novelonline Chapter 4254 The Story of the Blasphemer
Chapter 4254 The Story of the Blasphemer
Chapter 4254 The Story of the Blasphemer
"Yes, we are about to see the gods."
Upon hearing what Shad said, Mr. Albert stopped his wild thoughts and became serious. He had been brought here before and knew how much pressure it would be to face a true god.
The door opened, and after everyone was ready, they entered the room together. Warm light emanated from the tall figure reclining on his side, as if to illuminate the entire world. Even though the light was warm, Ms. Thorne, just like last time, kept her head down, not daring to look directly at the god. Mr. Albert, however, followed Shad and the witch a few steps forward and then knelt down on the ground.
This is both a bodily instinct and an expression of respect:
"Oh, God!"
His voice trembled, or rather, his whole body shook. This was only because the benevolent deity was using its power to protect him; otherwise, he wouldn't even have the right to speak here.
The traces of "divine afterglow" reappeared on Shad's body. The warm feeling when standing in front of this deity made Shad feel very comfortable, as if he had touched Mia after waking up on a peaceful Sunday morning, opened the window and saw that Tobesk was sunny, and then was hugged from behind by the girl and asked what he wanted to eat for breakfast.
The god didn't look at anyone else; his eyes, like liquid gold, fell upon Shad. Even though He wasn't the sun god, but merely an old god with some of the ancient sun god's blessings, Shad still felt as if he were seeing that sun.
She smiled gently in Shad's ear, and Shad struggled to suppress the urge to be embraced.
"Gods, we have recovered some of the memories of this poor man who came from afar. Would you be willing to listen to his plea?"
The enormous figure, lying on its side, lowered its eyes and nodded gently:
"can."
To Shad, this was merely an answer, but to Mr. Albert, who was to his left and behind, it felt as if all the sun's rays were concentrated on him at that moment. Incredibly intense, as if his very soul were about to dissipate in that magnificent light, Mr. Albert, in a trembling voice, revealed the purpose of his visit:
“Merciful God, my newborn daughter is gravely ill, and I beg you to look upon her. I had intended to bring her here, but she is too ill, so I have come alone. I am willing to give everything for your grace: all my wealth, my faith, and even my soul.”
Shad secretly breathed a sigh of relief. He had been worried that this person would make a strange request, such as "curing the disease that prevents me from gaining supernatural powers."
The scene before him was a classic tale of "mortals pleading for divine favor," a story found in virtually every church. Although Mr. Albert now only possessed memories, and it wasn't him making the request, Shad believed that the divine would still grant it.
After all, he really came all this way for his daughter.
But this time, Xia De guessed wrong.
God's gaze never fell upon Mr. Albert; a warm feeling enveloped Shad throughout. Shad and the two mortals heard the divine reply:
"I cannot give you the grace you desire."
Mr. Albert, trembling, dared not ask the reason, and Ms. Thorne also lowered her head, seemingly unwilling to speak. So Shad asked:
"Gods, please tell me, why is this?"
God answered this question:
“His daughter had recovered by the time he left, and she had no illness that required treatment.”
While Shad and the witch were surprised, the Great One, from above, asked a question, this time his voice was somewhat stern, but only somewhat:
"You really don't remember?"
This question was certainly not directed at Shad and Ms. Thorne, because Mr. Albert began to tremble even more violently. He was no longer kneeling; unable to control his shaking, he was practically curled up on the ground. Shad didn't really want to comment, but the sight was utterly grotesque.
The god, whose temperature was as warm as the sun, said:
"The entity that gave you the means to get here, and the reward for your agreement to this journey, is that it heals your daughter. You are not sure if the adventure to get here will be successful, but you believe that the entity that made the deal with you can immediately heal your daughter."
God said:
“You agreed to the deal, so you are not devout.”
Mr. Albert began to tremble more violently. He was afraid, he was terrified, and he remembered what he had done.
Shad and Ms. Thorne also understood:
"He accepted payment to explore this place for others, just to make sure you would actually show up?"
Xia De asked, somewhat incredulous:
"Who dares to be so bold? Is it a follower of other old gods who have a bad relationship with your followers? How dare they?"
God's voice remained gentle as He answered Shad's question:
"He wasn't a follower of malice, just another mortal hoping for a blessing. He didn't have the courage to come here himself, so he tricked others into taking the risk for him. That's all."
"But how did they cure Leonard Albert's daughter?"
God knows everything:
"That illness is just an illusion created by poison; it's all just to find someone willing to take this risk."
Shad heard Mrs. Thorne sigh softly behind him, and he himself wanted to sigh too. He thought he had seen enough of this world, but he never expected to hear such a story today.
Shad understood the fate that fate had in store for the blasphemers:
"That man hoped Mr. Albert could bring the good news out, but unexpectedly, Mr. Albert died in the fog before he even saw you. But if his daughter had been cured, how could he have such a deep obsession that he still came here after death?"
God's voice in answering Shad's question was warm, yet calm:
"It wasn't an obsession, but fear; the fear made him firmly believe that he was not blasphemous."
Shad wanted to ask why, if he also knew fear, he would do something so blasphemous as to test the existence of the gods for the sake of others, but he remained silent. Human hearts are fickle; perhaps before his departure, Mr. Albert saw his daughter's healing as a truly worthwhile outcome, worthy of his sacrifice, but when he was actually about to stand before the gods…
Mr. Albert did nothing wrong; he was, in fact, a victim as well. But even if he was deceived, he was still a blasphemer. All that is required of those who come here is gratitude and devotion; those with ulterior motives are blasphemers.
"Am I already dead? I'm sorry, God, I'm sorry, Lady Thorne, Hamilton."
These were the last words a man named Leonard Albert left in Shad's ear. When Shad turned around, the man had already disappeared, leaving only a skeleton lying on the ground, its remains somehow released from the card.
The memories have faded.
"Who is the culprit who deceived Mr. Albert? We can pay him a visit after we leave."
Shad asked again, but the god did not answer:
“The sinner has died of illness.”
"I see. I actually have some connections in the afterlife."
God seemed to smile:
"The soul of the blasphemer cannot go on; he is not worthy to cross the Beach with those pure souls to the end."
Shad nodded slightly, not inquiring further about the other party's fate. Regardless of the true culprit's motives or thoughts in deceiving Mr. Albert, the price far exceeded the limits of that sinner's imagination. While the God of Mercy's love extends to all life, it is not without limits.
"So this person's matter is resolved, right? Actually, I should have questioned him about his memory outside and made sure he was alright before letting him in. I shouldn't have brought someone like this here. I'm sorry."
Shad apologized, but God responded gently:
“If you hadn’t brought him here, Leonard Albert wouldn’t have had the chance to apologize to me, and he wouldn’t have been qualified to continue. He repented to me, and you gave him the chance to continue, even though his path will be more difficult than that of other souls, at least he has been given the opportunity.”
The deity reclining on the high platform laughed:
"So, you did a great job."
“You are truly merciful. You have indeed healed him, healed his blasphemy.”
In the end, all Xia De could say was this:
"Next time, I will ask those who have lost their memories about their specific experiences, and then bring those who are confused here."
But God refused:
"I don't need to force anyone to tell me secrets; everyone is qualified to come before me."
"Yes, I understand."
Shad admitted that this deity was unusually friendly, and that the visit would end there. He turned to pick up the skeleton, only to find it had turned a dirty black. The moment Shad touched it, he felt a bone-chilling cold, a cold that also contained a feeling that made him very uncomfortable.
It was somewhat like the feeling evoked by the strange baby held in the arms of the Infant Mother, the monster that Shad called "Abomination".
He endured the discomfort, picked up the skeleton, and bid farewell to the gods with Lady Thorne before leaving.
The door closed behind them, and Ms. Thorne then asked Shad with concern:
"Are you sure you're okay holding it? This is the skeleton of a blasphemer, it's practically the dirtiest and most filthy thing in the world. Don't hold it anymore, burn it here."
Shad agreed, but instead of burning the bones in front of the God's abode, Shad threw them into the farthest corner of the second-floor hall. A fireball then shattered them, and the raging flames engulfed every fragment. Even with Shad's current mental resistance, he still saw terrifying hallucinations in the billowing black smoke when he saw the black bones burning.