Chapter 217 Above the Wilderness of the Four Seasons

A breeze flowed through the wilderness of the four seasons.

Alone, like a wandering ghost, Tie Wu drifted aimlessly... This wilderness before him seemed vast and boundless, but in reality, there was an invisible air barrier blocking him.

He was trapped in an invisible cage of air.

For a man seeking death... to be unable to die was the greatest torment.

In this mental world, he had lost all power. He could not leave, nor could he kill himself. As Gu Shen had said, everyone's life was like a train, and the train symbolizing his life had completely closed its doors.

All he could do was wait for the "final stop"...

Nothing was more terrifying than waiting for death. Every minute, every second, felt like an eternity!

In this extremely silent world, Tie Wu had nothing to do... His brain worked uncontrollably, thinking, and at that moment, Gu Shen's face appeared before him.

The young man's words were like the whispers of a demon.

He didn't believe that His Holiness had abandoned him.

He preferred to believe that the destruction of his body was due to his own weakness, unable to bear the immense divine power...

Before his thoughts could wander for long.

Soon.

Above the wilderness, a fiery gate slowly burned into existence. It was not a passage for Tie Wu to leave, but a window through which to see. Within the burning square gate, a picture gradually emerged, changing from blurry to clear... It was the seabed of an ocean enveloped in countless water droplets.

"This is..."

Tie Wu was stunned.

He recognized it. This was the "deep-sea zone" of the deep sea... However, judging from the image, it was a depth he could not reach. Only figures with extremely high authority could enter.

Immediately afterward, he saw a familiar figure in the picture.

Qin Ye!

Qin Ye was kneeling on one knee before a floating robe. That broad figure suspended in the seawater caused Tie Wu's pupils to glow with an unusual light. It was the Sky Throne of the Source Tower!

Without a doubt, this was the bottommost layer of the deep-sea zone!

A place only the Throne had the authority to enter!

What was terrifying, however, was that the conversation of the Throne, symbolizing the highest authority of the Federal Government, was not kept secret at the bottom of the [Deep-Sea Zone]... Next, not only this image, but the conversation between the two of them, was transmitted to Tie Wu's ears, word for word.

["Qin Ye... Do you still remember what the mission of the [Apostle] is?"]

["Of course... Of course, I remember!"]

Every word, every sentence, was crystal clear.

Tie Wu began to watch and listen silently. His expression began to become more and more complex.

This was a conversation that would shock the entire transcendent world if it were to be leaked.

What truly shocked him... was not that Gu Shen had spied on and recorded the Throne's conversation.

What truly shocked, amazed, and suffocated him... were the words spoken by His Holiness.

[...]

["It's time..."]

["To offer your life for the Five Continents."]

He couldn't believe it.

Were these really the words spoken by the benevolent, selfless, infinitely radiant Holiness?

...

...

Visibly, Qin Ye's face turned extremely pale.

When bestowing the token, His Holiness had said that it was His divine power, and as long as he faithfully believed, he would be invincible in times of crisis.

Of all the sharpest weapons in the world, the most solid was faith.

And once the token was received.

The brilliance of God would shine down.

The reason for becoming an [Apostle], willingly dedicating everything... was because God had already dedicated everything. As a follower, he would naturally willingly submit and choose to follow.

Of course, Qin Ye was willing to die.

He didn't even need His Holiness to speak... He was willing to endure hundreds of millions of sufferings in a sea of knives and a mountain of fire, to die hundreds and thousands of times!

But precisely at this juncture, the faith in his heart wavered.

He began to be unable to understand His Holiness.

Was His Holiness worried that he would no longer be firm during the torture in the East Continent Council and would reveal the secrets of the Source Tower?

Or did His Holiness feel that under severe torture, he might abandon the bottom line of the [Apostle] and ultimately choose to survive by hook or by crook?

Or perhaps... His Holiness was just weighing the pros and cons and deciding to abandon him.

After a long silence.

Qin Ye used all his strength, and opened his mouth with incomparable weariness, saying, "Your Holiness... I... want to live."

Living was something he had never cared about.

But at the moment he was sentenced to death, it became the thing he cared about the most.

"I should live... I can still do a lot... a lot for the Source Tower..."

Qin Ye once again received no reply.

His voice began to tremble, and the words he spoke began to become incoherent.

"You let me live... I can continue to offer you everything... everything..."

The seawater in the sea area flowed backward wildly.

After failing to detect the identity of the窥视者 (kuīshìzhě – peeping person), the Sky Throne did not feel at ease.

The feeling of having a芒在背 (máng zài bèi – feeling like a thorn is stabbing you in the back) in his heart still lingered, and it became more and more intense. He didn't know what had happened, but he knew what this feeling meant. After refining the Fire Seed for so many years, his intuition had never been wrong. This was a reminder to himself... The sooner the conversation ended, the better.

Yes.

Judging from Qin Ye's reaction, there was no need to continue.

"Qin Ye."

The Throne took a deep breath and said in a deep voice, "Don't you understand the meaning of today's conversation? What I'm talking to you about... is not the future, but the present. Now I need you to make a contribution to the Source Tower, to mankind, and to the light of the Five Continents..."

Qin Ye stood blankly in the sea area.

"Let's leave it at that... Qin Ye, think carefully about your family. After today, the Source Tower will take good care of them."

This was the last voice of the Throne.

That face slowly dissipated.

Along with the roaring sound of the seawater sweeping.

The mental connection was severed... Qin Ye's consciousness began to float upward. He painfully endured the burden brought about by this huge computing power, and in a flash, he returned to the interrogation room in reality.

With a "plop."

A drop of sweat dripped onto the wooden floor.

Qin Ye's pupils shrank as he stared at the ground in front of him. He was soaked in sweat in the real world... His hair was almost dripping with water.

Chu Yu's tone was lengthy and tedious. Only when he saw Qin Ye look up did he slowly end this useless and unnutritious speech.

"Well, there's one last thing to note..."

"In another twenty hours, according to the procedure, you will be handed over to the Court of Judgment and then sent to Nagano to face the final trial." Chu Yu made sure that Qin Ye's eyes met his and slowly said, "During this time, the Source Tower will actively communicate with the East Continent Council... Mr. Qin Ye, do you understand what I mean?"

Qin Ye's lips were dry, and he nodded slowly.

"...Mm."

"Oh, one more thing."

"According to the detention procedures of the East Continent Federation, Mr. Qin Ye will be given a quiet, solitary environment to await the next transfer." Chu Yu raised his head and looked at the camera, smiling gently, "Ms. Lu, no matter what you did before, I hope you understand... From this moment on, if Mr. Qin Ye suffers even the slightest damage, the Source Tower has the right to hold you and your teacher responsible."