Mike stood silently, watching the scene before him.
As the Tower of Truth underwent its transformation, Mike and the child were unceremoniously ejected from its interior.
The child yawned and asked,
"Sir, should we go back now?"
The child, trapped in the dream space with only lunatics and the white horse for company, often wandered through the river of ti. He had seen many of these events before.
However, this was the first ti he had witnessed the interior of the Tower of Truth.
Previously, the Tower Spirit had never allowed him inside.
Go back?
Mike's bug-exploiting instincts kicked in imdiately.
"Is it possible not to go back?" he asked.
"Of course," the child replied matter-of-factly. "But, sir, are you afraid of dying?"
Mike froze for a mont. Saying he wasn't afraid would be a lie. But admitting he was scared in front of a child? That felt a bit embarrassing.
After a mont of thought, Mike answered earnestly,
"I have many people I need to stay alive to protect."
Afraid of dying? No.
Living to protect others? Yes.
The child tilted his head, half-understanding, and explained,
"Sir, since your level is still low, walking through the river of ti will be exhausting. I'll need to return to the dream space..."
The child elaborated further, and Mike quickly understood.
The child could help cover the cost of traversing the river of ti, but Mike had to maintain
his sense of self. If he lost himself in the river of ti, he would either go mad or be completely consud.
"If possible, stay near the Tower of Truth as an anchor point. It'll make things easier," the child advised, listing all the precautions before reluctantly leaving.
"What a good kid," Mike muttered, standing beneath the Tower of Truth.
He gazed at the river of ti before him, his expression heavy.
He knew this would be a grueling journey-a journey he had to endure.
Ti flew by.
In the blink of an eye, Mike had spent nearly a hundred years in the river of ti. During this ti, he witnessed the opening of the Tower of Truth, the rise of humanity, the sudden invasion of the Abyss, and Nathan leading the charge to ignite the Blood War.
Without Nathan, humanity would likely have surrendered during the Abyss's first wave of attacks.
Mike also watched as Nathan entered the Supre Abyss.
That earth-shattering battle, no matter how many tis he recalled it, still made Mike's heart race and his blood boil.
After Nathan's death, humanity and the demon race entered another prolonged stalemate.
At first, the demon gods weren't sure if Morpheus had truly died.
They only knew that a terrifying battle had taken place in the Supre Abyss, but the outco remained unclear.
Adding to the confusion, Shadow Nine, who had escaped the Supre Abyss, now wielded Morpheus's talent and possessed near-Supre-level combat power.
Shadow Nine pretended to be a Supre Being, occasionally hunting demon gods in the Abyss with great fanfare.
His antics scared the demon gods into inactivity for nearly a decade!
Of course, the Abyss had its own internal problems.
The Archdemon, who had opened the Supre Abyss, was severely weakened.
The Second Demon God was asleep, completely indifferent to the outside world.
The Fifth Demon God, not yet fully insane, kept his demon creatures under tight control.
With the key demon gods unable to act, the demon race was a disorganized ss.
But as the Archdemon's injuries healed, the Fifth Demon God descended further into madness, and the Second Demon God disappeared...
The demon gods of the Abyss began to stir once more.
At that ti, humanity's only real trump card was a half-crippled Shadow Nine.
Mike vividly rembered overhearing Shadow Nine's conversation with Professor Gregory.
Shadow Nine's plan was simple:
"If Maxen can't awaken an SSS-level talent, I'll try to force Apollo to awaken his talent. Then I'll head to the First Abyss to trade my life for the Archdemon's, forcing the Supre Abyss to reveal itself. After that, Apollo can clean up the ss..."
Mike: ...
Shadow Nine really has a knack for screwing over his disciples.
At that point, Apollo wasn't even Shadow Nine's disciple yet.
Just as Shadow Nine was preparing to awaken Apollo's talent, sothing unexpected
happened:
A hot-headed young man nad Mars awakened his talent instead.
"I think I know what my talent does," Mars muttered to himself, glancing at the empty space
beside him.
"My talent... lets see ghosts?"
Mike: ...
Mike had been walking through the river of ti for nearly a century, from three hundred years ago to two hundred and twenty-two years ago-when Ares awakened his talent.
During this ti, Mike could only observe the Blood War as a silent spectator.
He couldn't help, couldn't interact with anyone, and could only watch.
It was a frustrating experience.
Still, Mike found solace in knowing that most people were still alive in so form or another.
Even Morpheus, despite his death, retained the possibility of resurrection.
The only one who seed to notice Mike's presence was Ares, after he beca an Ultimate
Lord.
However, Ares seed wary of Mike and never initiated contact.
When Ares first awakened his talent, he noticed the ghostly figure of Mike and seed deep in
thought.
Soon, a light of understanding flashed in Ares's eyes, and he muttered excitedly,
"If I slash this ghost, will it drop loot?"
Mike: ???
Mike couldn't believe it.
Ares's first reaction upon seeing a ghost was to treat it like a monster to farm?
Anyone who's read at least two web novels knows that soone like is the wise old
ntor in the ring, here to provide invaluable guidance!
And you want to kill ?!
Mike tried to speak to Ares, but there was no response.
He quickly realized,
"Ares is too weak to communicate with ?"
"Hahaha, Ares, so you were weak once too!"
Since Ares couldn't even talk to him, let alone kill him, Mike decided to stick around and
watch Ares's journey.
He witnessed Ares challenge the Tower of Truth, single-handedly destroy a demon cult branch, and use himself as bait to lure out and kill the demon cult leader.
But one day, Ares's peaceful life was disrupted.
He ventured into the Abyss.
For Mike, following him there was incredibly risky.
The frontlines were in chaos, and Shadow Nine had to rush to the battlefield.
Ares, anwhile, snuck into the Abyss with a simple plan:
If a potential Supre Being appeared in the Abyss, the demon gods would abandon the
frontlines and return to the Abyss to deal with them.
The plan was perfect. Except for one small problem: Ares probably wouldn't survive.
Although Mike knew Ares wouldn't die, he still gritted his teeth and followed him.
In the Abyss.
After a grueling battle, Ares stared at the ghostly figure before him, his expression grim.
"It's back..."
Since awakening his talent, this ghostly figure had haunted him relentlessly.
Every ti he interacted with it, he would forget the encounter afterward.
But the oppressive feeling it gave him was undeniable.
As Ares grew stronger, the ghostly figure beca clearer, and his understanding of its power
deepened.
It was strong.
At this point, Ares was still under level 600, yet he could sense the danger emanating from the
ghost.
This enemy was undoubtedly formidable.
However, Ares never ntioned the ghost to Shadow Nine.
In his mind, his problems were his own to solve.
His monsters were his to slay.
Shadow Nine's Dream Co True could only be used sparingly.
With the demon race intensifying their attacks, the frontlines had beco a at grinder,
devouring countless lives.
Shadow Nine, stretched thin, often had to leave Ares's side.
This gave Ares the opportunity to sneak into the Abyss.
As Ares broke through to a new level in the Abyss, Mike's figure beca even clearer.
"Finally, I can talk..." Mike began, but before he could finish, sothing happened.
Ares, sensing the change, prepared for battle.
From the mont he awakened his talent, this ghost had been a constant presence.
Now, as it grew clearer, it seed ready to act.
Ares knew this would be a fight to the death.
"The first strike... will be the last."
Pushed to his limits, Ares felt an unprecedented pressure.
Under such pressure, he either had to break through or be destroyed. Clearly, Ares chose the forr.
Closing his eyes, then opening them again...
In an instant, Ares slightly enhanced a technique he had once comprehended.
The move wasn't originally this strong.
But after the enhancent, it beca devastating.
A flash of sword light.
Mike recognized it imdiately.
"Fate's Reversal!"
anwhile, on Earth.
In the Forest of Truth, the Monunt of Faith trembled slightly, as if sensing sothing.
A butterfly landed on the monunt, and its movents ceased.
For days, the Guardian Shadows tasked with watching over the Forest of Truth had been in a
deep slumber.
No one outside knew what was happening within the forest.
A faint figure wandered through the Forest of Truth, his expression troubled.
"I wonder how much longer this remnant of my soul can last," Morpheus muttered, glancing
around with a worried look.
"And I wonder how much longer Apollo can hold on."
Every corner of the forest was filled with colorful butterflies, creating a sea of vibrant hues.
More butterflies continued to erge from the ninety-ninth floor of the Tower of Truth, descending into the forest like a never-ending tide.
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