63: “You’re not my Zhang Wei!”: An An’s birth in exile

As Gu Yanci's cold words echoed from the silent scorched earth, the 'fake mission panel' floating in the air seemed to have its core pierced by the sharp blade of his words.

The text on it began to scramble and flicker wildly, emitting an ominous red glow.

The next second, in a silence that drained all sound, the entire panel shattered like a mirror struck by a heavy hammer.

With a 'crack,' it was covered in spiderweb-like cracks, then instantly broke apart!

It didn't turn into specks of light, but rather disintegrated into countless twisted, pitch-black runes, like a group of dying worms struggling to dissipate into the air.

And with the collapse of the trap, the entire World of Wrath began to emit a painful wail!

Above the sky, those dark red, massive scars suddenly tore open.

What flowed out was no longer the void of darkness, but scalding lava like tears of blood!

The earth trembled violently and rolled, the scorched soil peeling away inch by inch.

What was revealed was not the mantle, but smooth, mirror-like crystal surfaces.

The entire world seemed to have turned into a kaleidoscope of memories on the verge of collapse!

These mirrored crystals began to flash wildly, forcibly projecting grand and sorrowful scenes deep into the minds of every member of the Joint Squad!

It was a breathtaking memory spanning billions of reincarnations.

The main character of the scenes was Su Ke Ke.

Sometimes it was a fantasy continent of swords and magic, where Zhang Wei, as the Saintess, was about to die in a sacrifice, simply because her miracles threatened the Pope's authority.

Sometimes it was a post-apocalyptic wasteland, where Zhang Wei, as the leader of the survivors, fell under the claws of Strange Beast due to a subordinate's treachery.

Sometimes it was a world of immortal heroes, where Zhang Wei, with peerless talent, had her immortal bone personally extracted by her most beloved master, solely to pave a path to immortality for her master's mediocre biological daughter...

Betrayal, sacrifice, conspiracy, natural disasters... billions of reincarnations, billions of different ways to die.

And in every corner of every tragedy, there was a figure in white, purer than snow—Su Ke Ke.

Again and again she guarded, again and again she died.

The God of Calamity, Su Ke Ke.

She went to guard.

She went to fight.

She succeeded.

She also failed.

When she watched with her own eyes the person she cherished most turn into a fleeting illusion before her, her gaze, from initial anxiety and grief, gradually turned numb.

Finally, it settled into a dead silence, an icy sea containing endless madness.

Until a certain reincarnation, in that life, Zhang Wei, as a princess of a nation, faced rebel armies at the city gates.

She did not choose to die in humiliation.

On the city wall, she drew her father's sword, her eyes bloodshot, her face devoid of tears, only towering rage and defiance!

"I am the last bulwark of the empire! If you wish to trample my nation, you must step over my corpse!!!"

She burned her life and soul, transforming into a brilliant meteor, perishing with the rebels.

This was her first, and last, time in billions of reincarnations, since Su Ke Ke's 'darkening,' to launch a desperate counterattack against fate in a state of 'fury.'

However, what seemed like an incredibly heroic scene to mortals, became the most fatal 'contamination' in Su Ke Ke's eyes.

The scene suddenly zoomed out, shifting to a deity's perspective.

Su Ke Ke, as the God of Calamity, appeared above Zhang Wei's brilliant soul.

She looked at the angry Zhang Wei, her eyes devoid of comfort or encouragement, only a chilling coldness, like one would view a 'virus' or a 'flaw.'

Protecting Zhang Wei was no longer her choice, but the sole meaning of her existence.

As for who Zhang Wei was or how she was defined, she could no longer discern.

"No..."

"My Wei Wei shouldn't be like this."

"Anger, sorrow, hatred..."

"These dirty emotions will contaminate her."

"She only needs happiness, only needs purity."

"She only needs... to be protected by me."

With this distorted love, Su Ke Ke made a decision that would make even gods and demons tremble.

She slowly extended her hand, disregarding the distance of space, and in a way that transcended all laws, reached into the very essence of Zhang Wei's soul!

"Ah—!!!"

Amidst Zhang Wei's painful scream, Su Ke Ke forcibly extracted that burning golden essence representing [Anger] from her soul!

That golden 'anger' condensed in the air into An'an's form.

She looked at Su Ke Ke blankly, then cried and reached out, wanting to return to her mother's embrace.

However, Su Ke Ke merely gently embraced the now somewhat hollow-eyed, no longer angry Zhang Wei, then turned around.

With a tone that was both extremely gentle and extremely cruel, she pronounced the final judgment on An'an.

"My Wei Wei is the purest treasure in the world. She will not have any negative emotions."

"You are an impurity, a blemish that must be removed."

As her words fell, she casually waved her hand, tearing open a dimensional rift leading to this endless scorched earth.

Then, like discarding a piece of trash, she resolutely and forever cast in the crying 'anger' that represented all of Zhang Wei's backbone and dignity.

"Because a 'Zhang Wei' who can be angry, is not 'Zhang Wei.'"

At this point, the scene abruptly ended.

The five members of the Joint Squad broke free from the massive information stream, gasping for breath.

Their faces were filled with shock and complexity.

They looked forward again, at the little girl—An'an—who was hugging her knees, had been crying for who knew how long, yet still tilted her head, looking at them with confusion.

She wasn't an emotional avatar, nor was she the Lord of the World.

She was just... a lonely child abandoned by her mother.

The illusion dissipated, and dead silence descended.

That elegy spanning billions of reincarnations, that ruthless divine surgery, was like the heaviest brand, deeply etched into the depths of every member of the Joint Squad's soul.

They looked at the bewildered little girl before them, their eyes filled with unprecedented complex emotions: shock, pity, sorrow, and a hint of... blasphemy towards the divine.

Ye Qiong's tightly clenched fist silently relaxed.

He wanted to say something, but found his throat felt like it was blocked by a red-hot iron, unable to utter a single word.

Ling Xi's tears welled in her eyes.

She instinctively wanted to step forward, but was nailed to the spot by the cruel truth, unable to move.

In this suffocating silence, Gu Yanci, in a voice almost like a dream, brought up a contradiction that everyone found absurd.

"No... something has been wrong from the very beginning."

He looked up, his gaze sweeping across the dark red scorched earth, and continued in a hoarse voice:

"All of us, from the very first second we entered this world, felt that overwhelming rage that threatened to burn away our sanity."

"Every grain of sand, every inch of air in this world, roared at us, trying to assimilate us..."

"But... why?"

His gaze fell on An'an, who was curiously looking at them.

"Why, as the embodiment of 'anger,' has she never shown us even a trace of... anger, from beginning to end?"

"She welcomed us, designed games for us, applauded our victories... She was like the most innocent child, most eager for playmates. This... simply doesn't make sense!"

This question, like a bolt of lightning, split through everyone's confused thoughts!

Yes, why?

The malice of this world was so terrifying, yet its source itself was so pure.

As if to answer his question, the entire world began to wail.

"Buzz—"

The earth trembled, and the sky resonated.

This time, it was no longer distortion and collapse, but a painful release of suffering suppressed for endless ages.

Beneath the cracked scorched earth, dazzling crimson lights shot up into the sky!

Those were not lava, nor energy; they were countless solid chains forged from the purest 'anger,' 'unwillingness,' 'hatred,' and 'resentment'!

These chains were ferocious and violent, emitting a terrifying aura capable of corrupting even gods and demons!

They rose from the depths of the earth, like a desperate forest, supporting this sky.

And their origin was not from the earth's core, but from every corner of this world!

Immediately after, a brief but tear-inducing scene for even gods and buddhas slowly emerged in the center of the world.

Little An'an sat in the center of this scorched earth.

On her face was a clumsy, forced smile.

And the true destination of those angry chains extending from all over the world was her tiny body!

Tens of thousands of chains, like the most malicious curses, pierced through her soul, tearing at her very existence!

Every tiny act of defiance, every unwilling thought, would transform into a new chain, binding her even tighter!

She turned all her 'anger' into a cage to imprison herself!

She turned all her 'essence' into the malice of this world, solely to allow her core to present that 'pure,' 'approved' appearance!

Fragmented, childish voices, filled with endless longing and pain, reached the Joint Squad's minds through the world's resonance.

"Mommy said... Wei Wei doesn't get angry..."

"As long as An'an isn't angry..."

"An'an will be Wei Wei..."

"As long as An'an is Wei Wei..."

"Mommy will... come pick me up and take me home..."

"It hurts so much... but... I have to smile..."

"I have to be good... I have to be obedient..."

The illusion vanished, and the chains slowly sank back into the earth, as if they had never appeared.

The world returned to its dead silent state.

An'an looked at the undisguised grief and tears on the faces of the squad members.

She nervously twisted her fingers, asking in a tone that was almost pleading and cautious:

"Big brother... big sister... what's wrong? Did An'an... do something wrong to make you angry?"

With a 'thump,' Ling Xi could no longer stand, falling to her knees, tears streaming down like a broken dam as she sobbed uncontrollably.

Ye Qiong, the tough man who bled but didn't cry, abruptly turned his head away, his shoulders trembling violently.

A hot tear splashed onto the scorched earth at his feet.

They finally understood completely.

The games of this world.

The trials of this world.

Everything in this world... was just a monologue performed by this abandoned child, by torturing herself, a monologue yearning for love, yearning to go home.

She wasn't suppressing anger.

She was, with endless pain, slowly... killing the part of herself that wasn't allowed to exist, her true self.