"When the Cataclysm occurred, my sister and I were still children under ten years old."
"The vast majority of adults died. Almost all who survived were children attending primary school, and then the Strangling Green of the first night slaughtered many more... I hadn't studied history yet back then, but I had once heard a line in a listening comprehension exercise: Only those of steadfast faith can reach the far shore of the dark night. Because of that, my sister and I barely scraped through the night."
"While scavenging in the ruins, we met a group of older children. They intended to go to the Silent Spiral because they had discovered in a library that people who walked out of the Silent Spiral were more likely to survive."
"That's right—the libraries hadn't been destroyed yet. My sister and I kept that firmly in mind and followed them toward the Silent Spiral. We didn't lack food; in the city ruins along the way, unexpired provisions were easy to come by. But when we finally reached the Silent Spiral after sixty-seven days, only eight of us remained. Everyone else had perished in the Strangling Green of the night."
"After emerging from the Silent Spiral, the eight of us roamed the wasteland together. Because we had walked out of the Silent Spiral, we called ourselves the Children of the Spiral."
"We discovered that many survivors still remained. The children living in underground cities didn't have to endure the Strangling Green, but so much from the old era had fallen into ruin, and they lived in torment down there—until our arrival."
"To lead them in rebuilding civilization on the surface, some Children of the Spiral stayed behind. Everflame, Justice, Freedom... the Children of the Spiral became the new kindling of civilization. They had the children place their faith in them so they could survive the Strangling Green of the night."
"In the end, only my sister and I were left. We continued wandering the earth, poring over records in libraries everywhere. Although most facilities had been destroyed by the Cataclysm, the identity verification system still remarkably functioned. Fortunately, our citizenship hadn't been wiped out by the Cataclysm, or we wouldn't have even been able to get inside."
"We wanted to uncover the truth behind the Cataclysm, but that was top-secret information from the old era. We could only vaguely deduce that it wasn't a natural disaster, but a man-made calamity. In the process, we also consulted records from other divine eras, discovering that even with the Divine Fire system in place, countless conflicts and disasters still occurred whenever divine eras shifted."
"We gradually realized that while individual consciousness can help a person expand their intellect and acquire skills, once civilization develops to a certain point, consciousness instead becomes our shackle. To minimize the internal friction during the changing of divine eras, sorcerers painstakingly engineered the Divine Fire system, yet it was still reduced to ruins in the Cataclysm."
"As long as self-awareness exists, there will be strife, disasters, accidents, and internal attrition. This is the tragedy of civilization, and it is our tragedy as well."
"We must transcend consciousness."
When Yaxiu opened his eyes, he saw a tiny golden thunder wolf perched on his shoulder. The flickering arcs of lightning caused him no harm whatsoever, draping over him like a coat of fur.
He had never expected that the Transcendence Cult's Transcendent Prison Grand Law was actually the most ancient, first-generation grand law!
However...
Yaxiu looked across the arena. The aloof, alluring Silver Lantern was likewise enveloped in blue electric arcs. The tiny thunder hamster had been stuffed into the valley between her breasts, and her hair danced wildly like squirming lightning snakes!
At the very moment he hosted the Transcendent Prison Grand Law, Silver Lantern had also successfully hosted the Resonant String Grand Law!
*Whoosh!*
With a resounding thunderclap, Yaxiu blurred into an afterimage and burst forward in an assault!
*Boom!*
The moment Yaxiu and Silver Lantern's arms clashed, countless golden and blue electric arcs detonated outward. The legendary-level shockwave alone was already more than the Transcendent believers could withstand!
Yet compared to the shockwave, what shattered the believers' worldview even more was the sight before their eyes—the Transcendent Prison Grand Law and the Resonant String Grand Law had actually started fighting each other!
Yaxiu let out a thunderous roar as a golden lightning horn sprouted from his head. As the sharp horn discharged violent electricity, golden arcs spilled over to flood the entire chamber!
Silver Lantern dropped onto all fours like a vixen, a tail of crackling lightning sprouting behind her. As the tail stiffened and bristled, blue lightning washed over the entire floor!
God-Hosting Second Form: Phantasm Species!
Not every grand law had a second form; it was a combat method synthesized by previous god-hosts to maximize the law's power, essentially a perfect walkthrough left behind by veteran players. As soon as Yaxiu and Silver Lantern took hold of their laws, they entered this second form right away, bypassing the learning phase entirely!
The moment Silver Lantern glanced toward the spectator stands, Yaxiu charged right in front of her, his palm slamming down like a lightning claw tearing through all creation!
No sorcery spirits needed, no miracles required—a god-host was an ultimate tactical weapon superior to all else, needing only to fight on pure instinct!
*Boom!*
*Boom!*
*Boom!*
Yaxiu, in his golden wolf form, fought with peerless ferocity, mauling like a savage beast. Every strike unleashed a tremendous thunderclap, setting off endless explosions wherever he went. Though Silver Lantern was driven back on the defensive, she moved with greater agility, her attacks swift and high-frequency, cutting as coldly and sharply as a scalpel!
Within a few breaths, the two golden and blue figures flashed across the arena in a relentless frenzy, tangling like lovers one moment and tearing like wild beasts the next! Until, with a sharp *whoosh*, the blue shadow was launched upward like a cannonball, punching straight through two ceilings to reach the ninety-eighth floor!
Then, with an explosive boom of thunder, the golden figure pursued!
When Yaxiu caught up, he found that Silver Lantern was taking advantage of the opening to flee upward, so he hounded her all the way up.
Upon reaching the ninetieth floor, Yaxiu felt himself pass through an invisible boundary line, and saw that Silver Lantern had also come to a halt on this level.
The entire space's walls were covered in deep red latticework, resembling both a blood-red warning and a hunter's net.
"Satisfied now?"
Weise looked at him, her tail sweeping back and forth. "Every ten floors here has a miracle cage designed for legends. It permits entry but forbids exit; even a god-host can hardly break it. Once the Transcendence Cult activates it, it's very difficult to disarm."
"Your gamble paid off," she said. "Because of you, I had to launch my plan on your terms."
The moment she saw Yaxiu leap down, Weise knew she had lost.
Once Yaxiu seized the Transcendent Prison Grand Law, the Transcendence Cult would immediately seal away the Resonant String Grand Law, and Yaxiu was certainly not kind-hearted enough to help her smash the glass case containing it.
After witnessing someone actually steal a grand law, the Transcendence Cult would never unlock the cases during worship services again. She wouldn't have another chance!
In other words, she had to either give up entirely or act in lockstep with Yaxiu!
Yet she could not give up the Resonant String Grand Law—in her plans, these two ancient grand laws of the Transcendence Cult were mandatory! Unlike other grand laws, they held the key that led to the end!
Without these two grand laws, her plan couldn't even begin!
And Weise's reaction had been entirely within Yaxiu's calculations.
His time adventuring alongside Igola and Harvey hadn't been wasted. He might not have learned how to commit a perfect crime yet, but he certainly knew how to ruin one.
"Nothing we could do; we're leaving tomorrow, so we couldn't just walk away empty-handed," Yaxiu grinned. "Someone was going to steal it anyway. Why couldn't it be us?"
"You never intended to take the grand law for yourself." Weise stroked her tail, her voice flat. "If I hadn't shown up, you probably would have taken your companions and fled to the ground floor, held out against the Transcendence Cult until daybreak, returned the grand law to them, and then run off... After all, the Transcendence Cult can't chase you outside; their faith chains them inside this building."
"That way, having learned their lesson, the Transcendence Cult would have tightened their guard, leaving me with no opportunity at all."
"I didn't expect you to understand me so well," Yaxiu remarked in surprise. "I thought only Igola could read my mind."
"I also know you want to play the hero." A sneer surfaced on Weise's face. "Several times just now, I tried to expand the battlefield into the spectator stands, only to be forced right back down by you... Does protecting the weak bring you that much moral pleasure? Too bad the Transcendence Cult won't view you as a hero. To them, both you and I are merely thieves trying to steal their grand laws. Even if you claim you did it to stop me, it won't matter; they'll simply believe they were capable of stopping me themselves—like with this cage."
"Your explanations will only be treated as excuses for attempted theft. Your good deeds will only be taken as brazen villainy. That's not how one becomes a hero. To be a hero, one must be craftier than the wicked and more ruthless than evil... There has never been such a thing as a moral hero, only a capable hero. You must find a way to make people believe in your capability before they will acknowledge your morality."
"You had the chance to win the Transcendence Cult's friendship and become an honored guest of the Harp Sun Alliance. Unfortunately, from this moment on, you are just like me—a villain trying to steal a grand law. Those cults won't risk listening to your explanations. Your talent will no longer earn their admiration; it will only be regarded as the root of disaster."
Toward the end, Weise could no longer contain her fury. Electric arcs flared across her body, and her tail snapped straight. She had clearly paved the road for Yaxiu, practically feeding him from a spoon, yet Yaxiu had flipped the table and flatly refused to take a single bite!
He had even nearly smashed her own bowl in the process!
Yet how was this any different from her original plan?!
Yaxiu had hosted a grand law, she had hosted a grand law, and the two of them were fighting... In the end, wasn't the outcome identical?!
*Yaxiu, do you have any idea what you've thrown away?!*
*Boom!*
Facing Yaxiu's charge, Weise instantly caught his wrists. The two locked in a test of raw strength, arcs of electricity skimming across the red net of the cage and sending ripples through the air.
Weise sneered, "Regretting it now? Trying to hit me to vent your anger?"
"No, I just figured there was no way you'd go down without a fight," Yaxiu replied. "Until I knock your threat level down to that of a Lalafell, I won't feel at ease."
*Thud! Thud! Thud!*
As a thunderous symphony erupted, the two exchanged offensive and defensive positions several times in mere seconds, tangling and grappling on the floor. Weise finally managed to gain the upper hand, pinning him down from above as she mocked, "Does being an unsung hero really give you that much pleasure?!"
"I'm not a Crow-Slayer; I never wanted to be any sort of hero, nor am I kind-hearted enough to go around saving strangers, much less expect applause from them," Yaxiu ground out through clenched teeth. "I just can't stand seeing a coward swaggering around in front of me."
"Haven't you ever cursed a woman before? You can curse harder than that; it's not like I haven't heard it all," Weise sneered. "I'm sick of Senluo's vulgarities. Can't you come up with something interesting?"
"Do you enjoy having everyone treat you like a monster?"
Weise didn't answer. She simply exerted force with both hands and feet, intent on snapping his neck.
"Silver Lantern Saintess, Four Pillar Bishop, the Grand Law Scourge... On one hand, you try to conceal your real name and face, yet on the other, you flaunt your presence with utter arrogance. Why are you so contradictory?"
Yaxiu sneered. "'Reality is a fleeting illusion; the Void Realm is an eternal future.' Maybe you truly believe the second half, but certainly not the first. I heard from a Crow-Slayer that you spout all sorts of wicked nonsense, claiming that killing people is just setting them free sooner. If you really believed the first half, why would you bother trying to justify your actions?"
"Every now and then, I want to win over companions too," Weise said. "It's all the same anyway. Everyone will awaken in the Void Realm. Reality is merely a passing illusion, a cage, a game."
"Oh, is that so?" Yaxiu countered. "Even if reality truly is a game, it's one you've been addicted to all this time. You don't use that first half to persuade others—you use it to persuade yourself, so you can do whatever evil you want with a clean conscience."
"Subconsciously, you crave more attention, higher renown, greater titles... You clearly care very much about everything in this illusion. I don't know what information you stumbled upon that convinced you reality is beyond saving, but you haven't made the slightest effort to rescue what you care about. All you do is think about hiding away in the Void Realm."
"The Transcendent believers think shedding consciousness will bring evolution, and you think returning to the Void Realm will bring freedom. The two of you aren't different at all. But at least the Transcendent believers work hard to realize their ideal. What about you? You wrap your vile deeds in hollow slogans, rampaging across this land without restraint, just waiting for death so everything resets to zero!"
"As a villain, you have zero class—you can't even compare to the two guys at my side. As a cultist, your ideals don't even match up to the Four Pillar Cult; at least they admit they just want boundless indulgence."
"What... do... you... know?!"
Lightning coiled around Weise, and her strength actually surged, as if determined to crush Yaxiu to death right there. Catching an opening, Yaxiu swung his arm in a savage strike. His lightning claws slapped her hard against the wall. He rose to his feet and said, "I have no interest in the psychological journey of a coward."
*Phoo.*
Weise exhaled a breath of electric sparks. Touching her cheek, she quickly regained her composure. "What point is there in talking to someone as hollow and devoid of ideals as you?"
"I might not have any ideals worth bragging about, but..."
Golden arcs of lightning nearly flooded the entire room. Yaxiu charged forward as he spoke. Though his pace seemed slightly slow, Weise dared not underestimate him in the least. Lightning coiled around both her hands as she met him head-on!
*Snap.*
When Weise launched her high-speed thrust, Yaxiu abruptly popped like a bubble, dissolving into thin smoke. The familiar sight allowed Weise to recognize it instantly—the Substitute sorcery spirit!
*Wait, why can the Substitute speak?! No, the real problem is—*
Amid the golden lightning filling the space, a figure resembling a golden wolf burst forth. Seizing the momentary recovery window following Weise's strike, lightning claws slammed mercilessly against her chest, a pillar-like blast of thunder nearly piercing through her body!
"...Seeing a wicked woman like you succeed hurts worse than failing myself!"
With Yaxiu's thunderous blow, Weise was blasted backward like a cannonball. The blood-red net of the cage warped violently under the impact, and the blue lightning wrapped around her shattered and dispersed with a tremendous roar!
Chapter 555