I don't want to conquer witches anymore.

The world of possibilities also came to an abrupt end.

……

Duke suddenly opened his eyes. He saw Ida and the others, but he didn't see Carol, who had been following him in the world of possibilities, nor did he see Amber, whom he had reunited with in the end. But in the next instant, he realized what was happening and turned to look at the transparent coffin.

Amber suddenly appeared inside the transparent coffin.

Chapter 481 Here, the princess awakens because of the prince's kiss 5K3

Amber appeared inside the transparent coffin.

Everyone present except Duke was stunned. After all, from Annie's perspective, they had no idea that Duke had entered the quantum cloud and wandered around the world of possibilities. In their perception, only a moment had passed.

One second they were still debating how to save Amber and how to observe her lost in the quantum cloud, and the next second Amber appeared in the transparent coffin, her chest rising and falling slightly with her breath, just like Snow White in the fairy tale who fell into a coma because of the poisoned apple, sleeping peacefully in the coffin, waiting for her prince to kiss her awake.

"what happened?"

Even Annie couldn't immediately grasp what had happened. She instinctively looked at Duke, then at Amber lying in the transparent coffin—just like the scene foretold by the magic mirror, she seemed to vanish from everyone's sight for a moment, making them wonder if they were seeing things. But soon, she "disappeared" a second time.

Compared to the scene in the Magic Mirror, Amber is now disappearing faster and more frequently, as if she is not ready to return to the macroscopic world.

This unexpected turn of events made Annie frown and look at Duke again. For some reason, she felt that Duke might know something... But she didn't get a reply from Duke. Duke stared intently at Amber as if he hadn't heard her previous question.

She kept changing between existence and non-existence, and the frequency and speed of these changes were so fast that everyone who had seen the previous images in the magic mirror knew that she couldn't maintain this state for long—soon she would disappear just like the prophesied image in the magic mirror.

Duke clenched his fists nervously. He had used "Song of Destiny" once in the possible new world, and after that, his perception changed, allowing him to sense destinies that were previously impossible for him to perceive.

As his anxiety grew, the world seemed to change in his eyes in an instant... But for some reason, he was extremely familiar with this strange perspective of fate, as if he had maintained this perspective for a long time. After a brief change, he immediately adapted to this perspective.

In his eyes, Amber was entangled in a chaotic mess of fates, which came from the possible worlds within the quantum cloud. These worlds did not accept Amber, yet they were unwilling to let go of this space traveler lost in the quantum cloud.

With his help, Amber reconstructed her destiny, and the possibility collapsed from the microscopic quantum cloud back to the macroscopic reality... but the quantum cloud still tries to bring her back to the microscopic world.

Duke knows exactly what he should be doing now.

He must sing the song of destiny.

However, when he sang the Song of Destiny in the world of possibilities earlier, his mind was somewhat confused, and his body was also affected by his clear consciousness, as if some unseen hand of fate was manipulating him to hum that song of destiny that rescued Amber. Duke was in a daze throughout the whole process, until Amber embraced him, at which point Duke suddenly woke up.

Clearly, that song of destiny is Duke's legendary destiny.

However, as the person who used the legendary destiny, Duke completely missed the whole process, had no idea how he used the legendary destiny, and had no idea how to replicate his previous actions.

What should I do?

Duke frowned. In fact, since returning to the macro world, he had been repeatedly trying the Song of Destiny, but he couldn't find the threshold at all. He opened his mouth and tried to hum a couple of lines of the Song of Destiny, but it didn't cause any change. This was normal. He had never reached the level to grasp the legendary destiny. He had tried for nearly ten possible worlds but still couldn't touch the threshold of the near-legendary.

Even if we take a step back and say that Duke really used the Song of Destiny unintentionally, he might have been able to use that experience to learn or even master how to use the legendary destiny... But to put it nicely, Duke missed the whole process; to put it bluntly, he was essentially given a free ride and won without any effort.

He sighed, glancing at his inventory as a last resort, but then he paused slightly, a look of surprise on his face, before pulling out an item that looked somewhat like a tape recorder.

Deus ex machina.

It is the strongest item in Duke's inventory, bar none, and also his only Fate-related item. Its only drawback is that its usage is beyond Duke's control. Furthermore, based on his limited experience using it, Duke hasn't gained any valuable insights. After all, he can't predict when the story will reach its "final act."

Duke could only manage a rough outline, attempting to construct a stage that could resolve the main and subplots of the events, and then try to use deus ex machina before stepping onto that stage, thereby rewriting the final ending.

Just like that trip to a parallel world.

However, this time Duke did not prepare or plan ahead, and the deus ex machina simply met the conditions for use.

Clearly, this means... that this very moment marks the end of the thousand-year-long story of the floating city.

However, Duke certainly wouldn't use Deus Ex to save the floating city.

"To hell with the floating city, saving Amber is the key."

Duke muttered something under his breath, then reached out to press the activation button for the deus ex machina.

In that instant, the world came to a standstill.

Duke's eyes widened. His consciousness continued to operate normally even though time was frozen, but his body was completely immobile. He sensed Carol's presence, but he couldn't turn his head to look in Carol's direction.

However, even though he couldn't meet Carol's gaze, Duke was very clear about what she meant by stopping time this time—she didn't want him to use Deus Ex!

So, she didn't want me to rescue Amber? No, if she didn't want me to rescue Amber, she wouldn't have sent me into the quantum cloud and also conveniently shoved Carol in with me.

So why did she stop me from using Deus Ex? It's because Deus Ex is a crucial part of her plan to save the floating city, and she couldn't accept that I would "waste" Deus Ex on Amber.

No.

No, no.

She has only one goal.

She wants me to learn the legendary destiny, so...

He raised an eyebrow—perhaps his body couldn't move, but his soul, following his will, transcended the limitations of time and obediently made that expression.

Duke's body was unable to move, but his soul floated freely beyond the limitations of his body in this world where time had stopped. The essence of his soul had undergone a kind of alienation during his journey through the world of possibilities.

Freed from his physical constraints, Duke floated in mid-air. His soul gripped the deus ex machina but didn't press the button. Duke stared at the deus ex machina in his hand with a strange look. His perspective on fate was telling him that this "tape recorder" was entwined with a special kind of destiny—a destiny unlike any other, like threads or inanimate objects. It was dynamic and leaping, like a butterfly fluttering in the air or a bird singing sweetly.

Duke stared at the fate entangled with the mechanical deus ex machina for a long time. Finally, the melodious chirping of the little bird changed. He "heard" the singing of a soul requiem in the fluttering dance of the butterfly.

He strangely placed his hand on his chest, then spoke softly:

"Deus ex machina".

Even if time hadn't stopped, no one present would have understood what Duke said, because... he was speaking Chinese.

The term "deus ex machina" actually originates from an artistic technique in classical Greek drama, referring to an unexpected, sudden, and somewhat contrived character, means, or event that is abruptly introduced in fictional works to resolve tense plots or scenes. Even if its original language isn't Greek, it must at least be Latin. Duke previously used the common language of this world or simply pronounced it "Deusex Machina," never using Chinese to pronounce the term.

Or rather, Duke hadn't used Chinese for a long time since transmigrating to the other world. Even when talking to himself, he preferred to use the common language of the continent. Speaking again now sounded somewhat awkward and unfamiliar. But it was strange; he'd only been in the other world for less than a year, so why was he so unfamiliar with Chinese? Was it a problem with the soul transmigration? Did transmigrating into the body of someone from another world really have such a significant impact?

Or perhaps... his time travel actually took much longer than he imagined?

Just as Duke was lost in thought, the deus ex machina responded to his words. Even though Duke hadn't pressed the start recording button, the device activated on its own, emitting a mechanical, electronic voice:

"Deus Ex Machina"

During the time freeze, Duke, now free to move, didn't rush to use Deus Ex. He even suspected that if he actually tried to use Deus Ex, Carol would stop him, even if it meant throwing all pretense of decency and jumping out to kill him. Because at this moment, the only way Carol might approve of Deus Ex was... for Duke to use it to grasp a legendary destiny.

Duke closed his eyes.

He held the mechanical deus ex machina in his right hand and brought it to his mouth, while raising his left hand and gently placing it on his heart, touching the spot where the Soul Requiem was engraved, quietly feeling the power contained within.

What Duke couldn't understand was the Song of Destiny. He had no idea how it reconstructed and shaped destiny, nor did he know if its power could affect the macrocosm. But Duke knew that it must be connected to the Soul Requiem he could understand.

The melody of the Song of Destiny is entirely based on the Soul Requiem, the essence of which is the understanding and deconstruction of the rules of the world... and when this understanding and structure is applied to the level of destiny, isn't that the effect of the Song of Destiny?

Of course, Duke cannot deduce the Song of Destiny from the Soul Requiem alone. Of course, Duke is not completely ignorant of fate and causality (after all, his omnipotent trickery involves these things, and he has been using items such as the Lucky Dagger and Deus Ex so far), but how to transfer the effects of the Soul Requiem to the level of fate is still a black box technology for him.

Originally, Duke had no chance to advance this black box technology again and could not possibly attempt to forcibly crack it... But at this moment, Duke suddenly realized that Deus Ex and "Song of Destiny" were connected and linked on the level of destiny, and even had a direct causal relationship.

Duke thus easily came to a conclusion.

Perhaps the song of destiny is a combination of deus ex machina and a soul requiem?

This was a very bold idea, and Duke wasn't very confident about it, but a voice inside him told him that his thinking was correct.

This inexplicable idea certainly wouldn't affect Duke's rational thinking, but this is a world of swords and magic, and Duke is currently only one step away from the legendary realm. When considering his plans, "unfounded premonitions" should also be taken into account.

So Duke began to hum the tune of a soul-soothing hymn softly to the mechanical conjurer in his hand, while simultaneously sensing the changes in fate around him.

The song Duke was humming was not the song of destiny, and destiny did not change because of the tone of his humming.

But at this moment, the paused time resumed, and Duke's soul naturally returned to his body, continuing his humming. If he hadn't used any techniques when he hummed with his soul before, now that he was back in his body, he unconsciously used the technique of "Song of the Soul".

Fate took a slight turn.

"Carol! What are you doing now?!"

The voice of Ida, who could sense the time stop that had occurred, resounded in the hearts of everyone present. Her voice was tinged with anger, and this soul-stirring questioning caused Duke, whose soul had just returned to his body, to feel a surge of emotion—this surge of soul resonance made his soul song even more passionate.

Duke still didn't open his eyes.

"boom--"

One after another, the sounds of battle rang out, followed by the exclamations of Annie, Zun, and others. These young people, who were unable to compete with Carol, were knocked away the moment the battle began, losing their ability to intervene in the battle. At this moment, the only person who could protect Duke from beginning to end was Ida.

A mysterious, unseen, and intangible force once again enveloped the core cabin of the floating city.

The constantly shifting fluctuations of time and space swirled and moved within that mysterious power.

Duke remained engrossed in humming his "Song of Destiny," not even opening his eyes when Ida faced Carol and for the first time displayed her legendary destiny. Even when Carol unleashed her full power and drew her weapon for the first time, Duke did not shift his attention from the "Song of Destiny" to the legendary battle before him.

Fate began to falter thanks to Duke's unwavering persistence.

Initially, such turmoil was like a gentle breeze, but the degree of turmoil became more and more intense over time.

at last.

The power of destiny has begun to influence the world.

at last.

Duke opened his eyes.

In his field of vision, Carol grabbed Ida by the collar, then casually slashed open a spatial rift with her other hand, and stuffed her into the spatial rift amidst the lingering echo of Ida's fierce "I will definitely come back..."

The mysterious power that was once omnipresent in the core chamber gradually dissipated after Ida left.

Carol dusted herself off. Ida's condition was indeed not good. After losing her mute godhood and the "divinity" she had always maintained, this top legend's strength had dropped by several minor realms. Not to mention that she hadn't used her legendary destiny for a long time. If Ida had been given a few days to recover, Carol would definitely not have been able to deal with her so easily. But the real world is not a world of possibilities, and there are no "ifs" here.

As she listened to Duke humming the song of destiny, feeling the real world around her affected by the power of fate, a slight smile appeared on her lips, and she asked softly, "Is this your legendary destiny, Duke? I don't want to stop you from saving Amber... but as the final boss, shouldn't I step in and do what a final boss should do?"

Duke didn't answer her question, but turned to look at the transparent coffin. As for Carol... she was just joking and didn't really intend to attack.

So, without being disturbed, Duke quickly walked to the side of the transparent coffin and quietly looked at the still sleeping Amber.

Amber rarely quiets down like this. This boisterous, lewd sprite is always the epitome of energy. Looking at the peacefully sleeping Amber, Duke can picture her showing off an R18 picture book to him, or imagine her wearing a maid swimsuit and deliberately asking, "Should we eat first, take a bath first, or eat me first?" He can also recall her biting her lip, trying her best and stubbornly insisting on keeping up with him.

Duke gazed at her sleeping face, still softly humming the Song of Destiny. In the perspective of destiny, the fate entwined with amber was gradually unraveled, torn apart, and devoured by the power of legendary destiny.

The amber stopped disappearing.

Then, those chaotic destinies from the quantum cloud collapsed, reconstructed, and coalesced in the Song of Destiny. At the same time, Duke took out a beautiful golden apple from his inventory—all those chaotic destinies were stuffed into the golden apple by Duke, and then he placed it next to Amber.

Amber is still asleep, but it's only a matter of time before she does.

Duke finally stopped humming, finally breathed a sigh of relief, and finally showed a faint smile.

Then, he leaned down and kissed the sleeping princess on the lips.

Thus, the prince rescued his princess.