Vahn stood exposed on the open landing pad, the immense roar of helicopter rotors and fighter jets filling the air. Searchlights pinned him in place, and he could feel the lethal guided missiles being primed for launch.

​Vahn knew he couldn't rely on his physical might alone to fight his way through this massive, organized siege. The constant strain of dodging bullets and fighting through the facility had already further depleted his precious, recovering spiritual energy.

​He decided to use the Void Dragon Ultimate power, but with increased control this time. He couldn't afford another catastrophic energy dump; he needed to harvest power efficiently.

​Vahn extended his right hand, palm open, toward the tight military perimeter. He focused on the energy signatures of the surrounding mater—the metal of the vehicles, the fuel, and the soldiers' fear.

​He activated his Black Hole Core, initiating a controlled, focused vortex.

​WHOOSH!

​A swirling black vortex, roughly ten meters in diameter, appeared before his hand. It was far smaller than the one that devoured the Scourge, but controlled and precise. It began instantaneously devouring anything on its path: parked military jeeps, loose equipment, sections of the landing pad pavement, and the rifles and gear of the stunned soldiers.

​The soldiers screamed as their weapons were ripped from their grasp and vanished into the swirling void.

​After devouring the materiel, the vortex collapsed. Vahn immediately felt a slight, welcome surge of spiritual energy return to his Dual Cores. The assimilation of raw matter, fueled by the Void Dragon's power, had restored a necessary reserve for a single, powerful escape maneuver.

​He quickly channeled the acquired energy into one of his fastest arts: Fire Phoenix Wings.

​Massive, blazing wings of crimson and gold fire immediately erupted from Vahn's back, radiating intense heat that temporarily distorted the air.

​"Out of my way!" Vahn commanded, his voice muffled by the sound of the engines.

​With a powerful thrust that blasted away the closest soldiers, Vahn shot vertically into the sky. He used the incredible speed of the Phoenix Wings to escape the tight perimeter before the fighter jets could lock onto him or the missiles could be launched.

​Vahn raced away from the bunker, leaving the chaotic, burning scene behind him. He knew the entire U.S. military would be chasing him within minutes, but he had bought himself the crucial time needed to find Celestine.

How dare that woman leave him there to be captured? He needed answers, and he needed a way back to his own time now.

​After a short, adrenaline-fueled flight that pushed his still-recovering body to its limit, Vahn saw his target. With a burst of shimmering starlight, Celestine materialized before him in mid-air, looking drastically weak. The wound on her right shoulder was still visible.

​Vahn slowed his flight, landing softly on a nearby warehouse roof.

​"Celestine! How could you leave me to those flies?" Vahn demanded, barely maintaining his cal..

​Celestine winced, clutching her wounded shoulder. Her lavender eyes were filled with profound fatigue.

​"I sought answers, Vahn, but you must know the truth," she replied, her voice barely a whisper. "My paramount priority was to deliver Infant Elias to the orphanage gate and ensure he was found. The temporal paradox was sealed the moment he was placed where he belonged."

​She continued, "On the way back, I was found and struck by the EMP. I used the last of my power to escape. And I knew you would be fine to get out of there alone."

​Vahn stopped. He saw the genuine, raw exhaustion in her expression and understood the logic of her actions. She had chosen the survival of the entire timeline over his personal safety, trusting his power to overcome the mundane threat.

​He was speechless. He understood blaming her would be pointless; she had fulfilled her ultimate duty to Fate.

​He deactivated his Phoenix Wings, letting the fire dissolve. "Very well. I owe you my life and my dynasty's existence," Vahn said, his tone softening to grudging respect. "Now, take me back to the original timeline. Before I accidentally conquer this entire planet out of sheer annoyance."

​Celestine nodded, relief washing over her face as Vahn accepted the truth. Her mission to save the timeline was complete; now came the escape.

​"The residual energy from your fight has temporarily weakened the temporal gate between the Nexus and your reality,"

Celestine explained, her voice gaining a desperate clarity. "It is our only window. We must combine our powers to anchor the jump, or we will be lost forever in the void between realities."

​She extended her hand toward Vahn. He grasped it firmly, feeling the icy coldness of her Starlight energy meet the consuming heat of his Void Core.

Also there was a System notification:

[ Congratulations! You have unlocked your 4th bond: Celestine Starborn. ]

[ Emotional Connection: 88% (88%), Physical Connection: 3.5% (3%) ]

[ Rewards Gained: Time Affinity Unlocked, Star Affinity Unlocked, Space Affinity Unlocked, Temporal Void Gate (Art) ]

[ Skill Description: Temporal Void Gate — Allows the practitioner to travel to any place at any specific time. Caution: Changing the course of the present by manipulating the past can attract the Balance Keepers. ]

The notifications shimmered in front of his eyes before fading like stardust.

Vahn blinked is confusion. "88%? When did that happen?"

​Nevertheless, Celestine began the chant, not of annihilation, but of Restoration. The air around them began to tear, revealing the chaotic silver-black shimmer of the Nexus of Forgotten Fates.

​Vahn channeled his limited, recovered spiritual energy into the jump. He didn't aim for specific coordinates, as that required full power. Instead, he followed Celestine's Trail, trusting her expertise in dimensional physics and relying on the anchor she had established when she escaped moments earlier.

​WHOOM!

​The combined energy of the Void Dragon and the Saintess of Fate tore them from the roof of 2005 Earth. They vanished in a silent, violent flash of silver and black, leaving behind a baffled, paranoid military and a completely unaltered history.

​Vahn and Celestine have returned to the present.

---

​"Seraphina, they have returned," Lilith informed Seraphina, her voice tight with relief as she sensed Vahn's distinct, powerful aura pierce the Dynasty's defenses.

​Seraphina's face beamed with joy, the anxiety of the past few hours melting away instantly.

​They excitedly rushed out to the courtyard in front of the Royal Palace of the Necrotic Dynasty. Seraphina and Lilith saw Vahn and Celestine descend from the sky, landing softly on the polished obsidian tiles.

​"Husband, you have returned safely!"

​Both of his wives rushed forward to hug him, their fear transforming into overwhelming affection. Vahn accepted the embrace with open arms, feeling the stabilizing presence of their love grounding him after the chaotic temporal jump.

​"I promised, didn't I?" Vahn murmured, holding them close.

​Meanwhile, Celestine moved away from the reunion, her steps slow and labored, clearly ready to depart.

​Vahn noticed her movement and the profound exhaustion radiating from her.

​"Wait, Celestine... I have something to ask," Vahn said, releasing his wives but keeping his gaze fixed on the Saintess.

​He was truly curious about the inexplicable data that his Dao Sense registered: their emotional connection was showing 88%, an impossible closeness, considering they had just recently interacted under volatile circumstances. He needed to understand the depth of her involvement in his past.

​Celestine paused, her back to them. The silver light around her was dimmer than ever, and she seemed to be holding back a great deal of pain.

​"I cannot stay, Vahn Necrotis," she said, her voice strained. "The worm may be contained for now, but the act of manipulating time and fate has taxed my essence severely. I must recover."

​"The connection you feel," Celestine whispered, her back still facing him, her figure appearing solitary and weighted by a pain only she chose to bear. "It is the truth of the threads we share. You were not the only one I saved, and the Dao has a heavy price for those who tamper with its path."

​Before Vahn could demand clarification on what other "threads" they shared, Celestine dissolved entirely, vanishing into a flicker of distant starlight.

He was motionless for a long time.

Nonetheless, the present matter required his immediate attention.

​

​The Dynasty had remained Stable and Prepared. Seraphina and Lilith had held the line perfectly.

​"The Barbarian Chief's envoys were dismissed, and the defense lines are established, Vahn. The Dynasty is secure, but the resource demands still remain critical," Lilith reported immediately, cutting through the personal reunion to provide a status update

​Vahn nodded, his mind already shifting from temporal physics to geopolitics. He had faced down a cosmic threat, but the mundane threats of the Southern Continent demanded attention.

​"Ezekiel is waiting in the War Room, Husband," Seraphina added gently, having sensed the shift in his focus.

​Vahn placed a loving hand on each of their shoulders. "My Queens, you have done well. Now, the real work begins. We will not wait for the Barbarian Union to threaten us, nor will we tolerate a resource shortage."

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