Chapter 1478: The Lights Soon Extinguish
Half a month. Once the plan stalls or is abandoned, the window closes forever.
Will the people on the floating island hold the course without me?
And the demons — with Valkries’s connection gone, would the already-fragile agreement with Hackzord simply come apart?
Not to mention the Sky-sea Realm above Mist Island, and the problem of actually entering the Bottomless Land.
Damn it. If only I could get word out.
Roland’s mind turned the problem over, searching for any angle he hadn’t tried. Nothing came. Unlike every danger he had faced before, defeating the Oracle standing in front of him would not reverse this. The problem was not here in this room.
He already knew this was not something one person could solve alone.
He let the silence hold a moment, then spoke.
“I don’t understand.”
Another beat.
“At the beginning, all of you treated me as a destroyer who had to be eliminated — because the Dream World threatens God’s established rules, threatens to undo millions of years of accumulated development. And yet now, for the sake of one extraordinary circumstance, you’re helping me reach the Divine Domain. Was none of what came before worth anything?
“There’s an even more laughable contradiction. If God can reduce the Dream World to nothing at any moment, why didn’t He do it at the start? Don’t tell me it’s out of compassion.” The anger climbed into his voice without effort. “Countless races have slaughtered one another in the name of the Divine Will, to the point of extinction. What remains is weathered bone and ruins. What kind of accumulated development is that?
“And you — Epsilon. If you’re going to betray God, why not go all the way? Lan did it to escape her constraints. What about you? If you want an answer, I’ll bring you to the Divine Domain myself. When we arrive, ask God every question you have.
“Strange words and inexplicable actions — is this what it means to be an Oracle? To be God? You can’t even hold up against mortals. At the very least, mortals know what they want.”
Epsilon showed no anger.
She was not like the previous Oracles — those who turned brittle and defensive the moment God was named. If anything, hearing Roland’s outburst, she looked as though she recognized something in it.
She crossed to him. Stopped one body’s length away.
“That you ask these questions means you’re one step from the answer.”
The distance between them was not safe — not for either of them — but Roland made no move to widen it.
“If you don’t take that final step, the gap between where you stand and the answer will be the same as infinite.” She met his eyes. “The greatness of God is measured by what He has done, not by how many understand it. And the distance between civilizations makes comprehension genuinely difficult — so your inability to understand is no surprise.
“I am also different from Lan. I have never betrayed God Almighty. Remember that.
“Finally — if you are ready, you may take that step now.”
She reached out slowly and placed his arm against her chest.
“What are you doing?” He pulled back instinctively.
“Retrieve the astrolabe.” Her voice remained exactly level, as if they were discussing the weather. “And allow the Dream World and the Divine Domain to intersect at last. You know this process. The Fallen Evils and the Erosion bodies were my creation, their cores all tightly bound together. When you absorb the astrolabe, that magic power will be pulled into your world. A surge of that magnitude will be enough to cause the Dream World to expand one final time and complete what’s needed. When it does — the intersecting Realm of Mind will become the new Erosion. The Dream World, expanding into the Divine Domain. And you will face God.”
“Wait.” He stared at her. “Oracles live because of this store of magic power. Without the astrolabe—”
“I will die.” Epsilon said it simply. “Though ‘death,’ in the sense you mean, applies only to this body. As part of God — as long as He is not destroyed — we exist in some form indefinitely. What disappears is the entity named Epsilon.”
“Even so — will you hear the answer?”
“No.” A pause. “But asking it is enough.”
She closed her fingers, drove her palm into her own chest, and tore free a blazing blue mass of star jade.
Blood sprayed across the platform. Some of it reached Roland’s face, warm and immediate.
“Cough… Take it and enter the Divine Domain. Everything you want to know… cough… is there.”
“You—” Roland was stunned motionless. He had not expected this. But with it done, hesitation was meaningless. If Epsilon was right — if the barrier had already altered the Dream World’s time flow — waiting for her to die naturally and the barrier to lift would cost half a month of real time.
The only thing left was to trust everyone on the floating island.
He took a breath and reached for the astrolabe.
The blue light blazed upward, burning the last of itself. In that blinding radiance he looked to Epsilon — blood at the corners of her lips, her breath going shallow.
“One last question: do you believe the world’s destruction is inevitable?”
“Yes…” Her voice was nearly gone. “Unless you can… defeat God Almighty. But defeating God is impossible. It is the predestined ending from the very beginning.”
“But you still changed your decision!”
“All of you… have worked so long, so hard… you shouldn’t vanish without knowing why.” She coughed again, and barely held a smile. “To take that final step at all… is praiseworthy.” Another breath, thinner. “Since destruction is the ending… and was always going to be… why take any more pointless actions against it?”
“That isn’t what you actually believe.” Roland held her gaze, word by word. “Lan wanted to escape her constraints. You want an answer. I don’t know what constrained her, and I don’t know what question you would ask God. But I know one thing — your hope changed, didn’t it? Because you both have the same look in your eyes—”
“Sorry…” Epsilon closed her eyes. The same faint curve at the lips. “That is the second question.”
The blue light reached its peak. Her mouth moved as though she might still say something — and then the radiance devoured the room, and the words, and the woman, and everything else.
Chapter 1478 - The Lights Soon Extinguish
Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations
Half a month… It means that once the plan is paused or canceled,we would forever miss the deadline.
Will the people on the floating island really persist on even without me?
Also, what should be done on the demons’ side? With Valkries’s connection gone, would the fragile agreement with Sky Lord shatter as a result?
Not to mention the Sky-sea Realm above Mist Island and the problem of actually entering the Bottomless Land.
Darn it. If only I can pass these information out! Roland’s mind raced, attempting to find a way to overcome the predicament, but he failed to come up with any workable plans despite a prolonged period of thinking. Unlike any of the previous dangers he faced, he was unable to reverse the situation even if he were to destroy the Oracle before him.
Roland already could sense that this was not a matter that could be solved by a single person alone.
“I… don’t understand.”
He said after a long period of silence, “In the beginning, all of you treated me as a destroyer that needed to be eliminated because the Dream World threatens the rules set by God, to the exaggerated point of destroying millions of years of accumulated development. Yet, for just one instance of abnormality, you are helping me enter the Divine Domain. Were all the developments from before suddenly worth nothing?
“That’s not the only laughable point. Since God can turn the Dream World to nothingness at any time, why didn’t He do so in the beginning? Don’t tell me that He holds compassion!” The more Roland spoke, the angrier he became as his voice kept rising. “Countless races have killed each other in the name of the Divine Will, to the point of extinction. Apart from weathered bones and ruins, nothing is left. What kind of accumulated development is this!?
“As for you—Epsilon. Since you plan on betraying God, why not go all the way? Lan did it to escape her shackles, but what about you? If you only wish to receive an answer, I don’t mind bringing one more person to the Divine Domain. When the time comes, you can ask God as many questions as you want!
“Saying baffling words and doing incredulous acts, is this the unique characteristic of those who crack themselves up to be Oracles and God? You can’t even compare to mortals! At the very least, mortals know what they want clearly!”
However, Epsilon did not show any signs of anger.
She was not like the past Oracles, turning extremely sensitive and resistant when it involved problems with God. She even revealed a look of understanding after hearing what Roland said.
The Oracle walked in front of Roland, the gap closing to the point of being just a body’s length away.
“For you to ask these questions proves that you are just one step away from the answer.”
The distance couldn’t be considered safe for both Epsilon and Roland, but the latter apparently didn’t take it to heart.
“However, if you do not take that last step, that distance would be no different from an infinite one.” She looked up at Roland. “The greatness of God depends on what He has done, and not how many people know of it. Besides, the differences in civilizations will result in views and knowledge being completely different. Therefore, it’s understandable that you are unable
to comprehend. In addition, I’m different from Lan. I’ve never betrayed God Almighty. Please remember that.
“Finally, if you are already prepared, you can take that step now—” With that said, Epsilon slowly reached out her hand to grab Roland’s arm, placing it on her chest.
“What are you doing?” Roland reflexively retracted his hand.
“Isn’t it obvious? Retrieve the astrolabe, and finally allow the Dream World and the Divine Domain to intersect. You should be very familiar with this process,” Epsilon said calmly, as though it had nothing to do with her. “The Fallen Evils and Erosion bodies were my creation, and the cores are tightly connected together. Once you absorb the astrolabe, their magic powers will be pulled into that world. Such massive powers will be enough to make the Dream World expand again to complete the final step. When the time comes, the intersecting Realm of Mind will become the new Erosion, but this time, it’s the Dream World invading the Divine Domain, and you—will face God.”
“Wait.” Roland stared at her in astonishment. “Don’t Oracles live because of this blob of magic power? Without the astrolabe—”
“I’ll die.” Epsilon smiled. “But that’s only limited to the concept of death you have. As a part of God, as long as He isn’t destroyed, we will exist forever. What disappears is the body named Epsilon.”
“Even so, will you be able to hear the answer?”
“No… asking it is sufficient.”
With that said, she closed up her fingers and stabbed her palm into her chest before pulling out a dazzling blue blob of star jade!
Fresh blood splattered, some even landing on Roland’s face.
“Cough… Take it and enter the Divine Domain. Everything you want to know… Cough… can be found there.”
“You…” Roland was stunned. He never expected such a sudden turn of events, but with it already done, any hesitation was meaningless. If Epsilon was right, at the moment the barrier was erected, the Dream World’s flow of time had far exceeded that of reality. Even if he waited for the Oracle to die and remove the barrier, it would be half a month later.
The only thing he could do was trust in everyone on the floating island.
With this in mind, Roland took a deep breath and grabbed the astrolabe.
The blue light grew brighter as though it was burning its last ounce of energy. As though stimulated, the heat wave inside surged out ferociously, and in that blinding radiance, he looked towards the Oracle who had blood seeping down the corners of her lips.
“I wish to ask you one last question—do you think the destruction of the world is inevitable?”
“Yes… Unless you can… defeat God Almighty.” Epsilon’s voice was already drifting away. “But it’s impossible to defeat God. That is… a predestined ending from the very beginning.”
“But you still changed your original decision!”
“All of you… have worked hard for so long, so you shouldn’t vanish without knowing why… Being able to take that final step… is praiseworthy itself.” Epsilon coughed out another mouthful of blood and barely forced a smile. “Since destruction is the end… and is destined, why should I… take any more pointless actions?”
“That’s not what you really think.” Roland glared at her, enunciating each and every word. “Lan wished to escape her restraints, and you wish to seek the answer. I do not know what was restraining her, nor do I know what questions you would like to ask God, but there is one thing I’m sure of, your hopes changed, isn’t it!? It’s because both of you have the same look in your eyes—”
“Sorry… That is the second question…” Epsilon closed her eyes with a smile, and when the blue brilliance reached an extremum, she slightly opened her mouth, as though she was about to say something. But before Roland could take it in carefully, the blinding light had devoured everything.