Apocalyptic Era: Starting from picking up a Bishoujo
Chapter 768 - 725: The Guest Becomes the Host
Divination Master once told me that Liu Shuying has a similar temperament to mine and suggested that I shouldn't let Liu Shuying meet Mazao.
Although I did not feel a similar impression in actual contact, Liu Shuying has many other suspicious aspects. For example, Liu Shuying spent a long time in the Arctic, seemingly searching for something. And based on our interactions, it seems he hasn't fully achieved his goal in the Arctic and has faced some insurmountable difficulties.
Another example, just like me, Liu Shuying is a recently emerged new Great Impermanence. If my rapid rise to become Great Impermanence is reason enough for suspecting me as the Seal Master, then Liu Shuying is no less suspicious, for he might have had more extraordinary gifts since he became Great Impermanence earlier than I.
He was also known as the "Prophet," able to foresee things that even Divination Master couldn't. This amazing prophetic power might not mean he has actual abilities in prophecy; the truth might be that he used the Divine Seal Power to shape this world according to his desire, hence the world naturally develops according to his expectations.
In other words, his prophetic power might essentially be akin to "shooting the arrow first and drawing the bullseye later." And the reason this power diminishes like Divination Master's might be due to increasing errors in the world, resulting in a loss of its original attributes.
Little Bowl also listed the suspicious materials above, but I still feel something is amiss.
If Liu Shuying and I truly share extremely similar desires and mentalities... there seems to be something paradoxical. It feels too forced to simply explain it as coincidence.
The coincidences that began with my encounter with Mazao can be seen as guided by the power of the Unfortunate people, but the potential I have to become Great Impermanence was long before my encounter with Mazao, thus cannot be explained by the power of the Unfortunate people. If this potential isn't evidence that I'm the Seal Master, and no arrangement is involved, merely chance... how unlikely is this, statistically?
While it's not absolutely impossible, it still leaves a feeling that's hard to calmly accept.
But if I am the Seal Master, how do I explain Liu Shuying's peculiarities?
Little Bowl seems to have noticed this glaring issue too, and after some contemplation, she said: "It's very normal for Great Impermanence to have innate special abilities, and Liu Shuying's prophetic power might be inborn.
"This innate wisdom regarding future matters wasn't uncommon in mythical times, though merely relying on innate divine skills to surpass Divination Master's divination power isn't realistic. However, the divination ability of Divination Master after the Fantian incident was already abnormal, and Liu Shuying's prophetic power could very well be more suitable for this era.
"Moreover, there's an angle to explain his prolonged activities in the Arctic. Even Tai Sui, a mere human scientist from the Original World, could use his intelligence to glean clues about ancient civilization from various signs. Surely, the Great Impermanence of this world could similarly track ancient civilization clues and target the Arctic Circle.
"In fact, Divination Master also holds some clues about ancient civilizations, and Evangelical Institute Master Yan Mo has had knowledge of Divine Seals since the beginning."
Although this conjecture is completely reasonable, as a defense for Liu Shuying, it seems somewhat lacking in persuasion.
If I could meet Liu Shuying again, there might be a chance to verify his true identity. Taoyuan Village Master Meng Zhang, who has had fierce encounters with Liu Shuying, seems to have discovered significant issues with him, even comparing him with Shan Liangyi, a super powerhouse who pushed open the third gate. Unfortunately, like Old Fist God, Liu Shuying's whereabouts are currently unknown.
We ultimately decided to focus suspicion on Liu Shuying, then turned the topic to Tai Sui.
"Although Brother Zhuang Cheng didn't agree to hand over all Divine Seal Fragments to Divine Seal Master Tai Sui based on his own wishes, aside from this, the judgment 'Tai Sui won't fulfill his promise' is accurate," Little Bowl said.
I said curiously: "No, I'm just suspicious... but you seem to think Tai Sui would certainly break his promise?"
"During Brother Zhuang Cheng's conversation with Tai Sui, I also inquired about Tai Sui's behavior from Lady No. 7," Little Bowl said.
"Are you saying... he's actually someone prone to reneging on their word?" I asked.
"Quite the contrary, Tai Sui possesses extremely strong conscience and moral sense," Little Bowl said seriously, "In the Post-mortem World, many monks of the Evangelical Institute and doomsday survivors believe Tai Sui was killed by Evangelical Institute Master Yan Mo because he opposed the mainstream direction of the Evangelical Institute, advocating for the protection of survivor groups... although we all know Tai Sui's death wasn't due to this, it still shows his image in others' eyes.
"Lady No. 7 told me Tai Sui always risked life and exposure to save those suffering on Doomsday Land. Even when unable to use his powers properly, he was willing to risk exposure and death to save others. He's indeed not an aloof God overlooking the world; he's a good man willing to sacrifice himself to act according to his conscience.
"He probably harbors a strong sense of guilt. He might believe it's because of him the world teeters on the brink of destruction, causing soul-loss patients to experience hellish hardships... he might think this way. Though outsiders see it as the Seal Master's fault, he likely believes he started it all and blames himself, with his sacrificial and saving acts meant as atonement."
I attempted to ask: "If Tai Sui truly has such high moral sense, shouldn't he adhere to his promises more?"
"Whether he upholds his promises isn't necessarily related to the level of moral sense," Little Bowl said, "Some people keep their word due to extreme arrogance and pride, placing their self-image above all. These people, whether good or evil, strive to fulfill every statement they've made.
"On the contrary, some have not only a strong moral sense but also a noble sacred goal far beyond their being. They generally strive to honor all their promises to maintain their credibility in others' eyes. But if it's to realize that 'sacred goal,' they'll abandon everything, including but not limited to wealth, life, dignity... and promises made to others."
So, Tai Sui is likely such a person.
A figure who would do anything to achieve their sacred goal might take unforeseen actions in the future, and perhaps I should be more vigilant about him.
Little Bowl seems still concerned about the connection between me and Divine Seal Fragments, but given I've regained the qualification of Void Envoy, and can't easily regain it later, I'm not inclined to discard it again. At least before killing Ming Zhuo, I need to retain this qualification. However, it seems Little Bowl's true focus is on something else right now.
"I observed closely the process of Lady No. 7 transferring her Void Envoy qualification to you, and if combined with Tai Sui's talk of 'Seal Authority'..." Little Bowl pondered and said, "Although this is still just my theory... the essence of the 'Void Envoy' qualification is likely the Seal Authority Tai Sui personally split out."
Upon hearing this, I first sensed my connection with Divine Seal Fragments, then said, "Since Tai Sui is willing to give me something like this, it shows that this level of Seal Authority can at most manipulate the Power of Divine Seal Fragments, but cannot control the Doomsday Divine Seal or Current World Divine Seal."
"Exactly. Without enough Seal Authority, it's impossible to mobilize sufficient Divine Seal power. In fact, even Tai Sui himself was once severely pressured by the Seal Master and couldn't properly use the power of the Doomsday Divine Seal," Little Bowl said thoughtfully, "But Seal Authority should be expandable by other means, for example, our Void Envoy can mobilize more Power of Divine Seal Fragments by acquiring more Divine Seal Fragments..."
"Following this logic, if we gather all Divine Seal Fragments, we could directly surpass Tai Sui and gain the authority to control all the power of the Doomsday Divine Seal, right?" I asked, "But our Void Envoy qualifications are authorized by Tai Sui, so shouldn't he possess higher authority to prevent us from achieving this?"
"Not necessarily. The reason Tai Sui and Seal Master have the highest authority over Divine Seal is likely due to them encountering the Complete Divine Seal earlier than anyone else," Little Bowl said, "They neither created Divine Seal nor belong to the civilization or race that created it, they simply have a first-mover advantage. Their contact with the Complete Divine Seal was very brief and soon interrupted by world changes.
"Additionally, they clearly don't have 100% authority; they each hold a portion of it. If the Current World Divine Seal and Doomsday Divine Seal are parts of the Complete Divine Seal, then essentially their authority is no different than ours as Void Envoys, it's all 'authority to manipulate Divine Seal Fragments.' There might only be a quantitative difference, not a qualitative one."
"So you're saying... we might become the Master of Divine Seal ourselves?" I asked.