Chapter 1578: Divine Will

At Nan Xiao's Residence, Ye Guan spent each day reading. He read a wide variety of books, but what disappointed him was that most books were focused on praise.

Naturally, they praised the Divine Will.

Sang Mei suddenly appeared in the room. She wore a simple long dress and possessed a beauty and figure worthy of a master artist's brush. She resembled a drifting mist, quiet and ethereal, but her lips would occasionally curve up in a smile, giving the impression that she was easygoing.

Of course, Ye Guan's impression of Sang Mei was that she was indeed easygoing and easy to talk to.

Sang Mei sat directly on the desk in front of Ye Guan. Her two long, fair legs swayed lazily as she glanced at the books that Ye Guan was reading.

"Any thoughts?" she asked, smiling.

Ye Guan thought for a moment, then said, "Here, the 'Divine Will' is everything, beyond reasonable doubt. Any differing voice is considered heretical; it is to be rejected or even destroyed."

Sang Mei said, "That's normal. A common method of ruling."

Ye Guan looked at Sang Mei. "What's your take on it?"

"When telling the truth brings boundless danger to a world, then that world must be full of lies," Sang Mei said, smiling.

Ye Guan fell into deep thought.

Sang Mei waved her right hand in front of Ye Guan's eyes and smiled. "What are you thinking about?"

Ye Guan pulled himself out of his thoughts. "The actions of the Temple of the Gods. Are they truly the will of the Divinity?"

A flicker of surprise flashed through Sang Mei's eyes. "Why do you think that?"

Ye Guan considered it, then said, "From what I've seen so far, I don't believe this Divinity has such a narrow vision. Someone capable of creating this civilization and system must be extraordinary.

"Their vision and mindset won't be so petty."

Sang Mei showed interest. "So you think these actions aren't truly the Divinity's will, but something that the Temple of the Gods is doing on their own?"

Ye Guan nodded. "Mmhm."

Sang Mei shifted slightly closer to Ye Guan. She leaned down to look at him and blinked. "Go on."

Ye Guan caught a whiff of her faint. Steadying his thoughts, he sternly said, "They're using the Divine Will to rule the universe and benefit themselves."

Sang Mei stared at him. "Let's go back to the earlier question. Why do you believe the Divine Will wouldn't be so narrow? Is it a guess, or do you have something to support it?"

Ye Guan leaned back in his chair, smiled, and said, "Just a guess."

"Oh." Sang Mei clearly wasn't satisfied with that answer.

Ye Guan added, "I've met top-tier powerhouses before. True elites aren't afraid of people being stronger than them; they're afraid that people are weaker than them. And this Divine Will can govern so many powerful beings despite being a mere will.

"Hence, I believe it couldn't possibly be so petty. Of course, this is all just speculation."

Sang Mei stared at him and smiled. "That's an interesting guess."

Ye Guan smiled. "I want to build Order. In a way, that makes me a rival of this Divine Will. I should respect and take my opponent seriously."

"Based on your theory, the Temple of the Gods is controlling the people's thoughts and places the Divine Will above all because it benefits them personally?"

Ye Guan laughed. "I'm just letting my imagination run wild."

"I actually find your thoughts interesting. Keep going."

"The Temple of the Gods worships the Divine Will. Once a being reaches the Main God, they can earn a Main God Seat and absorb faith. Controlling public thought might not benefit the Divine Will, but it definitely benefits the gods under it.

'To put it simply, under this civilized Order, there's a massive group benefiting from the system. They cluster around the Divine Will, seemingly fighting for it, but in reality, they are using it to serve their own interests."

Sang Mei looked at Ye Guan, her smile gradually fading into seriousness. "Let's suppose the Divine Will wants to change this situation. What should be done? No, let me ask this instead—if you were the Divine Will, how would you change things?"

Ye Guan thought for a moment. "It would be very difficult."

Sang Mei pressed, "How so?"

Ye Guan replied, "You mentioned cultural traits, and the Divine Will has already established that kind of cultural trait. To change it, it would need to change the nature of its believers, which is unrealistic..."

"It's like the emperor of an ancient empire, placed on the throne by noble families. He represents their interests. Even if he knows these families are growing too powerful and threatening his rule, he finds it hard to change anything because if he tries, he'll be attacked from all sides."

Sang Mei fell into contemplation.

Ye Guan suddenly said, "I have two ideas."

Sang Mei looked at him.

Ye Guan smiled. "Just my random thoughts..."

Sang Mei smiled with pursed lips. "No need to be so cautious. I'm not from the Temple of the Gods."

Ye Guan nodded. "To change the situation, there are two ways. The first is to tear it all down and start over. It's direct and clean but very destructive."

"And the second?"

Ye Guan replied seriously, "A revolution."

Sang Mei looked at him. "You mean an internal revolution?"

Ye Guan nodded. "Yes. Support a new voice, one that is markedly different. Let it correct the system. But it's risky. If it overcorrects, then nothing will actually change."

Sang Mei looked at Ye Guan and smiled. "Are you thinking of being that voice?"

Ye Guan shook his head. "No way."

"Understandable." Sang Mei nodded. "If you were to try that, you'd be crushed by the current powers."

Ye Guan nodded. "Exactly. And if it turns out the Temple of the Gods' actions really are the will of the Divinity, then I'd basically be signing my own death warrant."

Sang Mei smiled. "Just now, you said 'I can't,' not 'I don't want to,' which means you've thought about it. Can I hear it?"

Ye Guan said, "I'm too weak. Any idea I have is meaningless. I'm not on an equal footing with the Temple of the Gods. What I need to do now is study diligently, get stronger, and improve my understanding."

Sang Mei blinked. "Understanding?"

"Those with low understanding are trapped by their own hearts. All they see is meaningless stuff." Ye Guan nodded. He paused again, then said, "Take what we just discussed about the Divine Will. I don't believe that I understand it. Everything I said was based on my current level of cognition..

"I'm like a poor person imagining how a billionaire spends their money."

Sang Mei smiled. "What you said makes sense. A person's thinking and vision will determine their end. But don't sell yourself short. Don't put the gods too high on a pedestal. The stronger someone is, the stronger their desires become. It's like a snowball rolling down a mountain.

"And because they have power, secular things like laws and morality don't bind them, so they can indulge their desires at will. Their dark sides... are beyond imagination."

Ye Guan suddenly asked, "Lady Sang Mei, are you familiar with the Divine Will?"

Sang Mei shook her head. "Not really."

Ye Guan nodded and said nothing more.

Sang Mei walked to the side, looked out the window, and stretched. Her perfect curves were inadvertently revealed.

Ye Guan glanced once before turning away. No matter how beautiful a woman was, beneath the skin, they were still just two hundred and six bones.

Not worth looking at! Especially when her clothes were still on.

Sang Mei said, "I've made a small discovery in your pagoda. Want me to share it with you?"

Ye Guan became curious. "What did you find?"

Sang Mei smiled. "Time linkage."

Ye Guan was even more confused.

Sang Mei explained, "Simply put, it's about shifting some of the pagoda's internal time outward, connecting it with outside time."

Ye Guan blinked. "That's possible?"

Sang Mei nodded. "It is."

Ye Guan put down his book and eagerly asked, "What's the effect?"

Sang Mei smiled. "Your Dao of Time is ahead of this world. In other words, when your opponent is at one, you're already at two. You exist in the same world but not at the same time."

Ye Guan was immediately intrigued. "How do you do it?"

Sang Mei blinked. "Isn't that your job to figure out?"

"Didn't you say you'd share it with me?"

"I shared the idea."

Ye Guan's expression froze.

"I tested it. It works. But my method doesn't suit you; you need to find your own." Sang Mei laughed. She smirked, saying, "Little swordsman, your 'spoonfeeding' mindset is bad."

Ye Guan was speechless.

Sang Mei smiled. "I'm going out for a stroll. Can you lend me some money? Just True Spirit Srystals."

Ye Guan nodded. "Sure. How much?"

Sang Mei said, "A hundred million."

"What?" Ye Guan was stunned. "A hundred million?"

Sang Mei blinked. "Is that...a lot?"

Ye Guan countered, "Isn't it?"

Sang Mei thought for a moment. "That's my fault."

Ye Guan nodded, feeling a bit better. At least, Sang Mei knew how to admit her mistakes, which was good.

Just as Ye Guan was feeling gratified, Sang Mei added, "I had no idea that you were so poor."

Ye Guan was speechless.