A serpentine mark appeared on the Light Screen as Kevin, Lord of World Serpent, made his entrance: humanity's strongest warrior and the Holy Mark Plan

This message was not sent to anyone.

It's as if I'm speaking to Otto, and also as if I'm speaking to my past self who was trapped in the Cultivation Pod.

She sheathed her sword and turned to walk towards her companion.

No one calls her K-423 anymore.

No one asked her to prove who she was anymore.

She is just Kiana.

A person who personally defeated the Creator, severed the fate of tools, and took the future into his own hands.

The Dragon God slowly opened his eyes.

"From this day forward, she is no longer a manufactured life."

The Dragon Prince gazed at the departing figure and said in a deep voice, "She is the one who has achieved self-realization."

Zhou Weiqing grinned.

"True freedom is being able to defeat even the one who created her!"

A'Dai didn't laugh.

He gazed at the final image frozen on the Light Screen and whispered:

She didn't beat Otto.

She won against the world that once told her, 'You can only be something else.'

Tang Wulin clenched his fists, his eyes resolute.

"And her future has only just begun."

Just then, the last line of text appeared at the top of the screen.

Please remember.

Freedom is not about forgetting where you came from.

[But rather, knowing where they came from, they still have the courage to decide where they are going.]

The sword light in the starry sky has not yet faded.

Kiana stood on the shattered platform, the last specks of light left by Otto still slowly dissipating around her. She had finally severed the number "K-423" and confessed her hatred.

Everyone thought the story would end here.

However, just as she turned to walk towards her companions, a deep rumble suddenly came from the depths of the Light Screen.

The sound wasn't loud, but it seemed to come from the ends of the earth.

A jet-black, serpentine symbol slowly emerged in the center of the starry sky.

The screen, which had gone dark, lit up again.

The passing of Otto Apocalypse does not signify the arrival of peace.

[In another shadow, a grander, colder plan has been initiated.]

[World Serpent Lord... Kevin.]

[Humanity's strongest warrior.]

[Holy Mark Plan has officially entered the execution phase.]

"What?"

Xu Sanshi clenched his fist again the moment he loosened it.

"Otto has already been defeated, so how can there be even bigger trouble?"

He Caitou stared at the snake-shaped mark, his expression grave.

"If this assessment is accurate, then everything Otto did before was likely just some kind of regional conflict."

Bei Bei nodded slowly.

"One person wanting to change the world and a group of people aiming to change all of humanity are completely different concepts."

Tang Ya's expression also changed.

"Aiming at the goal of all humanity? That doesn't sound like a good thing."

The next moment, a dark base appeared on the screen.

Countless cool-colored lights were arranged in an interlaced pattern, and the metal walls were engraved with serpentine patterns. Figures dressed in black armor stood on both sides of the corridor, silent as a shadow.

At the end of the corridor, a man stood with his back to the crowd.

He had long, pale hair, a tall and imposing figure, and a chill emanated from him, even causing the air in the scene to freeze into frost.

That face showed neither anger nor joy.

There was only a kind of indifference that seemed to have settled down after witnessing countless years.

[Kevin.]

[The strongest warrior of the Moth to Fire.]

[Once, Finality to protect humanity.]

[Now, he has become the supreme ruler of the World Serpent.]

[Bearing the fate of all humanity, they attempt to find a final path to survival for humankind through the Holy Mark Plan.]

"The strongest warrior..."

Tang Wulin frowned.

"Just standing there, I felt an extremely dangerous aura."

Gu Yuena looked at Kevin in the picture, her silver eyes slightly narrowed.

That's not just simple power.

He carried too much on his shoulders.

Tang San remained silent for a moment before saying, "For a powerful individual to abandon personal emotions and use the survival of their entire race as the sole criterion for judgment, it often means that they have witnessed an irreversible catastrophe."

Huo Yuhao said softly, "But once only the 'result' is left, it's easy to overlook what might be sacrificed in the process."

The scene changes.

Kevin stood on a huge circular platform, with Star Map composed of countless points of light floating in front of him.

Each point of light represents a person.

There were elderly people, children, soldiers, and ordinary residents.

The light spot changes color continuously according to a certain pattern.

[Holy Mark Plan: The Selection of All Humanity.]

Those Aptitude will be granted the right to continue living.

Those Aptitude will be eliminated.

A few short lines of text plunged the entire viewing space into a deathly silence.

Ning Rongrong's face turned slightly pale.

"Screening all of humanity?"

Ning Tian couldn't help but ask, "Who decides whether someone is qualified or not? Kevin? The World Serpent?"

"If the answer is yes, then this plan was never meant to save humanity from the start," Dai Hao said coldly, "But rather to place the lives of all mankind in the hands of a few."

The Emperor slammed his hand heavily on the armrest of his chair on a snowy night.

"Absurd! Even an empire cannot arbitrarily decide which of its subjects should live and which should die!"

Niu Tian snorted coldly.

"Trying to treat everyone as disposable material—what's the fundamental difference between that and Otto treating Kiana as a tool?"

"There's a difference," Tai Tan said in a deep voice. "Otto wanted to use one person, Kevin wanted to use everyone."

These words felt like a huge boulder weighing on everyone's hearts.

In the Light Screen, Kevin finally turned around.

His gaze swept over the points of light representing humanity, his voice calm and undisturbed.

"If some people must be sacrificed for the continuation of humanity."

"Therefore, someone has to make this choice."

"Not for glory."

"It's not for power."

"Simply because there is no other way."

"This guy..." Xu Sanshi opened his mouth, but for the first time didn't immediately utter a sarcastic remark.

Xiao Xiao looked at him.

"What's wrong?"

"I don't know whether to scold him or understand him." Xu Sanshi scratched his head. "He sounds incredibly cold, but he seems to genuinely believe he's saving people."

Bei Bei glanced at him.

"The truly dangerous ones are often not those who believe they are doing evil."

"But rather, it's about people who believe that this is the only way they can do it."

Tian Hen gazed at the Star Map in the picture, his expression gradually becoming solemn.

"The core of Holy Mark Plan is not killing, but selection."

"It attempts to identify those among humanity capable of withstanding future catastrophes, while excluding the rest."

Ye Yinyin... no, Ye Yinzhu frowned slightly and continued, "But humans are not a set of quantifiable numbers. Whether a person is qualified to live cannot be judged solely by their current strength."

Zi said in a low voice, "We can't just look at whether he meets a certain standard."

Rong Nianbing crossed her arms over her chest.

Kevin believes in absolute rationality.

"But humanity has come this far not solely because of reason."

Lie Yan looked up at the Light Screen.

"There are still concerns, choices, and the willingness to believe in each other even in dire straits."

In the scene, the Star Map of Holy Mark Plan suddenly flickered violently.

Many points of light were stained gray and then disappeared from the Star Map.