Arcanum: Chaos Path

Chapter 145: Survive and Devour Divinity

Hearing this, Luo Lin was not surprised. He just looked at Azik with a surprised expression, like a playwright sizing up his perfect work. He said, "You are truly an actor who surprises me."

"Maybe I should give you some reward." Luo Lin said this in a voice so soft that it almost made people think it was an illusion.

Azik felt as if something had changed, but when he looked carefully, there seemed to be nothing. This made him look at Luo Lin in confusion and asked, "What did you do to me?"

"I'm just putting a mask on you." Luo Lin smiled. He sat back on the sofa, took a sip of black tea, and then said with a smile, "Its name is [Love]. You can think of it as the love of family."

"What's its use?" Azik asked again.

"It's not very useful. It probably just serves as an anchor when you're devoured by God." Luo Lin didn't exaggerate, but smiled and said, "With it, you'll never forget this love, even if your humanity is completely devoured and only your divinity remains."

Azik was stunned for a moment. He pursed his lips and said, "I've never heard of this ability."

"Have you heard of the Shadow of Time?" Luo Lin asked slowly.

Azik was speechless, then gave a wry smile and said, "That's right. You even have such a miraculous ability. It doesn't seem surprising that you can do this."

Azik then took a deep breath, looked at Luo Lin, and said, "So what do I need to pay in exchange for a meeting with the former Archon of Death?"

"Survive." Luo Lin didn't keep the secret or make any big promises. He simply looked at Azik calmly and said, "Survive, devour the other half of your soul, devour the past that belonged to the Archon of Death, truly survive as Azik, and then atone for your sins."

Luo Lin closed the wordless book that had been spread out. His golden eyes looked directly into Azik's and he smiled and said:
"I'm looking forward to this show, please don't let me down."

As Luo Lin finished speaking, a figure appeared on the sofa next to Luo Lin. The man had the same face as Azik, but his temperament was very different. The clothes he was wearing were very gorgeous, which was the popular style of the Balam Empire, reminiscent of darkness and death.

The Archon of Death opened his eyes. Like Azik's, his eyes were devoid of emotion, making him look like a lifeless doll at this moment - without emotion, without self, living under the control of others.

"Hmm..." However, the moment Azik saw himself like this, he lowered his head in pain and raised his hand to cover his forehead. At this moment, countless memories emerged in his mind, those strange and distant pasts, those nightmares that had troubled him for a long time, occupied Azik's entire mind at this moment.

In a trance, Azik only heard someone say to him:

"Survive, Azik."

"Otherwise, your children will only become the victims of the Archon of Death."

There was a smile in his voice, like encouragement but also like it was just out of some kind of bad fun.

However, Azik found a point of reference in the impact of this moment. The self constructed through thousands of years of reincarnation became clear at this moment. The memories that seemed to be coated with sunlight emerged at this moment, confronting the dark and cold past.

Luo Lin quietly watched Azik, who was clearly caught in the struggle between divinity and humanity, shook his head, and said nothing more to him. He then turned to the Death Archon beside him with great interest and said:
"You're a little different than I imagined, Mr. Archon of Death. I didn't expect that after stripping away the influence of the God of Death, you'd be left like this..." Luo Lin seemed to hesitate before uttering the adjective: "Puppet."

The Death Archon looked at him, his eyes finally showing some emotion. He asked, "Who are you?"

"Lucifer, you can call me that for now!" Luo Lin smiled. Then, as if in a good mood, he poured a cup of black tea for the Archon of Death in front of him and said, "You look a little confused."

"Sir, I think anyone would be confused in this situation." The Archon of Death did not refuse the cup of tea poured by Luo Lin, but he did not drink it either. He just held the tea, looked at Luo Lin with indifferent eyes, and said.

"No, I'm not referring to the fact that you were suddenly summoned by me, but rather that you were free from your father's influence, which made you feel helpless and confused."

Luo Lin shook his head. He poured himself another cup of tea, took a sip, and then smiled and said, "How does it feel to own yourself?"

The Death Archon was silent. His expression was exactly the same as Azik's. After a few seconds, he said, "Very good."

"Haha, that's a very straightforward answer. Aren't you afraid that I will tell your father?" Luo Lin couldn't help laughing and said, looking at the Death Archon in front of him.

"You are very powerful. If I lie to you, the consequences could be equally serious," the Death Archon said calmly. He then glanced at Azik, who was clutching his head, and continued, "You chose to help my future self. I trust you won't tell father about this."

"Does this mean this is the future?" Luo Lin raised his eyebrows and looked at Him.

"I don't remember anything like this happening, and He..." The Archon of Death's gaze fell on Azik, as if he had noticed something. His eyes became a little complicated as he spoke:
"He has broken free from his father's influence. Even though not completely, this is enough to prove that this is not my time and space."

"Are you envious?" Luo Lin asked with a smile.

"I'm jealous." The Archon of Death spoke bluntly again, lowering his eyes. "Envy is a good emotion. My father never taught me such an emotion. I only feel jealous."

"Your father... is such a jerk!" Luo Lin shook his head, giving a certain scumbag father an evaluation, and then said with interest: "Then you should be able to see what he is doing. He is fusing the past with the past, fusing himself as the Archon of Death, which is your existence. He is using the future to devour you."

The Death Archon showed no surprise. He simply looked at Azik, without sadness or fear. He even spoke calmly, "That's good. A puppet without a self shouldn't exist."

Luo Lin raised his eyebrows. At this moment, he suddenly understood why he felt familiar with certain characteristics of the Death Archon. This desire for self-destruction...

"Ha!" Luo Lin suddenly laughed. He looked at the Archon of Death, extended his hand, and said, "Well, Mr. Puppet without a Self, would you like to walk with me into the future?"

The Death Archon looked up at him and asked doubtfully, "Shouldn't we just ignore him?"

(End of this chapter)