Chapter 867: Divinity

"By normal reasoning, your idea is correct," Bai Yang nodded and said to me. "The reason we two can stand here and talk, look into each other's eyes, and listen to each other's thoughts is all based on the premise that we believe ourselves to be human."

"So... because we're human... we have limitations?" I asked.

"Yes, as 'humans,' we're destined to have our limits," Bai Yang said. "We believe we'll die from lack of oxygen, starvation, or injury—many common ways of dying in games that actually can't kill us. In the end, it's we who keep killing ourselves. Even if we push our subconscious to the extreme, we're still relying on our thoughts to control it, and thoughts and the subconscious are exactly what define us as humans."

"Though it's a bit abstract, I sort of get it..." I nodded. "Bai Yang, are you saying that to achieve the strongest 'Hui Xiang,' we can't rely on controlling the 'subconscious' from the start? We have to forget that we're human?"

"Yes, communicating with you is surprisingly smooth," Bai Yang said, rarely showing a look of approval. Then he continued, "These so-called 'divine powers' are just handouts from them..."

Bai Yang pointed toward the sky and added, "Can a beggar use a rich person's charity to buy the rich person's estate?"

I nodded, but my expression remained heavy. "Still, there's one thing I don't quite understand."

"What?"

"'Humans' are already the most intelligent beings we know, right? If we don't see ourselves as human... wouldn't that turn us into irrational beasts?"

"That's why I said 'according to normal reasoning, your idea is correct,'" Bai Yang replied. "But unfortunately, in 'Zhong Yan Zhi Di,' that mindset needs to change... There are indeed beings that surpass 'humans' here."

I was stunned, and my lips trembled slightly.

Bai Yang pointed toward the sky again and asked, "Why do you think they're so powerful? Do they see themselves as 'humans'?"

I understood...

To become the most powerful 'Hui Xiang' here, to rise above everything, it doesn't start with controlling your own subconscious.

Although 'controlling the subconscious' and 'not seeing yourself as human' might seem similar, they're wrong from the very starting point.

Tian Long is so powerful not because his subconscious is strong or because he's insanely deranged, but because he knows he's not human to begin with.

From the start, he believes he can do things humans can't.

But when we activate our transcendent abilities, we always remember in our hearts that we're human.

What a deeply hidden paradox...

It's like investors trying to get rich through stock trading.

Stock trading is itself a paradox. To know if a stock will rise, you need to understand business operations, economic laws, market trends, and global developments to make accurate judgments.

But if someone already knows all that, they wouldn't need to rely on stock trading to make money. With a full grasp of business principles, they could create value far greater than what trading offers.

That's the fundamental logical difference from the outset.

"So you've already figured it out..." I murmured quietly. "Relying on 'controlling the subconscious' to become strong... that's just what ordinary people do."

"Yes, ordinary people rely on constantly controlling their subconscious to become strong, but eventually, that will drive them completely mad," Bai Yang said. "They never analyze why those above are so powerful. Those above may seem mad too... but it's not the madness of losing reason; it's the madness of a human talking to an ant."

"Then what are you going to do?"

"I'm going to forget that I'm human," Bai Yang answered. "See myself as something else."

He looked up at the sky with indifference. "At least something on their level. That way, where my mind goes, my body will follow, and I'll be capable of anything."

After hearing that, I still felt the same way.

This path is too difficult.

"So how do you plan to do it...?" I asked.

"That ties back to the question I asked you earlier..." Bai Yang said. "I've read so many books and still haven't found a suitable motivation."

He looked at me with a hint of helplessness. "These things aren't even written in books... How can a person, after realizing they can't escape this place, still be single-minded about getting out?"

I understood the feeling Bai Yang was describing.

It's an motivation that defies logic, like a beggar stubbornly trying to become the world's richest person despite knowing it's impossible.

For such a person, just having the drive to 'make money' isn't enough at all.

But before I voiced my idea, I needed to confirm if Bai Yang was like me.

"Bai Yang, do you love yourself?" I asked.

"Love myself...?" He hesitated for a moment, then shook his head. "I guess not. In the past, I've always been running myself ragged for others."

"That's great—you're not like me," I said. "Then escape for the sake of others."

"For others? Ha..." Bai Yang laughed as if he'd heard something ridiculous, then shook his head. "I've been alone since childhood. Now you're saying I should escape for others...?"

"Alone since childhood...?"

"Do you know why I've always run myself ragged for others?" Bai Yang asked.

"No," I answered straightforwardly. "To me, no one in this world is more important than myself. I only love myself, and I wouldn't risk anything for others."

"Then that just means we've chosen different paths," Bai Yang said. "After coming here, I realized not everyone deserves hell, and not everyone should endure this damned cycle. I can't stand seeing good people suffer and struggle here, or evil people perpetrate wickedness forever, so I'm preparing to liberate them all on my own."

From that statement, I seemed to see a divine quality in Bai Yang.

It was a transcendent, deeply rooted, ultimate, and wonderful spiritual value.

I started to understand the 'cause and effect' that Jiang Ruo Xue insisted on—perhaps that's why I chose to help him.

"Bai Yang, since that's the case... do you have someone you like?" I asked.

"Someone I like...?" He looked at me, as if not immediately grasping the meaning of those four words.

"Yes, Bai Yang," I nodded. "Is there someone in this world... who has suffered for you, endured hardship in your place, and is your entire life's obsession?"

The atmosphere fell silent for a full ten seconds or more.

"Unfortunately..." Bai Yang said, looking at me with a dim expression, "that's beyond my knowledge."