Return! Destiny Descends Here! (Seeking Follow-up Reads)

"..."

The voice fell silent for a long time.

Just as Bai Zhou began to wonder if it had vanished entirely—

A thunderous explosion erupted from the sky.

The deathly sky light was torn asunder.

From the inverted Giant City in the heavens, a pillar of light projected straight down onto the desolate wasteland.

Something shadowed descended from above.

Following this, a massive sandstorm rose on the horizon, churning like muddy waves against the sky with magnificent momentum.

"What is that..."

Bai Zhou widened his eyes, staring at the sandstorm rising on the horizon.

But he soon froze in place, his scalp tingling.

With the rhythmic echo of hoofbeats, a towering Skeleton Pegasus with bony wings tore through the air.

Its hooves trod upon the void, sending ripples through the air, while ghostly green fire burned within its Eye Sockets. Astride its back sat an Undead General clad in decaying armor.

The general's skeletal visage was exceptionally ferocious, and as the war banner behind him fluttered, a Thousand Armies of undead cavalry followed closely in his wake.

The dense, dark army swept across the sky, their rumbling echoes as vast as thunder. The Thousand Armies blotted out the sun, appearing like a cloud of deathly white bones.

—Where was there any sandstorm?

What accompanied that heavy, oppressive might was not a storm at all, but a charging legion of a thousand horses!

"Where did this Undead Army come from!"

Under the Blood Moon, the terrifying monsters swarmed like a plague of flies, sweeping across the sky above the ruined wasteland.

They surged forward with aggressive momentum.

The horrifying sight made Bai Zhou draw a sharp breath, cold sweat instantly soaking his entire body.

For a moment, he didn't even know where to run.

—What does it feel like for a person in the wasteland to encounter a cavalry legion thundering toward them?

—And what if this cavalry legion is riding flying horses that can soar through the air?

Bai Zhou frantically calculated in his mind the approximate time he had been here.

If he remembered correctly, it should be soon...

Suddenly, Bai Zhou frowned and rubbed his eyes in disbelief.

Then, his scalp felt as if it were exploding.

—No, it's not a Thousand Armies!

It was that Undead General riding the Skeleton Pegasus, holding a long whip in his hand.

The whip extended infinitely, like a terrifying, winding serpent, piercing through the chests of a thousand desiccated Corpses, stringing them together like candied haws on a stick.

These dried corpses had stiff limbs and frozen expressions, dragged through the sky by the whip as if they were dolls hung out to dry.

At this moment, they bobbed their heads along with the general's movements, their armor clanking, appearing at first glance as if they were marching.

Yet, from time to time, weapons or bone fragments would fall with a rustle, creating a "bony drizzle" wherever they passed.

He just dragged those thousand corpses along, flying majestically through the sky.

"Pass on my command!"

"Halt the entire army!!"

The Undead General issued his order with a pretentious air, as if he didn't know that behind him were merely a thousand lifeless corpses being dragged along.

"Whoa—"

He proudly reined in his warhorse, his back straight, as if he truly had a thousand armies behind him.

Then, he raised the long blade in his hand and pointed it from afar at Bai Zhou.

The hoarse, low voice was unmistakably that of the person who had spoken earlier.

Yet, he insisted on using that voice to shout in a heroically contradictory tone, making it sound incredibly awkward and unsettling—

"Little general, what is your name?"

The good news: there was no Thousand Armies.

The bad news: a monster more terrifying than a thousand armies had charged over.

And its brain seemed to be quite abnormal!

...But upon seeing this person for the first time, Bai Zhou instantly solved two questions that had been circling in his mind.

He had always wondered why this ancient battlefield ruin contained only discarded armor but almost no corpses.

Now he saw it: they were all strung up on this Undead General's whip.

What kind of hobby was this?

It was hard to imagine how long it had taken him to collect these remains.

It was even harder to imagine the terrifying sight of him dragging this massive chain of mummified skeletons through the sky and underground every single day, a colossal procession rumbling back and forth across the heavens.

--As for the second thing, it was the final piece of the puzzle for the Corpse Pit's last will.

He finally knew exactly where that missing piece was.

--Because, hovering above the head of this mentally unstable Undead General, was the very same scarlet last will that Bai Zhou knew all too well:

[Let Me Rest!]

This last will was identical to the dozen or so he had seen at the Corpse Pit; it was the exact same style.

But the one above the Undead General's head was redder, brighter, and even red to the point of turning black... as if it were the sum of a thousand last wills.

"Fool Who Digs the Earth."

"I acknowledge your character, and I acknowledge your existence."

Seeing that Bai Zhou remained silent, the Undead General simply dismounted, held his blade, and slowly descended from the sky toward Bai Zhou.

Beads of sweat appeared on Bai Zhou's forehead as he retreated again and again.

So, you can fly even without your horse?

Walking on air, no less...

The Undead General raised his blade toward the sky and spoke in a low, hoarse voice:

"Surely, you must be the one I have been waiting for."

"--I imagine you must have come looking for me, too?"

"Come! Defeat me! Use my bones as the altar for your ascension!"

"And... help me find release!"

He had finally stated his purpose with solemnity.

As he spoke these words, the scarlet last will above his head flickered frantically.

This was a formal prayer issued by the Deceased.

Once fulfilled, that line of text would surely shatter.

Even the dozen or so last wills buried below would shatter along with it.

At that moment, Bai Zhou would receive an unimaginably generous reward in one fell swoop.

But...

"Me? Defeat you?"

Bai Zhou blinked his clear eyes.

Who said I came looking for you? I don't even know you, brother...

Does this ghostly thing that attacked me out of nowhere even know what he's talking about?

Even Laia, that little girl who could only "glow," became the Goddess of Light in later generations.

What kind of background could a monster like you possibly have...

In the Undead General's hand, the gleaming long blade sliced through the dim night sky, its violet gold luster shimmering brilliantly.

The purple gem embedded at the end of the hilt provided a constant stream of translucent violet light, which clung to the edge of the blade.

--It was practically screaming the words "Extraordinary Weapon" into everyone's face!

And it was a blade, too!

Bench legs, mechanical spear-guns cobbled together from scrap metal, and half a flagpole...

This was the first time Bai Zhou had seen an Extraordinary Weapon in the shape of a blade, other than the one Ya carried!

It looked incredibly powerful.

Unfortunately... it was untouchable.

Because this ghostly thing was about to use it to chop off his own head...

A chill crept up Bai Zhou's neck, colder even than when he had first seen the portrait of Louis XVI.

"I have to say, those two black sockets of yours have really mistaken me for someone else."

Bai Zhou ducked his head and waved his hands repeatedly.

However, the Undead General remained deaf and blind to his words.

One must wonder if that mad Skeleton's head lacks visual and auditory systems entirely.

Those hollow eye sockets and ear cavities might only serve to vent air, otherwise, how could he be so caught up in his own monologue—

"Come, a fair duel!"

"I shall not let the Thousand Armies behind me intervene."

"And you, may unleash your full potential!"

A terrifying aura radiated from the Undead General in all directions; the gravel on the ground trembled of its own accord, and a ghostly green light shot from his body straight into the sky.

He did not even seem to belong to the same art style as Bai Zhou, who stood on the ground clutching a Mechanical Spear-Gun and a Short Club.

Yet, they stood there, confronting each other across the distance.

"Make your move! You first."

He said this, his blade held at a slant.

He's even talking about fairness... if I didn't know better, I'd really think you had an army at your command.

Bai Zhou truly could not see where the fairness lay, his heart filled with silent complaints.

Too fair.

As long as it is one-on-one, it is fair; any other disparity is not worth mentioning.

He felt that this Skeleton had become completely immersed in his own General cosplay game, unable to extricate himself.

—A rather self-absorbed, maniacal commander.

He was performing the role of a textbook villainous general—one skilled at marking others for death—to perfection.

But on the surface, Bai Zhou could only face the Undead with an expressionless mask, playing along with his game.

Stalling for time, it was almost time...

Fortunately, the Undead General insisted on waiting for him to strike first... this gave Bai Zhou an opening.

—As long as Bai Zhou did not attack, the opponent would wait for him to do so for the time being.

During this interval, Bai Zhou was temporarily safe.

At this moment, Bai Zhou gripped his weapons tightly, his face solemn, as if he were contemplating the perfect moment to strike.

But in reality, he was nervous, his muscles tense, entirely focused on stalling for time.

Three seconds later, Bai Zhou finally waited for it...

"Dong—"

Above his head, the Inverted Giant City in the sky.

Just like last time, at exactly Zero Points, the thousand bells chimed in unison once more.

The goal of stalling for time was achieved at this moment.

[Jurassic Pass], activate!

In the next instant, Time seemed to freeze.

Holding the cute Wooden Horse, Bai Zhou let out a long breath.

"See you next time!"

He waved at the Undead General, who remained frozen in place with a look of confusion.

Time to make a run for it!

In the blink of an eye, golden light swallowed him whole.

The scene before his eyes shifted abruptly.

The surroundings transformed back into the warm and familiar Dormitory.

The familiar and comforting scent of coffee, mixed with a faint aroma of oranges, wafted toward him.

Ya approached, her pupils widening slightly.

Those Ruby-like Eyes reflected the disheveled figure of the Youth, his clothes in tatters.

Even his undershirt was only half-remaining, heaven knows where the rest had gone.

...At first glance, Bai Zhou looked quite pathetic, as if he had just returned from scavenging.

But Ya remembered clearly—

When Bai Zhou went to the Reflection Ruins Realm, he only carried the Mechanical Spear-Gun.

Upon his return, he was clutching a strange little Wooden Horse, and his left hand held an extra Short Club.

They were clearly two comical props that looked like circus magic tricks, yet Ya smelled an unusual scent emanating from them.

Mysterious items...?

Furthermore, it seemed as if some indescribable and strange change had occurred within Bai Zhou himself.

--Had he actually gone to the Reflection Ruins Realm and found a way to deal with Deputy Han?

--Could someone really manifest whatever they desired?

The words she had used earlier to urge Bai Zhou to abandon his delusions still rang in her ears, but now...

Ya's ears felt hot.

Hotter than when she had first touched fire as an Extraordinary.

She did not understand.

She was incredibly curious.

"You..."

Ya looked Bai Zhou up and down, shaking her head from time to time, and said with great uncertainty:

"Did you go out to restock?"

Then, faced with Bai Zhou's innocent and clear gaze, Ya sighed.

She finally realized that she had to admit...

That she, the Destined One who was nominally supposed to be favored by fate, might be a fake.

"And you, you are the true Destined One, Bai Zhou."

...Is the ritual of converting Romantic Luck into Career Luck really that effective?

Should I try it next time, too?

Ya thought suspiciously.

But, because of this, she gained confidence in Bai Zhou for tomorrow night.

To go to the Reflection Ruins Realm twice and come back with two hauls.

Such a thing... she had never heard of it before.

Perhaps it was Bai Zhou's desire for revenge that had made fate respond.

--But what could explain this better than that?

Destiny had descended upon this place.

The one favored by destiny would be invincible.

Ya felt that...

--Perhaps, this time.

Luck was truly on Bai Zhou's side.