Chapter 192: Is Tenkai a Floating Land Mass, and Does Divine Power Come from the Planet's Depths?!
"Observe a non-divine creature becoming a god? What's the point of doing that?"
Loki questioned Ouranos, finding his words completely incomprehensible.
Loki was not the only god present who felt baffled.
Most of the gods were also deeply confused by Ouranos's actions, completely unable to grasp the intention behind what he was doing.
Ouranos spoke quietly:
"Why does a god become a god? Haven't any of you here thought about this question? Gods use Divine Power to easily change the world, twist laws, and create Tenkai and earth. The fact that makes a god a god, the source from which gods are born—haven't any of you ever been curious about that?
Humans are willing to contemplate the origin of their own birth, contemplating that accidental spark that occurred tens of thousands or hundreds of millions of years ago.
Why can't gods research ourselves, trace our own origins, and search for the beginning of all things? What I have always wanted to do is this very simple thing: to explore the fact of what makes a god a god, and to find the matrix that created the gods and gave birth to everything.
Of course, my actions are not purely out of curiosity.
In fact, I think some gods have already noticed that Tenkai, as the cradle of the gods, as the land where gods can use Divine Power wantonly, has had its ecosystem completely destroyed as the gods recklessly used Divine Power and excessively abused their power.
That is why the gods crave Genkai and pursue the paradise of Genkai.
However, Genkai, as a paradise for the gods, is still a bit too narrow, because gods cannot use Divine Power in Genkai at all, nor can they use superhuman strength. This leaves us gods with the status of a god, but unable to substantially influence Genkai.
But if my plan is successful, the essence of Divine Power is discovered, and the source of the gods is answered, then there is a great possibility that a future can be born where gods can use Divine Power wantonly in Genkai.
I believe this is also something that everyone here hopes to see."
Ouranos's words instantly captivated many of the gods present.
Although Ouranos's experiment brought fear to the gods, the thought that gods could use Divine Power wantonly in Genkai couldn't help but make the gods look forward to it.
But Astraea saw through the trap in Ouranos's words and immediately questioned: "Ouranos, if, according to your words, the gods of Genkai could also use Divine Power wantonly, wouldn't that repeat the mistakes of Tenkai?
After all, the reason Tenkai declined was precisely because of the gods' abuse of Divine Power. If the gods were also able to use Divine Power in Genkai, it would most likely lead to the collapse of Genkai."
"No, that wouldn't happen." Ouranos shook his head. "Like humans, gods learn from their mistakes.
Having experienced the tragedy of Tenkai, the gods of the future will need to establish order in Genkai, establishing a system different from Tenkai that imposes restrictions on the gods.
However, this will be a restriction imposed by the gods on themselves, a self-imposed constraint for the sake of protecting Genkai, not a restriction of the world's laws.
In the new order, gods will be able to freely use Divine Power and interfere with Genkai, provided they adhere to the rules. I think this will also be excellent news for Genkai."
"Excellent news?"
"Yes, Genkai is a chaotic place.
Mortals, enveloped by the notion of 'desire,' engage in all kinds of disorderly behavior, whether it be war, hatred, or atrocities.
Their self-centered desires are unrestrained, and no one restrains them, causing the wicked acts of mortals to escalate. But once the gods can interfere with Genkai with their own power, mortals will also live in an orderly manner under the new order established by the gods.
Astraea, don't you think that will be a very beautiful future?"
"Beautiful... future?"
Astraea fell silent at Ouranos's words.
This silence was not because she was persuaded by Ouranos's words, but because she was angered into a laugh by his words.
Because at this point, who didn't know that the so-called gods were essentially nothing more than a group of beings with Divine Power and a higher status?
Their egos, selfishness, desires, and other emotions were almost identical to those of mortals.
Allowing the gods to establish a new order to manage Genkai was less about saving Genkai and more about further turning Genkai into a playground where the gods could do whatever they pleased.
The mortals of Genkai would be further exploited in this process, completely reduced to tools for the gods' whims.
Such a thing had nothing to do with a so-called beautiful future.
However, although Astraea could see through the falsehood of the future Ouranos described, the vast majority of the gods on Babel were undoubtedly attracted by Ouranos's words.
It wasn't that they necessarily thought Ouranos's argument was correct, but they simply longed for the future Ouranos described.
In essence, the so-called gods were no different from mortals. In the matter of having selfish desires, they were even identical in a sense.
But the gods were clearly unwilling to admit this.
Because they claimed to be gods, a higher-level existence than mortals, how could they admit that they were almost identical to mortals except for Divine Power?
If that were the case, wouldn't the so-called gods just be mortals with Divine Power, virtually indistinguishable from mortals except for the special power of Divine Power?
That would undoubtedly be unacceptable to the gods.
In this situation, Ouranos's statement was quickly and widely accepted by the gods of Babel.
Although a very small minority, such as Astraea and Loki, still denied the Heavenly God Ouranos's idea, they, as a minority of gods, could not affect the larger situation.
However, it is worth noting that Freya, the Goddess of Beauty, maintained a calm attitude throughout the entire process.
Or rather, ever since she saw her Familia defeated by the Loki Familia in the Divine Mirror, her attitude had remained in a state of lukewarm, unenthusiastic calm, which in a sense could even be called overly calm.
Amidst the various voices, Ouranos's voice continued to resonate:
"Over a long period, I have been constantly researching Divine Power and souls, trying to create Genkai gods under various conditions and give birth to Divine Power in Genkai.
For this, I took many detours and reached completely wrong conclusions, which led to the existence of Divine Power monsters.
Yes, the creation of Divine Power monsters was merely an accident for me, not a goal I genuinely wanted to achieve.
The fundamental purpose of my creating such beings was still to study the mechanism of Divine Power and explore the source of its birth. It was during this long period of time that I gradually discovered that Divine Power has a source, and that source is nothing else, nor is it some unknown concept.
The true source of the Divine Power possessed by the gods actually comes from beneath Genkai."
"Beneath the ground?!"
Hearing Ouranos's words, all the gods were stunned.
All the gods stared blankly at Ouranos, completely unable to comprehend his words.
Ouranos, however, continued to speak on his own:
"I know you may not believe it, but I can clearly tell you that the Divine Power possessed by the gods does not come from the void, nor from Tenkai, nor from the outside world.
The common source of all Divine Power, the starting point of everything, comes from beneath the ground, or more accurately, from the interior of this planet."
"The planet's... interior?"
Ouranos's words shocked all the gods.
The gods stared blankly at Ouranos, momentarily unsure how to refute him.
Or perhaps, Ouranos's statement was so absurd that it was completely pointless to refute it.
Only Ouranos's voice continued to resound in the room.
"Regarding the fact that Divine Power comes from within the planet, I know that none of you will believe it, because in everyone's perception, gods reside in Tenkai and have no connection to Genkai whatsoever.
How could gods born in Tenkai obtain Divine Power from Genkai?
But in fact, have any of you considered that Tenkai and Genkai are, in a sense, one? Moreover, it wasn't Genkai that separated from Tenkai, but Tenkai that separated from Genkai. The essence of the so-called Tenkai is just a piece of land that floated up from Genkai to the sky?"
When Ouranos's words fell, the entire Babel fell silent for a moment.
The gods looked at Ouranos as if they had heard something utterly preposterous, gazing at him with disbelief, unable to trust his words.
But at the same time, some rational gods began to seriously consider Ouranos's statement, and then couldn't help but realize that there might actually be some truth to what Ouranos was saying.
After all, Tenkai and Genkai seemed to have a great separation and distance, but in reality, they were not truly two separate worlds.
The heavenly staircase used by Tenkai to come to Genkai was essentially just a downward-falling passage, fundamentally no different from an elevator descending from the sky to the ground.
However, this idea was still difficult for the gods to accept.
After all, accepting Ouranos's idea meant that Tenkai would no longer be special.
Not only that, the statement that the so-called Tenkai was just a continent that rose into the sky from Genkai was like saying that Tenkai was merely a piece of land split from Genkai.
Furthermore, it was as if Tenkai had betrayed Genkai, rising into the sky on its own and completely isolating itself from Genkai.
How could the self-proclaimed noble gods allow the world from which they were born to be a mere subsidiary of Genkai?
In an instant, many gods who had previously supported Ouranos immediately turned against him. They angrily denounced Ouranos's foolishness, rejected his stupid view, and criticized Ouranos as worthless.
Ouranos, however, completely disregarded the gods' "change of face." He spoke quietly:
"I have been in Genkai for thousands of years. During this long time, I have found a lot of evidence to prove my point. Although there may still be some errors and omissions, it is most likely correct.
Furthermore, regarding the source of Divine Power being beneath the ground, meaning the interior of the planet, the one who truly made me realize and confirm this was that man, the Sword Demon Emiya Shirou."
"Emiya Shirou?"
Ouranos's words elicited a reaction from both Astraea and Loki simultaneously.
Ouranos spoke calmly:
"You should have witnessed the power Emiya Shirou possesses, right?
On the execution ground at that time, he ignited flames that could almost contend with Astraea's Sword of Judgment. That flame was undoubtedly a Divine Flame, and it was also a karma fire ignited with a part of Hestia's Authority.
However, Emiya Shirou's flame clearly wasn't Hestia's Authority, nor did it resemble some never-before-seen power from beyond the world.
If I'm not mistaken, the source of that power should be from beneath the ground.
A certain existence in the depths of the earth granted him the Authority of that flame."
"..."
Astraea and the other gods were unable to respond to Ouranos's words.
Because they had indeed heard the fact that Emiya Shirou had climbed out of the depths of the Dungeon and thereby obtained some special ability.
Of course, this was only speculation. With Hestia not present, no god could understand Emiya Shirou's specific situation.
Ouranos then continued on his own:
"The source of Divine Power comes from beneath the ground.
This is my judgment, and it is most likely a true judgment.
But not all beings can obtain Divine Power.
Only a sufficiently powerful soul, an existence recognized by the depths of the planet, can acquire that power.
Of course, all of us gods here can also use Divine Power, but we can only use Divine Power in Tenkai, not in Genkai.
Why does this restriction exist? What is the reason that prevents the gods from using Divine Power in Genkai?
I couldn't understand it before, but now I have some speculation: that the existence beneath the ground rejected the gods above, that the origin in the depths of the planet is denying the Divine Power possessed by the gods.
This might be because there is a problem with the way the gods obtained Divine Power, or it might be that the gods' act of creating Tenkai and leaving Genkai is tantamount to betrayal.
Therefore, without a doubt, only by re-establishing contact with that existence beneath the ground, or even finding a way to conquer it, can we gods use Divine Power wantonly in Genkai. Only without the constraints of Genkai's laws can the gods become true gods!
"For this, the first step needed is the birth of a Genkai god, by igniting the first fire to illuminate the dark night.
Only by recreating the chaotic origin before the mythological era, creating the spectacle of the moment the world was first opened, and only when we reunite with the original starting point, can we become true gods and claim the title of true gods!"
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