Chapter 129: Is the World Beyond Canaan Fun?
An epic event?
In other words, had he triggered some kind of hidden questline within the Nightworld?
Rast gazed at the azure text emerging in his mind, falling into deep thought.
This was information he had not found within the database of the Tower of Arcana during his intelligence gathering in the real world.
At the very least, there had been no precedent for this kind of situation in the ordinary historical remnants or calamity remnants.
However, considering the very existence of the "Final Nightworld" and "Era Remnants" at the end of each era...
They were entities kept secret from the vast majority of Night Travelers.
Therefore, the fact that he had been unaware previously was also within reason.
Rast turned his gaze toward the line of flashing azure prompts.
Then, within the rippling lights like waves of water, new text surfaced.
【Historical Event Line – Battle of the Shattered Coast】
【Category: Epic of Civilization】
【The Shattered Coast, and the sea routes along the coastline...
After the Great Cataclysm, this was the only bridge connecting the surviving outposts, the final barrier of human civilization standing before pollution, calamity, corruption, and beast tides.
For a hundred years, the Shoreguards established their headquarters, the "Watchtower Spire", at the axis of the Shattered Coast, treating the "Watch on the Coastline" as their supreme mission.
They paid the price in blood and fire, barely maintaining the skeletal remains of human society. The flickering spark of civilization never extinguished despite the storm.
But... in the unseen realm, thick dark clouds were already gathering above the Shattered Coast.
The grand curtain had already risen, and this moment now—was the final silence before the storm.】
【Historical Event – Epic of Civilization: This is a chapter of epics, a hymn of heroes, and a turning point in human history. It will directly determine the future direction of this era.】
...
【Now, fate splits before your eyes into two separate and unrelated lines.】
【Where human history of the Sixth Era will ultimately head depends entirely on the outcome of this historical event】
【And the choice of you... who participates in this epic.】
"The Battle of the Shattered Coast."
That would be the battle planned by the Gravekeepers and Noah, aiming to eliminate Sisel, the leader.
In the deep sea, there existed forbidden creatures on par with legends... who had long since cast covetous eyes on the land, and the Shattered Coast was the final barrier between them and human civilization.
For a hundred years, it was the Shoreguards who built the Watchtower Spire at the frontlines, holding back the beast tides from the deep.
Or more precisely, it was Sisel alone.
Only a legend could stand against a legend—if Sisel were to fall in battle, then the forbidden creatures of the sea would have no more restraints, and would be able to walk the land with impunity.
The fall of the Shattered Coast's defenses would mean the sea’s forbidden beings stepping onto land, and the complete destruction of the Shoreguards.
At that point, it would mark the doom of all human civilization.
Even if a few remote strongholds could survive the beast tides... these human settlements, cut off from each other due to the loss of maritime routes, would become isolated islands in a vast ocean, extremely closed off, with no communication with the outside.
They would lack the essential raw materials for research and smelting. From basic technology to industrial products, all production would grind to a halt. The level of civilization would regress continuously, losing any chance to rebuild a complete social system or expand outward.
Eventually, just like functionally extinct endangered species, they would struggle on in obscurity for decades or centuries...
Until the final human city vanished, quietly slipping into extinction, just as previous eras and extinct civilizations had.
Thus, calling the coming Battle of the Shattered Coast the turning point of human history in the Sixth Era was no exaggeration.
No wonder the Nightworld had defined this historical event as an "Epic of Civilization".
Rast stared at the text before him, his thoughts racing.
"And this so-called 'Historical Node Locked'..."
"If we were to treat this epic of civilization, the Battle of the Shattered Coast in this Era Remnant, as a role-playing game..."
"Then right now, I should be standing at the final save point before the boss fight, right?"
Rast fell briefly into memory.
Before the transmigration, he had been part of the development team for "Snowmoon Emblem", responsible for the Nightworld’s program architecture.
And in the early proposals for the Nightworld project, there had been plans to add save points within Nightworld instances. However, this function hadn’t yet been implemented in the beta version.
The save feature had been designed to accommodate future large-scale Nightworld instances.
After all, early versions of Nightworld instances were short, most taking only a few hours to complete. Players could finish them in one sitting.
But later on, some Nightworld instances became far too long, and since Nightworld was a co-op DLC, it wasn’t realistic to expect every online player to sit obediently in front of their computer for over ten hours straight to finish it in one go.
The save point system had been created for this very reason.
Now, the "Historical Node Locked" he faced was probably similar to that concept of a save point.
According to the Nightworld’s prompt, once he chose to leave the Nightworld, the next time he entered the Era Remnant, it would resume from this "Epic of Civilization" save point.
Of course, the entry time might vary slightly.
And the time he spent in the Nightworld Remnant would be automatically extrapolated and rationalized.
“So, according to standard game procedure, what I should be doing now is…”
“Collect intelligence and perfect the strategy. Spend all my gold to buy the best armor, weapons, and supplies. Recruit the best teammates.”
“Then, once everything is in place—”
“Rush in and clear this epic of civilization in one go.”
A faint smile appeared on Rast’s lips.
Then, he transformed his mental energy into a tendril, and lightly tapped the constantly flashing "Confirm Departure" option.
Staying continuously within a single historical remnant for over half a year was far beyond what ordinary Night Travelers could comprehend... Normal missions within a historical remnant rarely lasted more than a month, and most wrapped up within a week.
One could only say that the Night Travelers’ understanding of the "Era Remnant" was still severely lacking.
Even Rast, after half a year of constant high-alert tension, began to feel a trace of exhaustion.
The hundreds of years of training at Deep Blue Port had given him a superhuman endurance to pain and fatigue.
Even while enduring agony that would cause an ordinary person to pass out, he could still execute his plan perfectly.
But that didn’t mean Rast was immune to the need for rest and recovery.
Even if he blocked off pain and emotions, turning his human body into a cold machine existing solely to achieve a goal... even metal machines would suffer from metal fatigue, gears running for too long would wear down, and constant maintenance would be required to maintain peak performance.
And if one sought to reject wear and aging, to remain unchanged for eternity… then one would truly fulfill the ideal spoken by Noah, and become a Gravekeeper.
Had he never encountered Xiao Ai, had he never possessed those memories of Canaan… then, based on Rast’s experiences, he might indeed have followed the path of the Gravekeepers in pursuit of eternity.
Yet at this very moment, he had chosen the opposite road.
No one could judge whether this road was right or wrong.
But since it was the path he had chosen, then no matter how absurd, no matter how bleak the end, Rast would see it through to the very end.
So, after half a year of relentless tension, he truly deserved a rest.
Besides—
He still needed to return to the real world and confirm things with Dean Silver.
Akxia, or rather Helen—what exactly was going on?
And—
Last time, because he passed out during the Nightworld’s settlement, he hadn’t been able to return to that place in the interlude between the Nightworld and reality.
But this time…
Just as the thought arose—
In the next moment, a gauzy night veil gently shrouded Rast.
That night veil was clearly thin and faint, yet it seemed to separate him from the entire world.
The wastelands of the Sixth Era, the Nether Abyss, the paradise king city built atop the remains of a god, the ancient grudges between Shoreguards and Gravekeepers across eras…
All such chaotic matters were removed from Rast’s sight.
He sank quietly into the dark, feeling the delicate veil of night gently soothe his body.
It was still the "Rewind" from the Nightworld, except this time, Rast’s wounds had already been healed in advance by Noah, so the gentle touch of the night faded quickly.
However, since he didn’t fall unconscious like the last time when leaving the Frostwater Town Remnant, this time, Rast clearly sensed the process of that "Rewind" acting upon him.
Surging time flowed past him, bringing with it distorted halos, yet leaving no trace behind.
If the passage of time were a river, then Rast felt like a stone standing firm within its rapids, unshaken no matter how fiercely the current washed over him.
This was the effect of the "Origin of Fate" granted by the fate card "Grey" within the Fool’s Library.
Any time-based ability acting upon Rast would be greatly diminished.
And this was a power forcibly anchored within the Fool’s Library—a built-in passive skill that Rast couldn’t even deactivate if he wanted to.
Of course, along with his departure from the Nightworld, changes appeared on Rast’s body.
At his chest, the dusky-yellow object that had taken root like a parasite deep into his flesh—constantly eroding and assimilating his body—the Holy Grail, had become illusory, its light gradually fading...
At the same time, Rast also felt his faint control over the Death God’s remains, and the pain from the parasite's continual erosion of his flesh, steadily receding.
Until the crystal-clear Holy Grail had faded so much that even its outline could barely be seen, and Rast could no longer sense its presence at all.
Only a phantom chess piece remained in his heart, like an illusionary shadow.
This was a matter of course.
The Nightworld was a reflection of the past, and things in the historical remnants were naturally just residual echoes of the old days…
Unless obtained as quest rewards and certified by the Nightworld, any phantom items obtained in the Nightworld could not take effect in the real world.
However, according to the Nightworld’s prompt, the next time he entered the Era Remnant… this Holy Grail of the Death God should once again shift from illusion to reality.
Darkness surged around him, and Rast remained deeply immersed in it, feeling his body drifting along the eternal current of shadow.
He, himself, began sorting through the quest rewards and gains from this historical remnant’s settlement.
【You have received Emblem Armament: "The Unfinished Fairy Tale Book", "Emblem of the Betrayer’s Wings"】
As expected, the mission rating for this historical remnant was "EX" grade.
Although in this remnant he had not been able to perform micro-control to the extreme like he did at Deep Blue Port, the potential threats he faced, the level of risk, his significance in the historical event, and his rank… were far beyond those of the Deep Blue Port and Frostwater Town remnants.
This was a historical event that could genuinely rewrite the direction of an entire era—a hymn of civilization, an epic of heroes.
And the rewards for an "EX" grade mission, aside from allowing him to naturally break through the long-standing bottleneck and ascend to the fourth tier of the "Tower" sequence, were the two pieces of "Emblem Armament".
Just like the two he currently possessed, "Sevenfold Vision" and "Iron-Patterned Moon", these new rewards were also items he had once held during this remnant.
Rast’s gaze fell upon the two objects now quietly emerging in his palm.
【The Unfinished Fairy Tale Book】
【Category: Emblem Armament】
【Description: This fairy tale book, titled Chronicles of the Silver Wings, was the treasure of a girl named Helen.
It also carried the dreams and yearnings of a queen who, like a caged bird, longed for the skies…
And also, the hazy, budding love of that bird for the young man who opened her window and let her glimpse the dreamlike scenery beyond her prison.
Even though later, the curtain fell on the play between the bird and the boy, and the girl learned the full truth—that their encounter was not fate, but a carefully scripted performance.
That she was not Helen, but Akxia, an actress who took amnesia-inducing medicine to play the female lead in a stage play.
Still—"The fairy tale is false, but the love is real."
A story born of falsehood could yet bear the fruit of sincerity.
Even to this day, the girl still firmly believed and longed for this slightly childish notion...】
【For some reason, a few blank pages remain after the ending of the fairy tale book.】
【As if some unfinished story still waits to be written by someone to come.】
【Armament Effect 1: When blood drips onto the title page, the illusionary tale will transform into a real landscape.】
【Armament Effect 2: Unknown (Unlocks after the Emblem Armament is completed)】
...
【Emblem of the Betrayer’s Wings】
【Category: Emblem Armament】
【Description: This silver emblem inscribed with a coastline and protective wings was once the radiant symbol of the Shoreguards.
However, following a betrayal on a rainy night, all its former glory and brilliance were turned to nothing.】
The despairing girl cried out a blood-soaked question and wail toward the back disappearing in the rain…
But the only response she received was a cold blade cutting through the curtain of rain.】
【Armament Effect: The first attack the wielder launches against any current companion marked as "ally" or "cooperator" deals 1000% increased damage.】
…
What fell into Rast’s hand was a somewhat aged fairy tale book and a silver wing emblem.
On the wing emblem, a deep gash was carved straight across the insignia of the Shoreguards.
The former was the item entrusted to Rast by Akxia on the cliff.
The latter was what Rast had personally marked on his own Shoreguard wing emblem when he declared betrayal before Grey.
“These Armament rewards from this mission… are no longer simply extraordinary weapons, but rather items imbued with conceptual powers?”
“An Unfinished Fairy Tale Book… the illusionary story becomes real scenery—does this mean that upon dropping blood, one can enter the world within the fairy tale?”
“And that unknown second Armament effect… this so-called completion probably refers to filling in the blank final pages of the book, to continue writing the story, right? But clearly, it won’t be as simple as just writing anything—there must be some extremely harsh conditions for it.”
“And then…”
“‘Emblem of the Betrayer’s Wings.’”
“What kind of snitch’s artifact is this?”
Rast stared at the Armament effect description for the Shoreguard’s wing emblem, falling into thought.
Sure, a tenfold damage bonus on a first strike was extremely tempting… but he had only infiltrated the Gravekeepers as a spy on assignment—not to truly become a traitor.
Still, his communication was strictly one-on-one with Leader Sisel, and only Sisel knew his true identity.
According to the usual plotlines in those undercover dramas from his previous life… could it be that Leader Sisel would die before leaving behind any message, and Rast would lose the only superior who knew who he really was, unable to clear his name, and thus just embrace his identity as a Gravekeeper and descend into darkness?
No.
Look at it from another angle.
This was a betrayal-specialist artifact against “companions.”
And his current “companions” were…
Rast’s thoughts stirred slightly.
The next moment, the two pieces of Armament dissolved into streaks of flowing light and disappeared.
At his side, the swirling night shadows became ever more faint…
According to Rast’s experience and the intelligence from the Tower of Arcana, once this phenomenon occurred, it meant that the time to leave the Nightworld and return to the real world was near.
Though he was eager to return immediately and confirm Akxia’s true situation with Dean Silver—
Before that, there was still a place he wanted to visit.
Thinking thus, Rast’s hand moved, unusually hesitant for once.
Silvery-blue light coiled around his fingers, and then coalesced into a heavy revolver etched with the sigil of the Iron-Patterned Moon.
Rast slowly raised the revolver and aimed it at his own temple.
In his eyes—
Hesitation, doubt, struggle, confusion, and uncertainty… countless complex emotions flashed and vanished.
But in the end, they all dissolved into the light-swallowing void.
In the next moment, Rast pulled the revolver’s trigger, activating the preset mental suggestion with the sound of that metallic click.
Boom—
…
The first sound he heard was the gentle, lilting voice of a wind flute.
A warm breeze brushed his face, rustling the grass across the hillside lawn.
A girl lowered her head, her pale golden hair cascading down with it, and her snow-like, delicate white skin shimmered nearly translucent in the sunlight.
“Is the world outside Canaan fun?”
Emis smiled, like morning light atop the Weer Danti Snow Mountains.