Chapter 480: What is 'Justice', Torrent of Death

"Is this a divine manifestation of the God of Light? What has happened? Has the Utopia organization provoked the Theocracy of the God of Light, forcing the deity to reveal a miracle to annihilate its targets?"

Icarus, stationed within the central tower of the Sky Mechanical City, observed the colossal figure of the deity at the heart of the Theocracy. For a moment, he could not discern the true nature of the unfolding situation.

"The manifestation of the God of Light is interfering with the Void. Analyze what it is doing to the Void, and confirm, if possible, the location of the Utopia organization."

After issuing his commands and decisions, Icarus focused his attention entirely on the figure of the God of Light, attempting to discern with his own eyes what this manifested deity intended to do.

"Chairman, the power of the God of Light is too overwhelming. The energy projected into the surroundings has blinded our observational instruments. We can only see the deity itself; we have failed to capture any trace of the Utopia organization."

The subordinate’s report came swiftly, informing Icarus of the current state of affairs. The God of Light was like the brightest bulb in a cluster; its radiance was so intense that it obscured all other light, effectively masking the towers of the Utopia organization.

"Allow the overloaded devices to cool, set the weapons group to pre-heat, and maintain a wait-and-see approach for now. According to records, the God of Light’s previous manifestations were all responses to the calls of believers to execute righteous judgment. If this is the same, we need only wait..."

His words were heavy and solemn. Much like the Void itself, the study of deities remained a field where the sapient races possessed woefully little data. They knew precious little about these immensely powerful beings, who could so easily influence the soul if approached too closely.

Thus, Icarus could not confirm the deity's intent and could only judge based on the records of past manifestations.

His guess was, in fact, correct. Like those previous instances, this manifestation was a response to the prayers of believers to perform an "act of justice." Yet, how was one to define the concept of "justice" itself?

"It seems I have not done enough. Even blurring the definition of the God of Light in the eyes of the world could not change the fact that it is susceptible to the interference of a greater collective belief. Even if the degree of influence is greatly reduced, if these believers firmly believe their actions are true justice and merely need to complete a single task, the God of Light will not—and cannot—refuse..."

The Pope of the Church of Light looked at the great sphere of light extending its power into the material world, speaking to Roland with a tone of resignation. When Sura had successfully turned himself into a "dagger," using the will of many Utopia members to influence the deity, the Pope knew they lacked the power to stop what the God of Light was currently fulfilling.

"You should leave. It seems the contingencies I left behind have failed, and this is all that remains. I am the individual most deeply connected to the God of Light; I should still be able to do something, however limited."

Kieran, the Pope of the Church of Light, spoke to Roland. There was no point in the other man staying. With their own strength insufficient to stop the deity's actions, Roland and Sura—who knew the truths about the gods to the point of losing their ability to believe—were even more powerless than the relatively weaker Kieran.

"It is difficult. Perhaps it is as they said: this is the great tide of an era, one we can hardly stop. Even in terms of planning, they have far more entities thinking and plotting together than we do."

The Pope walked toward the massive sphere of light, sharing his perspective with Roland. The other did not argue; he remained only to collect as much data as possible regarding the Utopia organization and the God of Light.

"Once a thing is born, it does not easily perish. I will struggle alongside the others until the very last moment."

These were the last words Roland left for the Pope. As he finished, the fortress shed several layers of its outer shell, revealing its internal structure before flying away at high speed, seeking the next opportunity to thwart the Utopia organization’s plans.

"Very well. Just do your best to survive."

With a wry smile, the Pope walked to the front of the massive sphere representing the God of Light, pressed his palm against it, and, much like Sura had, merged his own being into the deity.

He channeled all the power he possessed—power distinct from that of a normal wizard—along the thread of faith, flowing upstream against the current.

He was one of the earliest believers in the God of Light, dating back to before the era of the Abyss invasion. He had been present for every major event in the Church of Light, and his faith in the deity was unimaginably steadfast. Perhaps it was for this reason that, even knowing the truth about the gods like Sura and Roland, he had not lost his capacity for faith.

Knowing these truths, he had begun to reform the Church of Light. He had personally ended the disastrous "Holy Kingdom" era, and he often communicated with the Archbishops of the Church, though the form of these interactions was akin to a spirit visiting in a dream...

"Justice cannot be defined as you have done."

The God of Light was a deity who fought for justice. There was no god of justice in this world; as Damian had previously mentioned, the so-called "God of Justice" was actually an evil entity from the Void.

This truth had been verified long ago during the "Holy Kingdom" era. If one forcibly redefined the concept of justice to suit other ends, that "justice" would only become a twisted will used to suppress others through force.

This was precisely what the Utopia organization was doing now: using the power of faith to alter the definition of justice, compelling the God of Light to act for the sake of their own perceived righteousness.

Kieran’s efforts over the years had not been meaningless. He had expanded the faith to cover the entire continent, and the "justice" sought by these believers was simple, mundane, and indispensable.

The number of Utopia members was insignificant compared to the vast congregation of the Church of Light. Thus, all they could do was ask the God of Light for a favor—a favor requested by those among them who were both believers and members of Utopia, and who firmly believed their actions were righteous.

And the content of that favor was to drag the second node up from the depths of the Void.

"Rumble!"

The power of the God of Light plunged into the Void, accompanied by an inaudible roar, dragging the object that had once resided in the deep Void bit by bit toward the surface. It tore through the boundary between the material world and the Void, descending into the heart of the Theocracy.

"Chairman Icarus, we detect changes in the material and Void environments within the Theocracy. The concentration of Void energy is rising continuously. If our calculations are correct, the environment here is becoming like the 'wedge' fixed at the boundary of the Void and the material world in the Bloodtooth Empire. This is the second existence the Utopia organization intended to create!"

The detection devices of the Sky Mechanical City could finally observe data clearly now that the environment of the material world had been drastically altered, and what was happening left the observer feeling both utterly bewildered and terrified.

"Why would the God of Light help the Utopia organization complete their plan? Is He not a being who upholds justice and truth...?"

Icarus’s thoughts were in chaos. Should the Sky Mechanical City attack the God of Light to stop it from dragging that object up? But how could that be possible? How could the power of this deity be contained by the Sky Mechanical City?

He had just tried to contact believers of the God of Light, only to learn that they had briefly lost their connection to the deity. Yet, the God of Light’s current assistance to the Utopia organization exceeded all of Icarus’s expectations.

"..., there were no ordinary citizens within the range where that special environment appeared. According to the scholars' analysis, what would happen if any entity were caught within that range as the environment between the Void and the material world shifts?"

Icarus was silent for a few moments before asking.

"Chairman, they would die. If the environment had already stabilized, it might not be a major issue, but during the transition, anyone within the area would be twisted by the Void and transformed into a Void creature..."

The scholar replied with a heavy tone.

"..., do not attack the God of Light. Assist the residents of the Theocracy in evacuating. Save as many as you can."

Icarus paused briefly before making his final decision. They had no other choice. Unable to attack the God of Light, they could only accept the success of the Utopia organization and minimize the losses as much as possible.

Below, within the Theocracy, the environmental changes brought about by the God of Light dragging the node into the material world had already begun to affect the residents.

Explosive surges of Void energy poured into the bodies of citizens who had no idea what was happening. With the chaos and madness inherent in the Void, their bodies and souls were twisted, transforming them into the ubiquitous creatures of the Void—beings without consciousness or order, purely ugly and grotesque.

"Boom!"

The God of Light would naturally not sit idly by while these grotesque beings existed. Pillars of golden light descended from the heavens, blasting the citizens-turned-creatures directly into dust, even though it was His own actions that had caused their transformation.

Brilliant pillars of light erupted again and again within the Theocracy, with increasing frequency, meaning more and more ordinary citizens were being transformed into Void creatures only to be annihilated by the God of Light.

A tide of death had descended upon the heart of the Theocracy.