Apocalypse Forecast

Chapter 1233: Chapter 942: The Price

The reason it’s called ’that thing’ is that Luo Su himself isn’t sure of its state or means of preservation.

Benefiting from Yekaterina’s excellent maintenance and sealing, Luo Su only knows about its excessively dangerous nature, with no further information.

Moreover, that thing is completely like a Natural Enemy to him, he has no interest in understanding or approaching it.

Even with the most shameless Legion and most versatile Ability of the Heavenly Kingdom Genealogy, Dusk Genealogy still has weaknesses—namely the Sublimaturs themselves.

The miracles originating from the Nordic Gods are too violent and overwhelming, causing great impact on the Sublimatur themselves, leading to shifts in their character and consciousness.

To put it simply, the higher you go, the more you become like the Nordic Gods...

Take Luo Su, this Old Turtle, for example—he doesn’t care whether he annoys others; after all, others can’t take him down. But the Transformation route is different, especially that thing, which affects and interferes with the Soul—Luo Su himself might not withstand it.

He couldn’t wish to stay further away from that thing.

How could he possibly inquire further?

”Don’t think of everyone like you, Luo Su.”

Yekaterina shook her head, annoyed: ”Kids always like to think of themselves as omnipotent, so they end up getting into trouble. But sometimes, some troubles turn out to be much more painful than they anticipated.”

Luo Su was stunned for a long time, bewildered.

”...Don’t tell me she actually dared to lift her head during the advancement ceremony; didn’t you explain the consequences to her?”

”There’s a red button placed in front of someone. No matter how severe the consequences you describe, some mischievous kids just can’t resist being naughty.”

Yekaterina sighed lightly: ”Just a glance, just a touch; slightly lifting your head wouldn’t matter, whether it’s carelessness or curiosity, or the so-called rebellious phase.

Sometimes it leads to insignificant consequences, other times everything becomes irrevocable.

The more gifted a child is, the more they believe they can bear all the consequences, but that’s not always true. It’s a failure in my teaching.”

”The final result is the evil in one’s nature being magnified a thousandfold, while virtue becomes so scarce. Sending her to the Tribunal for discipline won’t suppress that self-destructive tendency and aggressiveness, right?”

Luo Su shook his head, remained silent for a moment, and suddenly asked: ”What if I ask Huai Shi to bring back that part of her?”

”...”

Yekaterina was silent for a long time, then looked back at Luo Su, her expression both disappointed and angry: ”Don’t tell me you don’t understand the consequences.”

”It’s precisely because I understand that I’m proposing it.”

Luo Su replied calmly, ”Give it a try, things in this world always need a trial... Otherwise, once she advances to become Koshchey, everything will be irreparable.”

”Having a young person make an irrevocable sacrifice to remedy another’s mistake, ending up with nothing gained? Luo Su, are you really clear-headed?”

Luo Su smiled: ”I have confidence in him.”

”If you’re not afraid of losing your disciple, you can certainly try.”

Yekaterina coldly asked: ”But what’s the cost, Luo Su, tell me your price—”

”Back then, Utopia’s arms depots left in the Russian Federation, sixteen seats, all Border Relic armaments, along with Source Substance reserves, and those two Miracle Imprints... All these years they’ve been under your care, right?

They originally belong to the Heavenly Kingdom Genealogy.”

Luo Su said: ”I want them all.”

”Impossible!”

Yekaterina replied indifferently, ”You know, Anna isn’t worth that much.”

”No, in your heart, she is.”

Luo Su knowingly shook his head, gazing at his former love, smiling: ”Why hide it, Kaja? Each of your godsons and goddaughters is far more valuable in your heart than a dusty, immobile, ragged warehouse.

You’re called the Gaia of the storm, the matron of the Russian Federation, not merely because of your cold and harsh nature. As long as that child can smile at you again, you’d think any sacrifice is worth it.”

In the lengthy silence, Yekaterina closed her eyes.

A silent sigh.

”Luo Su.”

”Hmm?”

”Being your student is truly the greatest misfortune in his life.”

”Quite the contrary.”

The old man put both hands in his pockets, raising his eyebrows cheerfully: ”Although I may not be his greatest misfortune, he’s definitely one of my greatest honors.”

.

.

In the corner of the restaurant, while the stew pot was bubbling and steaming, Huai Shi had already heard from Alikexai about the cause of Anna’s soul distortion.

No, rather than distortion, it would be better to call it a deficiency.

It’s like seeing half a person lively walking on the street, but completely unable to figure out where the other half went. Unable to understand how such a bizarre imagination could exist.

”Black God and White God?”

He scratched his head: ”The Slavic deities are truly cruel.”

”The barren land, the long winters, neither the people nor the gods on this land ever favored weakness or despised the small. Rather, before the arrival of the Stigma Genealogy, it has always been survival of the fittest here. Gods are no different.”

Aleksey’s hands crossed, answering calmly: ”The Heavenly Kingdom Genealogy may differ, but the source of the Transformation path stems from this, which is also part of the Black God and White God.”

Once you embark on this path, you inevitably face higher interference and influence.

Just like the tacit understanding and affinity between Huai Shi and Balder.

While attracting each other, they will also unknowingly usher in change.

And Gods are definitely not as simple as Stigma; they possess a vast existence and countless sides. The miracles humans can observe are merely reflections of Him on earth.

Hence, numerous incarnations exist.

Just like Frost Father, who simultaneously exists as a stern and cold figure as well as an image akin to the Snow Grandfather, and even as the archetype of the Ice Maiden, the legend of the ’Snow Teenage Girl’.

Back then, when the Guide Association gathered Source materials worldwide, they naturally wouldn’t miss the miracle rooted in this land for years.

At that time, the Slavic Genealogy yielded the miracles of White God Belo-Bog and Black God Chernabog.

Black and White, day and night, good and evil.

Ultimately, what formed was the transformation route of the Heavenly Kingdom Genealogy.

If the core of the Celestial Inquiry Route is sharing, then its essence is the core of humanity!

After the Heavenly Kingdom collapsed and Utopia fell apart, the remnants of the transformation route were under Yekaterina’s protection, eventually returning to this land.

”Originally, Anna was the child most favored by the Archbishop. She became a Sublimator at eight and completed the Templar Knights’ trial at twelve.

Archbishop Yekaterina even wanted to send her to Saint Petersburg for education, but she wasn’t interested in the Stigma Genealogy.”

Aleksey sighed: ”In the end, she chose to follow her mother’s path, but she has turned out like this. After malignant expansion, she’s completely different from before. If not for the bishop sending her to the Tribunal to be restrained by iron laws and dogma, she would probably have solidified long ago.

Sometimes she can’t control what she does or says, so please don’t hold it against her.”

”Such trivial matters are not something anyone would take to heart.”

Huai Shi shook his head, opened the pot lid, and inhaled the aroma of the stew in the thick soup, before adding two handfuls of basil leaves and stirring the pot: ”It’s ready to eat, Mr. Aleksey. I still want to take a walk outside this afternoon, so I’ll trouble you to accompany me then.”

”...”

Perceiving Huai Shi’s unabashed honesty, Aleksey couldn’t help but shake his head, smile self-deprecatingly, and swallow the words he had painstakingly prepared.

Seems like he had been wasting his thoughts all afternoon.

Probably from start to finish, Anna’s offense hadn’t weighed on his mind.

.

.

However, in the afternoon, Huai Shi wasn’t able to go out.

Rost, the Old Turtle, who came out of nowhere, intercepted him!

”Huai Shi, there’s a glorious task for you!” Rost said passionately: ”In order to save the Heavenly Kingdom Genealogy, the organization has decided to let...”

”Can’t save it, goodbye!”

Huai Shi clasped his hands in a salute and turned without looking back.

As he turned around, he found himself back in place, with Rost still smiling, implying arrangement.

”You’ve got your sights set on me, huh!” Huai Shi was annoyed: ”Where do you find someone who suddenly disappears for half a day, comes back, and without saying anything uses a person as a tool?”

”With great power comes great responsibility!”

Rost was unabashed: ”Isn’t this something only you can do?”

Alright, it’s definitely a pit since even Rost doesn’t dare to touch it!

Feeling increasingly cautious, Huai Shi asked, ”What do you want me to do?”

”Not much, really no risk for you, believe me!” Rost warmly said, patting Huai Shi’s shoulder in a friendly manner: ”It’s just to find a mirror, nothing could go wrong!”

I understand, it surely will go wrong, and once it does, the aftermath would be disastrous, right!

Huai Shi perfectly understood Rost’s meaning.

”Simply put, it’s about healing and saving,”

Rost disclosed his deal with Yekaterina without reservation: ”You sacrifice a bit of your physical and mental self, sell a bit of your charm, and I get the arsenal and Border Relic left by Utopia in the Russian Federation, how about that? It’s a sure-fire deal!”

Yes, it’s sure-fire for you, what about me!

Huai Shi almost rolled his eyes to the sky.

”Now, let’s get back to the main point.”

Rost snapped his fingers and suddenly asked, ”You should be familiar with the seven and a half routes now publicly disclosed by the Heavenly Kingdom Genealogy, right?”

Huai Shi was ready to refuse, but hearing his question, froze for a moment, realizing he might have overlooked the issue.

Though he had considered them, it wasn’t in-depth.

Thinking for a moment, he counted them on his fingers: ”Dusk, Eternity, God Core, Maintain, Transformation, Paradise... and my Celestial Inquiry?”

Counting repeatedly, there were only seven.

A total of seven and a half.

What about the remaining half?

Moreover, isn’t something amiss?

Why is there so much ambiguity within the records in his Book of Fate?

In such pondering, unnoticed, Huai Shi was led by Rost into the elevator.

The iron door closed.