Fate: I, Beast Saves The World

Anomaly

"With the development of the times, technology has truly advanced so much," the woman remarked, her weathered face reflecting a nostalgia for the past. "Back when I lived in the village, talking to friends in the neighboring village required a long trek. Now it's completely different—you can see their face just by pulling out your phone."

Her voice wasn't loud, but it carried surprisingly well, resonating in the 120-person lecture hall.

"This rapid progress has also changed how people view the world. In the age of the internet, people—especially the younger generation—are more inclined to analyze problems through a digital lens. That's the theme for today."

She continued speaking without waiting for a reaction, as the large screen behind her displayed the bold, red title: **"Digital China."**

---

"Have you all heard of the 'Brain in a Vat' thought experiment?"

Hmm?

A man raised his eyes, silently watching her.

"Our world might be an illusion, and we might be nothing more than strings of text or NPCs in a game. This concept has existed for centuries. Surely, you've heard of Zhuang Zhou dreaming of a butterfly—that was our ancestors pondering the reality of the world."

As she spoke, a question appeared on the screen behind her.

"I want to ask everyone here: If one day you suddenly learned that the world you live in is fake, how would you feel? What would you do?"

The classroom fell silent for a few seconds before murmurs began to spread.

"You there, what do you think?"

"I'd probably be terrified, maybe even go mad. If my entire life turned out to be fake, just a piece of code, I don't think I could accept that," a girl responded.

"I'd look for others who also know the truth and fight back—just like in *The Matrix,*" a boy added.

The man lowered his head, his eyes dimming as his gaze grew unfocused.

…?

"Jing Yan! Jing Yan! I'm calling you." Someone called his name.

His heartbeat quickened. His body inexplicably felt heavy, as if his blood were boiling. A searing heat, accompanied by sharp pain, surged from his chest.

A shadow passed over the man's face as he spoke:

"I think… I'd probably kill everyone."

"…"

The woman on the podium looked at him, confused, as an unnatural silence filled the classroom.

"…Why would you think that?" she asked, her voice tinged with concern.

He closed his eyes, the corner of his mouth twitching slightly, and muttered inaudibly:

"————"

Because I love you all.

---

Once Light

Enochius was an orphan, discovered and saved from a raging river by a nun.

Afterward, he was transferred to a welfare agency, shuffled around, and eventually grew up in an orphanage. Unlike other children, Enochius had an extraordinary perspective. While other kids were adopted by different families one by one, he repeatedly refused invitations.

Rather than being chosen by prospective adopters, he chose them. No one knew what he was looking for; within minutes of conversation, Enochius would lose interest.

The orphanage director gave him the name **Jing Yan**—meaning "beautiful jade." Enochius accepted the name but rejected the surname.

Every day, Enochius climbed to the orphanage roof to gaze at the distant sky and the towering skyline, his focus drifting to infinity.

Through long solitude, Enochius developed dissociative identity disorder. A new persona emerged within him, one calling itself "Yahweh," an anti-human personality.

Yahweh sought to "replace" him but found that the dominant personality, Enochius, was even more twisted than the so-called "anti-human" one. Enochius caused Yahweh to fall into dormancy and continued his monotonous life. Until one day—December 25, the anniversary of the nun finding him—the director handed him a phone.

Through it, Enochius was introduced to the internet. He absorbed all knowledge at an astonishing rate: mythology, philosophy, mathematics, physics, languages, engineering, economics, psychology, and human fantasies…

He became captivated by the world of anime and manga. He imagined it as real, only to painfully deny it, then wish for its existence.

It **could not** exist—at least not in its current form.

Time passed, and Enochius became known as a genius. Leaving the orphanage, he supported himself by exploiting the stock market for basic needs. He breezed through school, always maintaining an unparalleled advantage.

But Enochius felt bored. He retreated to the world of anime. It was then that a term caught his attention:

**"Human Evil."**

In the arrogant embodiment of individual greed and will imposed on all humanity, he saw a reflection of himself.

Could such a coincidence exist in this world? Was it God? Fate? Destiny guiding him forward!?

A seed took root and grew in his heart. Enochius' abnormal psyche raced forward uncontrollably. Countless malevolent thoughts surged from the depths of his soul, and his spirit plunged from celestial heights into a rapid descent.

Finally, at a critical turning point—

Yahweh killed him.

---

Ah...ah...

My favorite child, Lucifer of the Morningstar, Satan of the Red Dragon, why are you here?

So said the compassionate-faced soul.

If you love others, why don't you love yourself? If you don't love yourself, how can you love others? Others don't know that you only do things and don't ask for anything, so they think you are the evil leader of hell, all because you don't cry, you only rejoice.

You lose your dignity, so you gain your dignity. You lose your freedom, and therefore you gain your freedom. If you are so attached to that other thing, why did you bury it?

Others say that you have fallen and have done evil before going to hell. They don't know that it is because hell cannot cover your light, and your sins cannot suppress your wings.

Ah...ah...

The child I hate the most, proud Lucifer, rebellious Satan, why are you like this?

So said the wrathful-looking soul.

Since you have made up your mind to give up, why are you so persistent in retreating? If you don't regret it, why do you suffer the consequences? When others see you being judged, they call you an evil devil, all because you only give and don't defend yourself.

You have lost glory and thereby gained glory. You lost your life, therefore you gained it. Since you have been reborn, why do you want to kill yourself?

Others accuse you of harming Jesus, reaping the consequences and being punished. They have no idea that you voluntarily surrendered your sin and used "other things" as a price in exchange for "other things" for everyone.

Ah...ah...

The soul that refuses to be bound, my most wonderful child.

When you come down from the top, I will foresee your fate. I named you Morning Star, not to burn you into a desert like Venus.

However, if you want to know the truth, you cannot rely on others to tell you or listen to you. Let me tell you, everything in this world is caused by the soul. If you don't understand, you can't be saved.

Go, I already know your thoughts and understand your intentions.

Go ahead, I will give you half of your destiny and give you the right to look directly at wisdom.

And remember, you expect people.

And remember, people are looking forward to you.

---

Fall

Falling, falling.

All perception lost meaning.

Sight—fleeting images flashed by. 

Hearing—white noise flooded his mind. 

Smell—odors surrounded his body. 

Touch—substances brushed against his soul.

There was no way to distinguish rising from falling. He drifted aimlessly, as if tumbling in a washing machine, peacefully adrift.

He fell from the earth to the sky, crossing countless stars, drifting past countless universes.

Two "blank sheets of paper" overlapped, rubbed together, and formed a rift. Rivers flowed towards mountains. Shooting stars soared upwards. Sky and earth reversed positions, and black light radiated from the stars.

All logic vanished, and the dim sky reflected a compassionate face.

---

[To know the truth, you cannot rely on others to tell it to you. I shall tell you: all in this world stems from the soul. Without understanding, you cannot be saved.]

[Go forth. I know your thoughts, I understand your intent."]

[Go forth, I bestow upon you half of fate…"]

[Remember—you await humanity."]

[Remember—humanity awaits you."]

The voice faded instantly.

Two auroras rose on either side—up, down, left, or right was unclear. In the center of his vision appeared a dazzling light. The entire world was torn in half like paper peeling away, revealing a black void at its end.

Falling, flying toward the massive "hole," he felt immense joy and pain. His soul was violently torn apart, producing countless versions of himself, only to merge again, then tear apart anew—

This cycle repeated endlessly as he fell for what seemed like countless days and nights, drifting powerlessly like a reed caught in ocean waves.

Finally, his shapeless limbs touched something incomprehensibly dark, which consumed him completely.

At the boundary of black and white, silently, silently, he vanished between the closing "sheets of paper."