The Lord = 9

The Lord = 9

The instant Zhou Yun realized the meaning of that string of numbers, countless complex figures suddenly surged up from the depths of his mind.

The figures wove themselves into constantly shifting vortices, intertwining into layers of nets that wrapped around his consciousness and his soul.

All numbers changed; all numbers were nine.

Zhou Yun endured the dizziness rising in his head and leaned heavily against the wall.

Corruption—corruption from Tzeentch.

Zhou Yun had been cautious. He had always wanted to uncover the secrets surrounding Nama Carl, believing only then could he rest easy.

Yet he had overlooked that Tzeentch was not merely the god of schemes and secrets.

Curiosity, exploration, wisdom, and deciphering were also within His domain.

When you could not solve Tzeentch's riddle, you might already have fallen into His corruption.

When you did solve Tzeentch's riddle, you might also already have fallen into His corruption.

The string of numbers Nama Carl had written was not itself corrupting, but uncovering its mystery brought corruption.

In this round of Tzeentch's scheme, wisdom and thought were dangerous; stupidity and ignorance were safer instead.

This corruption had come so swiftly and stealthily because it did not arise solely from outside forces. It also came from Zhou Yun's own thoughts.

Zhou Yun even suspected that some ability to accelerate thought had been placed within this house, which was why his mind had grown clearer and clearer after entering it.

He had been prompted to unravel the secret of those numbers and had suffered Tzeentch's corruption.

It was not only Zhou Yun, but also the children who had studied in Nama Carl's home.

They had surely unraveled the secret of those numbers just as Zhou Yun had, and suffered the same corruption.

"Those fucking blue-haired bastards." Zhou Yun cursed Tzeentch.

The nerves in his brain were taut as corruption slowly infiltrated his consciousness.

In the white light at the corner of his vision, he saw the winged figure trembling his wings, blocking the assault of those vortex-like strings of numbers.

He also saw beneath his feet.

Within the reflection of the Warp, his true essence flickered in and out of sight.

"Zhou Yun?"

Lena looked at Zhou Yun beside her in terror.

The instant they left the study, Zhou Yun had frozen in place. A blasphemous psychic ripple coiled around his soul.

Those psychic forces constantly shifted and twisted, pouring from the Warp into Zhou Yun's body and intertwining with his soul.

Corruption!

Zhou Yun had been ensnared by some corrupting force!

How could this be?! How had he suddenly been corrupted? Was it Mrs. Nama?!

"He has solved the riddle the Lord left for mortal men and thus come to know the Lord's wisdom of infinite change."

A gentle, elderly female voice spoke from behind Lena.

Lena turned toward the study.

The lamp on the desk lit up, its bluish-white radiance illuminating the study.

It also illuminated the elderly woman with slightly darkened skin, silver-gray hair piled atop her head, and a pale blue robe.

She held a cheap notebook with a stiff black cover. Written on its cover in pale bluish ink was that string of numbers.

387,420,489.

"Nama Carl?!"

Lena pronounced the name of the person before her one word at a time.

Looking at the scene before her, she understood everything.

Zhou Yun's caution had been right. The woman who had once taught her was a blasphemous heretic!!

"Lena, you are still so dull-witted."

Nama Carl looked at Lena with almost pity.

"Before you entered the Upper Hive, the Lord explained your existence to me through mathematics and calculation."

"So, I decided to let you receive the Lord's gift alongside me."

"Only by solving the Lord's riddle can one behold the gift of infinite change, yet you are so dull that you cannot even remember this sacred string of numbers."

Nama Carl looked at Zhou Yun behind Lena.

"He is smarter and more cautious than you, and so he perceived the sacred nature of those numbers."

"When he comprehended the lofty meaning of the sacred numbers, the Lord bestowed His gift upon him."

It was that string of numbers. Lena felt a chill rise from the depths of her heart.

That string of numbers was a trap. The numbers themselves were not blasphemous, but anyone who uncovered their meaning would be corrupted.

Thought—excessive thought itself was dangerous.

"How dare you betray the Emperor like this!"

"Nama Carl, have you forgotten your husband? Forgotten the husband who died for his loyalty?!"

Lena's voice suddenly rose as the Voice of Temptation, carrying immense psychic power, surged toward Nama Carl.

"You should repent!"

Nama Carl's body trembled slightly, but her face was filled with regret.

"You are still so foolish. Your entire family is the same."

"The Emperor is merely a dried corpse on a throne, unchanging and unmoving."

"What does faith in him bring? Nothing but impulse, ignorance, blind loyalty, and stupidity."

"You blindly worship him, even casting aside reason."

"You chase superstitious omens, yet refuse to believe the results of mathematical calculations."

"My husband was as stupid as all of you. His sacrifice was meaningless. Even without him, the Orks would never have invaded the Stygian System."

As she spoke, a radiance of reason and wisdom appeared on Nama Carl's face.

It was as though endless numbers spiraled and changed within her eyes.

"I am different. I did not blindly worship the Lord. I found the Lord through complex and rigorous calculations."

Nama Carl opened the notebook in her hands, revealing formulas and calculations so complicated that Lena could not understand them at all.

"Look, mathematics is so beautiful. Everything can be explained by mathematics, and mathematics constantly changes as it explains everything."

"If gods truly exist in this world, they must surely be within these endlessly dancing numbers."

"I spent decades calculating, differentiating, and solving, and at last found the Lord amid infinite numbers."

Nama Carl pointed at the notebook in her hands, at the countless equations.

At the end of every equation lay the same answer: 9.

All answers were nine!

"Do you see, Lena?!"

"The Lord = 9!"

Nama Carl pointed at the number nine, seemingly trying to make Lena realize something, seemingly hinting at the answer to something.

Perhaps she wanted to use hints to make Lena instinctively guess the secret of that string of numbers, thereby corrupting Lena as well.

But Lena could not understand.

"I can't be bothered listening to your nonsense! I don't understand any of it either!"

Lena's fury reached its peak, and flames nearly burst from her eyes.

The psychic power around her suddenly became overwhelming as her emotions surged.

The surrounding air turned as cold as winter. Lena raised an arm and brought it down in a heavy swing.

"Thunder!!!"

Warp lightning tore through the entire room, setting the papers covered in equations ablaze before crashing heavily into Nama Carl's chest.

"Aaaahhh!!!"

Nama Carl let out a howl that did not sound human, her body convulsing as she fell to the floor.

"You actually attacked me?! I taught you! When you were little! Along with so many other children!"

"You can't! What gives you the right?! Lena, have you forgotten your childhood?!"

"Traitor! Heretic! Blasphemer!"

Lena roared as blazing fire ignited from the Warp, psychic power forming a heavy hammer that crushed down upon Nama Carl.

Nama Carl reached for the notebook filled with numbers, seemingly hoping to draw protection from it.

But Lena gave her no such chance.

"Give it to me! Don't move!!!!"

Book recommendation: Great Ming: Father Emperor, I Really Never Wanted to Be Li Shimin

A veteran author and an old hand at the craft. He specializes in political and historical fiction over next door, and he had already reached section-chief rank in his twenties.