She did not interrupt, merely standing quietly to the side with a slight frown, watching the [silver coin] that the Loli Evil God was explaining.

The two [silver coins] Qi Xing had obtained previously had relatively abstract images. The front of the [Dominator] silver coin featured Caesar's portrait, while the back depicted a woman dancing in the air; the [Illusion] silver coin also had Caesar's portrait on the front, but the back was engraved with a crescent moon in the water.

The [Death] silver coin also had Caesar's portrait on the front—it seemed the front images of all thirty [silver coins] were the same—but the image on the back was much more straightforward:

A skeletal Grim Reaper holding a scythe and riding a white horse was solemnly engraved in the center of the silver face, and the Latin inscription surrounding the image read: "MEMENTO MORI".

Elaine certainly knew the meaning of this phrase—'Remember death'.

Everyone must die eventually.

That being the case, how do you view death?

Your concept and approach to viewing death will determine the direction and concept of the mythological [Authority] you can draw from this silver coin.

"The [Greed Demon] believes that death is 'separation'… No, it should be the other way around."

Speaking of this, Qi Xing shook his head, "He must believe that 'separation' is death—when his wife and women were cuckolded by other men, those three women in his heart must have already died."

That must be why the [Greed Demon] cut out the souls of the three women who were cuckolded from him and sealed them into stone statues.

…And this means that even though the [Greed Demon] became a demon under the tutelage of [Papiyas], he still retained a shred of moral values in his heart, or even a bit of a cleanliness obsession.

If he had truly become the Lord of the Flies, Beelzebub, who could even eat excrement, what would it matter if his own women had been with others? Didn't he even have the capacity to eat shit? If he had a cleanliness obsession, what kind of demon was he?

…So, becoming a demon is truly not easy.

Last night, because of Miaoshan's intercession, Qi Xing thought about it and actually gave the [Greed Demon] a quick death. The premise was that the [Greed Demon] used the [Separation] Authority to cut himself first.

"Cut away everything you have, [Greed Demon], cut away your evil heart, cut away all your past memories, cut away your loss, your pain, your fear. Cut away the you who committed all those sins—cut away the [Greed Demon]."

"But those truly happy memories you once possessed, not the pleasure derived from hurting or mocking others, but the warmth brought by helping others or being helped, those truly happy memories—keep only them."

"Then, you can have a quick death."

"Return to the Dream of All Living Beings, reawaken the ideals you once had, and undergo metamorphosis once more to become another brand-new life."

Just like that, Qi Xing killed the [Greed Demon].

As for the remaining traces, perhaps because he had cut too much and too thoroughly, they could not even take on a stable form like Romanie and Rene.

…Therefore, although Miaoshan didn't say it out loud at the time, she couldn't help but think in her heart: (…Isn't this just another way of saying 'sending you to be reincarnated'?)

Qi Xing couldn't be bothered with that. Regardless, that person was no longer the [Greed Demon], and it was impossible for him to turn back into the [Greed Demon].

Then why bring this up again now? Because this matter made Qi Xing ponder: for himself, what is [Death]?

[Death] is the end, it is parting; this is the most common viewpoint. For Qi Xing himself, [Death] should be a punishment, a punishment he wants to bestow upon evildoers, a way to end evil.

But if [Death] were to be defined as a universal "punishment for sin," that would seem a bit too Christian.

In Indo-European religions and many animistic worldviews, [Death] is the beginning of a new life, which is why there is the concept of reincarnation.

As for the earliest Chinese religions, when a person dies, they become a ghost and go to the underworld to continue "living"; there is actually no concept of "reincarnation." This is why the deceased ancestors in Chinese belief require offerings from the living. After all, they are still "living" in the underworld, so it's normal to ask their family for things, right?

…It's interesting to note that this way of thinking about "continuing life in the underworld" is somewhat similar to the concepts of the ancient Egyptians. In the ancient Egyptian underworld, after evildoers are judged, even their souls are eaten and completely erased. But good people will live from then on in the Field of Reeds, living an ideal idyllic life in the eternal paradise of the underworld.

End, judgment, new life… what else is there? Actually, there is much more. For example, the Taoist concepts of "Pre-celestial" and "Post-celestial," and the exploration of "why humans die," are not simply about termination, but about structural change.

Qi Xing was not in a hurry to reach a conclusion—because for some reason, he had a vague, strange premonition. He always felt that this [Death] silver coin might be extremely compatible with him.

After all, the first mythological prototype Qi Xing drew was Osiris. It was clearly the [Dominator] silver coin, yet what he drew was the King who rules the underworld and judges sinful souls. This was not a coincidence, because the [silver coin] does not probe surface thoughts, but the deepest desires in the messenger's heart.

Desire. Qi Xing, what do you crave from death?

After deep thought for a long time, he finally spoke, turning to look at Sasa: "Samael, in this world you created, is there really reincarnation after death?"

[There is no reincarnation in the sense of folklore. If I had to say, it's somewhat similar to early Buddhism, but not exactly the same.]

Sasa raised her eyebrows, her tone indifferent, [After the living beings I created die, their souls all decompose into spiritual elements in the [Sea of Decomposition]. Most of the spiritual elements just settle in the [Sea of Decomposition], but some spiritual elements will be absorbed into new souls.]

[In this process, there is no unchanging subject.]

Simply put, there is no "I"—if you ask "who" is reincarnating, it's like asking "where do the water droplets of a river go."

[However, little one, this is not the point for you. What a Demon King needs to think about is not "what is the world like"—but "what do I want the world to become."]

Sasa looked at Qi Xing, her expression rarely serious. [You don't need to care about what death is in my world, or whether there is an underworld; the point is, in the world you want, what does death look like?]

This question was indeed easier for Qi Xing to answer. "Then, I will define [Death] as [Transformation]."

So Qi Xing held up the [Death] silver coin and solemnly declared: "Cultivators must undergo the test of the death tribulation before they can become immortals; mortals must also undergo the judgment of death before they can obtain a happy new life. If they do not pass the test of [Death], all things cannot transcend their past selves."

"And those whom I believe are not worthy of passing the test—I will cast them into hell."

As soon as he finished speaking, Qi Xing felt it—the synchronization between him and the [Death] silver coin had been established. Sure enough, his compatibility with this silver coin was excellent. It was unclear whether it was fate or coincidence.

[Interesting.] Sasa leaned in with great interest, [What is the mythological prototype you drew from [Death]?]

Qi Xing closed his eyes and sensed the mythology that had established a connection with him within the [silver coin]… But after only two seconds, he opened his eyes with a strange expression: "Huh?"

[What's up? Is there a problem?]

"Why is it a goddess?"

[There's nothing wrong with a goddess. Mythological prototypes have no gender; they are ultimately just concepts in the collective unconscious of humanity.]

Sasa was unimpressed, waving her hand, only curious, [Which one? A goddess related to death? It wouldn't be the Indian Kali, would it?]

"No. Not even remotely related." Qi Xing shook his head, his expression even stranger, "It's Hela. The goddess of death and queen of the underworld in Norse mythology, Hela."

…Huh? Why, why her? Do Qi Xing and the Norse death goddess have any commonalities? Sasa and Qi Xing were both puzzled for a moment, unable to figure it out no matter how much they thought about it.

On the contrary, Elaine, who had been watching her husband tinker with his new power from afar, had a slight realization at this moment. —This was probably because, deep in Qi Xing's heart, he had always longed for a hell that could "judge sin and punish evildoers." A real and effective Hell.

The concept of the underworld in ancient Norse religion was not there from the beginning. Furthermore, the concept that bad people go to hell to be punished after death did not exist in most primitive religions to begin with.

The earliest ancient Norse barbarians believed in a world after death that had neither Valhalla nor the underworld. When people died, their souls would go to the holy mountain Helgafell, and they also had concepts similar to reincarnation.

Later, in the early Middle Ages, the ancient Norse absorbed Christian culture, which led to the creation of the concepts of [Valhalla (Heaven)] and [Underworld (Hell)], and they no longer believed in reincarnation. After all, who wants to reincarnate and continue the rat race? Compared to cycle after cycle of miserable lives, being an Einherjar eating meat and drinking alcohol in Valhalla was more attractive.

…What's even better is that, as a truly knowledgeable expert, Elaine also knew that the Old Norse word for "Hell," "Hel," in its even older source, the Proto-Indo-European root, also had the meaning of "save" and "heal." In other words, just as death is the beginning of new life, "Hell" and "save/heal" are two sides of the same coin.

With a strange sense of reverence, Elaine prayed quietly. She believed this was no coincidence. She had always believed that behind the operation of all this, there must be a higher, kinder will guiding it than the idiot Loli Evil God. It must be the cries of this world that brought Him to bring Qi Xing here.

————————————————

After thinking for a long time without finding a reason, Sasa finally got bored and floated to the kitchen to find something to eat. Elaine walked over with a tablet and began to talk about the serious business of liaising with the Japanese government and various organizations.

"After the two consecutive great victories in Aomori and Tokyo, the entire Japanese supernatural world is now aware of your power."

"Although it is impossible to make everyone bow down to you, at least the entire Japanese supernatural world dares not refuse your proposals and will outwardly comply with your decisions. The integration and liaison initiative you proposed will be outwardly obeyed by all parties, which is already quite remarkable."

"In the future, if you need to fight against other Demon Kings, this might become a card you can play."

Qi Xing nodded, indicating he understood. He didn't have time to slowly conquer the world and fundamentally improve the systems and foundations of various countries. Such things take too much time; it's hard to even fix one country in a few decades, so how could he possibly "manage" them specifically?

Moreover, the [Greed Demon] had said that there were at least two or three ancient Demon Kings left in this world. If these seniors had been operating behind the scenes for a long time, accumulating thousands of years of first-mover advantage, Qi Xing could not compete with them in strategic management.

By comparison, as Sasa said, directly seizing the thirty [silver coins] and getting the console for the entire universe is the most efficient path. Because he is not a king of mortals, but a Demon King competing for the throne of gods.

So at the current stage, if Qi Xing can sweep across nations like Alexander's eastern expedition, winning nominal submission from various places, plus some agreements on obligations, that would be considered "enough."

Anyway, Qi Xing doesn't need various supernatural societies to pay taxes or tribute to him. As long as they are willing to contribute during wartime, and as long as these supernatural organizations can send troops to support when Qi Xing requests, establishing a loose military alliance is enough.

The point is to win this Demon King war. The winner naturally gets everything; everything else can be discussed after winning.

"The original three major dark organizations of Tokyo have both been wiped out this time. However, the members of the [Musk Pavilion] had already disappeared long before the [Greed Demon] was defeated."

Elaine said this, looking thoughtful, "We caught some spies who infiltrated the Onmyoryo; they were all female ninjas from the [Musk Pavilion]."

"As things stand, I suspect that the forces of the [Greed Demon]'s master, the Demon King [Papiyas], may be hidden behind the [Musk Pavilion]."

Among the three major dark organizations in Tokyo, the [Musk Pavilion] had the smallest force but was the most mysterious. Its members were almost all beautiful women, acting secretly, skilled in espionage and infiltration. Looking back now, perhaps they were simply elite agents sent by [Papiyas] to his disciple, responsible for monitoring this disciple along the way. Once the [Greed Demon] showed signs of defeat, they abandoned him and retreated in advance.

"Not a big problem. The Demon King is the point; if the minions and the Four Heavenly Kings run, let them run. One day, they will have nowhere to hide."

Qi Xing nodded, "Is there anything else strange that you think you must tell me now?"

"There is indeed one more thing." Elaine smiled helplessly, "Ms. Jingo Rin took the [Greed Demon]'s head, packed it in a wooden box, and flew back to her hometown in Aomori today."

Volume 4: Evil Magic, Magic City Tokyo: 171: Sincerely For You

"Here. The head you wanted." Shingo Village, returning home after a month,