“I…”

Gus felt that there was blood in his mouth.

Licking his lips, a stream of warmth flowed out of his throat. He vomited a mouthful of black blood.

Many fanatics exclaimed at the same time, fearing that the ‘Holy Son’ might not be able to withstand the immense strength of the True God and that the body of the mortal would immediately be vaporized.

Grey hurried to help her brother. “Gus, are you alright?”

“I—I’m fine.”

Gus shook his head and looked around. “There are too many people here. I want to find a quiet place to rest and meditate.”

At this moment, Gus had established his absolute authority among the defeated soldiers.

His words were the golden rule that no one dared to defy.

Andre immediately cleaned up the deck for him. All the fanatics were driven to the bottom of the cabins or simply jumped onto other ships.

Grey went down to the cabin to cook food for Gus in person, leaving the pale young man sitting cross-legged on the deck with a basket in his arms, staring at the endless night in front of him.

Lu Qingchen turned into a chimney and crawled out through the gaps of the basket on his back, forming a smiling little man in front of the young man.

“Don’t keep shouting.”

The devil scratched his ear and blinked. “I’m almost deaf from all the screaming.”

“Tell me.”

The young man stared at the devil, gritting his teeth, frowning, and tensing his muscles. There was an unprecedented seriousness on his face.

“Tell you what? Why were you not allowed to use storm bolters, Vulcan Machine Guns, honeycomb launchers… weapons of a higher dimension in Heavenly Essence City?”

Lu Qingchen opened his hands and said, “As I explained to you a long time ago, a large-scale data interaction node such as Qianyuan City is the focus of the Fist King’s surveillance. Once there is an anomaly in the data in Qianyuan City, the Fist King will immediately discover it. Chances are that he will really possess High Priest Luotian and punch me into a pulp.

“I don’t want to fight with the boxing champion in Heavenly Essence City. Instead, I want to find a place where the data is more chaotic and the infrastructure is more unstable, which is the battlefield where the Southern Steam Legion is marching triumphantly. Only there can I defeat the boxing champion.

“By the way, I didn’t ask you to use a weapon from a higher dimension until you consumed your second wish. Now, there is only one wish left. Your soul is mine now!”

Lu Qingchen shook his two fingers with a smile.

“I know.”

The young man was silent for a moment. Then he bit his lips and said, “But that’s not all I’m going to ask. I’m going to ask the truth. All the truth. You promised me that you would tell me everything once we were out of danger and headed south!

“Did I? Did I promise? Uh, then what exactly do you want to know?” Lu Qingchen scratched his head and played dumb with Gus.

“You promised me!”

Gus screamed. He was shaking in anxiety. “I have to. I have to know everything. I don’t want to be manipulated by you again—be it the Fist God, the God of Machinery and Steam, or a devil such as yourself. I don’t want to be manipulated by you like a chess piece fighting for imaginary dreams or damn scams. If I have to fight, sacrifice myself, or even sacrifice my soul, I want to know the truth, the reason, the reason why I am fighting, and the reason!”

“Aiyoyo, don’t be agitated. Relax. It doesn’t matter to me if I tell you the truth. I’m just worried that you won’t be able to withstand it and will have a mental breakdown. You won’t be able to complete our journey.”

Lu Qingchen observed the young man’s face and said, “However, it seems that I’ve chosen the right person. Although you look weak, your nerves are quite thick, and you seem to be able to take it. However, there are too many things that I don’t know about you. Where should I start?”

“Let’s start from the cracks in the sky.

Gus pointed at the lightning frozen on the horizon. “What is that exactly?”

They were already far away from Heavenly Origin City.

But they could still see the raging lightning in the horizon, which seemed to be cracking the entire world.

“That is a sign that the world is about to collapse.”

Lu Qingchen said casually, “I remember that I told you a few days ago that the world was about to be destroyed. Don’t get me wrong. It was not me, nor was it the God of Machinery and Steam, but the Fist God.”

“Fist God?”

Gus found it hard to believe. “Does the Fist God really exist? Why did he destroy the world?”

“Because the mission of this world has been completed.

Lu Qingchen said, “It’s like a used rubber sleeve. If you don’t throw it away, do you want to keep it?”

“Rubber sleeve?”

Gus was dazed. “What’s that?”

“…Next question.” Lu Qingchen gave a vague answer.

“So, the Fist God really exists, and this world was really created by him, so he has the ability to destroy the world?”

Gus mumbled, “So, the Temple of Fist is right—the Fist God is the real god, and the God of Machinery and Steam is just a false god, an out-and-out mechanical demon and a steam devil?”

“The answer depends on how you see it.

Lu Qingchen held his chin and said, “Tell me, kid. If the world was really created by the boxing champion and your life was granted by the boxing champion, would you believe, worship, and worship the boxing champion’s will and career without any hesitation, and even your sister’s life, as if he were an omnipotent and omniscient god?”

Gus was silent.

There was a long silence.

The young man’s eyes were even darker than night.

“No…”

Finally, he said softly but firmly, “I’m not willing to. Even if the world is really created by the Fist God, even if our lives are bestowed upon us by the Fist God, I—I’m absolutely not willing to be at his mercy, much less sacrifice my sister and myself for him.

“It doesn’t matter. It doesn’t matter why the Fist God created this world and all the life in this world in the first place. It doesn’t matter what kind of ‘mission’ it is. But right now, we all have our own will. Our lives are mine. I will not entrust my fate to anyone or any god. No. Never!”

“Very good. More and more, I feel that choosing you over your sister is the best choice.

Lu Qingchen’s eyes were glittering, and he was smiling like a weasel that had just stolen a chicken. “Now, I can tell you the truth of the world. It is a very, very long story. Thankfully, we have a very, very long journey that we can tell slowly in the darkness.

“Firstly, a long, long time ago, in a higher dimension beyond your understanding, a great war between gods and devils took place.

Gus raised his hand.

The young man asked seriously, “Was it the battle between you and the Fist God?”

“Not just me and the Fist King, many other deities were involved, too.

Lu Qingchen was lost in his memories. He sighed and said, “It was a magnificent, soul-stirring battle. The fury of the deities and devils simply set the stars in the universe on fire. We woke up the strength that had hibernated for billions of years and considered the future of billions of years to be a battlefield where strategists were deployed.