Chapter 615

Chapter 237 Epilogue

The sunlight was gentle, slowly illuminating the earth.

The great fire in Woodward Forest had yet to be extinguished; the crimson flames spread through the forest, devouring everything without restraint. Dead animal carcasses emitted smoke, and countless ancient trees were burned to charcoal, crashing down with a “crackling” sound.

At the center of the forest, the once vast prairie no longer existed. Boiling lava spread over the scorched earth, gradually cooling and solidifying into dark, dimly glowing igneous rock.

Around the circular area, at the intersection of the wilderness and the forest, six huge square golden pillars stood tall, encircling a mass of molten rock. Faint shadows of people in black robes could be seen at the top of the pillars. Soon, new figures appeared in the area of the igneous rock, enveloped by a thin light shield, holding suspended golden spheres, looking around as if searching for something.

“Have you found any traces?”

The young man with golden hair, leaning on his staff, stood at the edge of the lava, his face grim. Beside him stood the distressed Holy Maiden. Someone approached, and seeing the gloomy expression on the person’s face, the man knew the answer before asking urgently, “No signs of life?”

Indeed, the newcomer shook his head slightly, “None, Your Holiness.”

“Then keep searching.”

Pope Angel’s face grew even colder, his eyes seeming ready to devour someone.

“Even if she has been shattered into pieces in the explosion, I want her found and brought back. Pieces of charred bone, a piece of burnt flesh, anything. Even if she is truly dead, her body has immeasurable value. Lamar, you know this.”

“Yes.”

The man named Lamar responded solemnly. Soon, he turned and left, leading others to continue searching on the scorching red rock. An elderly bishop, hunched over, came forward and stood beside Pope Angel.

“Everything has been taken care of.”

The old man said this out of nowhere, causing Margaret’s expression to freeze. She abruptly looked towards Angel. Clearly, the pope understood what the old man meant, but he remained silent, nodding slightly. His eyes flickered as he stared ahead, lost in thought for a moment before asking, “Where is the body?”

“Burned,” the old man replied, lowering his head.

Angel grunted and fell silent again.

After a long while.

Until the elderly bishop also quietly left, leaving only the young pope and the equally young Holy Maiden standing there. Margaret’s worry deepened, mingled with a hint of sorrow, as if she was struggling with some decision.

She glanced at the side of the pope’s face, opening her mouth several times to speak, but the words were swallowed back each time. Finally, when Angel spoke impatiently, “Just say what you have to say,” the Holy Maiden hesitated and voiced her lingering doubts.

“Are we really making the right choice…”

As soon as these words left her mouth, Angel abruptly turned to look at her.

Margaret trembled.

She dared not meet the gaze of the young man before her, because she saw something restrained in his eyes, about to burst forth at any moment.

“…Margaret.”

After a moment, the man called her name, his tone not as agitated as expected, but rather gentle, so much so that it seemed out of place given the current scene and his emotions.

“If we only have compassion and kindness, nothing can change. You might have forgotten our responsibilities and the problems we face. My dear Margaret, we don’t have the right to choose; we must produce results, effective results, and nothing else will do.”

He paused.

“Only then can this peaceful and beautiful world continue, only then can the Church’s power remain stable, and human society continue to thrive. And you, you will have the opportunity to continue feeling pity and compassion, to come to me in the next ten, twenty, or fifty years and question, ‘Is this the right thing to do, Your Holiness?'”

The man laughed.

That laugh instantly sent Margaret plummeting into despair.

“So, what do you think we should do?”

…………

The sky was overcast, and the autumn wind was stiflingly hot, almost obscuring the daylight with flying ashes that had lingered for days.

The search by the Holy Church in Woodward Forest continued until late October. Eventually, more bishops, monks, and many clergy who did not fully understand the truth joined in, tasked with collecting the remains of the deceased divine bodies while extinguishing the fires.

The operation was not without results.

Over the course of a month, the Church mobilized a large number of people and resources, conducting an almost thorough search of the cooled igneous rock and its surrounding areas. They ultimately found numerous black bone fragments and blood-soaked, partially calcined flesh fused with the rock.

However, when pieced together, these fragments were far smaller than a rib of the divine body, with most of them seemingly consumed by the flames during the explosion, along with the small girl, turning into ashes and disappearing forever.

We do not know how the Church internally dealt with this event or what decisions they made afterward.

The world continued to operate silently and absurdly.

The war, famine, and disasters in Silgaya began from April of this year and only became apparent to the public by late October. In November, discussions and rumors started in Silgaya’s Emerald City, quickly spreading to the neighboring Valen Empire, Ethenbel, and throughout the streets and alleys of every city in the West Continent.

People had differing views on the war against the demons.

Some believed that southern Silgaya might already be in ruins, and the Church had paid a heavy price. Until now, those demons had not been completely eradicated. Others felt that the demons were merely a group of eastern bandits who had been eliminated long ago. As for the Gate of Truth and the heretics, they were insignificant under the Church’s powerful army and the just crusade led by the Knight Pope. There was no way they could resist.

These two rumors were the most common and credible. Other wilder speculations existed, but few believed them.

Throughout November, citizens of various countries and cities discussed these matters, while nobles and royal court ministers mostly remained silent, generally avoiding public discussion. However, many nights saw these opportunistic nobles privately gathering to discreetly probe each other’s positions, seeking reliable information, and discussing how to benefit from the situation.

Both overt and covert disturbances persisted until the end of the year.

People finally received definitive news from the latest reports. Soon after, the entire West Continent was shaken by the revelations about the crimes of Saint George Bank. During the war, they had disregarded the plight of the starving, shirked responsibility, and amassed wealth. The most devout believer of the deity, Cardinal Saint George, had sacrificed the Third Knight Order fighting the battle to protect the bank’s interests, leading to the death of his son, Nick Williams, on the battlefield, becoming a heroic martyr.

His decision to abandon the impoverished southern Silgaya, placing millions of northern civilians in chaos and disaster, to preserve more assets including the Emerald City in the north, caused immense public outrage. This led to widespread unrest, with angry crowds smashing the bank’s doors, beating people inside, and looting everything. The riots spread rapidly, with deaths increasing daily, but oddly enough, the city guards and resident knight orders turned a blind eye, allowing the situation to fester.

Occasionally, knights would intervene but would soon be confronted by another team, often resulting in no resolution. People welcomed such outcomes. By the following March, the initial rioters even formed an official civilian organization, naming it the “Zhi Xing Association,” determined to fight the corruption.

Behind the scenes, soon, the forces aligned with the Williams family and other vested interests were preparing their fiercest counterattack against the current Pope…

Time went back to the previous year’s end. When the first report came out, the West Continent was shocked by more than just the bank scandal. The front page of the report featured another heartbreaking message that truly ignited everyone’s emotions.

In the Public Year 1187, September,

The powerful demon sealed by the ancient deities in the Age of the Divine Presence, the source of the heretical and brutal force, was accidentally released by evil-doers.

A terrible calamity descended upon the depths of Woodward Forest in Silgaya, a terrifying existence that humans feared, akin to a god. Its body was as large as a mountain, its blood burning like lava.

, the lush forest was instantly destroyed, and the great fire burned across Hylgian lands for seven whole days.

Yet, the hero of the church, our human hero, had flames burning in their hearts that were even more intense.

Due to insufficient supplies, the heretics who lived by raw meat broke through the Mosri coastal defense line, advancing southward. Countless refugees met their demise, and the third knight order of the church held the city of Arretine until团长威廉姆斯 died in battle, unable to stop the demons from advancing. The villains ultimately unleashed terrible calamities, but our brave warriors displayed unprecedented courage at this critical moment.

They paid with their honor and their lives to ensure that the demon, nearly divine in power, was completely eradicated, forever stripping the heretics of their evil powers.

With a heart full of pain, I write this brief passage—God’s children, please forgive me for not being able to describe the gruesome details. I do not wish to recall that sorrowful, desperate battle. If I could, as a man, I would gladly fight the demons in their stead.

But I cannot.

I am merely a weak person, an under-prepared priest, lacking the strength and the right to stand alongside them, to throw myself into the fray for this world.

I cannot be a hero.

I can only sit here and write this report for you, telling you the names of the heroes.

Sword Ghost Anaxeris.

And the little girl beloved by all, the youngest ever Papal Knight, Miss Silvija.

You need to remember their names.

Promise me that you will remember them until your dying day.

Epilogue of Chapter Four

Writing the latter part of this chapter was quite challenging.

Originally, I expected to finish the fourth chapter before the year ended, when I had fewer things to handle and more time to focus on writing.

If I had completed the fourth chapter then, it might have been of higher quality. However, controlling the length of the chapters proved difficult, especially towards the end. I genuinely did not anticipate that the fourth chapter would be so long; even now, some content I planned has been omitted. Adding those parts back would make the story overly drawn out.

After the new year, I became busier, and my time for writing became limited. By the final parts, what should have been written in one go had to be split into two or three chapters, each around 2000 words. I stayed up late every night to meet deadlines, revising and posting the next day. Even then, there were occasional delays.

Sometimes, I felt exhausted, staying up until 3 or 4 AM, only to wake up early the next day. Recently, I’ve been averaging about five hours of sleep per night, feeling like I’m back to irregular schedules. This isn’t sustainable, so I decided to take a break tonight, telling myself I wouldn’t write. But I couldn’t resist, knowing readers were waiting for updates. I thought if I didn’t write today, I might not have time tomorrow. Considering how frustrated you must be with the plot stalling, I wanted to post the next chapter quickly so you could see it, otherwise, I couldn’t sleep.

So, I sat down at my computer and started writing.

I read your messages, urging me to take care of my health and not stay up late. Honestly, I was moved, but I didn’t listen.

I couldn’t control my desire to write.

Ultimately, that’s the reason.

However, the fourth chapter is finally done. Today, I can rest assured and take a proper break—I’ll truly relax after finishing this epilogue, then watch a movie, go out for fresh air, shop, meet some friends, chat, and return home to review the outline for the fifth chapter, checking for any inconsistencies, before going to bed early.

This feels wonderful!

Enough rambling, let’s talk about this book.

The current storyline marks the halfway point of “The Abyss.”

Chapter four is generally the most somber and difficult to read in the entire book, especially in the middle and later sections. Many scenes are either frustrating or sad, and these emotions don’t fully resolve by the end of the chapter.

Because this chapter marks a turning point.

In this chapter, Pepé learns more, but she is powerless to address these issues and lacks complete ideas. Almost everything comes as a sudden shock, leaving her no time to think and pushing her forward relentlessly.

Sometimes people say, why isn’t Pepé more mature, acting like a silly little girl, immature, easily manipulated. Her previous life’s soul, which had business experience, shouldn’t feel so helpless—because many protagonists in other novels are always one step ahead, thinking more deeply than the antagonists. This makes reading this book uncomfortable for many, and I understand.

I don’t know how others handle these issues. I haven’t read many novels recently, especially thrillers. I used to read very little and now have even less time. I believe many talented authors handle such situations well, smoothly and logically. I don’t know their exact methods, but in my case, it’s not about maturity.

Pepé isn’t stupid.

She’s more rational than most ordinary people.

Even without her past life’s soul, she’s always been a smart and sensible girl, quick-witted. She just doesn’t want to overthink things because it’s tiring and hasn’t been forced to yet.

Now, facing an organization with vast information networks, manpower, and resources, even if her intelligence and perspective are ten times better than others, she is still manipulated and can’t compete.

Her information channels are too narrow.

Many things she simply can’t see or know, regardless of how intelligent or resolute she is. It’s a complete imbalance of information.

She’s only been in this world for a little over a year, still a young girl influenced by her temperament. Initially, she subconsciously avoided worrying about many things, wanting to be omniscient like in other books is nearly impossible.

I can’t blow that smoke yet.

So, Pepé’s setbacks aren’t about maturity.

She’s just one person; how can she compete with many who already know the inside story? Others are far ahead, monopolizing information and resources. This world is already controlled by others, and manipulating or deceiving her is as easy as a word. Even powerful figures find it hard to deal with such situations.

But this chapter will mark the end of that.

We’re saying goodbye to the naive girl who knew nothing.

Now, she knows much more.

Most importantly, she’s strong enough to ignore most tactics.

She just needs time and opportunity, enough time and opportunity to expand her network, connections, and build her own information web and influence.

Starting with the fifth chapter.

We’ll say goodbye to most of the purely frustrating scenes.

That’s all for now.

Let’s discuss the title at the end of this chapter, “Nirvana.” Many of you misunderstand that Pepé will transform into a new state here—this isn’t entirely a misunderstanding, just not the right time. If I titled this chapter “Rebirth Through Nirvana,” that would be accurate.

Let me give you a small explanation: “Nirvana” is a Buddhist term meaning “extinction,” “quiescence,” and “liberation.” It generally refers to the highest spiritual state beyond life and death.

“Phoenix Rebirth” is rising from the ashes.

In my view, Pepé has reached “Nirvana” but hasn’t truly “reborn” yet.

She will soon.

The next chapter will detail this process.

Our Pepé is finally starting to tackle the problems—how exciting! I wonder how you’ll feel.

I’m a bit worried if I can write it well enough to meet my standards.

I realize now that even with some talent and a decent readership for my first book, it’s not enough to write truly good work.

Many great authors produce truly remarkable works only after writing several million-word books.

I hope I get that chance.

For now, I’ll focus on doing my best with what I can manage.

Maybe I’ll still often lack time, occasionally miss deadlines, or post small 2000-word chapters.

But this book will definitely end.

And the next one, and the one after that…

When someone does what they love, they always give it their all. As long as I love writing, giving up is impossible.

I have so many stories left to tell.

I have so many opportunities to learn and grow, making my characters richer and my stories more polished in the near future.

It’s exhilarating!

So, I’ll leave it at that for today. Tomorrow, we officially enter “The Abyss” Volume Five—Maiden and Mese Town.

This is the promised image for the萌战 (cute battle). I’ll post the original image in the group later. Thank you for supporting Pepé~

PS: The old group is almost full. Here’s the link for the new group: 625829290.

I hope everyone enjoys the group.

That’s all!