When the plot-skips players into the game world

Aiwass was arranging matters related to the immigrants while contemplating another issue.

He was thinking...

What were the final words Adil wanted to say but didn't have time to express?

According to Adil's secret, the great desert of the Parthian Ancient Country is actually caused by the Sin Thorn buried beneath.

Sin Thorn constantly absorbs water. As long as it is continuously satisfied, it won't grow; conversely, water can seal Sin Thorn and make it sleep. If it doesn't get water, it will start to gradually activate and grow upwards... just like when people drink alcohol.

Although these two possibilities are fundamentally opposite, they manifest in the same way.

Therefore, the amount of water actually taken by the Benevolent Lords, that "for hundreds of people," is much larger than what is needed for normal human consumption.

What people can drink is the portion left over after satisfying Sin Thorn's need... the remaining water.

This is why almost all Benevolent Lords use various artistic forms to "waste water"!

On the one hand, it shows off their extravagance, that they can squander what others can barely drink, thus showcasing their power and status;

On the other hand—the water is meant to be spilled on the ground. They create rivers and lakes around the oasis, essentially "watering" the Sin Thorn. So, playing tricks with water doesn't fundamentally affect the essence.

From this perspective, Aiwass understands why Adil is so proud of this tradition. Because probably the initial Benevolent Lords, those Taboo Mages who left the Tower of Heaven, were actually trying to find a way to seal the Sin Thorn beneath. And they chose the Taboo Magic they were familiar with, like the Abyss Water of the Abyssal Celestial Envoy.

It was for this purpose that they built city-states and obtained water through sacrifices. People, wanting to get the water they need, tacitly agreed to the Benevolent Lords' sacrifices.

In reality, they were "renewable ritual materials" cheated into this—through human reproduction, the seal here becomes everlasting.

If this is the case, Aiwass can understand... why the Holy Nation remains indifferent to the Benevolent Lords.

Even the Cardinal Archbishop must ask people personally to act if they want to deal with the Parthian Ancient Country—he can't even build a waterway himself!

Suppose the Holy Nation cannot directly help the Benevolent Lords because of the tradition that it cannot interfere in internal affairs—but the Holy Nation ignores the sacrificial actions of the Parthian Ancient Country and only stops issues regarding population trafficking... now upon careful reflection, this attitude seems incorrect.

After all, there is the "Homeland Faction" within the Holy Nation.

Cardinal Favna, who leads the Homeland Faction, interprets Dedication as "the longest-lasting and sustainable dedication is construction"—not to toil in helping individual entities but to create a better home for a group.

And Mr. Maxim, whom Aiwass met before, is a Mage from the Civil Engineering Department. He not only presided over the construction of the Hall of Silver and Tin but also built dams for the Horus People.

Parthia is not much different from Horus; Horus also has one-third of its territory as desert. However, the Horus People attempt to use technology to build water facilities, and there's no reason for the even thirstier Parthian Ancient Country to stubbornly refuse help—even if the Benevolent Lords want to maintain their power, when the Holy Nation completes such a monumental Dedication, when have they ever considered the opinions of other countries?

The Holy Nation's stance has always been flexible.

If something involves affecting domestic politics, the Elves will hesitate considering ancestral opinions; but if it relates to implementing the Path of Devotion, they will charge like mad dogs and create chaos for all who try to obstruct them—

From this viewpoint, the Holy Nation indeed has a demeanor of a strong entity—so long as it involves interests they value, they don't care about others' views. But what the Holy Nation values is neither wealth nor resources, but a "practice base" where they can implement their Path.

It's like everyone playing an SLG game, fighting madly over resources and land. And while the Holy Nation also plays this game, they are actually here to write sociological papers, indifferent to how others fight, not caring whether they gain or lose, and instead delight in anything that helps complete their project. But if anyone tries to stop them from completing their project, they immediately enter a red-eyed state.

Then, since the Holy Nation has never considered building dams and artificial rivers for Parthia... perhaps it's because the Holy Nation implicitly agrees that the Benevolent Lords have some kind of significance of existence.

Further considering the Sin Thorn beneath the desert—Candle Master's honorific title is "The God of Thorns Bound," His initial achievement was burning away the Sin Thorn blocking the River of the Dream Realm, thus opening the system of Extraordinary Power known as the Path itself. And the fact that Sin Thorn is buried beneath this desert is not a rare knowledge.

From this perspective, most likely the Holy Nation knows where this thing comes from.

After all, the establishment of the Parthian Ancient Country was even earlier than the Holy Nation—the collapsing of the Tower of Heaven occurred, while the "Milked" were just being created.

The Milked are children of the "Civilization" Source River, and the instinct of civilization is expansion.

Extremely belligerent Elves waged war with almost every race in the world, exterminated countless species, and after a bloody civil war, finally reached compromise and unity. Nowadays, all the "layers" of the Holy Nation, each with its distinct customs and rules, are relics from the former civil war.

While the Holy Nation unified, the Parthian Ancient Country was established for countless years. If change were meant to happen, it would have happened long ago, not left till now.

As for the seal, that's unlikely... after all, they are Elves. Their ancestors are The Great Tree, the earliest Angel Envoy of Candle Master, somewhat related by blood.

And Candle Master, having burned away the Sin Thorn in the River of the Dream Realm, shouldn't really struggle with a bit of desert Sin Thorn, should He?

Further connecting to Adil's words...

"The old scar of the earth, the sibling of all beings..."

As Aiwass wrote to Yulia, asking her to arrange these refugees, he murmured softly.

Adil said Candle Master would protect the Sin Thorn here because it's the world's last Sin Thorn.

Why? Is there any compelling reason to protect Sin Thorn?

"The final Sin Thorn..."

Aiwass thought carefully.

He remembered something else—

In the Holy Nation's prayers, it is mentioned that before the Candle Master came to this world, it was silent and desolate, covered in brambles... without sun or moon. His arrival was an accident, and the birth of fire a gift.

After He burned away the brambles with fire, the power of the Source River became abundant again.

Thus, there was the first one.

"...Taiyi. The Pillar God of the Sun Path... the first Source River, the first Path, could He be the earliest Pillar God?"

Aiwass felt he was getting close to the truth of the world.

Breaking through this last layer of paper would lead to understanding the reality of it all. And the key among them—beyond a doubt—is the Sin Thorn beneath the desert.

Suddenly, Aiwass had a spark of inspiration:

"If the Candle Master is the first true 'life' in this world, creating 'Taiyi' from the void, coming from another world's fire. Then, isn't the Sin Thorn the native life of this world?"

Fire requires fuel to burn.

And what is the fuel supporting Taiyi's flame, creating all things?

In the ancient past when nothing existed in the world, it could only have been the Sin Thorn.

In other words, Taiyi is the life born from the lit Sin Thorn.

The Candle Master's achievement is "opening the Source River"... but He did not create the Source River from the void. Instead, He dredged the already-existing Source River, which was merely clogged by the Sin Thorn.

Then the question arises.

Who created this Source River?

Where did the Sin Thorn come from?

And why would the world-ending Dusk Species... the Void Whisper target this world?

Considering the characteristics of the Sin Thorn—it not only obliterates all power from the Source River but can also kill almost all life, possessing the power of the Path of Nihility.

Yet why was there a pervasive power of the void at the world's inception?

Then, could it be possible...

The Sin Thorn is not the 'initial form' of life.

—But rather the 'endpoint' of a civilization?

Just like the 'brother' Adil spoke of.

Perhaps the Void Whisper did not discover this place by chance.

He had already 'dined' on this world long ago.

"It's worth investigating."

Aiwass thought so.

And indeed, he had a way to research—

Among the world's earliest batch of Sin Thorn, a portion is buried beneath the desert. Their burial sites are scattered, likely beneath various city-states.

According to Adil, if water is not added, the Sin Thorn will start to grow upwards.

Perhaps those city-states that gradually disappeared into the desert after becoming uninhabited, were due to the Sin Thorn hollowing out beneath them, causing the cities to sink into the sands.

Aiwass happened to construct an underground water conduit—not expecting it to serve a significant purpose despite initially being built to sustain the Parthian people.

This water conduit can gradually awaken a small amount of Sin Thorn, allowing them to wind upwards, like a grapevine trellis. And it just so happens to be far outside the city, with sufficient water inside to calm the Sin Thorn... thus preventing the Sin Thorn from hollowing out the city, and also preventing them from losing control and sprouting above ground.

If it goes well, Aiwass could soon harvest a portion of the world's 'earliest Sin Thorn'.

Or perhaps... call them the 'firstborn' of this world.