A few hours later...
Location: The sky above Ginkgo City in the Far East.
Kevin Kaslana had pursued Sirin and Kiana all the way here.
It was clear that unlike Kiana, who had always tried not to involve innocent people, Sirin had no such concerns.
After noticing Ancestor Kevin's pursuit method... Specifically, when he lost her trail and couldn't find her hiding spot, he would simply unleash Shamash's massive AOE attacks... This was his brutal approach of preferring to kill a thousand innocents rather than let one guilty party escape. And so, she had been deliberately running into crowds.
The results showed that Kevin's efficiency had indeed become less decisive than his initial actions in remote, sparsely populated areas.
But this situation didn't last long.
In fact, it only strengthened his resolve to eliminate the threats of Sirin and Kiana as soon as possible.
So far, several Far East cities had suffered as a result.
During this time, Kiana had also pondered whether she should stop Sirin from doing this.
But ultimately, she concluded that she had to hold out to the end and obtain the power of Finality.
Because only then, only by becoming the God of Earth, would she have a chance to save everything.
Therefore, neither she nor Sirin could die today.
Until they decided the winner in their battle of wills, they had to help each other overcome all external difficulties.
Of course, right now, Sirin was the only one doing anything.
Kiana could only endure the torment of her own guilt and pain, trying not to get in Sirin's way.
Finally...
"Hmm?"
Suddenly, Sirin, who was currently shrunk to no bigger than a sesame seed, noticed something strange about the white-haired young man in the sky.
He had clearly lost her trail again.
But this time, he didn't immediately prepare to turn the surrounding area into scorched earth.
Instead... he stopped and frowned.
Seeing this...
"What's going on?"
Several question marks appeared in Sirin's mind.
She actually started thinking, pondering for a short while.
Finally, she had a guess...
"Could it be that this city is special?"
"Or maybe..."
At the same time, in the sky.
Kevin received a remote communication from the Newborn World Serpent Headquarters.
"Kevin, come back."
MEI's calm voice came from the communicator he carried. "Continuing the pursuit is meaningless now. Moreover... it will be counterproductive."
"Your overly high-profile actions today, combined with the impact from Fu Hua's side... have already been exploited by others."
"If you don't stop, there will be very serious consequences."
"The cost already involves multiple hidden dangers for the future, and we simply cannot afford them right now."
At this moment, MEI's tone was very rational.
She knew, of course, that Kevin's course of action today was the most brutal, but also the most efficient.
If nothing else, the best proof was that Kevin hadn't lost track of the white-haired girl's incredibly strange and perfect escape abilities until now.
But she knew that her understanding was one thing.
Whether others within the Newborn World Serpent could understand or accept it was another matter entirely.
Because no matter how he explained it, Kevin had harmed innocent people today.
And not just once.
In short...
"I understand."
In mid-air, Kevin, holding Shamash, frowned and sighed.
Today, he had finally steeled his heart to eliminate the threat as a sinner... as a Flame-Chaser.
But in the end, he had once again done useless work.
In fact, it wasn't that he hadn't considered going all out and turning the entire Far East into a burial ground for that white-haired girl.
But...
If he actually did that, the Newborn World Serpent, which had been so painstakingly built, would also fall apart.
Even now, with several cities already destroyed, there were signs of this happening.
Otherwise, MEI wouldn't have come to stop him and make him give up on this opportunity, which might not ever come again.
Of course, there were other reasons why MEI did this.
For example, the concept of the Path that appeared today.
And for example...
"..."
Kevin scanned his surroundings. With his keen senses, he clearly felt the intense rejection and fear from the many people below as they looked up at him.
"Was my action today used against me?"
Recalling what MEI had just said, he already had a slight guess about this.
After a moment...
"Sigh..."
Kevin let out a long sigh and then made his final struggle.
His gaze swept across the city below, but he still couldn't find any trace of the white haired girl.
During this, he also sensed no energy fluctuations.
And at this point...
"Swoosh~"
He didn't linger any longer, put away Shamash, and chose to leave.
At this moment, as he turned into a streak of light and disappeared into the sky, the residents of Ginkgo City below all breathed a sigh of relief.
Some of them had been so frightened they had frozen in place. Now that the pressure was gone, their tense nerves relaxed, and they collapsed directly onto the ground.
Not just these ordinary residents.
Even Sirin, who had been hunted by Kevin, was the same.
Now, shrunken to less than five millimeters tall, she sat on a windowsill, not daring to even breathe.
In her own field of vision, Kevin had indeed left.
But she didn't dare bet on whether he was feigning his departure to trick her.
So she waited like this, waiting for a full three hours.
Until night fell.
"Fwoosh~"
A flash of firelight appeared, and the shrunken Sirin appeared on the top of a tall building several kilometers away.
"Fwoosh~"
The strong winds at this height nearly blew her away.
After barely stabilizing herself, Sirin looked into the distance. Kevin's aura was indeed gone.
"Whew..."
Only then did she finally let out a long sigh of relief.
But the moment she relaxed...
"!!!"
In her mind, Kiana began to fight for control of the body.
"You, you stop right now!"
Sirin snarled in her mind. "What if that guy hasn't gone far yet?"
Atop the tall building, she seemed to be arguing with the empty air. "Huh? What do you mean, innocent people got caught in the crossfire? Did I personally do anything? Did I kill a single person today?"
"And you, you useless waste who can't do anything. You rely on my power just to run away, and now you have the nerve to lecture me."
"Know your place!"
"Without me, we'd both be dead today!"
"You were saved by *me*, someone who disregards life... though I never wanted to save you in the first place. Don't even think about forcing your childish ideas on me."
***
The battle of wills continued.
But this time, Sirin clearly had the upper hand.
***
At the same time...
In North Africa, at the Newborn World Serpent Headquarters.
Kevin had returned to this underground base located within the Sahara Desert.
As soon as he arrived, he was informed that MEI was holding an emergency meeting.
And this time, he was required to attend.
"Understood."
Kevin agreed to the request.
He knew MEI must have her reasons for arranging it this way.
Shortly after, when he entered the conference room equipped with virtual remote projection...
"Hmm?"
"Uh..."
"..."
He saw...
...two other versions of himself!