Chapter 262: Dream of the End

Countless withered branches rushed through the air the moment the girl finished speaking, but before they could touch her, they suddenly froze in place, then crumbled and vanished, leaving no trace behind.

In the divine realm, the gods are the absolute rulers.

Miss Xiao Kong, although she represented the Nine-Tails and had a more emotional side, wasn’t just a spoiled brat. She transformed back into her true form to unleash her full power, staring down at the decaying wood imprisoned within the spatial divine realm, seemingly devoid of reason.

[Be careful, this monster is the Shadow of the End that has newly arrived in this world due to causal entanglements after you and I have regained our divine status. Fortunately, you precociously eliminated the destructive force that had been accumulating in the Mirror Valley for a thousand years, preventing it from merging into a true aberrant existence. However, it’s still difficult for me to completely kill it with just my power.]

[I’ve tried many methods, but its concept seems rooted deep in the Ancient Spirit Realm, making it impossible to erase, banish, or even seal, as it appears to be a creation specifically designed to counter the power of Space.]

“Is it specifically targeting your power…?”

It seems to have learned from the battle between the God Fox and the Taotie a thousand years ago.

Yet, the current environment is somewhat different from the demon chaos of a millennium past.

Although the memories left by the Spiritual Fox Priestess do not include that critical process, through many indirect inferences, Miss Vilyric can guess some clues.

The unspeakable entity representing the End clashed with the gods, leading to divine disasters and the downfall of many deities, resulting in a rapid decline of the Land of Origin from its peak, triggering chaos and a series of inexplicable changes…

But the gods didn’t merely sacrifice themselves; the countless sacrifices made by Ming Xi and Void Trace cannot be without meaning. From the current situation, even if that unspeakable entity wasn’t eliminated, it must have suffered serious injuries, been sealed, or fallen into slumber again. Thus, what has re-emerged in the Ancient Spirit Realm is likely just its residual influence, similar to projections of concepts from some dream state.

In other words, what continues to wreak havoc in the world now isn’t the entity itself, but some more rigid concepts and rules, akin to the distinction between a true player and an AI that can only follow the system— the latter is naturally much easier to handle.

This is exactly the situation that Ming Xi anticipated before leaving, a necessary condition to liberate the Ancient Spirit Realm from the shadow of the End.

“The undying decaying wood… it really resembles an upgraded version of the Pharmacist.”

Miss Vilyric raised her hand, and a statement-like staff, pure as jade, appeared in her palm.

Having fully inherited the powers of the Spiritual Fox Priestess, she can now utilize the powers represented by both Light and Rebirth simultaneously, and her overall attributes have miraculously improved compared to her earlier self. The limitations imposed by certain game mechanics have also been significantly reduced.

The medium known as the Mask of the God Fox now only serves for her to switch between the forms of Xī and Vilyric.

Though her level remains capped at 110, Miss Priestess is confident that she is much stronger in terms of raw power than before.

Not to mention… there’s strong support nearby.

“Xiao Kong, don’t let it move!”

[Understood!]

Although it had been a millennium since they last fought side by side, the two quickly regained their former synergy. With a short command from Miss Vilyric, the Nine-Tailed God Fox instantly understood her intent and activated her powers!

Before the decaying wood could react, the surrounding space collapsed in large fragments, and the black void surged within the divine realm, producing a terrifying pulling force a million times stronger than those dark stars at the Open Heaven Gate site, trying to tear its target apart and expel it from this world.

However, strangely, even though it had fallen into a fissure created by the God of Space, the towering decayed wood seemed to extend countless roots, anchoring itself firmly to the ground, and even the true power of the laws couldn’t budge it.

Seeing this scene, Miss Vilyric was both surprised and somewhat prepared.

Truly worthy of being an existence that could stymie even a level 100 deity; although it might not possess the omnipotent power of a real god, it resembles the terrifying physique and sheer brute strength of the Taotie which could challenge the Avatar of Light directly. This creation, born to destroy worlds, reached a level of existence that defies normal judgment in certain unique concepts.

A concept close to “absolute.”

However, Miss Vilyric never anticipated that Miss Xiao Kong could just take it down easily; her reason for letting the Miss God take the first strike had a very simple purpose.

[Transfer]

“Dingling ~”

The crisp sound of silver bells echoed in the divine realm as the silver-blue eyes behind the White Fox Girl’s mask suddenly took on shades of black and white, becoming eerily deep and desolate, like sinking into the Underworld.

One blood-red flower after another sprouted parasitically on the decayed wood’s ruined form, spreading like a shroud, as if to entomb it in a coffin woven from the Flower of the Other Shore, sending it back to the netherworld.

Although the decayed wood couldn’t communicate, it was evidently not truly ignorant. Realizing the situation was dire, it immediately attempted to shake its body, trying to dislodge the densely spreading flowers, but at that moment, the degree of spatial collapse intensified further. While it still couldn’t be expelled, that absolute confinement indeed immobilized the undying entity, forcing it to watch helplessly as it was gradually engulfed.

This is the true power of the gods; while it can’t break through the decayed wood’s concept of “undying,” as long as the divine realm exists—even if the divine realm isn’t there—the gap between the two is painfully obvious, only unable to establish a long-lasting and effective seal.

After all, under normal circumstances, the Taotie that Miss Vilyric killed in the past should have been part of the decayed wood, and that was the enemy the God Fox originally aimed to confront.

The depths of the eyes of the White Fox Priestess darkened even more; the moment the Flower of the Other Shore completely covered the hundred-zhang tall decayed wood, the two seemed to connect through some tangible yet intangible “thread.”

[Did it succeed?]

Seeing the grotesque mass wrapped in blood-red flowers suddenly stop struggling, Miss Xiao Kong cautiously leaned closer, observing the rapidly flickering light in her witch’s eyes.

Having been friends with Ming Xi for tens of thousands of years, she understood each of the latter’s capabilities very well, instantly realizing Vilyric’s intentions.

“Hmm, I can already sense that distorted and bizarre essence; the bargaining chip is also prepared in advance. Just leave the rest to me.”

[Be careful, after all, that’s the Shadow of the End. Even if it’s just a power reliant on the mundane, it shouldn’t be underestimated. Don’t overdo it…!]

Gently stroking the soft fur on Miss Fox’s head, Vilyric chuckled wryly.

“You’re a supreme god, can’t you speak with a bit of conviction? Were you just pretending to be calculating in the temple before ~?”

The god shot her an annoyed glare but ultimately didn’t shake off Miss Vilyric’s hand.

[Isn’t it because I’m worried about you? No gratitude at all.]

The White Fox Girl smiled and rubbed her hand through Miss Fox’s fur again for comfort.

“Though I want to say I haven’t been afraid of anyone in terms of soul-level confrontations… don’t worry; I’ve never been arrogant enough to think I’m the strongest being in the world, and I won’t force myself to do anything. If it becomes impossible, I’ll retreat at the first opportunity.”

“Then, I’ll begin.”

Under the watchful eyes of the concerned Nine-Tailed Fox, the girl closed her eyes, sinking her consciousness into the absurd and bizarre dream of the End.

   

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