Chapter 1509: Chapter 209: Twin Serpents Devouring Their Tails, Eternal Damnation and Reincarnation

After realizing what Hassan and the Red Hand Gang were up to, Aiwass became aware… this matter might be out of hand.

——He could no longer turn a blind eye to it.

It wasn’t that Aiwass wanted to intervene, choosing sides without on-the-ground investigation…

But because he clearly sensed a certain inevitable possibility——

If things continued to develop this way, the Abyssal Celestial Envoy might suddenly descend at any time!

Undoubtedly, the Red Hand Gang was fundamentally impossible to stop.

They were a group of people whose homes were already destroyed, twisted by hatred to madness, willing to sacrifice themselves to achieve greatness on the Path of Devotion freaks. They had no weaknesses to speak of and firmly believed they were walking the path of righteousness.

Unlike the extreme and concept-swapping situation of “Premature Death”—if devoted to the ideology of Premature Death, they would consider those they killed as “necessary sacrifices” and nullify their value, thus minimizing their own “sin”.

It was precisely because holders of such beliefs had such high moral standards that they needed to forcibly convince themselves through these means.

Yet the Red Hand Gang had no such need.

To these Desert People, morality was a luxury. They did not think everything they did was right, nor did they think everything they did was “necessary evil”.

They clearly knew these were unforgivable sins, aware they were guilty alongside the Benevolent Lords, and in this context, used human lives as fuel to ignite a fire that would burn everything—willing to bear such a Great Sin, even transforming into demons after death, to take a bite out of the Benevolent Lords.

This is based on a revenge-led faith of Dedication.

They would rather—even wish to destroy themselves——to make the Benevolent Lords howl in Hell.

In the desert, there was no Nine Pillars Divine Church to popularize Dream Realm knowledge, so the Desert People developed their own rudimentary religious view of the “reincarnation” after death.

They believed that most ordinary people, based on the amount of suffering they endured in life, would become more fortunate in the next life. Over countless lifetimes, the ratio of happiness and unhappiness would gradually tilt towards equal—simply put, a reincarnation-style ELO mechanism.

If someone became a Transcendent—they didn’t believe it meant happiness, but rather they touched the “knowledge of the Demon.” This was quite normal; the Desert People most easily accessible knowledge was that of the transcendence, resonating with it the most, with it likely containing Demonology, Curses, and Ritual Studies… nothing that seemed proper at first glance.

In the cognition of the Desert People, once they touched the knowledge of the Demon… there was no afterlife.

They would become demons after death, eternally suffering and fighting in Hell until their sins were cleansed—some Desert People believed this took five hundred years, others three thousand, and yet others ninety-six thousand… but generally, “Transcendents are not to be envied.”

Although in some way, their perception of the Dream Realm wasn’t exactly wrong… even somewhat relevant, this rudimentary view of the afterlife clearly made the Desert People less daring to rebel. As they were suffering in this life, most likely they would enjoy blessings in the next, but if they rebelled, all prior suffering would have been in vain.

The insurgents chose to rebel despite this prevalent cognition—a will and determination completely different from the Loki followers in the Holy Nation who acted based on the Premature Death theory.

The fear of death is entirely different for one who knows they will enter the Dream Realm and become an Angel Envoy versus one who believes they will enter Hell and endure eternal torment after death.

They were not afraid of death, not even afraid of eternal torment after death… in such a scenario, the extent of their madness was self-evident.

In this context, the fact that the Red Hand Gang could continuously expand already proved that this Fourth Water Source War was fundamentally different from the previous three——

The previous three Water Source Wars could be suppressed because their demands were “water sources.” Therefore, even if they won local battles, they had to control a living Benevolent Lord to maintain the water sources.

Attacking and defending are two completely different matters. To capture a city, one only needs to capture the Benevolent Lord alive, then his army naturally disperses. But defending a city is hard… especially when the slaves often lack the ability to counter rituals and curses.

Other Benevolent Lords could even send assassins to kill these captured Benevolent Lords—killing a single Benevolent Lord could mean the collapse of a city-state, leading to the destruction of a supply point and transit station.

Thus, the longer the battle line was extended, the more disadvantageous it became for them.

Each Water Source War started with intense fervor, like the sunrise bathing the earth in light.

But each time, like the sun, it would inevitably set after reaching its peak.

——But this time is different.

The Red Hand Gang that emerged in the Fourth Water Source War had no interest in capturing the Benevolent Lords alive. They believed “free people are nothing but the slaves of the Benevolent Lords” and thus saw no need to rebuild the oasis… disregarding the safety of “hostages,” they absolutely dared to summon the Abyssal Celestial Envoy if the battle turned unfavorable, letting half or even the entire Parthian Ancient Country perish with them.

Because they weren’t trying to liberate slaves, but to annihilate the Benevolent Lords.

Likewise, the Benevolent Lords could not concede an inch.

The Benevolent Lords held power surpassing even that of the King, which in Parthia was not an age-old tradition. After all, Parthia itself had a King; it was merely because the King was completely silent that these Benevolent Lords could partition the land like warlords—it was essentially a country that had regressed from a feudal system to slavery.

Not many knew this, as the Benevolent Lords had not erased this part of history.

Unlike the slaves with zero access to knowledge, the Parthian Ancient Country’s various education, culture, and technology were not backward. In fact, in fields like mathematics, astronomy, and medicine, it was world-leading.

They held a deep respect for knowledge and truth that starkly contrasted with the complete control over personal and life rights. It is for this reason that “Punishment,” which erases all records and traces of existence, became the highest form of punishment in Parthia. Yet in Parthia, various ancient spells lost to the outside world could still be passed down.

——It is precisely because “erasure” is uncommon and unacceptable that it becomes punishment.

But even though scholars knew this, no one dared to mention that past history. Even if the Parthia King remained silent, the slaves and free people still respected their perhaps no longer existing ruler.

The Benevolent Lords all knew that as long as they took one step back——even the smallest step, they would turn from supreme slave-owners into water-producing machines obeying the monarch’s command.

Therefore, no Benevolent Lords dared to compromise, nor were they allowed to compromise… If anyone hesitated or faltered, the other Benevolent Lords would immediately kill them.

The coercion of the Red Hand Gang was undoubtedly effective. Even if it was the brainwashed Heaven City, it couldn’t accept the outcome of the Oasis gradually burning away. If the Benevolent Lords of other Oasis City States knew that Flame Fist Hassan had returned and the Red Hand Gang’s expansion and madness could no longer be stopped… they would inevitably choose only one future.

That is to summon the Abyssal Celestial Envoy, to extinguish all flames with the endless sea——and preferably kill the Abyssal Celestial Envoy in return, thus completely monopolizing the authority of Water Control and opening a new energy level limit.

——A dual Path of the Sixth, how beautiful! Even the Eternal Pope cannot contend with that!

At that time, they wouldn’t even need to look at the face of the Holy Nation——those high and mighty Elf Bishops could also be captured as slaves!

One side seeks revenge, the other has ambition.

One side is desperate, heedlessly rushing to mutual destruction;

While the other side is astonishingly arrogant and foolish, filled with unshakeable confidence in their plans and strength.

They are doomed to get lost in this madness.

No matter who falls into decline, they will inevitably choose to summon the Abyssal Celestial Envoy.

Just like two serpents devouring each other’s tails, though in motion, yet in stillness.

——The fruit of fate is already locked here.

It’s like the ancient Roman arena, putting in two undying-and-unyielding individuals——without the sacrifice of a life, they absolutely could not leave here.

And behind it, betting, were the “Red Dragon” and “White Dragon” embroiled eternally in engagement within the Dream Realm.

It was a struggle between savagery and authority, a death battle between avengers and kings.

They are like the shouting, bellowing, flushed spectators of the arena.

The Serpent Celestial Marshal is the owner of this arena——coldly overlooking everything from a higher place.

To him, all these people are so foolish and shortsighted, and yet their life and death, madness and obsessions could all turn into his wealth.

When Aiwass realized this step, he knew… he could no longer choose to bet on any side.

Two chess players playing chess, a group of chess pieces battling each other. And even the players were merely puppets controlled by others.

He must jump out of the chessboard——even if he couldn’t immediately punch the puppeteer to the ground, he must at least reach the level of the player to gain the freedom to move the pieces. Otherwise, he would be merely a pawn, unable to even see the direction of fate.

But as of now, Heaven City and the Red Hand Gang were eternally at odds. Trying to evacuate those people before the Abyssal Celestial Envoy’s arrival was already impossible——the war had begun, and the Benevolent Lords would not allow such a large population to leave the city-state casually… That in itself, much like the Red Hand Gang’s actions, touched upon the truly fragile deadlock of the Benevolent Lords.

On the other hand, Aiwass had no place to settle such a large population numbering in the tens of millions.

And stepping back, even if he had somewhere——those free people would not be willing to follow Aiwass out of the city-state. That would amount to rebellion against the Benevolent Lords, which was no different from joining the Red Hand Gang. Since that’s the case, why wouldn’t they join the Red Hand Gang, a familiar organization, to enjoy as much as they can before the inevitable death?

After settling the great chieftain, Aiwass stayed in place for a long time, thinking.

Isabel quietly closed the door from outside, refusing to allow anyone except Sherlock to disturb them, so Aiwass could think seriously.

Aiwass deduced many times, only to find this situation flawless.

——This situation is almost unsolvable.

This is obviously a deadlock designed by the Serpent Celestial Marshal.

Presumably, in the Serpent Celestial Marshal’s view, Aiwass had no way to untangle this deadlock. Even before unexpectedly obtaining the intelligence from the great chieftain, he was unaware of everything——and to acquire this intelligence, he must obtain Lucifer’s legacy, otherwise, the Avianfolk wouldn’t grant him absolute trust and loyalty.

This means that Aiwass knowing the truth was beyond the Serpent Celestial Marshal’s plan.

So, start deducing again from the beginning——

If Aiwass didn’t know about this, what would happen?