I! Cleaner!-Chapter 1012 - 931: Persuasion

"Not too bad..."

Facing this answer that was beyond his understanding but inexplicably approved by the 'Crimson', the shriveled giant heart fell silent for a moment, then hummed somewhat dryly:

"A somewhat special answer, but not what I wanted. Barely worth one... or two extra heartbeats. I currently beat fifty-six and a half times per minute, still three and a half short of the standard sixty, and you have one last chance!"

"..."

So it's illiterate.

After hearing the not-so-confident evaluation from the Crimson Heart, Leon couldn't help but frown. He didn't argue about the correctness of the answer but silently switched to [I am the end of death].

It's best to pass with normal answers, but if that's not possible, don't blame me for using more stimulating methods.

The self in [End of Death] mode could truly kill the Pillar God, so dealing with the heart of the Pillar God would naturally be no problem. If it refuses to cooperate, then maybe I'll stab it once and make it taste death, to see how many times it can actually beat per minute in the face of true death!

"Thump!"

Seemingly sensing Leon's "killing intent," the Crimson Heart suddenly throbbed violently, its previously steady rhythm slightly disturbed for a moment.

Does he want to attack me?

Feeling the determination emanating from Leon, if the Crimson Heart had a face and a mouth, it might laugh out loud by now... Are humans nowadays a bit too overconfident? Trying to threaten the heart of a Pillar God with force is like spitting at the sky.

After sensing the strength of Leon's soul and finding it only at an ordinary level after just crossing the threshold of a True God, the Crimson Heart couldn't help but curl its nonexistent lips, raising the difficulty of the third prepared question with impatience:

"The final question: Blood is the bond, the legacy, the continuity. For most beings, wealth, power, status, talents, and even strength itself can all be transmitted through blood.

But now you must tell me something that can be inherited more broadly and longer than blood, and what it transmits must be more valuable than wealth, status, and innate strength... Come, tell me your answer!"

A legacy superior to blood?

After hearing the Crimson Heart's third question, Leon couldn't help but arch his brow in surprise... It's not that the question was particularly difficult, but rather that it seemed almost overly simple.

"It's thought."

Without hesitation, Leon gave his answer earnestly:

"The wealth and status passed down by lineage can only belong to a small fraction, whereas a great idea and thought can reach all souls who resonate with it."

"Wrong!"

Facing Leon's answer, the Crimson Heart couldn't hold back a mocking snort as it retorted with a hint of derision:

"A legacy better than blood is indeed memory. When I was one of the Supreme Four Pillar Gods, I took four things from your human ancestors: [Lifespan][Connection][Creation], and [Legacy], where legacy referred to the legacy of memory.

Memory is a river older than blood. For you, who at that time still had inherited memory, the drowned became epics, the survivors turned into monuments. Each person was a recorder of ancestors and would in turn be recorded by posterity. This is true legacy.

As for the 'thought' you mentioned... Heh, after losing the ability to inherit memory, you humans spend half a lifetime acquiring the knowledge of your forebears, becoming less capable with each generation. Now you can't even answer such a basic question correctly.

Enough, your answer is worthless, not even worth half a heartbeat. You haven't met even the minimum standard, nor are you qualified to ask anything of me. You may leave!"

My answer isn't even worth half a heartbeat?

Faced with the Crimson Heart, which retracted back into the keyhole and even withheld its vitality, Leon fell into silence.

Seeing that he seemed to have failed in his discussion with the Crimson Heart, the Taurus board member beside him sighed, gently tapping Leon's back, and softly consoled:

"It's alright. Although it's just a heart, it has inherited the... Leon? What are you doing?" 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝙬𝙚𝓫𝒏𝓸𝓿𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝙤𝓶

"Its answer sounds fine, but I still think mine is better."

Blocking the Taurus board member from closing the keyhole, Leon pulled out the Cutting Silver Dagger and earnestly requested:

"Lord Taurus, please delay closing the door a bit longer and give me a chance to persuade it."

"..."

Persuade it... Shouldn't that be done with words? What does suddenly pulling out a knife mean?

"Heh."

Confronted with Leon, who remained "stubbornly misguided," the previously silent Crimson Heart couldn't help but beat again, sneering:

"Let him come! I just don't believe it, he dares to stab... Ah! What the hell, you really stabbed?"

Of course, what else? I didn't pull out the knife just to look at myself in it, did I?

Under the bewildered gazes of both man and heart, Leon wielded the Cutting Silver Dagger, slashing and stabbing the over two-meter-tall Crimson Heart in a wild frenzy. Copious amounts of crimson blood spewed from the cracks, splattering on the ground with the dull thud of stones hitting.

And as Leon swung roughly seventeen or eighteen times, cleaving the huge, resilient heart entirely down the middle, a massive scarlet "droplet" suddenly shot through the sky above the Realm of the Dead, plummeting with a splash into the lake below the Cliff of the End.

This... This is...

"This is the lake below the Cliff of the End, also the end of death."

Identifying the fist-sized red droplet that confirmed its existence as the Crimson Heart itself, Leon, who had also plunged into the lake, waded toward it with malice, scooping up the droplet and speaking malevolently:

"Living dissolves into dying, like water disappearing in water... This phrase is a bit abstract, but you can interpret it as me mastering the truth about death. My will resides at the end of death. Here, I intend to completely erase you, as effortlessly as drinking a sip of water."

"You... you..."

"You have two paths to choose from."

Rubbing the somewhat sticky red "droplet," Leon solemnly declared:

"One, be swallowed by me, completely dissipate and return to the world. Two, admit my answer is correct, then obediently do my bidding."

"Your... your answer?"

"Thought is a legacy superior to blood."

Repeating his stance, Leon squeezed the droplet that should jump at least two hundred times a minute and cheerfully proposed:

"I won't bore you with grand theories. Let me provide a pertinent example... You and I share no blood relations, so blood transmission can't happen, but as long as you wish to avoid being killed by me, you must agree with me, thus accepting my thoughts.

Therefore, thought transmission is indeed superior to that of blood. Would you agree or disagree?"