Death. Two simple words, yet a term that many fear their entire lives.
When the body can no longer move, when consciousness is no longer clear, when the soul ceases to exist…
When everything one has said and done, all proof of one's existence in the world, is erased, forgotten by the people, and completely forgotten by the world…
Perhaps that is death!
Kiana and Sirin were in such a state right now…
The Tree and the Sea exist in a balanced cycle. Deceased souls return to the system of the Tree, until the world is destroyed and becomes a Bubble Universe that falls into the Sea of Quanta.
The souls are reorganized and reborn in the Sea of Quanta, becoming a part of the Sea. Then, in the cycle of the Tree and Sea, they return to the body of the Tree, becoming newborn beings.
Kiana and Sirin's souls had already shattered. Even if they died in the Sea of Quanta, they would return to the Imaginary Tree.
The Cocoon could do many things; it was a nearly omnipotent god. But as a part of the Tree, openly violating the order and rules of the Tree and Sea went against its own logic, so it chose to call for help.
The massive body of the Cocoon of Finality began to ripple, layer by layer. Its spherical form started to disintegrate and dissipate like melting ice and snow.
The Cocoon's projected avatar in the Sea of Quanta, carrying the bodies of Kiana and Sirin, returned to where its main body resided, back under the true Imaginary Tree.
Beneath the boundlessly vast Imaginary Tree that held up the cosmos, the celestial-sized Cocoon of Finality was as tiny as a grain of rice.
The Cocoon of Finality carried Kiana and Sirin and floated towards the trunk of the Imaginary Tree, to meet its true master, the true "Honkai God."
Sensing the Cocoon of Finality's approach, the Imaginary Tree slowly unfolded its branches, layer by layer, revealing what was wrapped in the core of its trunk…
A figure with closed eyes, hands tightly gripping thousands of timelines, bearing the world's causality on his shoulders, sitting on a dilapidated throne—the true Honkai God—Ryn.
God has no words, God has no thoughts, God has no desires.
Honkai God · Ryn sat with his eyes closed, like a statue, devoid of any signs of life.
As the Cocoon of Finality drew closer and closer to Ryn, its form began to shrink, until it was the size of a normal human eyeball.
Then, the Cocoon of Finality returned to the master who created it, settling into the right eye of Honkai God · Ryn.
The Imaginary Tree began to sway its branches and leaves, thousands of worlds welcoming the awakening of Honkai God · Ryn.
At the same time, a light began to emanate from the Honkai God's body as he slowly released the timelines he held tightly in his hands.
The moment they were released, the timelines began to lose control and vitality. Some even started a countdown to annihilation.
But as the Honkai God opened his eyes, everything was put on pause. The timelines stopped their annihilation, remaining suspended in mid-air.
His dozens of meters of black hair, unkempt for billions of years, trailed behind him like a black abyssal robe as he stood up, adding the blessing and protection of the Imaginary Tree to him.
He had the same face as Tianqi-Ryn, but on his left eye, the bloody scar that ran across half his cheek had transformed, becoming one with his left eye—a blood-red abyss with no sclera, only infinite red light.
One eye, a boundless, blood-red abyss, profound and empty. The other, a cross-shaped star of Finality, ethereal and vast, yet it seemed completely out of place on Ryn.
Honkai God · Ryn extended his hand towards Kiana and Sirin, beckoning their bodies over.
Then, Sirin and Kiana's figures emitted a glow, and the remnants of two shattered Gem of Serenity, broken beyond recognition, were extracted from their bodies by the Honkai God.
The Authority of the Gem of Serenity and the Authority of a Herrscher Core were no different, but one could be forcibly extracted by external forces, while the other could not be removed unless willingly given. The above conclusions were all invalid for the Honkai God.
"Without experiencing life and death, how can one understand their true meaning…"
The Honkai God crushed the Gem of Serenity in his hand, infusing the purest Authority of Life and Death into Kiana and Sirin's bodies.
The power of life erupted within them, granting them bodies of boundless vitality, capable of regenerating from a single drop of blood.
The power of death rampaged through them, destroying their bodies completely, returning them to chaos.
The forces of life and death cycled endlessly, a perpetual yin-yang loop, until Kiana and Sirin's bodies were forged to be eternal and indestructible, coeval with heaven and earth.
The physical part was resolved. Next was the soul.
Honkai God · Ryn turned to look at the Imaginary Tree, existing between illusion and reality, boundlessly vast, bearing all things.
Then, he reached out his hand to the tree.
"Same as always. Give it to me."
Without another word, the Imaginary Tree decisively broke off one of its own massive branches and placed it in Ryn's hand.
As soon as the countless leaves on the branch were separated from the tree, they began to rapidly lose their vitality, marching towards death.
Each leaf on the branch represented a world, the twigs holding the leaves were perpetually advancing timelines, and each branch carried a number of twigs far beyond what could be described by numbers…
"Thirty million jing of main worlds… why are you always so fast…"
Honkai God · Ryn shot the tree a look, then, without batting an eye, plunged the branch into his own body.
The moment the branch pierced Ryn's body, it transformed into timelines similar to the ones he had held before, beginning to draw on Ryn's life force to maintain the operation of the countless worlds on the timelines, preventing them from heading towards destruction.
Afterward, Honkai God · Ryn extracted the soul fragments of Sirin and Kiana that had already integrated into these worlds, gathered them together, and reversed their time, returning them to the moment before they were shattered, erased, and killed.
Thus, Kiana and Sirin were resurrected.
Honkai God · Ryn plucked out his own right eyeball again, tossing the Cocoon of Finality along with Kiana and Sirin back to the prime world.
Then, Honkai God · Ryn shook his head and sat back down on the throne the Imaginary Tree had prepared for him.
Grabbing hold of the densely packed timelines, Honkai God · Ryn tied them to his body, continuing to act as a vessel, bearing the weight of thousands of timelines.
Honkai God Ryn closed his left eye, while his right, long devoid of an eyeball, stared emptily into the distance.
Only when the Imaginary Tree closed its branches, completely enveloping him within its body,
did he close his right eye.
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