Chapter 264

"Sasa said she didn't Fall from Heaven, just resigned. Is that true or false?"

"True."

True?!

This statement left Qi Xing speechless: "That's allowed? Does God even allow loopholes?"

"Of course God allows loopholes."

[King of Hell] smiled gently,

"Reasonably avoiding God's punishment is also a form of wisdom. As long as you have the ability to truly slip through, and remain undetected from start to finish, it proves you truly possess exceptional qualities."

"By the same token, if you fail to slip through, you must be prepared to be cast directly into hell, doomed forever."

"—Just like the short-sighted fools who always try to sneak into this [Kingdom of Heaven]."

Speaking of which, [King of Hell] looked up at the balloons in the sky again.

Qi Xing followed his gaze.

In fact, back when he flew close to the [Kingdom of Heaven], Qi Xing's clairvoyance had already seen some white balloons floating high above the top of the World Tree.

With Qi Xing's keen eyesight, he could tell at a glance that those balloons were actually living people.

[King of Hell] had somehow captured these people, sealed the "gaps" on their bodies, and then inflated them like balloons, releasing them into the sky like hydrogen balloons.

Their internal organs were unharmed; only their skin layers were inflated. In the [Kingdom of Heaven], without [King of Hell]'s permission, they didn't even have the right to die.

Who exactly were these balloons? That is a complicated story. There were superpower warlords who tried to attack and invade the [Kingdom of Heaven], as well as those who simply wanted to sneak in using magic. The first time might be forgiven, but given [King of Hell]'s personality, if there was ever a second time…

"If they hadn't been discovered by Me, I would have allowed them to live honestly and peacefully."

"It's just a pity that they are all useless people with high ambitions but low abilities."

[King of Hell] said with regret,

"As for Falling from Heaven, Sael indeed did not Fall."

"As for whether My little sister, who has lost all face, succeeded in slipping through or not, what do you think?"

Huh, good question.

Looking at the human-skin balloons in the sky that couldn't even die, and then looking at Sasa's condition, it was probably only a tiny bit better than being doomed forever in hell.

"Kid Qi Xing, God has a great sense of humor. I suggest you cultivate more of a sense of humor yourself."

So [King of Hell] grinned,

"Since you already have the self-awareness of a hero, you should enjoy it, don't be too troubled."

Father Amos was right; this Germanic version of Christ really had a strange style.

"Before coming here, I intended to ask what you plan to do next, but now that I see this [Kingdom of Heaven], I've already begun to understand."

At this point, Qi Xing wasn't exactly ignorant either. He scratched his head and sighed,

"Your [Kingdom of Heaven] is the ideal world dreamed of in ancient legends of warriors and knights, isn't it?"

Warriors focus on battle, priests undertake prayer and culture, and civilians are responsible for production—the three classes each in their proper place, led by an absolute God-Emperor. This is a completely "vertical society."

Only heroes deserve the power of heroes. Those without heroic character are weakened into commoners, while those who are qualified are granted power by God. As for farmers and priests, even if unarmed, they are protected. Everyone acts under the rule of the Holy King of Warriors, as if it were a nation of warriors from myths and fantasy novels.

Isn't this the Kingdom of Heaven in the eyes of ancient barbarians?

What [King of Hell] has done is simply to use absolute power, plus super high-tech from who knows where, to push this ancient dream system to the extreme, enhancing productivity and order. But its essence has not changed.

Everyone deeply loves and worships [King of Hell], laboring, praying, and fighting for the same goal.

Even modern people would surely like such a Kingdom of Heaven, intoxicated by this order and sense of security.

It's just—if one were to say this is a paradise suitable for everyone, one that can satisfy everyone, that might not necessarily be the case.

No wonder Mara, who wanted to liberate all sentient beings, eventually parted ways with [King of Hell].

"Then, kid Qi Xing, what does the Kingdom of Heaven in your heart look like?"

Seeing through what was in Qi Xing's mind, [King of Hell] smiled quite happily and asked him in return.

To this question, Qi Xing indeed had no way to answer.

He was still at the "Judge" stage: rewarding good and punishing evil, black and white; as for a higher level, he had not yet made a clear decision.

Moreover, what [King of Hell] was discussing with him was actually the "ultimate proposition," the final stage of society and the world.

For a serious Christianity, it is Heaven; for a serious Buddhism, it is the enlightenment and nirvana of all sentient beings; for a serious Marxist, it is the complete liberation of all mankind.

But what exactly does the complete liberation of all mankind look like?

The destination of ideals, the end, the limit—besides those few lines in the scriptures of various schools, what exactly is the specific picture?

No one has ever seen a utopia, or a society where communism has been realized. One can certainly fantasize, but the more detailed the fantasy, the more difficult it becomes, and the more flaws it has.

Ordinary people might not need to consider such questions in their entire lives, but since Qi Xing had reached the level of competing for the throne of the master of the universe, he could not avoid this reflection.

He must give his own answer.

The answer of the true [Self].

Merely reciting scriptures written by others would not be enough for him to win in the final battle.

Not to mention that he also had to emanate his own world and rewrite this universe that Sasa had messed up.

…This hesitation and reflection gave Qi Xing a bit of a feeling like playing Elden Ring.

Did he want to create a world where everyone couldn't just easily have sex? But after seeing Lesbos Island, his thoughts had already changed somewhat.

But if [New Humans] created by Xue Ning were to replace the old humans, that seemed a bit too radical. Would he really use sex to promote human instrumentality and mutual understanding?

If it were you, would you be willing to live a life completely without worries or pain, having sex all day every day? Honestly, Qi Xing didn't really want that.

As for Mara's corruption and madness, it was like intending to burn the whole world with the Frenzied Flame.

"I haven't decided yet."

After a brief contemplation, Qi Xing honestly admitted.

[King of Hell] didn't rush him, just nodded: "Before the end, you must decide."

"Indeed, but there is one thing I still want to ask."

Qi Xing frowned,

"God, why don't you just reach out with your omniscient and omnipotent hand and save this world, save everyone in this world?"

"There are two main reasons. The first, I will say later."

[King of Hell] smiled slightly,

"The second reason I can indeed tell you directly."

"Kid Qi Xing, if I really did as you said—the poor, foolish sister in your arms would have to be cast completely into hell, doomed forever."

"How would you choose?"

Volume 7: Age of Apocalypse: 242: Sasa Universe

Why would the returning Christ appear in the mode of a Germanic savior?

Perhaps it was because this Sasa Universe was too Slaaneshi, so it needed a Khorne-style Christ to balance it out… This is, of course, just a joke.

But by now, even without asking, Qi Xing and the others should have enough clues to deduce the answer to this question.

At the end of World War II, in order to reverse their collapsing situation, the Nazi attempted to use a [silver coin] as a medium, presided over by a leader of the [Peacock Disciples], to summon the "Messiah of the Germans."

Since the [Peacock Disciples] were involved, their original plan must have been to summon a [Giant Spirit].

And the result?

Perhaps it was out of God's black humor, or perhaps the timing was just right—anyway, the [King of Warriors], the God of Heroes, the Barbarian Savior that the Nazi wanted, did indeed descend.

However, you cannot hope to get a bloodthirsty savior and also delusionally expect him to be your nanny.

You're only praying to God because you're about to lose? Are such cowards worthy of being called warriors? Just go die.

You cannot oppose social Darwinism only when you are failing. If you don't even have the courage to face failure, then in the eyes of the true King of Social Darwinism, aren't you just finished?

So the mustache artist didn't get the savior he wanted, and instead even lost his own [silver coin].

…And this also explains [King of Hell]'s attitude toward Samael.

Why did God only beat Samael to 90% death and lock her on the black throne, instead of saving her directly?

The answer is actually very simple—does she deserve it?

Ultimately, this is how everything is.

As for why he didn't blast Sasa to death directly, that has another layer of reasons.

"Strictly speaking, in this anti-life tree that Sael imitated, apart from Me, you, and Lin, there are no other humans in the true sense."

Always saying shocking things, Qi Xing was still digesting [King of Hell]'s evaluation of Samael, not expecting that this barbarian Christ would immediately state an even more horrifying truth.

"What?"

"Hei Bai, which is the Maitreya you defeated, once questioned Me in the past, asking why I did not save the sentient beings of this world. This is one of the reasons."

[King of Hell]'s expression remained unchanged as he said calmly,

"This universe itself can be considered a high-quality imitation. But Sael, in fact, does not have the ability to create true human souls."

"No matter how similar an imitation is, it is ultimately not the genuine article. Moreover, this imitation has never been authorized by Me."

Huh.

Once these words were spoken, Qi Xing couldn't help but look down first at Sasa, who was curled up and covering her face.

A true human soul?

This concept is actually not hard to understand. The beginning of "Genesis" records: God molded a human form from clay and breathed into it the holy breath of the soul, and only then was humanity born.

This might just be a myth, just a story, just a metaphor. But similar metaphors appear in many different myths and different human cultures.

In the myth of Nüwa creating humans, she also initially molded humans from clay and breathed her own breath into them, only then could the clay figures gain life and soul.

In Norse mythology, Odin used wood instead of clay, but the essential act of injecting life and soul was not much different.

If the source of all myths implies a common primordial truth, then the spirit that the Creator breathed into the bodies of the human ancestors at the beginning of time is the root of the soul.

…If this is true, then what are the knock-off humans Sasa created in this "high-quality imitation universe"?

"Other angels can, at best, only make Frankenstein's monsters. But Sael swallowed one-third of the angels' essence, so she had enough power to emanate her own spirit into the humans she imitated, as a substitute for the true souls she could not replicate."

[King of Hell] shrugged,

"Therefore, the human souls in this universe are, to a large extent, actually the 'cells' of this foolish sister of Mine."

"All these varied sentient beings actually reflect Sael's own personality."

This is, of course, just a metaphor, a kind of "cell" on the level of the "soul."

But this truth was enough to leave Qi Xing, and even Lin beside him, stunned.

In other words, the so-called humans in this Sasa Universe are, in essence… aren't they all pseudo-humans?

Qi Xing certainly understood that things could not be understood from such a crude perspective. But hearing this, he still couldn't help but feel a chill.

The eight billion people in this world are actually just echoes of Sasa's breath.

…But then again, if all the humans in this universe are, to a greater or lesser extent, reflecting Sasa's own personality, then why are there still such huge differences among all living beings?

Why are some people kind, while others are evil and cruel; some pursue order, while others seek chaos; some desperately pursue the hope of escaping the mire, while others are willing to sink into darkness?

Lowering his head, Qi Xing looked again at Sasa, who was still covering her face and not daring to speak.

The characters and desires of the seven enemies he had encountered in the past who held [silver coins] couldn't help but flash through Qi Xing's mind.

Those enemies, one by one, their vivid personalities and desires were still branded in his memory to this day.

Mara took pleasure in [Destruction], attempting to burn this failed world with his dissatisfaction and despair.

Xue Ning wanted to become a mother, wanted to create better [New Humans], but the flaws in her character and the fear of not being able to truly become a mother led to her failure.

As for the three Demon King children of Mara, Qi Xing hadn't had the chance to get to know or interact with the other two, so he didn't know their stories. But the [Magic City Tokyo] that [Greed Demon] attempted to create, and the [Inner Realm] he yearned for—back when he fought [Greed Demon], Qi Xing had already vaguely sensed that they were quite similar to Sasa.

Every one of them was an embodiment of extremism, trapped in distortion and paranoia.

If these extremes were really reflections of Sasa's own personality, amplified by the influence of Sasa's divine power fragments on their nature,