Chapter 1463: Dialogue with God, the Essence of Order

"Laidun, are you alright?"

"I'm fine—"

Watching Laidun's pained expression, Xia Duo felt somewhat uncomfortable himself; gods might be able to promote civilization during certain periods, but more often than not, they are symbols of conservatism.

Just as Xia Duo was considering how to soothe Laidun, a flowing, living-water-like radiance suddenly emerged around the two of them, wrapping them in thin, wispy threads.

Seeing this, Laidun immediately knelt on one knee, and Xia Duo also felt a magnificent will, filled with order and mechanical implications, silently watching him from within the radiance.

"It is the Lord of Radiance!"

Xia Duo's heart tightened, and he hurriedly lowered his head in a slight bow; subsequently, the radiance became more elegant and agile, as if responding to Xia Duo, though that magnificent will did not convey any further information.

This left Xia Duo somewhat bewildered; if the Lord of Radiance did not agree with his viewpoint, and had even stripped Laidun of his Holy Power because of it, then why was this happening now?

Could it be—

"Does the Lord of Radiance want to hear my explanation?" Xia Duo speculated inwardly.

At this moment, the surrounding radiance flickered, lingering around the two of them without ever disappearing, and while such an anomaly should have been noticed by nearby security officers or territory residents, not a single person came to investigate.

This was enough to prove that the Lord of Radiance was manifesting solely for himself and Laidun.

And the other party doing this was certainly not just to show off their presence; otherwise, they could have chosen a much grander scene, such as the Divine Miracle triggered by the Code Sculpture during the Midsummer Festival a few months ago, which was quite spectacular.

Such a manifestation of radiance seemed more private; perhaps it really was to hear his explanation.

Thinking this, Xia Duo tidied up his thoughts; from the moment the Lord of Radiance suddenly manifested until now, his emotions had been rising and falling!

"Great Lord of Radiance, as a mortal, I deeply feel the great power of time; as small as I am, or as magnificent as a Plane, under the great power of time, there is not one that does not have a day of demise.

"Of course, this does not mean that everything before death is meaningless; on the contrary, in my hometown, a sage once said, 'If you do not know life, how can you know death?'

"And for us mortals to want to live, and to live better, it naturally gives birth to family and society, from which order is born and continuously grows.

"If there is one law in the world that never changes, then I believe it is only death; everything else changes continuously with time, and order is the same."

After Xia Duo finished speaking, he looked at the surrounding radiance with some worry; these words of his might have been more appropriate for the Lord of Death, perhaps he could have even swindled some Divine Grace!

But to the Lord of Radiance, saying this was somewhat offensive, yet Xia Duo believed that the Lord of Radiance would not manifest just to listen to some clichés.

At this time, the other party not reacting was the greatest reaction of all.

Thus, Xia Duo continued: "Obsession with legal clauses might be the fastest way to promote order, but it violates the spirit of legislation, and in the long run, it will inevitably be met with backlash.

"The so-called 'spirit of legislation' is, in its essence, order; if adhering to legal clauses makes order obscure, then what is the meaning of such legal clauses existing?

"Laidun, as the Administrator I authorized, is capable of adapting to circumstances to a certain extent, yet he chose inaction because there was no relevant legal support; he is indeed to be punished, but he should not be punished for identifying with the order of the higher-level spirit of legislation."

Perhaps the Lord of Radiance did not expect Xia Duo to speak up for Laidun, as the manifested radiance actually showed ripples.

Seeing this, Xia Duo became more firm in his thoughts; as long as he did not directly offend or clearly blaspheme the other party, there would be no punishment.

And as a god, perhaps having stayed in the heavens for too long, they wanted to hear something different; of course, this was merely Xia Duo's speculation as a mortal.

But the Lord of Radiance's behavioral pattern was relatively clear, and Xia Duo was not very worried about this; instead, he felt an inexplicable excitement.

It was just that the Lord of Radiance never responded, which made him feel very regretful; he had long been dissatisfied with the dogmatism in the Doctrine of the Lord of Radiance.

Although in the eyes of many lords, dogmatic Radiant Priests were more conducive to their rule, Xia Duo did not wish for this ideology to spread widely in the future Magic civilization.

Furthermore, dogmatism itself is not entirely equivalent to order; whether it is good order or bad order, it is essentially the embodiment of some will, a state of dynamic stability. (The will of the lord or the will of the ruling class)

And dogmatism, rigidly clinging to inherent laws, cannot fully embody the intentions that this will needs to express.

Perhaps it applies today, but by tomorrow, it might not apply.

Law, as the yardstick of order, changing every day, itself implies chaos.

Only by grasping the "spirit of legislation," by grasping the "unchanging within change," can one truly construct order and maintain order.

Otherwise, it is very likely to become a stumbling block on the path of order's development.

……

Next, Xia Duo elaborated in detail on his expectations for the future development of the Territory, and using this as the foundation for legislation, introduced several specific laws that might appear in the future.

Such as the Consumer Rights Protection Law, the Copyright Law, and the like.

Every time he mentioned a certain law, the radiance would slightly accelerate or decelerate, the reaction being very obvious; and when he talked about a certain law but suddenly stopped speaking, the radiance would even spread out as if smudged.

For a time, although Xia Duo could not determine the specific meaning expressed by the radiance manifested by the Lord of Radiance or the will within it, it was not hard to discover—

Compared to talking at length about the spirit of legislation, the other party seemed to care more about specific laws and regulations.

This discovery could not help but make Xia Duo feel somewhat disappointed; the embodiment of order he had imagined now appeared so shallow—how could one not feel disappointed!

However, amidst the disappointment, Xia Duo also felt a trace of relief; if a god were perfect in everything and omniscient and omnipotent, would there still be a need for mortals to exist?

Of course, Xia Duo did not truly believe the Lord of Radiance was very shallow; perhaps there was some deep meaning to the other party doing this, but at the very least, this showed that the Lord of Radiance also had self-awareness, rather than being the embodiment of some rule.

Since there is self-awareness, it largely means imperfection; compared to mortals, perhaps there is only a difference in power.

……

I do not know how much time passed, until the sky gradually darkened; against the backdrop of the night, the radiance around Xia Duo and Laidun became even more dazzling and eye-catching.

Yet until this moment, not a single security officer or territory resident had come to check on the anomaly.

Under the shroud of the radiance, Xia Duo even had the illusion: could it be that the space where he and Laidun were located had been "divinely" separated from normal space, becoming an independent space, where everything happening here would not be perceived by the outside world?

As for the specifics, Xia Duo did not know, but this scene indeed fit such a speculation.

And when the sun completely fell below the horizon, although the sky had not yet turned completely dark, the radiance manifested by the Lord of Radiance became increasingly faint, until it disappeared completely.

Only then did Xia Duo truly heave a sigh of relief.

But it was a pity that even though the Lord of Radiance had manifested, He did not restore the Holy Power that Laidun had just lost.

To a certain extent, this perhaps also represented His will!