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The sealed world within the Windowless Building was suddenly plunged into an indescribable silence. The air, already thin and metallic, transformed, heavy and suffocating. It was the crushing, absolute stillness of a vacuum, a presence designed to break the will of any visitor.
An equally indescribable sense of oppression bore down.
The moment Fang Li's words fell, Aleister said nothing more. The entire space became like a dead sea, motionless, utterly heavy.
In such an environment, an ordinary person would have been paralyzed, perhaps even fallen into a stupor. Only Fang Li remained, quietly staring at Aleister, who floated, inverted, in the shimmering fluid. His expression, from the moment he walked in, remained completely unchanged.
"'Heaven.'" Fang Li finally spoke, drawing the word out.
That concept was indeed a real concept world. Not the cloudy, celestial sphere imagined by common folk, nor a planet hidden in the cosmos. It was a plane of existence, a higher-dimensional layer coexisting alongside the mortal world, much like infrared light that humans could not perceive.
In a universe where beings like the Magic Gods, who could alter physical laws and create worlds on a whim, existed, the concept of a 'Heaven' was a given. It was precisely the natural laws imposed by such a higher realm that kept the mortal world from dissolving into chaos.
In that other world, true gods existed. And their messengers, the angels recorded in the Bible, like the ones occasionally seen by the Main God Dimension's inhabitants, dwelt there, though invisible to human eyes.
Aleister's goal was to replicate such an unseen world.
Using the AIM Diffusion Field, the unconscious, residual psychic energy emitted by every esper, as a medium, he intended to expand its range across the entire globe, ultimately constructing an Artificial Heaven.
Under the influence of this Artificial Heaven, the power granted by Magic would completely disappear. Fang Li knew the logic from his discussions with Index:
"Originally, Magic was designed as a miracle for those without talent. For those born with innate ability, that is, espers within this city, Magic is instead a deadly poison. The moment they use it, their bodies collapse and they explode."
Aleister's plan was to weaponize that lethal principle on a global scale, to make the Artificial Heaven affect everything, erasing any so-called miracle known as Magic the instant it appeared.
And to accomplish this, Aleister needed the Little Sisters. Though rated merely as Level 2 espers, they were perfect, ubiquitous carriers to spread the AIM Diffusion Field around the world, completing the final stage of constructing the Artificial Heaven.
"The Mass-Produced Esper Project."
"The Absolute Ability Evolution Project."
Fang Li's voice was a low accusation. "These two plans, they were merely tools for your use."
"You first destroyed the Mass-Produced Esper Project, and now you're finding a way to dismantle the Absolute Ability Evolution Project, all so you can naturally and discreetly send the Little Sisters around the world without arousing suspicion, isn't that right?"
If Aleister didn't proceed this way, the moment any magical faction caught wind of his ultimate goal, the entire plan would be ruined. That was why he went to such elaborate, twisted lengths: to minimize the risk.
As for the Little Sisters and the devoted researchers, they were nothing more than unwitting pawns, tailoring the grand wedding dress for Aleister's design.
"You truly live up to your reputation as the most evil magician in history," Fang Li said, giving Aleister a small, chilling smile. He returned the question posed at the start of their meeting. "So then, are you satisfied now?"
Only then did Aleister finally speak again.
"This is merely the most basic preparation," Aleister said flatly, his tone utterly devoid of humanity. "It will still take some time before the plan is complete. What follows… will be the true beginning."
He made no display of surprise or anger. He did not ask how Fang Li had learned the grave secret he had painstakingly prepared. He simply spoke to Fang Li as if they were discussing an academic paper.
That kind of inhuman composure was the true weapon that could break most men's minds.
But Fang Li could endure it. He knew that Aleister had gone to great lengths to gather information on him, which meant, despite his outward calm, Aleister was wary.
Yes. Wary.
Not because of raw strength. As a legendary magician whose achievements placed him on the level of a theoretical Magic God, Aleister would not be easily unsettled by mere power.
But Fang Li's eyes were another matter.
"You've done so much, all for the sake of learning one thing," Fang Li stated, looking directly at the inverted figure.
In his gaze, a pair of ice-blue lines flashed into being, overlaying his pupils. The Mystic Eyes of Death Perception.
"You want to know whether these eyes of mine can truly kill anything."
Fang Li let the statement hang, then added the crucial target.
"Even the AIM Diffusion Field that plays the decisive role in your plan."
Fang Li's words once more left Aleister silent. But after a stretched moment, a sound that was at once like the purest angel and the vilest devil escaped him.
Aleister actually laughed.
"Since we've come this far," Aleister asked calmly, a chilling edge to his voice, "I must ask for clarification. Do your Mystic Eyes really have the power to kill the AIM Diffusion Field as well?"
Fang Li answered with equal calm.
"If you want to know, I don't mind answering."
He looked away, turning toward the massive, silent room.
"The answer is: yes."
No matter how weak, so faint that humans could not detect it. No matter how strong, powerful enough to blanket the world and be used to manufacture an Artificial Heaven. If it exists, then in his current state, Fang Li could find its line and kill it.
He recalled the sudden, terrifying advancement of his Mystic Eyes a year ago.
"If I risk frying my brain," Fang Li said, his tone casual, yet the words were cosmic in scope, "I can kill anything."
"Even this world itself."
The moment those words fell, the oppressive silence settled again, absolute and terrifying.
Aleister asked one final question.
"I want to know, will you become a threat to me?"
Fang Li's reply was simple, echoing the indifference of his many journeys.
"I don't know."
He truly didn't.
"If you cross my bottom line, even if you are a god, I will kill you."
He offered the ultimatum clearly.
"In other words," Fang Li concluded, heading for the exit, "If you don't do anything I find objectionable, I couldn't care less what you plan to do."
With that, Fang Li left the sealed, crushing space.
Aleister, meanwhile, simply opened his eyes wider within the life-support apparatus. Those eyes carried an intellect found nowhere else in the world.
"It seems," he murmured to the silent attendant, "that whether or not there is a threat, he must be treated as a variable…"
(End Of This Chapter)