A day later.
Richard left Delan and returned to Galan City.
He did not give Long Mei Er's words much thought at all, casting them straight to the back of his mind.
It was not that he disdained Long Mei Er's words, nor did he think they were wrong. On the contrary, in a sense, he had to admit that Long Mei Er was right, supported by a coherent system of logic.
But being right did not mean it had to be accepted.
Just as some foods were sweet and some were salty, every flavor was valid and reasonable, yet he would not choose to eat every kind of food. He would choose to eat what he liked.
Sometimes, holding fast to certain beliefs and principles was not purely a matter of right or wrong, but a matter of choice.
He had chosen atheism, so when facing theism, he could acknowledge parts of it without accepting it.
For theists, believers handed their fear of death and confusion about the future over to an omnipotent god. The more devout their faith in god, the less fear and confusion they felt, allowing them to become fearless and resolute. They used god to explain everything: disasters were divine might, miracles were divine grace. Divine might was as terrifying as prison, divine grace as vast as the sea, and the Divine Kingdom was their destination.
For atheists, believers handed their fear of death and confusion about the future over to their own hearts. The stronger their hearts became, the less fear and confusion they felt. They too could become fearless and resolute. They used their own consciousness to explore and understand everything. Disasters and miracles were merely low-probability events, each with its own underlying cause, and understanding all things was their destination.
In a