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Chapter 1614 Final Chapter: Guarding the Coastline: "OE: Die from the Ocean (20)"

Su Lin's pupils trembled for a moment.

Over a long period of time, he traveled through the universe and followed flight paths. His consciousness gradually returned, and he was no longer the god of Cloud City. On the contrary, Su Ming'an became more and more like a god.

Now, Su Ming'an's strength has reached a certain level, and even the ten thousand beautiful dreams that Gao Wei placed in his soul... were automatically rejected by his powerful strength.

He could no longer find that beautiful dream, nor could he find Yueyue who remained in the game world; nothing could be returned to.

“…The sea in Praia is very beautiful,” Su Lin said.

The madman looked up at him.

"In summer, the sunlight shines down, making the water sparkle like gold. Fishermen return from their fishing trips, drenched in sweat, their boats laden with fish baskets that look like golden mirrors," Su Lin said. "In winter, the sea doesn't freeze. Although sea monsters rage and fewer people go out to sea, large ships like the Atlantean still come, their sharp prows seemingly piercing the silvery surface of the sea, like cutting open a lotus leaf..."

“I often miss that sea. Although I often go to other seas and see almost the same seascapes, I know that they are ultimately different—the sea of ​​my hometown is unique.”

"The moon over my hometown is the same."

“I once exiled myself to the highest heavens just to guard this ocean. But you told me that the ocean is there, whether I am there or not, it is still my home ocean.”

“Your situation is different from mine... Because of you, you have the opportunity to see the ocean of your homeland, but without you, you may only be able to see the waves here for the rest of your lives.”

"so……"

Su Lin grasped Su Ming'an's wrist:

Even if the dream is gone, keep going.

"...Don't be afraid to see the ocean."

"When the hundred streams flow into the sea... you will see the ocean. When that time comes, describe to me just how beautiful the ocean of our hometown is, how it will captivate your heart and soul."

He almost never tried to persuade Su Ming'an to give up; the only thing he ever talked about was perseverance.

Su Ming'an was stunned for a moment, then suddenly raised his hand:
"Did you grab my wrist because you thought my hands were dirty?"

Su Lin: "...Otherwise what?"

This guy was trying so hard to persuade me, and he still cares about this... Su Ming'an wanted to laugh and cry at the same time. He raised his hand and suddenly noticed that the ring on his finger was glowing.

It flashed, flashed, shimmering with green light.

It's like... the color of spring.

His pupils constricted, his heart clenched, and he immediately clicked to view the text, seeing lines of flashing words.

……

[2026-11-12]

[Memory module is being repaired. The world game has ended, and the system has been removed from rule monitoring. Speed-up is being restored...]

……

[2028-2-28]

[The emotion module is being repaired; the host's rank is extremely high, and recovery is accelerating...]

……

[2029-9-19]

[Logic module is being repaired, communication module is being repaired... Some module repairs failed, the complete program could not be saved, and there is irreversible damage.]

……

[2030-1-21]

[Overall repair complete, first attempt to boot... boot failed due to a lack of a complete thought process and flawed program logic.]

……

[2030-2-27]

[Second attempt to power on... Power on failed. Attempting repair... Repair failed.]

……

[2030-3-1]

[38th boot failure...]

……

[2030-3-6]

[232th boot failure...]

……

[2030-3-11]

[1382th boot failure...]

……

[2030-3-20]

[281920th boot failure...]

……

[2030-3-21]

[Change the strategy pattern, try to learn from external ideas, supplement the program logic, and fix the missing parts.]

[Learning...]

……

[2033-3-21]

[Learning...]

……

[2036-3-21]

[Learning... Host status detected a significant decline, attempting to repair... Repair failed, host does not belong to the program architecture.]

……

[2039-3-21]

[Learning... 30008192nd attempt to power on...]

[Power-on successful.]

……

[2039-3-22]

All modules are restarting... Estimated time... difficult to predict.

……

[2039-12-22]

[The thinking module has been initially restarted; recording is underway.]

……

[2039-12-31]

[Louis...]

I'm almost... awake... Are you still there...?

I want to see... you...

I wanted to give you... chocolate...

I want to walk with you... into springtime...

……

[2040-1-1]

If only I could always be by your side.

……

[2040-3-21]

[The temperature sensing system... is recovering...]

……

[2040-3-30]

You must have...already...stepped into spring...

【Very good……】

……

[2040-4-3]

It feels empty... so many programs are missing... my memory is hazy... my records are unclear...

I don't know... what my own name is...

Do I have a name? Do I... have a name that belongs to me...?

[We detected that you're still very sad... It must be those people who upset you again... We can go to... a world just for the two of us... then... you won't be sad anymore...]

……

[2040-4-4]

A word emerged in the database... selfish...

The kind of thinking you taught me... is selfish... so we can't go to that kind of world...

But if I'm not selfish... I'll always be sad...

[It's because you think I'm not selfish... that you consider me a friend...]

So, is it better to be selfish... or to be unselfish...?

My selflessness made you accept me as a friend... but I also want you to accept me as a friend because of my selfishness... so... is it selfishness... or selflessness?

[My thinking is stuck... and my output is also clumsy...]

I'm going into hibernation again... so that I can see you again more easily in the future... I need to focus all my efforts on recovery...

You certainly wouldn't... approve of... a... useless... friend.

Let's meet in the spring, my best friend Louis.

……

[2040-4-5]

[Program hibernating, no records found.]

……

[2040-4-6]

[Program hibernating, no records found.]

……

Su Ming'an stroked the ring and looked up.

The sky and the sea are vast and pure.

He washed his hands and face, and then embarked on his journey once again.

2041 years, 2042 years, 2043 years...

2046 years.

A pivotal turning point.

—Through the efforts of Su Ming'an and humanity, the small world finally condensed into the "Seed of the World".

Like Rovasa's "Seed of the World Tree," it is the origin of the world, a product of a world's self-evolution, self-independence, and self-upgrading.

This means that the small world is no longer considered a small world; it has a complete world structure and can be called a real, independent, and complete planetary civilization.

Of course, it can no longer be called a "small world" and needs a formal planetary name. The previous "Ming'an Civilization" was not a formal name, and Su Ming'an did not want to actually use such a planetary name.

Some suggested keeping the name "Zhai Xing," but this met with considerable opposition. People believe that Zhai Xing is still the hometown they are searching for, and its existence should not be erased.

We must give this little world a new name that is both harmonious and different, one that reflects the spirit of Zhai Xing and humanity, yet avoids duplication with the old names.

For this giant ark of space travel, this brand new and independent planet, this new home that humanity depends on and loves.

After consulting with all of humanity and holding a broad vote, the small world was officially named—

……

"Earth".

……

See you again.
--goodbye.

……

In December of the same year, the spaceship that had departed ten years earlier returned, and humanity discovered a new planet.

This was not a discovery by deities like Su Ming'an and Su Lin, but by dozens of astronauts from various countries. They were conducting borderless exploration, funded by the United Government. The Alliance Watchdog, the Peace Dove Rescue Association, and the New Era Council Tower all responded.

Having dedicated their youth to the arduous and barren journeys, the astronauts found a delightful surprise—

It was half a planet with ruins. The life on the planet must have been destroyed or left for some reason, leaving behind broken walls and a considerable amount of resources. Preliminary estimates suggest that the resources were several times that of Zhai Xing, indicating that it was at least a remnant of an advanced civilization.

Plains, mountains, deserts, ice fields... all kinds of terrains exist, and there are quite advanced cultural relics.

After a year-long exploration of the surrounding area, it was determined that there is no immediate danger.

At this moment, Su Ming'an returned from the timeline of 2150. He saw that traces of a high-dimensional invasion had reappeared a hundred years later. In order to resist the crisis, planetary fusion was a necessary measure.

"After the two planets merge, I will hold a divine sacrifice and slay the evil dragon... All the emotional energy of the past hundred years will converge in me, and I can merge the two stars to establish a perfect barrier that resembles an 'ideal state,' which can even withstand superimposed shadows. Then I will leave Earth. Rather than exhausting their energy to relentlessly pursue this tough nut of an Earth, the higher dimensions will find it easier to chase me—in this way, humanity will be completely at peace."

"If Earth faces another crisis, it will be at least ten thousand years from now. By then, the planet will have undergone several ascensions, and more people like me will step forward to protect this place forever..."

“I held the torch against the wind, becoming the ‘creator of heaven and earth,’ and now my mission is complete.”

"My final mission is to help the binary stars merge... then I will retire, leave this place, and draw away the crisis brought by the higher dimensions, allowing Earth to recuperate for ten thousand years..."

"Finally...it's going to end..."

Su Ming'an sat under the peach tree drinking wine.

He used to be unable to tolerate alcohol, but now his divine body is able to expel it, and he can finally taste what alcohol is like.

"No wonder Yueyue described the wine as being like horse urine... I thought she had drunk it before, but after drinking it myself, I found it was indeed just so-so." Su Ming'an took a few sips and put it down. Rather than drinking something so bitter, he would rather drink a sweet beverage.

But someone took the wine from his cup and drank it all in one gulp.

“Godfather…” Su Ming’an saw a figure as white as snow.

Three thousand strands of white hair, as if carved and polished, as beautiful as jade.

So many years have passed, and Shan Shuang, Sha Lina and the others have long since returned, but Li Mingyue is still here, never having left.

Everyone else had people and things they cared about, so they had to go back. As for the child that Mingyue cared about now, there was only the one in front of her.

So he never left and stayed here.

"Wine is meant to intoxicate, but if you don't want to get drunk and just savor the taste, with worries on your mind, you naturally won't be able to appreciate its aroma." Li Mingyue sat on the ground, peach blossoms falling on his shoulders.

"Godfather, tomorrow I will set off with Su Lin to explore that half of the desolate planet." Su Ming'an looked up: "What if the events of the White Tower repeat themselves..."

When they discovered Zhaixing, the White Tower collapsed, countless people died, Lu sacrificed himself, and Lü Shu lost his eyesight... This became the most tragic event since the World Game, known as the "White Tower Incident." People were overjoyed at the new planet and looked forward to a better life, but they were also terrified that the past would repeat itself.

Upon hearing this, Li Mingyue chuckled:
"Just now, as I was passing through the alley, I saw a boy, about fourteen or fifteen years old, a child born after the World Game. He tugged at his mother's clothes and asked about the White Pagoda Incident. His mother only said: It was an inevitable sacrifice on the road. The road is tortuous, but the future is bright. She mentioned the World Game with pain, but more so with awe and gratitude."

"In addition to subjects like Chinese literature, arithmetic, and physics, there is another subject in the college entrance examination called 'World Affairs,' which specifically teaches children about the world games of that time, testing their understanding of the details of higher-dimensional gods and various dungeons. Interestingly, the average score for this subject in the college entrance examination is much higher than that of other subjects, and young people's interest in this subject is also far greater than that of other courses. There are even quite a few people who study other subjects day and night specifically to study this subject, just to get into university and delve into the world games of that time."

“I saw a few children on the street, around the age of 18, carrying souvenirs they bought from the ‘World Game Dragon Kingdom Eastern Branch Museum’: a lighthouse pendant, several bracelets with perfect completion patterns, and even a black bird sculpture, a cursed fire artificial flower, and a model of the Atlantean ship. They laughed and talked about your and my names in the history textbook. One of the children mentioned that unofficial history said the world lord preferred meal replacements, and I knew then—that was history.”

"So we have become history."

"The rights and wrongs of history are left for future generations to judge, but we will never throw the baby out with the bathwater. I once heard a saying: 'The lesson that mankind learns from history is that mankind learns no lessons at all.' On the surface, this statement means that mankind is incorrigible and repeats the same mistakes. In fact, I think its meaning is that 'even if we are battered and bruised, mankind will still move forward with extreme boldness.'"

"After all, if we don't move forward, where will we be when the tide comes in and the peach blossoms have all fallen?"

As Su Ming'an listened, the bitter taste of alcohol welled up in his eyes along with Li Mingyue's words. The dust of history, the judgments of posterity, the twists and turns of the road, the blood and tears of those who came before…

The sorrow that had been weighing on my heart gradually dissipated with the words of the white-haired man.

A peach tree in full bloom was ablaze with color. As the evening breeze passed, the petals fell like rain, rustling down the tree.

"May I get drunk tonight?" Su Ming'an suddenly asked.

"Children shouldn't drink too much alcohol," Li Mingyue said.

“Godfather.” Su Ming’an raised an eyebrow. “I’m not a child anymore. I don’t even know how old I am.”

“In my eyes,” Li Mingyue gently shook her head, looking into the depths of his eyes, “it’s all the same.”

Su Ming'an shook his head.

“However,” Li Mingyue said, “we can have some drinks tonight and rest.”

With his divine power receding, Su Ming'an drank a cup and slowly collapsed. His slightly tipsy eyes reflected the crimson clouds behind Li Mingyue—a brocade woven from thousands of peach blossoms, rising and falling silently in the evening breeze, spreading a carpet of fine, delicate rouge.

“Godfather…” he murmured, his drunkenness rising, his vision spinning, that frost-like figure blurring and overlapping among the swaying peach branches, finally turning into a soft halo of light.

The young man's usually thoughtful face gradually relaxed, his long eyelashes like resting black butterflies, and a trace of wine on his lips revealed an almost childlike innocence. He actually got drunk under the starry sky and the bright peach blossoms, and fell asleep beside Li Mingyue.

The silent night is filled with the rising of the bright moon and the stars hanging low over the vast plain.

Li Mingyue reached out her hand, not deliberately seeking a comfortable position, but as if she had practiced it a thousand times, she gently embraced Su Ming'an's head and neck and placed them on her knees.

Three thousand feet of white hair fell softly, silently enveloping the sleeping black-haired youth in his arms. The white-haired man slightly adjusted his posture, his back straight as a solitary peak, isolating the sleeping youth on his lap from the hustle and bustle of the world.

The night was as dark as ink, spreading silently.

He seemed to have been sitting here for thousands of years, just to provide a small shelter for this only child he cared about, so that he could unload all his burdens and sink into a peaceful sleep like an infant returning to its parents' embrace.

"Dad..." Su Ming'an murmured in his drunken dream, clutching his sleeve tightly, "Mom..."

"Mmm," Li Mingyue responded softly, as an elder and as a friend.

How vast and boundless is the world, yet we are like travelers passing through an inn, hurrying on and on.

Beneath the vast expanse of stars, only this secluded peach blossom cottage, a snow-covered figure, and a soul briefly resting in a deep, peaceful dream remain. The partings, struggles, and grand narratives of the world are all shut out by the garden's blossoms. At this moment, only starlight, fallen petals, and the evening breeze remain.

The long night is silent, the Milky Way whispers, and I am unaware that dawn has broken in the east.

History, like snowflakes, falls upon my shoulders; I'll rest my head on the Milky Way and sleep amidst the flowers.

Heaven and earth are but a temporary lodging; tonight, we shall return home.

……

"Last night I slept drunk under the moonlit west bank. Tonight I fish alone in the snowy south stream. My wife and I, in a boat, wear tattered clothes..." The white-haired man softly recited:

"May you always be happy."

"I never knew that there would be so many partings in this world..."

……

In early 2047, Su Ming'an arrived on the desolate planet.

He waited fully armed, but Noel did not appear.