"Hiss... Ah!" He Sai's terrifying howl echoed throughout the space. At this mont, the power that now belonged to him made him realize what it ant to suffer a fate worse than death!
As expected of a Demonic Pact, there was no warmth to be found—only bloody terror and agonizing pain.
The Laws of Hell contained no so-called kindness, gentleness, justice, or compassion. There was only naked death, slaughter, bloodlust, and exchange!
He Sai's agonized cries lingered in the ears of the Believers, yet they did not feel any fear. Instead, a peculiar fanaticism glead in their eyes.
After all, none of them feared pain. Living in this hellish city, they were never strangers to suffering. It was precisely because of this misery that their behavior was so eccentric, driving them to seek out a special sanctuary in this district.
This was exactly what Gaap wanted to show them—the true world hidden in the shadows.
If nothing else, those who could bring themselves to believe in "Redemption Coins" were much more susceptible to believing in the existence of gods and demons. They were the ideal targets to beco a steady source of Wish Power.
Once these people had been sufficiently frightened, Gaap raised his hand and rotated his Hourglass once more. The world fell into stasis again, leaving only He Sai howling in agony as he experienced the sensation of Knowledge being forcibly carved into his brain.
Gaap was no Baphot. He was not an Infernal Overlord, but a unique Demon God of Hell whose domains governed Knowledge, emotions, and spaceti.
Therefore, what he bestowed upon He Sai was never raw, overwhelming power, but Knowledge itself!
An unknown amount of ti passed before He Sai awoke from the endless tornt, managing not to lose himself in the realm of pain.
Before him, a unique Parchnt Scroll slowly unfurled, its contents shifting into lines of text he could sohow comprehend:
[Pact of Knowledge Flow
Article One: Wisdom Exchange
"Gaap touches the contractor's frontal bone with a finger of molten gold, infusing:
Viam Inveniam aut Faciam
Future Fragnts within Three Days
Target's Affection/Hate Reversal
Article Two: Flesh and Blood Cost
"The contractor must cede three cognitive cornerstones:
1. Language Instinct: Gradually lose the mother tongue after signing, capable only of communicating in the newly acquired Ancient Cuneiform.
2. Ti Perception: For each piece of Knowledge acquired, the aging rate accelerates to 300% of the original baseline.
3. Divine mory: Permanently lose mories of communicating with Divine Beings.
Article Three: Spatial Binding
"If the contractor violates the Contract, Gaap may open a Star Chart Rift at any ti to teleport them to:
The Burning Library of Alexandria in Egypt or the Sunken Copper Mine of King Solomon, to suffer the Punishnt of the Fiery Abyss and the Eternal Life of Sin!]
Seeing this, He Sai, who now had a rough understanding of what a Demonic Pact entailed, was sowhat surprised. "This isn't right. Why are there no corresponding clauses?"
What he wanted to ask was why there were only punishnts for him and none for the other party. This completely contradicted the very definition of a Contract!
Gaap seed to know exactly what he was thinking and stated flatly, "I am the possessor of Knowledge. This is power that belongs to , not power drawn from Hell. I do not need to pay a Price!"
He Sai understood this completely. Gaap's aning was simple: he was telling him that all these things belonged to him, and He Sai now belonged to him as well.
Looking at the Price required to wield this power, He Sai actually grew increasingly calm. He looked at Gaap and asked slowly, "The mont I sign this Contract, does my Soul belong to you?"
"You mortals always place such heavy importance on your Souls! Your Souls are not that significant; your existence is far more useful to !" Gaap turned his head to look at him, speaking solemnly. "Souls belong to Hell, to Satan, not to !" Looking at his suddenly serious expression, He Sai reached a Half-Understanding.
So to speak, Hell maintained strict control over Souls. Even a Great Demon God and Archdemon like Gaap lacked the authority to process Souls?
But as he continued reading the Contract, He Sai's gaze grew increasingly blank. The three abilities seed impressive enough, but what did it an to lose his mother tongue and only be able to communicate in ancient script?
What was this about aging three tis faster after acquiring Knowledge? And what did it an to lose his mory of communicating with Divine Beings?
"It ans you will gain the ability to communicate with the gods, fallen angels, and Demons that once existed in the Babylonian and Surian pantheons. You will also receive the Knowledge I bestow upon you, and you will beco a Prophet, but you will never rember eting !"
Gaap said with utter candor, "This is, after all, an act ant to cause trouble for Heaven. I have no desire to be hunted down and killed in Hell by Michael!"
'You are truly Letting Loose,' He Sai thought. 'Telling all this just because I will not be able to rember it, right?'
He Sai felt utterly dismayed. Didn't this an that if anything went wrong in the future, he would be forced to take all the Bla? Could he refuse?
Thinking it over, he knew it was utterly impossible. He had absolutely no grounds to refuse, and even if he did try, no one would accept his refusal.
With a heavy sigh, He Sai could only nod in agreent. Fortunately, he had no relatives. Being a complete orphan ant he wouldn't drag any family mbers down with him. He would sign it!
Just as that thought crossed his mind, his na and Gaap's na materialized together on the parchnt:
[Contracting Party: He Sai
Knowledge Controller: Gaap
Contract Established]
The instant the agreent was forged, He Sai could feel an imnse volu of Knowledge being forcefully cramd into his still-aching head. This Knowledge rapidly unpacked and circulated within his mind, granting him a far deeper comprehension of his own nature and position.
Certain "abilities" unique to him gradually manifested within his body. For instance, the Ability to Foresee Future Fragnts, the capacity to "see" Believers' Emotions, and of course, Viam Inveniam aut Faciam from the ancient Babylonian kingdom!
This was an extraordinarily powerful and miraculous ability that allowed him to deconstruct and alter certain properties of Bricks and Stones.
He could harden his own flesh to rival solid rock, or manipulate Bricks and Stones to serve as defensive aids or to construct themselves actively.
This ability was incredibly potent. He Sai could already sense that he now wielded the power to easily determine the life and death of dozens or even hundreds of people. However, the toll for wielding such power was equally imnse. If he ever pushed beyond his limits, it would directly drain his life force!
'Perhaps I should seek out so Knowledge that can prolong my lifespan!' He Sai thought to himself as Gaap prepared to depart.
"Complete your task diligently, and you shall receive my reward! Perform well, and when you eventually arrive in Hell, the honorable Crown Aym will bestow upon you a true Divine Seat!" Gaap declared.
"But Crown, you haven't yet told ... what my task is!" He Sai hurriedly blurted out.
This was the most crucial point. He had Muddled his way into signing the Contract, Muddled his way into offering up his Soul—all of which fell under the banner of "atonent"—but he couldn't just remain completely Muddled regarding his task!
The main problem was, he truly had no idea what the Mission entailed!
"This task cos from Mr. Lucifer..." Hearing He Sai's plea, Gaap nodded slightly and revealed his true objective. "He wants you to slaughter those who believe in God, preferably those who consider themselves 'Divine Servants'!"
"The Holy Light has overreached; their hands have stretched all the way into Hell! Lucifer is deeply displeased. You need to kill enough of The Faithful to satisfy him!"
"Slay them, and you shall reap the gifts of our Contract!"
This statent was entirely true, though Gaap conveniently omitted the reality that ever since Michael's intervention in Hell, everyone had been Trembling with Fear. It was only now that they dared to crawl out of the woodwork to cause a little trouble for those hypocrites.
"Kill those people? That... won't Paladins or so disciplinary Bishop co looking for trouble with ?" He Sai asked, a hint of dread in his voice.
"Is the power I granted you rely for show? Kill them all together!" Gaap bellowed furiously. "Besides, do you absolutely have to do it yourself?"
Hearing this, He Sai instantly understood. So he was just supposed to hire others to do the dirty work! Wasn't that simple?
As long as he didn't get his own hands dirty, he could largely bypass his earlier concerns. Miami lacked many things, but the one thing it had in abundance was desperadoes!
Furthermore, he could foresee the future. If anyone ca hunting for him, couldn't he just slip away ahead of ti? At worst, he could put up a fight and then run! Could a Prophet really fail to escape?
With everything settled, He Sai only felt a sudden wave of dizziness wash over him. He was back in the Church, standing before his familiar congregation.
Except now, these people, who looked as if they had just woken from a trance, rushed toward He Sai with fanatic zeal etched into their faces. "Your Excellency Archbishop, I want to buy Redemption Coins!"
After experiencing the "mystery" just monts ago, these Believers had long since mutated into absolute zealots!
"Do not rush, there is no need to rush. Everyone will have coins to buy!" He Sai announced gleefully. "Not only can you buy them, but you can also receive so of my special guidance!"
Hearing this, the crowd surged forward with even greater fervor, only to be abruptly halted by a wall of stone that suddenly erupted from the floor.
Witnessing this miracle, the people grew even more fanatical. A thrill of excitent washed over them as they realized they hadn't joined so scamr's ring, but a genuine cult of Transcendence!
He Sai could feel it too. He had truly beco an Archbishop, and it seed he now had his own ultimate Mission!
Yet, the events that had just transpired seed to have vanished from his mind completely—was this the effect of losing his Divine mory?
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