From Fanwu to Xinghai

Chapter 62 I'll trade my life for your rebirth

"Mother, I can't stay with you anymore."

These words, like a sharp dagger chilled to the bone, pierced Lin Chen's chest without warning. All other sounds seemed to vanish instantly, leaving only this light, fleeting whisper, echoing wildly in his ears.

"No!"

A hoarse roar burst from his throat, and his body instinctively leaned forward, but the invisible shackles around him suddenly tightened, making his bones creak and his fingertips unable to move an inch.

"Mother! What are you doing!" Panic, like an icy tide, instantly overwhelmed him.

Su Wan did not turn around.

She stood quietly amidst the surging energy turbulence, her eyes, which shimmered with a pale golden light, now brimming with an indescribable tenderness and resolve.

She smiled.

That smile was like the last snowflake melting in spring, breathtakingly beautiful, yet heartbreakingly so.

"My child, I have waited for you for a very, very long time." Her voice was soft, as if afraid of disturbing something, yet it clearly penetrated the depths of everyone present's soul. "I waited for your first cry, for your first steps, for your awakening... I've waited until today, and finally, it's time."

"What?!" Lin Chen's roar had shattered, tears streaming uncontrollably, blurring his vision. "What exactly are you going to do?!"

"Just do what a mother should do."

Su Wan's voice remained calm, even carrying a hint of relief. She slowly opened her arms, as if embracing her impending destiny.

The next moment, the immense power within her, originating from the dimensional ruler, began to burn without reservation!

A dazzling golden flame surged forth from her slender body, instantly transforming into a vast and boundless ocean of light. That light transcended mortal comprehension, containing a power that could eclipse the heavens and earth—a gift from a higher dimension, the final spark imprinted by the dimensional ruler before his death.

"Stop!" The high-dimensional envoy, who had remained aloof and indifferent throughout, finally changed his expression drastically and shouted sharply, "Are you insane? Burning the remnant soul of a dimensional overlord will annihilate you in an instant!"

"I know."

Su Wan's answer was frighteningly calm.

"Then why don't you—"

"Because," she interrupted, her gaze piercing through the sea of ​​light, landing precisely on Lin Chen, her eyes seeming to etch his image into the deepest part of her soul, "I will never let my child be taken away by you."

Before she finished speaking, she lightly lifted her fingertips.

The entire golden sea of ​​light boiled up, transforming into a destructive torrent that swept towards the high-dimensional messenger!

"Stubborn to the end!"

The high-dimensional messenger roared, his hands rapidly forming hand seals, and a dazzling barrier of laws instantly solidified in front of him.

The golden torrent crashed violently against the barrier!

"boom--!!!"

An indescribable roar tore through the sky, and the earth rippled and cracked like waves. The majestic walls of Yanhuang Pass collapsed like a sandcastle under the impact of this pure force, and buildings within a radius of hundreds of miles instantly turned to dust.

Even Bai Ying, a late-stage Nascent Soul cultivator, was shaken by the aftershocks, her blood churning and she staggered backward, her face filled with disbelief: "Insane... utterly insane! The backlash from the burning remnant soul of a Dimensional Ruler is terrifyingly powerful..."

She looked towards the center of the sea of ​​light.

There, Su Wan's figure was becoming transparent and illusory at a speed visible to the naked eye.

She is truly fading away.

They burned their last bit of existence in order to protect it.

"Mother--!"

Lin Chen's roar was as mournful as a dying lone wolf, tears mingling with blood streaming down his face. He wanted to rush forward, to grasp that wisp of light that was about to dissipate, but how could his Foundation Establishment cultivation possibly break through the constraints of the Nascent Soul Realm?

"Lin Yuan! Help me! Help me break these damn shackles!" He suddenly turned his head and roared at Lin Yuan, who was also staggering from the impact of the energy storm.

Lin Yuan groaned, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth. He was well aware of the price. Each excessive activation of the Time River Mark was burning away his lifespan. The rescue of Su Wan had already severely weakened him; this further forceful intervention…

But without the slightest hesitation.

"Time... slows down!"

The mysterious mark of the River of Time between his brows suddenly shone with a blinding blue light, like a star on the verge of shattering. A profound blue power of time surged forth, crashing violently into the invisible shackles binding Lin Chen.

"Insects!" The high-dimensional envoy sneered, not even turning around, casually flicking his sleeve.

A sharp and unparalleled beam of spiritual light shot towards Lin Yuan like an arrow.

"Watch out!" Lin Chen's eyes widened in horror, but he had no time to react.

"puff!"

The light struck Lin Yuan squarely in the chest, sending him flying backward like a kite with a broken string, his blood splattering in the air like a poignant red lotus.

But he—

They still haven't let go!

"I said... break it open for me!" Lin Yuan gritted his teeth, his gums bleeding, and frantically poured the last remaining bit of time power into the shackles.

"Snap!"

On the surface of the shackles, a tiny crack quietly spread.

"Snap! Snap!"

The cracks expanded and intertwined rapidly.

finally--

"Bang!"

The invisible shackles shattered instantly!

Lin Chen is free!

"Lin Yuan!"

He practically teleported to Lin Yuan's side, frantically catching the light, floating body.

Lin Yuan's face was ashen, and dark red blood was still seeping from the corner of his mouth.

"Go quickly..." His voice was as weak as a candle flickering in the wind, "Don't worry about me...go save your mother..."

"We'll go together! I'll never abandon you!" Lin Chen's eyes were bloodshot, and his arms trembled from the effort.

"idiot!"

Lin Yuan used his last bit of strength to punch him hard in the chest, but the force was not heavy; instead, it carried a sense of entrustment.

"I am the Guardian of Time... I don't die that easily... at most I'll sleep a long sleep... but your mother... your mother will really... disappear forever!" His eyes suddenly turned stern. "Get out of here!!!"

The last bit of force propelled Lin Chen away.

Lin Chen stood frozen in place, his fingernails digging deep into his palms, blood dripping from between his fingers. He stared intently at the figure in the center of the sea of ​​light, which was about to be completely annihilated.

There is no room for hesitation.

Something has to be done!

"Bridge of Dimensions! I beg you! Respond to me!" He roared to the sky, the dimensional seed between his brows throbbing wildly, resonating violently with the imprint of the River of Time.

The two forces that were originally distinct now began to intertwine and merge under the pressure of a life-or-death situation.

"Buzz—"

For the first time, the suspended dimensional bridge spontaneously emitted a low, resonant tremor.

It is neither defense nor attack.

But -

communicate!

Lin Chen felt his consciousness being instantly pulled away, and he fell into a strange space.

There are no ups, downs, lefts, or rights here, only an endless river flowing eternally.

What flows in the river is not water, but fragments of millions of years of time.

The river of time.

"child……"

A familiar yet unfamiliar voice came from the end of the river.

Lin Chen turned around abruptly.

A man with a face seven-tenths similar to his own, but with eyes as deep as an abyss and a look of someone who had experienced many vicissitudes, stood quietly at the end of the river of time.

"Father?" Lin Chen's breath caught in his throat.

That person—

It's Lin Yuan.

But it wasn't Lin Yuan, who was seriously injured and unconscious at the moment.

It is the real, complete Lin Yuan.

He is the first successor of the Time Guardians.

He is his biological father.

"I've been waiting for you for a long time," Lin Yuan—or rather, Lin Chen's father—said, his voice weary across time and space. "The 'communication' form of the Dimensional Bridge can only be accessed by souls that have fully awakened the bloodline of the Time Guardians. You've finally arrived."

"Father... Mother..." Lin Chen's eyes instantly reddened.

"I know." A hint of pain flashed in Lin Yuan's eyes, but it was quickly replaced by determination. "That was her own choice."

"I won't accept this!" Lin Chen hissed. "There must be another way!"

"I wish I could," Lin Yuan's voice deepened, "but once the remnant soul of a dimensional ruler is ignited, it's an irreversible sacrifice. Unless…"

"Unless what?"

"Unless someone is willing to replace her and take on the karmic burden that is enough to crush civilization."

Lin Chen's pupils suddenly contracted: "What do you mean?"

"The reason the remnant soul of the Dimensional Ruler is burning is because it needs a new vessel to bear the laws and causality it left behind." Lin Yuan's gaze was fixed on Lin Chen. "If you're willing... she can stop."

"I do!" Lin Chen said without hesitation, decisively. "Tell me what to do!"

Lin Yuan fell silent, staring intently at Lin Chen, as if trying to find even the slightest hint of wavering on his face.

"Child, do you know what it means to bear the causal burden of being governed by the dimensional ruler?"

"What does that mean?"

"It means you will become the eternal target of a higher-dimensional civilization." Lin Yuan's voice was as heavy as a mountain. "It means you will bear the heavy mission of guiding civilization to ascend to a higher dimension. It means your entire life will be spent in escape, battle, and sacrifice."

"I don't care!"

"You will care," Lin Yuan shook his head. "You care about your mother, your friends, and everyone in this world you care about. But that's precisely why... I must tell you that as long as you're alive, there's still hope."

He slowly raised his hand, his fingertips gleaming faintly, and gently touched Lin Chen's forehead.

"Go, child. Use the power of the dimensional bridge to awaken me from my exile in the river of time. Let him... take your place in bearing the consequences."

"You mean... let Lin Yuan..."

"He was always a part of me." A trace of guilt and pity appeared in Lin Yuan's eyes. "Back then, I was trapped here. In order to protect you, I had to split off a wisp of my core consciousness and let him grow up as 'Lin Yuan.' Now... it's time for him to return to his rightful place."

Lin Chen was stunned; the floodgates of memory suddenly opened.

He recalled Lin Yuan's patience when teaching him cultivation.

He recalled Lin Yuan's resolute act when he shielded him from a fatal blow.

I recall the undisguised encouragement and expectation in Lin Yuan's eyes as he repeatedly said, "I believe in you."

"He is...you?" Lin Chen's voice trembled slightly.

"Yes and no." Lin Yuan's expression was complex and difficult to understand. "He possesses a part of my essence, but he has also developed his own independent will. He is my alter ego, but he is also the vibrant life itself, 'Lin Yuan'."

"I..." Lin Chen felt a suffocating dilemma.

"The choice is yours." Lin Yuan stared at him. "You can bring Lin Yuan back to take the blame for this catastrophe. Or you can choose to bear it yourself and let 'Lin Yuan' continue living in reality as an independent individual."

"Whatever you choose," Lin Yuan's gaze softened, filled with a father's deepest love and trust for his son, "I will support you."