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Chapter 1637 Final Chapter: Crossing the Sea [54] "Saints and Sinners (23)"

Casadia stopped laughing and drew closer like a colorful cloud, whispering in his ear: "What do you think the self is? Is it a continuous stream of memories? An unchanging body? Or an eternal soul?"

Su Ming'an recalled the path he had walked; at every fork in the road, he could have become a different Su Ming'an. The body can be altered, the soul can be worn down, and even memories can be tampered with by the conscious—Cassadia asked him skeptically, how exactly should he face these problems?
Just like the answer Su Ming'an has been discussing with the young king—what is "self"?
Su Ming'an sensed that his answer would determine Casadia's future stance.

“The self is a ‘narrative’,” Su Ming’an stated calmly, his eyes clear. “It is a story told by human beings themselves, a fragment that human beings identify with.”

The seven-colored liquid suddenly solidified, and Casadia's mask fell off, revealing a familiar face as handsome as glass. He could have long ago used his divine power to recreate his original appearance, but he had never done so.

Only at this moment.

Those bright silver eyes no longer held any comical smile, but instead gazed calmly and quietly at their long-lost "brother".

"Then, what if memories are altered, if the body is replaced, if the soul is split?"

“As long as the narrative continues, the self will still exist.” Su Ming’an looked at the colors that blended and separated. “Memory does not have to be perfect, it only needs to shape me; the body does not have to be original, it only needs to bear; the soul does not have to be eternal, it only needs to shine.”

"So, if there is a group of 'awakened individuals' who retain memories in the cycle of the universe and wantonly tamper with the life narratives of others—what kind of storytellers would they become?"

“They became tyrants.” Su Ming’an’s voice was calm and clear. “They claimed to be prophets, distorted other people’s narratives, and turned living people into puppets in the story.”

“The sober ones may think they are doing good,” Casadia’s voice said sarcastically. “Avoiding war, eliminating suffering, killing all those who go astray, and creating a ‘more perfect’ future.”

"Who defines 'perfection'?" Su Ming'an countered. "Is the only golden path the right one? Does going astray mean certain destruction? Through suffering, humanity confirms its existence; through betrayal, humanity defines loyalty; through loss, humanity understands value. Even if I know I may have been influenced, my choices are still real, and my suffering still belongs to me. Even if my narrative is influenced by the power of a higher-dimensional awakener, I still insist on my right to tell the story."

"Therefore, 'self' is a narrative rebellion that never relinquishes the right to narrate, a life that does not require anyone's judgment or acceptance."

"Su Liujin's confusion lies in his attempt to find a pure origin, an unpolluted self. But such an origin does not exist for him. I think he understands without me having to say more: identity is a temporary identification with a certain narrative, a kind of solidification of the self that flows like a stream. It's like demarcating a section of water in a river and calling it 'my river,' but in reality, it is always flowing and never stops. No one ever steps into the same river twice."

"Therefore, if my 'river' is constantly changing, constantly mixed with the silt and stones of others, I will not try to find a river that is always fixed, because water never stops flowing. I will not look for an unchanging essence, nor will I try to stop the river and remove impurities. Instead, I will simply and decisively jump into the river, or... cut off the source of the river."

"I will not repeatedly ask 'Who am I?'"

He raised his head and calmly met those bright silver eyes.

"Instead, they will answer—"

"What kind of person do I want to become?"

The young man, whose mask had fallen off, smiled at that moment.

It wasn't a wild, unrestrained laugh, nor a maniacal laugh, but a faint, almost imperceptible smile, as if it came from the heart.

But quickly, the mask covered that fleeting smile, and the demon, dripping with iridescent liquid, retreated laughing, as if the approach had never happened:

"Fine! Fine! You've made the Fun Demon happy, so the Fun Demon will send you on your way!"

At the same time, Su Ming'an was also thinking about his attitude towards Su Liujin.

In the end, he made a decision.

Regardless, Su Liujin is simply regarded as Su Liujin.

The little king is not him, the white stone is not him, and the world is not him.

It's just the Emperor Liujin I remember, the one I'm familiar with. Nothing can be erased, nothing will change.

He walked forward, and the figures of young people brushed past him.

After making the decision, he seemed to hear their final farewell.

“Servant Number Four!” came the voice of the younger brother from the Lin clan.

"Nightingale." White Stone's voice.

"Player Number One." It was Number 001's voice.

"Su Ming'an." The voice of the boy in the sea.

"A friend of the Great Emperor!" came the voice of the War God Dragon King.

Finally, the voice of the little king.

"The Lighthouse Cult Leader".

"Goodbye."

Su Ming'an turned around—

Those figures vanished one by one, turning into fluttering specks of light, melting ice and snow, and scattered feathers, disappearing into a pure white space.

It seemed to vanish onto the paper, turning into silent fragments that flew out of the paper.

Only today do I realize... that I am who I am.

Su Ming'an wanted to tell that boy that he would be the undisputed future.

Once everything is certain, it will be a brand new world, full of flowers, flowing with rivers and warm breezes.

……

Casadia recounted what happened next.

The surface of the Rovasa has a crack, which is more like a mirror than a crack, and is known as the "double crack".

Although Casadia forcibly merged the binary stars, most of humanity remained in the area "outside the double slits." They devised a solution—using data! Because life forms cannot pass through the "double slits," but data can.

So they copied the data and put it into the "double slit." When the starlight fell, the original people were outside the "double slit," while the copied data was inside.

The former is now known as the "dark side," and the latter as the "light side."

As for the 2021 versions of Xiao Su, Xiao Nuo, and others, they were created during this period. They were a batch of images copied by Hui Bai and others by copying the data of the original Zhai Xingren. Later, after a long period of time, they were used by the Mentu Games to create a pirated version of World Game.

Therefore, Xiao Su and the others are from the 2021 version. This is because when Hui Bai and the others entered Rovasa, it was precisely in 2021.

"Alright! Well then, I look forward to your even more exciting and hilarious performance..." After saying this, the Devil of Fun was about to leave the stage.

Suddenly, Su Ming'an said:
"Cassadia... is he already dead?"

The Devil of Fun was taken aback.

Su Ming'an calmly looked up: "Your soul can't last that long, even if it's been strengthened."

Within the pure white space, the arrogant demon fell silent for a moment.

"Hahaha—hahahahaha!" Then, joyful laughter echoed throughout the space.

"Great Casadia! The mouth of pleasure that dances on people's lips! How could you die so easily! You have given me the funniest joke in recent times—! Ha ha ha ha—!"

"Really? Then I'd like to ask you something," Su Ming'an said softly, "In the final ending of the Akame ga Kill! anime, how many of the main characters survived?"

Casadia fell silent for a moment.

"What's the name of the girl who uses a gun in Sword Art Online Part 2?" Su Ming'an asked.

The pure white space was silent.

"In the Holy Grail anime, what do Lancers often die for?" Su Ming'an asked.

You could hear a pin drop next to your ear.

“Cassadia.” Su Ming’an looked up. “A veteran anime fan, even if it’s been too long and you’ve forgotten those stories, when we arrive, you’ll revisit those things you once loved. With your perception, even just a few seconds would be enough to relive those stories. Yet, you didn’t even spare a few seconds.”

"Either your personality has changed drastically and you really don't love anymore. Or, you... are no longer the young man you were at the beginning."

Hahaha, hahaha—

Laughter rang in my ears again; the demon was laughing so hard he was shaking, as if it were the biggest joke ever.

Su Ming'an shook his head: "Just like the questions you asked me earlier, what exactly is 'self'? I think you yourself must be wondering about it. After all, your true identity—"

He paused, then said softly,

"—It is an avatar summoned by my equipment."

……

[The Devil's Poisonous Skirt: "Who brought him back to life time and time again, only to make him taste the pain of death? — But if not that heart, what else could he possibly offer in return?"]

Physical Defense: 20

Mental Defense: 20

[Equipment Requirement: White Hair]

[Special Skill (Eternal Joy): Summons the Fun Demon to grant you one wish. For each wish granted, the Fun Demon will take one item from you as its fun. When you become a boring person, quickly give that item to the next person, or you will become the "Fun Demon" itself :)]

……

This place is a place of lasting joy.

Casadia persevered beneath the World Tree for a long time, until one day, he learned that his descendants were coming, and that his own soul was fading away, on the verge of extinction. To aid Su Ming'an, he launched this equipment to other civilizations.

Therefore, Su Ming'an obtained this dress before the eleventh instance began.

After that, Casarte was gone.

When Su Ming'an first used the "Lezi Demon's Poisonous Dress," he summoned an avatar of Kassadia. This avatar instantly inherited everything from the original Kassadia and, according to the contract, continued to be a loyal follower of the Second Seat. It was almost identical to the original Kassadia, except for one thing... this avatar was merely the Lezi Demon, lacking Kassadia's experiences before becoming the Lezi Demon.

In other words, He is not a two-dimensional being.

Therefore, Su Ming'an thought of this and probed into it, thus discovering the answer.

……

The moment he added it to his equipment slot, Su Ming'an suddenly felt a chill run down his spine, as if something was gently blowing on him.

"Is that you, Lezi the Devil?" he asked.

No one responded.

……

So, that breath... was the sound of Casadia's avatar waking up.

To ensure the dress ended up in Su Ming'an's hands, Casadia even contacted Dieying beforehand, having Dieying possess Little Aba and remind Su Ming'an at the auction that he must bid for it. The real Casadia is no longer there, and this avatar will also disappear after everything is over. Because after humanity's victory, the hatred for the traitor Casadia will gradually fade, and he will gradually perish. Therefore, he condensed his power into a divine essence and "casually tossed it away," which unexpectedly fell into Lu Shu's hands—this was Casadia's way of finding a successor.

Joy and pleasure... these are such positive words, yet because Casadia needs hatred, it leads to completely opposite emotions.

And once the world is saved, all that's needed is "fun," and no longer "demons."

From now on, the heir will no longer need to be a "devil" of joy and pleasure. Without the need for hatred, the heir can simply be the controller of "joy and pleasure".

Su Ming'an gazed at the beautiful long dress in the equipment inventory, which seemed to contain endless joy and laughter.

That old dream took away more than just the young king, Huibai, Antetolia, and Mu Changying…

There is also a young man who is as vigorous and vibrant as green grass and as carefree and cheerful as the blue sky.

……

The past cannot be retrieved.

Old friends cannot be brought back.

I wonder if anyone helped that young man delete anything from his hard drive?
During his long years as a demon, did he ever have a dream of a two-dimensional world filled with rainbow bubbles?

……

“Haha, hahahahahahahahahaha!”

"Brother! Did you see that?"

"This is the most brilliant, dazzling, and grandest 'lie' we've ever told to deceive the entire world!!!"

……

The pure white space melted away, and Su Ming'an opened his eyes.

He finally awoke from his complicated dream and returned to the world, feeling as if he had been in another world.

Before his eyes was a white-haired, golden-eyed boy. The boy touched Su Ming'an's forehead and, seeing that Su Ming'an had woken up, said with delight:
"you're awake!"

Su Ming'an's vision was blurry. Had he woken up to find Su Liujin already awake? This was wonderful...

"Servant Number Four! You're awake!"

The next sentence made Su Ming'an instantly realize that the person in front of him was his younger brother from the Lin clan.

He looked around, adjusting his vision. He remembered that he had gone to sleep in the World Lord's Palace, in a room prepared for him by Hui Chi. Why was he now in his younger brother Lin's experimental city?

"Awake?" A seemingly casual voice came from the window, where a red-haired youth sat with his arms crossed.

"I sensed the presence of cause and effect... Your dream just now must have truly altered some of the cause and effect. I suspect that the Demon of Joy and the Shadow of Deception have some connection and helped you along the way. It wasn't just a simple dream; you really changed something," Su Lin said calmly.

"Lu Shu and the others made contact with the 'Nest Master,' a purple-haired girl wearing a mask, with Pudding standing behind her. And behind the World Lord's Palace is God Lu."

"Pudding and Lu Shen are about to have their final battle."

……