The whirlwind, carrying pale dust, gradually disappeared from Duncan's sight.
Agatha left.
I always feel that... she has changed a lot compared to before," Vanna didn't break her silence until the last wisp of gray wind disappeared in the air, "especially the words she said at the end, they were definitely not what the former "gatekeeper" would say."
"Experience changes a person, especially what she has been through," Duncan said calmly, "and on the other hand, the role she now plays is no longer just a 'gatekeeper', which means she must change.
Vanna was a little curious: "You don't seem worried?"
Because she has not wavered, and after enlightenment, she will become more determined," Duncan said casually, "She is rational and will not go down a paranoid or even wrong path because of the survival pressure of the city-state. Her last few words may not be so pious, but at least they are sober.
Vanna-Time did not respond, and Duncan turned his head and looked at the young judge meaningfully: "You are not worried about Agatha, right?"
"My faith doesn't allow me to lie," Vanna finally sighed softly after a brief silence, "Yes, I am worried about my own condition. What I see in Agatha is myself, who is also shaken in faith and apostate in words and deeds.
The whirlwind, carrying pale dust, gradually disappeared from Duncan's sight.
Agatha left.
I always feel that... ... she has changed a lot compared to before," until finally, when a wisp of gray wind disappeared in the air, Vanna broke her silence, "especially the last words she said, which were definitely not what the former "gatekeeper" would say."
"Experience changes a person, especially what she has been through," Duncan said calmly, "and on the other hand, the role she now plays is no longer just a 'gatekeeper', which means she must change.
Vanna was a little curious: "You don't seem worried?"
Because she did not waver, - after enlightenment, she will be more determined," Duncan said casually, "she is rational and has not yet embarked on a paranoid or even wrong path because of the survival pressure of the city-state. Her last few words may not be so pious, but at least they are sober.
Vanna-Time did not respond, and Duncan turned his head and looked at the young judge meaningfully: "You are not worried about Agatha, right?"
"My faith does not allow me to lie," after a brief silence, Vanna finally sighed softly, "Yes, I am worried about my own "condition" from Agatha.
What I see is myself, whose faith is shaken and whose words and deeds are apostate.
Duncan didn't say anything, just waited quietly for the other party to continue.
I used to think that as long as we maintained firm faith and unyielding fighting spirit, we could face all problems head-on. Gods have determined the "order" for the operation of the world, and we are like gears, operating within the framework with peace of mind. But the fact is... Order is as fragile as the foam in the sea. Simple faith and fighting spirit cannot save our city-state. Our long-established understanding of the world is being tested... The 'sun' is not eternal, and the 'boiling gold' that supports the development of modern civilization may be the product of ancient gods. The gods cannot always protect the city-state, and under the deep sea is an unknown darkness that no religious classics have been able to describe and explain. Your appearance has overturned my understanding of the subspace over the past twenty years."
As for the last one, I suggest you keep your reservations. You are right about the other points," Duncan shook his head and said slowly, "Human beings' cognition of the world is one-sided. From the beginning, we should not think that there is a simple and eternal "logic" that can roughly explain everything in the world. Perhaps this simple and eternal truth does exist, but it is definitely not something that humans can understand at this stage. So in this
On this basis, ‘the subversion of worldview’ should be an essential part of the progress of civilization.”
Listening to Duncan's words, Vanna subconsciously fell into deep thought. Her expression gradually became complicated. After a moment, she spoke as if she was talking to herself: "Then where are the gods?"
"I can't know because I haven't dealt with them directly. Maybe I've seen them from afar, but that's not enough for me to make a final judgment about them," Duncan said frankly. "But I admit two things. First, the Four Gods do exist in this world, at least as objective individuals. Second... they have protected and guided the civilized world to a certain extent so far."
The look on Vanna's face was a bit startled, because in her life of more than 20 years, this was the first time she heard someone evaluate the Four Gods in such a way that did not contain any good or evil and was like evaluating objects. This evaluation method was without any reverence and could be called arrogant. However, when a "being" who returned from the warp space spoke them out, Vanna only felt that... these words were cold and precise, like some kind of ruler to measure the world.
At this moment, Duncan's voice interrupted Vanna's thoughts again: "Vanna, don't think too much, you still believe in Gemona, don't you?"
"Yes, my faith is as high as the first rank," Vanna said immediately.
"That's right. Your faith is the same as Yipin's. Agatha still believes in Bartok. And your respective gods have not abandoned you because of your change of mind. They still bless you. This shows that your current thinking has not deviated from them," Duncan said seriously. "Thinking does not necessarily lead to heresy. The same is true for doubting. After thinking and doubting, you still choose to believe. This is a true believer.
"Maintain appropriate and healthy faith while maintaining appropriate and healthy skepticism, try to understand this world, accept that it is different from what you imagined, accept the narrowness and bias in your own cognition, accept your own vacillation. To be honest, if Ge Mona can accept you, he prayed that there is nothing you cannot accept
Vanna was startled, but then she subconsciously raised her head and looked towards the direction of the upper city, towards the silent cathedral at the highest point of the Frost. Agatha must have returned to the temple through the Grey Wind at this moment - would she return to her own prayer room and continue to think about the cooperation with the Warp Shadow in front of Bartok's statue
Will she continue to ponder the city-state's "future and conclude that anything that hinders survival is heresy, and everything else is permitted"
After a long while, she withdrew her gaze from the distance and murmured to herself: "The Lord doesn't care?"
"I don't know, but if I were broadcasting it, I wouldn't care," Duncan shrugged. "But judging from the current signs, the God of Death and the Goddess of Storms really don't care... They may care about something else."
Vanna fell into deep thought, and did not speak a word. Morris, who was speaking, could not help but sigh softly: "I didn't expect that you have such profound thoughts in the field of faith... I thought you were not interested in these things.
"How could that be? I'm always interested in any theory that attempts to explain this world," Duncan said with a serious expression. "For example, now I want to learn about another belief that attempts to explain this world."
Seeing the bewildered looks on Vanna and Morris' faces (except Alice, who never understood), Duncan smiled and said, "Don't worry about the city-state for now. It's time to go read the blasphemous book next."
Shirley fell asleep when she was writing the fourth mental arithmetic card.
The sound of the chain shaking slightly was heard in the cabin. Agou carefully held the black chain next to him with one paw, then stood up and held the blanket in his mouth and draped it over Shirley. He then used his other paw to casually pick at the mental arithmetic cards on the table to prevent them from being wetted by Shirley's saliva.
While cleaning up, Ah Gou glanced at the cards filled with simple addition, subtraction, multiplication and division, and paused for a moment: Most of them were actually correct?"
It muttered in surprise and turned its head subconsciously, only to see Shirley adjusted her prone position in her "sleep", mumbling something in her sleep, with a thin line of shiny saliva dripping from the corner of her mouth.
“Let’s just say I did it seriously.
Agou shook his head and lay down again. Then he calmed himself down, as if he was quite hesitant and weighed the options before he stretched out his claws and pulled out a book from the pile of "books" that belonged to him on the floor.
The cover of the book was unremarkable, just a paperback textbook that could be bought in any city-state, with the words "Algebraic Calculation" printed on it.
Agou lowered his head, with a flickering light in his blood-red eye sockets. He stared quietly at the book in front of his paws. After a long time, he slowly opened its cover.
But then, it suddenly raised its head and looked around the room quickly.
Everything was normal on the bookshelf, there was peace in the dark corner of the room, the sunlight was pouring in through the window, and the sound of waves outside the window was gentle and soothing.
Good and safe environment, eliminate distractions, the book type is still mathematics... ..try again... ..the third test. ”
Agou muttered, finally lowered his head, and began to read the contents of the book with full concentration.
Understand those formulas, remember those symbols, deduce those numbers, and try to understand how the world works from the knowledge and wisdom of our ancestors."
It was difficult at first, because there were always some distracting thoughts and concerns about the surrounding environment that would interfere with the thinking process, but soon, Agou's "thoughts calmed down, as usual, mathematics always helped it concentrate and immerse itself in thinking."
.
Symbols and numbers are combined in the mind, and the cognition of the world gradually enriches the mind. Agou studies with full concentration, and gradually, it feels as if a study partner has appeared in its mind.
Someone is reading with it;
Someone is thinking with it; there is a being observing this place curiously, a glance without any sense of good or evil.
Agou tilted his head.
Under the white pages of a book, in the gaps between the words, in the "City of Knowledge" outlined by symbols and lines, a red light source is surrounded by countless flickering, matrix-like light spots, as if staring at it like eyes.
Agou was stunned.
It also looked at the red light.
It couldn't help but stare at the red light.
It even felt that it was moving forward, actively approaching the matrix of flickering light spots.
However, this feeling only lasted for a moment.
The next second, a sudden force from the symbiotic chain pulled it back, allowing it to break free from the illusion of being attracted.
“Fuck…”
Agou suddenly let out a cry of surprise and was startled awake from the brief "illusion". The next second, he instinctively looked at the black chain around his neck.
At the last moment, it was the chain that pulled him back. Obviously, it was Shirley who pulled him back.
However, the chain still lay loose on the ground, not tightened at all.
At the other end of the chain, he was still lying on the table, soundly sleeping.
Shirley didn't wake up at all.
Some people died, but not completely dead...