Chapter 532: Leon and Yves

"Yes. The Upper Universe is not a dangerous battlefield where the myriad races slaughter one another. It is a vast, almost empty space."

Yves sighed, endless loneliness showing in his eyes.

"For every civilization that completes the evolutionary leap, the greatest dangers it faces after entering the Upper Universe are not outside enemies."

"They are loneliness... and self-destruction."

Aiden immediately thought of the black node on the topological map, the one marked [Three Thousand Years Ago].

"Was that why the civilization from three thousand years ago was destroyed?"

"That’s right. The Supreme Miko’s civilization was too extraordinary. They evolved too quickly—so quickly that they lost every point of reference."

Yves pointed to his chest.

"In their extreme loneliness, their law system began to expand uncontrollably. In the end, it completely collapsed in the silence."

"That was why those words were left on the crystal: Don’t be in such a hurry to leave."

"The Upper Universe itself is not dangerous. The real danger is the silence—a dead stillness capable of devouring every soul."

Aiden was silent for a moment before asking:

"What about Leon? He spent five hundred years in the Core. What did he see?"

Yves let out a disdainful laugh.

"Leon saw only the glorious ruins left behind by those civilizations that had completed the evolutionary leap. He thought he had found paradise."

"But he never saw where those civilizations ultimately went."

"They all destroyed themselves because they could not endure the loneliness."

Just then, a clear system notification suddenly rang in Aiden’s ears.

[Ding! Congratulations, Host! You have completed the ultimate series quest: "Bane of All Races 3"!]

[Quest rewards have been issued: You have obtained the authority to decide whether to fully control the Universe Law Network!]

[Notice: Would you like to open Earth’s Law Network to the Universe Law Network and merge the two immediately?]

As the system notification faded, a gateway covered in shining star maps appeared in front of Aiden out of nowhere.

With a single nod from him, Earth would become completely connected to the vast network of universal laws.

Yves’s mirror image watched him in silence, waiting for the new leader of humanity to make his choice.

Aiden looked at the glowing gateway. He barely hesitated before speaking calmly:

"Do not open it."

The light around the gateway flickered and briefly froze.

"At least, not yet."

Aiden turned to Yves. His voice was calm, but every word carried weight.

"Earth has only just completed its reconstruction. Everyone is still trying to adapt to the new law system."

"The most important thing right now is to give everyone time to settle down and build a future on this land—not to open the gate in a hurry and welcome an unknown, deadly silence."

Yves’s mirror image froze for a moment. Then he burst into hearty laughter.

"Hahahaha! Good! Very good! You’re not in a hurry to open the gate!"

Yves clapped, his eyes filled with approval and excitement.

"Do you know that Leon waited in the Core for five hundred years, all for someone who could open that gate?"

"And now you are standing right in front of it, yet you say there is no need to rush."

"Aiden, you are right."

As his laughter continued, Yves’s mirror image slowly faded away, turning into countless golden points of light that drifted into the void.

"Go. Take what you have gained here and walk a different path."

Aiden took a deep breath. Brilliant golden light suddenly burst from his twin-pupiled eyes.

He swept his sleeve through the air.

Boom!

Golden Sunfire transformed into a giant golden hand that stretched across the void and swept downward with incredible force.

The sea of starlight, made up of hundreds of millions of law fragments and Inner Spirit fragments, was forcibly gathered by his immense power and taken into his sleeve.

These fragments would become Earth’s most valuable foundation in the new era. They would also serve as guiding lights for countless people who came after, showing them the path to godhood.

In the next moment, Aiden disappeared from the Ancient Battlefield.

Celestial Imperial City Square

The once-clear sky suddenly darkened.

Then, countless dazzling streaks of light fell from the heavens like a meteor shower.

They were hundreds of millions of law fragments and Inner Spirit fragments. They slowly drifted down over Celestial Imperial City, lighting up the entire city like a dreamland.

Everyone stepped out of their homes and looked up in shock at the everlasting rain of stars.

In one corner of the square, Kelsey stood beside Zoey.

The countless stars were reflected in Zoey’s large eyes. Her voice trembled slightly.

"Sister Kelsey... How many people’s entire lives are contained in these lights?"

Kelsey reached out and caught a warm, smooth law fragment.

"A lot. Far too many for us to count," she answered softly.

"But this time, they will not be wasted."

Just then—

The Demi-Sacred Artifact known as the Transmutation Altar, which stood at the center of Celestial Imperial City, suddenly erupted with a pillar of light that shot into the sky.

The bridge of laws connecting this world to the universe lit up on its own.

Bzzz—

A faint but clear law signal pierced through the endless void and was precisely received by the Transmutation Altar.

The signal contained no words and no images.

There was only a long, beautiful melody—ethereal and filled with endless kindness.

It was a greeting from another surviving civilization deep within the Upper Universe.

Aiden stood on the high platform, listening to the melody. The corners of his mouth lifted slightly.

Earth was no longer alone.

...

The Forty-Fifth Day After Earth’s Reconstruction

Seven full days had passed since the Transmutation Altar received that ethereal melody from the Upper Universe.

Study of the City Lord’s Mansion, Celestial Imperial City

Aiden sat alone at his desk. Faint golden light flickered in his twin-pupiled eyes as he quietly organized the vast Force of Laws within his body.

Creak—

The tightly closed wooden door was pushed open by a gentle yet irresistible force.

A figure wearing a worn gray robe slowly walked into the room.

Aiden opened his eyes. A hint of surprise flashed through his twin pupils.

It was Leon.

The leader of the Dawn Society had been missing for forty-five days since Earth’s reconstruction was completed. Now, he had returned without warning.

He was still wearing the same gray robe, but the dark obsession that had once hidden deep within his eyes—an obsession as deep as the Abyss—was completely gone.

In its place was a level of calm that Aiden had never seen in him before.

"You’re back."

Aiden looked at him, his voice as calm as still water.

Leon gave a slight nod, pulled out a chair, and sat down calmly across from Aiden.

"I went to the edge of the Upper Universe."

Leon’s voice was quiet, yet it carried the weariness of someone who had crossed endless space.

"The moment Earth’s reconstruction was completed, my half-primordial body sensed a thin thread of laws that had never been detected before."

"It did not belong to Earth’s core. It stretched into the unknown depths of the universe."

"I followed that thread for forty-five days. At its end, I found the answer."

Aiden raised an eyebrow. "Did you find the path of evolution you were looking for?"

"No. I found the last law fragment Yves left for me."

Leon gave a bitter smile. A strange, complicated light flashed in his eyes.

"That fragment was not meant for you, Aiden. It was meant for me."

Buzz.

Leon raised one hand. A strand of dark golden law-light bloomed at his fingertips, projecting a line of bold writing into the air.

The handwriting was wild and free, carrying Yves’s unique confidence and carefree spirit:

[We fought for our whole lives, but you were right—evolution is only a tool. The right to choose is the true principle.]

[I was wrong.]

[I was not wrong to seal the Seven Pillars. I was wrong because I never told you these words while I was still alive.]

As the words flickered in the air, the study fell completely silent.

Leon took a deep breath, as if he wanted to release the pain and anger he had carried in his chest for five hundred years.

"Five hundred years..."

"I began as a seeker, waiting deep within the Core. Then I became someone who tested others. In the end, I became the one being tested."

"Only now do I understand that my mission was never to find you, nor was it to force Earth into a blind leap forward."

"I was only waiting for him—for him to admit, in his own words, that he was wrong."

Leon stood up and looked straight at Aiden.

"I’ve waited long enough. Now I have my answer."

The obsession with the Primordial Laws was gone from his eyes. In its place was the calm of someone who had finally found freedom.

"Aiden, take me to the Law Garden Projection Zone."

"I’m ready."

Aiden looked at him and asked slowly, "Ready for what?"

"To give up my half-primordial status and live again as an ordinary human on the new Earth."

Law Garden Projection Zone, Celestial Imperial City

This was where the core laws of Celestial Imperial City converged. Countless newborn strands of law intertwined in the air, forming dazzling ribbons of light.

The moment Leon stepped inside, the core laws of the entire city trembled slightly.

Boom.

A vast will of law awakened deep within Earth’s core. It slowly took the shape of Yves.

"Have you truly made up your mind?"

Yves’s voice was ethereal and filled with supreme authority.

"Once we reverse the process, you will lose your immortal body, your absolute affinity with the Primordial Laws, and even your ability to transmit laws without any loss."

Leon stood with his hands behind his back and smiled freely.

"Do it."

"Good!"

Yves’s will let out a hearty laugh.

The next moment, the entire Law Garden was swallowed by endless divine light.

Rumble!

This was the most precise and massive operation involving a single law since Earth’s reconstruction!

Golden light burst from Aiden’s twin-pupiled eyes as he personally guarded the procedure.

Yves’s will of law turned into countless brilliant scalpels made of law, lifting Leon’s body into the air.

Hiss!

The first scalpel came down, forcibly stripping away the gray mist of the "half-primordial" from Leon’s body.

It was the essence of the Primordial Laws. The moment it was separated, it let out a sharp hiss and tried to return to Leon’s body.

"Be still!"

Aiden gave a cold snort. The Golden Sunfire transformed into a huge golden cauldron, firmly suppressing the Primordial Laws that were trying to escape.

At the same time, Yves’s law scalpels turned into countless afterimages, taking apart Leon’s law structure layer by layer.

His bones, bloodline, soul, law nodes...

Every layer that was removed was accompanied by the deafening sound of laws breaking apart. Space itself kept tearing open and reforming.

Extreme pain appeared on Leon’s face, but he did not make a sound. He simply clenched his teeth and endured it.

"Insert the new law template!"

Following Yves’s low command, countless streams of colorful light—representing the laws of humanity on the new Earth—surged into Leon’s body like a rising tide.

They were pure human genes—the life code most perfectly suited to the ecosystem of the new Earth.