Again

The first rays of morning sunlight streamed through the floor-to-ceiling windows into the living room, falling on a busy figure in the kitchen.

Angelina stood on her tiptoes on a small stool, holding a spatula and carefully flipping the fried egg in the pan.

Luo Xi stood beside her. "Turn the heat down a bit more, or it will burn... Yes, just like that, flip it slowly."

"Mhm!" Angelina nodded vigorously, her small face tense and fine beads of sweat seeping from her forehead.

Finally, she scooped a round, golden fried egg onto a plate. Although the edges were a little burnt, it looked quite decent.

"Great job, you succeeded on your first try using a gas stove. It's quite different from your world, isn't it?" Luo Xi smiled and rubbed her hair, speaking completely in a tone used to coax children.

Angelina smiled shyly. "When Ye Chuan wakes up, I'll let him taste the fried egg I made."

Over the past three months, Angelina had completely integrated into life at the Multiverse Apartment.

She was no longer the little girl who hid behind Ye Chuan and stuttered when she spoke.

She would learn to cook from Luo Xi, play video games with Lan Xiaoke, plant flowers in the downstairs garden with Hu Li, and learn survival skills from Tian Xiaotian...

The little girl was even the darling of the group. Ke Ning had made her a glowing doll; with the press of a switch, the doll would dance in place and perform an Iron Mountain Lean.

Ye Chuan's days were also leisurely and fulfilling.

Of course, the process of refining the Demon King's power was not going smoothly.

The Demon King's power and the power of Chaos naturally repelled each other, and Ye Chuan had nearly suffered a backlash several times.

Not to mention there was also the Hero's power; the three forces simply could not fuse together well.

Obviously, it was because the Hero's power was not yet strong enough. Otherwise, after harmonizing the Demon King's power, Ye Chuan would be able to completely control this force.

Every time this happened, Lilith would puff her cheeks in anger, call him an idiot, and then use her power of laws to help him stabilize the chaotic energy in his body.

She acted exactly like a cold-faced but caring little auntie cleaning up his messes.

"You'd better obtain the Hero's power first before fully refining this force." Lilith sat on the edge of Ye Chuan's bed, her purple twin-tails swaying slightly from anger.

"If you keep being so impatient for success, you'll eventually suffer a backlash from the power and turn into an idiot! When that happens, I won't care about you at all!"

"I know, I know. You're the best." Ye Chuan leaned against the headboard, smiling as he reached out to rub her hair.

The tips of Lilith's ears instantly turned red. "Stop patting my head all the time, I don't want to look after you..."

Despite saying that, before she left, she placed down a bottle of magic potion she had brewed herself. "If anything happens again tomorrow, I absolutely will not help you!"

Days passed by just like this, peaceful and warm.

The Demon King's power within Ye Chuan's body was gradually refined to near completion. Only a core wisp of its origin remained, intertwining with his Chaos power to reach a delicate balance.

And exactly one hundred days had passed since he last used the Authority of Time; the cooldown period had completely ended.

...

At night, after playing a round of Legends of the Three Kingdoms with Lan Xiaoke, Bai Qianshuang, and the others, Ye Chuan took out his phone, ready to enter the world.

Aether Continent, launch!

A familiar wave of dizziness washed over him. The next second, Ye Chuan was standing on the streets of Isu Town.

The early morning Isu Town was shrouded in a faint mist. There were already pedestrians on the streets, and children were chasing each other playfully. Everything was exactly the same as when he had left, quiet and peaceful.

Ye Chuan walked slowly along the street, looking at the familiar buildings with a sigh of emotion in his heart.

He arrived at a familiar alley and quickly found the Succubus Parlor.

"Dear guest—"

"Welcome to the Succubus Parlor. What kind of service do you need?" Seeing Ye Chuan enter, Sophia immediately revealed a standard smile and asked politely.

Ye Chuan looked at her, his heart stirring slightly.

She didn't recognize him anymore.

It made sense. When he left back then, he had used Origin Magic to erase the townspeople's memories regarding the Demon King incident and his departure. In their memories, he was just a benefactor who had once helped them, later went to the Royal Capital, and never returned.

However, Ye Chuan didn't mind.

After all, the Succubus Parlor had been successfully acquired, and his mission was completed.

As for himself...

He probably wouldn't come here again in the future.

Right.

...

Actually, coming here occasionally wouldn't be so bad.

"I want a full-body relaxation package," Ye Chuan said with a smile.

"Okay, please wait in the waiting area for a moment and have a cup of nectar water." Sophia handed him a warm cup of nectar water and then shouted upstairs,

"We have a guest, full-body relaxation!"

Two hours later, the therapy ended.

Perhaps because the timeline was different, the current Succubus Parlor didn't yet have those more advanced services, like entering dreams and such.

But it didn't matter. When the time came, Ye Chuan could find some and bring them over.

Ye Chuan walked to the front desk to pay the bill. Sophia smilingly handed him a business card. "Guest, this is our reservation card. You can get a discount next time."

"Thank you." Ye Chuan took the business card, then pulled a bag of gold coins from his pocket and placed it on the counter. "This is for you all. Consider it a small token of my appreciation for the Succubus Parlor."

Sophia froze for a moment and hurriedly waved her hands. "Guest, this is too much! We can't accept this!"

"Please accept it," Ye Chuan smiled. "I know a friend who used to come here often. He said your skills are excellent, and he hopes the Succubus Parlor will stay open forever."

After saying that, without waiting for Sophia to say anything more, Ye Chuan turned around and walked out of the Succubus Parlor.

He stood at the entrance of the alley, looked back at the wooden sign, and watched the busy girls inside, a gratified smile appearing on the corners of his mouth.

They were living well, and that was enough.

As for whether they remembered him or not, it really didn't matter.

Ye Chuan didn't stay in Isu Town for long.

He walked into the birch forest outside the town. After confirming there was no one around, he reached out his hand, and a soft, silvery-white glow emanated from his palm.

Authority of Time!

Entering the turbulent flow of time once again, Ye Chuan had a clear destination since he had traversed it once before.

This time, there was no need to worry about losing his memory.

When the light dissipated, Ye Chuan was already standing at the foot of a mountain peak that towered into the clouds.

Theocracy of Light, the Holy Mountain!

This was the Holy Mountain, the most sacred place on the Aether Continent, and also the seat of the Holy See.

Ye Chuan blended into the crowd. With a blur of his figure, he arrived at the Papal Hall.

He quickened his pace and soon reached the top of the mountain.

An old man wearing a white papal robe walked out. It was the Pope himself.

The moment he saw Ye Chuan, his pupils shrank sharply, and a look of disbelief appeared on his face. The scepter in his hand almost fell to the ground.

"Lord Xi Xi?"

The Pope's voice trembled, instantly attracting the gazes of everyone around.

Just then, a crisp female voice rang out from inside the Papal Hall,

"Your Holiness? Who are you calling? Is Lord Xi Xi back?"

Following the voice, a little girl with pink twin-tails wearing a long dress ran out.

When she saw Ye Chuan standing at the door, the smile on her face instantly froze.

She stood frozen in place, her eyes wide open, as if she couldn't believe her own eyes.

After a long while, she finally reached out cautiously, rubbed her eyes, and pinched her arm to make sure she wasn't dreaming.

"Lord Xi Xi? Didn't you just leave not long ago? Why are you back?"

Her voice trembled, carrying a hint of disbelief and a choked sob.

"It's me, Kalisia."

Ye Chuan smiled and rubbed her soft hair.

"I didn't just leave; I've been gone for a long time."

"A long time?" Kalisia looked bewildered.

"But you only left this morning. The sun hasn't even reached its peak yet."

The Pope also stepped forward. "Lord Xi Xi, what exactly is going on? Did your authority over time fail? Did you not successfully go back?"

"It succeeded," Ye Chuan explained. "I returned to my era, dealt with the awakened Demon King there, and then used the authority of time to jump back to this exact moment."

"Dealt with the Demon King?"

The Pope and Kalisia exclaimed at the same time, their faces written with sheer disbelief.

"How is that possible?!" The Pope's voice was shaking. "Lord Xi Xi, how could you... Did you really succeed? But... this..."

Why hasn't the current space-time changed?

Ye Chuan understood what the Pope and the others meant. He didn't mention much about Lilith and simply continued explaining. "Timelines branch out. The Demon King I defeated a thousand years ago belonged to that specific space-time... It has nothing to do with our current space-time. Therefore, the Demon King of our timeline is still here, and the crisis of the Human Pasture remains."

"So that's how it is..." Kalisia nodded, seemingly half-understanding. Although she still didn't quite grasp the concept of branching space-time, she knew Ye Chuan wouldn't lie to her.

"Then, is Lord Xi Xi staying for good this time? Are you going to fight the Demon King with us?"

"Yes, I'm not leaving." Ye Chuan nodded.

"I came back this time to completely resolve two things: first, the Human Pasture; second, the Demon King of this timeline."

The Pope frowned. "Lord Xi Xi, the demons have divided humanity into different castes. The strong are sent to do hard labor, the beautiful are sold as slaves to the nobles, and the remaining old, weak, sick, and disabled are thrown directly into the 'Soul Furnace' to have their souls and life force extracted for practicing evil black magic."

"Our Church has organized seventeen crusades, and every single one has been completely wiped out."

"Even three of our Cardinals have died. Now we can only retreat to the Holy Mountain, barely managing to protect the few surrounding towns. We are completely powerless to fight against them."

"Lord Xi Xi... we don't have much strength left, and the demons are very strong."

"It's fine. With so many Demon Lords dead, the Demon King definitely won't be able to sit still."

"Yes." The Pope nodded. "The three deceased Demon Lords were high-ranking members of the demon race. The Demon King will surely be furious and will sooner or later seek revenge for them."

But once the Demon King takes action personally, given the Church's current strength, it would be utterly impossible to resist.

When that happens, let alone dealing with the Human Pasture first, the entire continent of Aether would be engulfed in the flames of war.

But Ye Chuan was the anomaly here; everyone was well aware of his strength.

"Lord Xi Xi, what should we do now?" Kalisia grabbed the corner of Ye Chuan's clothes, looking up at him with her small face, her eyes full of reliance. As long as Ye Chuan was here, she wasn't afraid of anything.

Ye Chuan, however, was not worried in the slightest. He spoke slowly, "We must deal with the Human Pasture before they start a war."

"Secondly, I need a true Hero."

"A true Hero?" The Pope was taken aback. "Lord Xi Xi, aren't you the Hero? If you didn't obtain the power of the Hero, how did you kill that Demon King?"

"I merely inherited a trace of the origin of the Hero's power. I am not the true Hero of this era," Ye Chuan shook his head.

"Every era will give birth to its own Hero. The reason the Hero of this era has been so delayed in appearing is because of the Human Pasture."

He continued, "The Hero is the embodiment of humanity's hope. Only when humanity faces an apocalyptic disaster, and there are still people willing to fight to protect others, will a Hero be born."

"But right now, the Human Pasture is raising humans like livestock, grinding away their will and hope. Without hope, there can be no Hero."

"So what I need to do is destroy the Human Pasture, liberate those imprisoned humans, and reignite their hope."

"When that time comes, the Hero of this era will naturally be born. Once he awakens the complete power of the Hero, I can absorb that power. Then, even if the Demon King comes in person, I can defeat him."

After hearing this, an excited expression appeared on the Pope's face, and the scepter in his hand trembled slightly from his agitation:

"Lord Xi Xi, are you saying we have a hope of defeating the Demon King of this era?"

"Yes." Ye Chuan nodded. "Moreover, I have already fought a Demon King. Even though it was a different Demon King, I know her weaknesses and how to defeat her. As long as I complete the power of the Hero, defeating her is only a matter of time."

"That's wonderful!" Kalisia jumped up excitedly and hugged Ye Chuan's arm. "Then when do we set off for the Human Pasture? I can't wait to teach those bad guys a lesson! I'm going to rescue everyone who was taken away!"

"We leave first thing tomorrow morning." Ye Chuan smiled and rubbed her hair. "Today we will prepare first. I need intelligence. Notify all the forces still resisting the demons and have them gather in three days. We will attack the demons' headquarters together."

"No problem! I'll go make the arrangements right now!" The Pope nodded immediately, turned around, and walked out briskly. His footsteps were much lighter than usual.

The pressure of many years finally had a hope of being released, and his whole being seemed rejuvenated.

Only Ye Chuan and Kalisia were left in the Papal Hall.

Kalisia still clung tightly to Ye Chuan's arm, afraid that if she let go, he would disappear again.

Looking up with her small face, she gazed earnestly at Ye Chuan. "Lord Xi Xi, no matter where you go this time, I'm going to follow you. I never want to be separated from you again."

"Alright." Ye Chuan smiled and nodded. "I'll take you with me this time, but you have to promise me that you will stay by my side and not run around, understood?"

"Mhm! I promise!" Kalisia nodded vigorously, a bright smile blooming on her face.

Ye Chuan also considered bringing Kalisia back to the Myriad Realms Apartment, but after thinking about it carefully, it seemed Kalisia was also a little girl.

Not again?