Angela finally smiled slightly and replied, "I am a servant who loves you, serves you, and wants to bring you happiness."
Hayden immediately retorted, "A servant who is superior to the master, huh?"
“That’s not contradictory, Master. But if you desire a more equal relationship…” Angela said, then blinked, “If I may be so bold, you’re far from being qualified to be my bride.”
These words nearly made Hayden drop his spoon into the stove in fright: "Don't talk nonsense, I'm already married to Karen."
"These are two different things, and they're not as contradictory as you imagine. However, your mind can't grasp this concept yet, just like how you can't figure out why the blood sacrifice of the Smoke Mirror has such great power no matter how hard you try. So let's not talk about this for now. If you continue to pursue this, you'll naturally understand later."
Angela shook her head, then suddenly reached out and touched Hayden's forehead.
“Master, you once asked me for a contract and a sense of security, so now I will give you a contract and a sense of security.”
Where her index finger touched, Hayden could feel a force, like sunshine and a warm breeze, warming his soul.
"As long as you don't want to leave, I will always stay by your side and protect you."
"If you seek me, you will surely find me; if you call upon me, I will surely hear you."
"Because I love you, I love you unconditionally, and I want you to be happy."
The moment he finished speaking, Hayden felt it; his intuition told him that Angela's promise had become something unbreakable... just like water flows downhill, just like 2+2=4.
"Now you can rest assured, right?" Angela asked.
Even so, Hayden still felt very awkward. Clearly, Angela still hadn't asked him for anything, hadn't offered any price. He might be at ease, perhaps should be at ease, but in reality, he was still full of questions; Angela remained a mysterious enigma.
Is he at ease? Perhaps he is, like a child feeling secure in their mother's arms. But this is merely a feeling of security on an emotional, intuitive level, completely devoid of any rational element.
Angela probably knew what Hayden was unhappy about, but she was actually quite satisfied with it.
"Think more, Master. Roughly ponder, doubt, and question. If you want to be my equal, you need to become someone who can 'win against the gods'."
She patted Hayden's head again, very gently and affectionately, but in doing so, she seemed more like a mother than a bride. This made Hayden feel somewhat annoyed.
It's not that he wants to be unfaithful, really not. But who wouldn't be a little annoyed if they were said that?
So Hayden won't give up; he'll continue to think and search. Although he doesn't really want Angela to be his bride… really not! He's already married!
So Hayden just wanted a more equal relationship with Angela. Yes, that's it.
Although he doesn't know yet:
The true name of believer (israel) belongs precisely to those who "wrestle with God and prevail."
317: Priceless Treasure
Time flies, and another New Year is upon us.
Hayden returned to Newbeam City and spent the New Year without his wife. Fortunately, Angela helped him adjust his mindset—or perhaps you could say she manipulated it—but in any case, Hayden has now cheered up and is continuing to worry about the mystery of the Smoke Mirror Blood Sacrifice.
Although his main body had gone home for the New Year, his two clones continued working and investigating in South America, so it couldn't be said that Hayden was slacking off, since he also had to focus on controlling the clones. However, his hard work during this period of investigation did not bring Hayden many answers.
Blood sacrifice—that's the Smoke Mirror Corporation's greatest source of power, Hayden has confirmed. Yet, he just can't understand why the Smoke Mirror Corporation's blood sacrifice power is so immense.
Don't think this is a big deal. It's like driving the same car, both using the same amount of gas, but the other car can go three times faster than you—if it were only 30% faster, you might accept it. But what the heck is three times faster?
Hayden now desperately wants to disassemble the Smoke Mirror car for a thorough inspection, but he can't do it, so he can only use his spy clone to investigate secretly.
In addition, after returning to Newbeam, he also diligently investigated Professor Albion's legacy. After all, the old professor had left behind a large private archive, containing many ancient documents that were not digitized, including some ancient myths obscured by the God of Capital. These mythological materials did not provide him with direct answers, but they did give Hayden some directions for thought.
Upon closer examination, the way South American "culture" uses magic related to blood is indeed quite peculiar. South Americans and the Aztec pantheon have always had a deep connection with blood.
As early as ancient times, the emphasis on blood and human sacrifice was an important part of the ancient civilizations of Central and South America. Although very few early records have survived, and even fewer can be found by Hayden, it is very likely that three or four thousand years ago, the people of Mesoamerica had already begun to practice blood sacrifice magic in an organized and large-scale manner, and the scale of it grew larger and larger over time.
During times of war, they would offer blood sacrifices to the gods; during times of plague, they would also offer blood sacrifices to the gods. Of course, they would offer blood sacrifices when praying for rain. They would even offer freshly dug, bloody human hearts as a special sacrifice at night, for fear that the sun would not rise the next day.
Such a bloody ritual seems absurd and meaningless to modern people. Even if you don't offer sacrifices to the gods, the sun will still rise tomorrow; after all, the sun god is not the real sun.
However, Hayden has now learned not to look at the surface and to think deeper—while the sun doesn't charge you, modern people, under the rule of the gods, cannot enjoy good sunlight without paying; while the atmosphere doesn't charge you, you can't breathe good air without paying for it. Many people even need to buy a life-monitoring bracelet, otherwise they won't even know they're lacking oxygen.
If we continue along this line of thought, we can understand why the Aztecs thousands of years ago were constantly afraid that the sun god would no longer shine upon them. Because these ancient gods of Central and South America were utterly merciless, omnipotent yet capricious, and mortals could only survive by silently enduring and diligently offering sacrifices. Statues of the gods were carefully enshrined in temples and displayed before the people during festivals, receiving various offerings, including food, gold platters, and jade artifacts.
However, what the Aztec gods desired most was something more precious than gold and silver—blood. In their religion, the good weather, military victories, and even the rising and setting of the sun all depended on the provision of blood sacrifices.
The question is, why do these gods particularly like human blood?
In ancient times, the ancient gods of the world favored blood sacrifices because the first generation of ancient gods would gradually decay if they did not consume humans. However, since the fallen angels came to this world and invented feudal ethics, using new methods to consume humans, blood sacrifice magic has gradually been eliminated from use around the world.
Such a long-standing and fervent thirst for blood sacrifice, as seen in Central and South America, is almost unheard of elsewhere. Did the gods here not learn the feudalistic, cannibalistic magic of fallen angels?
Why is the blood sacrifice magic so powerful here? Why do the gods here have such a strong liking for human blood?
The answer to these two questions is very likely the same thing, but Hayden just can't find the answer.
Fortunately, his true form is currently disguised as a gladiator, so he doesn't have to "go to work" every day and can search for answers anywhere else. Tonight, he is walking alone in the city, just to get to know this country, to see this place with his own eyes, and to get to know the people managed by the Smoke Mirror Company.
He now lives in Bogotá, a city ruled by the goddess Miktiticahiva and one of the most advanced and developed cities in South America. Many people—factory workers and outsiders from other places—come here to seek their opportunities and dreams.
That said, in one of the most advanced and developed places, there are still some things that have remained unchanged for thousands of years under the rule of the Aztec ancient gods.
For example, Hayden was walking down a city street when he happened to see three men arguing fiercely, and it looked like they were about to come to blows. Hayden eavesdropped from a distance and discovered that their argument wasn't anything special: A owed B and C money, which he had gambled away in a gladiatorial contest hoping to win it back, but had lost it all. Now B and C were demanding repayment, and A was feigning poverty, saying he had no money—something you could see anywhere in the world, nothing out of the ordinary.
Blood gladiatorial combat was a very important public event under the rule of the goddess Mikt. It was not only a blood sacrifice ritual to reclaim the blood and souls of living beings, but also had many economic benefits.
For example, many ordinary people gamble on gladiatorial contests. For millions of proletarians, the joy and excitement of this gladiatorial gambling may very well be their primary reason for living (though not necessarily their only reason). It is their pleasure, their absurdity, their mental stimulation. When it comes to gladiatorial gambling, even those proletarians who are rarely literate can explain the complex odds calculations and reasoning in detail, and they have excellent memories.
Therefore, it's not surprising that such people end up with a mountain of debt and are pursued by creditors.
But what happened next was a bit strange.
In the blink of an eye, a bone knife suddenly shot out from B's hand and plunged it deep into A's stomach!
Even more strangely, A, after being stabbed, didn't utter a sound. Instead, he instinctively covered his head and curled up on the ground, protecting his head with his hands, while B and C continued to punch and kick him. One stab wasn't enough; the two of them beat A half to death, leaving him a bloody mess. Finally, C pulled out an obsidian knife, swiftly chopped off two of A's fingers, collected the blood and flesh, and said, "You gambling addict, this flesh and blood is the interest on your debts!"
Then B and C left.
When the whole thing happened, many passersby gathered to watch. Frankly, that wasn't strange. But Hayden looked closer and noticed that even when the knife was being brandished and stabbed, these passersby showed no panic or change in expression. That was rather odd. It's normal for passersby to watch a fight, but seeing knives and guns, the timid should run away, and even the brave should at least step back.
How could a normal person be completely unafraid of this?
After the two creditors left, Jia, who had been clutching his head, got up from the ground, bared his teeth, and pulled out a glass bottle filled with blood. He injected the entire bottle into his body. Instantly, his bleeding wounds stopped. Of course, his two severed fingers didn't grow back out of thin air.
Once the amusement was over, the onlookers booed and dispersed, going about their own business.
Only Hayden slapped his forehead and realized where he had gone wrong.
Because a single piece of evidence is insufficient, Hayden immediately did something else: he found the nearest hospital and sneaked in to see how these South Americans usually received medical treatment. What he saw confirmed his suspicions.
These South Americans under the rule of the Smoke Mirror Company truly rely on blood to cure diseases!
External injuries are the simplest to treat. No matter what kind of cut or puncture, a transfusion of blood can heal them immediately. Fractures are a bit more complicated, but as long as they are properly treated and a blood transfusion is given, they can also heal quickly.
Internal medicine diseases are even more complicated, but the principle remains the same. Different types of blood, after being specially prepared and refined, can treat various diseases simply by being ingested.
Even those particularly severe malignant diseases where the whole body is decaying and rotting can be cured by blood therapy, although it is a bit troublesome—first, all the putrid blood in your body is drained, then you are thrown into a blood pool for a bath. Once all the blood in your body is replaced with good blood, you can naturally be cured!
In short, blood can heal any illness or injury—this is blood therapy, a unique yet common treatment technique in South America. Even people who are not sick or injured often feel exceptionally energetic and vibrant after receiving a blood transfusion or drinking blood!
Therefore, most South Americans are bloodthirsty, even addicted.
At the same time, Hayden also realized something that was both laughable and terrifying—this blood therapy technology was actually based on the same logic as the factory-made human-making power of the Smoke Mirror Company.
Not enough population? Then just create more!
Sick? Then just drink your blood and you'll be cured!
What logic and power does this rely on? It is of course the power of blood, the supreme divine power of blood sacrifice!
These technologies are all ridiculously crude. Yet, on the land of the Smoke Mirror Company, blood is both energy and a tool, possessing the power to drive everything!
Hayden understood. But...
"Why!?"
Back in his hotel room, he still couldn't help but complain.
"How can the power of blood be so strong!?"
Hayden found it hard to accept the implications behind this fact.
He just couldn't understand it! This blood sacrifice magic is completely illogical! Why is blood a panacea and a super-oil source here, but not elsewhere?! Why? Why? Smoke Mirror Company obviously has its own unique blood magic secrets, but what exactly are these secrets?!
So now Hayden stared at the hotel room wall, contemplating how much force to use to bang his head against it. He didn't want to damage his precious brain, but he felt he was going to spontaneously combust if he didn't vent his frustration.
Incidentally, Angela, who was standing next to him, clearly found Hayden's behavior quite amusing.
"Master, would you like to hear the answer directly?"
She asked with great interest.
Hayden banged his head against the wall before saying, "I don't want to. And I'm curious why you know the answer. You're not omniscient. In fact, there are many things you don't know the answers to."
“Of course not.” Angela tilted her head. “But this matter happens to fall within my area of knowledge—and Master, you should have thought of it faster than I have. Think about it carefully, if this were a riddle, the riddle being ‘What is both a tool and a power source, capable of driving the operation of society and captivating everyone,’ what could the answer be?”
If you treat it as a riddle, the answer is indeed quite obvious.
"It's money."
Hayden rubbed his head and answered.
"Blood is hard currency in South America, just like gold and oil, like the 'spiritual stones' in cultivation novels."
Why does money possess such immense power? Because everyone believes that money can buy anything they desire. Money can buy life, power, and magic.
By the same token, blood is also money in South America, and it's even "harder" than ordinary money! Just as hard as gold and oil!
However, this is only the first layer of the answer.
“Master, you’ve overlooked something.” Angela shook her head. “Why do you think the blood sacrifices here must use human blood? In many places, blood sacrifices use cattle and sheep, right?”
Now that things have come to this, the question is indeed easy to answer.
“Because human life is precious enough,” Hayden said through gritted teeth. “The core logic of South American blood magic is that human life is the most valuable thing.”
Human life is the most precious thing—how wonderful that sounds! However, the Smoke Mirror Company has been exploiting this principle in a very distorted way since the ancient times of the Old Gods.
Because human life is priceless, we can ensure favorable weather, abundant harvests, and victory in war simply by sacrificing human lives! Sacrificing one of your lives can cure my illness! Sacrificing one hundred or one thousand lives can even change the rising and setting of the sun and alter the very fabric of the universe!
What a wonderful statement: "Human life is the most precious thing!"
What a magnificent conceptual magic built on the fundamental logic of culture!
No wonder Smoke Mirror Company relies on brute force to solve problems in so many places; they have a huge supply of the world's most precious fuel to burn! So, of course, even the most brutal technology can solve any problem!
And it's no wonder that other giant corporations can't copy the blood sacrifice trick of the Smoke Mirror Company, because they can't spend the same amount of time building such a profound underlying cultural logic in the hearts of the people—such a cultural core probably can't be built in less than a thousand years, and modern new gods don't have that much time.
At the same time, it's no wonder that Miktikahiva strictly forbids anyone from dying arbitrarily in her territory, but doesn't prohibit people from fighting and bleeding. Because a little violence can help foster a bloodthirsty culture, but real deaths would be such a waste!
Thinking about this, Hayden was almost spitting blood: "It seems we've wasted our time. There's no way we can learn this 'special' sacrificial technique, and even if we could, I wouldn't use it."
Angela raised an eyebrow: "You don't intend to perform any magic that requires human sacrifices?"
“Angela, I don’t know how you judge me,” Hayden said weakly. “But don’t forget that I’m the one who wants to save everyone, the one who cares deeply about human life. Obviously, I won’t use a technology that requires sacrificing other living people to defeat Mitra—not even for the greater good.”
Angela nodded. "I understand. So what do you plan to do next? It's not enough to just say you're dissatisfied with the status quo; you have to say how you want to change it, what you want to turn it into. You have to think about the final step of your plan. Are you still going to continue searching for forces in South America that can defeat Mitra? Are you planning to take down Lady Miktikahiva and Smoke Mirror first?"
good question.
For a moment, Hayden did indeed fall silent.
He split into three people and recently spent half a month living in the territory of the goddess Mikt, so Hayden has now discovered one thing: the people here are actually willing to be sacrificed. They don't feel that they are being oppressed.
They are born in factories, grow up in physical education facilities, and start working in the market at sixteen. They enter middle age at thirty, and most die in the arena before fifty, returning to the cycle of life. A small number are considered excellent products, qualified to "grow up," and are transformed into undead creatures by the company after death.
Does that sound cruel?
But Hayden wasn't raised in luxury. He was an orphan who lost his parents in the Great Plague, and a mercenary. Before meeting Angela, he had been killing people and had witnessed firsthand just how hellish the world could be. He had seen mountains of corpses piled up in the streets, and starving mothers in the slums eating their infants.
Therefore, compared to other groups, these South Americans might even live a "happier" and more orderly life. The goddess Mikkelsen wouldn't let them die easily, and they didn't need to worry about hunger, children, or old-age care. It's easy to live without family burdens. The smoke goggles company even provides blood therapy insurance for these people!
This is precisely why, when these product beings are sacrificed, their lives can provide the most powerful force.
Those who want to die are simply committing suicide; even if they are sacrificed with blood, their power is limited.
Only those who want to live, yet sincerely and willingly become sacrifices, are the most powerful offerings.
The people, gods, and society in this kingdom have all become entities that cannot be sustained without blood sacrifices and the use of blood.
"Damn it, this place is insane."
Anyone can say that, but what happens afterward?
Hayden split into three people and recently spent half a month living in the territory of the goddess Mikt, so he now understands one thing. These South Americans, these people produced in factories, are definitely not... evil. Even if their thought processes are a bit strange, even if they are a bit bloodthirsty, even if their values are not quite the same, they still live their own human lives with tears, laughter, joy, and sorrow—they are really not evil, and they are happy to live like this.
So Hayden wants to destroy this kingdom and exterminate the people here, just because they are too terrible to be allowed to continue existing?