Chapter 737 - 460: The Road to the Future Lies at Your Feet

Chapter 737: Chapter 460: The Road to the Future Lies at Your Feet

The rising Divine Fog gradually thinned, while the golden figure slowly solidified.

Clad in solemn, heavy armor covered in complex and magnificent patterns, his cape was tattered and torn as if from a brutal war. A distant hurricane whipped it about, making it flap loudly in the wind.

The white-haired, crown-wearing man held a broad Heavy Sword, planting it before him as he stood. He was like an eternal, unyielding Divine Mountain—majestic, imposing, and radiating an aura of immense power. A cold, stern majesty and an irresistible will spread between heaven and earth.

Merely by standing there, he exerted an undeniable gravitational pull, as if the entire World revolved around his will. Like a mythical pillar stabilizing the seas, he forcibly calmed the surging, bloody sea of the Abyss.

His eyes opened, his solemn and commanding gaze reflecting the battlefield as he searched for his enemy.

In an instant, he found it.

And so, the blade trembled, letting out a clear cry. Infinite flames of light ignited, transforming the Heavy Sword into a visually stunning, colossal Giant Sword that spanned the sky. When he swung, the blade’s edge shot toward the heavens, as if to slice the firmament itself.

—Sweep!

The abyssal sea of blood, stretching for dozens of kilometers, was abruptly torn apart. Hundreds of millions of tons of blood evaporated into thin air. A game-like Authority enveloped the region, casting an airtight lockdown over everything. An invisible, great power locked onto the Abyssal Incarnation, leaving it no room to evade or escape.

Like furious Thunderbolt colliding with an erupting volcano, the blade slashed down, creating a terrifying storm of incandescent light that spread wildly in all directions.

And within that brilliant light, a scarlet, blood-like killing intent erupted—the authority of slaughter wielded by the King of War was made manifest.

After the slash, the Abyssal Incarnation was severed at the waist, spewing a thick, black fluid.

A scarlet word popped up above its head—Critical Strike!

Its health bar instantly evaporated by a third.

"You damned..." The Abyssal Incarnation glared venomously at the magnificent golden figure, but before it could finish its hate-filled words, an orbital strike descended from outer space.

A pure white annihilation beam melted away more than half of the Abyssal Incarnation’s body and blasted a bottomless crater into the ground, as if reaching the planet’s core. Immediately after, another strike descended, hitting the Ancient Priest, who was also locked in place and unable to move. This annihilation beam, however, did not pierce through the Ancient Priest’s body, merely leaving a horrific, bone-deep wound from which blood flowed freely.

At the same time, cries of alarm rang out in the aerospace operations room of the Star Association.

"We’ve lost control of the orbital satellite that fired!"

A few large words suddenly flashed on the screen—ACTION POINTS DEPLETED.

’What the hell...’ the operator thought, stunned. ’Since when do satellites have action points? Isn’t that a gaming term?’

A piercing alarm blared. The system detected that the two orbital satellites were affected by an Authority Level power and had entered a strange state of stasis.

"We just got word from above," the commander said. "Zone 009 has been unsealed. The satellites were pulled into the game’s Rules because they attacked. Don’t worry about them... How many satellites do we have left?"

The clatter of a keyboard followed, and the operator replied, "Only one satellite left with an Annihilation Railgun system! The Weapon Systems on the other satellites can’t harm a Demigod Level being."

"Then hold it in reserve, just in case. Keep it locked on target."

"Yes, sir!"

Meanwhile, in the parted sea of blood.

The golden figure turned, looked at Zhou Chen and Tang Ling with a gratified smile, then knelt on one knee, leaning on his Heavy Sword.

He bowed his head to the new king.

The magnificent crown on Zhou Chen’s head burst with brilliant light. At that moment, he felt his connection to Gaia deepen, and the Power he could command grew even stronger.

The first King of Gaia had relinquished all his power, entrusting this great force that controlled all worldly phenomena to him.

"Long ago, I perished while trying to break through the World Barrier. An Evil God seized the opportunity to possess my body, while my Soul accidentally merged with the World Barrier itself. There, I gained initial control over a powerful Authority—’Game World.’"

The first King of Gaia slowly explained, "I used this power to turn Gaia into a game, successfully halting the apocalypse. Through the special Rules of the Game World, I pulled people from the outside world into Gaia, hoping to save it with their help."

"For over twenty centuries, I became the will of the World and watched over Gaia. I witnessed all the prosperity and decline of this land, witnessed all the suffering my people endured. But due to the restrictions of the Rules, I could not intervene. As the world’s will, my own sanity gradually faded. If you had not awakened me, I would not even have been able to return for one last look at my homeland."

’One last look...’

Zhou Chen fell silent, having seen through to the true nature of the first King of Kings.

He was merely a product of lingering regrets, a soul, an echo, and a portion of the Divine Fog all fused together.

The first King of Gaia’s Soul had merged with the Divine Fog. Now that the Restricted Area was unsealed and the Divine Fog was dissipating, his Soul was bound to dissipate along with it.

Perhaps the fusion of the Prayer System and the game system had awakened the first King of Gaia, allowing him to briefly regain his consciousness and thus revive at this moment.

But this was, after all, only temporary.

"Senior, you..."

Before Zhou Chen could finish, the first King of Gaia shook his head and interrupted him.

"There is no need."

The first King of Kings seemed to have guessed what he wanted to say. He stood up, gazing at the mountains and rivers, and said calmly, "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness."

The magnificent golden figure began to turn transparent. He was, in the end, just a remnant will and could not last long.

"For many years, I was never able to fully control the ’Game World.’ The Rules covering this area now are merely its last embers. You must hurry."

The first King of Gaia looked up at the long-unseen azure sky and the blazing Sun hanging at the edge of the firmament.

His gaze pierced the distant void, seeing the satellites in orbit, the grayish-white Moon circling the azure planet, the even more distant Sun, and the dark, mysterious, and endlessly desolate Cosmos.

’The world is so beautiful.’

What a pity that he had been trapped in an isolated corner of the world his entire life, unable to break through the shackles of the World Barrier even in death.

But fortunately, he had witnessed such a magnificent world after his death. It was a wish fulfilled.

"This version of the ’Game World’ is forced turn-based combat."

The first King of Gaia retracted his gaze and looked at the Abyssal Incarnation and the Ancient Priest. "My turn isn’t over yet, so they can’t move. Don’t attack yet, or you’ll be pulled into the forced turn-based system as well."

He then turned to Zhou Chen. "I will give you one final gift."

At that moment, Gaia trembled. The resonant voice of the first King of Gaia rang in the heart of every citizen of Gaia.

"People of Gaia, I am the first King of Gaia—Dan."

"The long night has passed, and Gaia has finally seen the dawn. From this day forward, you need no longer be afraid. You need no longer fear the Darkness. A glorious path has opened for Gaia, and every one of you will have a future."

"After I am gone, a new king will lead you. He is a hero blessed by destiny who has pulled Gaia back from the brink of apocalypse. He will guide you toward an even brighter future."

An image of Zhou Chen appeared in the minds of Gaia’s people—wearing a crown, solemnly holding a sword.

The first King of Gaia gave him a look, signaling for him to say something.

Zhou Chen declared in a solemn voice:

"I am the King of Kings! My works are so peerless, they would make the heavens themselves bow in awe!"

In that instant, tens of thousands of stars poured into the Wish Bottle, and his wish value skyrocketed.

Everyone now knew that he was the one responsible for all this.

The first King of Gaia nodded at Zhou Chen, then took a step and vanished.

"He must have ascended to Demigod before he died."

Tang Ling, standing beside him, asked, "Where did he go?"

"To take one last look at his homeland," Zhou Chen said.

Then, he let out a breath and looked at Tang Ling.

"I’m going to fulfill my promise."

Tang Ling’s pupils contracted. He showed a human-like shock, quickly glanced at the two Abyssal Demigods still trapped in the forced turn-based state, then used his Ability to release a cloud of fog, enveloping himself and Zhou Chen to block all prying eyes.

「Inside the fog.」

Zhou Chen looked at his wish value, which had soared to over 1.6 million points. His heart pounded wildly. For him, this was an unprecedented, astronomical figure.

’If I wait a little longer, it might even break two million...’

"What should I do?" Tang Ling asked, his voice full of anticipation and even trembling slightly.

"You don’t have to do anything."

Zhou Chen raised his hand, holding up a brilliant star of miracles, magnificent and resplendent.

A Great Miracle descends!

"—I wish for Tang Ling to have a Soul."

·

The first King of Gaia stood atop a mountain ridge, gazing down at the land he had once fought for and ruled. His eyes were filled with endless vicissitudes.

The years had passed. Now he had returned, but the friends of his past had all turned to dust.

The first King of Gaia vanished in an instant, reappearing on a battlefield strewn with corpses, right in front of Carol.

"Brother..." Carol trembled, her eyes misting over.

"Live well," the first King of Gaia urged, then vanished again.

The Sealing Room of Frost Giant Begger.

The first King of Gaia gazed at his completely Abyssalized son. A flash of sorrow crossed his eyes as he whispered, "Your father has failed you..."

PSHNK!

Blood splattered.

He personally killed his unsalvageable son.

Finally, the first King of Gaia arrived at a solemn cemetery. He stopped by a tombstone, staring at the words inscribed on it, silent for a long time.

Time passed quickly. After just a few seconds, he quietly began to dissipate.

But on his weary face, the corners of his mouth curved into a slight smile.

His half-life of torment and waiting was over. He had personally witnessed Gaia emerge from the end of Darkness to welcome a brilliant and glorious future.

There was nothing more joyous than this.

·

An impassioned melody rose in the air, singing of past glories, praising a former mission and the will to fight. Finally, as the hero’s tale concluded, the melody softened, becoming mournful and full of compassion.

So somber. Yet, the melody did not cease. It continued to stretch and persist, its quietness like the calm before a storm, brewing something far more turbulent.

A new movement was about to be composed.

The King of Music, dressed in a magnificent black evening gown, arrived at the Divine Mountain of the Holy Hall Church. He extended an invitation to the Goddesses, who were bleeding from all seven orifices:

"The stage is set. Care to play a piece together?"