Chapter 247

"Stop talking nonsense. How could I possibly be your mother…"

She was about to retort, but after scanning [Papiyas] carefully, she swallowed the rest of her sentence. Her previously indifferent expression shifted into a trace of shock and doubt—even carrying a hint of undisguisable fear.

"What?" Seeing Sasa's look of genuine fear, Qi Xing frowned as well. "You don't actually have an illegitimate child, do you?"

—In fact, Qi Xing knew that this so-called "mother" likely wasn't a title derived from a direct blood relationship.

It was well known that the [Peacock Disciples] faction claimed Sasa was the archetype for all peacock gods in the world. This included the Peacock Angel, Mahamayuri, Queen Hera, the evil god Ahriman… and many others, all of which originated from her, Sasa.

Mahamayuri, Papiyas, mother…

…Could it be that the mythological archetype Papiyas summoned using the [silver coin] was none other than the Tathagata? And thus, Sasa, who held the identity of the Buddha-Mother Mahamayuri, had become Papiyas's "mother"?

—This was Qi Xing's first guess, but upon closer reflection, it didn't seem quite right. It seemed like a clever explanation, but not the Truth.

Demon Lords are egocentric, Demon Lords are arrogant, and they are often just as arrogant as Sasa.

Although they could extract mythological archetypes from the [Dream of All Living Beings] to construct their own divine power operational modes, would a Demon Lord really "admit" to being those gods and Buddhas from mythology and religion?

Likely not, because Demon Lords are very arrogant, more arrogant than simply role-playing existing gods—fully formed [Silver Coin Messengers] all have their own obsessions and would not allow themselves to dance in shackles of mythological archetypes. They don't just play existing gods; they want to transcend established roles and become the gods that satisfy their own desires.

Just like Sasa; her goal isn't just to be God, but to create superhumans superior to the humans God created.

In this light, how could [Papiyas] go about imitating the Tathagata, and even treat Sasa as her mother because of it?

The Papiyas before them seemed unfathomably deep.

She was not an imitator.

Because Qi Xing still remembered that she had said at the previous interview that the thing she hated most was— "Playing roles that others try to make me play."

—She had said before: "From the moment I was born—perhaps even before I was born—there have always been people setting up the script for my life. But that is not the 'me' I want to be."

Established roles? A pre-written script?

Finally having a vague guess about something, Qi Xing immediately asked: "Sasa, ever since you lost your divine power, is there… any other pre-written, fixed script in this universe that is still running automatically?"

"Of course there is! Otherwise, how could this world develop normally and not have completely exploded yet!"

Sasa answered with her mouth, but her eyes never once looked at Qi Xing—she was staring fixedly at [Papiyas], her expression rarely tense.

"…But there are some contingency plans that, without my personal operation, should be impossible to activate…"

Fine.

Although Sasa wouldn't admit it, hearing this, and connecting it to what [Papiyas] had said earlier, along with the abilities she had demonstrated—Qi Xing already had a thirty-percent answer in his heart.

…If his guess was correct, then Qi Xing was currently facing the most dangerous enemy of his life.

An absolute powerhouse who could not be taken lightly in the slightest.

Even in this day and age, in modern literary works where slaughtering gods and demons is common, she was at least worthy of being a late-game boss.

"Heh, [Master Leipu], I didn't expect you to be so cautious. I thought you had already deduced my true identity."

Perceiving Qi Xing's thoughts, Papiyas laughed.

"Or is your knowledge of religion even shallower than I imagined?"

Her gaze swept back and forth between Qi Xing and the few people behind him, her tone languid:

"You don't want to unleash your full power to fight me here, because—you know very well that the people behind you will all die."

"As for me, I actually don't want to fight you with full force here either—after all, this is an opportunity to reach the moon that I've worked so hard to get."

"Since it's hard to control the scale of battle here, [Master Leipu], why don't we just take a step back?"

"Otherwise, when my two disciples return, perhaps you can fight your way out with Mom's help; but the women behind you will definitely lose their lives, okay?"

The Demon Lord's teasing, and the killing intent revealed within that teasing, was truly infuriating. However, she wasn't wrong.

Xue Ning, despite having suffered a setback under Papiyas, was after all a sect leader and an immortal transcendent. Qi Xing believed she still had ways to survive this battle.

But behind Qi Xing were Vike and Boudica, two people who couldn't even withstand a casual strike from a Demon Lord.

Without the combat power of a transcendent, one didn't even have the qualifications to be a sidekick or support. The battlefield now was truly cruel.

Just that,

"Huh? Papiyas, didn't you know?" Qi Xing raised his eyebrows in feigned surprise,

"[Master Leipu] never compromises with criminals, especially not with terrorists who use hostages as leverage."

His smile vanished in an instant, replaced by a blade-like coldness.

"You dare threaten me? I'll blow the entire Oxford into the Atlantic Ocean right now. You can fly to the moon yourself, idiot."

Before the words had even faded, Qi Xing actually raised his fist, gathering power like thunder, ready to smash it into the ground!

With his strength, blowing up a city with one punch was absolutely doable, it was effortless!

This time, it was finally Papiyas's turn to furrow her brows, her smile fading slightly.

"Fine, you win, [Master Leipu]."

"At a time when even the age of [Dharma Ending] is about to be destroyed, someone who can threaten the Child of God is truly a Demon Lord worthy of the name."

Before she finished speaking, she had already raised her hand to grab the silver helmet and placed it decisively on her head.

How could Qi Xing let her succeed? With a lift of his fingertip, an incomparably sharp sword aura shot out like a stream of light—however, Papiyas's movements were not disordered in the slightest. With her left hand putting on the helmet, her right hand flipped and summoned the divine power of [Agni]. Flames and sword aura collided violently in the air, scattering into fragments of light.

"Next time, let's go play on the moon! Hahahaha!"

Accompanied by crisp and arrogant laughter, she initiated the astral projection ritual. Her body immediately lost support, fell to the ground, and lost all signs of life.

This scene seemed quite inexplicable, but Qi Xing clicked his tongue, seeing at a glance that this physical body was just a shell she had discarded.

Papiyas's soul, along with the spirit of the Roman Emperor Elagabalus she had summoned, had already turned into an untraceable ray of light, rushing out of the atmosphere at the speed of light, heading straight for the bright white moon.

The destination was none other than the [Lunar Sanctuary], built by the ancient Demon Lord of the [Magis Sect], which could directly connect to the [Dream of All Living Beings].

"…Sasa, why didn't you sense the [silver coin] on Papiyas?" After a brief silence, Qi Xing suddenly spoke.

"I don't know… I have absolutely no clue." Sasa swallowed, her voice sounding somewhat at a loss. "That guy doesn't seem like a human at all…"

Sigh, it's a coincidence, Qi Xing had the same feeling.

Papiyas didn't seem like a human at all. Whether it was her aura, or the fact that she seemed to be calling upon various divine powers without using a [silver coin], it didn't feel like a human, or even a [Silver Coin Messenger].

What did she seem more like? She seemed like something Qi Xing had already seen twice and fought twice; something Sasa already had a vague answer for in her heart, but was hesitant to say out loud.

Something that, even though Sasa had been defeated and suppressed by Christ two thousand years ago, would still continue to execute what Sasa had originally planned according to the original "design."

"Sasa, tell the Truth." Looking up at the full moon in the sky, Qi Xing asked again, "Is this Papiyas… a Giant Spirit?"

Sasa was speechless.

Xue Ning, who was behind them, heard this and couldn't help but be shocked: "A Giant Spirit? —But [Master Leipu], Giant Spirits don't have self-awareness, nor do they have souls!"

"But only a Giant Spirit would still be trapped by the established script left behind by that foolish creator Sasa." Qi Xing shook his head. "Do you think, if a Giant Spirit gained self-awareness—no matter how she got it—how would she view our foolish creator?"

Now it was Xue Ning's turn to be speechless.

"Xue Ning, go contact the higher-ups of the [Hermes Society], as high up as you can reach." Glancing at the five corpses of the academy presidents killed by Papiyas, Qi Xing finally sighed. "I know you [Peacock Disciples] have been researching methods to control Giant Spirits for nearly a thousand years, and perhaps you think a single Giant Spirit can't stir up much trouble—but I feel that this Papiyas is at least much more troublesome than [Mahamayuri]."

And Mahamayuri had already been troublesome enough to almost format the entire Northeast Asia.

If this Papiyas was truly a Giant Spirit as Qi Xing said, which deity was she exactly?

Possessing immunity to the four great elements, able to freely command and summon the divine power of all Dharma-protecting gods and Buddhas, and even able to subdue the three demons as her attendants.

Such obvious attributes… Qi Xing was very knowledgeable about Eastern religions, and Xue Ning was an immortal great mage. Could they really not guess it?

It was just that even Qi Xing was unwilling to blurt it out immediately.

"Xue Ning, what are your thoughts on the word 'Dharma Ending' she mentioned at the end?" Not answering Xue Ning's question directly, Qi Xing asked instead.

Xue Ning clearly didn't want to answer this question, but she still spoke honestly: "…From the perspective of Buddhist doctrine, after Sakyamuni Nirvana, the human world goes through three stages—the True Dharma, the Semblance Dharma, and the Dharma Ending. During the True Dharma period, Buddhism flourishes, and practitioners can attain enlightenment; during the Semblance Dharma period, the doctrine still exists, but practitioners become fewer, and results are sparse; during the Dharma Ending period… Buddhism declines, leaving only an empty shell. Monks behave improperly, the teaching style is corrupted, and although the world knows the name of Buddha, they do not see true practice or enlightenment."

"That is an era of chaos and calamity for Buddhism." She paused, her expression becoming increasingly sorrowful.

"The concept of [Dharma Ending] was later combined with Buddhist eschatology—since the Dharma is coming to an end, a new Buddha will appear to save the world, which is the Savior… the Future Buddha."

"Dharma Ending is the end, but also the darkness before welcoming the new Buddha."

If the [Dharma Ending] mentioned by Papiyas meant this, then…

If this was the correct answer, then…

"…Then why would this Giant Spirit call herself 'Papiyas' and attempt to invade the [Lunar Sanctuary]?"

No one answered this question. And the only Loli Evil God who might have been able to answer it, Qi Xing had never seen her look so at a loss before.

Soon, the higher-ups of the [Hermes Society] received a warning from [Count Saint-Germain] and [Master Leipu]: A Demon Lord has rushed into your [Lunar Sanctuary]! Quickly open a passage and let us in to catch the thief!

Unfortunately, as expected, the [Society]'s reply was full of the confidence and arrogance peculiar to ancient powers: "No need for outsiders to worry. Since the [Lunar Sanctuary] was built, the [Society]'s Ascended Masters of the past millennium have all resided within."

"If the Demon Lord doesn't come, that's fine, but if she dares to step into our sanctuary—she will surely be buried under the wisdom and magic power of the Ascended Masters."

Wow, such confidence! Do your founders know you're so confident against a Demon Lord? Or is this just the style of the first-born Demon Lord of the [Magis Sect]?

For a moment, Qi Xing was almost laughed to anger: "I'm tempted to ignore this matter and just watch how they die next."

"Don't be so willful, Qi Xing." Elaine and Lin and the others had flown thousands of miles to support them by now. Along the way, Elaine had called everyone she could, but clearly not many people could help them handle this situation immediately. She looked just as troubled as Qi Xing.

"An ancient Demon Lord has invaded a spiritual facility that can connect directly to the [Dream of All Living Beings]; this is certainly not a small matter. What she does next will likely affect all of humanity."

Qi Xing certainly understood—if a Giant Spirit could wipe out the entire Northeast Asia in Northeast Japan, then what could a Giant Spirit with the power of a Demon Lord do after entering such a facility? Elaine didn't even dare to think about it.

But Qi Xing couldn't just rush to the moon in a panic. Although the [Demon of Anger] and [Demon of Delusion] had been repelled, their whereabouts were unknown. In case the two were already lying in wait on the moon, no matter how strong Qi Xing was alone, it would be impossible to suppress three Demon Lords at once.

Thirty minutes after Papiyas fled to the [Lunar Sanctuary], the New Humans doctor brought by Xue Ning was responsible for examining the shell body Papiyas had left behind.

However, as soon as he touched this shell, the doctor announced in surprise: "Count, this person is male."

"A man?" Xue Ning was stunned. "But her mannerisms and dress…"

"At least physiologically, he is indeed male." The doctor replied, "You also know that on the island, we don't care about that psychological gender stuff."

Are cross-dressers very strange to Xue Ning? But thinking back, Qi Xing recalled that there didn't seem to be any cross-dressers on Labyrinth Island.

But what did that have to do with Qi Xing? "That's not important. Anyway, I didn't plan to █ him. Is there any more information?"

…More information came very quickly.