Li Mo's fist slowly unclenched and lowered, like a withered weed drooping its head.
This was a barrier condensed by Elysia's Bizarre ability—"Divinity"—which could block and suppress the Bizarre.
Li Mo knew very well that he only needed to mobilize "Wish" and throw a light punch to easily break it.
The contamination levels of the two were not on the same level.
But he didn't do that.
Because when he broke this barrier, it would cause Elysia to lose all her living consciousness and immediately become Bizarre.
That was not what Li Mo wanted.
Compared to living in the world as a Bizarre entity, voluntarily dying as a human was more in line with Elysia's character, and it was the choice she was making at this very moment…
What Elysia hoped to leave behind was never sorrow and regret, terror and despair, but courage and hope, beauty and brilliance, to encourage Li Mo to continue moving forward.
She was voluntarily dying, and she was dying willingly.
"Tragedy is not the end, but the beginning of hope."
"Little Mo, our journey ends here. From now on… you'll have to walk alone…"
As her voice fell, the beautiful figure completely disappeared into the hazy light and shadow under the moon.
Only the dim crystal flower floating on the sea was pushed to the shore by a few waves.
Li Mo bent down, picked up the crystal flower that had lost its former glory, and held it in his palm, silent.
"Take me to my still-living companions."
A whisper in the moonlight, as faint as a mosquito's buzz.
The moonlight filtered through the sparse gaps in the leaves, casting mottled light and shadows. In the heart of the forest, not far from the Bizarre cave, stood a solitary grave.
Wildflowers and weeds grew wildly around the grave.
Li Mo walked over, bit his lip, and wiped the weeds from the tombstone. There were no words on it; it was a blank stone.
Li Mo stood up and suddenly opened his black pupils.
In the dark sky, the clouds and mist suddenly dispersed, and a faintly visible, ferocious eyeball watched every corner of the Earth, its gaze gradually converging on the forest where Li Mo was.
After a long while, Li Mo said with some strangeness, "There's no one here?"
The Bizarre cave was on a high mountain in Nagazora City. It was normal for no living person to come here after the Third Honkai Eruption.
But he had clearly wished to go to his still-living companions.
The Bizarre Rule would not be wrong, but there was really no one here. At least… Li Mo couldn't feel the aura of the living or the Bizarre, and he couldn't find any traces of anyone with Ghost's Vision.
Was his memory confused?
It couldn't be this fast… So what happened?
"Perhaps I should go find the next person," Li Mo said in disappointment.
I'm right here! Mo, look at me!
Hua rushed over from behind Li Mo, wanting to embrace him, but just as she was about to touch him, she passed through him like a ghost.
Yes… she was so excited to see Li Mo that she had forgotten she had already disappeared from history…
No matter what method she used, she could not leave any message in the real world.
Even being able to stand on the ground at this moment was due to her Bizarre ability to levitate, not truly walking on the ground.
Once this ability was cancelled, she would fall to the mantle, the core… and then fall into the deeper parts of the universe…
Look at me! Mo, it's Hua! Look at me!
Hua stood in front of Li Mo, shouting like a madwoman.
Li Mo couldn't hear her voice, couldn't feel her aura. He disappeared from before her eyes in silence.
Hua didn't think much and followed the trail of the Bizarre aura.
But Li Mo's "Wish" was instantaneous teleportation, a result, not a process.
Hua could only walk onto the streets, searching corner by corner, like a lonely ghost, forever wandering this world, never to be liberated.
She stood at a busy intersection, watching pedestrians hurry by, cars speeding past;
She passed through a bustling commercial district, with shops lining the streets, displaying a dazzling array of goods in their windows;
Finally, she returned to the desolate and silent Nagazora City, with its ruined walls and buildings covered in green plants.
Can't find him…
Can't find him…
She was the forgotten one. No matter how hard she tried, she could not be remembered or noticed.
It was exactly the same as before. Even if her old friends were still around, in the end, she would be the only one walking alone at the end of time.
This was the final price of the unfortunate curse—eternal disappearance.
The scene before her intertwined and collided with the images in her memory. Every scene was like a sharp blade, cutting the boundary between the past and reality.
The coffee shop at the corner had a new owner. The old friends could never meet and talk again.
Just like in the Previous Era, just like when the new civilization revived.
Hua stood in the center of the bustling street, her head bowed, the color in her eyes growing dimmer.
A brilliant light shone down from the azure sky but passed through her body, not even leaving a shadow.
Those who walk with me will leave midway, and in the end…
I will still be all alone.
-----
"Elysia, Pardofelis, Raiden Mei, and then there's…"
Li Mo recited the names of his companions from memory.
"Shigure Kira."
"What are you doing now?"
Thirty years was too long. For an ordinary person, thirty years was enough to change almost all of their concepts, personality, appearance, habits… as if they were a different person living in this world.
Compared to the ever-changing living, perhaps Impostors were more suited to the development of society…
Yes, for humans, time was the most ruthless Bizarre.
It twisted everything. Looking back, things had changed, and people were no longer the same.
Most people would forget their original appearance.
Forget the most innocent love, the purest wishes, the most desired happiness…
Li Mo's throat was dry. He didn't wish to immediately go to Shigure Kira's side, but instead moved to a position where he could see her, but she couldn't see him.
After thirty years, are you still waiting for the boy who broke his promise?
"She doesn't owe me anything. No matter what kind of life Kira chooses now, I have no right to judge. I don't have that qualification…"
Li Mo stood on the roof of a school building, revealing his thoughts to the wind that gently blew through his sideburns.
The years seemed to gently unfold at his feet, paving a road with no regrets.
Time could only move forward. The regrets of the past could not be made up for in the present.
On the elementary school playground, children chased and played in the afterglow of the setting sun and the school bell, their laughter crisp and pleasant, piercing through the barrier of time.
It gave Li Mo a familiar sense of déja vu.
These laughs were once an indispensable part of his memory.
At that time, he had lost most of his mobility and lived in the haunted house, spending those warm and quiet years with Shigure Kira.
He was in charge of the inside, and Shigure Kira was in charge of the outside.
…
…
In the so-called haunted house, which was actually an orphanage, Li Mo was responsible for taking care of the children, while Shigure Kira went out to work to support the family.
When teaching the children at the orphanage, Li Mo often saw such scenes.
The children were full of endless energy, laughing and playing every day, to the point that he himself was infected and completely forgot about his incurable disease.
At that time, there was only one thought: he had to take good care of these children before he died.
Because—
This was his and Shigure Kira's home.
Just as Li Mo was immersed in these beautiful memories.
In the crowd at the school gate, a graceful figure slowly came into his sight, like a timely rain after a long drought, instantly attracting all eyes.
She wore a simple cyan dress, her long hair gently tied up.
She walked with an absolutely beautiful posture, like a night with a clear sky and brilliant stars.
That wonderful light and darkness converged in her appearance and eyes, brewing such a gentle light that the bright daylight could not give.
It was Shigure Kira.
Thirty years seemed to have been particularly lenient with her. Not only did they not leave too many marks on her, but they also added a bit of maturity and charm.
Her appearance hadn't changed much, perhaps maintained through special means like Stigmata. Or perhaps… before returning to her own world, she had entrusted Mei to "Wish" for her eternal youth.
Li Mo didn't know the reason for Shigure Kira's actions. He only knew that she had lost weight.
Shigure Kira's appearance seemed to soften the surrounding air.
She smiled sweetly and skillfully talked with the surrounding parents. Her gentleness and patience made people feel close to her involuntarily. Then she bent down and picked up a little girl with heterochromia. The little girl smiled brightly in her arms, and Shigure Kira's eyes were full of a sacred motherly glow.
"..."
Li Mo stood quietly on the roof, watching this scene. A sourness rose in his throat. He turned and left the school roof.
Soon, another beautiful woman walked out of the crowd and naturally took the little girl with heterochromia into her arms.
Everyone looked and found that she looked remarkably similar to Shigure Kira.
"Shigure, this is?"
"My daughter."
Shigure Kira explained frankly to her peers who looked a generation older than her.
Instantly, the old folks who had come to pick up their grandchildren were stunned. They pointed at the child with heterochromia in the woman's arms and asked, "Then she is your?"
"Granddaughter."
"..."
"..."
This scene caused quite a stir among the elderly who had come to pick up their children, especially those who had originally thought Shigure Kira was in her twenties or thirties. They were surprised and confused.
Everyone looked at each other, their eyes filled with both surprise and curiosity.
After all, from her appearance, Shigure Kira didn't look like she was from their generation at all…
More and more people gathered at the school gate, asking all sorts of questions.
Shigure Kira was also happy to share this happiness, patiently answering every question, her face always filled with a happy smile. Especially when she mentioned Li Mo, whom she hadn't seen for thirty years, her smile became even more brilliant.
She did not tell others that her lover had broken his promise.
She just said, "He's tired, he's resting…"
"Mom, it's time to go. All the kids in the orphanage have been picked up. It's time to go home for dinner."
"Okay, let's go."
The three of them returned home, and many children were methodically doing housework.
This was the haunted house in the Far East. No, it wasn't called a haunted house now, just an ordinary five-story big house.
Shigure Kira had waited for Li Mo in the Eigenworld for three years, and then another three years. In the ninth year, she decided to take her and Li Mo's daughter back to her own world to live.
The Eigenworld was not her root. Without Li Mo, there was nothing for her to miss here.
After returning, with Cecilia's care, the two of them quickly got their lives back on track.
Despite this, Shigure Kira still felt that something was missing. In the end, she decided to move her home to the haunted house in the Far East.
In all her experiences, this was the place with the deepest memories, and it was also where she felt her roots were.
The entire layout was built according to the template of when she lived with Li Mo.
Including…
The ninth room on the fifth floor.
At the dinner table, the young children and the successful young adults chatted and laughed.
"Big Sis Shigure, my company has gone public! If the family is short of money, just let me know."
"Big Sis Shigure, I'm a professor at a prestigious university now. If the younger brothers and sisters have any trouble with their studies, I can help."
"Big Sis Shigure, I'm getting married next year. You have to come!"
"Big Sis Shigure…"
"Big Sis Shigure…"
The joyful shouts of the crowd made Shigure Kira feel as if she had returned to thirty years ago. She subconsciously turned to look at the empty seat beside her.
It was empty—
Shigure Kira gave a wry smile, adjusted her expression, and responded to the children's words one by one.
However, that fleeting moment of loss did not escape her daughter's sharp gaze.
After dinner, she returned to her room. Her daughter stood at the door and knocked. After getting Shigure Kira's permission, she walked in.
In the room, only the mother and daughter sat opposite each other.
"Rin, what's the matter, coming to find me so late?"
"…Nothing, I just wanted to… well, there are some things I want to talk to Mom about."
Rin stood up, sat down next to Shigure Kira, puffed out her cheeks, and leaned on Shigure Kira's shoulder.
She looked unhappy.
"Mom, where do you think Dad is now? You always say he's doing something very important, but no matter how important it is, is it more important than you and me? He hasn't come back to see us for over twenty years…"
"He didn't come when I got into university, he didn't come when I got married. Everyone laughs at me…"
Rin realized something and didn't say any more.
Shigure Kira gently placed her hand on Rin's head and stroked it.
She did not continue on this topic, because she knew what her daughter wanted to express.
"He is a very amazing person, Rin. You must remember, and let everyone know, that your father works really hard…"
"I don't believe it," Rin pouted, her expression gloomy. "The younger brothers and sisters all know to come back and see you after they've made a name for themselves. That cheap old dad of mine won't even give us a call. Mom, everyone laughs at you, they laugh at you for being deceived! For being dumped by Dad!"
As her words fell, Shigure Kira's gentle stroking stopped.
Rin realized she had spoken inappropriately and slowly turned her head, only to see Shigure Kira's serious and angry expression.
"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said that about Dad…" Rin lowered her head and apologized decisively.
After decades of living together, she knew her mom's habits very well.
She wouldn't get angry over most topics. Even if someone cursed her in front of her for using technology to maintain her appearance and would have a short life, she wouldn't get angry.
Rin knew it had nothing to do with technology. According to her mom, it was related to a Bizarre ability called "Wish."