Chapter Eight
Final Transition Scene — Before the New World
The River of Time roared open.
A corridor of eternity.
Worlds flickered within it like drifting lanterns—
countless lives, countless chances.
Zheng Wen Te stood at its edge.
His body trembling.
His soul heavier than stone.
He took one last breath.
Then—
Shangdi raised his hand.
With a flick of his finger…
something small appeared.
A tiny orb of light.
No larger than a pearl.
It drifted gently through the air, as if weightless—
and settled into Zheng Wen Te's palm.
Warm.
Alive.
Zheng Wen Te stared down at it.
"What… is this?"
Shangdi's voice came softly, almost distant now.
"This may be useful…"
"…on your journey."
The orb pulsed once.
Like a sleeping star.
Then—
Shangdi's silhouette began to fade.
Not walking away.
Not departing.
Simply… ceasing to remain.
As if the universe itself could no longer hold His presence.
The giants stirred.
Their massive forms trembled like mountains learning fear.
One stepped forward, voice urgent:
"My Creator…"
"What will become of this lowly plane?"
Below them—
Earth was broken.
The moon was dust.
The sun dimmed like a dying ember.
The sky was scarred by war.
Humanity was nothing but ants staring at gods.
Shangdi answered, calm as winter.
"Let them be."
The giant's eyes widened.
"…Let them be?"
Shangdi's fading voice continued:
"Their fate…"
"…will be determined…"
"…by My last prophet."
Zheng Wen Te's breath caught.
Me?
The giant hesitated, then asked again, almost pleading:
"But Creator…"
"This plane is now the only world left in this universe."
"And that dim sun…"
"Should we restore the moon?"
"The planets?"
"The heavens that were destroyed?"
For a moment—
there was only silence.
Then Shangdi replied.
No anger.
No mercy.
No tone at all.
"Let them be."
A pause.
Then the final verdict:
"Let us see…"
"…if they can survive."
Those words fell like an execution.
The giants went still.
Earth went still.
Even the River of Time seemed to hush.
Shangdi's form faded further.
His outline dissolving into the void.
The giants lowered their heads.
"As you wish…"
"…my Creator."
And then—
Shangdi was gone.
Not vanished.
Not escaped.
Simply absent.
The giants remained for one heartbeat longer—
vast shadows above a shattered world.
Then, one by one…
they too began to fade.
The Protector's gaze lingered on Earth.
On humanity.
On Zheng Wen Te.
Something unreadable passed through his eyes.
Then—
he disappeared as well.
Only Zheng Wen Te remained.
A broken man.
Holding a tiny orb.
Standing before the River of Time.
Earth behind him.
Another world ahead.
He whispered, barely audible:
"…So it's all on me now."
The River opened wider.
The light became unbearable.
And Zheng Wen Te stepped forward—
falling into the classic immortal cultivation world.
Not as a chosen hero…
But as the last unresolved karma of Heaven.