Night fell like ink. Chen Mo stood alone at the center of the ruins, his fist still raised, the fracture in time slowly closing behind him.
Suddenly, a low-frequency tremor rippled through the air— as if the heartbeat of the world itself had been forcibly slowed.
The sky split open. A figure descended slowly—silver hair cascading like a waterfall, black robes flowing like midnight, and eyes swirling with the motion of star trails. He made no sound as he landed, yet everyone instinctively held their breath.
"Time Watcher: Hels." "Enforcer of cosmic order."
Zhao Yang tried to move— but found himself frozen in place. Lin Lan's voice trembled. "We… we've been locked in time."
He Xuan's metal disc vibrated violently, as if instinctively trying to avoid a higher-dimensional presence. Only Chen Mo could still move.
Hels turned his head slowly, gaze settling on Chen Mo— like a god inspecting a broken toy.
His voice was deep and slow, each word echoing as if spoken across centuries:
"You tore time apart with emotion." "You challenged order with your fists." "You are not an esper. You are a disease in time."
There was no anger in his tone—only cold, elegant detachment. He didn't need to raise his voice. The entire world was already listening.
Chen Mo gritted his teeth. "You came to kill me?"
Hels smiled faintly. There was no malice in his eyes—only disdain.
"Kill you? Not yet." "You're not even worth the effort."
He raised his hand slowly. With a single motion, the fracture in time sealed shut. Everything frozen began to move again.
Zhao Yang gasped for breath. Lin Lan collapsed to the ground. He Xuan's disc fell silent.
Hels walked past Chen Mo, his figure phasing through space like a mirage. His presence had no weight—yet it pressed down like gravity.
He stopped beside Chen Mo, looking down with a gaze that held something close to pity— but laced with quiet mockery.
He spoke softly:
"You will never defeat a god." "Ha…"
His laughter wasn't wild or cruel— just a casual, dismissive chuckle. The kind a god might give to an ant.
And then, in the next moment, his body dissolved into star trails— vanishing into the rift in the sky.
Air returned. Time resumed. But no one spoke.
Chen Mo stood where he was, slowly unclenching his fist. His eyes were colder than ever.
Lu Ye whispered, "He's not our enemy… he's judgment itself." Zhao Yang stared at the sky. "He left. But he didn't spare us." Lin Lan murmured, "He's waiting… for us to make a bigger mistake."
He Xuan said nothing. He quietly retracted his disc, as if sealing away a fear too deep to name.
Hu Hao's mental command flickered— his power had failed for a moment, as if it meant nothing in Hels' presence.
Chen Mo didn't speak. He simply stared at his right hand— the one that had shattered time.