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Chapter 1558 Final Chapter - Guarding the Shore [34] - "Backwards".

2026 5 Month 31 Day.

That was the most magnificent sky Yang Changxu had ever seen.

The heavens and earth roared, as if in the most blurred moment of the transition between day and night, the mountains and rivers were all reflected in the light.

At that moment, he was standing in the midst of the panicked crowd, anxiously awaiting the judgment of fate. Their magical power had been completely poured into the sky, and before him were all sorts of figures, and in his ears were a cacophony of sounds.

"God bless, Buddha bless, Bodhisattva bless..."

"Breaking news: The top players have calculated that the current energy is not enough to take everyone away..."

Will I be one of those left behind?

Is it really the end of the world?

Yang Changxu closed his eyes and took a deep breath. It is said that people miss their families in their final moments, and at this moment, he really wanted to see his mother.

“…Mom?” a childish voice rang out.

Yang Changxu glanced over instinctively and saw a girl holding a communicator, seemingly contacting her mother.
"Yes, Mom... I'm not scared, it's okay, I know," the girl whispered into the microphone.

"Mom, you're too far away from me. Let's meet again in the new world in a little while."

"We agreed to buy a small house with a garden. It's said that the New World has a corresponding exchange system. We've worked hard for a long time, and we'll never have to live in that musty house on Zhaixing again, and no one will be chasing us for debts anymore."

"Yes, I'm not worried, we'll definitely meet again..."

Several young people were walking around next to the girl, making phone calls.

"Hey, Jiajia, don't worry! Although we've been messing around for half a year, we've finally met our end. We might not become rich and powerful, but we definitely won't go hungry," the young man said to the person on the other end of the line.
"Once we get back and things settle down, we'll have the wedding!"

"Are you worried about chaos breaking out? It's alright, I heard that place has been under construction for a long time, and the Allied Group and other organizations aren't pushovers. Okay, it's a date then... Jiajia, I must see you there, no one can be left behind!"

His voice choked up as he said this.

Standing in the crowd, Yang Changxu heard many cries, sobs, and phone calls.

People seem to want to vent all the fear, pain, joy, and anxiety they've had over the past six months.

Some people didn't believe everything would go smoothly, always feeling that something unexpected would happen in the end; some felt the future was bleak, and that the tragedy of the ruined world might repeat itself; some cried simply because they were moved; others worried about family and friends far away; and still others wept for the sacrifices of others...

Thinking of his mother, even this resolute soldier couldn't help but feel a lump in his throat.

Will that old woman, who can't even use a smartphone, really be able to reunite with him in the new world? Will Lingguang abandon her? Will she be able to get a ticket? What if she never sees him again...?

Before leaving, I didn't have a chance to say goodbye properly. What if we never see each other again? What if this quiet farewell is the last time we see each other...

Yang Changxu gently covered his face before lowering his hand.

A variety of voices continued to emerge, and even the comments section became more enthusiastic than ever before.

[Are the organizers really not visible? Were they all held up?]

[The Ninth Divine Envoy, Lü Shu, is trying to stop them, and Su Ming'an has also brought in the Fifth Divine Envoy, Xinghuo himself. Yueyue is also helping, and the other organizers have been drawn away by Su Ming'an's public announcement of the punishment rules for reverting to a previous state after death.]

[I'm asking you, does anyone still say Su Ming'an is the organizer's lackey?!?]

【Respect.】

I never imagined a student could go to this extent.

No, you can no longer call him a "student"; he is now the savior, the true savior of humanity.

[I doubt anyone would say something like "A death rollback would be fine even for a pig," right?]

[We cannot ignore the fact that there is always a dark side to this world. I've heard of people who want to deliberately cause chaos, even sending signals into space with the intention of destroying the world.]

At least now, no one will publicly denigrate him. I witnessed it all—twelve whole instances…—seeing people question, despise, and reject him, but also seeing his support grow, more and more people be influenced by him, until the majority believed in him, supported him, and respected him…

Someone has revealed that they've been just going through the motions of being a spectator.

[I don't care about any of this nonsense, I want to live!!! I want to live!!! I have to succeed!!!]

Is Noel really a traitor?

[It's already confirmed, is anyone still trying to defend him?]

The restrictions on information in the live chat have been greatly reduced; even information from different live streams can be shared. This suggests that the game world is losing control over us.

[Yueyue has been infiltrating for so long, I can't imagine how much effort she has put in behind the scenes.]

[Strange, where did Boss Rabbit go at such a crucial moment?]

[Breaking news from the front lines: With the help of Singles, Doubles, Siber, the Godfather, and others, Su Ming'an has pierced the World Tree with a single sword strike!]

Holy crap! No need for an announcement, even the dogs saw it!

Oh my god! Look at the sky!

Oh my God!

[Su Ming'an, Su Ming'an...]

……

At first, it was a gigantic object as transparent as water in the sky.

At first glance, it resembles a whale under the sky, but after a moment, humans were finally able to see its full form.

—It was not made of steel or wood, but of flowing golden runes, shimmering verses, and ancient proverbs woven into the hull.

The ark, as massive as a mountain yet as light as a kite, hovers beneath the shattered sky. On its hull, the strokes of calligraphy shimmer with a soft light—the horizontal strokes and vertical strokes of Chinese characters resemble soaring eaves, the curves of Latin letters resemble waves, the hieroglyphs seem like flowing ropes, and the data streams rush like silvery brooks.

It was an ark made of words.

In the center of the ark, as if it were a symbol, floats a small, blue, and enviable planet. It does not emit a particularly beautiful light, but it is so alluring that it brings tears to one's eyes.

As if receiving a divine decree, flying creatures emerged from dense forests, valleys, and city chimneys, like flowing black silk, golden rivers, and silvery whirlwinds, circling the grand new world.

At the heart of it all, supporting this epic migration, stands the towering World Tree. Its branches pierce the clouds, its roots run deep into the star's core. A warm current, like a tapestry of starlight silver and dawn's gold, flows slowly across the horizon.

The scene was so beautiful that it defied description.

“Home…” He Yuan’s voice choked with emotion.

Although it is just a distant image, it is as if I can already see that distant land.

It felt like an eternity since we parted so soon.

"Pat-pat".

The sky was fragrant and warm, and pink transformed into a magnificent "rain." The raindrops, coated with glistening frosting, did not shatter upon hitting the ground, but gently bounced before rolling into the cracks of the ruins, into panicked palms, and even onto people's shoulders.

Suddenly, a tremendous whooshing sound rang out from the direction of the World Tree.

Amidst the frozen gazes and tense breaths of the people.

—An invisible barrier that had obscured the sky broke and cracked.

At the same time, the colossal tree that had stood for millions of years, like a world landmark, suddenly slid down, shattered, collapsed, and fell with a violent roar.

The moment the massive tree trunk tilted, the resounding crash as it collapsed felt like a heavy blow to everyone's heart, causing their bodies to tremble involuntarily.

This marks the end of an era.

It is also the beginning of a world.

Alger, who was running around in the temple, stopped in his tracks.

"The World Tree has fallen, and Noel... has lost?" Alger murmured, "Oh no, sister..."

He slowly knelt on the ground, coughing up blood.

Isabella stopped the bombardment of the Star Destroyer.

As she watched her target gradually disappear, her heart felt heavy beyond words.

"Which direction did you go?" Isabella murmured to herself, stroking the silvery-white wall. "What price did you pay?"

Ryan stood in the alley corner, a cigarette dangling from his lips, gazing at the crowd and the giant tree in the distance. He chain-smoked, as if his heart was filled with unhappiness.

He touched the cross around his neck and murmured:

"It's been a long time since I've seen Boris, but the next time I see that guy, I can finally tell him the ending of that long story."

"The captain did not die at the hands of the siren. He led all his crew and successfully sailed the ship back to the Empire."

“However,” he said, taking a drag of his cigarette.

"The crew found that the captain was nowhere to be found. He seemed to have become... part of the 'Immortal Pearl' ship, to have become glory itself."

"Captain, will you like this final version of the story?"

The angel of dawn caressed the stone tablet.

He manifested Lin Yin's face, raising his head high to gaze at the collapsing World Tree at the horizon.

“It’s all the same,” He murmured.

"it's the same."

In the crowd, Xiaoxiao held Wang Zhenzhen's hand tightly.

"Mommy, Mommy... I miss Mommy, I want to go home..." Wang Zhenzhen was trembling all over: "The World Tree has fallen, we can go home now, right...? I'm so scared, I'm so scared. I've seen so many movies and TV shows, and usually something bad happens at times like this, and lots and lots of people die..."

She was so nervous that she was incoherent. Xiao Xiao hugged her tightly and buried her head in her shoulder.

"No, no more," Xiaoxiao whispered.

"Because all the unexpected events have been ruled out by him and them."

"What we are seeing is already a future without any surprises."

The halo covering the ark gradually solidified, like a layer of ancient and hard glaze.

All the runes, verses, proverbs, and data streams flowed slowly, powerfully, and unstoppably.

In an instant, it unleashed a tremendous suction force, and countless golden rays of light descended upon it, as if angels were guiding the human world.

At that moment, countless figures rose into the air.

At that moment, the eaves of the ark resembled upturned feathers.

At that moment, the white-haired youth's gaze was calm. He turned his sword to the right and thrust it forward.

At that moment, blood gushed from Shenming's chest, and he quietly collapsed.

At that moment, Luigi Ricardoss returned from the ruins and looked up.

At that moment, Anthony, Ward, Meyani, Violet, and the others finally stopped consuming the mana they had been using for over ten days.

At that moment, the giant tree, which had spanned millions of years, collapsed with a deafening roar.

At that moment, people were like fireflies caught in a net of light, or shooting stars flying backwards, defying gravity.

At that moment, countless people called out the word "home," converging into a colorful torrent flowing upwards, ever upwards, surging towards the shadow of that giant ship of words or the vast sky above.

Her clothes fluttered, and her long hair flowed freely.

The cloud-dwelling deity, clad in white robes, looked down at the people gazing up at him from the ground, seeing countless tiny yet resolute black dots merging into the clouds illuminated by the light of the ark.

The light, like a tangible veil, gently enveloped the ascending crowd, bathed them in the rain of strawberry pastries, caressed the runic hull of the Ark of Words, and lightly kissed the wings of the birds.

It was like a grand dawn.

"..." A hint of melancholy slowly flickered across those dark golden eyes: "In the end, you still chose to become..."

"Look, there—!" someone shouted.

Even without shouting, people could see a beam of light shooting from the fallen World Tree toward the Ark in the sky.

"That's a shooting star! Make a wish!" a child shouted.

"That's the dawn!"

"Ignorant! That's the number one player... no, that's Su Ming'an! He's going to the small world, he will be our future world lord!" someone immediately retorted.

"He has a death rollback ability, so the small world will definitely not be destroyed."

"That's just a guaranteed minimum, does that mean all of humanity is useless? The Allied Forces, the Human Self-Salvation Alliance, the Pinnacle Alliance, the top-ranked players... we won't let him use the death rollback feature!"

"I still feel like I'm dreaming..."

"Strange, it seems like almost everyone is taking off, and no one seems to be left on the ground... Didn't the top players say that a large number of people would be forced to stay behind?"

"The energy must have been replenished last!"

"It's truly a miracle!"

“I used to like Su Ming’an and Lü Shu, but people always said that they were just entertaining adventurers. Now that Su Ming’an has become the Realm Lord and Lü Shu has become the Tower Lord, I can finally express my admiration as a matter of course. Building a memorial hall, writing it into history books, offering flowers... I must be at the forefront.”

"It won't be that fast. The first thing will definitely be to stabilize the order. There will be a period of chaos because many people just don't like those in power."

“He must be the Lord of the Realm. If it were anyone else, like Mizushima or Wilson, I wouldn’t trust them at all.”

"That's great, I can see him and the top players on TV for a long, long time."

"Lord World Lord! Lord World Lord!"

That pure white "shooting star" flew towards the small world, towards the sky, towards the ark.

Some people are indeed making wishes silently. For them, making a wish to Su Ming'an is more effective than making a wish to a shooting star.

The moment everyone saw the "shooting star," they all opened their eyes wide, wanting to imprint this scene in their eyes and in their memories.

In this way, when they grow old, when they look back on the past, when their hair turns white, they can proudly tell their children: "Back then, at a turning point in human destiny, I witnessed a brilliant shooting star."

On the ground, Lü Shu slowly raised his head.

"clang--!"

The black sword fell heavily to the ground. The moment he heard the World Tree collapse, he felt as if he had lost all his strength.

The eighth seatman, who was entangled with him, also stopped what he was doing and looked up at the sky.

“The World Tree has collapsed, the World Barrier has shattered, and it’s beyond saving…” The Eighth Seat’s voice was hoarse: “I never imagined anyone would have the courage to abandon such a promising life in order to ensure the world-saving plan is 100% successful.”

He paused, then continued, "I thought he would be one of the organizers... Ha, a perfect player, a once-in-a-millennium perfect player! He actually chose to trap himself... Is this stupidity or..."

He was silent for a moment, then turned around and disappeared into thin air.

Above the heavens, the ark radiates the light of dawn.

It was as if a pair of black eyes, in the void, calmly opened and looked down upon all living beings.

It's as if this chaotic yet magnificent final scene offers solace to weary souls.

Its very existence is the last and most solid "lighthouse" in this broken world.

This is the end, and also the beginning.

When the ark carried away the spark of civilization, when strawberry shortbread fell like rain, when humanity set sail for the heavens...

—Someone gently bent down, using their back as a ladder and their heart as firewood, to witness and protect this grand and bizarre farewell and rebirth, a tale of despair and hope.

Those black eyes curved slightly.

As everyone made wishes to him
He revealed a smile as beautiful as a camellia.

……

"...The coalition is rapidly organizing and integrating. People have just arrived, and there are bound to be those who want to stir up trouble."

"...A global summit is about to be held, led by the five permanent members of the Security Council and top players. The goal is to improve global communication and coordination mechanisms, and the primary topic is to prevent large-scale conflicts among players and malicious destruction of human civilization."

"...and the 'Basic Framework for the Safety and Responsibility of Returnees' that has already been established in the world of the main god stipulates the bottom line of player behavior that is recognized globally (prohibiting mass killing, prohibiting subversion of government, protecting basic human rights, etc.)."

"...and the Player Affairs Coordination and Processing Department, which is nominally responsible for coordinating relations between players and the government, providing psychological assistance, resettlement, and identity reconstruction, is actually the core node for information collection, threat assessment, and establishing contact."

"...According to the plan agreed upon by the top players and organizations, we will build 256 towers as soon as possible. We will integrate the technologies learned from multiple dungeons such as Ruins World, Playa, and Rovasa, and adopt methods similar to the Dawn System, Utopia, Storm Barrier, and Book of the World to erect a barrier on the outer edge of the planet, while simultaneously controlling the planet's interior in real time. Each tower will be in charge of a part of the area and will be ruled by a 'Tower Master'."

"...But this is a massive project. Even though Ms. Su and Ms. Luna have been working together on the construction for a long time, it will still take some time for the tower master to take office and settle down."

"...Before that, we still need the Lord of the Realm, that is, Lord Su Ming'an, to lead us. He is the creator of the world and also a god."

"...Um, Lord Su Lin, Lord Su Lin, are you listening?"

Su Lin stood under the gray-blue sky, silently gazing into the distance.

Grete, the deputy political commissar from the joint mission, peeked out.

"Okay, I'll go find him," Su Lin said.

“Then I’ll trouble you. We just came in and managed to find you, but we haven’t been able to find Su… cough, Lord of the Realm yet.” Gret’s wrinkles curved: “Then I’ll go find Lord Su first. You can call me anytime.”

After Grete left, Su Lin swept through the crowd, across the sea and the wind, forward, forward.

"Hey? Was that Su Lin just now?" someone looked up.

"Really? Are you seeing things?"

"It can fly! It must be no ordinary player! Damn, quick, film it! We can make a fortune through short videos!"

"Mom, can you hear me on the phone? Yes, we're not far apart. The alliance issued a notice before that we would be reassigned according to our original residences on Zhaixing. There are robots everywhere under control now. I'll come find you when the control is lifted..."

As they flew, Su Lin looked ahead.

Before him lay a vast mountainous region, a landscape of undulating peaks.

Su Lin recognized this place because Lu Shu and the others often mentioned it, so Su Lin searched for it online.

—Mount Taihua.

No one had ventured to the remote and quiet Taihua Mountain. Nearby were bamboo groves and wooden houses, seemingly replicas of the former residences of Lü Shu and Lin Yin.

Su Lin flew upwards, passing through swaying trees and over uneven pebble paths.

—We arrived at the mountaintop.

It was early morning in the small world. The first rays of dawn fell on the mountaintop, and everything was bathed in shimmering light. All the mountains and rivers were spread out before our eyes.

A small, crystal-clear tree, about two meters tall, grows on the hilltop and seems to have just begun to grow.

Su Lin landed and gazed at the small tree.

"You're not really going to make me the Realm Lord, are you? I'll leave once I find my home." Su Lin's voice was low and deep. "Becoming a tree allows you to avoid the position of Realm Lord. You have no idea how fanatical humanity's trust and reverence for you are right now..."

"Let me make this clear first: you've only turned into a tree, you're not dead yet, so I will absolutely not take that position. I doubt Lu Shu and the others will either; they'll keep that position vacant for you indefinitely."

"Until you come back."

"Until you wake up."

"If someone gets on, you might not be able to come back."

"You made your decision too quickly and without saying a word. At least tell me whether you need people to know that you have become a tree, or whether we should create a false image of a god for you so that people will believe that you are immortal?"

"If you don't answer, I'll take that as you choosing the former?"

"You've sacrificed so much; it would be too painful if no one knew."

Suddenly, the sound of wind rustling through the grass came from there.

Su Lin immediately became alert. No one would come to this place now, unless they were a hostile enemy.

He was about to draw his sword when his gaze suddenly froze.

—A young man stands on a hillside.

A young man with flowing white hair and wearing a colorful mask stood on the hillside.

As dawn broke through the dappled shadows of the sparse trees, the clown mask with its gilded edges tilted slightly upward, and the bright red paint on its lips seemed to come alive, drawing an exaggerated and comical smile.

He walked in, bathed in sunlight, as if he were radiant with light.

“You…” Su Lin’s eyes widened.

"Surprised?" Su Ming'an smiled and pointed to his chest: "'Faith' authority was useless for a lifetime, but in the end it showed me a rare surprise."

The World Tree has the ability to create clones. On the sea route, Su Ming'an created countless clones of himself by relying on the "symbiotic" World Tree. "Faith" enhanced his mobility, allowing him to move more freely.

“Your true form is still here…” Su Lin glanced at the tree.

“It doesn’t matter. Have you regained some of your humanity?” Su Ming’an asked.

"...I guess so. Seeing you so determined to stab the World Tree did remind me of some past memories," Su Lin said, turning her gaze away and crossing her arms.

Su Ming'an chuckled softly, the sound muffled beneath the brightly colored mask.

At that moment, he resembled a colorful butterfly encased in solidified amber.

"Now that you're here, let me tell you what happened next." Su Ming'an adjusted his mask: "You should know that in the end, it was Shan Shuang and the Godfather who helped me out."

"Mm." Su Lin nodded.

"The small world is still quite unstable. They have promised me that they will pool their power and authority to reshape the 'Book of the World' for me."

"How to renovate?"

"Simply put, it grants me the ability to 'travel through time'."

"Death rollback?"

“No, I’m a tree now. I don’t know if death can still trigger a death rollback. If it can’t, my suicide would be equivalent to destroying all of humanity.” Su Ming’an said calmly, “What I need to do is to traverse time within the scope of the ‘small world,’ similar to Si Que’s artificial time authority in Rovasa.”

Su Lin thought for a moment, then nodded and said, “It’s feasible. The ‘Soul’ authority can transform you into a spirit, the ‘Reincarnation’ authority can allow you to travel through time, and the ‘Faith’ authority can strengthen the former. If it doesn’t involve higher dimensions, and you’re only traveling through time within a small world, there’s no problem. So, do you want to—flow backwards?”

To everyone's surprise, Su Ming'an gave the opposite answer.

“Going against the current is pointless,” Su Ming’an said. “Right now, at this moment, is like a new beginning in human history. Everything starts anew, and everyone is standing on the starting line. Even if I go against the current, humanity hasn’t even arrived in the small world yet, so I can’t help.”

Su Lin nodded slowly: "So, your idea is—to go back."

“That’s right.” The youth wearing the clown mask revealed a bright red smile: “Look back, see the future development of humanity, know the problems they will encounter, and touch the truth of the future. If there is an opportunity, find a way to set yourself free, and then…”

He glanced at the sky:

"After I've finished all this responsibility, I want to go to the universe to find the Shadow, or Noel Agnes, and ask her for an explanation."

"At that time, I no longer had heavy responsibilities on my shoulders, and I could seek the truth and unravel the questions that still puzzled me."

"Or, I could go find Eden; I still don't know who their world lord is. Or, I could simply go back to the World Game; there are many unsolved mysteries there as well."

"Hmm." Su Lin nodded, then suddenly said:
"Temporary conservatism is not cowardice, but rather a better preparation for the journey ahead."

Su Ming'an was taken aback.

The mask that had been laughing so loudly now showed some restraint in its smile.

“You have done nothing wrong to anyone. Whether you choose to be conservative or radical, humanity should thank you,” Su Lin said.

The smile on the mask faded somewhat.

"Before getting on the tram, think more about 'how many people you've saved' rather than 'how many people you haven't saved,'" Su Lin said.

Su Ming'an adjusted his mask and turned around.

His voice was muffled:
"I'm going to dye my hair back to black later."

“I do think black is better than white.” Su Lin frowned and asked, “Are we about to leave?”

"Yes, the World Tree itself will remain here and automatically regulate the world. I'll come back when manual adjustments are needed." Su Ming'an's laughter trembled slightly at the end. "After instructing Lu Shu and the others, I'll set off."

“Go ahead,” Su Lin said.

He never asked Su Ming'an why he was wearing a seven-colored mask.

He didn't ask Su Ming'an if he was deceiving him or hiding anything from him.

He didn't even ask Su Ming'an how long he could live in this form.

Su Ming'an waved and walked down the hillside.

Su Lin gazed quietly at that small, golden figure bathed in the dawn light.

He took out a crumpled piece of paper from his pocket and gently buried it under the glistening little tree.

……

“Read from front to back, Su Mingan.”

A young man wearing a clown mask runs towards a distant river.

Behind him, a clear and expansive sky stretched into the distance.

Su Lin took one last look, turned around, and walked down the hillside in the opposite direction.

...Go on, turn around, Su Ming'an.

You have only chosen to quell the human crisis first; it does not mean you have abandoned truth and perfection.

No one should blame you, no one should be responsible for your actions.

We journey backward, towards the past, towards the future, towards the distant mountains and the sea.

And we will stay here for you, guard your place, tell everyone about your achievements, tell them that your Lord of the Realm has not disappeared, he has become a gentle giant tree, and he is still trekking backward for humanity, until he reaches the distance.

Tell people that the man named "Su Ming'an" has never stopped redeeming others.

"Looking back" to guard the shore does not mean "cowardly retreating," but rather extending the future of humanity and leading it to the "finale."

It is a brief rest to regroup and set off again, while preserving our ideals.

It ensures that the path "later" is still viable.

Because of his choice, humanity has had countless "later" generations.

……

This will be a—

Our story of constantly "going backwards" (trekking).

……