the Mother of Turbid Calamity, the Source could not descend in a higher form as a "mythical creature".

After breaking through the world barrier, the invading "source" can only descend in a low-level form of "beast," just like before.

This greatly relieved the pressure. In the war zone based on the "Five Kingdoms", with them as the supreme beings of the "Calamity" level, merely the source in the form of "Beast", they would not break through the defense line and harm living beings.

but

Just like the Source Beast that was "destroyed" by Styutia in the previous scene.

The source can only be destroyed, not killed.

Because the source itself, to be precise, is not a living being, but a form of power, an energy substance that should coexist with the world and be a component of the world.

However, with the emergence of the "Source Masters", the Sources began to have their own will, regarding the world as their own, and in turn, made the world their nourishment, and began to devour the vast world on the World Tree.

However, even the Sources are powerless in the face of the "Turbid Calamity," which they see as a betrayal, a dark force created by the World Tree to suppress them.

Although they were indeed helpless against the "Turbid Calamity," the "Source Lord" provided another path, establishing a higher-dimensional passage that connected to another planet independent of the World Tree.

They use "players" to replace them as the force against "Turbid Calamity," and in the end, they take back everything the players own, thus continuing to dominate the world.

Each player's "Savior" body after clearing the game contains immense power, which the "Sources" crave. The power of the "Emperor of Ashes," who cleared the game on the highest difficulty and reached an unprecedented level of 150, is enough to make the "Source Lord" personally appear and summon other "Sources" to surround the world in order to plunder it.

So, I want to end all of this.

Styutia took a deep breath, and the nun's gaze seemed to pierce through layers of obstacles, looking directly at the deepest existence at the end of the sky, which was getting closer and closer to their world.

源主

Only by completely defeating, eliminating, and even sealing it can the will of "Source" be completely eradicated.

Otherwise, as long as the "Source Lord" exists, the attacks of the Source Beasts will continue endlessly.

And their defensive strength

Styutia withdrew her gaze and scanned her surroundings again. The heroic spirits who had once defeated the Ash Empire, summoned back by the Mother of Turbidity, were still fighting. However, the nun could sense that their power was growing weaker and weaker and that they probably wouldn't be able to hold on for much longer.

After all, these companions from five hundred years ago are all deceased spirits. They were only temporarily summoned through the authority of the Mother of Turbidity. However, with the invasion of the Source Lord, the Mother of Turbidity—no, after several months of fighting—has accepted Polica as a companion. The Turbidity power that Polica possesses is being consumed by the "Source Lord," and she is struggling to hold on, nearing her limit.

Once Polica can no longer hold on, representing the disappearance of the Turbid Calamity, not only will these ancient spirits also dissipate, but those "Sources" who were forced to descend in low-level "beast" forms will also be able to completely unleash their power and truly descend as "mythical creatures".

The battle lines will no longer be able to be maintained as they are now.

not to mention

Styutia recalled that during the month that Lord Liao Ji was away, she, Jiu You, and Ling had tried to unite and go outside the world to fight against the "Source Lord".

But without exception, the result of the battles was that they were forced to retreat and return to their own world.

Even Jiu You, who has the highest combat power among them, cannot say that she can harm the Source Lord. Yes, she cannot even "harm" him. It is not that the Source Lord's defensive ability is too strong, but that it has a near-infinite recovery ability. This is all thanks to the thousands of worlds that the Source Lord has devoured and controlled, which are providing the Source Lord with a continuous source of power.

Zero had calculated that to inflict substantial damage on the "Source Master," at least a hundred Jiu You-level combatants would be needed to make the damage exceed the recovery value. And to truly repel the Source Master, the destructive power would need to be doubled, requiring at least two hundred Dragon Girl-level combatants.

But that's obviously too unrealistic for them.

Let alone them.

In the entire vast world of the Star Tree, there have probably been no more than two hundred "Calamity" level beings born in total, let alone those that are purely violent and guard-type.

Therefore, they gave up on dealing with the Source Lord and focused solely on protecting the world.

However, today

Styutia quickly sensed something and looked at the open space beside her. The next second, the teleportation array flashed, and a familiar young man walked out. On either side of the young man were four other companions that the nun also recognized.

Dragon Girl, Zero, Succubus, and Polika.

Anno wasn't among them; she needed to keep an eye on Blue Star, which was crucial for the upcoming final battle.

It's time to put an end to this.

"Are you ready, Tia?"

Liao Ji, inside the teleportation array, looked at Tia, who seemed no longer to be the supreme ruler of a nation, but had transformed back into the little nun who had once closely followed the Ash Emperor.

I haven't felt this way in a long time.

The feeling of fighting for a common goal, for the world, with Lord Ash and Lord Liao Ji.

Styutia felt as if she had returned to five hundred years ago, a time that, while the darkest for the world, was also the most unforgettable for her.

"Of course, Lord Liao Ji."

After whispering a suicide note, the nun stepped into the young man's teleportation array. With that, apart from Anno, all the world's top combatants had been brought to her side.

After that, Liao Ji activated the teleportation, and the figures of the group disappeared from their original spot, turning into streaks of light that shot straight towards the sky shrouded by the "source".

With the power of the Ash Emperor, even the Source in its "mythical creature" form could not stop it from beyond the world.

Countless "sources" were either torn apart and pierced by the flowing light while blocking the way, or they could only watch helplessly as the flowing light reached their core and the location of their "source master".

The light finally stopped at the canopy of the Starry Sky World Tree.

Several months later, Liao Ji stood once again before the source master, the phoenix perched in the tree crown, who used countless worlds as his own "wings."

Chapter 345 Liao Ji's Answer

"Give me."

To Liao Ji's surprise, the Source Lord did not launch a direct attack on them as he had done before.

The phoenix perched in the treetop sent him an ethereal voice.

"Power, be mine."

It seemed as if the phoenix was communicating with him, which surprised Liao Ji.

Based on previous experiences with the "Sources," it seems that they regard "wisdom" as a non-essential commodity, and the vast majority of the Sources do not possess the awareness of "communication."

However, Liao Ji did not forget that in Lena's diary, it did indeed appear that the source of "wisdom" was forced to be born due to the limitations of the external environment.

The current Source Master should be the same.

but apparently

"Give me... let us become one." The ethereal voice was intermittent, showing that the wisdom born from the phoenix was not yet mature and it was not very good at speaking.

However, since the "Source Master" had evolved intelligence for its own sake, Liao Ji tried to communicate with it.