NOVPUBChapter 158: Chapter 157 Name of the Evil God
Chapter 158 -157 Name of the Evil God
People mostly believe that divinities are born from the collective prayers of humanity, a concrete response to their collective will—that is, prayer comes first, then the gods. Be it the Goddess of Mercy or the Storm God, these are deities created under the cognition of humans.
In contrast to this are the Primordial Gods.
Their appearance may date back to times well before humanity, even before this world existed; they are scattered throughout the universe or maybe dwelling in another plane. Primordial Gods do not need followers to exist, but if they want to influence this world, they must rely on the power of the faithful. Thus, they seduce people to become their worshippers, thereby penetrating the barriers of this world.
So the logic of Primordial Gods is completely reversed, becoming ‘gods first, then prayer’—a phenomenon that defies conventional wisdom.
Because such beings are older than humanity, they often present themselves in forms incomprehensible to humans, appearing out of place in this world and bringing unimaginable destruction wherever they appear.
Whereas Latter Gods are born from the ideals and wishes of humanity, with forms and language humans can understand. They also fight against Primordial Gods to protect their own followers.
Thus, even if some Latter Gods do not have a large proportion of worshippers, such as the Storm God born because of the Seaguardians, they are still regarded as righteous deities. Even though sometimes they may stir up storms and devour ships at sea, as long as people offer sacrifices and please the divinities according to rituals, they can obtain positive responses.
Primordial Gods are completely different.
They seem to be otherworldly beings, unfathomable, with whom communication is impossible. The only things one can feel from Primordial Gods are endless unknowns and deep, unfathomable fear.
This is also a sensation rooted in animal instinct.
Therefore, they are all considered Evil Gods.
Upon hearing this, Chaoyang asked Dane another question—how many Evil Gods with known names actually exist now?
Dane’s answer was two, one big and one small.
The big one is called ‘Rot God,’ the small, ‘Envoy of Mist.’
Just from the names, they do not sound like titles that terrifying Evil Gods would possess.
Unfortunately, Mr. Zhao, the journalist, didn’t know much about theology either. When asked about the source of these Evil Gods’ legendary tales, Dane couldn’t answer either.
However, one thing he was sure of was that there are more than two heretical cults. Each one interprets the ‘divine oracle’ in its own way, and they even slaughter each other. So whether it’s the righteous god churches or the local lords’ armies, they seldom directly mention the Evil Gods but instead focus on eradicating the heretical cultists as their primary targets.
“Huh…” Judy’s hand suddenly stopped on an old letter, “This letter is a bit odd.”
“Odd in what way?” Chaoyang put down his teacup and immediately asked.
“There’s no signature nor any seal indicating identity, it looks just like a casual note.” She showed the letter to Chaoyang.
As Judy described, there were only two short lines of text.
‘Vance White will pass by Hill of Gazing tomorrow.’
‘His escort will be no more than twelve men.’
Uh… it sounded like a reminder to Black Steel to get to work, just like many dirty deals they had handled before. However, since this note was unsigned, it held little value as leverage, and naturally, Paradise had no intention of investigating such old cases.
“Vance White?” Dane was also drawn in, “That name sounds a bit familiar… Wait, could he be—”
He suddenly stood up, paced back and forth in the base a couple of times, and then slapped his hand, “the Commander of the city guard!”
“Ah? Isn’t the city guard Commander… Shandela?” Chaoyang admitted, these names were indeed hard to remember.
“No, Shandela Allen is the current one, and Vance was the one before her.”
“I remember now as well,” Judy nodded repeatedly, “Vance died in an accident three years ago, and the whole city held a memorial! What does this letter mean? Could it be that it wasn’t an accident and Heigang Security was behind it?”
“If that’s true, then it’s absolutely insane!” Dane also found it a bit hard to believe. Could Aibuvich really take on such a job? Didn’t he understand what would happen if he crossed heads with the lord?”
“No… if Aibuvich had already become a heretical cultist at that time, taking on such a job wouldn’t be a big deal,” Chaoyang pondered, “I’m more curious about who issued the commission. Did this Commander have any enemies?”
“I need to check the reports from that time,” Dane seemed quite interested in uncovering historical scandals, “But theoretically, even if the city guard’s Commander made enemies, the enemy wouldn’t risk having their entire family hanged to assassinate him. It’s more likely to be a conflict of interests.”
“From another point of view, maybe he discovered the existence of heretical cultists within the high society of Magnificent Castle?”
“Uh… heretical cultists already infiltrated the city three years ago?” Dane wondered, “Aside from the serial killings, nothing earth-shattering has happened in the past three years. It’s not like heretical cultists to hide and do nothing.”
“The preparation period for their past crimes was very short, right?”
“From what I remember, they mostly happened within a year. Because entering the city was risky, and all the churches prioritized capturing heretical cultists, they had to act immediately once they got the chance.”
“Makes sense,” Chaoyang nodded, then joked, “But there’s also another possibility, that they were planning something big. They wouldn’t stir unless it meant making history.”
“Hahaha… You really have a sense of humor,” Dane chuckled along.
At that moment, a knock sounded at the door. “Your Divine Envoy, are you there? It’s Jenny.”
“Come in, the door’s unlocked,” replied Chaoyang.
She pushed the door open and bowed to him, “The city guard’s Commander has come again, she wishes to see you.”
…
In the sitting room, Chaoyang offered her a cup of hot tea, “You visited us early at dawn, which truly reassures us citizens. Could it be that there’s been progress with the explosion case?”
For the first time, Shandela didn’t offer a polite smile, she didn’t even drink the tea, “I’ve been trained to be sufficient with just four hours of sleep. And yes, we have indeed made significant progress in the explosion case, we now strongly suspect that it was carried out by Heigang Security.”
“Then you should hurry and arrest them,” he said.
“I was thinking, what a pity the city guard can’t arrest a dead person,” Shandela leaned forward, like a predator poised to strike, “I indeed underestimated you before… I thought the Gate of Destiny company needed help, not realizing it was actually disgraceful. I’m here to understand how you investigated Heigang as the mastermind behind the scenes and managed to obliterate them overnight. Mr. Zhao, you’d better not hide anything. I came here alone, which is already the greatest sincerity I can show, I hope you understand.”
Chaoyang knew she wasn’t lying.
She didn’t come with an army to accuse him but visited as a guest, which was indeed a considerable restraint—especially when she suspected the Gate of Destiny to be connected with heretical cultists.
And this was no surprise to him.
The drug factory was bombed, and swiftly afterwards, the culprits were uprooted. As long as someone investigated deeply, it was inevitable to suspect the Gate of Destiny and Yeni Temple.
Of course, he’d assumed the city guard would take several days to reach this point… it seems the police system of this world isn’t as inadequate as he thought.
Chaoyang smiled, reached into his chest pocket, and placed a mask in front of her.
Seeing the familiar red and black patterned mask, Shandela’s pupils suddenly shrank to pinpoints!
