The black fog receded once more.

"Why?" Rod could not help but voice his doubt. "Why does the black fog recede? Is there some kind of supernatural influence at work?"

The Book of Knowledge flipped its pages, sinking into contemplation.

Rod lifted his head and looked toward the next Soul.

[Soul of the Human Demon]

[Description: The corrupted Humanity of the Mysterious Shadow’s Ancestor, the source of the Mysterious Shadow; a masterpiece that harnesses the purest to command the filthiest; the emblem of an undying body; born at the moment of the First Epoch’s destruction—when the primordial Epoch came to an end and the primordial gods fell, the terrifying Human Demon rose from the earth!]

Rod’s heart trembled. In that instant he realized that those primordial gods were the True Gods who possessed a complete Primordial Law!

The Primordial Fire must have been kindled by the True Gods.

The Supreme Will, the Ancestor of the Mysterious, the Supreme Demon Lord, the Source Heavenly God—these were the fallen primordial True Gods!

Then that man of ultimate evil must also have been a being of the First Epoch!

Perhaps the Dream Realm, too, was born in that era!

The Book of Knowledge flipped its pages and called out, "Indeed, master, do you still remember the first words of the Ancient Space God in the past prophecy?"

Rod clenched his fist. Of course he remembered. Those words were filled with an astonishment he could not forget even now:

[Ah, the black fog has receded. This is a Miracle!]

There was no doubt that when the Ancient Gods were born, it was after the destruction of the primordial gods; they had gone through the exact same event as later generations—the black fog, after shrouding the earth, suddenly receded!

Rod clenched his fist, his heart filled with confusion and an irrepressible joy—if the black fog would eventually recede, then as long as they held on, they would surely see the light.

Asa looked at Rod and the Book of Knowledge with drowsy eyes. The latter shook its head, indicating that there was no glimmer of time within this Soul.

Just as it was about to return to the shelf to sleep, the Skull, which had remained silent, suddenly spoke.

"Ah, great Master of Dreams, I seem to have remembered something. Book of Eternity, once more take me as the cause and perform another prophecy."

Rod looked at it with slight surprise. This was the original Skull of Beakleus, yet what lingered upon it was a portion of Omir’s Residual Spirit. It had already performed a prophecy once in the Main Tower—was there any need to do so again?

The Skull saw Rod’s hesitation and said softly, "Please believe me, great Master of Dreams."

"Very well. Asa, let us divine once more. Do we need the power of the Prophetic City?"

Asa flipped a few pages. "Mm, it seems not. The remnants of time within its Soul have been stirred. I do not require the large-scale power of prophecy."

It spread open the latter half of its pages—the portion belonging to the Book of the Past. As the paper shimmered, the light of prophecy rose from the Skull once more, but this time, the primary power being consumed seemed to come from the Skull itself; its Residual Spirit was evaporating.

In an instant, Rod realized that this was the Skull’s purpose for existing, the outcome of that final prophecy left within the Soul Body.

Within the flash of prophecy, lines of pure black text emerged.

[Sea of Source: the Sea of Source Law formed after the shattering of the Law Ring; the broken Source Laws exist in a special form, jointly influencing the operation of all things and the ebb and flow of the universe.]

[The ultimate destination of all matter and Energy is the Sea of Source; the ultimate origin of all matter and Energy is the Sea of Source.]

[Only after Quantization can the black fog contaminate the Sea of Source.]

[The black fog requires immense Energy to contaminate the Sea of Source.]

[The black fog cannot undergo Quantization outside time and Space.]

[Once the black fog completely corrodes the Sea of Source, the universe will move toward its end, and all things will fall eternally into darkness.]

...

[Lord! You must find the cause of the black fog’s birth; only then can the black fog be eradicated completely!]

The black text swiftly evaporated after flashing into being, as though afraid of alarming some existence.

In the blink of an eye, the Skull turned entirely to ash; the Residual Spirit was no more. In the air, only its final words remained.

"Ah, great Master of Dreams, you must save this world."

Rod stood rigid where he was, the pounding of his heart deafening in that moment. In an instant he realized that the receding of the black fog was not due to some supernatural cause; it was simply because it needed to corrode the Sea of Source!

No!

Rod clenched his fist. He absolutely could not allow the black fog to seize the Main Material World!

Once large-scale Quantization began, the world would slide into an even deeper Abyss.

No, I must quickly find the next Dream Fragment!

Rod was just about to rise when, at that moment, the voice of the Great Shepherd Leader suddenly sounded in his ear.

"Lord Rod, the final plan is about to begin. Are you prepared?"

Rod’s heart jolted. Without realizing it, an entire day had already passed; the time for the final plan had come.

He could only leave the Dream Realm and saw that all the Primordial powerhouses had gathered within the Holy Fire Sacrificial Ground.

The Door of Fire had already opened, and the deep voice of the Fire Saint Emperor came from within:

"Begin. The wheel of fate must turn forward!"

Solos stood at the center of the complete Sacrifice ritual, taking the lead. All the Primordial powerhouses had also taken their respective positions, while the non-Primordial Rhein and Alan stood on the other side.

The voice of the Great Shepherd Leader once more rang in his ear. "Lord Rod, please activate the Star Marrow Altar’s barrier and block the gaze of the Dark Spirit."

Rod knew there was no longer any room for retreat; life and death hinged on this moment.

With a single thought, his Divine Power stirred the underground Star Marrow Altar. An invisible barrier unfolded, shrouding the entire Holy Fire Sacrificial Ground.