Chapter 1102
The Thousand-Faced Sophist
“Fate…”
Eivass savored the word, feeling a solemn, heavy power emanating from it. It was as if he were on a dark, uncurtained stage, silently gazed upon by innumerable audience members beyond the veil.
No wonder…
The Ring Heavenly Envoy, tainted by the Void, once wielded the power to reverse the world, rewinding it to his desired state. The power he sought in the future represented the constant nature of change for all things – the Path of Metamorphosis. The Swan King, having almost completely fallen into the Void, commanded the power to script destinies and manipulate the possibilities of all things.
Their commonality lay in their powers relating to “fate.”
From the very beginning, Ai Shiping had been targeted by the “Void!”
From this point, however, Eivass realized an opportunity—
It was the existence of “possibility”!
The “Void,” which did not truly exist, could not be destroyed. But just as it chose the Swan King as its representative and vessel for descent, it had to corrupt a being of Pillar God-tier to truly manifest in this world. It was like a spider, even after liquefying its prey, needing to insert a straw to draw it in.
Thus, according to these rules, the Swan King was merely a “secondary choice;” the primary choice was undoubtedly the Ring Heavenly Envoy!
The Ring Heavenly Envoy’s plan was to flee with the Origin River, an act that negated his own sealing of Amber and his nine rebirths—a “meaningless” endeavor. Therefore, the Ring Heavenly Envoy, helplessly seeking meaning to oppose the Void, was destined to fall into it.
But if he truly descended into the Void Path, it would grant the “Whisper of the Void” a genuine vessel. Upon its arrival, it would possess the “possibility” of being killed or defeated, thus turning this act into a “sacrifice,” which in turn would imbue it with the meaning of the Third Origin River—thereby granting the ability to combat the Void…
This was undoubtedly a BUG!
Eivass could instantly grasp this now. The Ring Heavenly Envoy, with more information, and the Whisper of the Void, as the chess player, naturally knew this as well.
So, who was the one person capable of killing the Ring Heavenly Envoy?
No matter how “fate” changed, how “coincidence” arose, who was the one person who absolutely had to kill the Ring Heavenly Envoy?
Such a person existed in this world, and there was only one.
It was Eivass.
As the Snake Tail, he had to kill the Ring Heavenly Envoy, otherwise, he would surely be devoured and absorbed when the Ring Heavenly Envoy ascended to Pillar God-tier. This was the “fate” between them.
And as long as Eivass lived, the Whisper of the Void would detect the existence of the “possibility” of its own elimination. To put it more clearly… as long as Eivass lived, the Ring Heavenly Envoy would not be completely infected by the Void. Therefore, in terms of timing… before the Ring Heavenly Envoy’s ascension to Pillar God-tier on August 8th, he would by no means be consumed by the Void.
Eivass was not just the Ring Heavenly Envoy’s “Snake Tail”; he was his insurance. He was the life-saving rope tied to his waist when he fell into the abyss to gather herbs.
“The logic behind this so-called ‘Twilight Seed’ is just like a rigid AI…”
Eivass muttered to himself, his tense and heavy mood lightening slightly. “It’s too pure.”
The world-ending disaster he could never forget finally had a clear solution—
At the same time, Eivass was relieved that his “past self” had not degenerated to an unbearable extent.
No wonder the Ring Heavenly Envoy gave birth to Eivass and constantly pressured him, yet did not “seize the opportunity to devour Eivass immediately.” As a “snake,” he was naturally skilled at ambushing, and as Lucifer had said, he was adept at deception and lies. Yet, he had never made a serious move against Eivass… because he also did not wish for Eivass to die prematurely.
The “final plan” hidden within the Ring Heavenly Envoy’s repeatedly failed salvation attempts across his nine rebirths became increasingly clear in Eivass’s mind:
If his plan succeeded, he would ascend to Pillar God-tier, then complete himself, and bring two Origin Rivers to another world. There, he would fuse them into the Origin River of Miracles and return to defeat the Twilight Seed.
Then, this Twilight Seed would have to make a choice: follow the Ring Heavenly Envoy or remain in this world. If it chose to follow the Ring Heavenly Envoy, the Ring Heavenly Envoy would have the possibility of sealing it or carrying it away forever. If it remained in this world, the Ring Heavenly Envoy would have the possibility of success.
— This was exactly Eivass’s favorite “Catch-22”!
By continuously forcing enemies to make choices, one could induce forced errors and seize the initiative.
And the Ring Heavenly Envoy had precisely found the Twilight Seed’s greatest weakness:
— It had only one conscious individual. Or rather, it was one among a vast species.
It could only descend into one vessel at a time. And when a Pillar God broke through, it could only choose one direction to go or stay.
So, even though its followers were constantly being extinguished by the Candlemaster, it was unwilling to descend into the Material Realm to gain new believers. Because that would mean its power would be suppressed by the Hourglass. And it only had one life.
No wonder Father Snake chose to break through the “Wall of Twilight”…
That was not just an infection from the Transcendent Path; it was also an attempt by Father Snake to save the world!
Although it was unknown whether Father Snake died outside or was simply allowed to pass… in any case, his plan to divert the Twilight Seed had surely failed.
And if the Twilight Seed descended upon the Ring Heavenly Envoy prematurely, it would mean the Ring Heavenly Envoy’s plan had failed—Eivass would then have the possibility of destroying the Twilight Seed by killing him. If the Twilight Seed chose to descend upon another Pillar God or Heavenly Envoy, it would have to interfere with the Ring Heavenly Envoy’s plan to “take away two Origin Rivers,” otherwise, if the Ring Heavenly Envoy succeeded, there was still a possibility of him returning to eliminate Eivass.
“…As expected of me.”
Eivass took a deep breath, realizing the snake’s resolve.
But he also realized… this was as dangerous as the “Face-Stealing Plan” in Three-Body Problem.
If there was even the slightest misstep, the Ring Heavenly Envoy’s salvation plan would become a plan for world destruction. As Lord of Scales and Feathers had said, Twilight Seeds were the embers after the destruction of worlds. They had an instinct to expand their existence, thus they would try to destroy other civilizations by having their own civilizations destroyed.
And if the Ring Heavenly Envoy’s plan went awry—if any link in the chain broke, such as failing to take away the Origin Rivers, failing to break through the world, failing to synthesize the Origin River of Miracles, or if Eivass abandoned his hatred for the Ring Heavenly Envoy and willingly sacrificed himself as the Snake Tail to return… then he himself would become a new Twilight Seed, having personally destroyed the world.
“…But even this resembles me a lot.”
Eivass murmured softly.
He saw the scene from his Ascension Ritual in his mind—
As he was about to fall into the demonic cauldron, accompanying a wild and free smile, he held up that third finger high.
[— Question Three: Do you dare to abandon the victory you have already won to pursue a greater victory?]
“…Yes, I dare.”
At this moment, in the Dream Realm, at the focal point.
The Ring Heavenly Envoy held a glass of fizzy, ice-filled cola and gazed at Eivass through the screen, speaking calmly.
He was conversing with Eivass across space.
…Even though Eivass could not hear him at all and had no idea about any of it.
But it didn’t matter.
This time, the Snake Tail could not be easily retrieved. To maintain his humanity, and to prevent the “Whisper of the Void” in his brain from flowing into others’ thoughts through conversation, he had long been accustomed to talking to himself. If he had to converse with others, he would generally do so through his clones or use riddles to hide his true thoughts.
Sometimes, he would fantasize about his friends still being by his side.
Sometimes, he would fantasize about Amber, like a follower, fluttering her wings and staying by his side.
Back then, she was not yet called Amber, nor had she fallen into eternal slumber.
He… it was he who personally buried her, sealed her alive within the forbidden coffin, stripped her of her name, and transformed her into “Amber,” a solidified life. It was only right that she hated him.
Now, looking back out the window, he could only see the dim yellow of frozen time. Perhaps that was Amber still gazing at him…
“…Heh.”
Suddenly, the Ring Heavenly Envoy let out a cold laugh. “This trick won’t work on me.”
His pupils were as indifferent as ice. “Whisperer, Thousand-Faced Sophist… Whisper of the Void, fused to this extent… I have already known all your secrets.
“Infiltrating my mind, silently changing my thoughts. Making me believe that everything I think, everything I ponder, is my own idea…
“—How laughable. Would I not know who I am? I no longer possess those mortal emotions.”
As he spoke, the depths of the Ring Heavenly Envoy’s pupils gradually became tinged with dim yellow.
