Shadow Slave novel Chapter 3245

Feeling a hint of trepidation, Sunny stepped into the shadows and appeared at the end of the great bridge that connected the snow-covered mountain to the fuming volcano in the distance. The pristine white walls of the Jade Palace were behind him; in front of him was the vast length of the stone bridge.

Sunny remained motionless for a moment, then took a step forward. As he entered the bridge, a quiet sigh escaped from his lips.

‘The timing... is a bit unfortunate, isn't it?’

Cassie had mentioned that Nephis would arrive in a few days, so Sunny hoped to use that time to settle his mind — get acquainted with his new self, at least a little. But Nephis was already here.

His mind was still in chaos, and on top of that, Cassie was indisposed, having overexerted herself to help him remember his original self. The situation was not ideal, and Mordret — that bastard! — had chosen to remove himself from it entirely.

Sure, getting between lovers was a bad idea... especially when both of them were Supreme Titans. But still, couldn't he have at least pretended to be willing to help? Sunny was not walking across the bridge to meet Nephis, after all — he was walking across the bridge to meet White Abyss.

What if White Abyss, the being Nephis had become in the Nightmare, was the kind of person to burn down the world first and ask questions later? As a young woman, she had already displayed the propensity to solve problems with increasingly devastating explosions. How much more extreme had her personality become now, thousands of years later?

Not only that... but Sunny was also bound to her by Shadow Bond. He was certain that Nephis would never use it against him — but what about White Abyss? He was not so sure.

‘Wait a damn moment...’

Wasn't he basically the worst possible person to confront Nephis, then? Why would Cassie bet everything on him, of all people?!

Needless to say, Sunny suddenly felt nervous.

‘No... that is not the reason. I am still a little confused, it seems:

Yes, Sunny was nervous. But it was not the prospect of meeting White Abyss that made him nervous — it was the prospect of meeting Nephis.

He did not really care how powerful the mythical ruler of the First Kingdom was, or that she wielded power over him. If it were anyone else, Sunny would have faced them calmly, indifferent to the possibility of bloodshed and battle.

But it was Nephis.

‘It is good to know that I still can get nervous, at least.'

With how calloused his heart had become, weathered by the scorching passions and vicissitudes of countless lives, he was not sure if he could still feel such emotions. But it seemed that thinking about Nephis could stir that cold heart even now.

Sunny had barely faced himself and was unsure of who he was — naturally, he had not had the chance to examine his feelings toward Nephis yet. Had they changed? Had they remained the same? Had the ceaseless torrent of time smoothed their edges, or had they withstood eternity and remained unscathed, pristine and clear like a diamond?

He did not know, and there was not enough time to find out.

As Sunny approached the middle of the bridge, the eastern sky brightened. It was already noon, and the sun shone through the ashen clouds high above — and yet, the world was growing brighter, as if a second sun was rising above the horizon.

At that moment, Sunny felt a gaze. Turning around, he looked up at the walls of the Jade Palace and pursed his lips.

The Jade Queen was there, reclining in a lavish chair. Several attendants were serving her, pouring wine into a crystal glass, shielding her from the wind, and feeding her succulent grapes.

Noticing Sunny watching, she smiled brilliantly and waved at him.

He gritted his teeth and turned away.

‘Damn it all.’

Was it not her Citadel that would turn into a molten ruin if Neph's temper flared? Why was he the only one doing all the work?! Looking at the brilliant radiance that slowly swallowed the sky, Sunny exhaled slowly.

‘I am not getting paid for it, either.'

Paid?

That was another thing to note about his new self — it seemed that the passage of time had not assuaged his avarice one bit.

‘Good to know.'

As an unsure smile illuminated Sunny's face, a blinding luminosity revealed itself between the towering peaks, streaking across the heavens like a sun. A moment later, it plummeted down and crashed into the opposite end of the bridge, a wave of immolating flames spreading in a blazing ring from the point of impact.

Standing on the bridge, Sunny felt its enormous stone mass quake.

As he shielded his eyes, the blinding luminosity slowly dimmed, and a tall figure wove itself out of light in the distance. Long silver hair, flawless alabaster skin, striking grey eyes that were like the cold, vast expanse of tempestuous sky...

The moment he saw her, he couldn't see anything else.

The spirit of light — Nephis... White Abyss — looked at him as well, then calmly stepped onto the bridge.

The great bridge that spanned the bottomless chasm was long — long enough to hold up a city in the far future — and she did not seem to be in a hurry. As she walked toward Sunny, though, he forgot to breathe. His heart seemed to freeze in his chest, and then exploded with blazing heat.

At this moment, Sunny realized that his previous doubts had been meaningless. Had his feelings for Nephis been eroded by the merciless passage of time?

...As if something as frivolous as time could ever erode them.

Had his ability to experience emotions been dampened by the weight of countless lives? He would gladly endure another eternity and experience an infinite number of deaths if it meant being able to see her once more. Would he be able to love her as fiercely after becoming a god as he had as a human? What was the point of becoming a god if he wouldn't?

Belatedly, Sunny remembered to breathe and forced himself to inhale.

The moment Sunny saw Nephis, the chaos reigning in his mind settled.

Suddenly, he felt impossibly calm.