"No! This is impossible! This must be a hallucination!"

Amidst the terrified screams of the clergy...

"Rumble—!!!"

Accompanied by an earth-shattering boom...

The massive statue, which had stood for countless ages, suddenly collapsed in plain sight!

Massive fragments of white jade crashed down like meteors, smashing giant craters into the level ground of the plaza.

Dust billowed into the sky, blotting out the sun.

The entire Holy City trembled violently at this moment!

Panic swept through the entire city in an instant, like a plague.

Countless civilians and believers rushed into the streets, letting out cries of despair as they looked at the collapsed statue.

"The sky is falling! The sky is falling!"

"The gods have abandoned us!"

"What on earth happened?!"

The massive commotion immediately alerted the upper echelons of the Holy City.

"Swish! Swish! Swish!"

Several streaks of light, radiating a powerful aura of light, rose from various corners of the Holy City and sped toward the scene.

Leading them was none other than Archbishop Andrew!

Following closely behind were the Grand Master of the Holy Knights and dozens of core high-ranking members of the order.

When they arrived at the plaza and saw the rubble covering the ground, the ruins symbolizing the collapse of their faith...

Everyone's face turned deathly pale.

"No... it can't be..."

Archbishop Andrew trembled all over, his voice shaking as he stared at the pile of ruins.

"The statue has collapsed... the faith is severed..."

"This is... this is a sign of the Holy Lord's fall!"

The Grand Master of the Holy Knights drew the greatsword from his waist, his eyes blood-red, and roared at his subordinates:

"Quick! To the Holy Palace!"

"Go to the Holy Palace immediately to confirm the Holy Lord's safety!"

The group went mad, turning into streaks of light and racing toward the grandest hall of the Holy Palace in the deepest part of the Holy City.

"Bang!"

Andrew kicked open the heavy doors of the Holy Palace's main hall.

"Lord Holy Lord!"

Everyone rushed into the hall anxiously.

However, the hall was empty and silent.

Only on the golden throne, which symbolized supreme power, lay a shriveled staff that had lost all its luster.

It was the scepter that Francis never let leave his side!

Looking at that shriveled scepter, all traces of hope were completely shattered at this moment.

A massive fear loomed over the hearts of everyone present.

There was a deathly silence in the hall.

After a long time...

A Vice-Grand Master of the Holy Knights fell to his knees with a thud, tears streaming from his eyes.

He looked at the empty throne, his voice filled with endless despair and trembling.

"The elderly Holy Lord..."

"He... has he returned to the God Realm?"

This sentence caused the high-ranking members of the Holy Knights present to lower their heads. In this world of sudden changes and Awakening ancient ruins, if even their strongest spiritual pillar and Peak combat power had fallen, what future did the Free Federation have?

"Shut up!"

Archbishop Andrew turned around, the wrinkles on his face bunching together as his chest heaved violently, glaring at the other man: "Who gave you permission to talk such nonsense here?!"

"The Holy Lord is the Peak of this world, the existence closest to a god. How could anything happen to him?!" Andrew's voice echoed in the hall, his final words trembling. "What we need to do now is wait quietly! Wait for the old master to return in victory!"

The Vice-Grand Master shut his mouth and buried his head on the ground, not daring to say another word.

Andrew turned to look at several of his trusted knights and gave orders in a deep voice: "Send out all elite scouts and find the Holy Lord's whereabouts at all costs. Especially in the direction of the Old Days Mountains, we must get to the bottom of this!"

"Furthermore—" Andrew scanned everyone present, "Everything discovered here today, including the shattering of the statue and the abandonment of the Holy Lord's scepter, is not to be revealed to the outside world! If anyone dares to leak a single word and cause unrest in the Holy City, they will be executed without mercy!"

"Understood!" Everyone responded in unison and withdrew with their heads bowed.

Meanwhile, tens of thousands of meters in the sky, the astral winds were like knives.

A sixty-meter-long Abyssal Demon Dragon was traveling rapidly across the horizon like a streak of black lightning.

Every flap of those massive dragon wings tore visible vacuum channels through the clouds. The mountains and rivers below receded rapidly like a passing show; Xiao Hei was carrying Zhou Huai, heading straight for the distant and ancient lands of Egypt.

At this moment, the broad and flat back of the dragon felt a bit crowded.

Besides Zhou Huai standing against the wind and the Tree Demon Chun looking around with great interest, there were six figures radiating terrifying pressure standing ⊛ Nоvеlιght ⊛ (Read the full story) quietly like spears.

Gandalf, Moria, Hou Yi, Gabriel, Yasuo, and Caesar.

These top-tier Clones, who had followed Zhou Huai through many battles and achieved great military honors, were all released by him at once.

Among them, Yasuo, wearing a black trench coat and holding the Thunder Greatsword, and Gandalf, in gray robes holding a staff, were already a far cry from their previous dull Puppet-like appearance.

Their eyes revealed a depth and wisdom that had weathered many hardships.

At this moment, the two were sitting cross-legged on the edge of the dragon's back with their eyes slightly closed. In the surrounding air, faint traces of thunder and elemental Laws were pulsing.

Zhou Huai knew that after their virtual personalities were rewritten and they gained independent Souls, they were silently touching and comprehending the "Domain" barriers belonging to Level 70 powerhouses.

With just a little more time, these two Clones would undergo a complete qualitative change.

"Four more to go..."

Zhou Huai rubbed his slightly throbbing temples and turned his gaze toward Moria, Hou Yi, Gabriel, and Caesar, who were still standing like wooden posts.

Although the version 2.0 of the smart core ai was powerful, he, the host, had to personally input detailed, logically rigorous, and emotionally resonant life histories into the "Personality Editor."

Only life paths forged in blood and fire, despair and Rebirth, could truly give rise to the powerful obsessions needed to knock on the door of the Domain.

Creating stories for Xiang Yu, Yasuo, and Gandalf had already cost him quite a few brain cells.

Now he had to write four more in a row.

Even for a creator like him who had weathered great storms, it was a bit of a headache.

Zhou Huai's gaze fell upon Moria.

This Night Stalker had skin so fair it was almost transparent, with silver-white hair flowing freely. Even in simple cloth robes, it was hard to hide his innate coldness and melancholy, like that of a fallen noble.

"Moria... Night Stalker, the Sovereign of Eternal Night."

Zhou Huai stroked his chin as inspiration flashed through his mind like sparks.

A professional who controls shadows, manipulates Devilish Qi, and can transform into an invincible demon god in the night could never be a flower grown in a greenhouse.

The underlying tone of his Soul must be the ultimate cold, the ultimate darkness!