Nobody knows how to be a villain better than me.

Samael smiled, raised his index finger to his lips, and gently shook it, his mischievous expression growing more pronounced.

"Friendly reminder: I only did what you wanted to do but didn't dare to do."

Things I want to do... but dare not do...

Joan of Arc noticed the mockery on the man's face and vaguely remembered the casual whispers in the prison. Suddenly, a shocking answer came to mind and escaped from her cherry-red lips.

"Pierre!"

"Bingo!"

The devil grinned and snapped his fingers again.

Suddenly, the scene behind the man distorted and changed, and Joan of Arc saw a completely different scene.

A short, stout figure dressed in ornate robes, shackled, was dragged step by step onto the pyre by the guards.

Realizing something was wrong, the esteemed bishop, like a helpless young woman being raped, screamed with a pale face, cursing the soldiers or pleading for help from those around him.

However, all the ugly cries and screams were automatically filtered out by the onlookers as devout prayers.

Finally, flames rose, and the distorted human figure, scorched by the heat, let out a series of shrill screams, curses, and pleas for mercy. The fat body, filled with ointment, burned fiercely, like a giant torch that transmits light.

The flames burned for only a few minutes before completely incinerating everything.

God's spokesperson is twisted and burned in the flames, the executioner, whose conscience is troubled, is filled with remorse, and the audience, with their hearts full of pity, is in mourning.

On the judgment seat, the figure that should have been Bishop Pierre was replaced by the demon before him!

It's all so ridiculous! It's all so absurd!

"I forgot to tell you, when he lit the fire, he called out the true name of the Lord more than six times, especially when he breathed his last, he called out in a firm voice—Jesus!"

Just as Joan of Arc was reeling from the shock, a mocking voice reached her ears. The demon, who had appeared behind her at some unknown time, was whispering with his head bowed, a pleased smile spreading across his lips.

"Look at him, what a devout believer. He must be eager to see his Lord. Hmm, I guess I've fulfilled his wish."

Immediately, the man raised his hand and tapped his head, looking regretful.

"Oops, I've done something good again by accident. No, no, I need to repent. I'm a devil!"

“I told you, I don’t need your salvation! Especially not in such a blasphemous way!”

Joan of Arc bit her cherry lips and glared angrily at the demon before her. Her once flawless faith had been tainted beyond recognition by this absurd game.

What terrified her even more was that when she saw Pierre being pushed to the stake and personally experiencing the punishment she had sentenced, she actually felt a momentary sense of pleasure.

Blasphemy, what blasphemy!

"Your Highness, you seem to have made a mistake."

When Joan of Arc was questioned, Samaelmo stroked his chin and smiled.

“Besides tempting the Lord’s flock to fall, the devil still has his own job.”

Joan of Arc was slightly taken aback, somewhat puzzled.

The devil's... main job?

"It's a trial..."

The ancient serpent slowly parted its lips, its vertical pupils opening and closing as it whispered, a hint of cruelty and chilling light swirling within.

“Punishing the souls of sinners is my job. Don’t you know that these clergymen, whose filth flows from every pore of their bodies, are honored guests of hell?”

The existence of light is to encourage humanity to aspire to good, while the existence of darkness is to warn humanity against evil.

Indeed, hell exists to judge and punish the souls of sinners.

And the devil is the executioner!

Joan of Arc suddenly remembered the facts described in the Bible and was speechless.

After a long silence, the Saintess of Orleans looked up again, looked seriously at the smiling demon, and pointed out the flaws in this logic.

"Then why did you save me?"

"Save you? No, no, no... I'm just reluctant to part with such an interesting soul..."

Samael spoke in a light tone, seemingly somewhat surprised. Coming to his senses, he looked at the saintess in front of him, who was biting her cherry lips and had a complicated expression. After observing her for a while, he leaned closer and whispered.

"Sacrifice for others is a noble virtue. If you were to actually be burned at the stake, you would be going to heaven. Only by keeping you alive will you continue to make mistakes."

Upon hearing this hidden conspiracy, Joan of Arc remained silent for a long time. Her clear eyes, filled with insightful understanding, gave the demon before her a deep look, then she turned away without a word and walked back.

That's the direction of Rouen.

"Don't rush to make a choice, how about I tell you a story first?"

Samael sighed and spoke helplessly.

Joan of Arc paused slightly, but without much hesitation, she continued on her way.

"To stand in the light, one must know what darkness is!"

The meaningful chanting reached her ears, and the stubborn saintess trembled, finally stopping in her tracks.

Chapter Eleven: God Comes from the Devil!

On the golden wheat field, Samael chose a comfortable position, sat down on the ground, and began to tell his story while admiring the complicated and serious expression on Joan of Arc's face.

"This is the story before the birth of Heaven and Hell. The world was formless and empty, and darkness was over the surface of the deep. His Spirit came forth and created me, the first creation."

At that time, the realm of the gods was a desolate land, devoid of angels and demons. As the first creation, I could observe, touch, think, and speak. Perhaps that was the reason I was created... to be able to speak with Him...

He told me of His plan: He wanted to create a perfect, eternal kingdom, where beautiful angels would serve the light and sing hymns day and night. Below this level would be a universe filled with stars, encompassing ten celestial realms, interconnected and interdependent, like the tightly meshed gears of a clock, perfectly ordered.

As the man vividly described the scene, Joan of Arc gradually lowered her guard, as if she could see the solitude and grandeur of the primordial creation through his poetic language.

"Life on the planet is the same, animals and plants, carnivores and herbivores. The ecology will be incredibly complex, yet remarkably simple, self-sustaining and never collapsing. The world will be eternally continuous." As I listened to his description, I imagined the faint stars at dawn, the silvery snowfields under the moonlight, whales singing in the endless ocean, and tigers lurking in the dense jungle. I once thought that all of this had meaning, that He would use His power to create incredible works of art. But I was wrong...

Samael sighed at this point and paused inexplicably.

"What happened after that? What exactly happened?"

Joan of Arc, engrossed in the conversation, couldn't help but ask a question.

"After that, He felt that the earth was too desolate and lonely, so He planned to create a new race in His own image to enrich the world on earth. The work of these creations was also to serve the light and become clay idols who worship Him day and night."

Ironically, having grown tired of the angels' emotionless hymns, He endowed this species with an unprecedented characteristic—free will…

Samael glanced briefly at Joan of Arc, who was holding her breath beside him, and a smile played on his lips.

"I questioned Him: since He gave humanity free will, why did He assume that humanity would necessarily choose Him? This was a simple question, yet He became angry. I still remember His expression: one eye wide open, the other narrowed, his face filled with thunderous fury, his expression full of intolerance..."

Why should the lambs on the ground and the ants in the palm of one's hand not worship their Creator and unconditionally offer their milk and blood?

He could not accept my questioning, and from then on, He never spoke a word to me again, refusing to let me have any contact with His creation, and handing over the task of guiding mankind to the angels.

However, snakes that lurk in the shadows often come to uncover more dark secrets.

Human beings were indeed created and released into a paradise called Eden, but there were only two of them, a man and a woman named Adam and Eve. Moreover, I see no free will in them; instead, they seem like spiritually castrated pets…

Ultimately, He did not grant His creations complete perfection, but He still hoped that people would genuinely submit to Him in their free will.

So I'm curious, if humans had true free will, would they make the same choices?

So one afternoon, I told the woman named Eve that if she ate the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, she would gain divine wisdom, and her eyes would be opened to see everything in the world.

The woman did as instructed...

As for what happened next, that's probably the story you all imagine.

He was furious. Adam and Eve were expelled from Eden and banished to the earth, and I was also thrown out of Heaven by Him.

But I was still very curious to see what kind of answer this species, which had been given free will, would give on this questionnaire. So, I added options after this question.

Gradually, I became the abyss, I transformed into a dragon, and was condemned as the first to fall, the embodiment of all original sin.

The snake stroked its chin, smiled with narrowed eyes, its expression full of mockery, and then, under the shocked and horrified gaze of the saintess, continued its story with profound meaning.

"From that time on, the changes in humanity and me—oh, in His words, it should be called 'fallen'—our fall has never stopped..."

Humans on Earth developed richer emotions, and darkness such as greed, arrogance, sloth, anger, and envy arose in their hearts. But at the same time, light such as diligence, humility, kindness, and tolerance was also nurtured within them.

They opened their curious eyes wide and began to explore and challenge everything in the world.

They cut through the sky, crossed the ocean, built cities, and even constructed the Tower of Babel, intending to communicate with the gods at an equal height and to hear the voice of heaven from a closer distance.

However, He saw this as a provocation, and even more so as a blasphemy.

The servants under his command and the livestock on the ground are not entitled to raise their heads and look directly at the might of the thunder.

A god who claims to be benevolent curses his own creations, becoming so cruel and wicked.

He overthrew the Tower of Babel, scattered mankind, brought down punishment, destroyed cities, and unleashed floods to cleanse the earth, thinking that in this way mankind would completely choose Him.

He even went so far as to wage a war between light and darkness, intending to cleanse the entire unpredictable world and preserve a future where only lambs would worship Him.

However, the result was that darkness still existed, and even those who should have been loyal to Him began to split, each holding their own scriptures, accusing each other of being heretics, and starting to fight each other.

Samuel paused, his expression becoming even more amused.

"This 'disease' even spread to the heavens, and other fallen beings appeared one after another, such as Lucifer (Ishtar), the Son of the Morning Star, whom you all know..."

Upon hearing such a horrifying story, the devout saint was deeply shocked.

"In fact, from the moment He first created me, I began to ponder the meaning of His creation of me, why He gave me form, talked to me, and needed my listening, but ignored my opinions."

Later, I gradually came to understand that, just as when people make choices, there is always another annoying voice in their hearts, constantly telling them, "You can do this, you can't do that, you should go to bed early, you should eat less sweets, you should sleep in less, you should exercise more, you should read more..."

Even if we know that this voice is often correct, and if we can listen to it and put it into practice, we will most likely succeed, but arrogance and laziness will always make us deliberately distance ourselves from it. Mortals have no ability to block it out, but the Creator can put this idea into a body and then throw it out.

So, I appeared...

I gave His imprisoned creations the will to choose freely, and I gave the ants He despised the ability to challenge the arrogance of the gods…

As the demon's murmurs echoed, the saintess, who yearned for the light, felt as if she had fallen into an ice cave, her eyes filled with disbelief.

Because this voice in my mind is called reason, conscience, and compassion for humanity...

So, he is...

The snake, standing in the shadows, raised its head, smiled faintly, and murmured meaningfully.

"Light originates from darkness,"

Destruction is rebirth.

God comes from the devil…

Chapter Twelve: The Dark Bible

Light comes from darkness, and God comes from evil?

How could that be? Absolutely not!

Joan of Arc uncontrollably raised her hands to cover her ears, shaking her head and taking steps back. She could not believe, nor dared to believe, the devil's shocking murmur.

No, this shouldn't be the case!

In a daze, the saintess of Orleans recalled the low murmurs in the prison, instantly regaining her senses. Her eyes lit up as if she had grasped a lifeline, and she spoke out vehemently in rebuttal.

"Lies! Everything you've said is a lie! Otherwise, why isn't it recorded in the Bible?"

"The Bible? Come on, that stuff is too much trouble to even wipe your butt with."

Samael raised the black book in his hand, shook his head and sneered, his dark eyes deep and unfathomable.

"You so-called thugs who seek the light have sealed away the real thing for a thousand years. Do you know how many people, for their own selfish desires, have deleted or even altered its contents over the long years?"

“Those people are saints…”

Joan of Arc tried to defend herself, but her words lacked conviction.

"Perhaps there are some, but can you guarantee all of them?"

The snake shrugged, its smile in the darkness laced with mockery.

In fact, Samael's rhetorical question was not unfounded.

According to established history, several centuries from now, between 1948 and 1956, humanity will discover a large number of manuscripts of old biblical texts in a cave northwest of the Dead Sea, about 15 or 16 kilometers from the holy city of Jerusalem.

The 11 caves containing manuscripts contain more than 600 different types of handwritten copies of the Old Testament and other documents, with tens of thousands of fragments.