Chapter 1951: Truly Mad

"In this world, is there true right or wrong? Or rather, is right or wrong... important?" Ivan slowly turned his head back, a look of neither sorrow nor joy appearing on his face.

"There is. Right and wrong, in fact, all lie within the human heart," Xueli nodded earnestly and said, "I think as long as one has even a little ability to distinguish, one will know."

"Haha, if only it were really that simple." Ivan laughed heartily, slowly shaking his head as he said, "In this world, there has never been any right or wrong in the true sense."

"Our True Lord swept across the Western World back then, beating the Dark Creatures until they were utterly routed. Under his leadership, we finally defeated the Dark Creatures and achieved the final victory."

Ivan said leisurely, "However, were his methods really correct?"

"Were the people he killed really all Dark Creatures, and were they all truly unforgivable?"

"Ivan, you should not question the True Lord's actions, really." Xueli's brows locked slightly; regarding Old Ivan's words, she really did not know how to answer.

Since he could say such things, it meant that he had already developed great doubts about his own faith, so Xueli felt it was necessary to awaken him and let him understand his situation.

"I have never doubted my faith, really," Old Ivan said sincerely and earnestly, "but what if you pray piously year after year, yet receive not a single response?"

"When you strike down Dark Creatures, exhaust your heart's blood to preach, and scatter endless Faith Power upon him, yet receive not a single response, would you not develop doubts about your faith?"

"The reason the Lord ignores us must be because he is delayed by other matters," Xueli shook her head and said, "Old Ivan, I feel we should not let such things cause our faith to waver."

"Doing so is not only wavering in your own faith, but also betraying your own soul. Are you really willing to do this?"

"Hehe, Xueli, I find that you are different today than in the past." Old Ivan chuckled, turned his head back, and stared at Xueli, "You seem to have developed a wavering toward my authority."

"It cannot be denied that you are the one with the greatest power among the Pope, and in the Western World, you are the pinnacle of Theocracy," Xue Wei sighed slightly and said, "But this does not mean you will not make mistakes."

"My dear Old Ivan, don't you feel... your path has gone somewhat astray? The things you support now will cause your faith to collapse. This is a very dangerous matter. Are you truly not afraid that your soul... will not receive salvation?"

Xueli said these words while summoning her courage, because she had never dared to defy the Pope like this.

He was the greatest among the Pope, but after meeting Chen Yu, she had firmed her own path. She felt that if she did not try to save him, Old Ivan might truly lead everyone toward an abyss of no return.

"Are you questioning me?" Ivan's expression was complex; he remained in Silence for a long time before speaking.

"I... am not questioning you, really," Xueli said hesitantly, "but your current methods... have already deviated from the essence, so I do not know what you actually want to do, and I also feel... your methods are too terrifying."

"Even you are questioning me?" Ivan's face was heavy; he sighed slightly and said, "Do you know what I am going to do?"

"I do not know," Xueli slowly shook her head, "but I know your methods are definitely not right."

"Our Lord has fallen into a deep sleep; he will not wake up again," Ivan said slowly.

"Moreover, our missionaries obtain feedback from the Lord by spreading Faith Power, but the sleeping Lord has no power to feed back to them at all, so our overall strength is getting worse and worse."

"The Wolf Clan of the Snow Plains, as well as the Blood Clan whom we drove into the sea to linger on in a desperate state, are now all restless. They could counterattack at any time, and if we want to maintain the status quo, we must obtain more powerful strength."

"So, you turned your gaze to the Dark Creatures?" Even though it was Ivan who said these things himself, Xueli still found it somewhat hard to believe.

The Pope had always been intolerant of even a grain of sand in his eyes, yet Old Ivan secretly supported letting people within the Pope hunt down Dark Creatures on a large scale, then improving themselves by absorbing Dark Power.

In the past, this would have been an unforgivable crime.

"The Pope needs to change, because our True Lord has long since fallen into a deep sleep, and he cannot be awakened," Old Ivan said, "And we need to pull this world back into the Dark Era, then our Pope will rise abruptly and create a new savior."

"You want to pull us back into the Dark Era?" Xueli was stunned; she raised her head in disbelief, "Did I hear you correctly?"

"Hehe, you heard correctly," Old Ivan said with a chuckle, "Only then can we possess a new True Lord, and then lead the whole world out of the Dark Era. Only in this way can the Pope remain forever invincible."

"But do you know how many people will die because of that? In the Dark Era, humans are just food for all kinds of Dark Creatures," Xueli said, stunned, "To consolidate the status of the Pope, you are willing to use so many human lives to fill the gap?"

"And what of it?" Ivan chuckled, "Humans are merely ants by nature. Using the lives of these ants to fill the void and consolidate our status—is that not good?"

"It seems Teacher Dewen is right; you... have gone mad." Xueli shook her head.

"Dewen? Oh, hehe, our philosophies never seemed to align very well," the Pope said with a smile, "But his strength is not enough to defeat me. If you really bet your treasure on him, then you are making a huge mistake."

"Old Ivan, you are one of the people I respect the most, so..." Moli lowered her head and murmured, "I do not wish to see the day you become a Demon."

"You also think that I have become a Demon?" Ivan looked at Xueli, his expression complex, "In this world, why is there no one who understands me?"

"It is not that there is no one who understands you, but that your methods make most people feel terrified," Xueli sighed, "Old Ivan, turn back; if you do, you still have a chance."

"I need you to give me a chance?" Old Ivan smiled slightly, "Xueli, do you have some misunderstanding about your own strength?"

"You are the Saintess of the Pope, and you have your own duties, so there are some bottom lines you must never touch casually."

"I have my own duties, but I also cannot watch our Pope head toward destruction from now on." Silver light surged in Xueli's eyes.