Chapter 1042 - 18: The Crucial Point

Chapter 1042: Chapter 18: The Crucial Point

In the beginning.

There was not yet earth, nor sea, nor air.

When all things were still enfolded within darkness.

There existed a Power named "Orlog (奥尔劳格)".

It was invisible, of unknown origin, and yet it was. Unspeakable and yet ready to be interpreted at will, known by all things and yet Forever impossible to be understood.

Lord of all things, the eternal law of the cosmos, the fate without beginning or end, the hidden first cause... transcending all things and yet abiding within all things, every event and every thing contains a fragment of It. All the singable and lamentable tales of the Nine Realms, even the Twilight of the Gods, are manifestations of Its will.

Though It does not participate in any story, every story is Its will.

It has done nothing, yet from Its unconscious operation everything flows forth, symbolizing birth and annihilation, the alpha and the omega of all.

————

The fierce dispute did not proceed in the ordinary sense of voices.

Rather, it was an exchange of "spirits", the thought-language of the great Spirit Bodies, the unformed fluctuations of the wavelength of will.

In the void one could feel a vast transmission of information; they collided ceaselessly, influencing one another—this was the very embodiment of the Gods crossing swords with tongues, of sharp and vehement words. Language itself was Power, Word Spirit was radiance; as the source of all mysteries, the undying Gods naturally manifested all this yet more clearly.

According to common reason, only sages of extreme wisdom, through long years of study and devoted research, could hope to grasp the Secret Technique hidden within the Word Spirit...

But that is the limitation of mortals and mortal things. As beings born sacred, far older than humankind, far more wise, far more mighty, and moreover fundamentally unfathomable, they knew no such shackles. For the Secret Technique of Word Spirit, to the Divine Spirits, is akin to instinct—an extension of thought, needing no deliberate acquisition.

And the Gods’ communication itself was the full embodiment of Word Spirit’s Secret Technique.

Beyond the reach of human intellect: undying, holy, wise—thus it was.

Therefore, the more intense the exchange among the Gods, the more violent the collision upon the plane of information. The Undying Domain was filled with an invisible tempest, a hurricane sweeping across many mythic Domains, setting all things in restless upheaval, without sleep or rest.

In but an instant of thought, the collisions of this brainstorm had already interchanged countless times.

From the very first words that raised the topic, the debate had leapt straight into a white-hot stage.

...

"Flee! Flee as far away as possible! As long as we leave this world!"

"We cannot take the risk—once It awakens, It will surely annihilate all..."

"Enough! You are Gods! Why do you think only of escape? We have already joined our names upon the new covenant; we should fulfill the vow we swore, support the covenant’s executor, and launch this all-out assault..."

...

All manner of differing opinions, the clash of Divinity and humanity, in this instant of birth and death, within each insistent Divine Spirit, were experienced to the utmost.

Such a violent storm of thought seemed as though it would roar on Forever without end.

Until a wise female voice rang out coldly—

"Stay sober! What Gods or not Gods, it is utterly meaningless... Before that Existence, we, these petty Gods, are but mortal things!"

"..."

"..."

Perhaps it was that last cold sentence that choked every Divine will into silence.

Thus the void in this unseen beyond fell for a brief moment into a stillness like death.

It must be said, this wise female voice struck with precise and piercing accuracy, pointing out the critical crux—one that both the faction of flight and the faction of resistance felt as their deepest despair and helplessness.

Indeed, before that Existence—

Petty Gods are but petty things; they are just as fragile, just as easily perished, and just as... tiny.

To that colossal Monster coiled along the timeline, growing in both directions, to that being who can wander time and space at will and rewrite causality, any conjecture is not excessive.

So it is: some matters are more terrifying than imagined, and at times, half-knowledge is more tragic than sheer ignorance... Because information is unequal, the Gods cannot grasp the entirety of this affair, nor do they know that this is a Monster, suddenly flying in from another universe, another time axis, now undergoing ascension.

Especially when the worldline itself shifts, and the details of destiny and causality are replaced accordingly.

All of this appears abrupt, yet can still be traced to faint marks within myth and history, as though, long long ago, foreshadowing had already been laid, pointing toward a truth far more ancient.

Thus even the Divine Spirits were struck with boundless astonishment. Just as Erica’s recent stupefaction and dread, the Gods of this world likewise trembled with fear and unease... Monotheism, Creator, Taiyi, God, All-Powerful God—how could such things possibly appear?

—Was it not that before myth arose, the Divine Spirits already existed?

—Was it not said that myth was merely a later-born rite, a tale passed down mouth to mouth, and the Divine Spirits simply entered into those stories, choosing the roles they would play?

Could it be that even what the Gods themselves possess is no more than scraps and scales of creation, while the true history is hidden instead in those myths that seem the most absurd, the most nonsensical? That those myths, which even the Gods mock as utterly unrealistic, are in fact the authentic Genesis?

Whatever the case may be, the Gods cannot ascertain what truly transpired, and can only, from the signs, information, and clues at hand, cast their varied conjectures.

From the initial denial and dismissiveness, to the later anger and suspicion, and then to the unspeakable spread of fear, the silent, wordless resistance... until now, forced into a desperate corner with no suspense left, they too have basically come to believe that the consciousness sleeping at the end of time may truly be the Creator.

This belief is the embodiment of a helpless and feeble concession, and it also means that the Divine Spirits have clearly realized just how vast and unbridgeable the gap between the two sides truly is.

"What else can we lose?"

After a moment of silence, words finally sounded again: "The Creator has destroyed all possibilities. Those parallel possibilities have all disappeared, the timelines are slowly converging, and all are heading toward the same future..."

"This is already the final world line. Even if our Power is gathered together, do we truly have the confidence to face that existence?"

"..."

"..."

"...No!"

Facing this most direct question, the other voices fell silent for a while before a low reply came.

Within the Undying Domain, the Gods’ Divine Format is unique. Even if there are different interpretations in different worlds, the source is always the same. Just like the shadow of an object under light: from different angles it casts different outlines, but in the end, these differing projections always have a single common source.

In the once Multi-dimensional World, the Gods also manifested simultaneously in different world lines and parallel spaces. They might be suppressed and sealed in one world, while in another they stirred up tempests.

Just as the Power of Destiny’s existence was once scattered, now that the present world line has completely unified, the Gods’ Divine Format and Divinity have likewise fully gathered together, becoming more complete on the level of concept and spirituality...

And at the same time, the new Covenant Great Law has undergone a version update, altering the previous rules and framework, and has also gained a stronger reinforcement from the Power of Destiny...

The Gods, as in the ancient times, co-signed this new Covenant, and while lending out their own Power, they can also gain the empowerment of other kin, as well as the Power of heaven, earth, and the myriad stars. Even if it is not as exaggerated as the boost gained by the King of the End, it can indeed raise their Power to an unprecedented peak.

However...

It is still far too feeble...

Because the existence they must face is simply too vast and dreamlike—

Perhaps it is the Brahma of Indian Mythology, from whose dream all things are born; perhaps it is the formless Orlog in Northern European legend; perhaps it is the shapeless, formless philosophical concept Chronos of Ancient Greece; perhaps it is Taiyi, and also God... who can truly know what it is? In any case, it is the supreme Soul, the God above Gods...

"..."

"..."

This time, the deathly silence did not last long before being broken once more.

"At least carry out what the Covenant demands, and unleash for them that road-clearing strike..."

...

...

On the other side—

It was still no more than an instant in thought.

"It’s here!!"

Amilia’s eyes snapped open, her long hair flowing and shining with a blazing platinum radiance.

Holy Power surged with her breath and blood, rolling into a vast vortex that faintly affected the outer heavens, making the already violent storm become even more frenzied and savage. She looked toward the sky not far away, and saw the lightless, pitch-black world suddenly torn open!

As though a great Sun had abruptly descended, evaporating the sea’s surface!

As if hundreds and thousands of nuclear warheads had detonated at once, immeasurable rays, particles, and radiation in an instant tore through the darkness, illuminating everything as though it were broad daylight.

Boundless thunder and flame came crashing down, tens of millions of blades like sunlight piercing the curtain of night. This was a beyond-visual-range strike descending from the Persian Divine Domain, Arrows containing the Power of the Sun King Mithra! Tens of millions at once turned into a rain of Arrows, every Divine Power Arrow bearing unimaginable, terrifying heat!

This first wave of strikes nearly evaporated the trembling ocean, slicing away storm and sea surface alike; as for those Monsters, who knew how many perished!!

And this was merely the first wave, only a beginning.

The dense bombardment that followed came from all the various Divine Domains, imbued with mighty Divine Power of every attribute. Like an endless barrage, the majestic Divine Power shook sky and sea, making even the orbital craft sway and rock. Hiri’s expression changed slightly, and she hurried forward to seize the control stick, trying to steady it.

"It seems nothing has gone wrong; They have fulfilled the Covenant between us..."

The Princess of Glazed Pupil raised an eyebrow and let out a small breath of relief.

"Now’s the time; They will be here any moment. Let us move first!"

"According to Miss Mayuri’s interpretation, this black Sea of Life is the primordial origin-place, and it happens to accord precisely with the concept of the Milk Ocean in Hinduism... Though called a great sea of milk, the world and even the Gods themselves were nurtured and born from within the Milk Ocean; it is also the source of Creation."

"As the One reclining upon the ocean, Vishnu lies sleeping upon the body of the serpent Ananta, drifting upon the sea at the dawn of Creation. Each time a kalpa ends and the world is destroyed, He awakens and creates the world anew..."

"Therefore, this place must be the key—only by breaking through the far shore of the Milk Ocean can we behold the supreme sleeping Soul, the three-as-one Great Heaven."

...

(PS: The ending is giving me a headache, it’s vexing... Aaaah, this must be sequelae, right? Just like how I’m always drowsy, weak, and easily exhausted now—surely I’m being dragged down by the illness debuff (confirmed)... By the way, let me offer everyone an early New Year’s greeting (′д｀)...彡...彡)