Chapter 454: The Return of the Fallen [Part 2]

The Return of the Fallen [Part 2]

The elders and experts of the Sky Breaker Academy had all been called out by Vargos.

And they had been killed.

One after another.

As a result, apart from Gareth, there was no one else in the Sky Breaker Academy who could hold the fort.

And Gareth himself was restrained by Mike.

He could not extricate himself.

If this continued, the Sky Breaker Academy would definitely be destroyed.

There was no doubt about it.

In order to protect the inheritance, he had no choice.

Even if they suffered heavy losses, it was still much better than being completely destroyed.

Gareth's jaw tightened.

He had lived for countless years.

He had witnessed too many rises and falls.

Yet this was perhaps the first time he had been forced into such a desperate position.

He looked toward Mike.

There was anger in his eyes.

There was also a trace of helplessness.

But Mike did not care.

His purpose had never changed.

Shera had died.

That debt had to be repaid.

Mike flipped in the air.

His robes fluttered behind him as he turned once before slowly landing beside Guardian Elder Smith.

His feet touched the ground.

The dust beneath him scattered.

His face was ashen.

The clash just now had not been meaningless.

After probing Gareth's strength, Mike finally understood how terrifying the old man truly was.

Mid-stage pinnacle Realm.

Even though Mike had already stepped into the same great realm, the difference in accumulated strength was still enormous.

Gareth had lived for countless years.

His foundation was deep.

His experience was terrifying.

One careless mistake could cost Mike his life.

Mike's eyes narrowed slightly.

This old man was far more troublesome than he had expected.

He glanced toward Guardian Elder Smith.

The latter's expression was equally solemn.

Neither of them spoke immediately.

The battlefield fell into a strange silence.

The wind passed through the ruined Academy Premises.

Leaves spun through the air.

Blood continued to drip from broken weapons.

Then—

A faint sound suddenly came from the horizon.

Whoosh!

A streak of light crossed the distant sky.

At first, it was nothing more than a tiny point.

Then it grew larger.

Faster.

Closer.

Everyone instinctively looked up.

Mike's eyes narrowed.

The elders and students of the Celestis Academy also raised their heads.

The figure was approaching at astonishing speed.

Then a familiar voice suddenly echoed across the battlefield.

"Senior Brother!"

The voice was loud.

Clear.

Filled with excitement.

Mike's entire body froze.

Shera shouted as he flew over from afar.

His figure cut through the clouds and descended toward the battlefield.

For a moment, nobody moved.

The surrounding space seemed to become completely still.

The elders and students of the Celestis Academy were all stunned.

Some stared at Shera.

Others rubbed their eyes as though they could not believe what they were seeing.

One elder's mouth slowly fell open.

"This…"

The word escaped almost unconsciously.

"A ghost?"

No one could blame them for thinking that.

Shera had already died.

Everyone had seen it.

Everyone had mourned him.

Mike's heart also trembled violently.

His black eyes widened.

He stared at the figure approaching from the horizon.

That face.

That familiar aura.

That voice.

There was no mistake.

It was Shera.

His junior brother.

The man he had believed was dead.

"Junior Brother, you're not dead?"

Mike's voice shook slightly.

For someone who had stood against countless enemies without fear, those few words were almost painfully vulnerable.

He had personally checked Shera's condition.

He had watched his life force disappear.

He had seen the injuries that should have been impossible to survive.

There had been no doubt.

Shera was dead.

But now—

He was standing in front of him.

Alive.

Not merely alive.

His aura was terrifying.

It had vaguely reached the pinnacle Realm.

Mike stared at him as if he were looking at something that should never have been possible.

His mind simply refused to accept what his eyes were seeing.

How could this be real?

He had watched Shera die.

He had mourned him.

For years, the memory of his junior brother had remained buried in his heart.

Yet now...

Shera was standing right in front of him.

Alive.

Not as an illusion.

Not as a lingering soul.

Not as some strange projection created by a technique.

Alive.

Mike's eyes slowly moved over Shera's body.

Then he froze.

There was something else.

Something even more unbelievable.

Shera had regained his youth.

The wrinkles that had once covered his face were gone. The exhaustion that had settled into his features over the years had completely disappeared.

Even the faint weakness that had once accompanied his movements was nowhere to be seen.

His body was filled with vitality.

His posture was straight.

His skin carried the healthy glow of someone standing at the very peak of his life.

Even his hair had changed.

It was completely black.

His eyes were black as well.

He looked nothing like the old man Mike remembered.

He looked like the Shera from many years ago.

The Shera who had once stood beside him as a young cultivator.

The Shera who had laughed with him.

The Shera who had fought alongside him.

The Shera whom Mike had believed he would never see again.

Mike's breathing gradually became heavier.

His chest rose and fell.

He wanted to say something.

Anything.

But his throat seemed to have forgotten how to form words.

The happiness of seeing his junior brother alive crashed into the disbelief in his mind.

The two emotions fought against each other.

One part of him wanted to rush forward and embrace Shera.

Another part kept telling him that this was impossible.

It had to be an illusion.

There was no other explanation.

But the more Mike looked at him, the more that explanation fell apart.

How could an illusion possess such a powerful life force?

How could a projection breathe?

How could a dead man stand before him with such vitality?

Mike's fingers slowly tightened.

His eyes narrowed.

He tried to find some flaw.

Some trace of deception.

Some indication that what stood before him wasn't really Shera.

There was nothing.

Not even the slightest sign.

Shera suddenly descended from the air.

He landed beside Mike with barely a sound.

His feet touched the ground lightly.

The movement was effortless.

Almost casual.

But the moment Shera stood firmly on the ground, Mike felt it.

A powerful life force spread from Shera's body.

It wasn't faint.

It wasn't unstable.

It was vigorous and pure.

There was an unmistakable sense of life coming from him.

Mike's pupils trembled.

His final doubt disappeared.

This wasn't a phantom.

This wasn't a soul projection.

Shera was truly alive.

The realization struck him harder than anything else.

For several breaths, neither brother spoke.

They simply stood there and looked at each other.

Mike's eyes slowly turned red.

Shera noticed it.

His expression softened.

He understood what his senior brother must be feeling.

After all, Shera himself was still struggling to comprehend everything that had happened.

The silence between them stretched on.

It wasn't an uncomfortable silence.

It was simply too heavy for words.

There was relief in it.

Disbelief.

Shock.

And beneath all of those emotions was something Mike had almost forgotten how to feel.

Joy.

Real joy.

The kind that came from getting back someone you had already accepted as lost forever.

Mike finally took a small step forward.

His lips moved.

Yet no words came out.

He stopped.

His gaze remained fixed on Shera's face.

He wanted to ask a hundred questions at once.

When did you return?

How are you alive?

Why do you look so young?

What happened to you?

Who brought you back?

But none of those questions managed to leave his mouth.

Shera looked at him for another moment.

Then a faint smile appeared on his face.

There was something almost helpless about that smile.

Even now, he still found the entire situation unbelievable himself.

If someone had told him a few days ago that he would return to life and regain the appearance of his youth, he probably would have laughed at them.

Yet here he was.

Standing beneath the open sky.

Breathing.

Living.

And looking at his senior brother once again.

Shera could no longer bear to watch Mike struggle with the shock.

He gave a quiet cough.

"Headmaster..."

Mike's eyes immediately shifted toward him.

Shera smiled faintly.

"You're probably wondering how I'm alive."

Mike stared at him.

For a moment, his expression remained blank.

Then he finally managed to speak.

"Wondering?"

His voice was slightly hoarse.

"I've been standing here trying to convince myself that I'm not seeing a ghost."

Shera couldn't help but laugh softly.

"I thought you might react like this."

"React like this?"

Mike's eyebrows twitched.

"You died, Shera."

The smile on Shera's face faded slightly.

Mike's voice trembled.

"We all thought you were dead."

"I know."

Shera lowered his eyes for a moment.

There was a trace of emotion in them.

"I know what everyone must have thought."

Mike stared at him.

His expression gradually softened.

"But you're here."

"Yes."

Shera nodded.

"I'm here."

Those two simple words carried more weight than any explanation could have.

Mike took a slow breath.

His eyes once again moved over Shera's youthful appearance.

"Then tell me."

His voice was quieter this time.

"What happened?"

Shera glanced toward Leon.

A grateful expression appeared in his eyes.

Then he looked back at Mike.

"Junior Brother Leon saved me."

Mike's expression changed immediately.

"Leon?"

Shera nodded.

"Yes."

He paused for a moment.

Then he continued.

"He gave me an immortal pill."

Mike's eyes widened.

"An immortal pill?"

Shera nodded again.

"It allowed me to be reborn."

"What!"