Welcome to Rewind World Game

Twenty-first floor, twentieth floor, nineteenth floor.

The black cat tugged at Su Ming'an's pant leg, guiding him. Su Ming'an leaned against the wall, descending step by step, blood dripping from his wrist.

Upon setting foot on the eighteenth floor, Su Ming'an saw Noel.

The dark night surrounded them, and under the blazing candlelight, Su Ming'an caught sight of him—wearing a white satin ritual attire, with golden ornamental metal glinting at the cuffs. This outfit, which didn't match the style of the present world, seemed to signify that Noel had endured much to reach this place.

"—Noel!" Su Ming'an shouted.

Noel pressed a guard to the ground and turned his head with a smile. A streak of blood slid down his forehead, adding a scarlet hue to the corner of his eye.

"I've arrived." Noel said.

When Su Ming'an arrived at the ruins, he had already sent the black cat out. He believed early on that he couldn't place all his hopes on Xiao Jingsan alone, so he was always searching for the third key figure—Chao Yan.

With the cooperation of the wristband Du, Su Ming'an learned the location of the last camera that captured Chao Yan—at the edge of the world. He ordered the Scarlet Bird to guide the way, the black cat attacked madly, and they found Chao Yan in the early morning hours.

Finally, after getting in touch with Chao Yan, the black cat hurried back in time and, according to Su Ming'an's preset command, helped the amnesiac Su Ming'an activate the "Eternal Dawn" skill, forcibly enhancing his mental state.

No matter how strong the deity's cognitive shielding methods were, they still belonged to the debuff skill category within the world game. And the buff skill of "Eternal Dawn" could counter it. Once this skill was activated, Su Ming'an quickly regained his basic awareness and, relying on his own strengths, pulled himself out of the quagmire.

He had long prepared himself for the predicament.

However, Noel's arrival was unexpected for Su Ming'an. When Su Ming'an set everything up, he had no idea why Chao Yan went to the world's edge, and he didn't know she would die at three a.m. He initially thought that it should be Chao Yan herself coming to save him at this time.

"Noel? Why are you here? Where's Chao Yan? Is she really dead?" Su Ming'an asked, leaning against the wall and looking down at Noel from the height of the stairs. At this moment, he couldn't ascertain the authenticity of Noel, nor could he be sure that he had completely escaped cognitive control.

Blood dripped from his wrists onto the ground, mixing with the blood near Noel's feet.

Noel leaned on the blue rose cane, piercing the forehead of a guard with one strike, turned to look at Su Ming'an, and smiled:

"It's me, I'm real, trust me... Su Ming'an."

"Chao Yan is dead. She was killed by the tentacled monster by the sea, unable to clear the path to other worlds. So, she entrusted me to save you. Even if the control imprint on you cannot be lifted, I will still save you."

"I led the deity away. The commotion on the first floor was caused by Mo Yan and his group."

"I know you've surely experienced many illusions these past few days, and even now, your cognition may be confused by many things you see, but... at this moment, I am real."

Su Ming'an frowned slightly; he didn't dare "cognize" the Noel before him. Noel's appearance was entirely outside of his plan.

Noel swiftly cleared the guards on this floor and ascended the stairs. He steadied his tilted hat brim; blood rolled down the stairs like blooming red roses.

He walked quickly towards Su Ming'an, smelling the scent of blood in the air. His azure blue pupils turned red for a moment, the look in his eyes became dangerous for a moment, then he suddenly laughed: "Su Ming'an, you can't be sure if I'm real, but I can be sure you are real. The smell of your blood as an eligible is really quite distinctive."

The commotion from the lower floor gradually subsided as the deity was about to return.

Su Ming'an said, "…There's a piano room on the twelfth floor. We can leave through the window there."

His fingers had already clenched, ready to create a spatial vibration at any moment. If there was even a trace of error in Noel's response, he would immediately unleash the spatial vibration.

However, Noel laughed softly and gave Su Ming'an a hug.

"…Alright."

Su Ming'an's fingers relaxed slightly.

—The hidden communication code was validated.

Mentioning the piano, offering a hug—this was always the highest priority confirmation code.

This was a code only known between them, one that couldn't be simulated by endless illusions, a reality even a deity couldn't fabricate, buried in conversations across countless discarded rewinds—among all the billions of true or false beings, Su Ming'an only dared to confirm Noel's existence.

With a smile on his face, Su Ming'an whispered to Noel:

"Noel—I hereby extend to you a High Tower Invitation."

The azure blue shield extended, encompassing them beneath it. At this moment, the deity appeared below in the corridor, lifting its eyes to gaze calmly upon the two of them.

A sharp white light floated from the deity's hand, striking the High Tower Invitation shield, yet the shield was unusually stable, undisturbed by the slightest fluctuation.

The High Tower Invitation—at first glance, it seemed to be just an inconspicuous forced 1v1 duel skill, with no attribute bonuses, but in a sense, it was the highest positional rank skill possessed by Su Ming'an. Just because it is a "rules-type" skill, no matter what, once the High Tower Invitation is established, the 1v1 duel between both parties cannot be interfered with by anything. Unless the enemy also possesses skills surpassing this rule.

The deity stood outside the shield, unable to enter.

"Boom—boom—boom!"

Violent explosions sounded, as Su Ming'an saw the deity take action for the first time. Previously, the deities had always been gentle, calm, even when taking action, it was limited to holding Su Ming'an's wrist, but this time, it was completely different.

Pure white brilliance rose behind the deity, condensing into texts that Su Ming'an couldn't understand. They were arranged and combined into different patterns, enveloping the High Tower Invitation's shield in majestic light.

—What is this? A rules attack?

Su Ming'an gazed at the overwhelming white light. Just looking at it, he felt a sense of an inverted waterfall, a tsunami's onslaught. Tiny humans under the countless texts and patterns, like ants facing the waves.

However, these waves of light were blocked by the High Tower Invitation's shield, unable to advance a single step.

Su Ming'an roughly estimated that if the deity continued to take action like now, its combat power could soar to over 6000 points. The previous deity bionic bodies were all relatively weak individuals.

"Su Ming'an, step back a bit." Noel said.

Su Ming'an nodded.

He knew why Noel had come; Noel had come not to take him away—but to kill him.

Noel learned of Chao Yan's death, Noel also understood that Su Ming'an would not be satisfied with such a result. The moment Chao Yan died, Noel realized that if he still saw time walking normally, if Chao Yan's death had not been reversed, it meant that Su Ming'an had so far been unable to achieve his own death.

—So, he needed him to do it.

Su Ming'an released his hand, ending the embrace brought by the code. He calmly watched Noel, the tip of Noel's blue rose cane sharp and suitable for ending a life.

Under the dim candlelight, Noel's pupils were still as azure as the sea.

The High Tower Invitation's shield undulated like rippling water, and no one could intrude into this peaceful realm. Su Ming'an momentarily thought of the phrase "living towards death," feeling a sense of peaceful departure in his heart.

He seeks the death bestowed by Noel for the sake of the next life.

Noel grips the Blue Rose Scepter, preparing to send Su Ming'an on his next journey.

"...A rules-based skill?" The Deity stands outside the shield, looking at the unbreakable High Tower Invitation Shield: "...Yes, you do have such a skill. So this time, consider it a success."

Su Ming'an keenly catches the words "this time."

Before, when he was unconscious, he also heard the conversation between the Deity and Xiao Jingsan.

...

["Yes. So, your resistance has failed this time. Su Ming'an cannot escape my control; he belongs to me now." The Deity's laughter.]

["——Before the world resets, can I ask you to set him free?" Xiao Jingsan asks.]

["——You should know, the victor of the game has the qualifications to claim all the spoils. I'm not letting him go. Moreover, I don't plan to reset the world this time. I'm quite satisfied with this world line." The Deity's voice.]

...

Su Ming'an looks at the Deity. The duration of the High Tower Invitation is three minutes, allowing him three minutes to think before the Death Rebound.

He believes the Deity cannot possibly know about the Death Rebound. If the Deity knew, then the Organizers would likely know, and Su Ming'an would not be standing here.

Thus, it's clear the Deity's mention of "resetting the world line" doesn't refer to Su Ming'an.

Su Ming'an quickly and calmly deduces—it must be in the Tenth World that someone possesses a similar rewind skill, capable of resetting the world line. This resetting can only be limited within the world, unable to affect the Organizers and the audience, much like Jiu Shen resetting reincarnation in the Eighth World. Although time within the instance resets, time outside the instance flows normally, and players can remember the past.

So, who in the Tenth World possesses such a world line resetting ability?

Su Ming'an quickly figures out who it is—

Himself.

The Deity once said "forbidden self-harm," and Su Ming'an almost thought his Death Rebound had been exposed. He later realized it was impossible for it to be exposed, or else the Organizers would have approached him long ago.

Therefore, he can deduce—the Deity believes the one with the ability to reset the world line isn't Su Ming'an, so who could it be?

How obvious.

——It's the character Su Ming'an possesses.

This character, whose real background is yet unknown and has dual identities as an Eligible and an Exotic Species, has inherited the emotions and memories of fifty Fire Transmitters—this character.

The character Su Ming'an possesses—has the ability of Death Rebound.

In other words—Su Ming'an currently possesses two Death Rebound authorities—his own Death Rebound and this character's Death Rebound.

"..."

Su Ming'an suppresses his wildly beating heart. Despite only hearing a few words from the Deity, he quickly deduced this conclusion.

The character Su Ming'an possesses, whose name is still unknown, is temporarily being referred to as "Little Su."

From the conversation between Xiao Jingsan and the Deity, it can be seen they both retain their memories during Little Su's Death Rebound.

Therefore, even if Noel kills Su Ming'an, the Deity doesn't care because even if Little Su triggers Death Rebound, he will still be under the watchful eye of the Deity. The Deity will retain his memory after Little Su's Rebound, and time outside the Tenth World will normally proceed, with players remembering the world has been reset once.

In other words, the hierarchy should be like this—

Su Ming'an's Death Rebound＞Organizers and players＞Deity and Xiao Jingsan, who can retain memory ＞Little Su's Death Rebound＞People of the Tenth World

Those positioned ahead can cover the time and memory of those behind.

For example, once Su Ming'an triggers Death Rebound, including the Organizers and players, the Deity, Little Su, the Tenth World, and even all beings will be rewound, without retaining memory.

But once Little Su triggers Death Rebound, only the ones positioned behind him, like the people of the Tenth World, will forget. Those positioned ahead, like the Deity, the Organizers and players, and even Su Ming'an himself, will remember having been rewound once. Also, Little Su's Rewind can't affect the time of the Organizers and the audience.

——Very apparent like this.

When Su Ming'an's gaze meets Noel's, Noel quickly understands what Su Ming'an is pondering. In Su Ming'an's questing gaze, Noel slowly nods.

"I think...your deduction is correct," Noel says.

Cold sweat slides down Su Ming'an's forehead.

So, the most crucial and terrifying question quickly arises—

Once Su Ming'an dies in the Tenth World, which will trigger—Little Su's Death Rebound or Su Ming'an's own Death Rebound?

Su Ming'an's Death Rebound undoubtedly far exceeds Little Su's Death Rebound, able even to encompass the Organizers. But what determines the priority of which Death Rebound is triggered?

At this moment, Su Ming'an must trigger his own Death Rebound rather than Little Su's Death Rebound. Otherwise, time outside the instance will not be reversed, only the time within the instance will be rewound. The Deity will remember the past, and once Su Ming'an rebounds, the Deity will swiftly subdue him, severing the possibility of him committing suicide again.

Only by triggering Su Ming'an's own Death Rebound will the Deity be rewound, and no one will remember the past.

Under the azure shield, Noel remains quiet. He patiently waits for Su Ming'an's contemplation. The problem Su Ming'an is processing is very complex, cannot be conveyed through secret signals, thus Noel simply waits and trusts.

"...I'm a bit scared," Su Ming'an says.

He is somewhat afraid...if this time what triggers is not his own Death Rebound, it will be difficult for him to find another chance at death, and everything will become an irreversible spill.

Noel shakes his head, says nothing, not disturbing Su Ming'an's thoughts. He polishes the Blade Edge of the Blue Rose Scepter until it gleams.

"...Until now, I only realized..." Su Ming'an says.

...Just realized he actually possesses two Death Rebounds.

...Just realized such profound fear.

"You've realized very quickly, faster than me. You pointed it out, and I only just realized," Noel says. "Don't belittle yourself, you are more astute than most people."

They speak in riddles, yet understand each other's meaning.