Above The Sky

Chapter 2191: Chapter 2nd to Last: Do You Really Love Life That Much, Star God? (3)

At the rupture, the endless, accumulated brilliance of multiple supernova eruptions over a thousand years was also torn apart and released, with resplendent light like a surging golden river torrent rushing toward the cradle’s core and Terra.

A deep shadow followed closely behind, like a hidden and uncertain black magical beast in the golden river.

But all this brilliance was blocked by Ian.

He raised the ’Little Black Hole’ in his hand, and with Aether triggering gravity effects, all the ’Calamity of Light’ was drawn in and absorbed.

The sound of a bell rang.

The light from the supernova eruption rushed and struck the black hole’s fiery layer, plunging into the event horizon, forming irretrievable ripples that, in the ears of Aether creatures, sounded like a large bell suddenly struck, suspended in infinite emptiness, echoing through mountains and waters, crossing the firmament and nether, permeating age and time, causing all existence to tremble and the heavens and earth to open.

In the black hole, the forcibly sealed Fragment of Demise tried to extend its ’branches,’ for in the universe’s far future, it was at that [Unifying Great Star] and The End, constantly listening to this bell announcing destruction, as all matter sank into the final black hole’s singularity, and the Aether’s vibrations portended it.

It shouldn’t have the power to surpass Ian’s seal, but from not far away, the call of the [Main Body], Cradle’s Demise was continuously approaching, with immense gravity capable of distorting causality and all seals, guiding the fragments out of the black hole.

This must not be allowed.

Because Ian’s true purpose was to use this [Fragment of Demise] to guide [Cradle’s Demise] away from Terra Cradle!

Sixteen hundred years ago, the Heavenly Father brought the Spark of the stars and Fragment of Demise to Terra Cradle, and at that time, the ’Aether Silence’ affected the entire universe. The Heavenly Father should have controlled the seal but was also wounded by the very demise it was supposed to seal, finally forcing a self-partition and suppressing the opponent in the seal, until later joining forces with the Ancestral True Dragon to subdue it in the black hole.

Yet, the seal would eventually break.

The Fragment of Demise would ultimately break free... and then Terra Cradle would meet its end.

That was the reason for the appearance of [Cradle’s Demise].

It inverted causality, first having the fragments, then the main body—the ’cradle doomed to destruction fact’ induced by the Fragment of Demise created the Cradle’s Demise.

Solving the fragments is simple, but the main body outside is hard to defeat, or rather, it’s impossible to win, only delaying time to ensure it might never arrive.

Thus, for Ian, there is only one method to stop Cradle’s Demise from destroying Terra Cradle.

That is to make the demise switch targets.

To switch onto himself.

Shining with Aether, guiding the gaze of demise is only the first step; to achieve his goal, he must leave the cradle, bring the Fragment of Demise along, and direct Cradle’s Demise away from Terra Cradle.

Without the Fragment of Demise, Ian could never make the demise notice him, but conversely, to redirect Cradle’s Demise’s focus, another bait must be provided.

Namely, a [Microcosm].

The cradle itself is a microcosm, drawing demise to it. Without another microcosm as a target, how would it shift focus?

Thus... Ian must create.

To create a microcosm.

To create a [Cradle within the Cradle].

This is not difficult.

After absorbing all the light of the Calamity of Light into the black hole, Ian’s hand was rapidly forming the ’Cradle Barrier’ around the black hole seal. The larger external one needs walls to block, but this small one in his hand requires merely a barrier of less than a few square meters to envelop.

Rather than wrapping Terra to wander Terra, why not envelop the seal to wander demise?

Having prepared all this, Ian set off at full speed.

But then, an unexpected event occurred.

Cradle’s Demise showed no concern towards him.

The shadow raced quickly toward the cradle’s core.

"This... shouldn’t be?"

In that instant, even Ian was caught off guard—having absorbed all Aether from Terra, with the Fragment of Demise’s seal, and having created a ’little cradle,’ along with Heavenly Father, released the most dazzling Aether torrent that should attract demise.

The demise followed his Aether into the cradle, but why wasn’t it drawn to him, the most dazzling source?

[Actually, this is a good thing]

The starlight surrounding Ian, the Heavenly Father’s fragment spoke: [This indicates the civilization within Terra Cradle will prosper immensely in the future, with one brilliant life after another... While these splendors may not outshine you, to the demise, at least to demise within our universe, radiance is meaningless, they care more about... perhaps quantity]

[The more prosperous the civilization, the sooner it will be destroyed by demise]

The Heavenly Father’s fragment, entangled with the Fragment of Demise for too long, ought to perish but was saved by Ian, and perhaps understood demise better than any Star God: [While our ’little cradle’ does indeed contain the Fragment of Demise, its ’complexity’ is too low]

[How many sparks of civilization, how many years of memories do you hold? Infuse them quickly into the little cradle, perhaps then demise will turn to regard us!]

The immense shadow crossed the light, heading toward distant planets.

Listening to Heavenly Father’s teachings, Ian’s previously tumultuous heart instead found peace.

"I see."

He seemed suddenly enlightened, somewhat relieved, and laughed: "Though I never foresaw such a future, I have made all preparations. Sparks, complexity, and years... I already possess them."

"Through my countless reincarnations, every different self, each ’Ian’... is the culmination of a brilliant civilization, the process of reincarnation and exploration again and again!"

Taking a deep breath, Ian slowly raised his right hand.

In that right hand, a ’little cradle’ wrapped in the black cradle barrier began to slowly gather layer upon layer of light, dazzling and illuminating the surrounding darkness.

This light is memory, reincarnation, everything from the past. From beginning to end, from the inception of reincarnation to its conclusion, one ring after another, with radiant phantasms, illusory shadows emerged behind Ian.

Fae, Dragons, Angel Envoys, Knights, Swarm, Overlords, Emperors, Revolutionaries, Saints, Popes, Artists, Ballad Poets, Consuls, Alliance Chairmen, Elves, Great Khans—one figure after another appeared, one phantasm after another flickered, then merged into the little cradle.

Even the demise, at this moment, slightly slowed its pace; though it continued toward Terra, it turned its head to ’look’ at Ian.

This ’look’ carried the extremity of destruction, immense enough to cast anything beyond space-time, drag it to the spacetime’s end at the ’Unifying Great Star,’ with gravity poised to engulf Ian into its conclusion.

In times past, others who faced demise on their path vanished this instant, sent elsewhere in spacetime, severed from any causal ties, directly delivered into the ’Unifying Great Star,’ rendering even the strongest forces meaningless.

But now the young man stood firm in place, unmoving.

Because at this moment, Ian is both a ring and infinite; he stands tall as a tower, or as a tombstone, with the end of each reincarnation, those splendid or dark, joyous or bloody ages flowing like rivers, encircling him.

[Now is the time—]

And this moment, being both the beginning and the end, ’Ian’ raised the stars, shouting his name, gathering all remnants and failures from the past: [Endless Eian!]

[Rise!]