More than three thousand years have passed since Norton's resurrection.
For so long, Norton's most criticized aspects have not been his so-called evolution of faith, the theft of divinity, or his past actions.
These histories and reputations, in essence, have little impact on humanity or human society today. No matter how much they are said, to them they are nothing more than a few words, a few sheets of paper, or a statement.
Norton's most criticized aspect is actually this: as an omniscient and omnipotent God who enjoys human offerings and faith, why couldn't he directly grant humanity the ability to exceed the speed of light, thereby solving the problem of humanity's reproduction speed being limited by its outward expansion speed?
Yes, the point of criticism against Norton is that he doesn't just give humans everything they want.
You're so powerful, so omnipotent, why can't you give us everything we want?
This is the point that Norton is most criticized for.
This also means that he absolutely cannot wait until humans and the beings of Heaven are fighting to the death, and the battle is halfway through, before stepping forward to sacrifice himself.
After all, he's so powerful; couldn't he just crush all the creations of Heaven with a single thought? Why make humanity sacrifice their lives to resist this alien substance?
If you're so powerful, why can't you just crush the creations of Heaven and then give humanity spaceships that allow them to traverse space without Subspace Jump, thus accelerating human reproduction? Why force humanity to perform Subspace Jump themselves, bringing out Soul Matter that pollutes reality, forcing humanity to fight tooth and nail?
Are you some kind of merciful god? You're clearly an enemy of the people!
That's right, that's why Norton sacrificed himself so early.
Only by first sealing off reality and Heaven can he completely detach himself, keeping himself aloof and unassailable as his supreme God.
Humanity will inevitably engage in Subspace Jump in order to ensure its own reproduction, which will give Soul Matter a legitimate reason to make its appearance and ignite a war between reality and Heaven.
This transformed a passive war in which the gods did not act into a tenacious struggle initiated by humanity itself for the propagation of its race.
This doesn't mean anything!
In the midst of this war, he, the Pale God who sacrificed himself early on for the sake of humanity as a whole, sealed off reality and Heaven, and achieved immortality and advancement for all people, and who is the only hope for all mankind, was able to truly establish his divine status and be revered by all people!
Instead of being criticized for the gods' inaction.
However, the speed at which humans forget their roots is truly astonishing, even to Norton.
"Bang!"
A loud bang came from outside, followed by a beam of light shooting into the Holy See Palace through the violently blasted-open doors.
"You cannot enter. This is a forbidden area of Holy Church, His Majesty's palace. No one may enter without an audience!"
A roar rang out at the entrance to the first floor of the main hall, interrupting Abraham and Norton's conversation.
Abraham raised an eyebrow and narrowed his eyes; in an instant, he had roughly guessed the situation.
They exchanged a glance with Duoxia beside them, and both couldn't help but reveal a wry smile.
"Hmph!" Norton, seated on his pure silver throne, chuckled mockingly. He spread out his slender, pale palms and looked at Abraham and the others who had turned around, sneering, "Look, Abraham, Duoxia, Elizabeth, this is what humans are like."
I've barely Ascension, yet I'm already itching to hand over power.
Such despicable human nature, even if I bestow upon them the greatest mercy, will still be insufficient to satisfy their insatiable greed.
Now that all these realities have unfolded, surely you can truly understand what I've done today?"
"Alas..." Abraham sighed deeply, saying with great emotion, "Your Majesty's words are indeed true. It is truly laughable that this old servant, having already experienced the dark ages of the Holy Lord Empire, still cannot understand human nature."
It seems that the human race needs external pressure or internal struggle in order to thrive and develop stably.
Duoxia pondered for a moment. He had long been aware of this, having served as pope for two hundred years and was well aware of human nature.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have betrayed his apprentice during the Second Norton Epoch.
"My submission to Your Majesty is based on Your Majesty's ideal of universal harmony. I once believed that only in this way could society be stable, people live and work in peace, and develop freely. However, humanity has only been stable for three thousand years under Your Majesty's oppression, and it has already revealed problems that are difficult to alleviate."
Therefore, it seems that, as Your Majesty said, the base nature of humanity can only be truly suppressed by the coercion of violence.
Servility is the essence of human nature, and insatiable greed is its defining characteristic. Given this base nature, immortality would be nothing more than a detriment to peace for them!
Duoxia seemed lost in thought, his gaze fixed on Norton, who sat enthroned on the pure silver throne, when suddenly his heart skipped a beat.
Just as he uttered those words, he suddenly gained a moment of clarity.
Honestly, what is the fundamental reason for the current state of the Human Federation, and for humanity's greed and repression to such an extreme?
First, human beings' longevity leads to an increased stimulation threshold. The only way to increase the stimulation threshold is to break the law, but Norton has firmly blocked this path.
Secondly, human longevity has led to a situation where human reproduction cannot conform to the laws of nature, resulting in significant problems with the speed of human reproduction and expansion.
Ultimately, these two reasons boil down to one thing: humans have lived too long, resulting in too many offspring. Aside from normal behavior and enjoyment, there is so little else they can do. Even war—the best means of maintaining human order—has been suppressed by Norton and cannot occur. Under the weight of centuries of boredom, everyone is driven to mental madness and repression.
Thus, the world slowly and irreversibly declines, leading to a breakdown in the balance between the soul and reality, causing the soul to begin invading reality. Then, the Pale God Norton begins to orchestrate a war between humanity and heresy—a war that will never produce traitors or heretics...
Duoxia's eyes widened, his mind buzzed, and he felt as if his nerves were about to snap.
Some questions that were previously incomprehensible suddenly became clear, and some issues concerning human nature that were previously incomprehensible also became readily understood.
No wonder Norton so generously granted all people the power of evolution and immortality. No wonder Norton was so benevolent, bestowing endless peace upon the world. No wonder Norton was so benevolent, even granting immortality, yet he watched helplessly as humanity struggled with the problems of its reproduction and expansion rates, without even providing a wormhole for spatial jumps. No wonder the soul, under normal circumstances, cannot even touch reality, yet Norton bestowed upon it a mutation capable of isolating the Soul Matter!
Now, let's analyze it step by step according to the ultimate beneficiaries. The overall development trend and outcome of humankind from three thousand years ago to the present has been entirely guided by human hands!
Without immortality, even if human society enjoys lasting peace, it is impossible for the entire population's mentality to become alienated!
Because a person's normal lifespan is simply not long enough to reach the point where their mindset becomes alienated.
Duoxia's heart pounded like a drum, a surge of blood rushed to his head, and adrenaline surged. He felt dizzy and his mind was foggy.
An overwhelming surge of anger and fear welled up within him, causing his eyes to bulge as he looked at Norton.
Was it all a lie?
Was all of this created by that bastard from Biyang?
Even all my insights were born from his guidance?
Duoxia felt a dampness in his crotch; cold sweat almost instantly soaked his back.
That's so sneaky! I'm awesome!
No wonder that clumsy Abraham was able to be deceived by him so many times. He was so damn cunning that he not only controlled the direction of the entire world, but also the thoughts of all living beings!
He directed and starred in a dramatic story of humanity collapsing due to greed, yet being rebuilt and inspiring in the midst of war, using self-sacrifice as the foundation for godhood, thereby truly shaping a godhood with realistic significance!
He's really going to become a god! A true god in the hearts of all people!
If it weren't for his own words just now, which suddenly made him think in that direction, he would have had no chance of noticing at all!
Duoxia's eyes were fixed on Norton's profile as he turned to look at Duoxia. The exquisite and perfect profile, illuminated by the dim light, exuded an infinite holiness, yet it felt to Dosia as if he were seeing a fanged demon from Hell, chilling him to the bone.
This devil is truly going to succeed in replacing God and becoming a true god in the literal sense!
Perhaps sensing that Duoxia's gaze was too intense, Norton turned his head away, and Duoxia forcefully suppressed the anger, fear, and confusion surging within him, shifting his gaze and returning to his normal demeanor.
However, his gaze remained fixed on Norton's face out of the corner of his eye.
Norton's expression was a half-smile, his eyes fixed on Duoxia, scrutinizing him from head to toe. After a long while, he finally chuckled and said meaningfully, "I have long seen through the despicable nature of people."
I had already foreseen this turn of events.
There are always those who consider themselves wise, believing they have already seen through the mystery, unaware that this too is a hunter's net; the moment they begin to ponder, they have already fallen into the trap...
You guys agree, right? Hmm?
Abraham, Duoxia?
Duoxia was covered in sweat.
Abraham's crotch was soaked.