"It's useless... you can't kill me..." As befitting an Outer God renowned for its vitality, even with only its head remaining, the Mother of Flesh still hadn't perished, and even continued to speak. "When I revive, I'll come back for you again and again and again, until I achieve true evolution!"
However, Phainon didn't rush to burn the head. In fact, he had deliberately spared it. At that very moment, in a remote corner of the Cosmic Sea, aboard a Magic Ship, Evernight and Anaxa had reached the final destination of their journey.
Standing on the deck of the Magic Ship, Evernight gazed upon the world before her, now completely covered in flesh. As her Authority activated, the world's memories began to gradually be erased and forgotten.
The world offered no resistance. After all, against such an attack on the level of memory, resistance was futile without a corresponding ability.
Holding an umbrella aloft with one hand, Evernight murmured to herself, "With this, the Mother of Flesh will have no place left to revive."
The perspective shifted back to Phainon. Looking at the last remaining head in his hand, he asked, "Resurrection? Are you sure you can still resurrect?"
"Of course I can!" the Mother of Flesh replied instantly. "After all, I assimilated countless worlds, leaving behind countless resurrection points..."
But as she spoke, a surprisingly human-like expression of confusion appeared on her last remaining head. She suddenly couldn't recall any of her "resurrection points." Yet deep in her subconscious, she knew she was an ancient Outer God who had continuously expanded her Domain and corrupted worlds. How could she possibly have no resurrection points left?
The 'Main World' where Phainon had just been couldn't possibly have been the first world she'd tried to corrupt, right? That made no sense! Did all her previous millennia of existence amount to nothing? Had she done nothing at all?
"Wait—" the Mother of Flesh began, desperate to speak. Without resurrection points, death would be final. But this was exactly the moment Phainon had been waiting for. Flames erupted from his palm, and in an instant, the Outer God's last remaining head was reduced to ashes.
And so, the Outer God that had plagued the Main World for so many years was effortlessly vanquished. The power gap between them was simply too vast.
Phainon suddenly recalled a saying: "A Homelander can be a Superman in a world of ordinary people, but a true Superman can remain Superman even in a world of Homelander clones."
The relationship between Phainon and the Outer Gods now resembled this dynamic. Perhaps, in their eyes, he was the true 'Outer God'.
Phainon surveyed his surroundings, gazing out at the Cosmic Sea he had illuminated. Yet he could sense that many other gazes had been fixed upon him moments ago. As he turned his attention toward them, these gazes vanished one by one.
Clearly, even if the Main World were to publicly reveal its coordinates to all Outer Gods, his presence alone would deter them from causing trouble. As long as Phainon remained, none of these Outer Gods would dare to act rashly.
Realizing this, Phainon swiftly returned to the Main World's location. However... after searching for quite some time, he discovered he was lost. This was likely due to the recent battle, which had strewn the path with shattered asteroid fragments, making the return route completely unrecognizable.
In the vast expanse of the cosmos, there are no fixed concepts of up, down, left, or right. Even the slightest deviation in trajectory could lead him completely astray. Eventually, Phainon had to ask Tribios to open a Century Gate to successfully return to the Main World.
The first thing he did upon returning was to travel to the Sun and meet the Sun God, who was still weakened.
Although the Mother of Flesh was dead, the corruption originating from her would not simply vanish. This corruption acted like a virus; simply eliminating the source of infection didn't automatically cure those already infected.
However, now that the Mother of Flesh, the Source of Corruption, was dead, the Sun God would no longer be continuously contaminated. With sufficient rest, the god could theoretically recover and heal completely.
Yet the moment the Sun God saw Phainon, he smiled faintly and said, "Impressive... You took down that Outer God so easily?"
Phainon replied, "No, it's you who's truly remarkable. You endured here for so long..."
The Sun God shook his head, cutting him off. "But I no longer wish to endure. Can this world be entrusted to you?"
Phainon was taken aback. "The Mother of Flesh is already dead. The corruption in your body can be gradually healed..."
But the Sun God wore a profoundly melancholic expression. "I no longer wish to continue like this. So, could you grant me this final, small wish? Help me ignite this Sun, illuminate this world. As for me... just let me rest peacefully."
"She's been gone for so long... perhaps she's already grown impatient waiting. It's time for me to join her..."
There was no doubt that the 'she' the Sun God referred to was Artemis, the long-dead Moon Goddess.
The Sun God chuckled bitterly. "I'm not as great as you imagine. Back then, no one else could bear this responsibility, so I had to act. But now that someone can do it better than me, the urge to escape has inevitably taken root in my heart."
Phainon didn't know how to respond. After a moment of silence, he said, "No. To everyone in this world, you are the most worthy of respect, a true and worthy god."
He paused, then nodded firmly. "I understand. I will take over your duties and keep this planet burning, illuminating this world... and even, illuminating the Cosmic Sea itself."
Then, Phainon slowly crouched down and pressed his right palm against the ground. The planet, whose fiery glow had been steadily fading, gradually reignited, radiating a soft, warm glow that bathed the Main World—previously shrouded in perpetual twilight due to the weakened Sun God—in the light of day.
Seeing this, the Sun God couldn't help but wear an expression of relief.
Though the calamity had ended, the scars it left on the Main World wouldn't vanish overnight. The All Nations Alliance, Dragon Ember Empire, Arcane Federation, and Okhema had all paid a heavy price, and each nation would require considerable time to recover.
Meanwhile, Aria and her companions had left the battlefield and returned to the Earth Circle's Druid Tribe camp to rest. Though utterly exhausted, when they looked up at the revitalized sky and the return of daylight, genuine smiles lit up their faces.
Cipher, clinging to Aria's side, suggested, "Hey, should I commission a bard to turn our adventures into a new Hero story? Trust me, it'll be a smash hit!"
Douglas immediately chimed in, "I have no objections!"
Feidric turned to Aria and said, "That's right. You've long since become a hero worthy of the title 'Hero.'"
But Aria shook her head. "Maybe... let's just forget about it? If someone else writes this story, who knows what they'll turn it into? Even if it's fine now, as time passes and the story is passed down by word of mouth, who knows how it will change in the future?"
Just like the legend of the Seven Heroes, which had long since drifted far from the truth in the river of time.
Aria continued, "I think things are perfect as they are. We can continue adventuring together, living happily together, helping those in need, and doing good deeds within our means. That's enough for me. As for a Hero's tale or a legend... I don't think we need it."
Cipher replied, "Then we'll do as you say."
As they spoke, the group had already returned to the Druid Camp. Cipher announced, "Alright, everyone get some rest first. Once you're refreshed, we'll head back to Okhema and throw a grand feast! Let's all have a great time!"
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Spy-Here are the author notes.
P.S.: In reality, Phainon didn't need to stay on the Sun constantly; occasional visits to recharge were sufficient.
P.S.2: The main story is complete. There might be epilogues and side stories later, depending on how I feel. There will also be a new book, still on Fanqie. I have two ideas: one is in the same genre—a high-martial urban world with an Identity starting as Columbina—and the other is an original work. I plan to try the original first; if it doesn't work out, I'll come back and continue writing fanfiction.
Spy-I will tl the next book that author makes as this is one of my favorite authors. Main Story is done! There will maybe be sidestories and epilogues from here on out, author mentioned a Dan Heng Arc in the ancient eastern kingdom among other things.
Spy from the future-New Original should be up by the time this chap comes out! Come Check it out!