The World Restarts, Six Years Ago

As the voice faded—

BOOM!!

The heavens and earth trembled, the void shattered.

A pair of skeletal hands tore through the sky, revealing the colossal figure looming above.

The true form of the Bone Shepherd—had descended.

The crowd looked up.

What they saw was a towering god forged from endless bones, standing taller than ten thousand mountains, each skeletal fragment gleaming with a cold metallic sheen.

Jet-black bone armor covered its body, while crimson patterns writhed like living creatures, resembling flowing blood.

Its skull was pieced together from six massive cranial plates.

When split open, it revealed a grotesque mass of tumorous eyes, each one fixated on Su Muwan, their pupils burning with eerie green soulfire.

Around its neck hung a collar inscribed with cryptic runes, and its limbs were bound by sinister chains.

The ends of these chains stretched into the void.

It seemed the Bone Shepherd was only permitted limited movement.

With the intrusion of this power—unwelcome by the world—

The River of Souls surged backward, mountains crumbled, and even space itself began to fracture.

The Lord of the River of Souls stood on his ferry, his aged face hardening for the first time.

The situation... had taken a dire turn.

"The Bone Shepherd… broke free from its seal?"

On the branches of the Tree of Fate, the golden silhouette abruptly stood, disbelief flashing in its eyes.

"Impossible! It was imprisoned in the deepest layers of space by the will of Heaven’s Dao—how could it escape?!"

Doctor Ya fell silent for a moment before murmuring, "Unless… Heaven’s Dao released it."

"But not completely."

The golden silhouette froze. "Why? Unleashing the Bone Shepherd would plunge the world into chaos!"

Doctor Ya shook his head, his gaze profound. "I don’t know. But perhaps we’ve all been mistaken about one thing."

"What?"

"That the true script… may have only just begun."

"??"

At the heart of the battlefield—

Su Muwan gritted her teeth, her frigid power surging wildly as she struggled against the Bone Shepherd’s oppressive aura.

But the gap was too vast.

The Bone Shepherd’s presence was like the sky collapsing—even a fraction of its residual force made her bones creak under the pressure, her breath turning ragged.

"This can’t be real…"

She glared at the Bone Shepherd, her fists clenched so tightly they turned white.

This wasn’t a battle—it was annihilation.

The Bone Shepherd… was a true existence of the Heavenly Dao realm!

And then—

The Bone Shepherd’s gaze slowly shifted toward Qin Luo.

Its skull trembled slightly, its hollow eye sockets flickering with an eerie fervor.

"My King…"

Its voice grew low and hoarse, as if suppressing an overwhelming emotion.

"Forgive me…"

"I wish for you… to remember."

"Your past memories."

"You do not belong here… but with us…"

"Remember… who you truly are…"

With those words, the Bone Shepherd’s skeletal finger descended upon the Great Thousand World.

!!!

No!

The Lord of the River of Souls’ eyes sharpened—this damned abomination actually sought to destroy the Great Thousand World?!

Had it gone mad?

Without hesitation, the Lord of the River of Souls wrapped himself in the waters of the underworld and vanished in an instant.

Abominations were already insane, but Heaven’s Dao had lost its mind entirely by loosening the seal and letting this thing escape.

Heaven’s Dao… what are you planning?

Isn’t Qin Luo your final choi—

No… could it be?!

The Lord of the River of Souls’ pupils constricted as realization struck.

His eyes burned with fury.

Heaven’s Dao!!

You cheating bastard!!

Before he could react—

A beam of darkness pierced through the void, the heavens, and the very fabric of reality.

"Qin Luo!!!"

Su Muwan’s pupils shrank—she lunged forward, reaching out desperately to shield him.

But it was too late.

—And then, the world fell silent.

A blinding white light engulfed everything.

BOOM!!

All was reduced to nothingness.

The Great Thousand World… had been annihilated.

In the final moment—

The golden silhouette and Doctor Ya finally understood the deal Heaven’s Dao had struck with the abomination.

And what Heaven’s Dao truly intended.

"The world… has been forcibly reset."

"All living beings… forced to reincarnate."

The Lord of the River of Souls returned to the underworld. He lifted his hand, staring at the River Token he had once given away—now inexplicably back in his grasp.

He sighed.

Heaven’s Dao, you cheat.

So this was your plan all along.

......

......

Time passed indeterminately.

Darkness receded, and light returned to the world.

At the summit of Dragon Tiger Mountain, amidst swirling mist—

An elderly man with snow-white hair sat cross-legged at the cliff’s edge, clad in plain Daoist robes, his expression serene as still water.

It was the Old Heavenly Master!

Slowly, he opened his eyes—within his pupils, galaxies seemed to swirl before fading into emptiness.

"Still… a failure?"

His murmur was hoarse and weary, as if carrying the weight of millennia.

He raised his head toward the heavens, his gaze piercing through the clouds to the unfathomable laws of Heaven’s Dao.

"After so many resets… we still haven’t succeeded."

They had been so close.

When he foresaw the moment Qin Luo would slap him—

He had regained the memories of Heaven’s Dao and realized Qin Luo…

Was the one "Future Heaven’s Dao" sought.

The key to averting the destruction of all realms.

But it still wasn’t enough. Without resetting the world, the outcome wouldn’t change.

Su Muwan was powerful—she had repelled the abomination.

But…

Later, the Lord of the River of Souls would take Qin Luo away, and history would repeat itself, just like in a previous reset.

As he pondered—

His body suddenly convulsed violently, his skin crawling with inky black patterns that writhed like living things, exuding a rotting aura.

Sizzling—

Dark energy surged, threatening to consume him entirely.

The Old Heavenly Master frowned, forming a seal with his fingers. Golden light flickered at his fingertips, forcibly suppressing the corruption.

"Haah…"

He exhaled deeply, exhaustion flickering in his eyes.

"It seems… this is the final reset."

He rose to his feet, his sleeves billowing despite the absence of wind, his gaze profound as he looked into the distance.

"Su Muwan… Qin Luo…"

"Can you two… break fate this time?"

"The destiny of all realms… now rests on Qin Luo—no, on the choices you both make."

......

......

Jiang City, the Su Family Estate

The setting sun’s glow spilled through the floor-to-ceiling windows, painting the living room in warm hues of orange and red.

"Hiss—!"

The sensation of a constricting serpent vanished.

Su Muwan jolted awake on the sofa, her forehead damp with cold sweat.

Her chest heaved violently, as though she had just escaped a nightmare.

"Where… is this?!"

She frantically scanned her surroundings—then her pupils contracted in shock.

This was the Su Family Estate!

The place she had lived for over twenty years!

"Impossible…"

Su Muwan suddenly stood up, her fingertips brushing against the familiar sofa, coffee table, even catching the faint scent of sandalwood lingering in the air.

—This was the home she remembered, but… they had already ascended to the Great Thousand Worlds!

No, no, no, no…

"Wasn’t I just in the Netherfrost Divine Realm? Where’s Qin Luo?!"

Panicked, she grabbed the phone lying nearby. The screen lit up, displaying the date in stark clarity—

[Martial Calendar Year 66606]

"Six… six years ago?!"

"So, this is when I was 19?!"

Su Muwan’s fingers trembled slightly as countless images flashed through her mind.

—The howls of the Bone Shepherd, the ferry of the Nether River’s master, the siege in the Heavenly Dao Space…

—And that final burst of white light at the very end.

"Did I… reincarnate again?"

She murmured to herself, her heart pounding wildly.

Where’s Qin Luo? Where’s Qin Luo?

What about Qin Luo?

Su Muwan stared blankly at the phone screen.

A hollow, frantic feeling flooded her chest.

Jade Hand Radar…

No signal…