Chapter 134: The Return

In reality, upon the gray throne, Colin’s body remained in the sleeping posture of resting his cheek on his elbow. Yet, his body was covered in terrifying, spiderweb-like scars. These wounds resembled the cracked, tessellated patterns of parched earth; each edge of skin was curled upward, revealing bloody flesh and raw blood vessels beneath.

As Colin’s consciousness gradually returned from the "dream," his fingers, resting on the gray stone throne, gripped tightly, feeling a sharp, tearing pain.

*It hurts.*

Colin’s eyes remained tightly shut, his entire body trembling. He immediately began to repair his physical form, using a massive influx of "light" to pull his wounds together and stitch them shut. In less than three seconds, all the gaping, cracked wounds were sealed, leaving behind only white marks resembling stretch marks where the skin had knit together.

About a minute later, sensing that his body could handle the strain of his power, Colin opened his eyes. Within them, a brilliance akin to a stellar beacon was gestating, emitting a light too intense to look upon directly.

"That is..."

The moment he opened his eyes, Colin saw it: a colossal olive tree, standing like a mountain. He quickly recognized the familiar aura emanating from it.

"Kiminor?"

Then, Colin immediately realized that this massive olive tree seemed to have lost all vitality. Compared to its half-dead state in the "Land of Withered Olives," it appeared to be completely, utterly dead. Judging by the traces of battle, it seemed to have stood on their side.

"But why did it appear here? No, this is... this is..."

Colin’s mind raced at high speed. Light flickered in his eyes as if piercing through the white mist, seeing the "Land of Withered Olives" and that cavern... "Kiminor" was still there, guarding the woman in his heart. So, what was this before him?

[This is still an incarnation of a "Miracle."]

Colin frowned. Did this mean Kiminor possessed two "Miracles"? One to accompany Englashia forever, and one that had come to the battlefield?

However, before he could contemplate further, at the gate of the temple, he suddenly spotted a female figure holding a flag that constantly radiated light. The figure was kneeling on one knee, motionless, her aura nearly extinguished.

Colin’s heart tightened violently. Ignoring his body, which had not yet fully recovered, he stood up and took a step toward her. In the next second, he appeared instantly beside the woman, whose golden hair was streaked with large patches of white.

"Shana..."

Colin placed a hand on her shoulder. His ragged breathing finally eased—she was still alive. But her condition was grim. Her body was nearly drained; she was being sustained by a force that kept her from dying. This force was the very blessing Colin had bestowed within the dream. The effects of the ten-fold attribute boost, immunity to negative emotions, and more were acting upon her as well. After all, she was also someone influenced by the dream.

At that moment, Shana’s body stiffened. Realizing someone was beside her, she prepared to lift her head. She still held onto a final shred of strength, waiting for the moment an enemy broke through to unleash it all, leaving nothing behind.

However, before she could exert this power, Colin pressed down gently on her shoulder. "Don't move. Rest for a while; leave the rest to me."

That final bit of strength in Shana was the key to keeping her alive. Once used—or even if she tried to speak—it might trigger a final, irreversible burst of life before the end. Thus, without waiting for a reply, Colin raised his hand. Light flickered, and chains forged of luminescence emerged from the air, coiling around her repeatedly until she looked like a cocoon of light.

Having done this, and ensuring Shana was no longer in immediate danger, Colin finally let out a breath.

"Boss..."

A weak voice drifted from outside the gate. Colin turned to see Li Chou, covered in blood, leaning against the doorframe. His legs were severed from the knees down, as if sliced off by something sharp and flat. He had already applied an emergency bandage, stopping the heavy bleeding. Not far from him lay Russell, who seemed to have suffered severe injuries and had passed out. Of the three men and one woman rescued from the dungeon, only one man and one woman were visible; the other two were nowhere to be found, and perhaps they never would be.

"Got ambushed by accident, but I was lucky—I'm not dead yet." Perhaps due to a massive surge of adrenaline, aside from the empty sensation in his lower body, Li Chou did not feel much pain. Everything was still within a tolerable range.

Colin said softly, "The recovery cards I had are all used up. When I have more in the future, I will make you whole again."

"Thanks, boss." Li Chou grinned.

It was only then that Colin noticed the world beyond the door behind Li Chou looked like an entirely different place—a world stained by blood. Regardless of the distance, the ground was littered with corpses, and blood had dyed the earth red, inch by inch. Along the path Colin had taken, a sickening stench of blood permeated the mountains. Everywhere he looked, there was only a deeply unsettling crimson.

Divided by the gate, it felt as though the inside and outside were two different worlds; the enemies had been held back beyond the temple gates. One could only imagine the horrific price they had paid to achieve this.

However, beyond that, Colin also saw that among the mountains, a large number of servants under the blessing of the "Divine Light Revelation" were cleaning up the aftermath.

"How are there so many servants? And many of them are... masterless?"

Colin was stunned. He was unsure of the exact changes that had occurred in the world during the time he had entered the "Nightmare." He felt his sense of time had become chaotic, and even now, it had not recovered.

Yet, as he watched, a line of familiar information appeared in his mind:

[You realize that at the end of this war, which lasted over a dozen hours, the desperate people, under certain psychological influences, spontaneously carried out a 'gift.']

[Massive amounts of resources were passed on like a torch; the dead used their lives to sustain the living, lighting the way for others.]

[Through countless sacrifices, human civilization survived this event. The night has passed.]

Colin quickly understood the meaning of these words, and why he had vaguely sensed a large gathering of humans while in the "dream." He opened his mouth, unable to find the words to express himself; his heart felt heavy.

At this moment, Li Chou seemed to want to say something, but Colin stopped him. "I know what happened. Leave the rest to me."

He slowly stood up. The stitched wounds on his body tore open from time to time, but it did not hinder his actions. There were more important things to do now. Ordinary aberrations no longer posed a significant threat; the only true threats remaining were those active, Lord-level aberrations.

[You realize that you now possess the formidable power to resolve all the aberrations on the island.]

[However, this power is not permanent. Bestowing the "Divine Light Revelation" blessing upon everyone has come at a massive cost to you.]

[If you do not repair your bodily injuries as much as possible within the remaining seventeen minutes, you will fall into a state of "exhaustion" after seventeen minutes—a state of pain and depletion unimaginable to ordinary people.]

"Exhaustion" state...

Colin looked out at the thousands of figures battling in the mountains and whispered to himself: "After entering this state... will I die?"