Shade did not hide his thoughts. He asked his question, and the god finally looked at him:
"Why should I tell him? He didn't ask. The deal he made was just to greet Sarah Miles with a smile after she closed her eyes several years later, and then hold her hand and walk towards death together. This is very romantic in the story of mortals, isn't it?"
Shade only lasted less than three seconds looking into God's eyes before he felt extremely uncomfortable, but he still endured the feeling.
God did nothing wrong. She gave the knight the opportunity to perform a miracle, not only allowing him to become a hero who saves everything, but also giving him the opportunity to see his lover again when his duty is over.
In this way, it was explained why Mrs. Miles and the Witch Emperor could not find the knight's whereabouts, and even the relics could not summon his soul. The impact of the rift that was opened by the witches' battle to summon the demon flame was probably more serious than Shade had just thought.
The god of wealth and trade seemed to have appeared in the most appropriate place at the most appropriate time and reached a deal with a dying soul. She could even be regarded as having compassion for the world... But it was meaningless to say these things now. The past could not be changed, and the present was the most important thing.
"God, now that you have appeared, where is the soul of that gentleman now?"
"The deal is not over yet. His responsibility will only be completed after Sarah Myers dies. As for now, he is still in the fire."
The god raised his right hand, and the sleeve of his robe fell down, leaving a crack in the air as high as a person. The crack quickly opened, letting in endless black flames, the smell of sulfur, countless screams, and a terrifying temperature that seemed to be able to melt everything.
Even though he had hunted many demons, Shade subconsciously took a step back. The demonic power contained in the space behind the crack was truly astonishing.
The surging black flames seemed to be burning on a charred plain. The young man who had just appeared in the old woman's memory was now lying on the ground above the crack with his hands open, trying to resist the flames with his transparent body. He was not completely successful, otherwise there would be no flames on the charred plain. He reached a certain balance with the flames, so the flames would not expand, and he could not leave.
"lady!"
The old woman took out the relic dagger left behind by the boy from the witch's bag and tried to stab it into her chest, but was stopped by the young witch behind Shade.
She was still afraid of the gods appearing, but she also remembered her responsibilities:
"Ma'am, what are you going to do!?"
"If I die, he will be free."
The silver-haired old woman said, and after the dagger was taken away by the witch, she wanted to rush towards the crack again, but was stopped by Miss Higgins again.
She is really too old.
Shade then asked the crucial question:
"God, since we are still in this camp, are you willing to make another deal so that Mr. Richard Jackman can regain his freedom early and spend his last moments with Mrs. Miles?"
God still did not speak, but the voice that rang out was loud and deafening:
"What bargaining chips does Sarah Miles have to offer? I don't need mortal property, and I am not interested in her soul or her beliefs. Why not wait patiently? In 365 days, she will step towards death, and then he will be waiting for her arrival with a smile."
"I am willing to use my..."
"lady!"
"Use my soul in exchange for his soul! Let me take his place, let him live again, let him see this world again!"
Despite Miss Higgins's obstruction, the tearful old man still said this, but the god shook his head:
"This exchange is not valid. Your soul is too weak. Your souls are not equal at all."
"Well, then let me go too! Let me go there and accompany him for the last 365 days. Let me be there with him!"
Miss Higgins, who had wanted to stop it, shut up for some reason. She shook her head with a sigh and decided not to get involved in the matter.
God asked the old man:
"What's the point? There's no difference between one person blocking the gap and two people blocking the gap."
"No, we were supposed to spend this life together. I've waited for him my whole life, and now I know that he didn't break his promise and he will really come to see me, so now it's time for me to find him and accompany him through the life that should have belonged to him!"
Although she was physically weak and mentally exhausted, she actually refused Miss Higgins, then struggled to stand up on her own, and looked directly at the god and made her request.
This was certainly not a miracle accomplished by the power of a mortal soul, but rather God allowed her to do so.
"If this deal requires a bargaining chip, please take my life and let my soul accompany him and accompany him through his last days!"
The old man said in a hoarse voice.
The god smiled and pointed at the black scale beside the fire, and the scale flew over the bonfire. The balance of the scale, what did it mean, all three of them knew.
"Use the remaining 365 days of your life in exchange for your soul to go into the flames of the devil and accompany Richard Jackman for 365 days - this is a fair trade."
Although God said this, He did not answer immediately. Instead, He looked at Shad:
"Outside guest, do you think I should agree to this deal?"
Mrs. Miles looked at Shad with hope, while Miss Higgins kept shaking her head at Shad but did not dare to make any big movements.
Xia De, who had already figured it out, said:
"This seems to be the best way for Mrs. Miles. But I know, God, you have a better way that we can't think of, but she can't afford it."
"Yes."
"So, from the beginning, you were waiting for me to pay the chips for her. Just like the last time we went deep into the camp, you tried to make me realize through the Pedestal of Destiny that there are actually more deals in this camp that are valuable to me."
The middle-aged man in a golden robe winked at Shade:
"I'm glad you're a smart guy."
The dark scale tilted again, symbolizing the beginning of another transaction:
"If you pay the chips, I can annul the deal between Richard Jackman and me and set his soul free right now."
"Chips..."
Miss Higgins shook her head at Shad even faster, while Mrs. Miles listened to them in shock and spoke before Shad could answer:
"Young man, I don't need you to do this. If I let others make sacrifices in order to meet him, how can I face him?"
Xia De ignored his two companions:
"God, I'm curious, what exactly do you want from me? I don't think I have anything that you would like."
He had no connection with this god, and had no influence in the present time, let alone interfering in anything. And no matter how you think about it, you know that the Tree Father will not allow the gods of the past to influence the Sixth Era through Shade.
The Old God-Golden Lord replied:
"Don't worry, I won't ask you for anything. You just need to answer one question, a very simple one:
I saw your interesting soul. I saw the seeds of great sin and virtue taking root in your soul at the same time. The great sin is not the despicable character of ordinary people. The dark light of the six sins flashing in your soul comes from ancient and real evil deeds. At the same time, you have compassion, persistence in fair morality, and a golden spirit that is nobler than most people. My question is, as such, do you really not feel disgusted when using the power of sin?"
Xia De really didn't expect that using a relic of the level of the Pedestal of Destiny to seduce him would ultimately just end up asking such a strange question.
He let the chain slide from his sleeve to the ground, looking at what was on it, which was also his own sin that was confirmed step by step.
"Humans have both positive and negative sides. There are no perfect saints, nor perfect villains... At least that's what I think. Otherwise, it's hard to say whether they can still be called intelligent life. Someone once said that sin is also power... I don't want to quote her."
The face of the mermaid gradually sinking to the bottom of the water flashed through Xia De's mind. He looked at the golden scale pattern on the god's clothes again, and Yin Luna's face seemed to appear in front of him:
"Balance. The most important thing is balance. Not everyone has the ability to balance good and evil, but the entire civilization can develop in a spiral in the balance of good and evil. And for me personally..."
He pointed to himself:
"Sin is part of who I am, Shad Hamilton. There's nothing wrong with it, it's part of who I am. I want to help those in need, but I'm also greedy and try to hold everyone's hand."
The third time I came to the Black Mist Camp, the experience of reaching the top of the tower step by step just now:
"I know greed is wrong, but I just want to do it. Is letting go the right thing? No, no, it doesn't matter. I once told a friend that absolute balance does not exist. The power of sin is also power... Why are we back to this sentence again?"
"That's true, and I hope you'll remember it. That's enough, it's a good answer."
The old god said softly, looking at Shade with a meaningful look. As for the dark scale on the flame, it had returned to a balanced position without knowing when.
Xia De still felt puzzled by all this. He could guess that the power of the god in front of him was most likely related to the ancient god of balance - the upside-down judge. But even if this guess was right, it seemed unnecessary for the other party to ask about his opinion on the power of the great sin. If it was Yin Luna standing here at this moment, this would make sense.