Chains erupted from Apollyon's hand.

They were not metallic, nor were they made of light.

They were something in between. Conceptual, and absolute.

They entered Neo's body without resistance, passing through flesh and soul alike, and then spread outward.

Into his Cosmos'.

Into his Nine Heavens.

They bound everything thoroughly. Like a lock clicking into place.

The function of the chains was simple.

To not let anyone go beyond Third Step.

This was the answer Apollyon had found.

Not destruction. Not escape.

But prevention.

If the Calamities could not use higher realms as puppets, then they would lose their greatest leverage.

After the chains finished sealing Neo's path of progress, they did not stop.

They moved.

They spread through the True Blessed Land, wrapping around every Cultivator, Martial Artist, mortal, every structure, every Path that still existed.

Then they tore through the boundary itself and moved beyond.

Into the Elemental Cosmos.

The True Blessed Land, created by Celestial Worthy, tried to resist. Layers of authority flared. Ancient formations activated.

None of it mattered.

The chains had been created by Apollyon sacrificing everything he had.

And he had surpassed Celestial Worthy.

His body began to break apart.

Each piece became another chain, binding another Path, sealing another future.

Across the Elemental Cosmos, gods, Devils and Demons felt it at the same time.

A sudden heaviness.

A realization that something fundamental had closed forever.

Then Apollyon pulled his fist fully free.

Neo's body finally gave out, but he managed to remain standing. Exhaustion rolled over him in waves.

He did not move.

Apollyon looked down at him.

He was exhausted as well. More than that. His body had almost entirely transformed into chains now.

But…

There was one more thing to do.

He took a step.

Space folded.

Apollyon appeared outside the True Blessed Land, above the Void of Eons.

Beneath his feet was the platform that served as the foundation for the base of Eternals.

Before him hung a corpse.

The Hanged Man.

Ouroboros.

Apollyon stared at him.

The chains binding the Hanged Man began to break, one by one.

Apollyon knelt.

He pressed his forehead to the platform.

"Thank you."

The last chain snapped.

The Hanged Man was finally freed.

Golden blood began to flow from Apollyon himself.

It poured outward, spreading through the Cosmos, seeping into fractures too deep to be seen.

It repaired, stabilized, and ensured that new universes would no longer need to be sustained by the corpse of the Hanged Man.

Then Apollyon's body crumbled.

His existence burning completely.

…

Neo lay still for a long time.

Eventually, he looked around.

The sky above him was clear now.

He checked himself.

He had recovered to his normal condition.

But when he reached for something higher—something instinctive—

Nothing answered.

He knew it immediately.

He could not go beyond Third Step anymore.

Neo closed his eyes.

"What was his name?" he asked softly.

No answer came.

Not from the world. Not from himself.

He searched his memories.

He could not remember the name or the face of the person whom he had hated for cursing his parents.

The person whom he had tried to kill.

The person whom he had helped prepare his own funeral.

"He sacrificed his own existence completely. Even I can't remember him anymore."

He looked inward.

His Cosmos' and Nine Heavens path of progress was sealed perfectly.

The chains were not crude.

They were absolute.

Since "he" had used a combination of Fourth Step, Fourth Realm power, and his entire existence, the seal was overwhelming.

Only a Sixth Step or higher might even attempt to break it.

And no one could reach that anymore.

"Neo?"

Elizabeth approached him carefully.

He looked up and smiled faintly.

"It's done. We won."

Elizabeth nodded.

She could feel it too.

The closure. The locked paths.

Neo would no longer chase strength endlessly. He would no longer suffer the consequences of eternal transcendence.

And yet…

Instead of relief, she felt dread.

Neo was calm.

Too calm.

For someone who had spent his entire existence pursuing strength, for someone whose path had just been sealed, his composure was unsettling.

She had a sinking feeling.

Neo had already decided something.

That was why he was calm.

They returned to the others.

Neo explained what had happened to everyone, carefully, without embellishment.

Most of them were relieved about "his" death.

They had never even dreamed of advancing beyond Third Step, and were not too worried about the seal on their path of progress.

Some, however, were silent.

They finally understood why "he" had been their enemy for so long. And how he had sacrificed everything to protect others.

Afterward, Neo collected the fragments of his father that had been given to him at the very end by "him".

He revived Hades, reuniting every fragment into a complete existence.

Such a task was easy with his Path and countless Technique Spirits.

Thanks to all Technique Spirits, Neo was now stronger than Celestial Worthy.

He revived his mother perfectly.

Then he met with Zeus, Mars, and Veydran.

They realized the path of progress had been sealed and Zeus stopped his clash with Mars

Neo helped stabilize the aftermath of the battles.

Since he was now stronger than Celestial Worthy, he could manipulate the Hope Elemental World directly.

The Cultivators were no longer his enemies.

He tried something else.

He attempted to connect to Fourth and Fifth Step Cultivators, freezing them through the Hope Elemental World.

Nothing happened.

He tried again.

Still nothing.

"It seems like those who reached Fourth Step and above are empty shells. That makes sense. If they had real Paths like those below Third Step, the Daos would have taken over their bodies."

After that, he led everyone out of the Hope Elemental World.

No one lost their memories. Neo made sure of it.

And when they returned to reality—

He saw it.

Elizabeth stiffened beside him.

Neo's expression hardened.

"Of course," he said, his voice chillingly cold. "There was a reason you were looking forward to 'him' and Veydran entering the True Blessed Land."

Before them stood the Shadow Supreme.

In another situation, Neo might have chuckled at his constant attempts to manipulate others.

But this time—

He had crossed the line.

"Let her go."

A wave of thunderous pressure erupted from Neo.

Zerek, the Shadow Supreme, did not say anything.

He simply stared at Neo, his expression unreadable, his presence pressing down on the fractured space around them.

All around him stood resurrected Supremes.

They formed a loose circle, their bodies incomplete and wrong, like echoes dragged back from somewhere they were never meant to return from.

Between them, bound by layers of shadow and stitched concepts, was the Supreme of Darkness.

She was caged along with several other Eternals, each restrained by methods tailored specifically to them.

Countless corpses and consciousnesses that Moraine had once absorbed were also being resurrected.

They clawed their way out from within her, attacking her existence from the inside.

That was why she could not fight back.

Every attempt she made to gather herself was met with betrayal from within her own being.

Neo's gaze shifted.

He looked past Zerek, past the twisted Supremes, and stopped at one familiar figure.

Ultris.

Or rather, the corpse of Ultris, standing upright, eyes empty, moving only because Zerek willed it.

"How did you resurrect Supremes? They were not truly dead."

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