Was that a projection in the mirror, or a fantasy buried in the deepest recesses of memory?
Reality and illusion were impossible to distinguish.
The instant the silver mirror appeared, everything seemed as fleeting as a bubble. Only the woman who glanced back from within the mirror raised her hand and reached toward Woodman on the gallows.
Crossing the boundary between reality and illusion, breaking through an age-long stretch of time.
It touched his forehead.
Such a gentle touch brought a terrifying impact like Falling Stars.
An invisible storm erupted from that slender, fair index finger. Huai Shi's vision went black, and countless consciousnesses within his soul jolted involuntarily for an instant, nearly splitting him into hundreds or thousands of Huai Shis again.
He instinctively stepped back.
But the illusion vanished in an instant.
Then came a shrill, miserable scream, piercingly high.
The dying Beast of Original Sin howled and roared.
An invisible storm rose.
To Huai Shi, it had only been an impact that forced him back one step. But in Woodman's eyes, it had become a terrifying torrent that devoured the entire world.
Before that single finger, a faint ripple spread outward, casually setting off endless Chain Reactions. Drawing in the lingering calamity and scattered Source Matter in the air, the invisible storm condensed into form.
Throughout the entire Present Realm domain, the Ascenders tainted and eroded by The Solidifier let out mournful cries at once. They felt the phantom pain of icy scalpels piercing their skulls. Then, involuntarily, they sank into an unseen warm current.
Strands of dim original sin rose from their corrupted souls and flew into the distance, where they were purified and annihilated.
But to Woodman, that warm current was like lava, swallowing him whole.
It was as if a nuclear bomb had exploded