Chapter 779: Granting the World a Miracle, The King's Final Chapter
Sousuke opened his eyes. He saw a boundless green prairie, the ocean-like green waves undulating again and again.
Sousuke blinked. Reflected by the light and the green shadows, his vision seemed to fill with many more colors.
"Qi is very excellent. I should take him back to Yanjing. His intellect shouldn't be wasted on this desolate prairie."
The woman's voice was calm and caustic.
No, Mom, it's pretty good for me to stay here. I don't have any transcendent intellect.
Sousuke spoke in his heart, but his expression remained unchanged. He simply stood up and saw his childhood face reflected in the window glass.
How nice. Do the revolving lanterns of life actually let me see this place one more time...
Sousuke walked out step by step.
The two people in the room were still arguing endlessly, from why they gave a boy such a feminine-sounding name, to education, to household expenses, to the neighbors, and even to the weather.
The two sides could never stand in each other's shoes to consider a problem.
Sousuke looked back at the two people standing so close in the room. He realized at a very young age that humans are just this kind of creature.
Even if you are close, even if you are practically kneaded into the other person's body, there will always be a thick, impenetrable wall between your hearts.
Hearts cannot touch; people cannot understand each other.
Sousuke lowered his eyes. He once again felt the sense of loss from his youth—the feeling of loss that arose when he first realized some things could not be changed no matter how hard he tried. As a person grew up, this feeling would gradually become unrecoverable.
Sousuke walked out the door and stepped onto the prairie. The sea of grass reached past his knees. It stung a little, itched a little, but it felt incredibly real.
The scene shifted. Sousuke, dressed in a suit and tie, appeared in a bright and clean office building. People passing by slightly bowed their heads to show respect when they saw him.
But as soon as he looked away, most of those people would put on a different expression.
Even though he was easy to get along with, even though he was very considerate of others, other people wouldn't think about problems the way he did.
Or rather, it took all the strength these people had just to work hard, make money, and survive.
He couldn't demand them to do more.
The scene shifted again. Sousuke looked at the crimson text appearing before him. It was an invitation from nowhere. The text itself revealed sheer danger and eeriness.
But Sousuke's heart pounded relentlessly. He felt himself come alive once more, as if he had returned to that green sea.
An endless stream of silver-white information rushed in. Sousuke almost thought he had traveled through time, returning to the very moment he entered the Space, and in the next second, he would see Chen Lailai's silly face in the Attack on Titan world.
But when he opened his eyes again, he saw absolute nothingness.
To use the word "see" might not be accurate; he was actually feeling everything.
The surroundings were incredibly empty, yet countless pieces of knowledge and truth flowed within.
This is... the [Root]!
I've returned to the Root...
Sousuke didn't know why he had returned here. He should have been truly killed by Mercenary Tao; that world-cleaving sword strike was his [Destined Death].
The thing left for him by the King of the Primordial Gods hiding behind the scenes in the Saint Seiya world was unsolvable for Reincarnators at their current progress.
Not just him; he believed that whether it was Sosuke Aizen or that old fossil from Destiny, if they reached his step, it would be a situation of certain death.
Of course, given those two's temperaments, they fundamentally wouldn't walk the same path as him.
The next moment, he felt fluctuations begin within the Root, like a whirlpool stirring up countless pieces of knowledge and truth.
A spiral force, resembling tentacles, stirred and searched within the Root.
Because he was in the Root, Sousuke obtained the answer almost as soon as the thought occurred to him.
It's Mercenary Tao... That beast... no, that monster hasn't died yet, hasn't given up yet...
He hasn't yet submitted to the destiny of being defeated by 'Absolute Good' due to 'Absolute Evil' after his fusion with Azi Dahaka.
How nice. For a beast like this, even his nerves are extraordinarily thick.
Because he knew he was already dead, Sousuke completely let go of himself, his consciousness very chaotic.
He was inherently a lackadaisical person, someone who considered himself devoid of talent. It was just that along the way, he had been propped up by people who thought he was a genius, a special person.
To meet their expectations, he had no choice but to keep walking, fast and urgent.
But now that he was dead, those things lost their meaning. He could finally shamelessly envy others.
Sousuke couldn't help but wonder if any human could truly be so indifferent in the face of life and death, without showing even a sliver of wavering.
Even the most heroic and brave person would have some misgivings and fear about the extinction of their own existence, right?
Kaito Shirogane... he really can't be considered 'human', huh.
Sousuke sighed. In the Root, he felt the violent demands of those tentacles, like a greedy monster unscrupulously searching for any power that could let it survive.
Regardless of what it was, as long as it could enhance him, Kaito Shirogane would probably do it.
If killing people made him stronger, he would kill;
If protecting made him stronger, he would protect;
If destroying the world made him stronger, then Kaito Shirogane wouldn't mind destroying the world;
Conversely, if he must protect the world to become stronger, Kaito Shirogane would become a hero fighting for the world?!
Sousuke felt hesitant and astonished by the realization that appeared in his heart.
He even suspected if the Infinite Dimensional Space was intentionally giving him some kind of suggestion.
To make the current him exert his strength one last time.
Yes, he realized it. The current Kaito Shirogane was trying to break free from that timeline, a timeline that wasn't natural.
It likely came from a seed planted a long time ago.
The old fossil of Destiny had secretly buried the destiny line of the [King of Evil] within Aizen's masterpiece. That was why Kaito Shirogane naturally attracted various people with the trait of "Evil."
And why, in many timelines, encountering characters and events related to "Evil" led him step-by-step toward destinies like "Evil Savior" or "King of Evil."
This was a covert method so subtle that even he and Aizen couldn't detect it. Probably even Kaito Shirogane himself only felt he naturally possessed a certain special trait.
At the same time, this was an arrangement so exquisite it surpassed the abilities of all Reincarnators of the Destiny faction. The methods of ordinary Destiny faction Reincarnators always left traces; if one paid attention, clues could always be found.
Only this kind of trait, which truly endowed a person with an inherent aptitude, would make the person unconsciously accept the arrangement and slowly walk down that destiny line.
By the time they realized it, their throat was already choked by that destiny line, and their [Destined Death] had arrived.
Tsk, this old fossil is really insidious~
Sousuke couldn't help but sigh. Compared to these two guys, he was truly a bit too rule-abiding.
Even though he was lucky enough to discover [Yoko], he never gave her any opportunities beyond her ability to control.
What he could pass to [Yoko] was merely a warning of the future and the many expectations born from it.
Sousuke was very certain that he was mistakenly deemed a savior or the glory of idealists by many people. He wasn't that noble of a person.
But [Yoko] was. She was a woman born for the times. If anyone could save everything, it should be her.
Of course, the premise was that this world could be saved.
In the Root, Sousuke's thinking speed was countless times faster than usual. Moreover, because the Root contained nearly endless information, he had many things to reference when thinking.
Therefore, many things he usually couldn't figure out or understand easily found answers now.
But as his thoughts moved like light, a certain question appeared more and more frequently.
[Kaito Shirogane... what exactly is his purpose for the world?]
Sosuke Aizen was not "human," nor was he a "Black King." He didn't even harbor any ill will towards the Reincarnators who had continuously entered his world to cause destruction previously.
Sosuke Aizen was a guy whose motives, stance, and even reasons for appearing were an enigma.
The role such a guy played in the [Great Apocalypse of the End] was inherently full of unknowns. So, what stance and purpose did the perfect masterpiece he painstakingly fabricated have?
Sousuke couldn't figure out the answer to this question, and not even his flash of inspiration could trigger.
Hum~
As death approached, Kaito Shirogane's struggles grew increasingly frantic. Sousuke felt the emergence of the Manifestation of the Cosmic Heavenly Deity and the Sixteen-Fold Kaio-Ken.
Combined with Azi Dahaka's Body of Stars, the current Kaito Shirogane, purely in terms of power level, had undoubtedly completely surpassed the tier of the Supreme Three Kings.
That was a power capable of destroying the world through sheer violence.
But even destroying the world couldn't break his Destined Death. This dying beast was frantically excavating the only power that could let him survive.
And that was himself.
Sousuke opened his eyes. The golden [Miracle], like a speck of light, swayed within the Root alongside his consciousness.
He didn't know when his ego and existence would dissipate, but until then, the [Miracle] was still held by him.
Sousuke remembered that he had once had a [Miracle] stolen by Sosuke Aizen. It was likely a miracle that allowed something impossible to be born, to miraculously be born.
The miracle he applied to naturally birth unicorns, pegasi, and fairies in the real world had a sliver of it stolen by Sosuke Aizen.
This was probably one of the reasons why Kaito Shirogane, an anomaly that shouldn't have been born, could truly come into existence.
Sousuke suddenly understood the reason his consciousness had recovered...
His thoughts returned to that question again.
If the world was about to be destroyed, what would Kaito Shirogane's stance be?
As Sousuke continuously pondered, outside, Izayoi Sakamaki's heaven-destroying, earth-shattering punch was about to fall.
The Noble Phantasm of the tyrannical King of Heroes, Gilgamesh, which severed the world to protect it, was also crushed by the star particles of the Third Perpetual Motion Machine.
At this moment, Izayoi Sakamaki didn't just represent himself.
He even gained the power from Zoroastrian dualism capable of completely suppressing the [Demon Lord of Absolute Evil, Azi Dahaka].
Because Azi Dahaka's revival was caused by the actions of Ye Zi and Kaito Shirogane, the corresponding power and destiny in the dualism were also awakened.
What Izayoi Sakamaki was executing here was exactly that power and destiny.
This kind of attack was simply not something the wavering heart of the King of Heroes could stop.
Sousuke could even sense Gilgamesh's fury at this moment.
Izayoi Sakamaki defeating the revived Demon Lord of Absolute Evil here was an unchangeable destiny, but there was a loophole here.
Sousuke's brain pondered for an unknown amount of time at this moment. Given his thinking speed right now, this amount of time was probably enough for him to repeatedly reflect on his past and present lives hundreds of times.
Finally, the golden light of the miracle lit up within the Root.
Following those demanding tentacles, Sousuke slid out of the Root.
He naturally appeared in the empty Sea of Consciousness, as if he had no physical form, and saw the suspended white jade throne and the dead, silent Underworld below.
One type, two types, three types, four types...
Before Sousuke had time to look closely, he realized that Kaito Shirogane's body already contained multiple transcendent power essences.
Any one of them was enough to push a Reincarnator with enough luck and talent to an extremely terrifying state.
But Kaito Shirogane greedily seized every single power essence.
"Insatiable."
Sousuke stepped into the sky and gave a push towards the nearly fully fused figure.
The light of the miracle shone. At this moment, Sousuke's action wasn't just his own will and power. He knew very well that a robustly growing Observer, the [Infinite Dimensional Space], was standing behind him.
That Observer would spare no effort to rationalize and ensure the success of his action.
Sure enough, with just a gentle push, the two who should have been deeply fused were separated. Kaito Shirogane's divine soul fell forward, while Sousuke calmly sat on the Throne of the Heart.
"The miracle you lack, I will supply for you!"
Sousuke had no good feelings towards Kaito Shirogane; in fact, he felt more animosity.
Hidden within his heart was an intense envy towards this anomaly, Kaito Shirogane, who completely lacked empathy for others and self-reflection.
Even jealousy.
But at this moment, Sousuke believed his action was necessary, the best choice from the perspective of the world, the Space, the Reincarnators, and the eight billion people in the real world.
Even if Kaito Shirogane killed hundreds of millions of people in the future, there would still be over seven billion survivors.
Sousuke finally revealed a bitter smile.
Damn it, even until the very end, I still have to consider those people. A life like this is truly... boring!
The next moment, Sousuke and Azi Dahaka's forms pressed together, completing the fusion at an incredibly swift speed.
The devastating golden sun descended. Simultaneously, the giant propping up heaven and earth also swung a world-destroying strike.
Brilliant, dazzling light erupted from outside the world.
Gilgamesh, plummeting towards the ground mid-air, widened his crimson eyes. He saw the figure of that terrifying three-headed evil dragon outside the world gradually fade away.
As if subjected to millions of years of erosion, it vanished into smoke and clouds.
But the blonde youth opposite Him was also falling like a meteor.
It's over?!
The world... wasn't destroyed?!
A terrifying shockwave erupted from beyond the sky. Gilgamesh plummeted through the clouds at an even more terrifying speed, but he laughed with incomparable madness.