I'm a magnetic field madman

This is the kind of brutal and direct truth that in the world of the strong, the strongest person is always the one who truly matters!

Because he understood this, Bai Jingtian chose to hand over all power to those around him after the war began, and devoted himself to self-cultivation!

However, he did not seek out Ilya to train with; instead, he devoted himself wholeheartedly to training the martial arts he already possessed.

Because he knew he could no longer face Ilya, because his father had died because of him, and Bai Jingtian…

How could he continue to take advantage of this girl who lost her father because of him?

Because he regarded Ilya as his younger sister, Bai Jingtian found it difficult to overcome his own inner conflict.

As the emperor of the Heavenly Kingdom, he should have prioritized interests above all else. However, his profound morality and principles would never allow him to act against his conscience for the sake of profit!

If the father's second son were to face this, he'd probably berate her for being such a doting mother-in-law. Hey, I wonder who she inherited this doting nature from...

Bai Jingtian chose to remain inactive, and Bai Chou and Jesus Christ seemed to do the same.

They all understood that in a fight between them, the one who strikes first is likely to suffer the most, while the one who strikes last is definitely the one who gains the most.

However, for a martial arts fanatic like Bai Chou, remaining inactive seemed rather strange.

However, regardless of the circumstances, as the war escalated further...

Their war will begin sooner or later once the habitable areas of this planet are turned to death by their nuclear blasts!

"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him."

"Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of the Son of God."

Rome, where the magnificent and enormous golden wall stands, and beneath that huge golden radiance stretching across the sky are the figures of countless ascetics dressed in linen robes.

Dressed in simple clothes, with haggard faces and emaciated bodies, they prostrated themselves beneath the golden walls, constantly praying and torturing themselves.

They whipped themselves, cut themselves with knives, and burned themselves with torches!

They keep creating more harm and more pain for themselves, repeating this cycle over and over again.

But all this suffering is meaningful.

Cruel self-torture will bring them momentary pain, but then the Lord's thorns will absorb all their pain and take away all the damage.

And because of their suffering comes God's miracles.

The magnificent golden wall in the sky is proof of their miracle! Countless prayers and countless sufferings have earned them this final wall that will protect them under the final judgment.

Amen, praise to God, and even more so to his Son!

Amya knelt down beneath the golden wall, his knees touching the ground. He gazed at the massive wall of faith, his eyes filled with deep worship and devotion.

Without hesitation, he repeatedly slammed his head against the ground, the heavy impact and excruciating pain spreading with the concussion of his brain.

The pain accumulates with each act of self-abuse, from a dull and heavy pain at the beginning to a sharp and piercing agony. Pain and injury continue to pile up as the body is ravaged!

But soon, the pain transformed into the most joyful comfort.

Just as the pain reached a critical point, and before her exhausted and severely injured body was about to collapse completely from the relentless torment, Amy felt the crown of thorns she wore on her head slowly tighten.

The tightening thorns constricted his head, bit by bit, the thorns piercing his skin, penetrating his veins, and then—

It took away all the pain.

Along with the pain, the unbearable injuries on the body were also taken away... The pain instantly transformed into an indescribable joy that healed the whole body!

Do you know what the happiest feeling in the world is?

It's not love, not pleasure, not liberation, not even happiness itself.

The happiest feeling is despair.

Because when you fall into the abyss of despair, trembling with hopelessness, it's when you've exhausted all options and are no longer able to accept your predicament. The pleasure you experience when you escape despair is an indescribable exhilaration!

Everyone has probably had this experience: thinking that they are doomed, thinking that they are bound to be unlucky.

But just then, fate showed you a different path, leading you out of despair and out of punishment.

What could bring more joy than this?

Amya was the same; the joy of escaping despair caused his brain to release dopamine like crazy, gradually bringing his soul to a "climax" in this boundless bliss!

Not to mention, his act of harming himself brought even more brilliance to the final golden wall above their heads, a power that could protect them from disaster!

The joy of escaping despair, and the sense of accomplishment of achieving a great salvation—how could such a combination of pleasures not drive these fanatics to even more frenzied self-destruction?

The fanatical worship and asceticism continued unabated. These fanatics seemed to be competing with each other, as if trying to prove who was more loyal.

Beneath the high walls, these fanatical believers competed with each other, as if to prove each other's limits, harming themselves in all sorts of horrific ways!

For example, sticking a thousand needles into one's head, nailing the torn skin together, pulling out one's nerves to use as strings for a musical instrument, and so on...

Compared to the final, radiant wall that emanates divine light, these fanatics below seem like sinners being punished in hell...

Yes, aren't they receiving their punishment in this hell on earth to cleanse themselves of their sins?

However, their sins and suffering were ultimately borne by the great Holy Son!

Praise be to the Lord! Praise be to the Son! Praise be to the great God! Let us awaken through suffering, let us atone for our sins through torment!

This fanatical faith and self-harm spread like a plague... and now, throughout the entire earthly kingdom of God, all believers are just as insane.

It is very difficult to hurt yourself for the first time, but after the first time... those who experience the pleasure will quickly fall in love with this feeling of atonement.

Moreover, this is not depravity; the pleasure they enjoy is obtained at the cost of suffering. Their happiness is sacred, a happiness of sacrifice.

The ascetics of the past exchanged physical suffering for spiritual satisfaction, but they did not see any manifestation of divinity.

However, they exchanged temporary physical pain for extreme pleasure, and then simultaneously received unparalleled joy in the manifestation of divinity!

How many people can resist such extreme pleasure, both mentally and physically?

Yes, no one can resist it, and Amya is no exception.

He no longer remembered how long he had been there, and he was almost forgetting his past. All that remained was the torment, the pain he had repeatedly exchanged for the pleasure of sacrifice.

He has become one of these countless fallen believers.

This ultimate joy was abruptly interrupted. Amidst Amy's struggles and wails, he was dragged from the tormenting group, and those behind him eagerly filled in...

He was dragged by two incredibly tall priests in black all the way into the ancient and towering St. Peter's Basilica.

As they continued their journey, Amya, who had regained some consciousness, witnessed even more strange and sacred sights.

At the heart of this faith, there is no longer suffering, but "miracles" that accompany suffering.

A group of bishops, their bodies completely blood-red and their skin stripped away, held crosses and loudly praised the scene.

A nun, her appearance gaunt and reduced to mere bones, sang in a hoarse voice.

There was a beautiful woman whose face was covered by melted gold and who was crying.

There was a boy who was being bitten and entangled by countless venomous snakes, crying out in sorrow yet singing joyfully.

And at the end of all this worship is a towering spire, surrounded by countless thorns, standing at the center of this glorious and sacred faith. It has no radiance, but the existence of that spire is so sacred.

A bewildered Amy was dragged all the way to the interior of St. Peter's Basilica, where he was thrown before a magnificent throne.

He struggled to lift his head, only to find an unremarkable man in a black priest's robe sitting on the throne. The man looked at Amy with a strange gaze and spoke in a deep, magnetic voice...

"Emiya Kiritsugu, I never expected that our first meeting would be in such a setting."

97. The Holy Spirit of Suffering

Emiya Kiritsugu...

The name was familiar, the feeling was familiar, but when Amy tried to make connections and think about the meaning the name represented, the sharp pain in her head forced her thoughts to be interrupted.

"I don't know what you're talking about..."

Amya said humbly in a low voice. Although he did not recognize the man in front of him, it was not difficult to see that he held a high position in this divine kingdom!

"The influence of the Crown of Thorns... Hiel, in the past, took off his crown."

At the command of the person seated, a blue-haired nun with an expressionless face immediately stepped forward... and amidst Amya's struggles and screams, she instantly severed the crown of thorns he was wearing with a black key.

As the crown fell, countless pains surged into Amya's body.

"what--"

He clutched his arms, his face contorted in excruciating pain...

But the pain that had been building up for so long finally erupted prevented him from even screaming!

Yes, in extreme pain, a person can't even scream. That unspeakable agony was so intense that Kiritsugu Emiya couldn't even stand up straight!

What's even more terrifying is the extremely cruel harm that comes back along with this pain!

The torment, the intense physical and mental torture, was so severe that even a tough guy like Kiritsugu Emiya couldn't help but scream in weakness...

But just before the pain claimed his life, Hier immediately used the power of the baptismal chant to heal his wounds.

The miracles that once existed in the Holy Church are now incredibly rare in this birthplace of the Holy Church. I wonder if that's ironic.

"Ha ha ha, ha..."

After a long while, with the excruciating pain still lingering but the fatal injury having been somewhat averted, Kiritsugu Emiya rolled on the ground like a fish pulled from the water. After a long struggle, he finally straightened up and looked at the man on the throne before him…

“Kirei Kotomine,” he said through gritted teeth. The priest in front of him was, in a sense, an “old acquaintance” of his.

They had never met, but he had gathered information about him before the original Holy Grail War began.

And the same applies to the other party.

After all, in many ways, the two of them have a lot in common—but this is only in terms of experience. In terms of personal feelings, they are not only completely different, but can even be said to be diametrically opposed.

Of course, aside from that, the fact that the other party is the "Master" of Jesus Christ is also a reason why Kiritsugu Emiya pays special attention to his relationship with him...

Now, as the Pope of the earthly divine kingdom, this guy who rose to power overnight is definitely one of the targets that Emiya Kiritsugu is eager to kill.

"I thought we were the same kind of people, before I realized my own terrible nature."

Kirei Kotomine looked at Kiritsugu Emiya and said slowly...

"But now it seems we're not the same kind of people at all. You're just a self-satisfied, arrogant, and clueless guy, while I—"

"I'm just a piece of trash who enjoys watching people suffer."

Kirei Kotomine said this very calmly, which can only be described as a profound self-analysis.

"Nonsense—you didn't bring me here to spout this nonsense!"

"Of course, Kiritsugu Emiya, we've called you here because we need your help." Kirei Kotomine smiled and raised his hand, a hint of pleasure in his empty eyes...

"We hope that you can pass the secret of the Holy Son back to your White Emperor, Bai Jingtian."

What do you mean?

Kiritsugu Emiya could hardly believe his ears. He frowned as he looked at Kirei Kotomine—he couldn't understand a single word he was saying!

“Literally, I am betraying our Holy Son,” Kirei Kotomine said casually.

"As for why... you must have seen the Vatican's current state before you came, right? What are your thoughts on those 'Holy Spirits'?"

"Holy Spirit? Nonsense—those are nothing but monsters created by your extreme beliefs and ideologies!" Kiritsugu Emiya said viciously.

Those terrifying miracles, those manifestations of suffering, were imperceptible to Kiritsugu Emiya when his mind was clouded by the crown of thorns and his spirit was dominated by the pleasure of pain… But from the perspective of any normal person, they would only feel—

It was a twisted, cruel, and abnormal thing that should never exist in this world!

The combination of bizarre human thoughts and masochistic desires has given rise to a kind of ideology that is more twisted than the ugliest monsters!

"Yes, that is the monster created by our Holy Son," Kirei Kotomine said calmly.

"We exchanged suffering for miracles; our Lord obeyed our will, and they shaped this system of miracles according to our ideas—"

We, God's shepherds, believe that only those who pass trials and tribulations are worthy of heaven and God's grace. Therefore, our Lord responded enthusiastically—and, He even worried that we might not be able to bear the suffering and took it upon himself.

At this point, Kirei Kotomine stepped down from the throne, grabbed the weak Kiritsugu Emiya from the ground, and forcefully walked out.

Kiritsugu Emiya remained silent, observing coldly. After he left the cathedral, looking at it with normal eyes, he only found the Vatican's "miracles" even more terrifying.

The combination of incredible miracles and the painful reality does indeed create a strange sense of the sacred... but more than anything, it gives people an indescribable, chilling fear!

Those painful miracles that drifted across the sky wove the Vatican into a spectacle resembling a Picasso painting, while Kirei Komine paid no attention to these "saints," simply dragging Kiritsugu Emiya to the thorn tower.

Without any hesitation, Kirei Kotomine grabbed a thorny vine and began to climb upwards...

Every step, every climb, brought immense pain as the thorns pierced the skin.