Welcome to Rewind World Game
Chapter 259 - 256: ’The Self-Proclaimed God’ (reader 20210319, Alliance Hierarch additional 2/5)

Chapter 259: Chapter 256: ’The Self-Proclaimed God’ (reader 20210319, Alliance Hierarch additional 2/5)

The girl in front of him clutched her head, squatting on the ground.

The firelight danced on her body, as if the shadows of the flames were also scorching her.

"Ha, haha. What the hell..."

She laughed as if she had suddenly come to her senses, her eyes clearer than ever before.

Her fingers twisted unconsciously, and even the shadow behind her, deep as an abyss, began to twist in a bizarre manner.

"...Really, it’s ridiculous. The me who didn’t want to grow up... Now, I guess, I’ve really gotten my wish..."

As she laughed, she suddenly burst into tears.

Her tears fell to the ground like beads, her sobbing laughter emitting an almost mournful sound: "But why... why... why did it have to be like this... I, I clearly..."

Su Ming’an stood beside her.

Listening to her wailing, his face was expressionless.

In front of him, the blue clue panel was fully displayed, with every clue already completely linked.

The barrage shook violently, people discussing matters about Dong Xue, with various rebuttal comments surging like a tide.

And by now, his thoughts were fully organized.

The last piece of the truth had just landed in his clue column.

...It had to be said, this was a truth that surprised him somewhat.

Role reversal, the little girl who refused to grow up—had truly become one who couldn’t grow up.

Yang Xia was the main persona, while Dong Xue was the creator’s creation—she was the virtual girlfriend Yang Xia made to commemorate the past.

As a secondary persona, she lived forever in past memories, reliving her own period of adjustment, unwilling to grow up, unwilling to mature.

The mechanism of White Sand Paradise resetting repeatedly was because of this—the world was Dong Xue’s memory, and when she died, the world reset.

Yang Xia would move towards a bright and splendid future, while she was the little girl abandoned in the past. Dong Xue should have died in memory, and she was just creating an existence she could never reach, then repeating the cycle, collapsing.

...Unless she could become the person she despised the most, become mature, she would always collapse upon facing reality, and then repeat the cycle.

But Yang Xia had come back.

Yang Xia, in a male body, had returned.

She wanted to pull Dong Xue out of this endlessly cycling memory.

...

[Perfect Completion Progress · Escape Line: 95%]

...

Dong Xue clutched her head, squatting on the ground.

As Su Ming’an approached her, she suddenly looked up, her eyes red and staring straight at him.

She couldn’t hold back the tears falling from her cheeks, and a wisp of a mournful cry spilled from the corner of her mouth, her figure especially desperate.

...Anyone who discovers they are merely a fantasy creation would be this despairing.

The reversal of roles, Dong Xue was on the verge of collapse.

In front of Su Ming’an, the system interface was undergoing changes.

[Detected Escape Line progress is at 95%...]

"Ding dong!"

[You have entered the final phase, the final judgment is currently being made...]

[Detected that the player has prematurely completed the perfect pass behavior, you will have two final outcomes to choose from.]

[Escape Line: Take Dong Xue into the city, away from White Sand Paradise, complete the basic plot conclusion.]

[Hidden Line · Faith Line: Destroy White Sand Paradise, obtain the hidden ending.]

...

Su Ming’an looked at these two lines and chose the Escape Line.

He really wanted to choose the Hidden Line, but according to its description, that route required him to return to White Sand Paradise. His san value was extremely low now, he was seeing double, and he didn’t have the energy to go back through that route anymore.

They were both perfect passes; he could only temporarily choose the shorter process.

From a moment ago, the bothersome, somewhat manic emotions had been burning him like flames. He had been feeling restless while just now persuading, and he felt irritated looking at Dong Xue.

He closed his eyes and moved closer to Dong Xue.

"Let’s go, out," he said.

After all, the strategy was over, even if he had to drag Dong Xue to the city by force, he would have passed the game.

"...Where are you taking me?" Dong Xue’s voice was heavy, her eyes like a desolate wasteland.

"To the city."

Su Ming’an had already drawn close to Dong Xue. If she talked nonsense again, he would knock her out and carry her over.

"...I’ll go with you," Dong Xue stood up voluntarily.

Her wet clothes clung to her body, outlining her somewhat flat curves. Her eyes were somewhat lifeless—that was the look of someone who had lost all hope.

Su Ming’an knew, this route wasn’t the best for Dong Xue. Her inner conflict hadn’t been resolved; she had just escaped from that place. As long as the memory of White Sand Paradise existed, her problems would persist.

But it was too late now.

Su Ming’an had checked the map; he knew there was an unbroken chain bridge back to White Sand Paradise, but he couldn’t hold on anymore.

He stumbled out, his vision blurring before him, breathing the moist air, looking at the heavy rain pouring down from all around.

...And a little girl standing at the door.

The little girl stood under the tree, her gaze calm as water.

A gentle breeze wound around her body, she looked at him, smiling.

"Su Ming’an," Suzune began, "I’ve been waiting for you for a long time."

Su Ming’an realized then that Shadow was indeed in a coma.

The one who attacked him last cycle, sure enough, was Suzune.

"Suzune... no, Mizushima Haru." Su Ming’an closed his eyes. "You hate me that much?"

"You killed me in the Fifth World; why shouldn’t I hate you?" Mizushima Haru said.

"To kill me, you even went to the extent of becoming a special status npc..." Su Ming’an’s expression grew colder: "Your actions are too foolish... but then again, you were supposed to be this foolish."

As he spoke, a halo of light shone in his hand; he had no desire for further idle talk with her.

In his eyes, people like Mizushima Haru were the most worthless of existences.

"Ha..."

Mizushima Haru’s face revealed a miserable smile.

"At a time like this, you still look down on me," she said, "Take a look behind you, Su Ming’an. I have already mastered the endgame."

Su Ming’an turned around.

He saw Dong Xue kneeling on the ground, her face contorted with agony.

A red glow rippled across her chest, emanating from the ruby pendant she always wore. It was now emitting a blinding light, her face bright red, as if an invisible hand were choking her.

"I’ve spent who knows how many reincarnations in this place that drives people insane, all to prepare a special gift for you... including this pendant that can kill her," Mizushima Haru said with a smile, "...Don’t even think about helping her remove it. The pendant can’t be taken off, and forcibly removing it will only cause it to explode immediately..."

Raindrops hit her face, got into her eyes, and as she laughed, her voice became increasingly hoarse, "...And as long as I stop you here, I will have a chance to continue forward. I can definitely... truly help my sister."

"A special identity like that of a sniper, huh..." Su Ming’an said, "Between my sister and me, you chose your sister, which is logical but foolish."

"Are you trying to persuade me to spare you, Number One Player, who, being the hope of humanity, absolutely cannot die here?"

"I’m scolding you, Mizushima Haru."

"... Hah. You really aren’t afraid of death at all." Mizushima Haru laughed boldly, "Dong Xue’s life is now in my hands. If she dies, the instance will reset, and given your current condition, you absolutely won’t be able to go through it again. You will definitely go insane."

Su Ming’an glanced at the pained Dong Xue.

The ruby pendant on her neck shone, like a sharp dagger aimed at her throat.

"Do you know what you’re doing?" Su Ming’an said, "Don’t let hatred dominate you."

"Are you suggesting... that destroying me is destroying the big picture?" Mizushima Haru snorted coldly, "You think too highly of yourself."

"I won’t convince you with greater good, that would be too hypocritical for me," Su Ming’an said. "But you want me to go mad here, for which you’ve been laying in wait for so many years, I can only feel sad for your choice."

"—Aren’t you the kind who would sacrifice anything for your ’greater good’?" Mizushima Haru sneered.

Su Ming’an, upon hearing this, laughed.

A strong feeling of dizziness had been dominating him, from the Sixth World until now, he hadn’t slept a wink... no, to be precise, he had barely slept at all.

His mental state had been deteriorating, his sanity now down to just over thirty points, hallucinations tormenting him at every moment.

Just standing here, soaked by the rain, he felt as though the world was upside down, not standing on the ground but rather hanging under the sea.

The torrential rain stuck to him like glue, a sense of disarray unlike any other constantly interfered with his senses. Dark afterimages overlapped before his eyes, accompanied by disorientation that flooded his mind.

He coughed to awaken the consciousness that was on the verge of slipping away.

"How can you discern my intentions, Mizushima Haru?" he said, "Having been in such an environment for so many years, your own mind is nearly deranged. Your conjectures are illogical, and your accusations are utterly absurd."

"You really know how to perform," Mizushima Haru observed him, "...don’t think you understand so much."

"... Hah."

Su Ming’an laughed unexpectedly.

Mizushima Haru’s brows furrowed.

She didn’t understand why the other party was still laughing in such a dire situation; she just felt that this person was becoming more and more odd.

"Some things you said are indeed right, ’Every person belongs to humanity—no one should be entirely ashamed of humanity, considered a lesser being, or seen as a god that differs from everyone else.’" Su Ming’an laughed, his laughter growing louder and seemingly out of control.

Mizushima Haru frowned as she looked at him. This situation, which had been completely under her control, inexplicably made her feel uneasy.

She couldn’t describe what she was feeling, this bizarre sensation that almost halted time, but when she met his gaze, she experienced a sense of weightlessness.

Weightlessness of body and mind.

... What exactly was he laughing at in such a situation?

"Su Ming’an, aren’t you propping yourself up as such a god?" Mizushima Haru said, "—Why do you think you won’t become another Ruler? How can you guarantee your original intentions will never change? And why should we trust you? You hide the truth, you say one thing and feel another, you fight alone until now, how do you expect us, who can’t see the full picture, to understand you?"

Su Ming’an looked at her, his smile growing wider and wider.

"Hmm," he responded, sounding quite pleased.

Mizushima Haru was taken aback, then continued in a cold voice, "You’ve seen too few tragedies, Number One Player. Your past is insignificant and not at all pitiable—words can be disguised, actions can be faked. I cannot trust someone who’s like a top actor, playing both sides. There’s nothing about you that I can trust absolutely—if I were to place all my chips on you, I would only end up as ashes in your hands."

"Hmm," Su Ming’an nodded, the smile unwavering.

Mizushima Haru frowned deeply like the character for ’river’: "Listen, I have every reason to blame you, and you can’t refute it."

"Su Ming’an, if you choose to fight, to resist, to lead, what then is your wish? Everything you’ve shown so far has been for self-interest. Why should I believe in you?"

"Can I turn back?" Su Ming’an asked her back, "...Can I still go back?"

"Go back to what?" Mizushima Haru clenched her fist, "Have you gone mad?"

Su Ming’an looked at her, his expression unchanged.

"Guess?" he said.

Mizushima Haru also let out a laugh.

The rain curtain fell between them, pressing down the dark tones.

Through the heavy rain, Mizushima Haru could see the other’s black hair soaked by the rain. The young man in front of her stood as still as a stake planted in the ground, his face wearing a smile that chilled her.

"You’ve gone mad, Su Ming’an." Mizushima Haru laughed with a mix of joy and sorrow, tears falling while she laughed, her voice tinged with sorrow: "...I have accomplished my goal."

"Then congratulations?"

"...You’ve really gone mad."

"You might be right."

"...You’ve been talking for so long, and you haven’t noticed that you killed Mo Yan, who just lost his sanity."

Mizushima Haru said, "I can confirm, you’ve lost to your hallucinations."

"..." Su Ming’an’s unchanged expression finally showed a ripple.

In a blurry field of vision, he suddenly stopped walking, as if something had tightly grasped his heart. He turned his head in near panic, bringing another blurry scene into his view.

He saw the young man lying under a tree, holding a broken greatsword.

The young man sat in the pouring rain, eyes closed, head slightly bowed, as if he had drifted off to sleep, his body covered in vertical and horizontal ripples.

The corners of the young man’s mouth still curled into a smile.

That smile was covered in blood.

"—You killed someone who trusted you so much and admired you so greatly—he must be what you call a Light Pursuer, right? Ha, it’s truly laughable that the Lighthouse killed its own Light Pursuer in order to keep shining.

Looking at you, you probably don’t even realize you just lost your sanity for a moment.

Congratulations, Su Ming’an, did killing him restore your san value?"

Mizushima Haru’s face also revealed a nearly insane smile.

The heavy rain washed away the bloodstains on the ground, carrying the faint scent of blood far away.

Su Ming’an stood still, unmoving like a plaster statue.

The sounds around him seemed to vanish in a moment, even the pounding rain appeared silent.

He felt a howling cold wind within his chest.

"Mizushima Haru."

Out of the silence, he suddenly spoke:

"I extend to you the High Tower Invitation."