Chapter 52: The Answer is No

What is a god?

A mighty power that transcends mortal things.

A status that controls the world.

An indescribable sublimity.

God said, let there be light.

In the world shrouded by darkness, only blazing white remained; all things drifted in the light, warm yet scorching.

Thunder in the clouds, the sun in the sky, the boundless earth, rising water vapor, and whistling storms.

All were lost in the pure light.

…

Three days later.

Xu Xi appeared in a new city with Klisa. This city was named "Wage," and it was the new residence Xu Xi had chosen.

Inside their newly bought house, Klisa was checking for anything missing to see what furniture still needed to be purchased.

Xu Xi, meanwhile, sat in a soft chair in the living room.

He recalled the "Divine Punishment" from three days ago.

"Incredible…"

"Should I say as expected of a god? To effortlessly achieve such a feat—annihilating the monsters in Alenson City with a single strike while simultaneously protecting the surviving soldiers."

"The terrain and landscape centered around Alenson City have almost completely evolved anew."

"How much power was used…"

"10%? No, perhaps not even 1%."

Xu Xi closed his eyes in contemplation, holding a magic wand that was shattered almost beyond recognition.

That day, the god's primary targets were the monsters, but His attack was so magnificent that even from a great distance, the violent shockwave forced Xu Xi to use all his trump cards.

He had cast dozens of Level 7 spells in succession.

Just barely enough to offset the aftershocks of that "light" hitting the ground.

Protecting himself and the witch.

Such an experience was truly dangerous and terrible, but it was worth it. By witnessing the descent of the god with his own eyes and the fanaticism of the rescued soldiers, Xu Xi finally unraveled the truth of the matter.

"Extra! Extra!"

On the street outside, the excited voice of a newsboy could be heard shouting.

"Alenson City in the North suffered a tragic monster invasion! Several major legions were defeated, and Alenson City was nearly wiped out!"

"The great God of Light intervened and saved the survivors!"

"Extra! Extra!"

"The God of Light has bestowed divine grace!"

The shouts spread further and further. More pedestrians noticed the news and hurried to buy newspapers, reading them with curiosity and eagerness.

Seeing that Alenson City had been invaded, their faces showed sadness.

Seeing that the human legions had been defeated, their faces showed fear.

Seeing the God of Light descend upon the world, their faces showed fanaticism.

"Praise the great God of Light, praise the Lord of Infinite Radiance. May the light remain in the world forever, protecting the weak until death."

"Thank you for saving us once again!"

Believers of the God of Light offered praises and hymns on the spot.

People sighed and prayed, the expressions on their faces gradually becoming pious.

The emotional ones were moved to tears.

Even those who weren't believers were inevitably influenced by this fanatical atmosphere, silently reciting a few words of thanks to the gods.

All of this.

Was fully observed by Xu Xi.

He saw through the schemes of the gods.

"Proactively creating a situation of monster invasion, then letting the human legions go to their deaths to further highlight the strength of the monsters and the urgency of the situation."

"Finally, the high-and-mighty gods intervene, not only harvesting human faith but also making humanity respond with awe."

Xu Xi pondered and sighed, "What a ruthless method."

The gods' control over human psychology.

Had clearly reached an extremely high level.

They knew that if humans were too comfortable, no one would believe in the gods.

Therefore, the gods actively created danger and disasters, only to provide help in the guise of saviors when humanity was struggling in despair.

In this way, they could harvest people's faith and ensure the piety and affection of their believers.

It had to be said.

This move was indeed very effective.

Within Xu Xi's field of vision, many people had already chosen to join the Church of the Gods, wanting to experience the divine power more closely and become mages who believed in the gods.

"Perhaps this is also one of their goals."

Xu Xi said.

His index finger tapped lightly on the armrest of the chair, creating a faint echo.

Faith Mages and Elemental Mages.

Both can cast magic, yet they follow completely different paths.

The source of a Faith Mage's power comes from the god they believe in; the mage possesses only as much as the god bestows.

Thus, the peak of this path is a demigod, with no way to progress further.

A servant cannot surpass their master.

This is a fundamental truth of the world's operation.

But Elemental Mages are different. Mages of this faction observe the world and discern the truth, allowing them to truly ignite divine fire and uphold the authority of the world.

The gods seem unwilling to allow the birth of new gods, so they use various subtle methods to gradually promote the convenience of Faith Mages and reduce the living space for Elemental Mages.

In this way.

The gods can sit steadily atop the clouds, looking down upon the muddled masses.

"If that's really the case, I'll have to be a bit more careful in my future actions," Xu Xi clicked his tongue.

He had an intuition.

In this Magic World, he was very likely the strongest Elemental Mage. If his strength continued to increase, it was highly probable he would attract the attention of the gods.

That outcome was not something Xu Xi wanted to see.

He didn't want to wake up and find that, as a mere Archmage, he had to face being ganged up on by dozens or even hundreds of True Gods.

"Me fighting gods? For real?"

This scenario was too ridiculous and hopeless; Xu Xi didn't want to face it at all.

"Ignorance is also a kind of bliss."

Xu Xi slowly stood up and stretched. Looking through the window, he saw the street outside filled with excited believers of the gods.

The believers thought the gods loved the people of the world.

But in reality, the gods only loved themselves.

Such a lie, such a carefully woven deception, couldn't necessarily be called bad.

People provide faith, and gods provide power; it was originally a mutually beneficial transaction.

Ninety-nine percent of people are destined to fail on the path of an Elemental Mage. If they can trade their fanatical faith for higher achievements from the gods, it is actually a good thing.

If there was any price to pay.

It was that from time to time, one would need to live in fear, preventing oneself from becoming a victim of a "miracle."

Like this time in Alenson City, with the local citizens plus the reinforcing legion soldiers, the death toll was rapidly approaching a million, a truly tragic sight.

"Toot—"

"Toot—"

The sound of hissing steam rang out.

A faint mist of water spread through the new house.

Klisa walked toward him; she had activated the steam equipment in the new house.

"Mentor, everything is in order. I found nothing missing."

"Thank you for your hard work, Klisa."

Looking at the girl with silver-gray hair, Xu Xi instinctively glanced at her eyes. As before, the only thing he could see in them was his own reflection.

"Let's go. I'll do the cooking today."

"Eh…?"

The witch was a bit surprised, but she still followed obediently by Xu Xi's side.

Time passed; home was no longer the home of the past, and the surroundings were completely unfamiliar.

But because a familiar figure was before her.

She didn't feel afraid.

On the way to the kitchen, Klisa also heard the frantic shouts from outside, offering blessings to the gods.

She ignored them, following closely behind the "god" who belonged solely to her.