As the towering Susanoo once again raised its ōdachi, the Ethereal Overlord—now left with only half its body—had already fallen into utter despair.
That last strike, the second slash, had barely missed its head despite its desperate efforts. But this third blow… there was no way it could escape.
In that moment, a sliver of regret surged within it. If only it hadn't listened to that so-called Creator... Would things have turned out differently? At the very least, it wouldn't be facing a situation this hopeless, this inescapable.
But the truth was—whether it had provoked Zhong Yan or not—Zhong Yan would have come for it regardless.
There was no choice. The threat posed by the Hollows was simply too great. Unless they were completely eradicated, Zhong Yan would never stop.
Back to the present. As endless spatial energy gathered around the blade held by Susanoo, the next moment—a streak of piercing sword aura erupted forth with explosive speed.
Wherever the sword aura passed, all matter was annihilated. Faced with a strike it had no chance of evading, the supergiant Ethereal Overlord closed its eyes in hopeless surrender.
The next second, the sword aura swept through. The remaining half of its body was cleaved apart by the overwhelming spatial power, exposing the hidden Core within.
That Core was essentially the Ethereal's heart. Once it was destroyed, the Ethereal could no longer survive—no matter how powerful it was.
With a single strike, the Core was split in two. The Overlord's massive form lost cohesion and began to disintegrate, eventually dissolving into a sky full of ether particles, vanishing completely.
...
At the exact moment the Ethereal Overlord perished—outside Hollow Zero.
The Ethereals engaged in battle with the Hollow Special Operations elites suddenly lost their commander's control. Chaos erupted instantly. Their previously coordinated actions devolved into internal conflict, leaving everyone bewildered.
Seeing this, question marks practically popped above everyone's heads. But they reacted quickly, realizing this was the perfect opportunity to wipe out the Ethereal army.
All the elite members of the Hollow Special Operations charged forward in unison. Whether in New Eridu or the outer ring, a counterattack was launched simultaneously.
In less than half a day, the Ethereal army that had invaded New Eridu was completely annihilated. Hollow Zero, which had once covered the entire region of Old Eridu, shrank down to a shockingly small scale.
As the barrier slowly receded, Old Eridu—once trapped within the Hollow's reach—was finally bathed in light again.
The abandoned streets, unseen for over a decade, reappeared before people's eyes.
Many who saw Old Eridu again felt an overwhelming mix of nostalgia, sorrow—and a joy they had never known before.
Elsewhere, after finishing off the Ethereal Overlord, Zhong Yan used Kamui to exit Hollow Zero and immediately went to find Zhong Ling.
With the Ethereal army utterly destroyed, the father and son entered the Kamui dimension to speak privately.
"The trouble's finally over. Those remaining Hollows—let the Hollow Special Operations deal with them. Shouldn't be too hard. I think it's time I actually took a break," Zhong Yan said as he stretched, unable to suppress a long yawn.
He hadn't closed his eyes in several days and nights. While that didn't affect him too severely, the fatigue still hit hard.
It really is time to rest...
But there was still one person he couldn't stop worrying about—Zhong Ling.
Zhong Ling had come from the future. Now that he had changed the tragic past, it was time for him to return to his original timeline.
To be honest, Zhong Yan had very complicated feelings toward this future-grown son of his.
He had certainly thought about training Zhong Ling to some extent, grooming him to inherit the Uchiha identity.
But he never expected it would happen like this—through a direct handoff born of crisis.
The awakening of the Mangekyō Sharingan was always accompanied by unbearable pain. Every pair of those eyes represented the ultimate in anguish—scars that could never be healed.
"Father." At that moment, Zhong Ling suddenly spoke, breaking Zhong Yan's thoughts.
Zhong Yan looked up and saw a look of heartfelt pleading on his son's face. "Can you take me to see Mother? In the future, after losing you, she never smiled again. I'd like to see her—while I still can."
Hearing this, Zhong Yan was stunned at first, then understood immediately.
It wasn't just Anby. Elena and Ling probably reacted the same way in that future. The thought alone was suffocating.
"Don't worry, Father. I only want to see her. I won't talk to her," Zhong Ling added, misinterpreting the look in Zhong Yan's eyes.
With such a request, Zhong Yan couldn't find any reason to refuse. After a moment of silence, he nodded. Then he activated Kamui and brought Zhong Ling to the Victoria Housekeeping estate.
...
Night had already fallen over the estate. Everyone was settling in for rest, including Anby and the infant Zhong Ling.
The two had been assigned a room together. After feeding the baby, Anby was preparing to turn off the lights and sleep.
Just then, someone knocked on the door.
When she opened it, she saw Zhong Yan standing outside.
"Zhong Yan? You're back?!" Anby was momentarily frozen—then her face lit up in joy.
But... she was confused. Why was there a teenage boy standing behind Zhong Yan? And more importantly, why did this boy feel so familiar?
"You..." Her pupils quivered as she stepped closer, inspecting the boy carefully.
Zhong Yan was just about to explain—when Anby suddenly reached out, grabbed Zhong Ling by the arm, and yanked him into the room.
Sensing something was off, Zhong Ling quickly said, "Miss, please—"
Before he could finish, Anby's expression turned stern. She interrupted firmly:
"You grow up and don't even call your mother anymore?"
Those words struck both father and son like lightning.
Especially Zhong Ling. He had never imagined that Anby would recognize him at a glance.
You've got to be kidding. In this timeline, he was still just a little baby lying in a crib. Who in their right mind would connect that with the teenager he had become?
And yet—Anby did.
Perhaps... this was a mother's instinct—a bond of blood that transcended reason.