Chapter 1354: Civilization Embers

Chapter 1355: Embers of Civilization

Even so, the collapsing area showed no signs of diminishing; instead, it expanded outward with increasing ferocity!

Chen Ling turned to look at Wu Yi, who was also struggling in the void behind him. They were only about a hundred meters apart, yet to Chen Ling, Wu Yi's movements visibly slowed down. Each of its centipede legs seemed to sway as slowly as paddles rowing a boat...

Chen Ling knew this wasn't Wu Yi slowing down on its own accord; rather, their flow of time was different.

How could the flow of time differ so drastically with only a hundred meters between them?

What in the world was this place?!

With Chen Ling's Destroyer-level body, escaping the collapse shouldn't be an issue. However, Wu Yi was in a more precarious situation. Its massive size meant that if the collapse continued to expand, it might eventually be swallowed.

Just then, a loud snap, as if crossing distorted space-time, suddenly echoed in the dead silence!

*Snap—!!*

The ash-like snow swirling everywhere suddenly froze in place!

The terrifying gravitational pull continued to spread from the direction of the collapse, dragging light and shadow with it. At the end of the gradually dimming sky, two enormous gray wings slowly unfurled...

It was a figure with wings on its back.

The moment Chen Ling saw the figure, his heart trembled slightly!

The figure glanced towards them, lightly flapped its wings, and then vanished into thin air. Everything happened so quickly that its presence seemed like an illusion... but Chen Ling knew perfectly well it was no illusion.

Because now, a blurry, colossal six-winged black shadow already obscured his vision.

"Are you... the Sixth Generation?"

A man's voice calmly resonated.

Immediately after, Chen Ling felt a hand grab his wrist, dragging him directly out of the collapsing gravitational field!

After being pulled several kilometers across, Chen Ling, who had been stuck as if in quicksand, was directly dragged to a "grounded" area where the terrifying gravity became negligible. The black-robed figure stabilized itself in mid-air, then descended to the ground, kicking up a large cloud of dust and sand...

Chen Ling looked up but no longer saw the six-winged figure. Instead, a colossal centipede shadow, as if thrown from the gravitational zone by something, flew precisely towards them!

*Boom—!!*

Wu Yi, having narrowly escaped disaster, twisted its body in the air. After stumbling and knocking down a building, it finally came to a halt.

It vigorously shook its head amidst the dust, its eyes still holding remnants of fear...

"My Lord, what was that just now?!"

Wu Yi couldn't help but hiss.

"...How should I know?" the black-robed Chen Ling retorted irritably.

The black-robed Chen Ling did not revert from his current state. His crimson eyes warily tracked the direction of the collapse, as if searching for the six-winged figure from moments ago...

If he wasn't mistaken, that six-winged figure was the "Angel of Annihilation" recorded on the Scarlet Heaven Cult's stele.

He truly was here!

But he seemed to have spoken to him just now... Was he truly a "human"?

As Chen Ling pondered, the collapsing area that had previously trapped them suddenly expanded rapidly outward, releasing an extremely unstable aura as if on the verge of exploding. Immediately after, a blinding white light shot into the sky!

*Boom—!!!!*

The white light seemed to contain immense energy, exploding outward with a roar. However, an invisible barrier, adorned with ash-like snowflakes, appeared to encircle the area, firmly containing the explosion. The flickering light was almost blinding.

The explosion lasted for a full half-minute before the light slowly receded. Ash continued to fall from the sky, and the city ruins once again fell into dead silence.

"...Is it over?"

Chen Ling's eyes narrowed slightly.

Amidst the ash falling like snow, a six-winged figure descended, landing at the end of the road. He casually brushed dust from his clothes, and the massive gray wings on his back folded away, eventually vanishing completely.

Only then did Chen Ling get a clear look at his face.

He was a young man in a plain shirt, with sleeves casually rolled up to his elbows. He exuded a subtle, untamed aura, yet his slightly narrowed eyes held a mysterious depth, like an abyss.

The moment he saw the man, an indescribable sense of danger surged through Chen Ling.

It was important to note that only Destroyer-level calamities or human demigods could pose a threat to Chen Ling in his black-robed state. Yet, strangely, Chen Ling could sense neither the aura of a calamity nor any divine path from this man. As for the aura of the Nine Lords, there was even less similarity.

Was he a unique type of Destroyer, or a divine being capable of concealing his aura?

As Chen Ling frowned in thought, the man first glanced at Wu Yi, then scrutinized the darkened Chen Ling for a few moments...

His expression was somewhat subtle:

"You look... more terrifying than I expected."

The black-robed Chen Ling's heart skipped a beat, and he instinctively wanted to curse, but reason barely managed to control the impulse.

Seeing that the young man showed no murderous intent, Chen Ling took a deep breath, calming himself as much as possible. The black receded from his body, and his opera robe returned to its vermillion hue.

"...Thank you for your assistance, senior," the red-robed Chen Ling said politely, swallowing back the retort.

"You've come too early."

"What?"

"In the past, they only arrived here after becoming demigods... You've come too early, and your strength isn't sufficient yet." The man glanced at Wu Yi. "If I hadn't intervened, both you and your subordinate would have died in the 'Civilization Collapse'."

"They?"

Chen Ling keenly picked up on something. "Who are 'they'?"

The man looked at Chen Ling with a hint of surprise, as if surprised he didn't even know this. He waved a hand casually and said, "This is something between you all. It's not convenient for me to disclose... Someone will tell you later."

Chen Ling's confusion deepened, but he wisely didn't press the matter, instead changing the question:

"Senior, what is this place?"

"This place originally had no name. It's merely a chaotic land forgotten at the end of the world, the last legacy of a tragic world pierced by the Scarlet Star... I call it 'Embers of Civilization'."

"Embers of Civilization?" Chen Ling murmured the name.

The man looked at Chen Ling for a moment, then suddenly remembered something:

"What's your name?"

"Chen Ling."

"Which 'Ling'? The 'Ling' from 'lonely and helpless'?"

Chen Ling paused, seemingly surprised that the man guessed his name so quickly, as the character was quite rare in names.

"Yes."

"Chen Ling... Oh... I see..."

A peculiar emotion flashed in the man's eyes as he looked at Chen Ling.

"Senior, what did you mean earlier by 'a tragic world pierced by the Scarlet Star'?"