Chapter 83: Cycle

The physical body and soul of a living being are inseparable, two crucial components that rely on each other.

Located in the City of Angels, the Holy Empire First Comprehensive Research and Education Academy is the largest and most authoritative institution in the world concerning theology, and they proposed a theory regarding this.

That is — the concept of 【Cycle】.

The energy in this world, whether from mountains, rivers, lakes, seas, or elemental magic, can fundamentally be categorized as 【Matter】, while the power representing the spirit and soul is collectively termed 【Void】.

Everything in the world is made up of the combination of 【Matter】 energy and 【Void】 energy, and their total amount remains constant and continues to cycle.

Once a living being is born into this world, it needs to absorb either 【Matter】 or 【Void】 energy to grow, become stronger, and acquire more energy. Their role is to keep these two types of energy flowing and activated, ensuring that the world does not gradually become stagnant like a dead pond.

However, these energies do not disappear. When a living being dies, both the 【Matter】 of the body and the 【Void】 of the soul return to the heavens and earth, transforming into pure energy and entering the next cycle.

This is the —— 【Theory of Absolute Conservation of Energy】 proposed by the Holy Empire three hundred years ago, regarding the relationship between the world and living beings.

But soon after, scholars presented a more terrifying hypothesis.

Because the energy in the world is absolutely conserved, if there are invaders that either solely take energy or plunder it to other worlds, over time, the total energy of one side, be it 【Matter】 or 【Void】, will continually diminish.

Until one day, when the world’s energy is so depleted that even basic cycles can no longer be formed, the structure of the world will collapse, and the sun and moon in the sky will lose their light; living beings will no longer have the possibility to survive, continuously dying, leading to extinction.

Then the world… will also be destroyed.

Such hypothetical theories are referred to as the 【Theory of Stable Cycles】.

An important basis for the establishment and acknowledgment of these two theories lies in the continuous and relentless opposition of the Holy Empire against the outer beings known as demons.

Demons do not seek food, and they seem to have no interest in wealth or beauty. These terrifying creatures said to come from another world crave the intense emotions and souls of living beings.

They erode the populace, massacre indiscriminately, and not merely to satisfy a savage desire; in essence, they draw energy called 【Void】 from the strong sentiments emanating from people through their actions. Some greater demons even possess the power to directly devour the souls of the living.

This is a form of plundering, where one world plunders another. If we combine this hypothesis with the 【Theory of Absolute Conservation of Energy】 and the 【Theory of Stable Cycles】 proposed by the Holy Academy, many actions of demons throughout history can be reasonably explained.

Additionally, even setting aside the relationship of plunder between worlds, there exist certain things within the world that are somewhat like “bugs.”

For example, some beings composed purely of 【Void】 energy, or souls, do not have a 【Matter】 structure and thus typically lack the concept of lifespan; if no external forces intervene, they can potentially exist forever.

For the entirety of the world, these creatures are akin to parasites that only consume but do not give back; the energy they consume can never return to the cycle through death.

If only a small amount, it may be insignificant; but if the number of such individuals becomes too numerous or their energy too enormous, and additionally they continue to consume more and grow endlessly, it will inevitably lead to unimaginably terrible consequences over time.

Based on this concept, the Holy Academy proposed that measures must be taken to restrict and even hunt down interdimensional invaders and soul plunderers, gaining unanimous recognition.

Any signs of such beings’ activities must be swiftly controlled and, if necessary, eradicated by any means possible. This is nearly a common understanding within the Holy Empire, especially among the higher echelons, with its importance surpassing internal family disputes.

This is also one of the significant reasons the Holy Country persistently resists the invasion of demons.

“I see, so Yuna, you temporarily set aside your original plans and hurried over to handle this issue, right?”

In the Quiet Room, the Saintess nodded solemnly.

“That’s right. Previously, it was just a guess, but after seeing this girl in person and checking the specifics, I can confirm it entirely. No matter what the nature of that strange mask is or what its purpose is, the way it plunders souls is too cruel and exceeds what the temple can tolerate; it has clearly been classified as a 【Demon】 and warrants all-out eradication.”

“Perhaps its solitary existence doesn’t significantly affect the world’s concept of existence, but if we discover it and fail to deal with it, over time, as similar things become more numerous and stronger, it will truly become unmanageable.”

“Even considering it from the other side, as the Saint of Bright Light and the head of the Summerfield Family, I cannot allow such a cruel monster to roam freely in the city; I must… find it as soon as possible.”

“Mm… the cycle and stability of the world, huh…”

Not paying attention to Miss White Fox’s murmuring contemplation, Yuna turned to the surviving Holy Knight, who had recounted the entire ordeal from last night, and said seriously.

“Knight Jeremy, please try to recall once more. Describe the appearance of that mask and the notable details after it possessed someone more clearly. This might become the key assistance in us finding it.”

Having heard the entire account of the incident between Yuna and Vilyric, Jeremy seemed to have realized the seriousness of the situation even more, struggling against sleepiness and fatigue, and immediately furrowed his brows in thought.

“Basically… everything I could think of, I’ve already mentioned. Since I just joined the team not long ago and was taken care of by the seniors, I was told to hastily go alone for help when I saw things were off.”

“Captain Karina is a Fearless Knight with excellent Holy Light talents; she’s stronger than all of us combined.”

“Though I’m not sure why she refuses to be promoted and just remains a team leader, her strength is undeniable. Even calling in other patrol teams would be futile. So, I had to head straight to the Knights’ headquarters to seek help from stronger individuals above the Fearless Knight level.”

“Even though I tried my hardest, the street we were patrolling was quite a distance from the Temple of Bright Light, and it took nearly half an hour to get there and back, and by the time I arrived with reinforcements…”

Seeming to feel that recounting this was not very meaningful, Jeremy thought for a moment and added.

“As for the appearance of that mask, I’ve mentioned it was an oval shape, primarily white, but the detailed facial expressions were all engraved in black ink with a long smile at the corners of the mouth; also…”

“That pattern on it seems to change… right? I can’t stand it; you’ve already said all this! Can we please have something more useful for reference, ugh…”

For Miss White Fox’s utterly exasperated retorts, Jeremy seemed to have a moment of realization, turning his head to glance deeply at her cute little fox mask adorned in white and red tones, but ultimately, he just hung his head in shame.

“Sorry, but I really only know this much…”

“Tsk… I really can’t take it anymore! Get away from me!”

Having had enough of what seemed to be a headless chicken running around, merely wasting time, Miss Vilyric stood up angrily, striding over to Aiden, who was clearly part of the Ghost Warrior Tribe but for some reason ran over to be a Holy Knight next to the corpse.

“Look here! This is how intel is gathered!”

   

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