One in ten thousand.

These four words, like the heaviest hammer in the universe, slammed into Irelia's soul, shattering all the beliefs, pride, and hope she had just built up.

As if that wasn't enough, Lin Feng gently raised his hand and snapped his fingers at the ruins of the City of Heaven, which was falling into the abyss below.

"return."

In an instant, an unbelievable scene unfolded.

Time, in a way that defies all the laws of physics, began to flow backward.

The massive ruins of the city slowly rose from the abyss, the shattered buildings returning to their original positions as if they were living blocks. The cracks inflicted by Irelia's sword healed perfectly. The entire City of Chengtian was restored to its original state in just a few seconds.

No, it's even more terrifying than it was before.

The entire city was no longer cold metal, but had transformed into a translucent crystal that seemed to be composed of solidified starlight. Above the city, the vanished energy field of the "Will of the Celestial Dome" reappeared, ten thousand times stronger than before, transforming into a truly rotating "celestial dome" composed of countless law runes!

Instead of repairing it, he reshaped the "concept" of the city in a higher-dimensional way.

Then, he gently waved his hand at the Alliance warriors who were frozen in time and space.

Everyone's bodies began to tremble and convulse uncontrollably. Their faces showed expressions of immense pain. Each of their memories was being forcibly read, examined, and analyzed by an overwhelming will.

"Thirty years of oppression, the hatred of a destroyed homeland, the sorrow of being separated from loved ones, the pain of losing comrades in battle, and... the ecstasy and hope of victory." Lin Feng closed his eyes, as if savoring an incomparably delicious feast brewed from countless emotions.

"It was... absolutely wonderful. I loved how desperate you looked, and I loved how you struggled so hard in despair and then rekindled your hope. It was like a wonderful drama, full of twists and turns, and so unforgettable."

He opened his eyes, his gaze filled with pure, unadulterated appreciation.

"Now, the play has come to an end. As the best performers, you... have passed the test."

Irelia's heart sank into an abyss. She finally understood.

From beginning to end, this was not a war.

This is just a... game. A game called "Rebellion," meticulously designed by higher-dimensional, incomprehensible beings to alleviate boredom and to observe the fascinating variable of "emotion."

All their sacrifices, all their blood and tears, all their anger and hope, were nothing more than... a drama to please the gods.

“Passed…?” Arilia’s voice was hoarse, full of self-mockery. “So what if we passed? Are you going to kill us all like crushing an insect?”

"Kill them?" Lin Feng seemed to have heard something unbelievable. He shook his head. "No, no, no. That would be too wasteful. You are such precious 'superior products' that have passed the final test. You have proven that, under the catalysis of 'hope,' your souls possess extremely high resilience and strength."

A smile that could be described as "gentle" appeared on his face.

"Therefore, I have decided to formally incorporate you into my army. From this day forward, you will no longer be the rebels; you will become the empire's sharpest spear, to conquer and 'purify' other worlds for me."

"You will serve as the newly formed 'First Expeditionary Legion' of the Empire, undertaking the mission of invasion for the Empire. Go and bring the despair you have experienced to other civilizations. Let them also stage a similarly magnificent drama about 'hope and destruction'."

Irelia froze. She almost thought there was something wrong with her hearing.

Let her, let these warriors who fought for freedom and their homeland, become invaders like the Empire? To enslave other races and destroy other civilizations?

This is a thousand times more cruel than killing them! It is the most vicious and eternal curse upon their souls!

"You...don't...think about it!"

The immense power that Lin Feng had just infused into Irelia's body, mixed with her indomitable will, erupted with a deafening roar! The Starry Holy Sword in her hand condensed once more, its golden light carrying an all-consuming rage, transforming into a sword aura that tore through space and time, slashing towards Lin Feng!

However, the sword energy that was powerful enough to sever cause and effect was instantly annihilated when it was still a meter away from Lin Feng, as if it had hit an invisible, absolute wall.

Lin Feng didn't even blink.

“Look, I gave you power, but you used it to attack me.” His tone carried a hint of disappointment. “It seems your ‘self-awareness’ is still too strong. This is a ‘flaw’ that needs to be corrected.”

He turned his gaze to the Alliance warriors below who were still frozen in place.

“I don’t want to erase your will in a brutal way, that would tarnish your most perfect work of art. So, Irelia, I’m giving you a choice.”

"Agree to my proposal, lead your army, and become my sword. I will ensure the safety of your companions. They will gain eternal life, immense power, and... the glory of conquering countless worlds."

"or……"

Lin Feng's eyes became deep and cold.

“Refuse me. Then I will not kill them. Death is too merciful for them.”

“I will strip the souls of all of them from the river of time. I will create a separate, eternally looping time prison. In this prison, time will forever stand still at the moment when you sounded the horn of counterattack and your hearts were filled with infinite hope.”

"Then, I will condense all the pain, torment, and despair they have endured over the past thirty years into a self-aware 'devil' and cast it into that space-time."

“In the eternal cycle, they will experience the ignition of hope again and again, only to be swallowed up by the most extreme pain and despair. They will cry out, plead, and go mad, but they will never die, nor will they ever escape. Their souls will become the most beautiful ‘flowers of despair’ in my garden, never to wither.”

"And you, Irelia, will be the only audience. I will keep you conscious, so that you will 'see' and 'hear' each and every one of them, in eternal torment, calling your name and cursing your incompetence, until the end of time."

silence.

A deathly silence.

Irelia's body trembled violently. She looked down at Garrosh's courageous face, still charging forward. She looked at Queen Elana's aged yet contented smile. She looked at the wisdom and determination in Li Yao's eyes. She looked at each and every vibrant, unique soul whose hope had been rekindled by her song.

Lin Feng's threat, precise and cruel, struck at her only and most fatal weakness—her "love."

She could accept her own death, and even accept being tormented eternally.

But she could not accept that these companions who trusted her, followed her, and entrusted everything to her would fall into an eternal purgatory a thousand times more terrifying than hell because of her "rejection".

Her pure and flawless heart, made of holy light, was torn open with a bottomless rift by Lin Feng's cold, demonic whispers at this moment.

Darkness surged wildly in from the rift.

"Why...?" Her voice was as soft as a dream, filled with endless sorrow and confusion, "You possess such great power, why... do such cruel things?"

“Cruel?” Lin Feng seemed to hear a word unrelated to himself. He calmly replied, “I never thought it was cruel. I was just conducting an ‘experiment,’ an exploration of the ultimate truth of the universe. ‘Order’ and ‘chaos,’ ‘reason’ and ‘emotion,’ which one is the right path to ‘eternity’? For the past thirty years, I have tested ‘absolute order.’ And now, I have discovered a more efficient way that can generate stronger ‘variables’.”

"That is, to use a 'variable' formed by 'hope' to impact and crush other weaker 'hopes'. I am very curious about what kind of magnificent new 'emotional data' will be born in this universe when the strongest 'hope' becomes the spreader of the deepest 'despair'."

"And you, Irelia, you are the perfect 'experimental tool' that I chose."

Irelia remained silent.

She slowly closed her eyes. Two streams of scalding "tears," composed of pure light, slid down from the corners of her eyes.

That was the lament of holy light, the final tragic song of the warrior's soul.

When she opened her eyes again, the warm, golden light in them, like the sun, had completely disappeared.

Instead, there was a deeper emptiness and deathly stillness than Lin Feng's, as if all emotions had been burned away.

"I……"

Her lips moved with difficulty, uttering a word as heavy as ancient, cold iron, a word heavy enough to nail her soul to the pillar of shame forever.

"……agree."

The moment those two words were uttered, the Starry Holy Sword in her hand, the divine weapon formed from the spirits of fallen heroes and the wishes of all living beings, let out a mournful cry, overwhelmed by its own weight.

"Snap—"

A tiny crack appeared on the blade. Then, like a spider web, the crack instantly spread across the entire blade.

In the end, this holy sword, symbolizing "hope" and "resistance," shattered completely in its owner's hands, turning into countless specks of light that vanished into nothingness.

"A wise choice."

Lin Feng nodded in satisfaction. He lifted the time-space freeze on the entire world.

Time begins to flow again.

All the warriors of the alliance recovered from that eerie stillness. Before they could even rejoice at their survival, they witnessed a scene in the sky that terrified them.

Lin Feng, the demon king who should have been eliminated, stood there unharmed.

Their hero, Irelia, hovered before him, the warm golden light emanating from her gone, replaced by an unsettling, cold, and deathly white glow. The holy sword she never parted from her hand had also vanished.

"Your Majesty...?" Garrosh exclaimed in confusion.

Irelia did not answer. She slowly turned around, her eyes, now utterly empty and unfamiliar, looking down at the faces below, filled with concern and confusion.

Then, in a cold, mechanical voice devoid of any emotion, she issued her first order since becoming the "demon."

"Everyone...kneel down."

"Swear allegiance to your new master, His Majesty the Divine Emperor of the Empire."

The whole world seemed to have died at that moment.

The expressions on the faces of the Alliance warriors shifted from confusion to shock, then to disbelief, and finally, to utter despair—a despair even deeper than when they faced Lin Feng.

Their heroes, their pillars of strength, the inextinguishable flame of hope in their hearts... were themselves pushed into the abyss.

"No... Your Majesty... What are you saying...?" Li Yao cried, unable to believe her ears.

"Kneel down."

Irelia's voice rose slightly, and the pale white light transformed into an irresistible pressure that enveloped the entire battlefield. Under this pressure, everyone felt as if their bones were about to be crushed, and their bodies uncontrollably and humiliatingly collapsed to their knees.

Only Garrosh, the valiant orc chieftain, remained standing, driven by his wild will. His eyes were bloodshot as he stared intently at the unfamiliar figure in the sky, letting out a roar of grief and rage with all his might.

"Why? Irelia! Tell us! Why!!"

Irelia's gaze fell upon him. A barely perceptible, intense pain seemed to flicker in his empty eyes, but it was quickly replaced by a deeper, deathly silence.

There's no reason why.

She slowly raised her hand and aimed it at Garrosh.

A "demon sword," identical to the Starry Holy Sword but exuding an evil aura, formed in her hand, composed of that pale, cold light.

"Only...can be obeyed."

A white sword aura flashed and disappeared.

Garrosh's massive body crashed to the ground. A deep, bone-revealing wound appeared on his chest, from which blood gushed. He was not dead, but he had completely lost the ability to fight.

Irelia, with her own hands, wounded her most loyal comrade, the first to follow her.

This sword strike shattered the last glimmer of hope in the hearts of everyone in the alliance.

Lin Feng watched this scene with a satisfied smile, as if admiring a work of art. He slowly landed beside Irelia, as if introducing his masterpiece.

"From this day forward, the name 'Avengers' will cease to exist."

“You will be given a new name—'The Vanguard of Calamity'.”

"Your mission is no longer for a laughable freedom, but to spread the Empire's ideal of 'purity' to every corner of the universe. You will crush stubborn civilizations, you will wipe out disorderly races, and you will prove your worth in endless conquest."

He reached out and gently stroked Irelia's cold, light-filled cheek.

"And you, my most perfect work of art. You will be the supreme commander of this legion, my... First Apostle."

"You are no longer the Sword of Dawn, no longer the embodiment of hope."

"From this day forward, there will be no more Irelia, the heroine."

"only……"

"The one who brought eternal night to the empire..."

"Fallen Witch."