CHAPTER 1770: CHAPTER 514: THE WAR IS OVER (PART 1)

Swish.

The sound of the flow of time and destiny grows fainter and distant.

In the night sky, those giant starry eyes vanish one by one, until finally, the glow representing the Sea Demon King also disappears.

However, that speck of glow before fading completely, descends as a faint blue light on the Black Prison Battlefield, sweeping the Big Sea Monsters, Great Wizard Demons, and the Dark Beasts allied with the Demons out of the Black Prison World all at once.

It even takes away many of the prisoners who participated in the rebellion.

This was the congratulatory gift deserved by the Ancient One upon its achievement. The two vice-principals of the First University watch with displeasure as that blue light completely disappears into the horizon, uttering not a word.

The curtain of night retreats once more.

The colors of Xuan Huang, the light of Tai Yi, the silver moonlight, and the golden sunlight each appear, repainting the world of the Black Prison with light. The world seems to return to brightness.

The cracked earth silently closes, and the rolling thunder quietly disperses.

Everything seems to have returned to its original state, yet everything is ultimately different.

Time freeze continues.

To provide energy for the pocket watch, the Five-Colored Lotus has exhausted its petals, and is now supporting this world’s continued stagnation with the magic power from its pistil and calyx.

On an ordinary day, Shi Hui would be lamenting loudly with a heartache. But today, she doesn’t have the mood. Instead, she feels an urge to let her lotus and this world be destroyed together.

"So that’s how it is."

Elder Ruoyu, holding a silver wolf-headed staff, stares into the distant void, seemingly able to see the shadow of the world that was slowly collapsing not long ago. His expression remains as stiff as ever, murmuring to himself, breaking the dead silence in the scene: "Outer God Sos Cthulhu and Sea Demon King Xiang Liu, both legends of the great sea, sharing the same dark origin... similar paths grant them the possibility of merging into one."

"Xiangliu devoured that monster, but couldn’t ’digest’ it."

The Dark Councilor picks up the conversation, at this point seemingly regaining some semblance of reason: "Cthulhu hails from the deeps of the starry sky, possessing more complex and chaotic concepts, and it would instead erode Xiangliu’s flesh... yes, yes, being both legends, it’s not reasonable to be so easily devoured."

"So Xiangliu chose to come to the Black Prison."

Elder Ruoyu praises softly, continuing his reflection: "Truly as reckless and decisive as ever... leveraging our power, borrowing the destiny of the Demon Alliance Army, breaking its true form eroded during the digestion process by Sos Cthulhu, as sacrifices to the Demon Ancestor, and sacrificing itself to the world... it aligns with the demons’ inherent instinct of devouring, while subtly resonating with the essence of ’Ancient One’s reduction to emptiness, breaking free from the binding strings with the courage to abandon everything, stepping outside the long river of time and space."

"Perhaps discarding one’s true form is the shortcut to becoming an ancient wizard?" the Dark Councilor says subconsciously, still staring at the void where the Sea Demon King ascended, as if seeing traces left by its long-disappeared marks: "I seem to have heard of such cases before."

"Ridiculous."

Shi Hui finally speaks, casting a mocking glance at the Dark Councilor, her tone equally harsh:

"It sealed the entire Black Prison Battlefield, the demon’s destiny, robbed them of their future, sacrificing to us and this world, causing the demons to pay a hefty price yet not snatch even a single Xuanhuang Fruit... also using the annihilation of its flesh as the price, it devoured a top-tier Outer God... thus, it reached sublimation at the extreme, stepping into the realm of the Ancient One... on what basis do you think slitting your throat would make you an Ancient One?!"

"Ultimately, it succeeded."

Elder Ruoyu sighs, his gaze remaining in the direction where that blue light disappeared: "So it found a way out. The sacrifices it put into the ritual plate barely survived. If it had failed, the Demon Alliance Army that came to the Black Prison Battlefield today would all have to die... as you said, those who mirror its actions survive, those who mimic it perish."

Like it, taking great courage as the foundation, great opportunity as the condition, and great destiny as protection, combined with great fortune, perhaps there is a slight possibility of achieving the status of an Ancient One; but solely emulating its action of plundering everything, abandoning everything, sacrificing everything, dreaming of breaking free from the binding of the rivers of time and destiny, leads only to a dead end.

"I just, just..."

The Dark Councilor murmurs, ultimately not uttering what ’just’ is, but sighs lightly, retracting his gaze to look again at the Dark Council Members gathered under ’Taiyi’ on the battlefield.

"This is not a plan to accomplish in a year or a half."

Compared to the two standing in the present legend, Shi Hui’s gaze is more often cast into the past, and she sees further: "At least before the Xuanhuang Wood blossoms, Xiangliu had already devoured Cthulhu."

"So to speak, the war in the Black Prison, to Xiangliu, perhaps is just a coincidence." Elder Ruoyu nods slightly, then shakes his head, smiling: "It’s also its fortune."

"Indeed... Cthulhu has long slept beneath the sea, and the Sea Demon King has not surfaced for probably over a decade... It had enough time to plan this."

At this point, the Dark Councilor pauses for a moment, seemingly sorting through his thoughts, and after a while, he continues: "This time between us and the demons, rather than saying we joined forces, it’s more of a tacit understanding... we did not establish an alliance... in fact, before Xiangliu appeared, I thought it would be the Witch Demon King who came to the Black Prison Battlefield."

"You should feel fortunate."

Shi Hui finally turns back, facing the Dark Councilor, her face mocking: "Xiangliu chose Cthulhu, not you... otherwise, your true form would now be collapsing with that illusory world."

The Dark Councilor does not mind the Witch’s taunt.

He turns to look at Elder Ruoyu.

"Xiangliu is gone, the Demon Alliance Army has also retreated, and the war has ended." He adjusts the soft brim of his pointed wizard hat: "Please allow me to withdraw with my subordinates."

The two vice-principals of the First University remain silent, not immediately agreeing.

Although the Demon Alliance Army suffered heavy losses in the previous ’Semi-Forbidden Curse’ collision, they ultimately left the Black Prison with much power. This is disadvantageous to the prestige of the First University.

If the Dark Council can be kept, it would be a way to compensate for this deficiency.

Six Fingers clearly also realized this point, and at the first opportunity after the retreat of the Demon Alliance Army, he requested to leave, maintaining a sincere attitude.

Seeming to notice the hesitation of the two vice-principals.

The Dark Councilor stares at Elder Ruoyu, reminding: "I honored the agreement... the council did not inflict major damage on the Black Prison... on the contrary, we lost an excellent Big Wizard here."

From this perspective, as a third party attempting to fish in troubled waters, the Dark Council is indeed the most severely affected in this war.

As the saying goes, when the first and second fight, the third gets hurt.