The Demon King is unfathomable

Chapter 386 The ancient god is dead, a new god shall rise!
"The ancient gods are dead."

"Call me Colin."

That majestic yet calm voice was like an invisible giant hammer, smashing the idol named "Merck" in Jon's heart.

He first felt a sense of loss and disorientation, as if the exploration of the past year had lost its meaning.

However, this sense of loss did not last long and was soon replaced by a wave of fervor that swept through her body.

The ancient gods are dead.

A new god shall be established!

The boundless void did not abandon the Greys, but rather, in the dark years, it completed the transition from the old to the new, and forged a new legend.

What a blessing!

I was the sole witness to this great moment!
Just as he was overwhelmed with excitement, the whisper from the depths of his being echoed clearly in his mind once again.

"May I have your name."

“Jon! My name is Jon.”

Jon called out in his heart, his voice filled with joy, like a lost child who had found his way home.

"My Lord! Please forgive my negligence! I was just... too excited! We haven't heard Your voice for so long!"

The voice from the unseen realm answered him again, carrying a hint of comfort and approval.

“Jon, that’s a good name. You don’t need to feel guilty. Getting lost is a setback that all toddlers have to go through. I’m glad that you found your way home instead of getting lost in the bustling material world.”

Jon's face was flushed with excitement, and he was momentarily speechless. Just then, the whispered voice from the depths of his being continued to echo in his mind.

"That's enough of the pleasantries. Now... let me see where you've all gone."

“Yes, my lord!” Jon nodded excitedly, but quickly rubbed his hands awkwardly and continued, “Forgive your servant’s ignorance, but how can I guide you and bring your gaze to this lost land?”

“That’s easy,” Colin’s voice came again, with a hint of guidance. “Just let the power of the void reside in a sacred object that houses your powerful mental energy. Remember, this thing must be your most precious possession.”

The most precious thing?
Jon subconsciously looked around his abandoned and dilapidated room, which contained nothing but garbage scattered on the floor and a musty mattress.

He scratched his head for a long time, and finally reached out his trembling hand to gently grasp the metal pendant tied to his chest with a leather cord.

That was his father's only possession.

In this cold world, he no longer has any relatives.

In comparison, the prophet Kyle, who once stirred up a monstrous wave, was much luckier than him, at least he had a younger brother whom he had to protect with his life.

"What should I do?" Jon took a deep breath, prepared to sacrifice everything, and responded to the voice from the void with unprecedented determination.

The newborn god gazed upon him, his voice as light as a feather falling from the sky.

"It's very simple. Place it in the center of the ritual circle. Then call my name, pray to me, and ask my will to descend upon this land."

Is that all?
Jon was surprised, but he did not hesitate.

He gently untied the metal pendant tied with a leather cord from his chest and solemnly placed it in the center of the simple magic circle on the ground.

He knelt on the ground, praying devoutly, calling out the name of the gods again and again in that clumsy but utterly sincere way.

Pure source energy began to gather.

As the prayers continued, a wisp of pale purple mist actually rose from the simple magic circle he had drawn.

The mist, as if it possessed a life of its own, slowly and gently merged into the metal pendant left by his father.

Just then, a voice from the depths of his being, carrying a hint of curiosity, rang in his mind once more.

"Speaking of which, what is this of yours?"

Jon paused for a moment, then answered respectfully.

"This is a talisman my father gave me."

"Where is he?"

Upon hearing this question, Jon lowered his head slightly, a hint of sadness in his voice.

"He... has passed away, just ten years ago, at the age of fifty, from an incurable gill disease."

The gods fell into a long silence, as if mourning this insignificant soul.

After a long while, the voice came again, a sigh tinged with pity for the world.

"…Poor child."

In that long silence, the purple mist finally completely infused the pendant. The ordinary metal artifact also underwent a slight transformation, its surface beginning to emit a faint glow, like a lifelike eye.

"The ceremony is over. Let us put aside our painful past for now and continue our great cause."

The voice from the darkness regained its former majesty, as if that moment of tenderness was merely an illusion Jon felt while bathed in divine grace.

"Now, open the door, go outside, and let me see what the world has become after my ancestors left."

"Yes, my lord."

Jon respectfully accepted the order.

He slowly stood up, stretched out his thin but strong hand, and pushed open the dilapidated door made of rusty iron.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the virtual realm, in the Collin Tower, the image within the virtual lens changed drastically as Jon moved.

The once dark and cramped shack has been replaced by a vast sky, and the light that follows is almost blinding to those who look directly at it.

Through the pendant on Jon's chest, Luo Yan, Merck, Miller, and all the teaching assistants present saw for the first time the world behind the No. 178 virtual realm.

Soon, everyone was stunned by the sight before them!

It was a bizarre and fantastical world, where towering buildings resembled shining lighthouses. Multicolored rainbows overlapped, cutting the sky into narrow slits and dividing the ground into bottomless canyons and abysses.

The hazy fog seemed never to dissipate, scattering the flashing neon lights on the giant billboards in the sky into hazy patches of light.

People in gray, wearing raincoats, walk through the shadows behind the glitz and glamour, like raindrops falling into puddles in alleyways.

The raindrops were busy yet numb, like ants searching for food.

"By Saint Sith..." Miller murmured unconsciously, deeply shocked by the scene before him.

From a purely visual perspective, the miracle of the 440th Virtual Realm is simply insignificant compared to this place!
Merck was utterly shocked. His eyes widened, and he exclaimed, "How many mage towers did they build?"

Luo Yan smiled inwardly.

That wasn't some mage tower, nor did it study the mysteries of source magic; it was something else equally profound.

However, he did not offer any further explanation, but instead turned his gaze back to Jon behind the virtual realm, signaling Miller to continue conveying his will.

"I never imagined the world would change so much."

As the mages chanted, the voice from the void transformed into ripples of spirit, resounding once more in Jon's mind.

"Tell me, my child... how long have we been apart?"

Upon hearing this, Jon immediately responded respectfully, his voice carrying a hint of melancholy at the changing of the seasons.

"Ninety-nine years, my Lord... just one year short of a century has passed since we parted."

"Ninety-nine years, that's a really long time."

In the darkness, that majestic yet calm voice came again, a melancholy voice carrying a hint of an elder's approval of a younger generation.

"It seems you have not wasted this century; you have used this time to create such a beautiful work."

beauty?

Upon hearing that word, Jon's expression instantly contorted with anger and jealousy. He lowered his head, trying to hide his barely concealed emotions.

"My Lord, please forgive me for disagreeing with your point of view..." He practically spat out the words through gritted teeth, filled with resentment towards the world, "There is probably no uglier work in this universe!"

The moment the words left his mouth, he immediately regretted them, and a deep-seated fear gripped him... How dare he defy the gods in the void?!

To his surprise, the divine punishment he had anticipated did not come.

The great being simply gazed upon him with loving kindness, responding to his "mischief" in a fatherly tone.

"Really? It seems you're not satisfied with this piece."

This gentle response touched a soft spot in Jon's heart.

Perhaps because he lost his father at a young age, he especially longed for that feeling of being cared for, even though he came from boundless darkness.

“No one will like it, my lord…” His voice trembled, and his attitude returned to humility, even more humble than before, “except for those who truly possess them, or think they possess them!”

The voice in the void remained silent.

He swallowed a mouthful of bitter saliva, gazed at the tall buildings in the distance, and silently recited in his heart.

“When I was still an employee of the company, I was incredibly proud to be able to work in that towering, glowing tower. My job was to design door opening advertisements for refrigerators. People didn’t know me, but when they opened the door, they would see my work. Every day when I woke up, I felt that my life had meaning. And… this job brought me a considerable income, allowing me to live a decent life and use better prosthetics.”

"Until one day, I fell ill and was ruthlessly kicked out of there, I realized how foolish I had been. That tower didn't belong to me for a single second, not even the prosthetic body I had was mine. And the job I was once so proud of wasn't appreciated by people. I only recently started using my own product... That damn thing requires me to stare at it for thirty seconds to unlock, and I'm the one who pays for the electricity!"

He dropped all pretense and pretenses, pouring out all his grievances and resentment to the only deity willing to listen to him.

No one wanted to listen to his complaints, because they too were struggling in this murky fog, and only by kicking another poor soul when he was down could they get a breather.

Except for Colin.

He lovingly embraced everything about him, listening to his pain, and it felt... just like he was truly his father.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the virtual realm, Merck listened to the unfamiliar words transmitted through spiritual resonance, his face showing a blank expression.

refrigerator?

advertise?

What it is?
However, despite his confusion, he didn't delve into the matter further.

Behind the virtual realm, there are always some inexplicable concepts, which are all "noise" that cannot be correctly understood or translated.

The mages of the Academy don't always manage to uncover useful information from behind the illusory realm, since exchanging information through the illusory realm requires "resonance." It's just that they don't know why…

Listening to this otherworldly person's complaints, Merck felt a strange and strong sense of déjà vu.

Suddenly he came to his senses.

I see--

Refrigerators and advertisements represent the realm of illusion!
Stare for thirty seconds to unlock the virtual realm!

He was shocked by the discovery.

Meanwhile, Miller hurriedly wrote down the two unfamiliar concepts in his notebook, faithfully fulfilling his duties as a teaching assistant.

Of everyone present, only Luo Yan was fully aware of all of this.

His face wore a heartwarming smile, like a true god looking at the helpless child and whispering with compassion.

“I understand, you yearn to change all of this. Not just your own fate, but the fate of all the Greys.”

The whispers, like the tolling of a morning bell and the sound of evening drums, echoed deep within his consciousness. Jon felt as if he were an infant just waking from a dream, opening his innocent and ignorant eyes for the first time.

I see--

He had once been confused about why he was pursuing the whispers of the ancient gods, but now all the fog had been blown away by the wind blowing from the void.

It's not because of the incurable disease.

It wasn't because of the loan they couldn't repay.

He will change the fate of all the Greys!

Only by changing the fate of all the Greys can he save himself!
The flame of life reignited in those dim eyes, no longer a murky void of nothingness and confusion, nor a muddled existence of cowardice and ignominy.

He clenched his fists and, with an unprecedentedly fervent and intense voice, uttered a cry from the depths of his soul.

"That's right! I yearn to change all of this!"

However, the flame quickly dimmed, seemingly extinguished by the coldness of reality.

“But… they are too powerful.” Jon’s voice was low and hoarse, tinged with despair. “They have rifles, tanks, roaring aircraft and cold cybernetic armor… and they control the media. It’s not that no one has ever resisted before, but they were almost instantly wiped out, both physically and verbally.”

Inside the Collin Tower, Merck was increasingly unable to understand what the gray man was saying.

He even began to think that the bizarre world behind the virtual realm was more like an "ancient god" filled with forbidden knowledge.

If only we could get that knowledge over here.

Although they lacked source power, they seemed to possess other powers. Just as he had seen before, they used methods other than source power to bring the flames of stars to the earth.

Interestingly, however, Prince Colin did not seem to be troubled by the wisdom of the "Ancient Gods".

He possessed a peculiar talent for unraveling complexities from mere fragments of clues and making precise and accurate inferences, thus keeping the conversation flowing.

All strange things seemed unsurprising to him.

"That's because the time isn't right yet."

The gods watched over Jon with loving eyes. He couldn't see their gaze, but he could clearly feel the care that transcended the endless void.

"Weren't you part of the 'company' when you were young? You even controlled the advertising on the refrigerator. I guess that was a kind of media, although it was just the tip of the iceberg. You have to admit, back then you didn't hate it, you even loved it."

"You mean... people don't hate companies?"

Jon couldn't accept this fact, yet he couldn't deny it. He could lie to himself, but he couldn't deceive his loving father.

The deity spoke gently.

"Yes. People didn't hate Merck from the beginning; they liked him quite a bit at first. It was only later that they grew tired of him."

Merck glanced at Colin, looking somewhat embarrassed, but seeing that the latter's expression didn't change, he could only withdraw his subtle gaze.

indeed.

What Prince Colin said is actually quite correct.

Kyle didn't defeat "Iron Hand" with just his two fists; the extraordinary power he bestowed upon him was merely an embellishment on the grand battlefield.

Hearing this, Jon felt somewhat dejected. He remained silent for a long time before asking cautiously.

"So...is the time now?"

His heart was filled with fear, afraid of receiving a "no" answer from that supreme being.

There is no greater tragedy for mortals than this.

He was just a snail on a pendulum, spending his entire life climbing only to the end of the cold hands beneath his feet.

His short life could not wait long; he was destined to be a flying insect in the summer, never to wither away in the winter.

Fortunately——

God loves him.

"of course."

"The fact that you can hear my voice is the best proof."

Looking into those hopeful eyes, the voice from the heavens, carrying undeniable majesty, delivered His first divine decree since His return.

"Mortals have lifespans, and so do mortal kingdoms. Just as your father lived to be fifty, your kingdom will live to be ninety-nine."

"The reckoning has come."

"And I will give you the tools to carry out the liquidation."

……

The next steps are clear.

Imbuing the Void Realm with the fundamental knowledge of the Source Law School is almost as easy as doing exercises in a textbook for the magicians of the Academy.

Luo Yan instructed the "divine messenger" on the other side of the virtual realm to help those poor people who were also struggling in the slums, to accumulate more "source power" for the "sacred object" he wore on his chest, and to develop them into believers of the "Spirit of the Universe" sect.

The pendant was like the messenger's "system," except that it didn't frequently issue him tasks.

The "source power" accumulating on his chest will serve as his strength, and Colin allows him to borrow the authority from the void that belongs to the gods!

On the other side, Luo Yan gave instructions to Miller beside him.

“Use our existing Source Power to heal our ‘Divine Messenger.’ Then, teach him the basic methods of guiding and using Source Power…”

Just like when they were guiding the Pope in the 440th virtual realm.

The magicians of Corinta would enter his dreams, transmitting messages from another universe while he slept and meditated...

In the end, Luo Yan, in the guise of "Colin," left a final command to the divine messenger who was feeling the newfound power within him.

Or rather, guidance.

The sound, like a morning bell and evening drum, echoed deep within Jon's soul.

"...The collapse of a great building often begins from the most inconspicuous corner. You need to unite those pitiful people like you, find those cleansed superhumans, tell them that the ancient gods are dead and new gods should rise, and establish a close spiritual resonance with them, just like we do."

"To achieve salvation, you cannot save only yourself."

"You have to start with the smallest things, start by helping the people around you, and ignite the torch in their hearts..."

"You also need to tell them that there is a savior in this world, and that each of you is a savior."

……

As the faint source energy gradually ran out, the clear image on the illusory lens was once again locked by a hazy gray mist.

To re-establish a stable connection, they need to wait for the seed they just planted to take root and sprout on the reborn ruins, and for the followers of the Cosmic Spirits sect to use their piety to refill this almost dried-up "sacred pool".

Although further progress remains to be seen, Miller and the other teaching assistants all wore expressions of joy at their accomplishment.

In their view, their mentors have already led them to take the first step on the road to success.

If the No. 178 virtual realm can replicate the phased achievements of the No. 440 virtual realm, then the prestige of the "Science" school will undoubtedly reach an unprecedented new height within this Great Sage's Tower!

Merck was filled with mixed emotions.

Looking at the prince who had remained completely at ease throughout, he finally showed a look of genuine admiration on his face for the first time.

He was truly convinced!

"Your actions... truly broaden my horizons," Merck exclaimed sincerely, then asked the question that had been troubling him most, "But I have a question. How is your current approach any different from what I did back then?"

Although he didn't say it explicitly, his implication was clear—

Isn't this newly chosen Jon just another rat in the gutter? Putting this guy on the throne, won't we repeat Kyle's mistakes?

Luo Yan smiled faintly, looked at the bewildered Merck, and succinctly revealed the key to the matter.

"The difference is that I didn't put this piece on the king's position."

Merck paused for a moment, then instinctively asked another question.

"So...where do you plan to put him?"

Luo Yan said casually.

"Of course, we should grant his wish."

"desire?"

"Didn't you hear that?"

Ignoring the bewildered expression on Merck's face, Luo Yan waved to Miller, signaling him to finish get off work and have dinner, before speaking slowly and deliberately.

"He wanted to burn his useless flesh and blood one last time before his soul returned to the Kingdom of God."

"He will be the first to die."

(End of this chapter)