Chapter 719: Eternal Sleep in the Dust

"You cannot kill me," the Boundless Lord said in a deep voice.

"Why not?"

"If you kill me, the protective domain over the Boundless Realm will shrink by half. Although I sacrificed the residents of two districts, there are still at least 1.5 million active people in the outer city... If this clone of mine dies, those 1.5 million people will also perish because of you."

Su Zhiwei sneered, "So you know you can't escape, and now you want to restrain me with morality?"

"I am merely stating facts," the Boundless Lord said hoarsely. "I did initiate a realm war, but from the beginning of this war until now, we've only killed two million people in total... If you kill me now, 1.5 million people in the Boundless Realm will also die. If that's the case, what's the difference between you and me? The only difference is that my killings are tangible, while yours are invisible."

Su Zhiwei's gaze grew cold. She raised a light-thorn in her hand and thrust it fiercely into the Boundless Lord's chest! Invisible ripples spread out. Instantly, a fist-sized black hole ripped open in the Boundless Lord's chest, but there was no heart there. The Boundless Lord had long transcended the realm of carbon-based life, rendering all fatal attacks ineffective against him.

The Boundless Lord watched this scene expressionlessly. Just as he was about to speak, a final light-thorn pierced directly into his mouth, impaling his head!

Bang!

Su Zhiwei clutched the light-thorn in one hand, her white training uniform swirling in the grey world, her eyes as cold as frost.

All seven light-thorns had been plunged into the Boundless Lord's body, like a hedgehog nailed to the ruins. Each thorn emitted a dazzling glow, as if containing terrifying power.

"I can't let you go, Lou Yu." Su Zhiwei's eyes seemed to penetrate the Boundless Lord's thoughts. "You are no longer the obstinate Dr. Lou, who was once solely devoted to academics. And I am no longer the naive Su Zhiwei who knew nothing back then. We, the exploration team, are a thing of the past. Now we are the Nine Lords; we bear too much... I cannot let you return alive."

As her voice fell, the seven light-thorns impaling the Boundless Lord's body gradually grew scorching hot. Invisible ripples emanated from them, slowly dissolving the Boundless Lord's body into nothingness! Like seven burning rods inserted into a snowman, the Boundless Lord's indestructible body visibly vanished under the influence of the "String." In a mere few seconds, the Boundless Lord transformed into a pool of silvery liquid, with only half of his head not yet completely melted.

The Boundless Lord stared at Su Zhiwei in terror, but with the light-thorn in his mouth, he couldn't speak, only express his rage through his gaze... Ultimately, even his eyes were melted by the ripples of the light-thorn.

When only the three Philosopher's Stones in the Boundless Lord's forehead remained, Su Zhiwei finally pulled out the light-thorns, waved her hand to dismiss them, then bent down to pick up the three Philosopher's Stones embedded in the last piece of silvery flesh, her gaze incredibly serious. The Boundless Lord's body had been annihilated by her, with only his soul remaining, dependent on these three Philosopher's Stones...

Su Zhiwei did not destroy the three Philosopher's Stones, because if she did, the Boundless Realm would indeed shrink by nearly half, and a million people would die as a result... The Ruoshui Realm and Aurora Realm had already been completely destroyed, and with the nearly annihilated Mortal Realm, three of humanity's nine realms had been ruined. Humanity could no longer endure a heavier blow.

"Sleep eternally in the dust," Su Zhiwei said faintly.

As her words fell, the three Philosopher's Stones in Su Zhiwei's hand rapidly collapsed, tearing through several dimensions in the blink of an eye... From stones the size of a thumbnail, they became sand-like dust, then shrank to a molecular level invisible to the naked eye, finally collapsing into an existence even more minuscule than an electron. They were sealed within dimensional rifts. In this world, no one but Su Zhiwei could retrieve them... This part of the Boundless Lord's soul would sleep eternally in the microscopic world.

This dimension-ripping seal was not easy for Su Zhiwei; her face was visibly pale, and her eyes were full of exhaustion. But to eliminate the Boundless Lord while preserving humanity's hope as much as possible, she had no other choice.

"Is it over...?"

The Mortal Lord stood alone in the grey world, lost in silence.

Su Zhiwei didn't know if the two world-destroying calamities that had entered the wind tunnel would return. If they did, it would be devastating news for her; in her current state, she would certainly be no match for a world-destroyer... But she estimated that they probably wouldn't return.

So what next...?

Su Zhiwei's lips were slightly pursed. She gazed at the Mortal Realm flower fluttering in her hand, took a step, and her figure vanished into it.

Creak—

The heavy door of the Startling Swan Pavilion was pushed open by Kong Baosheng. The young man looked at the silent opera house before him, feeling as if a lifetime had passed. He had hovered at the brink of death several times, narrowly escaping each time, and he never imagined he would ultimately survive... And the Startling Swan Pavilion still stood amidst the ruins of the Mortal Realm. Its fate seemed long intertwined with the young man's, waiting for the moment this door would be pushed open again.

"It's all over... Grandma, everything is over."

Kong Baosheng inhaled the scent of old wood lingering in the air, and the heart that had been constantly tense finally completely relaxed.

Li Qingshan followed behind him, slowly stepping into the opera house, his gaze sweeping around, his expression somewhat complex...

"Mr. Li, do you think... Mr. Lin will come back?"

"I don't know... Perhaps, perhaps not." Li Qingshan was silent for a moment. "Brother Lin is no ordinary person. What he faces are endless dangers and challenges... Whether it's the Mortal Realm or the Startling Swan Pavilion, perhaps they are just brief resting places on his path forward."

"What about you, Mr. Li? Will you stay?"

"I... won't either." Li Qingshan took a deep breath. "Grandma is still in Willow Town, and I've been traveling for half a year. I think, no matter what, I should go back and accompany her in her old age first... Once I have no more attachments in this world, perhaps I will travel through various realms like Brother Lin, gather the strengths of many schools, and strive to advance further in the art of opera."

Kong Baosheng's lips were slightly pursed. After a long silence, he nodded heavily: "Alright! Anyway, I'm not leaving. I'll stay here and make the Startling Swan Pavilion flourish... I'll wait for you to come back."

Li Qingshan looked deeply at the young man's back in the opera house, said no more, and only hummed softly.

Outside the opera house, numerous members of the Twilight Society stood on the street, watching the refugees gradually emerging from the underground shelters in the distance, led by police officers, their expressions varied.

"A realm war has emptied the foundations of two realms," Plum Blossom said slowly. "Leaving aside the Boundless Realm for now, the Mortal Realm probably has no more than 300,000 survivors this time... To recover, it will likely take a tremendous amount of time."

Bai Ye's hat brim lifted slightly. He surveyed the scarred realm and said calmly: "But humanity may not have that much time..."