In the Name of Empress

Chapter 734 407: How Much Is Your Life Worth?

The true Land of Annihilation is a place where nothing exists.

It is easy to move in any direction, but it is meaningless, seeming like a lot of movement but actually akin to standing still.

This is the Sea of Annihilation.

No one knows where it came from, how it was formed, or where its boundaries lie.

In the Sea of Annihilation, the energy consumption rate is extremely slow, but no energy is ever produced; creatures trapped here gradually face annihilation in endless despair.

Sif easily gathered all the Soul Fragments, her body and soul completely restored to peak condition.

This is indeed something to be happy about, if she could leave.

But she sees no hope of leaving.

Even though she imagined the situation to be bad enough before entering the Sea of Annihilation, this true void made Roland and Sif understand what despair truly is.

Here, there is no matter, no energy, naturally, no enemies exist.

Sticking close to Sif, Roland communicated with her through their souls, with virtually zero energy consumption.

As long as they accept being idle, they can exist here until the end of time, until the world collapses.

They even avoided the apocalypse of the Theia Plane here.

If they don't care about the quality of life after eternal life, this could even be a form of eternity.

But can one still be considered human if they are motionless?

People pursue immortality to explore the world with an eternal life, to enjoy life, not to stand like a rock.

This kind of eternity, at least Roland does not want.

"What should we do?" Sif couldn't help but ask Roland.

Even though she didn't want to add pressure on Roland, nor affect his thinking, this desolate emptiness was truly unbearable.

"Wait."

Roland was quite calm.

"When Sofia descends into the Netherworld, we will have a chance to sense her location and escape from here."

Sif fell into silence.

Roland was right, just a few days ago, she had vaguely sensed Roland's location.

At the time, she thought it was a delusion caused by her concern, and didn't pay it much heed.

Although she believed Roland's love for her was unreserved, she wasn't sure if this love was strong enough for him to face triple death.

If Roland didn't come, she would only feel regret, not resentment.

After all, Roland's world wasn't just about her; there was an entire plane.

Letting go of everything to find her, although romantic, might seem somewhat impulsive.

With Roland's rational reality, he would surely be pained for her, but certainly wouldn't come.

Yet Roland came.

All interest-based calculations seemed so pale and powerless in the face of "Sif in peril."

Having a loved one by her side made it worth it even if shattered to pieces in this life.

But she truly was reluctant to die, reluctant to leave this beautiful and regret-filled world.

When Roland appeared, the Sea of Annihilation, void of light, was filled with sunshine, flowers, and laughter.

This is the power of love.

It transcends everything, transcends...

Unfortunately, while love can transcend all, it cannot replace all. Back in reality, Sif had to face the harsh problems.

Should they exhaust their energy in a grand finale, turtle-like survival, or continue searching for an exit?

None of the options seem the best choice.

So she left the choice to Roland.

However, she never imagined Roland would gamble everything on Sofia.

"You and her..."

Sif's heart raced slightly.

Although she could accept Roland having other women, she didn't want her first position to be shaken.

Lisa and Alina were both excellent women, but she came early, and already held a leading position.

The only one who could make her feel threatened was Sofia.

Her formidable strength and glacial queenly presence were enough to conquer any man.

Could it be...

Sif didn't want to lose composure in front of Roland, but in the Sea of Annihilation, her consciousness was linked with Roland's, allowing them to clearly sense each other's every thought.

Roland could barely hold back his laughter at her wild thoughts.

"Don't overthink. Sofia indeed has great allure, but not as a woman, rather as a formidable being."

"Admiring her strength doesn't necessarily mean thinking in that way."

"She is a goddess, and I am just a mortal, so it's impossible."

Sif felt a bit embarrassed.

Because of their soul and consciousness link, she could of course feel Roland's sincerity.

Yet she was still somewhat unconvinced.

"Is being a goddess that impressive? Our goal is to defeat the three goddesses and take their place. If you don't even have the confidence to marry a goddess, what talk is there of a challenge?"

Influenced by Sif's confidence, Roland responded with a laugh: "I already married a goddess, just the three of them, that's enough."

He was referring to Sif, Lisa, and Alina.

Although only Sif had a formal wedding, Alina was a lover, and Lisa a sister, in essence, they were all his lovers.

For some reason, upon saying this, Roland and Sif almost simultaneously thought of another person.

Christine.

Then they both breathed a sigh of relief.

Thankfully, she was a devout believer, her life already dedicated to the Light, without other intentions.

After the wild thoughts came endless silence.

Roland and Sif relaxed their spirits quietly, patiently waiting.

What if they couldn't wait for Sofia? Then they would burn out the last flame of their lives here; as long as they had a loved one by their side, annihilation would not be a terrible end.

...

The flow of time in the Netherworld is very slow, but compared to the Netherworld, it's as if time flies.

Time in the Netherworld is almost stagnant, making it almost impossible to feel the passage of time here.

In the largest bar in Freedom City, a stern-faced beautiful woman sat there with a glass of water in front of her, with no one around.