“Logically speaking, your idea is correct.” Aries nodded at me. “The reason we two can stand here talking, looking into each other’s eyes and listening to each other’s thoughts—all of this is predicated on the fact that we believe ourselves to be human.”
“So… because we’re human, we have shackles?” I asked.
“Because we’re ‘human,’ our limits are predetermined. We believe we’ll die from lack of oxygen, from starvation, from injury—many common causes of death in games can’t actually kill us. In the end, we’re the ones who’ve been killing ourselves all along,” Aries said. “Even if we strengthen our subconscious to its absolute limit, we still rely on thought to control it. And both thought and the subconscious are the very markers of our humanity.”
“Though a bit abstract, I think I get it…” I nodded. “Brother Aries, are you saying… that if we want to achieve the strongest ‘Echo,’ we can’t rely on controlling the ‘subconscious’ from the start? We have to forget we’re human?”
“Yes. Communicating with you is remarkably smooth.” Aries gave me a rare approving glance before adding, “These so-called ‘divine powers’ were merely handed down to us…”
He pointed at the sky and continued, “Can a beggar use a rich man’s charity to buy out his entire estate?”
I nodded, though my expression remained heavy. “But there’s one thing I still don’t quite understand.”
“What?”
“‘Human’ is the most intelligent being we know of, right? If we stop seeing ourselves as human… wouldn’t we just become irrational beasts?”
Aries replied, “That’s why I said earlier, ‘Logically speaking, your idea is correct.’ Unfortunately, in the ‘Land of the End,’ this notion needs to be reconsidered… There truly are beings here that surpass ‘human.'”
I froze at his words, my lips trembling slightly.
Aries pointed at the sky again and asked, “Why do you think they’re so strong? Do they see themselves as ‘human’?”
I understood now…
To become the strongest ‘Echoer’ here, to rise above all existence, it was never about relying on one’s subconscious from the start.
Though ‘controlling the subconscious’ and ‘not seeing oneself as human’ may seem similar, they diverge at the very foundation.
The reason ‘Tianlong’ is so powerful isn’t because his subconscious is strong, nor because he’s insane—it’s because he knows he isn’t human to begin with.
From the very start, he believed he could achieve what humans cannot.
Yet when we activate transcendent abilities, we always remember we’re human.
How deeply hidden is this paradox…?
It’s like an investor trying to get rich off stocks.
Stock trading itself is a paradox. To know whether a stock will rise, one must understand business operations, economic principles, market trends, and global shifts—only then can one accurately predict a stock’s rise.
But if someone already grasps all this theoretical knowledge, they wouldn’t need to rely on stocks to make money. Once you fully comprehend the laws of business, any venture you undertake would yield far greater profits than stock trading ever could.
This is the fundamental divergence in logic from the very beginning.
“So you’ve already thought it through…” I murmured softly. “Relying on ‘controlling the subconscious’ to become strong… is something only ordinary people would do.”
“Exactly. Ordinary people become strong by constantly controlling their subconscious, but if they keep at it, they’ll eventually lose their minds entirely,” Aries said. “They never analyze why those above them are so powerful. Those above may seem insane… but it’s not the insanity of losing reason—it’s the insanity of a human being able to converse with ants.”
“Then you’re going to…”
“I’m going to forget I’m human,” Aries answered. “I’ll see myself as something else.”
He looked up impassively at the sky. “At the very least, something closer to them. That way, where the mind leads, the body follows—I’ll become limitless.”
Hearing this, I still felt the same way.
This path was far too difficult.
“Then how do you plan to do it…?” I asked again.
“This ties into the question I asked you earlier…” Aries said. “I’ve combed through countless books, yet I still haven’t found a suitable motive.”
He gave me a slightly resigned look. “These things aren’t even written in books… How can someone, knowing full well there’s no way out of here, still fixate solely on escaping?”
I understood the feeling Aries was describing.
It’s a motive that defies logic—like a beggar, knowing it’s impossible, still obsessively striving to become the world’s richest person.
For such a person, merely ‘wanting to earn money’ isn’t enough.
But before voicing this thought, I first needed to confirm whether Aries was like me.
“Brother Aries, do you love yourself?” I asked.
“Love myself…?” He hesitated, then shook his head. “Probably not. For the longest time, I’ve been running around, risking my life for others.”
“Perfect—you’re not like me,” I said. “Then escape for others.”
“For others? Ha…” Aries let out a laugh, as if hearing something utterly absurd, then shook his head. “I’ve been alone since childhood, and now you’re telling me to escape for others…?”
“Alone since childhood…?”
“Do you know why I’ve spent my life running around for others?” he asked.
“No,” I answered bluntly. “To me, no one in this world is more important than myself. I only love myself, and I’d never take risks for anyone else.”
“Then we’ve simply chosen different paths,” Aries said. “After coming here, I realized not everyone deserves hell, nor does everyone deserve this damned cycle. I can’t stand watching good people suffer here, nor can I stand evil ones wreaking havoc eternally. So I’ve decided to free them all by my own hand.”
From that moment, I glimpsed something divine in Aries.
A transcendent, deeply rooted, ultimate and beautiful spiritual value.
I began to understand why Jiang Ruoxue clung so fiercely to ‘causality.’ Perhaps it was because Aries was this kind of person that I chose to help him.
“Brother Aries, in that case… is there someone you love?” I asked.
“Someone I love…?” He looked at me as if the words didn’t immediately register.
“Yeah, Brother Aries,” I nodded. “Is there someone in this world… who has suffered for you, endured hardship for you, someone who embodies all your hopes in life?”
The silence stretched for over ten seconds.
“Unfortunately…” Aries looked at me with a shadowed gaze. “That’s beyond the scope of my knowledge.”
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