Only God

Veldor was persuaded by Slaier.

He no longer thought about taking Gomu out of the "Netherworld," as that had become impossible.

As the god of deception and trickery had said, Gomu had adapted to life here and was enjoying it; he didn't believe he was still alive, and taking him out of here might have resulted in his refusal.

Furthermore, Slaier had told him that mortals who had stayed in this "Netherworld" would receive compensation when it collapsed.

This compensation was not to be meager.

It included gold and silver, status, estates and manors... more importantly, it included lifespan.

In this world, there were so many things that could be exchanged for lifespan, yet so few things that could actually extend it.

This generous compensation even tempted Veldor.

He believed that if Gomu knew staying in the "Netherworld" meant compensation after its collapse, he would surely want to stay in this place.

Thus, Veldor left Gomu without saying goodbye, believing Gomu too thought he had disappeared.

Slaier personally led Veldor to the edge of the Netherworld. As a divine being, He was certainly not stingy with His generosity, handing Veldor a small bag of gold and silver coins.

Veldor bowed to express his gratitude,

"Praise your generosity."

Slaier shrugged,

"There are far too many generous divines like me in this world.

You mortals might not know, but in the Celestial Kingdom, there are quite a few divines who care little for the Mortal World.

They sometimes roam the Mortal World, doing as they please, rewarding when happy and punishing when not. Regardless of the marks they leave in the Mortal World or the fates they intertwine with, they lightly pick up and lightly put down, everything contingent upon chance encounters."

Veldor thought for a moment, then slowly said:

"That sounds like some hermits seeking inner peace."

Slaier snapped his fingers,

"Exactly.

But to me, that's all an act of cowardice.

Though they carry no burdens, and being pure of heart is their pleasure, they criticize the excess of sacrifices and the divine's overbearing control of believers. Yet in the end, they are just a group of irresponsible, non-committal divines.

They also look coldly on others who experience joy and endure pain, even condemning them. They think they are transcendent, superior, awakened from the mundane world when in reality, they are immersed in a sophisticated joy, oblivious to the blessings they live within."

Slaier, like a verbose literary critic, harangued at length about the divines in front of Veldor, appraising their losses and gains.

Veldor listened, stunned, his mouth opening and closing as if wanting to say something but not knowing what to say.

Thus, he chose silence, and then nodded in agreement.

"Go now, Veldor,

life is too short to be sacrificed for grand causes.

For you, becoming a savior to awaken all these 'dead' would indeed be a monumental task.

It's beyond your reach, so give it up and enjoy returning to your former life!"

Slaier waved his hand, dismissing Veldor while also bidding him farewell.

Thus, Veldor slowly moved away from the town of the dead, taking deep breaths of air; he raised his head and saw the cerulean sky, feeling a great weight lift from his heart.

"I'm finally back…

I wonder how the Priest is doing..."

Veldor muttered as he headed toward the nearest city.

Deep within the Celestial Kingdom,

the Historical Star orbited as it always had according to its established path.

No one knew how long it had been orbiting in this manner.

Perhaps it had been orbiting even before the world was born.

However, perhaps during those billions of years, it had not been as tumultuous as the more recent few tens of thousands of years.

During the Shan'en Era, countless divines joined forces to build the Country of Divines on the Historical Star, right up to War God Saiama being corrupted by the Primordial Will, instigating a global war, until the Primordial Will was sealed within the Historical Star, and then came the descent of Heaven. Following that, led by Dragon God Endora, the divines built the city beneath the city on the star, and finally, Schiller caused the Devil's Palace to rise from the ground.

Since the birth of the People of Logos, the Historical Star had hosted various parasites, the Country of Divines had departed, hovering in the starry sky, the seal of the Primordial Will was already lifted, waiting for the Primordial Embryo to regain power, the city beneath the city lay wasted, like dead flesh, and now, the Devil's city stood anew—who knows if it would be like a war, a gust of wind, an epidemic, vanishing in the lengthy corridors of time.

Schiller's vision for it was eternity.

As long as worldlings exist, the city of the Devil would also exist forever,

because the Devil is the parasite of worldlings and the Scavenger of the world; once created, they are in symbiosis.

Schiller built the Devil's Palace and using the power extracted from the Primordial Will, made the devils materialize.

Great Angel instantly created three thousand three hundred devils.

They were all from those in the world filled with malevolent thoughts, and the names of the devils were the same as those people.

These devils, feeding on malevolent thoughts, burst into frenzied excitement as soon as they were born in the Devil's Palace—

How should one describe this fervor? It wouldn't be accurate to use animals and plants, after all, devils lack a soul; they are the malignant part of what was supposed to be a benevolent spirit.