Chapter 643: After Everything Perishes

Chapter 643: After Everything Perishes

This novel is available on bcatranslation.

Following a massive explosion, shockwaves spread through two worlds, causing intense atmospheric disturbances. Amid this chaos, Vannas silvery-white hair flew wildly about her as she used a hand to shield her eyes, struggling to see through the sandstorm. Through the dust, she caught sight of a ghost ship wrapped in flames, sinking slowly into the vast desert.

Descending from the sky, a gigantic black goat landed beside the flaming vessel.

A beam of light, resembling a shooting star, plummeted from the ship and struck the ground, creating a spectacular portal. Duncan then stepped out from the fiery entrance.

Captain! Vanna shouted, snapping out of her daze. She moved toward Duncan but faltered, feeling weak, and steadied herself using a large staff left by the enormous entity she had been traveling with earlier.

Duncan rushed to her side, his face marked by concern. Are you alright?

Leaning on the staff, Vanna looked up and offered a faint smile. This has taken more out of me than usual, she confessed.

She released the glowing ice sword in her other hand and reached into her cloak. Drawing out a radiant artifact that emitted a supernatural light, she explained, This is the Sun. Its a gift from Ta Ruijin. The relic gleamed intensely, piercing the surrounding darkness.

Ta Ruijin? Duncan asked, his eyes widening.

Vanna nodded. The giant I saw earlier. Hes Ta Ruijin, a god from ancient myths, the guardian of history. He perished during the cataclysm known as the Great Annihilation.

Holding the luminous Sun in her hands, its warmth filled the air. Duncan took it, feeling the soft flames tickle his fingers. They had other pressing issues to address.

Observing Vannas fragile state, Duncan supported her by the arm and took the ancient-looking staff from her, recognizing her exhaustion.

As Vanna caught her breath, leaning on Duncan, she gazed at the humanoid black goat standing by the ship. Is that creature the First Mate?

How did you know? Duncan asked, surprised.

The facial features are unmistakable, even magnified. Plus, I pride myself on my observational skills, Vanna replied confidently.

Its truly him, Duncan confirmed, leading her towards the unstable portal shimmering on a sand dune. To preserve the Vanished, I repaired its hull and infused it with some of my fiery essence. This allows him to temporarily transform into this grand form. Well discuss this more later. For now, we must hurry back to the ship. Our trials are far from over.

Then, amid the tumultuous streams of dark light, among the last remnants of the merging worlds, a single, recognizable structure stood out: a massive tree. It loomed, ethereal and silent, in the encroaching darknessa relic from a time before everything came to a standstill.

But this tree was no longer alive. The tumultuous merging of worlds, with their conflicting laws, was too much for it to withstand. If even the gods could not survive such upheaval, then the World Tree, a symbol of their might, was doomed to perish. Atlantis, the legendary tree, was now just an illusion, a fleeting shadow long lost to history.

Yet, it could not be completely destroyed, for the memory of the World Tree was permanently etched into the collective consciousness of the elves.

Though reborn as new beings by the Nether Lord during the dark times of the Third Long Night, witnessing the undeniable reality of the Great Annihilation helped Duncan understand the essence of the current Deep Sea Era.

No one was spared in the cataclysmic clash of universal laws when the worlds collided; not the mightiest warriors of great kingdoms, nor the sacred World Tree sculpted by the hands of gods, nor even the gods themselves.

Going by that deduction, Duncan harbored doubts about the true nature of the current Four Gods, including the entity known as the Eternal Flame Ta Ruijin. However, he was certain of one thing: the entirety of the Deep Sea Era, in its truest sense, was an elaborate recreation by the Nether Lord based on a blueprint after the Third Long Night.

All that remained were the embers of a bygone era.

Duncan quietly gazed at Atlantis, which hovered majestically amid the surrounding darkness. He observed the remnants of what once was and the tumultuous shadows that were once the ancestral lands of an entire civilization.

This version of the World Tree, preserved in the memories of the elven kind, was essentially a copy. Yet, she struggled to accept this reality.

Similarly, she failed to recognize the elves, beings resurrected from ashes.

A gentle, radiant glow began to emanate from the remnants of Atlantis.

Particles of light, reminiscent of fireflies, emerged from the colossal trees remains, forming a radiant river amid the surrounding chaos. This glowing river wound around Atlantis, evoking memories of times when mighty rivers nourished the World Tree in the dense woods of the elves territories.

Each speck of light within this river symbolized a dormant consciousness.

Nourished by this radiant river, Atlantis, or what remained of her, began to rejuvenate. Even in her decayed state, branches of the World Tree eerily sprouted, unfolding ghostly, intricate leaves. The scene resembled the undead rising, striving to re-enter the realm of the living.

Ted Lirs last effort had been futile.

Reaching out his hand, Duncan guided the Vanished through the vast darkness, steering it towards the haunting Tree of Deatha tree burned to its very essence, yet persisting in its growth and expansion.