I, the final BOSS of the beta test server!

"After enduring countless hardships, paving the way from scratch, and overcoming numerous difficulties, he finally ascended to the throne of legend. He possessed the qualification to exist eternally, independent of civilization and era, and to stand above the long river of time and look down upon all living beings—"

"Yet he still couldn't let go of worldly emotions, unwilling to compromise for illusory things... He vainly attempted to rewrite the fate of his own era and civilization with his own strength."

"Try to deny the inevitable end of the era."

"But the birth and end of eras, the rise and fall of civilizations, are the most fundamental rules of this world. How could they be rewritten by the efforts of a mere legend?"

"If a civilization of a certain era chooses to quietly and calmly face its end, then the backlash from the laws of the world will naturally be relatively small... It will be like falling asleep, a peaceful end."

"The old era falls, and the new era begins."

"With the help of the seeds that have been preserved before, a brand new civilization will soon sprout in a new era and grow again, allowing the cycle of civilization to continue indefinitely."

Noah's words remained calm.

"And if, after crossing the destined critical point of decline, a civilization of a certain era did not face its end calmly, but instead chose to resist..."

"Then, the more intense this civilization's resistance—the more it deviates from its originally destined trajectory, the more it embarks on a completely different path...when the end of the era arrives, the more despairing the backlash will be."

"That is a judgment from the rules, a verdict called Heaven's Law, a catastrophe that annihilates everything."

"Before the laws of nature that constitute this world, let alone a few legends, even true gods are nothing more than lackeys whose life and death are controlled by laws of nature."

"And before the final catastrophe that annihilates everything... the entire continent will be reduced to scorched earth and ruins."

"In this scorched wasteland, the difficulty of reigniting the spark of civilization has increased exponentially."

"It takes who knows how many years of sedimentation, coupled with incredible luck, for a new civilization to sprout again after the catastrophe that wiped out everything."

"Even the possibility of human civilization being completely cut off is not impossible."

Noah withdrew his gaze and looked down at Rast in front of him.

"So, Rust, do you understand?"

"Those legends who attempt to rewrite the destiny of their own civilization appear noble, righteous, and radiant."

"But in reality, they are just selfish people under the guise of righteousness."

"For personal satisfaction, for personal feelings...they placed their selfish desire to realize their own ideals above the fate of human civilization as a whole."

"Just chase the fleeting light while you are alive."

"But they never considered whether they could afford the cost of their own failure. And how would future generations of humanity and civilization pay for their reckless decisions?"

"That's not bravery, that's just selfish greed."

At this moment, a hint of coldness suddenly flashed in Noah's old eyes.

"Like a shore-guard."

"Now they call themselves the guardians of civilization, admired by the world, and showered with flowers, glory and applause."

"but--"

"However, few people know about it."

The fertile legend let out a faint laugh, with a hint of coldness in it.

"In the beginning, the founder of the Shore Watch, the first generation who established this organization, was actually just a traitor among us?"

"In order to chase that fleeting light, for those absurd things that are like a dream, a bubble, and no different from moths flying into a flame..."

"He betrayed the gravekeepers and stole the 'spark' from them, taking it for himself and turning it into a legacy for the shore keepers."

"Every previous leader of the Shore Guard was nothing but a greedy thief—"

"Just a despicable 'fire thief'."

………………

PS: I felt dizzy after taking a red-eye flight for more than ten hours. I slept for a whole day before I got enough rest, adjusted to the jet lag, and recovered.

I will try to update more often in the next few days to make up for the update I owed yesterday.

Chapter 129 Lost Paradise, cleared! (7k)

Fire thief?

Listening to Noah's words, Rast was slightly stunned.

This was also the first time he understood so clearly the concept of gravekeepers.

Although there was no way to verify it, Rast could feel that Noah had not deceived him on this point.

At the end of every era, there will be a catastrophe that ends the era and destroys the entire civilization, or the so-called great disaster.

This can also be proven from the exploration of the night world by the current night travelers...

Six eras and seventy-two night worlds, each night world corresponds to a disaster in past history.

The final night world of each era, the so-called "Final Reverberation", is far beyond the reach of ordinary night world reverberations, both in terms of the difficulty of conquering it and the scale of the participating transcendents.

That is the most difficult level that can only be conquered by the combined efforts of all the night travelers in the world, paying the price of blood and fire.

In fact, according to the records that Last found out in the Arcane Tower... in the process of conquering the Doomsday World and the Last Echo of each era in the past, there have been more than one cases of legendary night travelers falling.

Therefore, there is a high probability that the final catastrophe that Noah spoke of is real.

If the development of civilization is compared to a living organism, then it also has a life cycle of germination, growth, prosperity, aging and withering.

However, when the cycle of civilization declines and enters an irreversible ending stage.

The legends born in every era and the leaders of every civilization will make completely different choices.

Or choose to accept it calmly and quietly face the demise of civilization.

Or they may abandon civilization itself and stand alone on the long river of history, looking down indifferently on the ebb and flow of the tide as recorders and witnesses, watching the changes of times and civilizations... or even actively accelerate the process in order to conform to the laws of nature and rules, just like a gravekeeper.

Or, reject this destined ending and burn yourself like firewood for that tiny possibility, like the shore guard.

These are different legends, different choices made when facing the death of civilization.

There is no right or wrong, but only a difference in stance and philosophy... But precisely because of this, when two different stances collide, there is no room for mediation.

All that remains is a war of blood and fire.

And war never ends until one dies.

However, compared to these.

What really concerned Rast was what Noah said about the shore guard.

The first generation of the shore guard was a traitor among the grave keepers?

Moreover, according to Noah's description, the first generation shore keeper also stole a "fire" from the grave keepers.

To the extent that such an ancient legend revealed a look of hatred and coldness when talking about this... it can be seen that the "spark" must be an extremely precious thing.

For the legendary strongmen, they all have extraordinary significance.

Last wanted to find out more information about it, but it was obvious that Noah had no intention of explaining more.

When facing a legend, if Rast showed too much desire to explore, it would inevitably arouse the other party's vigilance and suspicion.

However, despite this——

In fact, in Rast's mind, he already had some guesses about the so-called "spark".

However, it still needs further confirmation.

"So, you should be able to understand why I came here on behalf of the gravekeepers."

Noah's indifferent words rang in Rast's ears again.

"What we pursue is not only the immortality of life, but also the eternity of civilization."

"And in order to survive for a long time... the alternation of eras, the destruction and rebirth of civilizations, are all necessary."

"However, the shore guardians, led by Cecil, attempted to break this rule that has lasted for several epochs—"

"For that unrealistic, moth-to-flame fantasy... they're reckless and unscrupulous, reaching a point of near-madness, completely disregarding the longer-term future."

"Therefore, the shore-keepers must be eradicated—"

"Before the civilization of this era truly offends the laws of nature, encounters a catastrophic backlash, and causes irreversible consequences."

He paused for a moment. "On the other hand, despicable betrayers and thieves must also be punished."

"Recover the lost 'spark' from the hands of the fire thief."

There was a hint of shock and confusion on Rast's face.

He hesitated for a moment, and finally asked.

"Master Noah, I have another question."

"Faced with the shore guards, why don't we, the grave keepers...use even greater power to suppress them without reservation?"

"As far as I know, the current Shore Guardian organization isn't that strong. They only have one legend, Cecil."

"A mere legend should be nothing compared to us grave keepers."

"Ah."

Last felt a deep gaze on him.

After a long time, it was finally removed from his body.

"We grave keepers, though independent of history, will not be worn down by the long river of time, grow old, or die like the lives of the mortal world..."

"However, the corresponding price is that for the vast majority of each era, we can only witness everything in this world as recorders and observers."

"And if you want to interfere with the real world, there will be various restrictions."

"Just like the gods imprisoned outside the Threshold of Blazing Heaven... As true gods, they cannot easily descend into the world, and can only bestow their power through believers, sacrifices, and rituals."

Noah's voice became a little deeper.

"If they hadn't been subjected to so many restrictions, how could the shore guards, who slink around in the shadows, have survived for so long?"

"Of course, these restrictions imposed by world laws will continue to weaken as civilization progresses."

"When an era comes to an end, when the end arrives, all restrictions and constraints will be lifted."

"At that time, whether we, the gravekeepers, or the gods trapped on the threshold of the blazing heaven, will be free from constraints and will be able to descend into the mortal world in our full glory... The gods will walk upon the earth."

"However, by that time, the actions of the shore guards may be irreversible."

"At this point in time, although the progress of civilization and era has turned from prosperity to decline and entered the second half of its life cycle, it has not yet reached the point of extinction."

"Thus, while the restriction has loosened somewhat, it hasn't been completely broken. Being able to accommodate my arrival is already the limit... There are many gravekeepers more powerful than me, but the restrictions they face are also greater."

"Besides..." Noah paused for a moment. "Ever since the first generation stole the fire, it has been continuously accumulated and grown through the inheritance of successive shore guardians..."

"Although there is only one person, Cecil, who holds that spark, is more than just an ordinary legend."

The Threshold of Blazing Sky?

Are those true gods trapped on this so-called "Threshold of the Blazing Sky" and therefore unable to descend and walk the earth without restraint?

Last silently memorized this piece of knowledge in his heart. These were secrets that he had no way to know before.

At this moment, Noah withdrew his vague and distant gaze and focused it on Last again.

"Of course, these things have nothing to do with you at the moment."

"Although rare, every era and every epoch has its own legends... As for the Legendary Seeds that have paved the way to legend and possess the potential to achieve legendhood, their number is many times greater."

"However, not every legend can be invited to join the gravekeepers."

"However, at this moment, you do have the qualifications to travel with us."

Noah looked down at Rast. The plants in the courtyard were growing vigorously around him, full of green vitality.

"For the sake of survival and eternity, the Shore Keepers must be erased."

"There will inevitably be a battle between Cecil and I... but that battle won't come immediately. Both he and I must prepare for it and accumulate strength."

"And what you need to do... is to use the Death Star Cup that you forcibly contained as a medium to control the remaining power within the remains of the Death God and use it for your own benefit."

His gaze once again fell on the dim yellow illusory ocean in the distance, which was the abyss formed by the remains of the god of death.

Rast also followed Noah's gaze and looked towards the direction of the Nether Abyss.

Deep in the illusory ocean formed by the blood of the god of death, at the end of the abyss, there is an abyss that swallows up all light.