Lord of the Void

"Why do you think those mortals would betray their own god?"

He asked rhetorically in Chen Guan's mind.

"Because the god no longer answered their prayers? Or because the god brought down disasters?"

Chen Guan played along perfectly, providing the expected response.

He snorted coldly.

"Those are just superficial excuses meant to deceive the masses."

"There was only ever one reason from beginning to end why He was betrayed and abandoned by the very believers He created."

Baal stated a cruel fact in a solemn tone.

"Because He was guiding that civilization, along with everything that existed in that world, toward ultimate nothingness. That is also the origin of the Lord of Nothingness."

He paused slightly to give Chen Guan time to digest this.

"His methods of influence were extremely subtle. By the time the greatest minds finally realized that the world was irreversibly heading toward extinction, it was almost too late."

"To not resist would mean inevitable annihilation."

Baal gave his final summary.

"So they had absolutely no choice but to use the most decisive and ruthless method to personally push this Lord, who had once given them everything, to His doom."

The complex information conveyed by Baal swirled repeatedly in Chen Guan's mind.

If the Lord of Nothingness lived, the world would perish.

That was why the believers committed deicide, to allow the world to survive. Yet, they still loved their god; therefore, those departed souls exhibited such a myriad of complex emotions.

Perhaps seeing no more amusement to be had here, Baal said no more and resumed his role as a bystander.

Chen Guan's attention returned to reality, and he naturally tucked away those complicated thoughts.

Su Yuehe was still looking at him with that worried gaze, making Chen Guan feel a rare hint of embarrassment.

"I'm really fine. I was just thinking about some things."

"Thinking about things?"

Yin Chen strolled leisurely by his side, his beautiful eyes revealing an obvious sense of inquiry.

"Are you thinking about how to explain to us exactly what kind of grand spectacle you encountered after going in there?"

The young man crossed his arms, returning to his usual composed demeanor, though his curiosity was laid bare in his words.

"That's right, that's right!"

Hong Yuan hurried over with her giant axe resting on her shoulder, her loud voice echoing back and forth in the spacious passage.

"Hurry up and tell us! Was that guy super hard to deal with? Did you beat it to a pulp or just directly exorcise it?"

In Hong Yuan's eyes, given such a terrifying atmosphere, there had to be a super powerful final boss inside.

A barrage of questions was thrown out one after another. Her energetic posture showed no intention of leaving Chen Guan any room to think.

An Changqing did not join in the pressing questions. He kept his calm gaze fixed on Chen Guan.

"Chen Guan, we don't care about what you gained."

"We only care about whether that entity still poses a threat, and whether it caused any irreversible effects on you."

This inquiry was tactful enough. Everyone was worried that Chen Guan had been corrupted by that massive wave of negative emotions, fearing that some hidden danger had been forcefully left deep within his psyche.

Having strong mental power and high perception wasn't always a good thing.

As for whatever Yin Chen said about gods or no gods, no one cared anymore. After all, it was too absurd; nobody dared to believe that their classmate had suddenly ascended to godhood.

Su Yuehe nodded repeatedly from the side, looking forward with deep concern.

"Yes, Chen Guan, you don't need to rush to explain. Just tell us if you're okay right now."

Long Ao maintained his usual silence. He simply adjusted his position quietly, walking shoulder-to-shoulder with Chen Guan to express his firm stance.

Seeing the concerned expressions of his companions, Chen Guan's initially chaotic thoughts gradually settled down.

The truth revealed by Baal involved far too much.

An ancient entity that guided an entire civilization to its destruction was not something that could be explained clearly in a few words. There was absolutely no need to lay everything out in the open.

Some secrets were enough to be known by him alone.

Chen Guan made a quick decision in his heart, then raised his eyes to sweep over everyone in front of him.

"Your previous guesses were basically correct."

"That was indeed a god betrayed by its believers and abandoned by an entire civilization."

Hearing this opening statement, Hong Yuan immediately revealed an expression that showed she knew it all along.

Chen Guan did not pause and continued his explanation.

"Endless years wore away His true body. Only resentment and an obsession with revenge remained entrenched here, forming that black river."

This brief description perfectly matched what the group had seen and heard earlier.

"That voice was a trap He prepared to select a successor."

"Although I don't know what connection I have with Him, I defeated His lingering regrets and liberated the countless vengeful spirits wandering here. This place was supposed to look like this; I merely restored it to its former appearance."

The moment Chen Guan uttered this half-true, half-false explanation, the surrounding atmosphere noticeably relaxed.

"I knew it!"

Hong Yuan hoisted the heavy giant axe onto her shoulder, her face showing undisguised excitement and admiration.

"I knew that guy definitely wouldn't be a match for you!"

She forcefully waved her empty hand.

"Defeating lingering regrets and liberating vengeful spirits, that sounds so cool!"

To her, the process wasn't important. As long as the result was that Chen Guan had cleanly and efficiently solved the problem, that was enough.

Su Yuehe let out a long breath, her tense shoulders relaxing. The look she gave Chen Guan was full of lingering fear and relief.

"That's wonderful. Those souls can finally rest in peace."

She said softly. She held the most sincere sympathy for those souls trapped for eons.

Now, hearing that they had been freed from the sorrow in their hearts turned into comfort. After all, she was someone who had deeply resonated with those emotions; knowing their pain, she naturally hoped for their early release.

"You aren't hurt, are you?"

Su Yuehe took a step forward, carefully inspecting the hem of Chen Guan's clothes and his cuffs.

Well, not even the corners of his clothes were dirty.

"That power of resentment must have been very difficult to deal with."

"It was fine."

Chen Guan shook his head, giving a reassuring response.

An Changqing had been listening quietly all along and only spoke up at this moment. His voice was as steady and reliable as ever.

"You've worked hard. Since the threat here has been neutralized, let's leave as soon as possible. Clearly, this place is still too dangerous, and I'm afraid there's nothing else here that you want, Yuehe."

He looked around at the surrounding environment.

"The gains from this exploration have already far exceeded our expectations. There's no need to cause further complications."

An Changqing's proposal immediately received everyone's approval.

No one wanted to stay any longer in these empty, gloomy ruins.

Their previous encounters had already left the team exhausted. Now that the crisis was resolved, the desire to return to the surface as quickly as possible grew continuously in everyone's minds.

Even Su Yuehe agreed. Being able to understand a piece of lost history was already enough.