Chapter 523: Yves Returns

It was not a blinding golden light, nor was it a destructive divine beam.

It was a soft, milky-white glow, warm like polished jade and filled with an ancient feeling.

The moment this light appeared, its rhythm perfectly matched the pulse of the Earth beneath Aiden’s feet.

Not even the smallest difference.

The light carried no attack power.

It gave no boost.

It did not even send any information.

It stood for one thing only: a complete reset of the Laws.

"Warning! Conflict detected in the core protocols! The system is being forcibly rebuilt!"

The system’s voice screamed wildly in Aiden’s mind, sharp enough to hurt.

But it could do nothing.

The milky-white light from the [All Things Return to Their Source] module became countless invisible carving blades. Starting from the deepest level of the system, they began to remove and erase every kind of strength that did not truly belong to Aiden.

The first to break apart was the unbelievable ability that had stayed with him through countless days and nights:

[10,000x Critical Hit]

Its collapse began at once.

The violent Law essence inside the Vessel had reached its limit. It was so full that it was almost ready to tear Aiden apart.

But the moment it touched the milky-white light, it was instantly weakened and rebuilt, turning into a vast flow of the purest original Laws.

Crash—

Like a river pouring down from the heavens, the original Laws flowed into Aiden’s Garden of Laws.

At the edge of the garden, five black rifts had stretched across the land. They had nearly destroyed the whole world.

The moment they touched this flood of power, they disappeared completely.

They were not healed.

They were not sealed shut.

They were replaced completely by new Laws that were higher, more perfect, and better connected to Earth’s true nature.

One divine throne after another rose from the void.

Lightning, fire, space, frost... all of them shone with an eternal divine light.

Five seconds.

Only five seconds.

Driven by [All Things Return to Their Source], Aiden’s understanding of the Laws began to rise at an insane speed.

85%...

86%...

87%...

88%!

With every one-percent increase, his Inner Spirit became more solid, while the Garden of Laws inside him doubled in size.

But to wear a crown, one must carry its weight.

"The system’s critical-hit function... is being removed..."

Aiden suddenly stopped breathing. His face turned pale in an instant.

Pain.

It was not the pain of a wounded body. It was a terrible emptiness deep in his soul, as though a piece of him had been cut away.

Thirty seconds.

The removal of the system’s critical-hit function lasted a full thirty seconds.

During those thirty seconds, Aiden felt like an ordinary man forced to watch as his right arm was slowly cut off with a dull blade.

The [10,000x Critical Hit] ability had saved him from danger again and again. It had helped him create countless miracles.

Now, it was being completely torn from his life and erased into nothing.

"Ding—The [10,000x Critical Hit] function has been completely removed. The core system structure has been cleared."

The final trace of the golden critical-hit rune disappeared from the deepest part of Aiden’s soul.

Everything fell silent.

The price had been paid.

Aiden slowly clenched his fists, feeling the strength inside him. It was more powerful than ever, yet completely pure.

From this moment on, [10,000x Critical Hit] was gone from his power forever.

Within his Inner Spirit, only these remained:

A flawless and fully transformed [Garden of Laws].

An empty [Vessel of Laws], filled with endless mysteries of the original Laws.

And... the complete [Evolution Node Map] and basic support system left behind by Yves.

"Phew..."

Aiden let out a long breath and stood up.

Without the system’s constant numbers and messages, he used his own eyes and Inner Spirit to sense the world for the first time.

The whisper of the wind.

The cold of the snow.

And Cheryl’s fast breathing outside the secret room. She was weak from using too much strength, but she was still holding on.

At that moment, the world felt incredibly vast.

Without the system’s perfect judgment and critical-hit boost, Aiden would have to learn again how to control his strength with precision, and how to fight his next battle.

But his double-pupiled eyes had never looked brighter.

Because he knew this power was no longer a gift from anyone else.

Nor was it some unknown trap.

This was the power of a god that truly belonged to him, earned step by step through his own effort.

Just then, a strange pulse came from deep within Aiden’s Inner Spirit.

It came from behind the golden gate at the far end of his sea of consciousness, the gate that marked the path to godhood.

The last trace of consciousness left behind by Yves, an ancient sage of the Great Shaw Empire, had been silent for countless days and nights.

Then, without warning, it began to move.

The activation of [All Things Return to Their Source] was like a key that had crossed a thousand years. It fully awakened this final fragment.

Buzz—

An invisible wave, deep and mysterious, broke through the barriers of space and time. In an instant, it spread out from Aiden’s hidden chamber.

At that moment, the fragment formed a strange but powerful connection with the fragments of the Heavenly Law scattered across Earth, and even within the Abyss.

Aiden suddenly looked up.

His double-pupiled eyes shone like the blazing sun.

He felt them.

The lost fragments of the Heavenly Law were calling to him from ancient times.

...

The stone door of the hidden chamber exploded apart.

Aiden stepped outside. The suffocating golden light of his critical hits was gone, but in its place was a far more terrifying pressure, as if he were breathing together with heaven and earth.

The aftereffects of [All Things Return to Their Source] had not faded. Instead, with Aiden at the center, they spread across the entire planet as an indescribable resonance.

It was an ancient call.

The core inside Aiden, formed from countless fragments of the Heavenly Law, began to boil.

It became a beacon of Laws that reached across dimensions, sending the strongest possible signal to every world.

Return to your place!

It was the absolute command of the Heavenly Law, calling its lost fragments home.

The Great Shaw Empire. The Azurecloud Empire. The Elephant Empire. Even the deep, cold lower levels of the Abyss...

At that moment, every fragment of the Heavenly Law hidden in secret realms or buried within ancient ruins began to shake violently.

Countless tiny yet pure points of light broke through the soil, passed through ancient seals, and rose into the sky from every corner of the world.

Above Celestial Imperial City, the violent golden aurora changed into a vast, gentle sea of stars.

Billions of tiny lights, each no larger than grains of sand, came rushing in from every direction like a blizzard flowing backward. They gathered madly toward the heart of the city.

High above Celestial Imperial City, fierce winds howled.

Kelsey stood on a balcony, letting the wind scatter her hair. In her beautiful eyes was the reflection of this magnificent sight, one that shook the entire planet.

The supreme Miko Wraithshard inside her trembled violently. It seemed to be paying respect to something great, while also saying goodbye.

Looking at the rain of Law lights that filled the sky, Kelsey’s eyes grew wet. She clasped her hands tightly against her chest and whispered,

"He is going home..."

The ancient sage who had spent 10 thousand years alone in the darkness for humanity was finally returning to where he belonged.

Boom!

Deep beneath the earth, outside the golden gate—

Aiden appeared from nowhere. Lightning and fire flashed in his double-pupiled eyes as he stared coldly into the empty space before him.

The Law of Space lay beneath his feet like a tame cat. It was no longer difficult for him to understand or control.

In his sight, billions of lights of Law had already passed through the thick crust of the earth. Like rivers flowing into the sea, they crashed into the golden wall of Laws on the gate.

They did not stop.

With unstoppable force, they passed through the golden barrier that had separated the two sides for 10 thousand years and surged inside.

Within the gate, the fragment of consciousness that belonged to Yves was instantly drowned in endless light.

10 thousand years.

Since the Abyss merged with Earth and the world became part of the system, Yves’s consciousness had never received such a complete collection of Law fragments.

This was not the return of his physical body.

His body had long ago turned to ash in the war 10 thousand years ago. It could never return.

It was his broken soul, damaged for 10 thousand years, now being nourished by the Laws and fully merging with the Law system at Earth’s core.

At this moment, Yves was becoming the chief architect of Earth’s rebirth.

Buzz—

Countless streams of golden light began to weave wildly across the Law barrier of the golden gate.

Before Aiden, the outline of a tall human figure slowly began to form.

The Laws of the world became his body.

Earth’s core became his soul.

And his 11,823 years of silent waiting became his unchanging anchor.

Yves, the ancient sage of the Great Shaw Empire, had finally returned in his temporary Executor form.

The violent flood of Laws suddenly calmed.

The human figure slowly opened his eyes.

Those eyes had witnessed endless change and hardship. They had seen the rise and fall of countless lives, yet they remained clear, steady, and untouched by the dust of the world.

He looked at Aiden, standing outside the gate, and a gentle smile slowly appeared on his face.

"Thank you."

His voice was soft, but it sent huge waves through Aiden’s soul.

Aiden remained silent for a long time.

He looked at the man before him, a man who had given up becoming a god, given up the cycle of rebirth, and willingly turned himself into the core of the system for humanity.

"How long have you been waiting?"

Aiden’s voice was rough as it echoed through the empty depths beneath the earth.

Yves smiled faintly. His eyes moved past Aiden, as if he could see the trembling world above, a world that was about to be born again.

"11823 years."

"From the moment I drew the first line of the system’s design until now."

11823 years.

What a long and hopeless loneliness that must have been.

Aiden took a deep breath and looked straight into his eyes.

"Do you think it was worth it?"

Yves did not answer right away.

He raised a hand and gently touched the flowing Laws on the golden gate. His eyes were full of warmth and peace.

Then he looked back at Aiden. The smile on his face grew wider.

"I waited long enough to find you."

"So yes. It was worth it."

The words were simple, but they carried an incredible weight.

Aiden suddenly clenched his fists. Something hot surged through his chest.

Yves’s human form slowly began to fade. His will was spreading without end, reaching into every corner of the planet.

"Once the rebuilding begins, I will be very busy. I may not be able to watch what is happening outside."

Yves’s voice slowly became distant and unreal, but it still carried unquestionable authority.

"Protect Celestial Imperial City."

"Wait for me to finish this operation."