Chapter 702 – 2. On Deities
Fisher squinted his eyes, looking at Ramastia, who introduced herself. He still found it a bit hard to believe, and Ramastia wasn’t in a hurry, simply waiting for him to accept this fact.
After a long while, Fisher still couldn’t find a single aspect of Ramastia that differed from his memories of Teresa. She looked just as young and warm, even her appearance had not changed at all, as if she had walked out of his memories.
However, because of this, Fisher became certain that the person before him was indeed not Teresa, but an incarnation of a deity.
He stared blankly for a moment, rubbed his forehead, and with a low voice asked her, “What just happened? What is the situation in reality now?”
“You succeeded. Heow’s attempts to assassinate Dalasgon failed. The crevice, although damaged, has been preserved. Everyone related to you has survived, including Elizabeth. However, her artificial eye has disappeared, and the remaining laws have been repaired onto Xu.”
“You’ve been watching all along? Just watching the Chaos Race attack Dalasgon’s true form like this?”
“No, I just escaped from the Ultimate. I have only just arrived. When I got here, you had already entered the Death Rift to save Elizabeth. Everything has been orchestrated by you.”
Fisher’s eyes displayed obvious distrust, but when he looked at Ramastia’s smiling face that was identical to Teresa’s, he found himself at a loss for words.
He had no choice but to stand up and look around, but aside from the glowing light hovering beside Ramastia, which was formed from some unknown substance, there were no other sources of light, and everything around him was shrouded in dead silence and darkness, which even his mythical gaze could not penetrate.
He could only look down at the black crystalline material beneath his feet, unsure if this darkness was formed by the building material, and he asked casually, “Where am I now?”
“In the Spirit Realm.”
“I need to return to reality now; there are matters that still need to be resolved.”
Having said that, Fisher lifted his leg and prepared to leave, but Ramastia did not move her body; she spoke from behind him, “You cannot return for the time being. Before Heow died, he issued an order to kill you through the authority of death. Heya currently lacks consciousness, so the death authority will carry out his command. Once you return to reality, you will be hunted by the death authority, just like before when death was pursuing you.”
Fisher paused slightly in his action of turning to leave. He had an impression of this matter but couldn’t help turning back to look at Ramastia behind him.
He remained silent for a moment and suddenly said, “Was this planned by you too?”
“Why do you say that?”
Fisher returned to stand before Ramastia with a cold expression, looking at her and saying, “Earlier, during my confrontation with Pisces, he clearly mentioned that a Whale Folk went to the Sea of Souls to threaten him with his compatriots. Moreover, Xu suddenly appeared, and Jasmine also suddenly learned that Elizabeth’s artificial eye contained remnants of the laws. This indicates that Gouwen in the Spirit Realm has linked with them. As a deity who can converse with the Whale Folk, you claim you knew nothing?”
Ramasita gave a bitter smile and shook her head, saying, “I truly did not know because what Pisces told you was false.”
Fisher was taken aback for a moment, then immediately frowned and asked, “What do you mean, what is false?”
Ramasita stood up and spoke softly, “Given Gouwen’s current state, he could not have gone to the Sea of Souls to threaten the Chaos Race. He indeed worried about the situation in reality, which is why I can leave the tense situation at the Ultimate to come to the world’s outskirts to save you. What I mean is that it was not Gouwen who prepared the life-saving medicine for you in reality, but someone else.”
Fisher was rendered speechless. His eyes trembled as he looked at Ramastia before him, struggling to think back on the details of the past to judge the authenticity of the deity before him.
But after all, he had been fighting in the crevice before and was not well-informed about the situation below, nor had he directly asked Jasmine or Xu for confirmation. Thus, he couldn’t be sure of any conclusion.
He wasn’t sure if it was Ramastia lying or the person who spoke with Jasmine and Xu was lying. But if that were the case, what exactly was it?
Seeing the doubt and vigilance on Fisher’s face, Ramastia, wearing Teresa’s features, smiled and said, “Actually, deep down in your heart, you probably have doubts about me already, right? In your view, both we and your creator, the Trans, consider you merely as a tool to resolve the Apocalypse Prophecy?”
Fisher snapped back to reality, sneering as he said, “What else could it be? If it weren’t for the symbiotic relationship between reality and you, and the people I care about in reality, do you think I would be fighting to the death over this Apocalypse Prophecy? No, Ramastia, I see through you clearly; otherwise, you wouldn’t have taken on Teresa’s form to evoke my fond memories of her, sparking affection for you, thus luring me to continue serving you and repaying my sins.”
If one were to count, this should be the first time Fisher and Ramastia are having a direct conversation.
Previously, she had sprayed water at him while he was next to Jasmine; although there was interaction, the situation regarding the Apocalypse Prophecy was not yet clear, and he had not spoken to Ramastia.
Throughout the journey, Fisher had learned about the actions of the deities from various points of view, thus forming his current thoughts.
The deities indeed committed unforgivable sins.
They stole invaluable treasures; that should count as one. The deities betrayed the invading deities from beyond; that should make it two. The deities imprisoned Heow’s sister Heya, turning her into a tool to fulfill the rules of death; that would be three.
Anyone with clear eyes can see that this impending doom has arisen from the sins committed by the deities, and Fisher knows this better than anyone.
Although Fisher is determined to fight to resolve the Apocalypse Prophecy, it is by no means for this group of deities. Moreover, throughout this journey, the deities have done nothing, like absentee landlords hiding behind the scenes, leaving everything to the beings within reality and dumping it on Fisher, making it even harder for him to trust Ramastia.
Ramasita was slightly taken aback, then shook her head and raised her hand, saying, “As I mentioned before, how I appear in your eyes is not decided by me, but by you; and at this moment, my true body is outside this building. You have already tasted what it is like to gaze upon a deity; it is not wrong for me to take an avatar to meet you in order to protect you.”
“Indeed, deities are truly powerful, so unreachable.”
Fisher simply looked at her and said sarcastically, and Ramastia stood up, suddenly smiling and asking him, “Fisher, what do you think deities are?”
“…”
“You should already know many mysteries of this world, but there is one secret you still do not know. Do you know where you are standing right now?”
Upon hearing this, Fisher looked around the empty surroundings. He saw that within the dark inverted triangle space, with the slight elevation of the glow beside Ramastia, a hint of outline began to show. Ramastia walked beside one of the slanted crystal walls, reached out her hand to stroke overhead, and softly said, “This is the altar where the Ramastia people gathered when they still existed.”
“Ramastia people?”
“Yes, a civilization so insignificant on a planet in the darkness outside the barrier.”
Ramastia smiled as she turned her head, nodding and saying, “Beyond the barrier is a vast and boundless universe, where the distances are so great that even light takes hundreds of billions of years to reach the edge. The world wrapped in the barrier is merely a tiny corner hidden in that darkness.
“And within this almost boundless universe, occasionally, some immensely powerful beings are born. They possess wisdom and strength unimaginable to small souls, easily distorting everything around them, making it so that even observing them is incomprehensible for weaker beings. But they indeed exist, living within that vast darkness.”
Fisher squinted his eyes and said, “That is what deities are, right?”
“Correct.” Ramastia nodded, appreciatingly saying, “However, that is just a collective term. Deities are those powerful existences that traverse star rivers far beyond ordinary individuals.
“A civilization that takes tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands of years to accumulate cannot match our authority, because of fear, excitement, and curiosity; we have been given such a name. But, in fact, we are not a single race; rather, each deity is different from one another, and some even do not know or understand the deities that are too far away.”
She slightly raised her delicate hand, and as she withdrew it from the black crystal, the black crystal suddenly burst forth with the same glow as before.
That glow spread rapidly across the surface of the building, gradually forming rows and columns of inscriptions that Fisher couldn’t understand at all. Or were they characters?
The glowing characters on the wall intertwined and flowed repeatedly within the darkness, forming shimmering illusions like reflections seen in water, transforming into average-sized aquatic beings of around two to three meters.
All those beings were semi-transparent; Fisher didn’t know if they were like that themselves or if it was due to projection. He was unsure if they had heads; if they did, he could not tell which side was which. They varied in size, with some larger ones having a protruding triangular structure, and extending from that triangular structure were thin segmented appendages or tentacles.
“Deities are born in different regions of their respective universes. Some are born from the darkness that cannot see stars; some are stars themselves; and some, even more exaggerated, are the cores of entire planets or galaxies. Of course, some deities naturally exist on planets, and a few lucky ones have birthed life on the planets where they were born.
“Deities have no society, no morality. From the moment of existence, a solitary deity does not understand what meaning is. Some deities act on instinct, some are keen on seeking meaning, and of course, there are more deities that do not want to do anything at all, lying in their place of birth until changes happen; some deities wander around, mindlessly annihilating any planets and civilizations that obstruct their paths like crushing insects.
“And I, being born on an ancient planet whose age is unknown, can be considered my homeland, entirely covered by water. From birth, I have quietly rested in the deepest parts there, occasionally leaving the water’s surface, embarking on journeys through the cosmos, and after long ages returned to my birthplace to rest once more.
“It was in the tens of thousands of years following my last return there that sentient beings were born within the water.”
As Ramastia softly spoke, everything around welcomed a vividness, and Fisher saw groups of “triangular aquatic beings” swimming in the water. They gradually grew, developed a love for art, drawings, and architecture, and used a type of natural crystal on the planet as the foundation for their technological development, creating buildings, storing information, casting musical instruments, and various machines.
“From the moment of their birth, they discovered me, and after a long silence, I heard voices that existed beyond myself. I was merely curious, and thus I began to communicate with them at the sprouting of this civilization. Until they developed language and culture, they transitioned from fearing me and doubting me to finally accepting me, and I gradually became a part of their civilization. Hence, I acquired the name, Ramastia, and they called themselves the Ramastia people.
“In their language, Ramastia means ‘mother-like,’ so, in reality, the first name given to me by civilization was not ‘deity,’ but ‘mother.’ Most deities do not care for the civilizations formed by weaker beings; to them, they are merely weak, foolish ants. But as I said, there are countless deities in the universe, and there will always be anomalies among them, of which I am one.
“I love them as if they were my children. They do not understand conflict and battle; their numbers are much smaller than those of other civilizations. They have never left the ocean in their lives, and because I have frequently met them in my avatar, they could always see the form they wished to see, which is why I am also called the God of All Forms. They were like children wrapped in swaddling clothes by their deity, blissfully living in their homeland.”
Fisher opened his mouth, suddenly realizing why he had seen the language used by Ramastia earlier in the Spirit Realm.
The “Divine Language” used by the deities originally had a unique meaning; it was not born for the purpose of conversing with other deities but was once the language used by the civilization beside Ramastia. However, as time passed, and so long ago was it that not even the three demigod offspring she created could fully master the language.
In the entire world, only Ramastia still uses this language, indicating how important that civilization was to her.
“But…”
“Yes, but everything has its turning point, just as all beauty will ultimately disappear.”
Ramasita looked lovingly at the flowing illusions in the space, as if the beings that surrounded her form in the water tens of thousands of years ago were still by her side.
But now, both she and Fisher were in the dark Spirit Realm, and this building had become nothing but ruins, lying in the desolate void.
Ramasita withdrew her gaze, her eyes filled with loneliness, “Such quiet times will eventually pass, no matter how long they are. I witnessed their lives fade through generations for hundreds of years. Until the day when the stars in the sky had passed through several epochs, finally to be obscured by another planet and its satellite, during which time the Ramastia people were preparing for hibernation, an uninvited guest arrived from beyond the skies. A deity, who later became one of my allies.”
“An ally?”
“There is not just one deity in the universe; they each have their own characteristics and traits. Civilizations between galaxies fight for resources, culture, and survival, and the reasons for deities to fight are incredibly varied. I mean, we will also have conflicts, especially since you already know the truth that authorities repel each other. But in the universe, no one knows that this ‘authority’ truly exists; it only manifests and is utilized within barriers.”
Ramasita waved her hand, seemingly afraid of being reminded of past emotions, thus shutting off the projections of the Ramastia people. She then continued, “In any case, the one who came to my homeland’s orbit was a deity from within our galaxy. He brought me news that a war had broken out between deities in that direction, and they needed my help.”
“A war between deities.”
“Yes, and it is a war beyond your imagination, a war between a billion-year-old galaxy and another billion-year-old galaxy, with countless stars caught in its wake, far more than in my homeland; it was indeed a vast sea of fire continuously spreading through the universe. The source of the conflict was the fall of a high-dimensional deity, whose descent caused chaos in space and brought a mystery related to the creation of the universe—about the secret of creation.”
“What is high-dimensional?”
“You do not need to understand; it is not important, child. You only need to know that deities will also fight for precious things. Just as different species of ants will fight over a fallen morsel of sugar, humans will wage war to seize land, and the Harmon Alliance and the Annihilation Fleet will attack each other for the ownership of a star and its planets. Deities do the same, forming alliances as well as opposing and attacking each other.”
Fisher did not fully comprehend some of the terms, but he understood stars and planets. Earlier, in the Holy Realm, the massive star ring that enveloped all of reality was called a “Planetary Ring,” and the sun should be the star.
And this system was wrapped within the Spirit Realm inside a crevice, with only one sun, one moon, and one native planet. Outside the barrier, there should be many more such systems, as Ramastia indicated, potentially beyond counting.
“So, the deities of that galaxy invited you hoping to ally with you, and you agreed.”
“I had no choice but to agree. The flames of war among the deities are unimaginable and uncontrollable, and countless civilizations have been affected. The edge of the war was only a few hundred light-years away from my homeland. To protect the Ramastia people, I had to agree to participate in this conflict, forming an alliance with the deities of the same galaxy. But in retrospect, participating in the war to stop it might be right, yet it was also extremely foolish.
“After repeatedly weighing the pros and cons at that time, I finally decided to join the battle for the sake of protecting my planet. So, during the long hibernation epoch of my people, I left the frozen sea, charging into the cosmos, and joined with other deities of the galaxy. Many deities came from deep within the galaxy to participate in the battle, some of whom you should have heard of or are very familiar with, namely:
“The End of the Unclean, the Three Sisters of Death.”
“The Vessel of Chaotic Being, Wadeon.”
“The Spreading Non-I, Hamon Hamon.”
“The Direction of Chaos, Kechyu.”
“The Mirror, Dalasgon.”
“The Star of Fate, Anebatos.”
“The Star Tablet, Ouyun.”
“The God of All Forms, Ramastia.”
Ramasita’s voice suddenly paused, then she softly said, “Afterward, there was the core of the entire galaxy, the leader of the alliance with more than two authorities—
“The Crimson Dream, whose true name we do not know. I had an opportunity to meet him, but I did not wish for it, hence I let it go.”
As those familiar names of deities rolled off Ramastia’s tongue, a long-buried secret of the past in this world was finally unveiled by her.
In other words, the two opposing factions of deities currently attacking one another within and beyond the barrier were once allies fighting side by side?
No wonder Heow said that the deities betrayed them. But what exactly was going on? Could it possibly relate to some precious secret they were fighting over back then?
Wait, precious secret?
This keyword felt like a flash of light striking Fisher’s forehead, causing him to involuntarily associate it with the special characteristics he possessed, and a guess surfaced in his mind.
Could it be that he was related to the treasures connected to the death of that high-dimensional deity regarding the secret of creation that they once fought over?
Fisher was slightly taken aback, cold sweat forming uncontrollably on his forehead. He raised his gaze and looked at Ramastia, questioning, “Could it be that I am the precious item regarding the secret of creation from the high-dimensional deity after his death that you were previously fighting over?”
Ramasita smiled slightly at his words. Fisher thought his guess was correct; his heart stalled for a second, but it seemed he could not explain why when Heow and the Chaotic Being Wadeon saw him they were so unfamiliar—after all, at that time, Ramastia had yet to clarify things with him.
Thus, as Fisher was preparing to frame his next question, Ramasita suddenly shook her head and said, “No, Fisher.
“You are worth far more than that item, a value a thousand billion times beyond.”
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(end of chapter)
