Chapter 1023 The Inherited Key (2/2)

Leaving aside Omnipotent and Omniscient since those clearly represented the utmost of philosophy and did not need to be discussed, there was no doubt that the three aspects of Eternity, Infinity, and Absolute were certainly possible for the those oldest of civilizations that were so close that they bathed in the splendor of the Initial Flame and were born possessing the source of infinite energu and resources.

”I may have slightly understood the meaning of Boundless after gaining epiphany after meeting the Wise One of Shadow—it had been a Creature of Infinity, and it was only the individual power of such beings that could enfold the equally infinite Multiverse. Moreover, does establishing a brand-new path not fit 'Infinity'? Infinite power, spreading eternity, and an infinite future…along with infinite hope.”

Though it was only a theory, Joshua imagined that the threshold of the Wise Ones certainly fit the Ancients' concept about Infinity.

As for Eternity, Joshua had only heard of related ideas regarding Eternal Wonders apart from the Ultimate Civilizations. He was still a little puzzled, to tell the truth, since he believed that the grandest of buildings and wonders would only crumble in time…even now, Joshua was unsure of what was eternal about it.

However, it could also be understood from another perspective, that the embodiments of Eternal Wonder were certainly connected to the intentions of the Masterminds. One could even say that there were no real wonders of the Multiverse—not even the Multiverse Sacrificial Grounds itself, which had been destroyed before it really could be finished. Joshua could try to repair it when he became a Demi Saint, but he was powerless now even with the required data.

”If built, those Wonders would definitely turn an entire civilization upside down…if the Black Fog or the Multiverse Sacrificial Grounds were to be truly completed, they would make a civilization the sovereign of the Multiverse, even eternally invincible, but does that count as eternal? No, there must be something I don't know. Not even the Ultimate Sublimator Collective has sufficient thought in that respect, so I must lack some key element.”

Even so, that was enough.

Malevolent Chaos was a power connected to all things and was highly correlated to 'information'. Furthermore, Eternal Wonders and Exceedingly Developed Civilizations unsettled the Mastermind and invoked his killing intent, which was why he had actually created the Evil Gods that were also a rather important element in his plan…it was enough to have so much information, enabling Joshua to develop countermeasures.

Moreover, a power such as Malevolent Chaos was completely different from Psi and magic, seemingly from a different system as the Wise Ones.

How should he put it…it was like the difference between the Wise Ones and the Ultimate Sublimator Collective itself.

”The path in which the Ultimate Sublimator Collective would develop as a personal universe could be linked to Absolute. And Absolute Self, and Absolute Autonomous Ruler, was an Absolute existence to the world inside its own body.”

Connected to Malevolent Chaos and Eternity, just as it matched information left by the Wise One of Arcane.

***

At the moment, Joshua had arrived at the borders of the former Darkest Abyss which was restored as the Vortex of Creation. The corpses of endless worlds could be seen falling within like the cadavers of whales falling to the oceanic depths in death. Likewise, countless newborn worlds were surging away from within like the first volcanoes from which life was nurtured, bringing brand new substances and possibilities to the surface.

The God of Steel ceased his advance. He stood upon the divide between life and death, of destruction and creation, staring at the black and white mill of life that resembled a taijitu while he pondered.

The connection between the three—Eternity, Infinity, and Absolute—was very close, even interchangeable…if Infinity could represent Eternity, eternal beings were naturally infinite, just as the opposite holds true.

Absolute would not be possible without Eternity or Infinity either. Would it have been 'Absolute' otherwise? Instead, Infinite Power was an Absolute oppression, with Eternity being an Absolute existence as well—an almost three-in-one aspect that differed slightly in between.

Therefore, the Malevolent Chaos must have changed the Multiverse in some way. The Evil Gods must have been counterparts of the first divine beings, psionic world consciousness, pure arcane beings, Ancient Dragons and Void Behemoths of lifeforce, elementals and various old ether beasts. The change of Malevolent Chaos itself lurked in the common sense of all who now lived in the Multiverse and only stood next to divine power, being the first Extraordinary ability created before Psi.

All life born unto the Multiverse must have been exposed to its change, and that change was truly discreet. It was similar to how many were unaware that Extraordinary powers were created by Wise Ones before Joshua's sermon, believing that it was a Multiverse truth and never imagining that there had been a moment where it never existed.

Imperceptible influence, like a frog being stewed in boiling water…it may be hard to accept, but Joshua never shied away from worst case scenarios. All life that existed now must have been affected by the Malevolent Chaos even beyond birth, fated to never escape its grasp from the very start.

Even so, Joshua was different…at the very least, the world in which he once lived and comprehended had no supernatural powers at all. If anyone could realize that something was not right with the Multiverse despite knowing nothing, it was him.

But it was not to say that he discovered it. Perhaps he had realized it, but was simply unaware? Perhaps what he saw as common sense was indeed a face of Chaos?

”And that is my advantage.”

With the urgency of the situation, the Wise Ones may not have had much time or effort to spare in examining that respect and could only give up halfway. That is why Joshua's edge over the other Wise Ones was not merely in his status as a Foreigner, but the fact that he had gathered the legacies of countless others, assembling all scattered clues to himself as if the focusing gaze of worlds.

Now, Joshua held the key that was closest to the Truth!