Chapter 709: Master's Archive

A low thrum—

As the violent winds within Calamity Suppressor were suppressed to their limit, blue light shimmered inside it, and the second dragon's breath was already poised to strike!

Its eyes, like swirling wind tunnels, were firmly locked onto the figure leaping rapidly through the ruins.

No matter how fast Chen Ling moved with the help of the Shadow Toad, Calamity Suppressor's dragon's breath could always aim directly at him. A profound sense of dread, stemming from the depths of his soul, surged wildly within Chen Ling!

No!There's no escaping it!

This thought flashed through Chen Ling's mind. He watched, wide-eyed, as the giant dragon hovered in the air, like Death's scythe raised high, ready to cleave through his very being at any moment!

At the same time, a sensation of tearing emerged from Chen Ling's mind.

The scene before his eyes flickered, and in a daze, he felt as if he had returned to the theater.

Chen Ling opened his eyes. Pale spotlights pierced him like swords, so intense he couldn't even keep his eyes open. He could only squint through narrow slits, barely making out his surroundings...

Thump—Thump—!!Thump—thump—thump—!!

Dull, violent stomping sounds reverberated throughout the theater.

The crimson eyes in the audience grew denser and more menacing. Their feet stamped forcefully on the ground, as if venting their rage and murderous intent. The overlapping sounds were like deafening waves, engulfing Chen Ling on the stage!

Chen Ling could clearly feel the 'audience's' emotions; they were too strong and extreme. If not for the existence of the fourth wall, Chen Ling would likely have been knocked unconscious on the spot... But fortunately, for now, he could still barely stand his ground on stage through sheer willpower.

Even so, whether it was an illusion or not, lines of blood-red words materialized on the ground beneath the stage!

Kill it...

"Damn it... Of course I know you want to kill it! I want to kill it too! It wants to kill me!" Chen Ling, his eyes bloodshot from the torment of the deafening noise, gritted his teeth and spoke, "But how am I supposed to kill it?! It's the Apocalypse!! Am I supposed to ram my head into it to kill it?!"

Kill it, kill it, kill it...

"Shut up!!!"

Chen Ling's roar echoed through the theater, but it did nothing to quell the audience's emotions. Amidst the booming stomps, his premonition of death grew stronger and stronger!

Above the dust-swirling sky, the dragon's mouth slowly opened, and surging dragon's breath welled up from its throat, seemingly ready to erupt at any moment!

Just then, a sigh sounded beside Chen Ling's ear.

In that instant, Calamity Suppressor's dragon's breath abruptly halted, the dust swirling in the sky froze in place, and even the souls gradually ascending to the clouds and the raging fires of war in the ruins seemed to have been pressed on a pause button...

The world, at this moment, froze.

Chen Ling was stunned.

Before he could fully comprehend what was happening, the distant sky folded in on itself like a sheet of paper.

Followed by the ground of the Mortal Realm, and the clashing Witchcraft Association and the Calamities – all of them paused at the exact moment the sigh echoed, then were folded away like a pop-up children's book...

Even Calamity Suppressor, mid-dragon's breath, was folded by space and vanished from Chen Ling's sight.

This scene was utterly bizarre, so much so that Chen Ling even wondered if he was losing his mind. But he soon realized that things weren't that simple...

Because, this scene felt strangely familiar to him.

The first time Chen Ling entered the Ancient Theater Trove, his Senior Brother Ning Ruyu had invited him to eat his first meal within the French film *The Chef*. Subsequently, every time he learned the 'Strike' secret art with his Senior Brother, he would enter a film world.

The scene before his eyes was identical to when his Senior Brother had 'recalled' a movie disc.

Everything before Chen Ling's eyes was being rapidly folded away. The battlefield, once filled with smoke and blood, receded like a tide... replaced by a familiar starry sky.

Whoosh—A gentle breeze brushed against Chen Ling's face, rustling the grass beneath his feet;

Chen Ling snapped back to reality, realizing he was now sitting entirely on a grassy plain. Before him lay tranquil snow-capped mountains bathed in night, and above, a sea of glittering stars...

He was back in the Ancient Theater Trove.

From the life-or-death battlefield of the Mortal Realm to the serene and beautiful Ancient Theater Trove, this sudden transition made Chen Ling feel as if he were dreaming...

But he didn't know which one was the dream.

Did he dream of the Ancient Theater Trove again before dying, or was... everything in the Mortal Realm just a grand dream he had within the Ancient Theater Trove?

Had he never left the Ancient Theater Trove at all?

Chen Ling's head throbbed.

A figure gently moved across the wind-swept grassland and stopped before him.

Chen Ling saw the familiar hem of a robe and instinctively looked up, finding a young man in theatrical robes standing before him, holding an unlabeled disc, watching him silently.

"...Master?"

Chen Ling murmured, then finally registered it and exclaimed, "Master?!"

"It's been hard, hasn't it?"

Master smiled, lightly sweeping aside a corner of his theatrical robe before sitting down beside Chen Ling. "If you're tired, you can rest here for a while."

"Master... How are you here? No, how am *I* here? Wasn't I in the Mortal Realm?"

Faced with Chen Ling's string of questions, Master simply smiled faintly and spoke unhurriedly:

"I, your Master, have saved your game."

"...A save point?"

"Realm calamities, demigod wars, apocalyptic invasions... This play is getting more and more exciting," Master said, turning to Chen Ling with a smile. "However, I saw you were too tense, so I temporarily paused this play as a save point, to let you catch your breath."

Chen Ling's gaze fell on the disc in Master's hand, his eyes filled with disbelief!

"Master, did you put Lord Wuji, Lord Hongchen, and Calamity Suppressor... all into this disc??"

"Hahaha, it's not as exaggerated as you think. That dragon and Su Zhiwei are a bit troublesome... I don't need to 'collect' them; I just need to pull you out of this play. When needed, I can put you back in."

Chen Ling: ...

Master, with the calmest tone, completely overturned Chen Ling's understanding... He didn't comprehend how Master did it, but he was certain that based solely on this divine skill Master had displayed, he was definitely no weaker than Calamity Suppressor or Lord Hongchen!

Ever since Calamity Suppressor was 'collected' by Master into the disc, Chen Ling's mind instantly cleared. The audience no longer made any sounds, as if they had vanished.

He took a deep breath, slowly exhaling... The string that had been constantly taut within him finally relaxed a little.

"Are you tired?"

"...Yes, I'm tired."

"It's good that you're tired," Master shrugged. "The protagonist of a story always has to go through hardships... isn't that right?"