After saying this, Ren Man showed no intention of explaining further.
He slowly straightened his back, his movements calm and deliberate; clearly, he intended to leave.
Ren Yi followed by his side.
In the next moment, time, which had been stagnant for so long, finally began to flow again.
Raindrops fell, and ripples spread.
That locked beam of light flickered suddenly, like a candle burning out, emitting one last spark of light before being completely extinguished.
Everything around them instantly sank into a boundless darkness.
In Ren Yi's perception, a familiar scene unfolded.
The entire building dissolved rapidly like melting wax into a chaotic mess of colors.
Swirls of red, gray, and dark blue intertwined, churning and settling until they finally merged completely, turning into a deep blackness that unified with the surroundings.
Then, that thick blackness began to flow slowly toward the ground like a silent tide, spreading across the floor before steadily merging into... Ren Man's "shadow."
A familiar aura emanated from within the "shadow," reminding Ren Yi of the feeling he had when he blacked out earlier.
No, that wasn't right.
There was no light here anymore; how could there be a shadow?
The dense blackness wasn't merging naturally; it was more like it was being pulled and devoured by an invisible force, quietly slipping into the even deeper gloom beneath Ren Man's feet.
Ren Yi felt his long-dormant curiosity swell like an ignited spark.
So, had the entire Three Cities World actually been packed into his brother's "shadow" in the end?
He opened his mouth to ask, but Ren Man suddenly tilted his chin, gesturing with his eyes for him to look ahead, cutting off the words on the tip of his tongue.
Only then did Ren Yi notice that something still remained in this absolute darkness.
A transparent, rhombohedral crystal shimmered with a faint light amidst the infinite dark... it looked like an energy crystal.
He leaned over to pick it up, feeling a slight chill through his fingertips.
He seemed to remember something falling out of Azure's body when he was completely erased.
Subconsciously, he pulled another crystal from his pocket, one with a hazy mist swirling inside.
The crystal in Ren Yi's possession came from "Extinction."
After Zhang Qiuqiu obtained it, she had handed it over to Ren Yi for safekeeping as agreed.
Ren Yi suddenly recalled the Pope saying that Extinction's soul was special because he had managed to stay conscious through sheer willpower despite the violent distortions of soul radiation.
In that case, although Azure's mental state hadn't been great, he had also maintained his self-awareness despite his soul being distorted and fused with so many things.
So this crystal... was it Azure's relic?
No, that can't be right.
Azure had clearly triggered a Calamity Rule; according to the rules, he should have been completely erased, leaving nothing behind.
Neither his soul, his body, nor any remnants should be able to exist in this world, let alone a relic.
When in doubt, ask big brother. Ren Yi pulled himself out of his thoughts and turned to Ren Man, who stood quietly beside him.
"Brother, wasn't Azure supposed to be erased after triggering the rule?"
Ren Man understood the underlying question and gave a slight nod in response.
"Then what's this?" Ren Yi asked, puzzled, as he held up the crystal.
Ren Man didn't answer directly, instead asking, "You recognize it?"
Seeing the other crystal in Ren Yi's hand, he tilted his head and continued.
"How do you recognize it?"
"Someone told me how they're formed..."
Ren Yi stopped mid-sentence.
Yes, the old Pope had told him.
He said that a soul that maintains consciousness amidst distortion is a special kind of soul.
How did he know that?
From the old Pope's perspective, Ren Yi's pursuit of "Extinction" should have just been an act to hide his identity!
He hadn't seen them collect Extinction's energy crystal; how did he know such a soul would be valuable to them?
How did he bring it up back then?
Was it just an offhand comment while telling the story of "Extinction"?
Or was the story of "Extinction" actually told just to convey that specific sentence?
At the time, he thought it was merely the fleeting sentimentality of an old man for a long-lost friend before his own death.
But with his brother's reminder... in the history of the Three Cities World told by the old Pope, didn't the story of "Extinction" and that piece of information seem a bit out of place?
So, was he doing it on purpose? Intentionally giving them that information?
If he was doing it on purpose, what was his goal?
Was he emphasizing the value of this item?
Did he want them... to take this crystal left behind by Azure?
Ren Yi felt his mind reel because of the old Pope—because of a human who had long since died.
Back to the present, back to the object itself.
"Azure" was definitely erased by the rule, yet this thing remained.
Therefore, this thing didn't belong to "Azure."
To be more precise, this object was remarkably similar to the soul crystal left behind by Zhang Qiuqiu.
Ren Yi suddenly thought back to that day, sitting on the earthen slope talking to the class monitor after the old Pope had passed away.
What had he been thinking then?
"Even if the world's will didn't provide a method of salvation, wouldn't humans seek a way out themselves?"
The King of Xin had been deceived by Azure posing as the world's will and had sacrificed his own body, which ultimately led to Azure merging with the souls of everyone in the city...
Ren Yi had never met that King of Xin; by the time the Three Cities Meeting began, the King had already been replaced by Azure.
But even from Azure's brief mentions, one could infer that he was an excellent leader—at the very least, he couldn't have been a fool.
So, in a world already scarred by a "god," would anyone—especially an outstanding leader—really pin their final hopes on something as ethereal as a "world's will," which was no different from a "god"?
Do not. Underestimate. Humanity.
The Pope's attempt at psychological suggestion, the pre-existing communication methods between the three cities, the King of Xin sacrificing his body to Azure to save his city...
Countless questions surged in his heart; Ren Yi felt as though he had caught the tail end of something.
This was a plan. Although Ren Yi hadn't yet figured out the key details, he somehow understood the goal of the old Pope and the King of Xin.
Azure was merely a cog in this plan—or rather, a target they had lured in to take the fall.
They wanted to save many people.
Ren Yi looked at the crystal in his hand.
They might have already succeeded.
Just then, Ren Man suddenly spoke, breaking the silence.
"They are hard to understand." His tone remained flat, devoid of much emotion.
"But there are always some who are... special."
Finally, he lowered his eyes slightly, looking at the crystal in Ren Yi's palm.
"In their words, it's called... greatness."
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