After the Lord of the Abyss Awakens - Chapter 73.1

“No meow, no meow!”

Buer urgently denied, raising both hands in front of Her like surrendering, Her expression visibly panicked.

Standing in front of Her was Valefor, Her sixth sister.

Her sixth sister was very intelligent, with sharp eyes. She loved reading and art, often donning disguises to perform in the human world, leading human artistic trends multiple times. As far as Buer knew, sixth sister had used seven disguises in total, leaving her mark in different historical eras, becoming the subject of legends.

In recent years, sixth sister seemed to be obsessed with painting, often spending months on a single painting, secluding herself. Sixth sister also liked living in the mountains, on snow-capped peaks, especially in quiet yet dangerous places near cliffs. Sixth sister had a sense of “forest beauty” from father’s memories – fresh and natural, transcendent, exuding a mysterious spiritual aura.

How to describe Buer’s relationship with Her sixth sister? When She was young, She was often teased by sixth sister, like having Her cheeks pinched and such. After being teased so much, She would hide behind father when She saw sixth sister.

It got a bit better later. Sixth sister became quiet after father’s “death”. She used to talk a lot before, nagging Her about being dirty and needing to take a bath. After father’s incident, sixth sister became taciturn, no longer teasing Her or joking with Her much.

In Buer’s impression, sixth sister Valefor now lived a quiet and simple life. Apart from the sisters’ meetings, she probably hadn’t gone out much.

In other words, sixth sister was very likely unaware of what had happened this past month!

Buer’s brain CPU was running at full speed, almost smoking.

She successfully spoke before Valefor could say her next sentence, “Haha, isn’t this sixth sister? Long time no see. The ‘meow’ is because I recently got a cat. The kitty is super cute.”

“…Is that so.”

Valefor stared at Buer, narrowing Her eyes.

Her forest-green eyes exuded an intimidating aura that made demons shiver.

Buer was sweating profusely inside, tongue-tied, almost letting something slip again.

But this time, She emphasized to herself, father’s little cotton jacket only needs me! Too many cotton jackets would make it hot, and besides, sixth sister bullied Her when She was little, so She won’t tell sixth sister!

Buer’s gaze was firm, fully psyching herself up.

Valefor was silent for a few seconds, suddenly turned around, and looked back saying. “Little Bu, you’re not the type who can raise cats. You’d better not keep one.”

Buer stubbornly said, “I can raise one! I get along well with small animals, meow-meows all like me.”

The more details, the truer the lie, that’s what Aelioge said! She had learned to be smarter!

“…”

Valefor’s gaze sank slightly, reminding Her. “Is that so? Being overconfident is your weakness. You’re often careless. I’m afraid they’ll go hungry with you.”

Buer smiled and said, “How is that possible? I would never let my kitties go hungry meow.”

Valefor said flatly. “You added ‘meow’ at the end of your sentence again.”

“Did I? Did I?”

Buer played dumb, smiling foolishly, rubbing the back of Her head, putting on a “you know I’m an idiot” look.

Valefor stared at Her, unsure if She was suspicious, and turned around saying, “Hurry up, the sisters’ meeting is about to start. Little Ayni will be coming today too.”

Buer’s smile froze, She could hardly smile anymore.

Who? Little Ayni? Why does She have to come!

“Little Ayni” referred to their youngest sister, ranked twenty-third. According to father, this image was originally a three-headed man in the “Solomon’s Key”, with a human head in the middle, a snake head on the left, and a cat head on the right, holding a fire jade in the right hand, riding a hell snake engulfed in red smoke. But for some reason, father had trouble shaping her at the time, as if this child had her own image and will, with a kind of innate stubbornness. When father wasn’t paying attention, She shaped herself.

Little Ayni had been mischievous and energetic since childhood, loving to make trouble, like a calico cat, unpredictable, rebellious, daring to play pranks even on big brother.

Buer was struck by the name “Ayni”, immediately becoming alert and extremely cautious.

She never expected Little Ayni to come too. She would have to be extra careful.

She absolutely could not let Little Ayni know, or She would definitely cause big problems!

I will protect Father’s peaceful days!

****

On the other side. Inside the bookstore.

“Third brother meow.”

The short-legged cat blinked and tilted its head. After waiting for quite a while, its third brother was still in a thoughtful pose with His chin resting on His hand.

Even the short-legged cat knew that if they didn’t think of a solution quickly, that king called Levin would likely expose himself.

It was now 2 PM. Their father was focused on leveling up, completely unaware of the turmoil surrounding Him.

Ah, only Father remained peaceful and undisturbed.

The short-legged cat stole a glance to the side, its eyes somewhat dazed.

Just then.

“Come to think of it.”

Vassago suddenly remembered something and turned to look at the short-legged cat, “Does that King Levin have any connection with the Goddess of Wisdom?”

He was asking the wrong demon by posing this question to the short-legged cat. The short-legged cat didn’t understand anything and looked completely bewildered.

Who had contact with the Goddess of Wisdom? It was Aelioge and Inpos.

Aelioge had gone to investigate the Otherworld God Number 001 and probably wouldn’t be back for a while.

Inpos was essentially exiled to Ningguta, probably being pressured by Amon to the point of desperation to return home.

Beelzebub hadn’t directly contacted the Goddess of Wisdom, but He should know something.

Hmm… what was Beelzebub doing?

Preventing the God of Destruction from reviving, making the Goddess of Wisdom reveal that unknown information?

Vassago rested His chin on His hand, murmuring, “I sense it, that Norman Til has the protection of the seven great Elf Kings.”

The short-legged cat blinked.

As everyone knew, a long time ago, before the Elf Ancestor God disappeared, the elves only had one country, which was the Elf Empire.

After the Elf Ancestor disappeared, the Elf Empire split into two, then further split, until it divided into today’s seven great Elf Kingdoms.

Logically, the seven great Elf Kings each had their own personalities and preferences, and it would be impossible for them to give protection to the same person. However, Norman Til had conquered them with his strength.

They had no choice but to grant him protection, letting the royal elves of their kingdoms follow Norman Til, incidentally gaining experience or something like that.

Vassago was indifferent to the elf race, but He knew that elves had extremely strong perception. If this bookstore hadn’t added countless layers of cognitive intervention and cognitive blurring, they might really discover,

“Norman Til, elves, and the Goddess of Wisdom.”

Vassago frowned.

“These fellows will soon encounter each other.”

****

He was right.

Almost simultaneously.

Norman Til bid farewell to Levin, saying he wanted to walk around, and as he walked, he arrived at the Prime Minister’s mansion.

The sky gradually darkened, covered by clouds.

He stood still, his gaze seeming to penetrate the buildings of the Prime Minister’s mansion.

Suddenly, his eyes faintly emitted a seven-colored radiance, with magical patterns appearing in the depths of his pupils.

At the same time, the ethereal images of the seven great elves appeared around him again.

They spoke playfully.

“Unbelievable.”

“There are two deities inside, both Wisdom and Fortune are there.”

“What an amazing country, it’s the first time I’ve seen this.”

They chatted and laughed, as if they had already seen through what was inside the building.

Norman Til stood for about ten seconds, gradually releasing the cognitive interference, revealing his true appearance.

Not everyone could recognize Norman Til, such as the guard knights at the Prime Minister’s mansion.

They noticed Norman Til’s arrival.

“Who is that?”

“A guest of the Prime Minister?”

They walked over, feeling more and more reverent as they approached. When they were within three steps of Norman Til, their hearts pounded uncontrollably, unsure if it was nervousness or excitement.

They didn’t think Norman Til was here to cause trouble, because he exuded an aura of righteousness and had an overwhelmingly strong presence.

The knights looked at each other, discussing who should step forward.

Norman Til turned his head to look at them and said directly, “Imperial knights, good afternoon. I am Norman Til. I’ve come suddenly to pay a visit. I would like to see your Prime Minister Norwich.”

The knights’ eyes widened, their minds almost exploding.

Who? Who did he say? Norman Til? The second-ranked human who just defeated the Divine Kingdom of Destruction yesterday?!

The knights shuddered, facing Norman Til in person, they had not a shred of doubt.

“Are… are you a guest of the Prime Minister?”

“No, but I’d like to see Him.”

Norman Til smiled faintly.

****

At this moment, inside the Prime Minister’s mansion.

“…Why did you save me?”

The Goddess of Fortune lay on the sofa, almost burying Her body into the soft cushions. She lifted Her eyelids, Her gaze falling on the “Prime Minister” who was handling government affairs.

“…Why, you ask.”

The Goddess of Wisdom repeated the question, slowly raising Her gaze to meet the Goddess of Fortune’s eyes across the room.

The Goddess of Fortune’s expression was languid, half Her face buried in the sofa, “I remember we don’t get along, in any generation.”

“Is that so.”

The Goddess of Wisdom responded with Her habitual counter-question.

“First confirm if it’s true, then ask why it is so” was one of Her principles of conversation.

She valued efficiency in speech and disliked wasteful talk and meaningless chat.

Verbal waste was even more unbearable to deities than physical garbage; the latter even stuck in memories, impossible to remove.

“Isn’t it true?”

The Goddess of Fortune stared at the Goddess of Wisdom, Her attitude somewhat confrontational, as if She felt no gratitude for the Goddess of Wisdom saving Her life.

She was an emotional deity.

While the Goddess of Wisdom was arguably the most rational among the deities, quiet and reserved, dull and boring, without any sense of fun, exactly Her opposite.

Among the goddesses, She got along well with Harmony, felt indifferent towards others, and had an obvious aversion to the Goddess of Wisdom.

She also hadn’t expected that it would be the Goddess of Wisdom who saved Her. It was… a complex feeling that couldn’t be expressed.

The Goddess of Fortune stared at the Goddess of Wisdom, Her eyes faintly revealing dissatisfaction.

The Goddess of Wisdom answered. “The Divine Kingdom of Destruction is not a place you should stay.”

The Goddess of Fortune raised an eyebrow, “Where should I stay then?”

The Goddess of Wisdom: “Staying there… you wanted to be destroyed along with the Divine Kingdom of Destruction, didn’t you?”

The Goddess of Fortune had an attitude of resignation, tilting Her head, “It’s obvious, isn’t it?”

To meet destruction in the Divine Kingdom of Destruction, awaiting the birth of a brand new consciousness.

Fortune is indestructible; as long as all things still yearn for fortune, fortune will remain eternal.

And being eliminated in the Divine Kingdom of Destruction was also a choice with a sense of ritual.

“Don’t you think so?”

The Goddess of Fortune gazed wearily at the Goddess of Wisdom, Her eyes changing from bright to dim, like the sun setting and giving way to night.

When a deity’s consciousness can no longer maintain its divinity, that divinity will extinguish like the flame of a candle.

In this sense, consciousness is like the wick in the middle of a candle, and divinity is the flame.

When you light a candle, you’re igniting the flame of divinity, also called the divine flame.

The flame burns the wick, continuously consuming consciousness, releasing heat that melts and vaporizes the solid wax outside. When the wick is finally burned out, the divine flame is extinguished.

How about that? It’s a good metaphor, isn’t it?

However, this makes it sound like consciousness is merely a consumable for the divine flame.

Since the divine flame is fire, it needs to continuously burn things to sustain itself.

Consciousness is just the firewood thrown into the fire.

One generation after another, with endless firewood, the fire burns ceaselessly – this is the fate of deities.

It’s said that it wasn’t always like this.

Originally, there was no succession of deities at all.

A long time ago, the most primitive divine consciousnesses collectively abandoned their divine status and thrones, leading to vacancies in divine positions.

The universe needed to supplement consciousness externally to ensure the operation of this divine mechanism.

In other words, They who came later were just consciousnesses substituted in, not originally fit for those positions.

In human terms, it would be called “unworthy of the position.”

“…”

The Goddess of Wisdom fell silent.

Seeing the Goddess of Wisdom lower Her eyes and ignore Her, the Goddess of Fortune felt bored and complained, “This is why you have no friends.”

The Goddess of Wisdom raised Her eyes at these words, a hint of emotion in Her voice.

“I don’t want to hear that from someone suffering from eternal depression.”

The Goddess of Fortune’s expression changed abruptly, straightening Her head, “What eternal depression? Stop making up strange terms. Your specialty is just playing with concepts.”

However, the Goddess of Wisdom calmly explained, “As long as one is a deity with emotional functions, they probably can’t escape eternal depression. It’s just a matter of severity and onset time.”

The Goddess of Fortune frowned, “You’re still going on about this?”

The Goddess of Wisdom ignored Her and continued. “It’s said that long ago, deities were emotionless. Then suddenly one day, an ultimate being appeared out of nowhere, calling itself the God of Emotions, or Emotion God.”

“Its power was terrifyingly vast, silently affecting most deities. Since then, the gods gradually gained emotions and began to suffer from various emotional disorders.”

The Goddess of Fortune paused, Her eyes full of disbelief, “What kind of story is this? Emotion God? Why have I never heard of this before?”

The Goddess of Wisdom: “This is a tale from a wandering poet. Perhaps it’s just fiction, who knows?”

Of course, the Goddess of Wisdom believed that existence is reasonable, meaning everything has a reason or predecessor for its existence.

An unknown reason doesn’t mean there is no reason.

The Goddess of Fortune was perplexed, “Stop trying to fool deities with made-up stories. A wandering poet? Has the Goddess of Wisdom fallen so low as to reference wandering poets?”

“Just listen.”

The Goddess of Wisdom seemed tired too and said directly. “I saved you for no other reason than to prevent things from getting too out of hand.”

The Goddess of Fortune made an “oh” sound, looking the Goddess of Wisdom up and down in Her disguise, saying meaningfully, “Why have you become like Harmony? Don’t tell me you also want to protect world peace?”

The Goddess of Wisdom shook Her head, “I just want some peace and quiet.”

The Goddess of Fortune laughed, “You want peace and quiet?”

She looked at the Goddess of Wisdom, questioning, “If you want peace and quiet, why are you here? Hiding in subspace would be good, there are plenty of places where you could stay quietly. If not that, you could create your own world as a creator god. Wouldn’t it be more peaceful in your own world?”

The Goddess of Wisdom didn’t answer, glancing at the Goddess of Fortune, “Your power only makes situations worse. Just stay put for now.”

The Goddess of Fortune’s gaze was subtle.

However, despite Her words, She didn’t leave the Goddess of Wisdom’s protective range.

Compared to going out to face so many enemies, staying here with Wisdom was indeed preferable for now.

****