As the battle escalated, not only was it impossible for me to find a way out of this space, but even dodging those black whirlpools had become extremely difficult.
But how exactly could I destroy this space and get out? I had no clue at all. I tried sensing with Ghost Web, but the walls were incredibly hard.
Even my murderous aura couldn’t break through.
The fight raged on. Tong Ghost was doing everything he could to tangle up Chaos Fiend, buying me time.
With a whoosh, I dodged downward as a black whirlpool crashed toward me. My eyes widened—the wall cracked with a snap where the whirlpool hit, but it instantly healed itself.
"Harder, Tong Ghost! Try to get those black whirlpools to crash into the walls!"
I shouted. Tong Ghost seemed to understand immediately. He started pushing Chaos Fiend’s body toward me, and whenever the whirlpools hit either of them, they bounced off.
Bang, bang—the black whirlpools I dodged slammed into the black walls, instantly spidering them with cracks.
With a roar, Chaos Fiend seemed to realize something and shoved Tong Ghost away. Without hesitation, I seized the moment before the crack vanished and stabbed Belle into it.
"I have to get out..."
I spoke coldly, and in an instant, Tong Ghost shattered into fragments, the power he gained from devouring Chaos Fiend's flesh nearly depleted. With a whoosh, he returned to my body.
"Instinct... Manifestation..."
The Evil Ghost on my back appeared, its intense baleful aura pouring through Belle in my hand, flooding into Chaos Fiend's body. I kept roaring in fury.
Chaos Fiend was already behind me. The wall before my eyes began to crack open, and a shaft of white light broke through.
"Heavenly Soul..."
I roared, my mouth wide open as Chaos Fiend lunged at me again. I stretched out my hand, stood upright, and let the baleful aura flood out from within. I braced myself against Chaos Fiend’s jaws, refusing to be swallowed.
Waves of stench kept sweeping in from behind. I could feel it—the Heavenly Soul was just beyond this wall. A white root reached in, and the crack widened.
Black vortexes slammed against the wall in a frenzy. Suddenly, they stopped, as if controlled, and shot toward me instead.
The wall was now crawling with white roots. A shaft of white light broke through, and a hand reached out. With a roar, I slashed at it with Belle, then quickly pulled back. Chaos Fiend snapped down in fury, my body creaking under the pressure—I could barely hold on.
"Grab my hand."
With the Heavenly Soul's voice, a white hand reached in. I grasped it at once, and white roots coiled around me, yanking me through in an instant.
A vast expanse of white light engulfed me. My whole body was swallowed by it. Looking back at the pitch-black hole behind me, I heard a strange, guttural howl, then the hole slowly shrank away.
I lay on the ground, gasping for breath, staring at the Heavenly Soul. I’d finally escaped that space. Only now did I realize I was leaning against a massive white tree—so vast its base was lost to sight, its branches and leaves thick and lush.
"It took a lot to find you, Ethan Zhang."
"Thank you..."
I struggled to my feet, exhausted. A hand gripped mine and pulled me up.
"There’s little time left. The edges of Exile Town have almost been devoured."
The words jolted me—I stared at the Heavenly Soul.
"You’ve been inside for seven days."
I clenched my fists in frustration and looked down.
"Hurry and take me to the Soul Core of this timeline."
I didn’t really know what the Soul Core was, but right now, it was the only way.
The Heavenly Soul nodded and, with a rush, entered my body. Instantly, my form split—half white, half black. The Heavenly Soul’s consciousness flooded my mind, taking over half my body. I began to float downward, drawn by an unseen force.
The light below grew stronger and stronger. All around, images began to rewind, and scenes flashed backward in my mind at a dizzying speed.
The light became so intense I couldn’t open my eyes. Shielding them with my hand, I plunged into the blinding white radiance.
Dazed, I opened my eyes. Petals drifted down before me—cherry blossoms. I caught one, swallowing hard. At the edge of this exquisitely decorated village, a vast cherry grove was in full bloom. Petals whirled through the air, drifting toward me as I walked forward, step by step.
In the cherry grove, a woman sat atop a large cherry tree.
"Sir, what brings you here?"
A gentle voice floated down. I looked up—it was Sima Ying. Her beautiful face held a tragic grace. She hadn’t changed much from now, only younger.
"Is it safe for her to see this?"
I muttered, and Ghost of Thought emerged from my back, grinning.
"Don’t worry. This is Exile Town’s Soul Core. You just need to claim it. This isn’t a real place."
I murmured in response and slowly walked beneath the cherry tree.
"Miss Sima."
I called out. Sima Ying lifted her head, smiling at the swirling cherry petals.
"Can you tell me, Miss Sima—where is the Soul Core here?"
I asked. Sima Ying turned, gazing at me quietly. With a wave of her hand, strings of cherry petals spun like a path, drifting toward a distant spot.
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"Follow the path. You and I are bound by fate, sir."
I bowed my head in respect, thanked her, and hurried after the path.
Gradually, I stared in astonishment at everything around me. It was as if the world had been flattened in an instant, then transformed into white spheres of light. I chased the drifting petals, witnessing this impossible sight.
Houses, trees—everything protruding from the ground was flattened, leaving only blurry shapes before dissolving into white particles that scattered away.
"My heart is so tired now!"
Suddenly, I heard a voice—Sima Ying’s, tinged with sorrow. In the white glow ahead, a scene appeared.
Under a row of blooming cherry trees, on a sunny day, petals fluttered in the wind. Sima Ying stood there, letting the breeze play with her hair, her gaze fixed always on the little road into the village.
The scene kept shifting. Another rainy day—Sima Ying sat in the tree, still waiting. But the road was empty. Lightning flashed, thunder roared, and she leapt down, dancing in the rain, the drops swirling around her.
It was anger—the rage built up after endless waiting.
"Enough. I won’t wait anymore. Enough."
Unable to find its existence, unable to await its return.
Nowhere in this world does it exist, nowhere to be found... A thousand years of waiting, and all that remains is an unreachable vision.
"It doesn’t matter anymore. I’ll never find it, never wait for it again..."
The scene darkened. Sima Ying’s face was dejected, her expression numb—just like the Sima Ying I’d met before, indifferent to everything, utterly cold.
"You’ll find it."
Suddenly, I shouted, standing before Sima Ying, grabbing her hand.
Her eyes, like dead embers, stared at me.
"Master Ethan, if you hadn’t saved me back then—if you’d let me die—it might have been best. All this is just torment. My heart’s wish will never be seen..."
"No, it’s not like that, Miss Sima. It’s not that you can’t find it. Are these things that matter so much to you really just memories? Are they really only part of a past that’s already dried up? No—they’re not. It’s because we care that it hurts, that we want to recover what’s lost. We will find it. We have to..."
I looked earnestly at Sima Ying. She smiled, and gradually, the white light flooded the space. I woke from the trance, holding a glowing fragment in my hand.
"Waiting..."
I gazed at the glowing fragment. In that moment, I understood—the Soul Core of Exile Town was waiting. To exile oneself is to exile one’s hope, to grow numb, to refuse to reach out. I gripped the fragment tightly.
"Ethan, hurry back."
As the Heavenly Soul spoke, it took control of my body again. I floated upward, rising through the air. Everything below returned to normal. Once more, I saw the cherry grove at the village entrance, the blossoms swirling as if to bid me farewell.
Standing at the edge of Exile Town, darkness surrounded me, and the town itself began to fade away. Quietly, I smiled at the world around me.
I raised my hand, holding the fragment I’d just obtained.
"Perhaps you’ve forgotten what kind of people you created. Look—this light, this longing, how powerful it truly is..."
I roared, letting go. Instantly, a surge of white light shot forth, and the darkness around me vanished bit by bit. Grass, trees, sky, mountains—all returned to their original state.
"Perhaps you’re right, Ethan Zhang..."
"I won’t compromise. No matter what, I’ll save that girl. Even if you won’t help, I’ll find another way."