155. Request from the Maiden of God

Upon hearing this request, Chen Rang did not show much surprise. Instead, he smiled tentatively and asked, "Is it because you are already weary of living as a 'god'?"

The young girl averted her gaze, looking toward the distant, boundless stars, and murmured, "Becoming the Witch of the Abyss was never my wish, nor have I ever felt honored by this duty..."

"I understand you very well." Chen Rang crossed his arms and nodded.

"Understand me? Anyone can speak pretty words!" Suddenly, the girl's tone grew hurried, as if she were venting some pent-up emotion. "Since I was thirteen years old, I was seized by those selfish adults for execution, and then locked away with this group of monsters! I've forgotten whether I've spent thirty thousand or fifty thousand years in such a ghost place! I watched the mortal world develop continuously; I watched humans not ruled by gods gradually become the masters of this world! I watched civilization after civilization rise and shatter; I watched humanity gradually forget the era when they were enslaved by gods, until even I was gradually forgotten by them!"

"I don't know the meaning of my existence. I am merely imprisoned in this place just because I was forcibly bestowed with some incomprehensible responsibility! Even my fellow prisoners come to mock me, mocking me for being as pathetic as them... No, even more pathetic than them."

With the girl's cry, even the surrounding space began to ripple and twist.

"So, do you hate them?" Chen Rang took a deep breath, trying to remain calm amidst the chaotic space. "Do you hate those who turned you into a 'god', and these people who have gradually forgotten history and know nothing of your sacrifices?"

"No, I don't hate them at all... If you could live in solitude for tens of thousands of years like I have, you would gradually forget both pain and hatred." The girl shook her head, her tone gradually returning to calm. "As you said, I am simply weary of such a life. After all, the only thing I can do is observe you all, but such a thing ultimately becomes tedious and dull... Therefore, I wish to experience the true feeling of death within a life that has no end. In other words, I hope someone can end my life."

"Then why don't you just commit suicide?" Chen Rang supported his forehead, unable to help a chuckle. "Or is it that you can't bring yourself to do it, and you need someone else to help you?"

The girl shook her head and replied, "Actually, I have tried seeking death more than once, but I failed... Every attempt at suicide or escape was utterly in vain."

As she spoke, the girl reached out with her bare hands and tore off her own head along with a section of her spine.

Chen Rang's brow furrowed tightly, and he subconsciously stepped back two paces.

"This is one of the abilities of the 'Goddess of the Abyss and Other Realms'..." The girl reattached her head to her neck, sighing as she explained, "Unable to die and unable to find release, destined to exist forever with the abyss."

"If that's the case, it's useless for you to ask me. I have no way to kill an immortal." Chen Rang rested his chin in his hand, wearing a bewildered and puzzled expression.

Suddenly, the girl leaned close to Chen Rang, grabbed his hand directly, and said with slight excitement:

"It's not like that! You are a special existence; you are different from anyone else... All your actions have exceeded my expectations! I have a hunch that if it's you, you will definitely be able to kill me!"

"Ah, well... Hearing you say that makes me feel somewhat predestined." Perhaps because the girl was too close, Chen Rang caught a scent mixed with seawater and incense, exactly the same as the one he had smelled when experiencing hallucinations earlier.

"I believe in you! You can definitely do it! Even if there is only the slightest possibility, I don't want to let it go!" The girl tightly grasped Chen Rang's hand, as if clinging to her final hope. "I beg you! Let me experience a true death! Even if it's just to try!"

"No, wait a minute!" Chen Rang's brow furrowed. He shook off the girl's hand and asked, "I deeply sympathize with your plight. However, I am not a philanthropist who helps people for free. I crossed such a dangerous place as the abyss to find you—what benefits do I get out of this?"

This question stunned the girl for a moment. Then, she gracefully took two steps back, put her hands behind her back, and smiled: "What do you want? Fame, wealth, power, and everything else that interests you!"

"Just that?" Chen Rang frowned.

After a moment of thought, the girl added, "If you are willing, I can bestow the divine authority upon you as well! Allowing you to become a true, genuine 'god'!"

"Become a god?" Chen Rang pondered for a moment and said, "I don't want that either."

"Why?" The girl showed a troubled expression.

"I am not interested in anything you mentioned, and I don't want to become a god." Chen Rang made a halting gesture and replied, "When all is said and done, gods are creations of humanity. A god must constantly play the image expected by humans and grant them unearned gratification. Once the god's performance disappoints humans, or humans no longer need gods, humans will clamor to slay the god and then seek a new god to replace it."

"......" Hearing Chen Rang's words, the girl was speechless for a moment before she burst into laughter.

"Then do you know what will happen after I die?"

"Do tell," Chen Rang said.

"I am the gatekeeper of the abyss. If I die, the abyss will collapse, and the two worlds will ultimately merge." The girl wiped a tear from the corner of her eye and said, "When that time comes, the mortal world will welcome the era of gods once again, and humanity's existing order will face destruction. Isn't this what you've been looking forward to~?"

"What I've been looking forward to?" Chen Rang's lips curved upward as he asked with a smile.

"I have observed you for a long time; all your actions are aimed at plunging the order of this world into collapse." The girl spread her arms, her tone filled with enticement. "So come and kill me! This world will usher in the most thorough destruction! But I will hand over my divine authority and power to you, allowing you to stand shoulder to shoulder with gods in such an era and take control of your own destiny!"

"No, I refuse." Chen Rang waggled his finger and decisively stated, "I want to destroy this world in my own way. The method you offer is too boring."

"That's fine too! Even if you don't let the abyss destroy the world, you can still acquire my powers!" The girl hurriedly tried to persuade him: "You only need to find a substitute, an immortal like me to take my place—for instance, that white-haired fox girl! I can sense that you merely treat her as a tool."

Chen Rang raised an eyebrow and asked with a sneer, "I've always treated her as a tool? Who says that~?"

The girl asserted with absolute certainty, "Because I have been observing you, I know very well that you are actually treating this world as a... game."

As if triggered by a specific keyword, Chen Rang's expression suddenly darkened.

After a moment, Chen Rang let out a light snort and asked in return, "So if I throw the white fox into the abyss to replace you, I can acquire your abilities without destroying the world?"

"That's right. I will bestow all my powers upon you, while that fox girl will shoulder the responsibility of the 'gatekeeper', eternally trapped within the abyss." The girl explained, "The reason you keep that fox girl by your side is because you need her power, isn't it? But as long as you kill me, I can grant you even greater power—power that even that fox girl could never give you! This is a trade. What do you think?"

"Give your divine power to me, and let the white fox go to the abyss to serve a life sentence?" Chen Rang chuckled lightly and said, "Get lost."

"You... If you want to destroy this world in your own way, you certainly need more power!" The girl grew somewhat exasperated and continued to persuade: "Exchanging a mere tool for divine power that you can freely wield—this deal is definitely a net profit for you!"

"Well, what you said might be right~ The white fox is just a tool to me." Chen Rang flexed his fingers and smiled meaningfully, "However, I am the kind of person who develops emotional attachment to tools. I regularly dust and maintain my tools to minimize unnecessary damage. Even when they reach the end of their lifespan, I discard them with gratitude. So asking me to torture my tool like that is absolutely out of the question."

"Then there's nothing more to discuss?" The girl's tone turned somewhat gloomy, and the atmosphere in the surrounding space grew heavy along with it.

Yet Chen Rang ignored this oppressive feeling and smiled, "Still the same thing: if you can persuade me with sufficient chips, I am certainly willing to come and see you in person. As for killing you... I'll find a suitable method."

"Every existence has desires, and even gods cannot cast aside desire..." The girl lifted her chin in thought and spoke again: "If I can let the man you most wish to destroy experience the purest torture... would you be willing to kill me?"