A transcendent light enveloped everything. Immense pressure surged from all directions, crashing like ocean waves.

The Demon Spirit Queen was immediately forced back by Elena’s unsheathed sword, but the fight was not over.

The sword light, accompanied by the sound of clashing metal, sliced through everything around them.

The fire dragon, stretching for dozens of meters, was instantly shattered into countless fragments.

Elena gripped her sword tightly in one hand, her movements both direct and intense.

Then, she raised the sword upright before her, holding it steady.

Pressing two fingers together, she ran them along the blade in what looked like a pre-battle ritual.

“You acted too hastily,” she said.

“It was because you believed you were not as strong as I am.”

“But in reality, this is not about strength. It is because you believed you would certainly lose.”

“The strong do not always win, and the weak do not always lose.”

“You must find your opponent’s weakness and use minimal force to defeat the strongest enemy.”

“Victory is not decided until the final moment.”

Elena’s gaze was incredibly sharp. “Battle tests not just courage or fearlessness in the face of death,” she said. “It also tests your confidence in yourself.”

“Courage can be summoned. Fearlessness of death is common. But confidence in yourself is the key.”

The Demon Spirit Queen froze upon hearing these words.

She seemed to have heard them before, taught to her by the very person standing before her long, long ago.

“You told me this before,” the Queen said.

“But just like all the principles you taught me…”

“…I was never able to learn them.”

“I could never let go, never release my grip, never see things clearly.”

The Demon Spirit Queen continued, “I am not a sage’s disciple. I do not understand so many truths.”

“I am not a divine apostle either, so I receive no guidance from the divine.”

“I am just one of the People of the Abyss.”

“A mortal, insignificant in the eyes of the divine and the powerful, like you.”

With that, the Demon Spirit Queen charged forward again.

Lines of light flowed across the queen’s armor and merged with the entire realm, which began to transform once more.

“Domain control!”

The Ghost Realm expanded as the entire world began to spin.

The temple flipped upside down, the floor becoming the ceiling.

Elena fell from her high position.

Seizing the opportunity, ethereal shadows with the same outline as the Demon Spirit Queen emerged from her body to attack Elena.

Every shadow surged with transcendent power and carried a divine technique.

Normally, her power would allow her to release only one such shadow, but within this Ghost Realm, she seemed to produce them endlessly.

This phantasmal and strange realm amplified the Demon Spirit Queen’s power far beyond what she could normally control.

Elena fell from above, thrusting her sword again and again as she descended.

Her movements appeared slow, yet she destroyed each rapidly approaching shadow, performing what looked like a mystical sword dance in mid-air.

By the time she landed, the last shadow had vanished.

At that moment, the entire temple flipped again.

The Demon Spirit Queen held her sword with both hands, completely ignoring gravity as she stepped on stone pillars and walls to attack Elena.

Elena followed the temple’s rotation, bracing a hand against the wall and easily landing on a pillar.

The pillar, which had once stood upright, now lay horizontally like a beam.

Elena balanced herself on this newly formed beam.

The Demon Spirit Queen charged at her again, this time using a frost divine technique.

Frost swirled around her sword, spreading across the temple and encasing it in ice. Freezing crystals crept along the ground, reaching Elena’s feet and slowly climbing toward her upper body.

But Elena stood motionless. She raised her sword with one hand, bringing a terrifying pressure down toward the Demon Spirit Queen.

“Pressure!”

A small sword moved with precision. With just that one word, it carried the weight of a mountain.

As the sword fell, the air seemed to ripple and bend. An invisible force lifted sand particles from the ground as if gravity itself had shifted.

Boom!

The Demon Spirit Queen was blasted away, dragging layers of stone slabs with her as she flew outside the temple.

As she was thrown back, pieces of her armor shattered.

Her silver helmet cracked, opening a large gap that revealed her metallic face.

Elena chased after her, stepping out of the temple and soaring into the air.

She jumped hundreds of meters high to stand in mid-air, looking down at the Demon Spirit Queen, who had been knocked down the stairs.

The Demon Spirit Queen refused to surrender and once again began channeling the power of the realm.

“Demon Spirit Domain!” As she declared the Ghost Realm’s complete name, the pyramid glowed with intense light.

“Demon Spirit King!” The wounded puppet began to grow larger, transforming into a towering metal demon spirit that resembled a colossal metal monster striding across the land.

The metal puppet roared as it charged toward Elena.

Elena pointed her sword forward, and a hundred-meter-tall metal titan rose from the ground.

The metal giant did not appear instantly.

First, a massive hand shot out, breaking through the darkness and crawling out from nothingness.

The metal giant had a streamlined body and appeared extremely agile, gripping a silver spear that exuded power.

“Destroy!”

Facing the charging demon spirit puppet, the metal giant did not rush forward.

Instead, it stepped forward, drew back its shoulder, and thrust its spear.

The spear struck the metal puppet’s shoulder, piercing straight through it.

Despite the damage, the enormous demon spirit puppet wrapped its arms around the metal giant, locking it in a tight embrace.

This life-or-death struggle revealed the Demon Spirit Queen’s true identity as one of the People of the Abyss.

The two members of the Sal family clashed in a fierce battle outside the temple.

Although the Demon Spirit Queen’s power was immense and constantly renewed, it could not withstand Elena’s strength. It was like mud trying to resist stone.

Her power scattered upon impact, surging from all directions but failing to break through Elena’s defense.

Elena appeared to be testing the Demon Spirit Queen’s power, examining the limits of the Demon Spirit Pyramid’s strength.

Finally, she stood on the metal titan’s shoulder and swung her sword forward.

“Divine Grace!”

“Mental Domain!”

A powerful mental domain spread outward from her and the metal titan, colliding fiercely with the Demon Spirit Domain.

Hundreds of weapons materialized behind Elena and the metal titan, descending from the sky with divine precision.

The weapons covered the sky as they pierced the demon spirit puppet, pinning it to the ground.

More importantly, the mental domain severed the connection between the Demon Spirit Domain and the Demon Spirit Queen, preventing her from receiving power from the Demon Spirit Pyramid.

Instantly, the giant demon spirit puppet that had been charging forward lost its momentum.

Its size continuously shrank until it finally collapsed on the ground.

Through their previous encounter, Elena had figured out the power of the Demon Spirit Pyramid.

It matched the exact design she had seen in the ghost’s memory.

Elena wasted no time and prepared for her final attack.

Standing atop the metal titan, she gazed down at the puppet, now powerless without the Demon Spirit Pyramid’s strength.

“Have you forgotten?”

“The Demon Spirit Pyramid was designed by me.”

The Demon Spirit Queen reverted to her original form, looking as if she had fallen apart.

She struggled to rise from the ground. Her left arm appeared to be immobilized, and her movements were clumsy.

But she still refused to admit defeat.

She removed her shattered silver helmet and charged toward Elena and the metal titan.

The scene was like Don Quixote charging at windmills. It was utterly absurd.

The Demon Spirit Queen gripped her sword tightly in one hand and dashed toward the metal titan’s feet. In her small form, she swung her sword with all her might, striking the towering metal giant.

Seeing her in such a state, Elena’s heart ached deeply.

She said softly, “That’s enough.”

But the Demon Spirit Queen ignored her, continuing to block her path and blocking the giant metal titan from advancing.

As if this act alone could restore everything. Yet, perhaps everything had already been lost, leaving behind nothing but fleeting illusions.

Even she herself had perished 250 million years ago, only to repeat her life as another puppet that inherited her obsession.

Clank!

Clank!

Clank!

In the dark world, the temple stood silent and empty. The stairs, adorned with intricate reliefs, stretched upward into the shadows.

A puppet with one immobile arm swung the other, using a toothpick-like sword to hack at the godlike divine grace puppet.

Each strike used all her strength.

Her movements were exaggerated, making her appear overly serious, but the result was unintentionally comical.

Soon, there was a faint sound.

Clank!

The sword broke into two pieces. The Demon Spirit Queen froze, looking uncertain and hesitant.

The puppet, typically silent, released a loud cry that echoed through the darkness.

Ah!

Then she charged at the metal giant before her.

Suddenly, Elena appeared behind the Demon Spirit Queen.

She grabbed her by the neck with one hand.

“I said, enough.”

Elena gripped her sword hilt with one hand, easily blocking the broken sword in the Demon Spirit Queen’s hand.

“What meaning is there in this endless cycle? In continuing this over and over?”

“We’re all already dead. Everything has disappeared. Nothing can be salvaged.”

“For the sake of an obsession, would you make your husband, Ray, yourself, and everyone else, along with all their ghosts, repeat this hopeless cycle again and again?”

The Demon Spirit Queen stood motionless, seemingly giving up the struggle.

The broken puppet, held in the arms of the towering Elena, leaned directly against her.

She seemed willing to die by the other’s hand.

At least this way, she would not have to see the Abyss Kingdom crumble. She would not have to face the emptiness left behind after countless years of waiting.

The Demon Spirit Queen wanted to cry, to let out uncontrollable sobs.

However, this body was incapable of expressing any emotion or shedding tears.

“But…”

“This is all we have left.”

“We can have nothing more. All we have is this darkness.”

“We are nothing more than illusory selves in a world filled with despair.”

“If all we can possess is despair and illusion, should we just die?”

The puppet screamed with all her might, unable to accept any of this.

“No!”

“Even if it is fake, even if it is a dream, even if it means enduring eternal pain and loneliness with no future or hope…”

“I still want to hold onto it.”

“I still want to grip it tightly and never let go.”

But in the end, the Demon Spirit Queen’s voice gradually softened.

Her voice was so sorrowful it was barely audible.

“Because… this is all we have left.”

“This is our last possession. How can we just watch it dissipate?”

Elena embraced the Demon Spirit Queen, placing a hand on the queen’s face.

She stared straight ahead, her thoughts unreadable.

Finally, she released her grip, allowing the Demon Spirit Queen to collapse to the ground.

She walked step by step toward the temple heights, looking at the Demon Spirit Pyramid she had designed herself.

She entered the temple.

In the center of the temple, a light slowly rose.

This was the core of the Demon Spirit Pyramid: the Undying Spirit.

【Divine Artifact: Demon Spirit Pyramid】

【Sequence Number 10】

【Ability 1 Wisdom Circuit: The Demon Spirit Pyramid can bestow wisdom circuit structures upon monster bodies. This secret technique originates from the Anhofus Bone Demon Transformation Secret regarding bone demon brain circuits, allowing lower-tier monster body structures to accommodate wisdom.】

【Ability 2 Undying Spirit: The Demon Spirit Pyramid incorporates fragments of the Bottle of Original Sin, gathering over eight thousand ghosts to form the Undying Spirit. The Undying Spirit can continuously ignite demon spirit consciousness, restarting the cycle of life.】

【Ability 3 Demon Spirit Domain: The Demon Spirit Pyramid forms a special ghost realm that houses ghosts. All demon spirits cannot leave the area covered by the Demon Spirit Domain’s power. The Demon Spirit Domain possesses powerful transcendent force and can also contain and store power.】

She looked at the light, finally making her decision.

She turned to look at the motionless puppet lying on the ground, seemingly dead.

Elena appeared both helpless and relieved at the same time.

“If this is nothing more than an illusory dream,”

“Then let me stay by your side within it.”

“No matter what kind of dream this is,”

“Beautiful or nightmarish.”

“If we are all just false puppets, whether it’s me, you, or everyone in this city,”

“Then let us false puppets perform a play called the Abyss Kingdom, at least to tell others that we once existed.”

Elena looked at everything.

It was so similar to the magic bottle that once imprisoned the Little Person in the Bottle.

Except that bottle had imprisoned a man-made mythological monster.

This one, however, imprisoned the reflection of a civilization, a group of ghosts that could find no release.

Elena shook her head and said, “But at the very least, let us stop tormenting our own ghosts and our past.”

Outside the temple, ghost after ghost appeared from the reliefs.

They seemed to sense something, for they all raised their heads toward the temple.

Elena pressed her hand to her forehead.

A light surged from it, the light of divine grace.

Within the Demon Spirit Domain, beneath the towering pyramid

One ghost after another emerged. The former People of the Abyss walked out from reliefs, statues, and pillars to stand outside the hall.

Dense crowds of ghosts emerged from their confusion, lifting their heads to gaze upward.

It was as if they were waiting for something, filled with anticipation.

Among them was Elena’s own ghost.

Elena’s ghost walked in from outside and entered the temple.

The person and the ghost stood side by side, neither speaking.

The Demon Spirit Queen seemed to sense something as well. She struggled to her feet, her gaze lifting toward the stairs. From her position, however, she could see nothing.

She walked through the midst of those ghosts, ascending to the heights.

She arrived at the temple and saw Elena standing with her ghost. Elena reached out, her hand glowing as she took something from her forehead.

Brilliant light flowed through the temple.

Elena drew out most of the light from her body, leaving behind only a faint trace.

The light she extracted eventually solidified into a stone.

She had actually taken the Divine Grace Stone from her body.

As the Divine Grace Stone was removed, Elena gradually lost her divine form. Her shell slowly turned to metal.

Her beautiful and proud face turned silver, while her brilliant eyes transformed into crystal.

She transformed into a puppet, a simple and unremarkable demon spirit puppet.

“Your turn.”

The puppet Elena raised her arm and extended it to the side. Her metal arm appeared thinner now, but her form stood as tall as ever.

She handed her Divine Grace Stone to her ghost.

The ghost, an armored female knight, walked with purpose into the heart of the temple, her movements steady and deliberate.

She became one with the Demon Spirit Pyramid.

“What are you doing?” the Demon Spirit Queen asked.

“That’s your divine grace. All of your power.”

“What are you having your ghost do?”

The puppet Elena did not turn around. Once she had made her final decision, she was no longer disturbed by outside influences.

“I will handle this alone.”

“This was always my responsibility. I designed this Demon Spirit Pyramid, so it should be my duty to sustain it.”

“The Undying Spirit is the core power that ignites demon spirit consciousness, and it is also the core of this pyramid.”

“The soul of a Yinsai apostle should be able to bear such power.”

As Elena’s Divine Grace Stone merged with the Demon Spirit Pyramid, Elena’s ghost took over control.

This Demon Spirit Pyramid, designed by her, was being repaired and modified according to the program that had originally built it.

The nature and abilities of the Demon Spirit Pyramid changed.

Undying Spirit became Pyramid Spirit.

Ability 3 changed from Demon Spirit Domain to Tower Spirit Domain.

【Divine Artifact: Demon Spirit Pyramid】

【Sequence Number 10】

【Ability 1 Wisdom Circuit: The Demon Spirit Pyramid can bestow wisdom circuit structures upon monster bodies. This secret technique originates from the Anhofus Bone Demon Transformation Secret regarding bone demon brain circuits, allowing lower-tier monster body structures to accommodate wisdom.】

【Ability 2 Pyramid Spirit: The Yinsai Temple apostle Elena used her ghost and divine grace to merge with the Demon Spirit Pyramid, becoming the core of the Demon Spirit Pyramid. The Pyramid Tower Spirit is the consciousness sovereign of all demon spirits, able to bestow the light of consciousness to all demon spirits and control the entire Demon Spirit Domain.】

【Ability 3 Tower Spirit Domain: Incomplete…】

The Pyramid Spirit appeared, replacing the original Undying Spirit.

The Demon Spirit Queen finally understood what Elena was trying to do.

“Without these ghosts, are we still ourselves? Are we still the People of the Abyss?”

But Elena replied, “Do you not think we are?”

The Demon Spirit Queen did not answer, just stood there stunned.

Elena continued, “If we believe we are, then we are.”

“Even if we are not, at least we have taken up their legacy and inherited their will.”

“Is that not enough?”

Elena said, “After all… this is all we have left.”

As her words fell, everything around them began to fluctuate and become unstable.

New power began to replace the old.

Under this power, all the ghosts gradually turned to nothingness.

Elena and the Demon Spirit Queen returned from the Demon Spirit Domain to the inverted pyramid in reality.

The Demon Spirit King, kneeling beneath the Yinsai God statue, turned back in confusion, looking at Elena and the Demon Spirit Queen.

A shadow as vast as a divine being rose from the Demon Spirit Pyramid, covering the entire Abyss Royal City.

It was the Pyramid Spirit, the essence of the divine artifact created from Elena’s ghost.

The Pyramid Spirit waved a hand, and the former ghosts found release.

Countless ghosts, in their dissolution, transformed into life dreams.

The past had perished. Now, everything would enter rebirth.

Life dream after life dream floated up from the pyramid.

The transformed puppet Elena stood quietly in the temple, watching it all.

The puppet, though expressionless, spoke with a voice filled with emotion.

“Truly…”

“It is a beautiful sight.”

The pressures that had weighed heavily on her heart, which she could never release, seemed to drift away from her body along with these life dreams.

Within the Royal City

Over eight thousand demon spirit puppets walked out from their buildings.

They walked outdoors, onto bridges and rooftops.

Together, they watched those life dreams float away. Though most did not understand what was happening, they felt a lightness in their hearts.

Joy welled up uncontrollably within them.

They watched the colorful bubbles drift upward into the sky, floating toward the Dream Realm and the distant Creator God’s Kingdom, each one producing a unique sound.

“Look! What are those things?” a puppet craftsman with an iron hammer asked, watching from his roadside shop.

“They’re flying! They’re flying up!” a group of puppets shouted excitedly as they rushed across a suspension bridge.

“They’re flying so high!” More and more people gathered on rooftops, their voices filled with joy.

“Where will they fly to?” someone asked.

“To a place very, very far away, I am sure!” someone answered.

In the Yinsai Temple

Elena kept watching until the life dreams had completely disappeared into the dark sky, then spoke to the Demon Spirit King and Queen.

“The people of the past and the events of the past have all become history.”

“We will remember them, and we will sing their praises.”

“But,” Elena said, her voice steady, “from now on, we begin here.”

Elena extended her hand, the Pyramid Spirit behind her emitting a sacred light.

“I will join you in seeking a new path.”

“Releasing our own ghosts was only the first step.”

“Next, we will step out of the darkness, leave this city behind, and discover a path that leads to the future.”

As Elena made her choice, the city in the darkness began to change.

It was a sign that the Abyss Royal City was rising from the darkness to the surface.

Everyone in the city was puzzled because it was not yet the end of the month.

The Abyss Royal City continued to float upward as a door opened in the sky, pouring down light.

Elena’s ghost, now transformed into the Pyramid Spirit, had the clearest perception of everything around them.

She felt the demonic power that had always enveloped the Abyss Royal City rapidly fading.

The terrifying breath from the darkness grew weaker, and the shadow that could devour and destroy the world withdrew from the Abyss Royal City.

Its tentacles sank into an even deeper darkness, as if the hand that had held this city captive for countless years had finally released its grip.

The puppet Elena suddenly understood something.

She looked toward the deity statue in the temple, the god they worshipped, whose features were indistinct.

“Yinsai… God?”

Endless Desert

An entire city suddenly appeared from the yellow sand.

It emerged without warning, rising from unknown depths below the ground.

Previously, every time the city appeared, it was marked by terrible storms and the ominous presence of the Ruhe beast Desert Worm’s breath.

But this time, it simply appeared.

There were no strange occurrences or ominous signs.

The city’s residents waited for a long time, but it did not return to the depths of the desert.

“It’s not moving?” The demon spirits could not believe it.

“It’s not going back?” After waiting a long time, they finally confirmed this.

“We have emerged?” The entire city rejoiced.

Inside the Abyss Royal City, a demon spirit puppet that had been wandering near the Yesael Tower slowly emerged from the shadows.

He felt the warmth of the light on his body.

Golden light shimmered brilliantly, wrapping him in its glow.

He extended his finger, turning it back and forth in the sunlight, as if trying to capture the vibrant light.

Finally, he realized this golden substance could not be grasped.

“What is this?”

“So warm, so beautiful.”

He loved this feeling.

Having stepped out of the shadows, he was determined never to go back.

He walked along the boundary between the city’s shadows and light, like a child walking along a curb, stepping precisely on the border.

He moved cautiously, avoiding the shadow with great care, as if he feared the darkness would drag him back in.

He raised his head, looking at the sun above.

At last, he could live beneath the sun.

Deep in the Demon Spirit Pyramid, in the Tower Spirit Domain

The merchant demon spirit remnant that had collapsed on the stairs slowly began to repair itself under a strange light, piecing itself back together.

A new sense of purpose emerged within him.

When he opened his eyes, he found himself standing once again on the city streets.

He still carried a wooden box filled with various small goods.

He seemed somewhat confused, looking around at everything in puzzlement.

Hmm?

He walked along the street. The city was large but sparsely populated, with most areas empty.

He reached an intersection and saw a bustling marketplace.

He saw various demon spirit puppets mingling in the market, surrounded by all kinds of shops.

The atmosphere was vibrant and full of life.

He looked at the box hanging on his chest, hesitated for a moment, then finally took it off and tossed it aside.

This time, he appeared to have a different purpose in mind.

He had his own ideas, no longer bound by the past.

Now, he was just himself.

From that moment forward, a magical city emerged in the Endless Desert. It was home to puppets who were unable to leave its boundaries.

Some people ventured into the Endless Desert and stumbled upon this magical city.

The city’s residents had magical powers and could create all kinds of unusual things. Everyone who entered this city obtained extraordinary items that could not be found anywhere else, and because of them, some became wealthy or gained unique abilities.

This added to the city’s mystery and drew many people to the Endless Desert in search of it.

Some said the city’s residents were immortal. Each time they died, they were reborn from their own bodies.

These peculiar beings claimed their nation was the Demon Abyss Kingdom, a relic from a time long past.

They had just one city, but they referred to it as the Royal City.