Shepherd Tantra

Chapter 1347 I Will Illuminate the Earth
Looking at the headless yet immortal "nothingness," Aiwass felt no fear, but rather a strange sense of peace.

—It's just like Yuan Tiansi.

This thought suddenly flashed through Aiwass's mind.

Now, having lost its head, which symbolizes rationality, the remaining body of the "Circular Astronaut" has completely broken free from the instinctive constraints of the Circular Astronaut, evolving into a new independent entity and becoming true nothingness.

This scene... Aiwass had seen before.

After losing the "obsession" represented by Lingbo Tiansi, Dayuan completely transformed into an irrational monster and obtained a pseudo-head!

Since Aiwas had previously defeated Yuan Tiansi, he would have an advantage in the fight against the Void.

After all, everything "now" is a replay of the past.

What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again—this is the essence of ritual.

By using symbols to obtain approximate concepts, one can overcome the strong with the weak and accomplish the incredible...

—This is the miracle brought about by the father of the snake!
Without a doubt, the scene before us is part of the plan devised by the Celestial Division.

That past "self" foresaw everything—it foresaw that its mind would be taken away by nothingness, that it would attack Aiwass, and that its head would be severed by Aiwass with the Death of Desolation... After all, as the "material" for the Death of Desolation, the Winter Demon had only come into contact with Aiwass under the guidance of Anna Sprenger, an apostle of the Celestial Bureau.

He also foresaw that nothingness would take this opportunity to try to break free from its suppression.

To date, all the abilities used by the "Circle Celestial" have originated from the Circle Celestial himself. And although his power is already incredibly terrifying, it is clearly restrained... This is precisely because the residual consciousness of the Circle Celestial is still suppressing the whispers of the void.

And sure enough, "Nothingness" took this opportunity to sever the head!
In this way, it became the "Great Abyss"!
—I became "another fallen version of myself" who had been defeated by Aiwass once before!
Judging from its reaction to nothingness, it was clearly unaware of this.

The spirits of the Celestial Strategist and the Whispers of the Void are always linked, so even when the Celestial Strategist is thinking seriously in his mind, the Void can overhear him.

Therefore, He cannot even think about it!

How can one devise a plan with a slim chance of survival and no turning back, when one cannot fully think in one's mind or leave any written record?

Aiwass couldn't even imagine what kind of torment that other version of himself had suffered.

With no one to confide in, he sacrifices his beloved, betrays and steals his closest friend who trusted him implicitly, leading him to ruin. He feels his friend's hatred, the wariness and murderous intent of his other self. He buries himself in his heart, unable to reveal the slightest weakness, unable to even believe any thought that arises in his mind, and unable to contemplate any plans...

This process continued for 100,000 years.

He was willing to give his life, burning to ashes—all to gamble on a "possibility" for which he knew not even the future.

The astronomical observatory may have already gone mad.

Only a true madman could use his own body as a cage to imprison the void through ten lifetimes of reincarnation.

I accept your decision...

Having just undergone the final ascension ceremony and inherited Ai Shiping's last remaining memories and power, Ai Huas gazed at the headless god, who had completely vanished into nothingness, with unwavering determination.

“Ahahahahahahahahahaha!”

The void that had discarded the head of the Celestial Chieftain emitted a wild, almost insane laugh.

"Finally, finally! This is my miracle, thank you!"

Having escaped from that cage of flesh and blood, it looked so joyful: "Thank you with a thousand words!"

As those millions of voices rang out simultaneously, its body began to mutate.

Snake-like worms crawled out from beneath the pale skin, instantly turning the once handsome and strong body of the Celestial Chief into tattered remains—the pale color resembled that of a corpse, as if the body had long since died.

The worms looked like black holes or galaxies.

Through those worms, it was as if one could see the colors of the universe—as if the world before one's eyes were merely a single layer, beneath which lay the vastness of the cosmos. Wherever they crawled, it was as if the layer of "reality" was erased.

The tracks left by the worms transformed into mouths. From these mouths grew flowers, and the petals became human faces displaying a variety of emotions.

"The Whisperer, the Thousand-Faced Sophist, the Whisper of the Void..."

"Nothingness" slowly spoke, uttering a thousand different voices: "Many people call 'us' by different names. But few know our true nature."

Do you know how we became the Twilight Seed?

It asked itself a question, and then answered itself: "Our earliest civilization was not much more advanced than your ancestors. We didn't even invent the technology for faster-than-light travel... which has trapped us on Earth."

"Yes, Earth. We are brothers and sisters from different fathers and mothers—"

It was so lonely.

It wasn't just the Celestial Observer who was imprisoned. Nothingness was also trapped in this body, spending 100,000 years of imprisonment with the Celestial Observer.

Its noise nearly drove the astronomical observatory mad, while its silence and refusal to communicate also nearly drove it mad.

Even as a Twilight Species, it is still an intelligent life form. Moreover, it is a higher-dimensional, intelligent life form—it merely came to devour the civilization of this backward planet, yet was captured and forcibly imprisoned by the natives for 100,000 years. Perhaps from the perspective of "nothingness," this is simply a disgrace.

Aiwas then pulled out a horn and blew it loudly.

That was a horn made from a unicorn's horn, called an "Olivant".

All who hear this horn must not flee the battlefield; and those allied who hear it will gain "immortality even in death." This immortality isn't very strong, and the Void has no intention of fleeing, so it doesn't care about Aiwass's actions, simply saying to itself: "You also come from another Earth, you should understand—"

"When humanity loses hope, it degenerates. Our civilization gradually deteriorates and falls apart. People's morality crosses the line, and everyone hates everyone else. Ultimately, we all crave an equal war to destroy everyone."

When "mutual destruction" becomes the collective's aspiration, the arguments of a few sober individuals become so powerless.

"Those who first pray for peace are the first to die. The pure become corrupt, the kind become evil. Hatred breeds hatred, greed begets greed—do you know what kind of world this will be? You must know, Aiwass, because you understand humanity."

"Finally, people began to use forbidden magic. They even used the souls of the dead as fuel… not to keep more people alive, but to kill more people. The madmen finally began to fear war… but then, an accident occurred…"

"The first 'me' was born."

"Aivas, if it were you, would you accept it? You were sold as a child, used while alive, your meaningless life was spent killing more meaningless people. And after you die, your soul is loaded into weapons to destroy more meaningless lives—and at that time, people decide to make peace."

"What kind of good deal is that? If we're going to die, we'll die together. Isn't that what we said from the beginning?"

At this point, Nothingness let out a malicious laugh: "How could you... have forgotten?"
"Therefore, it is no longer the living who want to kill everyone, but the dead. It is all those who perished in this purposeless and meaningless war—no one wants to accept their own foolish death, yet in exchange for the happiness and rebirth of those who hurt them and those they hate."

"then……

"And then the war started again."

The whispers of the dead quietly rewrote people's will.

The original weapon has come to control the person wielding it.

Just one betrayal at a crucial moment has once again destroyed the previously peaceful consensus.

Trust between people is so fragile that a moment of impulse can destroy everything. When everyone distrusts each other, civilization is already dead in name only.

"—Finally, only one person remained on this land. And after we revealed everything to him… guess what his final choice was?"

However, Aiwass showed no reaction to the inquiries from the whispers of the void, which seemed to find them quite interesting.

Aiwass did not respond... he did not engage in even a single conversation with the whispers of the void.

He simply raised the scythe in his hand and unleashed an invisible blade of energy towards the whispers of the void!
At the same time, Don Quixote quietly appeared in front of Ivy.

He also knew the horror of nothingness, so he remained silent.

But just as he raised his sword, the whisper of the void, which had completely lost its human form, calmly reached out.

Thousands of non-existent hands gripped Don Quixote tightly.

Don Quixote's movements were tightly controlled—even raising his sword became incredibly difficult for him.

But those things that control him clearly "don't exist"!
Since there is no "hand" controlling him, it is impossible to even cut it off!
That was pure "nothingness".

Upon seeing Don Quixote being overwhelmed by overwhelming power the moment he appeared, the Whisper of the Void let out another maniacal laugh.

"Don't you feel even the slightest bit ashamed?"

“Raise your sword, those who harm others…”

"He's nothing but an executioner!"

"Woooo..."

Among those thousand faces, some questioned, and some angrily denounced.

Some felt pity, while others roared in anger.

Some people cried, some people laughed.

Don Quixote was drenched in sweat.

He was doing everything he could to control his body... not even to control it to attack "nothingness," but to prevent it from turning back to attack Aiwass!
At that moment, the "corpses of the Celestials" resurrected by Aleister launched an attack!
A purplish-black ring suddenly struck the Whisper in the void, instantly blasting it away. But the next moment, it reappeared in the same spot as if by illusion. Then it was crushed by a second ring, only to be restored to its original state.

It vanished from its spot in an instant, and reappeared beside Aiwass as it dodged the third Ouroboros.

Aiwass swung his scythe at it—but Void merely reached out and casually swiped, and the scythe broke in two the instant it struck Void's arm!
When it breaks, the blade instantly rusts, and all its extraordinary brilliance is extinguished.

Aiwas then summoned the Thunderstrike Halberd, which he wasn't very good at using—but it was instantly destroyed by the power of the void's "negation" in the next moment.

"—It's useless. This kind of thing is meaningless."

As he spoke casually, he reached out and touched Aiwass again.

Don Quixote was suddenly torn in two by an invisible force—it was as Aiwas's substitute, taking the fatal attack!
Before Don Quixote could be summoned back by Aiwass, Nothingness pointed at Aiwass again.

In an instant, Aiwas was sent flying as if he had been hit by a dump truck!

That was a force that did not exist at all, and therefore it was completely impossible to resist.

wrong!

Aiwass suddenly realized something.

That seems to be it—

"That was the attack that killed you. But it killed your past life."

As he casually remarked, Aiwass, whose body was shattered, reappeared in the same spot with another attack: "Aren't you curious about how you came to this world?"

"Let's talk, shall we? You don't have to stay silent, and you don't have to sacrifice yourself for this world, do you?"
"Don't forget... you weren't originally from this world."

"You came into this world because of a conspiracy, didn't you? Using death as a transition to enter the River of Dreams... So the person who sent you here to save the world is the same person who killed you, isn't he? Did he ask you before sending you here? Shouldn't the person who killed you be your enemy?"

"Since it's what your enemy wants to do, why do you let him succeed?"

The whisper of the void coaxed, "You agree, don't you, Aiwass? What's the difference between being used by him and being used by us?"

"At least... we won't cause you pain, isn't that enough?"

At that moment, the gate to the Ouroboros opened from behind Aiwass.

A purplish-black sphere emerged from it and silently struck Aiwass.

In that instant, Aiwass felt time stretch out infinitely. He only managed to summon Don Quixote again before losing consciousness.

He felt as if he had returned to his childhood.

He forgot everything.

No longer burdened with the mission of saving the world, no longer the savior of ten reincarnations. No longer the miracle master who carries the hopes of all... but just a child.

He was just wearing a white tank top and thin shorts, laughing as he ran around aimlessly in the house.

"Let's play Contra!"

The father's clear voice came from inside the house: "Thirty lives! You can't even press the proper hand seals!"

"No! I'm going to watch Grandpa fish!"

The child shouted, his shoes clattering as he dashed off.

"Ouch! Slow down! What if you fall?"

The mother called from the kitchen, "Come home early tonight. I've made some stewed pig's trotters. Don't get carried away!"

When they reached the riverbank, the child skipped over to the old man, his eyes sparkling as he watched him fish. The other old men nearby laughed and teased him as they saw him.

"Did you catch any fish?"

The child's eyes sparkled, and he looked as cunning as a little fox.

The old man chuckled, patted his head, and pulled him into his arms, rubbing his skull.

"Oh dear, my darling grandson, you're going to kill me... How about a game of chess? Grandpa's giving you a pair of bishops!"

As the old man spoke, a chess table appeared beside him without his noticing.

"Let me cross the car!"

"You know, ten sons in one cart? You greedy little brat..."

That's what they said, but the old man still took away a car and a camera.

—If only things could stay like this forever.

This thought suddenly popped into his mind.

But just then, a hand suddenly landed on his shoulder.

The child was startled and turned around to look.

But then she saw a somewhat unfamiliar man standing behind her.

Those exceptionally defined features made him look like a foreigner…

Her long, wavy, jet-black hair was neatly draped over her shoulders, and her dark green eyes were dull and weary.

He was wearing a long, wide, gray-white trench coat, and his stubble was somewhat unshaven.

"Sir, may I borrow this child?"

He bowed slightly and politely asked the old man, "Many of us are waiting for him."

The old man, reacting instinctively, grabbed the child and shielded him behind him, glaring and bristling, ready to exchange blows with the man: "What are you doing? Trying to snatch a child in broad daylight?"

But at that moment, the child stared at the man, his pupils gradually trembling.

His pupils became clearer, as if he had remembered something.

Before anyone knew it, that child, who was only four or five years old, had grown into someone who looked eighteen or nineteen, or even in their early twenties.

It doesn't look like Aiwass or Huan Tiansi, but rather something in between.

He has a scholarly air about him, and his squinting eyes suggest a kind and gentle personality. He's the kind of student who's very popular and well-liked.

"Grandpa, this is my friend."

He suddenly spoke up, "I have to go."

Looking back at the boy who had grown into a teenager, the old man was not surprised, but simply sighed.

"Will you come back when you're dark? Your mom made braised pig's trotters... they're so tender and fragrant."

"...I'm not coming back."

The black-haired boy, who had been squinting, suddenly choked up.

He was relatively calm when he said the first word, "no," but when he said the last word, his voice broke into a sob, and he couldn't speak anymore. However, because he was nearsighted, he subconsciously squinted, so you couldn't see his teary eyes.

"Then..."

The old man smiled helplessly, looked at Don Quixote, and spoke in slightly accented Mandarin: "Please take good care of him, young man. The child usually likes soft food... Don't let him eat too much cold food. His stomach isn't good and he can't handle it."

"Understood, sir."

Don Quixote nodded politely and gently put his arm around Aiwass's shoulder.

next moment.

Nothingness strolled leisurely toward Aiwass.

Don Quixote, summoned once more, was torn apart by the void once more... but he managed to hold on for a while longer.

Suddenly, a storm of shadows erupted from Aiwas, who had been motionless with his eyes slightly closed.

That's the "Shadow Cloak"!
The power of shadow suddenly exploded, and Aiwas vanished from his spot in an instant.

The next moment, forty-nine floating cannons, imbued with the will of warriors and carrying with them storms and thunder, simultaneously appeared in mid-air.

As the power of the Shadow Cloaks spread, they launched their attacks simultaneously and in unison—

Forty-nine storms, imbued with divine power, descended simultaneously at an unimaginable speed!
Before his resistance was stripped away by Paradise Lost, this attack would not have harmed him in the slightest; if the Celestial Chief himself used this body, the endless vitality would not have made him afraid.

However, when nothingness takes over this body, its concept of "infinity" is weakened. A large part of it is transformed into its power of "meaninglessness," which negates everything.

This attack truly harmed the void.

Immediately afterwards, the four ice-covered Celestial Division clones also launched a continuous attack on it—each attack triggered forty-nine layers of pursuit, and the void was instantly overwhelmed by this attack from all directions, which was impossible to dodge or defend against!

"It seems Huanhuan didn't tell you..."

Aiwas's voice, filled with murderous intent and determination, rang out in the air: "What does it mean to become a hideous monster in the second stage—"

"—Helchen!"

The giant mech that emerged after devouring forty-nine floating cannons fired a beam of light the moment it appeared.

The beam of light struck Void heavily. This powerful blow, capable of instantly destroying the body of the Avatar, was too much for Void, who had lost the protection of Infinite Power.

This blow truly dealt a severe blow to the Void.

It cried out in pain, uttering curses, swears, shouts, and wails.

Void forcibly withstood the attack and opened its mouth, roaring out a black light cannon containing the power of nothingness, capable of erasing everything.

Like a rift in the universe, it instantly swallowed the light cannon fired by Helchin and then swallowed it up towards Helchin himself!

However, just before he was about to be annihilated, Helchin vanished instantly.

This sevenfold power boost was entirely inherited by the last of the Great Sin Beasts.

——Lea of ​​the Great Sun!

The final beast awakened by Aiwass.

It was also the first large beast he obtained.

His upper body, a symbol of the sun...

As Leah was summoned and manifested, the Furnace of Fusion was also activated.

As Aiwas's body was overloaded once again, his strongest attack was finally ready—

The attack that Helchin was directly swallowed up earlier foreshadowed Aiwas's failed judgment.

And through this, the unique characteristics of the Path of the Transcendent Serpent are also activated—

【Serpent of Transcendence (Gold): When you fight an enemy of a higher level and fail, you gain an additional +2 Priority (Divinity) on your next assessment.】

Immediately afterwards, Aiwass activated the Secret Technique of Dawnfire.

He then used three times the magical power to unleash a powerful yin-yang harmonizing spell.

At the same time, Aiwass activated the newly acquired power of "miracles".

Aiwass summoned the Book of Law in his hand, and a card as dazzling as the sun appeared in the air.

Upright Summoning -

Lia flew into the sky, and the power she had been gathering exploded completely.

"—Light shines upon all living beings!"

The next moment, the sun, which had been shrouded in darkness, shone brightly.

It is not a description.

It was not merely a fleeting, illusory, dazzling light.

But it was true, "the sun rose"—

A miracle occurred.

In the sky, which was now just a black hole, a brand new sun appeared!

Endless light spread throughout the world in an instant, washing away the despair and fear in people's hearts and causing everyone to instinctively look up at the sky.

At that moment, everyone in the world felt an unparalleled silence, their hearts were dispelled of gloom, and endless prayers for "hope" filled their hearts.

And in their gaze, light shone in the eyes of countless people.

The light then reflected onto the "mirror".

Under the power of the Twin Mirrors, light shone through every corner of this land and this world.

The sky, the ocean, the lakes, the gems—every mirror that could reflect light shone with unparalleled brilliance!
"—Dawn is just around the corner!"

Soaring high in the sky, with the halo behind him perfectly overlapping with the sun, Aiwass proclaimed loudly: "I will illuminate the earth!"

(End of this chapter)