As the light of day faded, Linley squinted, initially blinded by the glare.
Ten years. It has been a full ten years since he entered the Necropolis of the Gods from the Dark Forest. Desri, Olivier, Fain, Tulilei beside him are all dressed in tattered clothes, but their brows all carry the calm of someone who has survived.
Outside the Dark Forest, someone was already waiting. Delia stood at the forefront. Ten years had not left a trace on her face, only her eyes, when they looked over, were deeper and brighter than before.
" Linley." She called out only this once, but her voice trembled slightly.
Linley stepped forward and took her hand. His palm was warm, as if ten years had been nothing more than a long dream.
Bebe jumped off his shoulder, circled Delia twice, then looked up and sniffed her sleeve. "Sister-in-law, did you bring me anything to eat?"
In one sentence, ten years of unfamiliarity were completely dispelled.
Wharton, Barker, Sessler, and others came to greet him. Linley patted them on the shoulder one by one, but his gaze kept drifting towards the depths of the Dark Forest —where another door remained unopened.
"Grandpa Doehring hasn't come out yet?"
Beirut stood with his hands behind his back, and said calmly, "The Gate of Deity Level is not on the same path as you. How far it can go depends entirely on its own destiny."
As they were talking, a very slight tremor suddenly came from the depths of the Dark Forest. An earthy yellow light slowly rose from the ground, as if millions of tons of earth element held their breath at the same moment.
A figure in moon-white emerged step by step from the darkness.
White hair, white beard, long robe. Doehring Cowart.
Linley immediately noticed the difference— Doehring's divine power was several times thicker than before he entered the tomb, and with each step he took, the soil beneath his feet seemed to come alive, subtly harmonizing with his breath.
" The Midgod."
A flicker of surprise crossed Beirut's eyes, which quickly turned into a smile, "Good. This trip to the cemetery wasn't in vain."
Doehring walked closer, glanced at Linley first, then at Delia, and finally at Bebe, laughing, "Ten years have passed, and you haven't grown at all, you little thing."
"Grandpa Doehring!" Bebe cheered and jumped onto Doehring's shoulder.
Doehring reached out and stroked its head before looking at Linley with gentle eyes. "You've grown up."
Linley's throat tightened; a thousand words, in the end, boiled down to just one. "Mm."
Upon returning to the Baruch Kingdom, Linley did not rest but went straight into the secret chamber beneath Dragonblood Castle.
Through the transparent dimensional membrane, the colorful Spatial Turbulence flowed silently. Linley sat cross-legged, closed his eyes, and the three virtual sword shadows in his mind reappeared.
The Profound Truths of Velocity: fast, slow, and profound.
Ten years later, in the Necropolis of the Gods, he was driven to the brink of despair in the Blade Demon's lair, and finally unleashed Blade of Dimension with the power of having no sword. At that moment, the wind was no longer about speed, but about the sharpness that cut through space itself.
Now, he is going to take this path to its end.
Time passed day by day. Outside the secret chamber, Doehring stood with his hands behind his back in front of the stone house, and he stood there for half a year. No one dared to disturb him. Even Bebe would just squat on the treetop at a distance, glancing at the tightly closed door from time to time.
"It will be soon," Doehring suddenly said one day, though it was unclear to whom he was speaking.
The moment the words left his mouth, the world suddenly changed.
A vast and ancient power descended from the depths of the sky, piercing through mountains and rocks, and penetrating deep into the underground chamber. Linley's entire body was lifted up by that power, suspended in mid-air, and the wind elements around him frantically gathered, condensing into visible streams of azure energy.
" The Laws of the Universe."
Doehring looked up, a deep sense of satisfaction rising in his eyes. This scene was exactly the same as when he had suddenly comprehended the Earth Element Profound Mysteries in the Coiling Dragon Ring and became a god on his own.
Achieving godhood through sheer effort.
In Linley's mind, the sword representing the Profound Truths of Velocity had now completely evolved into the sharpness of Dimension. His soul was split in two under the baptism of the Laws of the Universe, one part remaining in his original body, and the other part, wrapped in endless Wind Divine Power, condensing into a brand new Divine Clone.
Wind Element Lowgod Spark, achieved!
A moment later, the Laws of the Universe dissipated. Linley opened his eyes and felt that the whole world was several times clearer. Even the slightest fluctuations in the Spatial Turbulence could not escape his perception.
He got up and pushed open the door to the secret room.
Outside the door, the sunlight was just right. Doehring stood with his hands behind his back, smiling as he looked at him.
"Grandpa Doehring, I've become a god."
"I know," Doehring said, " Wind Element. In the end, you still chose the path of wind."