Shepherd Tantra

Chapter 1310 The End of the Old Era
At this very moment, in Paradise City.

Sherlock, dressed in a Parthian-style robe, stood by the pool in the center of the city, gazing intently eastward.

Contrary to previous agreements, Sherlock did not manage to escape Paradise City with everyone before the last minute.

His initial plan was simple... the refugees would flee Paradise City in batches, carrying water, heading towards Rock Cellar City. He, meanwhile, would continue to defend the city with the Water Fragment of the Geometry Division.

With him guarding the city, no one will dare to plunder it. Sherlock can also continuously use his magic to provide a constant supply of clean water.

For the first few days, the plan went smoothly. People evacuated in orderly batches, and Sherlock successfully deterred several waves of looters.

But when Sherlock was about to leave, an accident suddenly occurred.

Among those who escaped earlier were either free citizens living on the surface or relatively healthy slaves. But there were simply too many slaves living beneath Paradise City…

Those slaves who had received help had already escaped Paradise City a few days prior, taking resources with them with them. They all tacitly agreed to leave with only a small number of people.

This led to a situation that Sherlock had not anticipated—after all these people had left, a large number of slaves who had never seen the light of day suddenly emerged from the hidden corners of the ground.

Not everyone can trek through the desert for extended periods.

Among these people were either disabled people who had their hands and feet cut off for angering their slave owners but had miraculously survived; or people who had been eroded by curses or diseases, resulting in disfigurement or extreme weakness that rendered them unable to work; and some elderly slaves who had grown so old that they were abandoned by their descendants.

They barely survived on the sewage from the surface dwellers and by scavenging food scraps. Even the other slaves avoided contact with them.

Undoubtedly, their bodies were simply not strong enough to support them through that long, sandy road, and no one else would share their precious resources with them—fearing that after escaping to the new city-state, they would be relentlessly clung to by these "people they had helped by chance."

Although a very few kind-hearted people managed to take one or two people with them when they fled, most of the slaves left these burdens behind when they ran away.

These people barely managed to stay alive thanks to the sacred aura created by the unique prayers of Paradise City. As the other slaves left, they gradually left their dark corners and came into the sunlight, which is how Sherlock discovered them.

If Sherlock hadn't discovered these people, he would have left first.

In that case, he would never have known about it.

By this time, he had probably already led the others to Rock Cellar City and successfully reunited with Isabel. He wouldn't know that so many people were still unable to leave Paradise City.

Now that he knows the truth, Sherlock can no longer pretend he knows nothing and simply abandon these people and leave alone.

Even if these people are merely despised and abandoned, useless individuals lacking both labor capacity and education, unable to create any value, no matter where they die, no one will erect a monument for them or mourn them… Even if they are rescued, in their new city they will still be a burden, unwanted and discarded by everyone…

But Sherlock still couldn't accept their fate of being abandoned.

Many of them don't even have the ability to take care of themselves.

If he were to abandon them, it would be no different from killing them with his own hands—the latter might even make things easier for them.

Moreover, this is not just one or two people... but more than eight thousand people.

So, is it worth killing eight thousand people for your own safety and survival?
Without a doubt—Sherlock could not possibly choose such a possibility.

"—Knowledge is poisonous."

Only then did Sherlock finally understand the phrase that Aiwass often repeated.

The previous Sherlock always dismissed this.

Because he always believed that no matter how painful the knowledge, knowing is always better than not knowing; no matter how unacceptable the truth is, one must always face and accept it personally.

"...It turns out I just haven't experienced it yet."

Sherlock murmured.

Some things, once you know them, you can never forget them.

So he gave up the possibility of survival and chose to accompany these people to face the possible end.

It wasn't that Sherlock would be of any use staying there—he even knew he couldn't change anything. He simply couldn't accept the weakness of running away in the face of such a catastrophe.

Rather than fleeing here and waking up from nightmares every night afterward, it's better to face the waves of the Abyss's arrival head-on until the very end.

Sherlock knew, of course, that this was an irresponsible escape. He was trying to use his death to erase his previous mistakes...

—But there is also a very slim possibility.

That is, Aiwas can defeat Yuantiansi as soon as possible, so that Paradise City will not be submerged by the sea.

If things really go in that direction, then they can all survive; conversely, if he abandons them and runs away, only to find out they have survived unharmed, then Sherlock will have no face to return to see them.

Good thing...

In a sense, that's exactly what happened.

When the water shard in Sherlock's hand suddenly vanished, he immediately realized the gravity of the situation—not only had he lost his power to create water infinitely, but more importantly, it meant the arrival of the Geometry Strategist!
Immediately following were reports of the fall of the Celestial Chieftains and the replacement of the Pillar Gods.

Sherlock had no idea what tricks the fox had up his sleeve this time... but he knew that Aiwass had never let him down.

As expected, Yuan Tiansi was defeated, and even the Geometry Tiansi, who had been summoned at some unknown time, was defeated. Judging from that fox's wicked nature, this was probably his plan to use one enemy to devour another.

Sherlock breathed a sigh of relief, leaning weakly against the sculpture, and murmured softly:

"it is finally over."

"—It's over."

At this very moment, in Rock Cellar City, Ligeia also exclaimed, "The Celestial God is dead, the Pillar God has changed... That kid Aiwass... he's truly remarkable."

Ligeia is next to Isabel.

Unlike Sherlock, her work went exceptionally smoothly.

The harpies held this "only winged being in the world" in extremely high regard.

There was absolutely no sign of their "stubbornness, barbarity, and conservatism." These harpies were as obedient as pet dogs. There was not even any struggle between them, nor did they doubt Ligeia at all; they simply believed everything Ligeia said.

Even among blood relatives, the level of trust would never be this high!

Even after learning that Ligeia had temporarily lost most of her supernatural powers, they not only refrained from imprisoning, detaining, or controlling her, but also escorted her with great concern, working in three shifts with extreme vigilance to ensure that no one could suddenly approach Ligeia.

This racial consciousness is even stronger than the internal identity within the harpy race!

The harpies may attack and bully other harpies, but they have complete trust in Ligeia from their very first encounter.

It's like... although their race has deteriorated due to the fall of the sun, the mark of the winged is still engraved deep in their blood.

Of course, it is possible that the elements Ligeia used to construct her winged body included the part of the Fallen Angels—after all, the Fallen Angels were once the kings of the winged races, so it is normal for them to have a natural ability to lead their people.

Isabel had been calmly gazing out the window without saying a word, and only her suddenly relaxed hands revealed her inner thoughts.

Ligeia looked at Isabel and teased, "What, are you still worried about the boy's safety? I think he'll be fine—he always manages to pull off a miracle. Maybe he's the one who brings miracles."

After all, she had watched Isabel grow up and was now Isabel's most important elder... Compared to Isabel's father, who was now a cat in the palace, and her mother, who had left little impression on her, it was Ligeia, who was Meg back then, who was closer to Isabel and more like an elder.

"I trust him completely."

Isabelle's face, which had been expressionless for a long time, finally revealed that gentle yet firm smile once again.

She gazed at the rising sun in the east, looking at the clear blue sky after the dark clouds had dispersed, and answered intently, "He will be alright... Even if he faces the Celestial God or the Pillar God, he will surely prevail."

"...So confident?"

Ligeia, on the contrary, was somewhat surprised.

"No. This is not confidence."

Isabel turned around and looked at her elder seriously: "I have made up my mind. If Aiwass returns to the Dream World, I will not keep him waiting for long—no matter where he goes, I will come shortly."

"Hey, hey, hey, don't say such unlucky things..."

These words startled Ligeia so much that she almost flew away: "It would be terrible if the child heard that—"

She hadn't expected that the soft, cuddly little princess of yesteryear would, in less than a year, become a queen who could say "I'll be right there" without batting an eye. "...Truly remarkable," Ligeia could only manage to distract Isabel, genuinely afraid that Isabel might misunderstand and slit her own throat without a word. "Although when I first met Aiwass, I knew that child would amount to something. But who could have imagined that before your child was even born, he would already have grown to the point where he could challenge the pillar gods..."

"The way of unity is always better than the way of war."

Isabel asked softly, "Are you still feeling unwell?"

"Haha, everything's fine now!"

Ligeia laughed heartily, "Although I don't know who the new pillar god is, he seems to be quite kind. The Crimson Calamity invited me before, but I refused. So the red dragon directly erased the power that the Crown Lord had given me."

Not long ago, Ligeia's proud Dragon Blood Laws were sealed by the Red Dragon.

Now, with the red dragon's rule collapsing once again and a new pillar god taking the throne, Ligeia is surprised to find that... her Dragon Blood Command Seals have not only been restored, but have even become more powerful!

"Therefore, I believe that the Crowned Lord may not be dead yet. And he must have some kind of connection with the new Pillar God..."

Just as Ligeia was chatting with the smiling Isabel, Lily also felt that she was finally about to give up.

From the moment Gray Sky Chief died, the Gray Hole was about to collapse.

But Lily realized that the battle was probably not over yet—the battle had only just begun when Gray Sky's domain collapsed.

If they were released at this time... those Red Hand members would probably drown immediately.

Lily is not a good person like Sherlock or Isabel.

As the "Child of the Beast," she harbors an almost instinctive urge to kill—the more bloodthirsty and cruel, the more excited she becomes. From any perspective, this doesn't seem like the talent of a good person…

Normally, Lily always uses loyalty and elegance as a mask to conceal her inner shock and loss of composure.

If Aiwas hadn't changed Lily, hadn't taken her to and from school, and hadn't been wanted and hunted down by her father, Lily might now be a notorious serial killer with countless lives and cases on her hands.

She wasn't afraid of killing—besides, she hadn't killed anyone herself.

However, Lily was afraid of failure.

Lily now acknowledges her own despicable nature.

When Aiwas sat in the wheelchair, she felt a surge of joy. Because Aiwas finally had someone who needed her help… that feeling of being needed was incredibly comforting. As long as she could protect Aiwas, she had a reason to exist.

But when Aiwass stood up from her wheelchair, she felt a sense of loss.

Lily realized then that she might be abandoned by her master because she wasn't anything special... until she studied the tantric texts and became a legitimate superhuman.

She can finally help her master!

—But Lily soon realized that Aiwass still didn't need her.

He was so intelligent that he always achieved twice the results with half the effort. The efforts of others simply couldn't keep up with him. This led him to always be at the forefront, scouting ahead and securing various resources for others to use.

Thanks to Aiwass's gift, Lily was allowed to study and became a superhuman; she also resolved the remaining Gray Celestial within her, uncovered various secrets about the Celestials, and split off another self to deal with her murderous impulses...

What about the other way around?
What can she do to help Aiwas?
The most satisfying thing she did was during her time in the Theocracy—when Aiwass became Pope and controlled the Theocracy, she was the assassin who eliminated dissidents, causing rivers of blood to flow; and soon after that, there was nothing she could do to help Aiwass anymore.

She was called a bodyguard, but she wasn't really needed for fighting; she was called a maid, but Aiwass wasn't the type to need serving, and he disliked trouble. Aiwass was always giving, but rarely asked for anything in return… and this personality made Lily somewhat uneasy. Ironically, her alter ego always seemed to get along well with Aiwass—which only fueled her jealousy.

Now, Aiwass finally needs her help again.

Even if she had to grit her teeth and bear it, she didn't want the gray hole to break prematurely, causing everyone to die in the aftershocks... or to become a "burden" affecting Aiwas's condition!
She was once a Gray Sky Division officer too!
Now that Gray Sky Chief has fallen, let her continue to maintain Gray Hole!
As an adaptor, as long as Lily wholeheartedly recalls the feeling of when the part of her that was invaded by Gray Sky was taken away... she can still "find back" this posture that she had deleted!
"Sister! Come on!"

Several teenage Red Hand gang members were shouting.

Most of them didn't understand what Lily was doing at all. However, this didn't stop the Red Hand members from instinctively realizing that Lily wanted to protect them... but all they could do at that moment was cheer her on.

Upon hearing the encouragement, Lily immediately perked up.

She herself didn't even know how long she had endured in the gray hole where there was no day or night—she was simply squeezing out wisps of the remnants of the Gray Celestials from her body, constantly transforming her magic into the unique ripples and rhythms of the Gray Celestials. Gradually, she could no longer hear any sounds outside... and then she gritted her teeth and persevered for a long time... before finally giving in and letting the gray hole shatter naturally.

Lily looked up, somewhat bewildered.

It was already dark.

Aiwas stood beside her, and beside him stood the snake-man priest, the dragon in human form, the goblin merchant, and other dignitaries of Holy Spring City—they all stood bowing and scraping beside Aiwas, almost kneeling on the ground.

Seven hours had passed outside.

"You've been holding your breath for quite a while now."

Aiwas looked Lily up and down, barely able to contain himself.

He had been waiting outside for a very long time, but he didn't expect Lily to be so desperate this time... she even fainted, but she was still maintaining the gray hole.

"...It's really good."

Aiwass sighed, "You've worked so hard, Lily. To forcibly control the Celestial Bureau's domain with the body of a mortal... it's truly remarkable that you could do that."

"……Um."

Lily could only nod reluctantly.

Her magic was completely exhausted, and she felt a splitting headache as soon as she moved her head.

But because she was being worshipped as a hero by the children behind her, she managed to stand up straight and maintain her composure and demeanor.

Of course, if it weren't for the halo-weary, seemingly divine Aiwas standing before them with a group of repulsive yet fearsome upper-class people, they might have celebrated their survival with Lily.

but……

Another question arose in Lily's mind.

What's Aiwas doing here? Waiting for her?
Does that mean if she keeps holding on, Aiwass will never leave?
And Aiwass understood Lily's doubts.

He simply smiled and looked at the Red Hand gang.

They didn't know who Aiwass was, nor did they know about the fall of the Pillar Gods and Celestials... They only instinctively realized that Aiwass was not someone to be trifled with. This was also the instinct to survive in the Resting Place.

"People always say that I have the power of miracles. But I think, if I really have any power of miracles... then I have to show a miracle first."

Aiwass said with a smile, "So, I have some things I want to show you, things I want you to witness. For example—turning a desert into an oasis. It would be a shame to miss this, wouldn't it?"

Actually, at this point, there is a question that remains a mystery.

Aiwas's body was constructed from fragments of the Geometry Celestial, while the fragments of the Arcane Celestial were still in his possession. The fragments of the Rider Celestial fused with Helechin, and the fragments of the Gray Celestial fused with Don Quixote...

Then comes the problem.

—Where are the fragments of the Celestial Bureau from the Abyss Celestial Bureau?

Aiwass originally thought that it might have been shattered or perhaps fallen into the dream world.

But now, Aiwass has found the standard answer to this question.

Because Yuan Tiansi was not actually completely killed by Aiwas in the end—He had transformed into the information entity Sin Thorn. After that, Aiwas decompressed Sin Thorn and reconstructed the Yin-Yang Balance Body using fragments of the Geometry Celestial... and the material used at that time was Sin Thorn, which was transformed from the information-state Yuan Tiansi.

In other words.

The fragments of the Celestial Bureau from the Abyss may have already merged into Aiwas's body.

Aiwas's current artificial body can actually contain Sinthorn.

Then, if Yuan Tiansi can do it... there's no reason why Aiwas can't.

If he were to reveal his true form as a Great Sinner, in his Dawn state, he could still wield the authority of the Geometry Celestials' "Four Elemental Domains"! And as a Sinner Beast, Aiwass could also extract the Sin Thorns from the earth and store them within his own body!
Since the essence of the Sin Thorn is a portable hard drive, why not directly import the data into Aiwas's body, which has a huge storage capacity?
In this way, there won't be any "elder brothers' ashes" that need constant watering, right?
Reclaim the sinful thorns, create water, control the water...

If these forces are combined—

"—Perhaps the era of the ancient Parthian Kingdom is about to end."

(End of this chapter)