The world doesn't need succubi to save it.

"So, it's [time]."

Ning Feng glanced at his wrist, then at his body, which had become transparent in an instant, smiled and disappeared from the spot.

However, there's still a little bit missing, just one last thing.

The final promise.

……

……

"Ok?"

Ash Fera struggled to open his eyes and looked at the man who had appeared in front of him.

It was a man he had never seen before, with gentle eyes and a warm aura.

No, there was another figure behind him.

It was a dark figure missing a hand, with a pair of similar eyes.

For no apparent reason, Ash remembered a long, long time ago, of those ruins in the snow.

There was also someone like that who appeared beside him at the very end...

I've seen you before!

Ash stared wide-eyed at the radiant man, his excitement growing:

"Did you come to pick me up? So, there really was someone waiting for me!"

The young man paused for a moment, then nodded and smiled gently:

"Of course, I'm here to pick you up."

The reflection behind him didn't speak, but smiled and reached out its hand to him.

Looking at the dark palm, Ash struggled to straighten his body.

"Then they! Are they waiting for me too?"

Father, Mother, and the other members of our tribe who died in battle... are they all waiting for me?

"Will do."

Smiling happily like a child, Ash shakily raised his hand, trying to grab the man's sleeve, but it fell limply halfway up.

"That's great! That's great..."

His frail, ailing hands, weakened by illness, fell limply. After a long wait, he met his end at the most poignant moment.

He faced his death without regret.

"……Good night."

Like a gentle whisper, the young man murmured softly and gently placed Ash's hand on his chest.

However, what he didn't know at that time was that, in that very instant, Ash's soul had already left the body that had imprisoned him for thousands of years.

The soul, much younger than its physical body, stared in astonishment, scrutinizing its own form.

After the young man and his companions left, Ash finally calmed down and looked at Ning Feng, who was quietly waiting beside him, with a complicated expression:

"Are you the Prophet?"

"That's what some people used to call me."

Inhale—exhale!

Ash habitually took a deep breath, even though this action wouldn't do any good for him right now, it still helped him calm down a bit.

Although he was released from the ice and grew up in this era, he is not a person of this era.

In his childhood, which he had almost forgotten, that name was more than just a symbol.

That was a being greater than any god.

Even in the most difficult times, those uncles and aunts firmly believed that the prophet would return to save them.

And now, he...she is standing right in front of him, alive and well.

"It turns out that the most mysterious prophet was not actually a legend."

"But aren't you a little too late?"

Do you know how long we've been waiting for you to come back?

Ning Feng looked at Ash, who bore a striking resemblance to Jasmine, and shook his head.

"The prophet is not mysterious at all. In the beginning, he was just a child who wanted to live."

Whether in that dark slave dungeon or that succubus's treacherous chamber, all he wanted was to survive.

That's it.

"I see..."

As if he understood something, Ash shook his head and stopped worrying about it.

"Your arrival means I'm going to die, right?"

"Correct."

There's no need to hide it; Ash had long accepted his death. A hero who had fought against illness for so many years, his will could not be shaken by death.

"...What about my younger brother? Is he alright? Is he listening to Father properly?"

Ash felt awkward thinking about the timid boy in his memory and the sinister old nobleman.

He was clearly the younger brother, but when they met again, he was already older than him and they couldn't recognize each other anymore.

"Keynes still has unfinished missions, but he continues to persevere."

"I see... Did he grow up healthy?"

Ning Feng nodded slowly and answered affirmatively:

"Yes, they grew up very healthily."

I see...

They all muttered in hushed tones. Ash looked in the direction of the Silver Council and nodded.

"That's enough."

It's just a pity that they didn't recognize each other back then.

It's been so long, my brother.

It's such a shame I couldn't ruffle your hair one last time...

Amidst a faint sigh, Ash's soul shattered and vanished.

The faint sound drifted through the air and settled in the prophet's heart.

"It's so great that you came to pick me up as promised..."

It turned into a point of light and landed behind the prophet, joining the other points of light.

……

……

The moment "Ningfeng" was pushed into the light curtain by Ariana, the illusory figure merged into it.

Ning Feng opened his eyes the instant he passed through the light membrane.

The "Hand of God" dissipated, and time resumed its flow in the City of Watch.

The cycle of reincarnation ends at this moment.

The future begins at this moment.

【? ? ? 】

and many more?

Ariana felt that this development was not quite the same as what she had predicted.

What's going on? Shouldn't it be entering the memories of the owner of that hand?

How could this domain have been shattered so easily?

Standing before her, Ning Feng leaned back, gazing at Ariana nestled in his arms, and smiled.

"Long time no see."

"For a very long time..."

Chapter 533 A Mortal

It's been a really long time.

Catching the illusory figure, Ning Feng hugged the stunned Ariana tightly.

Even a prophet with a strong will felt weary of this endless loneliness.

Those who live in solitude are either wild beasts or gods.

Ning Feng was neither a wild beast nor a god, but he had indeed lived in seclusion for a thousand years in some respects.

He is more like a beast than a beast, and more like a god than a god!

A solitary journey, a long wandering of the dead.

He transformed into a shadow looming over the gods, ready to devour them at any moment.

Ning Feng knew very well that he was now a hungry beast that fed on gods.

For a thousand years, he has held this thought: how much of his body can still be considered normal?

This world is distorted because of the gods, and so is he.

Those parts that had been twisted by loneliness and pain finally melted away when he held her in his arms.

Ariana doesn't remember.