Chapter 1112
Hengwo also fell in love with the Beast Lord
“So that’s how it is…”
Eivass was touched: “To actively pull out claws and teeth, thereby igniting the fire of civilization…”
It wasn’t about accepting restraint, but about actively discarding power.
Choosing peace over hegemony.
That was not weakness, nor surrender… but unparalleled confidence. It was the confidence that if the situation changed, they could awaken again. Because the Nation of Devotion, from its inception, was the core of “civilization.”
At that moment, Eivass felt as if a tide was surging in his heart—he heard the sound of waves.
As if a river, shimmering with countless radiance, gushed forth in his heart, appearing before him.
In that transparent river, shimmering with golden radiance like glazed glass, were the wishes of all living beings. Countless golden runes flowed upstream, swirling upwards with low chants and dazzling radiance.
And above that river, like a mirage, the great achievements of civilization appeared—giant buildings, sturdy castles, farmers tilling fields, roaring machines…
It seemed that as long as Eivass wished, he could step forward and immerse himself in it.
“…Eivass,” Isabel said softly beside him, “I think… you don’t need to walk this path.
“You are not an Elf; humans are not children of devotion. You are descendants of love and transcendence… How can someone who doesn’t love themselves love this world? You also don’t need to devote yourself to others… You need to take care of yourself first.”
For some reason, Isabel suddenly felt a strong sense of fear.
It was as if if she didn’t stop Eivass at this moment, she would never see him again.
She had had a similar feeling once… that was the day her father left without a word.
“Ah… I know.”
Eivass woke up from his contemplation, and the illusion of the river vanished.
He nodded slightly, “Don’t worry, Isabel… If it were six months ago, perhaps I would have been shocked by the Elves’ resolve to burn themselves. But I am no longer lost now.
“I will not walk the path of pure devotion. Although the Candlemaster has given me these antlers… if I only walk the path others have taken, I cannot open up future possibilities.
“What I need to consider is not ‘civilization,’ but ‘hope.’ In its presence, I will always remain humble… and always confident and proud. Only by believing in the birth of miracles and the existence of possibilities can we break through fate.”
At this point, Eivass looked at Haibasha and revealed that secret—the secret that was not a secret to many.
“Only by borrowing the power of two Origin Rivers can we achieve the miracle of eleven… and break through the sacred number of ten, the prison of the void.
“That is a desperate power that can wear down even the Pillar Gods—the reason we don’t feel it is because Hengwo and Amber endured this suffering for us.”
…Is that so.
Haibasha and Sherlock, who had witnessed all this… these Extraordinary beings of the Path of Wisdom, now fully understood: Eivass’s unspoken words meant he was abandoning his potential on the Path of Devotion.
As the Child of the Candlemaster, Eivass could easily become a Heavenly Envoy of the Path of Devotion if he wished. It was even possible for him to inherit the position of Candlemaster and become a Pillar God.
But Eivass unhesitatingly rejected such a possibility.
It wasn’t that he didn’t know the truth or didn’t cherish it.
Even after Haibasha gave him the opportunity and inspiration, and fully explained the Church’s thoughts and choices back then, he still refused the chance to align his thoughts with the Origin River of Civilization.
If it were someone else, Haibasha would only think them foolish—even though aligning with the Origin River would result in the loss of many possibilities, only the present was real, and the future was merely an unattainable illusion.
But if it were Eivass… Haibasha was willing to believe in his possibilities. Believe that everything he said was true.
After all, he had saved her daughter and accomplished an almost impossible feat…
In a trance, Haibasha recalled what Hengwo had said to her… to Hengwo’s past friends, when she became the Moon Angel and completely abandoned everything before becoming Hengwo:
“—The First Pillar has already fallen into the abyss, destined for hopelessness.
“Just like the scenes of the past, the sun fell, and all beasts were born.
“Everyone says monsters are rampant and out of control, but who knows that this is also the path of creation?
“The bestiality struggling in darkness and pain is still better than the void that buries everything. But I think… there is another way for the world.”
At that time, they all didn’t know the meaning of Hengwo’s words, only thinking that it was her pity for the Beast Lord as the Beast Lord’s apostle. Even after they all became apostles, they never had the chance to reunite. It was even less likely that they would know what secret Hengwo had learned at that time.
Back then, the Beast Lord fell in love with Hengwo and voluntarily transferred the Pillar God position to her apostle… At first, they all thought it was Hengwo’s scheme to seize the Beast Lord’s powers. By doing so, she would end the monster disaster and bring peace to this barren land.
…But thinking about it now, how could the love that gave birth to the Path of Love only come from the Beast Lord?
Hengwo’s love was not fake—she truly fell in love with the Beast Lord.
It was just that they couldn’t accept it back then… How could their pure and noble Moon Goddess fall in love with an unspeakable beast?
Now, Haibasha belatedly realized some of the truth.
The First Origin River was destined for hopelessness… If the numerical count of the Origin River had to reach eleven to achieve “miracle,” then the First Origin River could never reach a miracle. Because there was no Tenth Origin River in this world.
Therefore, whether it was the Path of the Sun, the Path of the Beast, or the Path of Love… they were all destined for hopelessness.
This was a path of certain death.
…Perhaps this was why Hengwo fell in love with the Beast Lord.
And perhaps because of this… the Beast Lord had been reluctant to retreat, and instead tried to regain control of the Path Power. Perhaps He was not trying to seize power, but out of love… because He could not bear for Hengwo to endure everything alone.
“…But if that is a disaster that even Pillar Gods cannot resist…”
Krokses murmured, “Then how can mortals…”
She looked at Eivass, her pupils filled with half admiration and half horror.
—At this very moment, Krokses felt as if she understood Hengwo.
That was indeed the successor of the Sun, a dazzling and piercing radiance. Eivass possessed no holy light, yet he was more dazzling than the Paladins around him.
“Don Quixote is the embodiment of my will. Just like the first card of the Tarot, ‘The Fool’… even if there is a cliff, I will step forward.”
Eivass said softly.
He looked at Don Quixote.
Without a word, Don Quixote understood his lord’s thoughts.
The giant silver-white Paladin dissipated with radiance, leaving only a greatsword.
This sword, floating in the air, was Don Quixote’s traveling form.
It was as outrageous as Alistair—Alistair was in the form of the Child of the Moon, while Don Quixote was reduced to just a sword. Although it could float and follow Eivass, Eivass still needed to wield the sword himself to fight normally.
It floated in the air, but suddenly spoke, sounding even more talkative than in its knight form, “Even if only this remnant remains, my lord—I will protect you!”
“I also need your protection, my loyal knight.”
Eivass said gladly.
With Don Quixote’s assistance, the shortcomings of Eivass’s team were preliminarily addressed. He was more confident in defeating the Blood Heavenly Envoy.
—Now, only the final step remained.
He just needed to ask Hengwo about her attitude towards the Blood Heavenly Envoy… As long as Hengwo did not refuse, Eivass would have countermeasures for the Blood Heavenly Envoy’s most troublesome abilities.
This was Intelligence Eivass! If he could lose, it meant he didn’t have enough information.
He remembered the name of the Cardinal who served as Hengwo’s vessel. She had been close to Cardinal Galatea, who was descending as a Twin Mirror, leaving a deep impression on Eivass.
As soon as Eivass arrived at the Church, he had already made an appointment with that Cardinal through Pure White.
The Eternal Pope could know everything happening in the Church at any time, so Eivass only needed to speak to empty air.
Her name was Hecate.
