"Why does none of you ever listen to reason?"
Loraine Locke's voice carried a sense of desolation. The Wraithlord shook his head.
"From the moment those three defied me, they ceased to be my family, Loraine."
"And what about your mother?"
Loraine asked quietly. The madness on the Wraithlord's face abruptly vanished; his expression darkened as he shook his head.
"Mother is different. She created us. We shouldn't resent her. If anyone deserves our hatred, it's those damned gods. They made this world, then abandoned it, and in the end, even forced Mother to hurt me. This world the gods created—that's the true source of my anger."
Loraine turned to the Wraithlord and shook her head.
"Let go of your anger. That's what we need to do now. It's been so many years—leave it all behind and come with me. If you want to know everything, I've found it: the path the gods took when they left. Come with me, and we'll take everything of theirs out of this world. We can leave with Mother. We're not human; everything we've gained is the same as the gods—except we have emotions. Come with me."
Once again, Loraine reached out to the Wraithlord. But he stepped forward slowly and shook his head.
"I'm sorry, Loraine. If you're here to persuade me to give up, I can't do it. Just stay quiet and watch. But if you try to stop me..."
The Wraithlord clenched his fist and turned to glare at Loraine.
"I will kill you. Gods or anything else may not be able to, but I can—because I am the world!"
The Wraithlord's voice was cold and final. I couldn't take much more; the power inside me was draining fast. I tried to move, but couldn't even lift a finger.
At that moment, for some reason, I couldn't feel Tan Tian's power anymore. My left arm was completely devoid of his strength.
"Hold on. Rachel Lan might still bring hope."
Suddenly, Tan Tian's voice rang out in my head. I stared in shock, eyes wide.
"I've left everything to Ethan Zhang. The rest is up to you all!"
The voice in my mind gradually faded. I struggled to turn my head and glanced at Howard Zhang to the side. He was still smiling, his body radiating golden light.
"It's okay. We'll find a way."
Howard Zhang spoke, and I looked up at the sky again. Disappointment clouded Loraine's face. The Wraithlord drew close to her and wrapped her in his arms.
"Can you just stay quietly and watch from the side? Now, you're the only family I have left."
"The children..."
Loraine was about to speak, but saw the Wraithlord had already left. Holding back her grief, she slowly moved to the distant sky and watched in silence.
"It's almost time to put an end to everything..."
Before the Wraithlord could finish, a series of white beams suddenly pierced his body. Instantly, the golden Taiji above Nine Dragon Square turned black and white, spreading outward. Furious, the Wraithlord spun around. Howard Zhang and I could finally move.
With a whoosh, Howard Zhang and I got to our feet and flew toward the Wraithlord. My golden wings grew massive. Howard struck the Wraithlord's shoulder with his monk's staff. The Wraithlord's eyes widened. I raised my Phoenix Blade, roaring in fury, and slashed down.
With a thunderous crash, the Phoenix Blade's flames severed one of the Wraithlord's arms, sending it flying. Before he could retreat, the Brahma Chains bound him. Howard pressed his palms together, discarded half his staff, and began chanting.
A buzzing filled the air. I stepped aside as power surged into my body. The Four Saints atop the four pillars began to grow larger, swelling in the air. The ghostly aura thinned. I gripped the Phoenix Blade, blue lightning snaking around me. The flames, whipped by wild winds, burned ever fiercer. The Wraithlord clutched his chest, pain etched on his face. His ghostly aura was breached; now it was time to tear apart his body—relentless attacks until his ghost form was completely destroyed.
Everyone seemed to realize this was the final blow. As the white beams faded from the Wraithlord's body, a fierce white light erupted from Nine Dragon Square. The light shrank, and I saw shards of crystal-clear stone shooting toward us.
With a sharp sound, just as the shard was about to pierce the Wraithlord, he suddenly froze, as if petrified. Howard Zhang and I realized it instantly, but in that moment, his body began to crack. A black, burning figure caught the shard—crack! It exploded, and Howard Zhang and I were swept away. The Wraithlord's fists landed on us, sending us flying.
The power I'd just gathered frantically resisted the Wraithlord's strength, barely keeping me from being shattered by a single blow. My consciousness felt like it was collapsing; my body, about to fall apart.
The Wraithlord's cracked body healed again. I saw Nine Dragon Square begin to crumble, golden light flickering. Eight beams shot toward us. Steadying myself, I reignited golden flames and charged at the Wraithlord with my Phoenix Blade.
Howard Zhang did the same. No one wanted to give the Wraithlord a chance; everyone rushed him at once.
With the Four Sacred Beasts roaring, they flew from the pillars. Red, blue, brown, and green currents pierced the Wraithlord's body. He stared at us in shock.
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"If that's all you've got, you're far too weak."
The Wraithlord raised a hand. Before my Phoenix Blade could strike, it vanished. As he turned, the Eight Daoist Sons changed midair, forming seals, but suddenly froze, motionless.
"Howard Zhang!"
I shouted. The Wraithlord's other hand plunged into Howard Zhang's chest. Howard screamed in agony. With a crack, the Wraithlord pulled a handful of golden sand from his body. A fierce black aura burst from within, and Howard instantly lost consciousness, slowly falling toward the ground.
"All the power of the dead, condensed together—even if it holds the strength of Buddha, it's nothing but an illusion. Even if Buddha himself descended, the outcome would be the same."
With a thunderous crash, the Eight Daoist Sons were struck, each coughing blood and plummeting in all directions. The Wraithlord shook his head, seized my Phoenix Blade, and with a crack, shattered it. My wings fell apart. Our strongest attack barely scratched him—his wounds healed instantly.
"It's over. Everything is."
I hit the ground, completely drained. The pillars began to crack. Suddenly, the Wraithlord raised his fist and swung at the surroundings—pillars turned to dust, and the ground shook violently.
"Enough."
At that moment, Loraine shouted, but the Wraithlord flew toward the newly revealed Yellow Springs figures. I forced myself up, running and shouting desperately.
But before me, there was only darkness—nothing left. A vast, black wasteland where my parents had just stood. I stared blankly. Howard Zhang lay lifeless behind me. I rushed over, knelt down, and tears slipped out again.
It was just as Howard Zhang said: tears dried, nothing changed. I looked at Samuel Young lying peacefully in the mud. He smiled at me, then closed his eyes.
"The ending is the same as you knew—now you know the process too."
I pressed my hands to Howard Zhang's cold body. Nearby, charred Buddha idols lay scattered, crumbling into dust. I shook my head—Howard Zhang was gone.
"What else do you want to do?"
I stared at the Wraithlord. He hunched, facing west, fist raised.
"Of course, I'm bringing the things from Hell over. After all, it's too much trouble to go through other paths to the Underworld."
My eyes widened as I screamed in despair. With a deafening crash, the space before me split open—an endless rift. White sand and shattered stones appeared. I saw the broken sign for Ghost Gate. I couldn't believe it: the Ten Yama Kings lay on the ground, while Emperor, Xiao Yan, and Phantom stood. Another person, Earth Soul, lay gasping, unable to move. Yi Xuehan lay nearby.
"Rachel Lan, both sides ended the same. It looks like you failed too. It's all over."
Earth Soul burst out laughing. I watched the Wraithlord as he slowly walked toward Emperor and the others.
"Your only miscalculation was that I possess instinct. You didn't expect that. Go back to the shadow world—you can keep ruling there. If not, I'll destroy you."