The Great War Ends

The Lord of Spirit Remains looked anxiously at Eternal Night.

Things did indeed unfold as predicted by Eternal Night, but no one expected the Emerald Royal Court to be defeated so quickly and so thoroughly.

I thought things would develop as my old friend Eternal Night predicted, but unexpectedly, something went wrong.

Even the Eternal Night King had a complicated expression at this moment, observing Lister while various thoughts rushed through his mind.

Is it that the bargaining chips they offered today are insufficient?

Or is the alliance between the Church of the End and the Machine-Slaying Federation closer than they imagined?

Or perhaps... Lister really hasn't made up his mind yet?

Looking at Lister's seemingly genuine and sincere face, Eternal Night had no choice but to believe him.

Perhaps even his earlier killing of Sailianna was beyond his expectations; he hadn't anticipated that the situation would develop so quickly.

But... if this drags on...

Lister and his Machine-Slaying Federation can stall, they have the resources to stall, but the Eternal Night Royal Court and the Spirit Remains Star Abyss don't have that kind of resources.

Aside from the Crimson Covenant, the Void Corridor has already been sentenced to death, with no chance to even beg for mercy or struggle.

Their only chance is to form an alliance with the Machine-Slaying Federation to fight against the Church of the End.

If Lister still hasn't made a decision...

Only one thought remained in Eternal Night's mind—to quickly join the Church of the End!

The moment this thought arose, a massive killing intent suddenly enveloped the area.

The two immediately snapped back to their senses, and their already tense auras instantly burst forth.

Unfortunately, they were unable to resist Lister's murderous intent.

Add to that the subtle, almost imperceptible, stinging pain that emanates from the killing intent, including a feeling of being locked onto from the shadows.

The thought of Sailianna's death brought a flash of panic to both of their faces.

"Whoosh!"

Fortunately, the murderous aura was only momentary and eventually faded away.

Only Lister, with his utterly calm face, quietly watched the two of them, and spoke again in a flat voice.

"While I haven't made up my mind yet... surely you two aren't thinking of turning your backs and going to the Church of the End?"

There were some things that Lister simply didn't have time to think about.

With a little thought, he could understand the predicament of both the Spirit Remains and the Eternal Night.

In today's cosmic landscape, driven by the will to survive, any action becomes unpredictable.

Even if they know they have sided with the Church of the End, and even if they ultimately help the Church of the End gain complete dominance over this universe, they will still be destroyed.

But at least it delayed the demise of both forces; time means variables and opportunities.

If he were on either side, he would inevitably have the same thoughts.

The warning at this moment was, of course, a deliberate attempt to give the two of them a wake-up call.

"Won't...!"

"If we had such thoughts, why would we have come to the Machine-Slaying Federation?"

"We simply want to follow in the footsteps of the Machine-Slaying Federation. If Lister has any intention of opposing the Church of the End, we will definitely support you with all our might!"

"Even if the battle ends here, all we ask for is to survive alongside the Federation."

This is the pitiful state of the weak.

While the original seven World Annihilation forces were still in a state of equilibrium, the Spirit Remains Star Abyss and the Eternal Night Royal Court could be said to be sitting on their own two feet.

They don't participate much in power struggles and are completely unafraid of threats from the Emerald Royal Court and the Church of the End.

Now, with the appearance of Lister and Kavin, the Machine-Slaying Federation has broken this dynamic balance.

These two sides could no longer hold out and could only survive by relying on the Church of the End and the Machine-Slaying Federation.

"Okay, I agree to that."

After some deliberation, Lister decided to agree.

Regardless of the circumstances, neither of these forces can join the Church of the End.

Even if Lister was confident he could fight Xavier, he still couldn't guarantee the strength behind him, despite having five powerful World Annihilation figures.

This is especially true now, when the fusion of the universe is at a crucial juncture.

Having eliminated the threat of the Emerald Royal Court, his primary objective was to ensure the players' breakthrough.

At the same time, we should put the integration of the universe on the agenda and break through to the Fifth Advancement as soon as possible.

Everything else can take a backseat to this.

One month later, outside the floating city in the core star system of the Void Corridor.

As Xavier and Lister appeared, more than a dozen World Annihilation powerhouses materialized.

Besides the four World Annihilation behind Xavier's own forces, Lister now has quite a few World Annihilation powerhouses behind him.

Kavin, the three from the Crimson Covenant led by Binn, and five World Annihilation from the Spirit Remains Star Abyss and the Eternal Night Royal Court.

They are all gathered here now, seemingly not entirely for the purpose of conquering the Void Corridor.

Faced with the lineup behind Lister, even Xavier couldn't help but change color.

His expression turned serious, and he spoke tentatively.

"Lister, the Eternal Night Royal Court, and the Spirit Remains Star Abyss...?"

"Yes, they have already contacted me."

"Our universe has already World Annihilation and death. I think... after the Void Corridor, perhaps we can take a break?"

The reason for the World Annihilation gathering is simple.

After all, the Emerald Royal Court has been destroyed, and the only buffer now is the Void Corridor.

The allied forces advanced with unstoppable momentum, leaving only this last floating city and the two Void Spirit Phantom inside.

Given this situation, after this joint operation, no one can guarantee what will happen next.

In case either the Church of the End or the Machine-Slaying Federation takes action, or if the two sides join forces, etc.

The situation can no longer be assessed through mere speculation; no force dares to back down today.

Even if one side is absent, this massive wave of World Annihilation will likely annihilate the absent side after resolving the Void Corridor.

Xavier nodded silently upon hearing this.

However, he did not express any dissatisfaction with the various World Annihilation forces behind Lister.

Circumstances dictate that Lister's power was already World Annihilation, and this was compounded by the unique style and doctrinal goals of the Church of the End.

The fact that the remaining forces defected to the Machine-Slaying Federation was entirely within his expectations.

After all, the last time the forces that World Annihilation banded together, it was the same situation.

Xavier was not actually afraid of Lister's current group of ten World Annihilation individuals.

He knew all too well how these forces switched sides; once the situation changed even slightly, they immediately became opportunists, with almost none truly willing to serve Lister.

However, Lister's own strength made him extremely wary.

He has been reflecting on this for some time now.

Even he wouldn't want to take the risk of having the power to kill Sailianna outright.

Moreover, Lister's rise to power has only spanned a mere millennium, and his methods of action have always been limited.

No one knows if he has any other unrevealed tricks up his sleeve, or some other alternative method of resurrection.

Xavier didn't want to take any risks until he was completely certain.

They had already decided to cease hostilities and end this World Annihilation War.

His original plan was to keep only three parties: the Machine-Slaying Federation and the Crimson Covenant.

It's a fairly balanced approach; I never considered leaving the Spirit Remains and the Eternal Night behind as well.

Since Lister has said so today, he will accept it for now.

The group of people entered the floating city in a grand procession.

Countless restrictions and self-activated defenses were all eliminated by Crimson Covenant's Binn.

As a power that manipulates contracts, these special methods are practically second nature to them.

However, as the group drew closer, a strange look appeared on their faces.

The entire floating city was completely devoid of any Void Spirit presence; only the Phantoms seemed to retain a faint aura.

Following this aura, the group quickly arrived at a dimly lit hall.

Inside the hall was a very strange altar, and in front of this altar, the body of the Lord of Phantoms sat cross-legged.

The Phantom at this moment felt different from usual; its entire body appeared faintly transparent.

Apart from a few remaining traces of life, there was no other sign of life on its body.

Several senses arose immediately and converged on the Phantom.

Like Lister, he was extremely perceptive of murderous intent.

In just a moment, he noticed something amiss.

The Phantom's body was not in the current universe, but seemed to be in some other dimension.

This transparent body is merely a projection of the void of this other dimension onto the current universe.

And one thing he was certain of was that the Lord of Phantoms was dead.

At the same time, dozens of other bodies inside the hall were also silent.

Compared to the Lord of Phantoms, these bodies were mostly scattered and incomplete, with only a few remaining intact.

In some places, only a pool of blood remained, making it impossible to trace.

"Come out..."

"Is there any need for you to hide from us?"

Ocas curled his lip; the altar area of the entire hall could indeed block a certain degree of perception.

But for these World Annihilation powerhouses, this level of weakening is nothing.

Behind the altar, the auras of three clearly Hegemon remained, constantly and unmistakably present in everyone's perception.

Seeing that the three remained motionless, Ocas immediately broke free of his chains.

In the blink of an eye, the three of them were already bound by chains, kneeling helplessly before the crowd.

"My lords... we... I..."

Even before several powerful auras arrived, the three sensed something was wrong and quickly hid behind the altar.

I didn't dare to harbor any illusions, but as one after another, the World Annihilation powerhouses from various forces arrived and stepped into the city.

There were fifteen World Annihilation in total. This unbelievable scene made the three of them too afraid to move an inch. The oppressive and suffocating feeling that rose from within them kept them standing still.

"Tell me, what's the situation with the Void Spirits Phantoms?"

What are you doing at this altar?

As he asked the question, Ocas shook his head and removed the chains binding the three of them.

They're just three Hegemon... their minds are already shattered with fear, any further measures would only be a waste of time.

"M-Masters."

"Lord Void Spirit and Phantom are leading us to an alternate universe."

Of the three, it was the man whose life force was clearly much stronger who spoke up.

"You mean... all of these people have gone to another universe?"

Upon hearing about the other universe, Xavier became interested and took the initiative to ask a question.

"Your altar space actually possesses such abilities?"

"My lord, only Lord Void Spirit successfully traveled to the other universe..."

"Phantom should have already lost his way... and died in the cracks of another universe."

The existence of alternate-dimensional universes is known to most of the World Annihilation.

Not to mention that their current universe is facing the merging of player universes, and that spectacular merging is still ongoing.

"Weren't these people all trying to die together?"

"That's right!"

"It's because we were a little slow... that's why..."

No one paid any attention to the three men's explanations; they were simply afraid of death.

Even World Annihilation powerhouses struggle to succeed; for these Hegemon to succeed is nothing short of a pipe dream.

Lister was also quite surprised.

In his understanding, especially in the prompts of the job change quest.

Only those who have Fifth Advancement of life form can be considered Cosmic Tier life forms, capable of traversing multiple universes.

And this... the Void Spirits of the Void Corridor were actually able to attempt to step into another universe.

Indeed, races with special talents do have their advantages.

Ocas turned around and glanced at the crowd.

Seeing that no one spoke, he clenched his fist in the air, and a massive amount of Power of the End immediately enveloped the three of them.

Both the body and the soul were annihilated in an instant.

Meanwhile, the world -World Annihilation powerhouses present tacitly divided the spoils, with Lister and Xavier taking the lead.

Silently standing behind both sides, awaiting the impending great battle, which could also be the end of this World Annihilation War.

Lister looked directly at Xavier.

The other person was also looking at him, and the two nodded in tacit agreement.

Xavier spoke first.

"Let us not forget the share that we, the Church, will receive after the Seed of Eternity has matured."

Lister naturally wouldn't forget the contract and rules he signed back then.

And since these issues have been brought up, Xavier's stance has already been made clear.

"No problem."

"What about specific resources?"

"According to the agreement reached with the Emerald Royal Court, some resources can be negotiated separately."

"OK!"

After the brief conversation, Xavier left with a few people from the church.

This World Annihilation War, which initially lasted for decades, actually ended in just one day of actual fighting, and the whole thing ended just as quickly.

Following a casual meeting between Lister and Xavier, a new cosmic order was formed.

Behind them, the Spirit Remains Lord and the Eternal Night King also breathed a sigh of relief.

Especially the Spirit Remains Lord, whose inner turmoil, though originally Lord of Curses and Grudges, would cause Lister to harbor unease.

Things actually went more smoothly than he had expected.

Even if, under the new cosmic order, both sides need to give a portion of their power, including their domestic resources, to the Machine-Slaying Federation, simply surviving would already be a success.

The end of the World Annihilation War was naturally not just a cause for celebration for the remaining few World Annihilation.

The major public galaxies, as well as the Hegemon galaxies, celebrated even more.

After nearly fifty years of suppression, the universe ushered in a new era following the establishment of a tacit understanding between Lister and Xavier.

Countless dormant businesses have revived, Machine-Slaying Federation now enjoys far greater control over the universe than before.

Countless forces place the Machine-Slaying Federation at the top of the universe.

Meanwhile, there were even more excited players.

The World Annihilation War that was mentioned in the Main Quest ended so quickly, with almost no participation from them.

What was initially a worry has now turned into excitement and anticipation.

Furthermore, with the status of the Machine-Slaying Federation, to which they belong, rising once again, an unprecedented sense of exhilaration descended upon them.