Otaku Translation: The villain only wants to live a Buddhist life Chapter 430

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Chapter 430: Dark Demon, The One Who Toys with the Gods

Under the guidance of the white daturas, Leomon charged forward like a storm, dashing swiftly ahead.

Dark clung tightly to its deliberately raised muscular arm, his eyes filled with excitement as he watched the torches ahead light up one after another.

The path ahead continued to open up, with flames whizzing past on both sides.

The white daturas could no longer keep up with Leomon's pace, trailing behind like a streak of light.

But Leomon seemed to have caught the scent of their destination and pressed onward with unwavering determination.

Suddenly, it came to an abrupt halt.

Due to the momentum, Dark lurched forward, almost falling off.

In the next moment, he saw a temple—one that felt vaguely familiar!

Although he immediately recognized it as a temple, it wasn’t quite the same as the Temple of the Moon they had encountered before.

The most obvious difference was in size.

While the Temple of the Moon was mysterious, it was only the size of a lecture hall, containing just two stone pillars, an altar, and a statue of the goddess.

But this temple gave off a much more majestic vibe simply from its appearance.

Its walls were engraved with floating clouds and mythical beasts, and the grand golden door at the entrance wasn’t just massive but also radiant with brilliance!

Dark clearly remembered that the smaller Temple of the Moon had no door at all.

Yet here, the golden door was half-open, revealing only a narrow crack.

The aura of the moon goddess was unmistakably leaking out from that crack.

As Leomon skidded to a stop, the white daturas released by the [Flower Card] drifted forward, one by one, slipping through the door crack.

Dark watched the white daturas disappear through the crack and narrowed his eyes slightly. “Leomon, be on guard!”

In theory, there shouldn't be anyone else in this secret passage besides him.

But now that the temple had appeared, no one could predict what might suddenly emerge from the passage.

It could be another Vlad, or perhaps a Frieza.

First, he needed to figure out who had opened the door.

…

Dark reached into his card pouch and pulled out the [Honedge (Weapon Form)], summoning the "Holy Sword" and handing it to Leomon.

Then, he jumped off Leomon's shoulder, holding the [Magical Scribe], ready to move forward together.

As they approached the door, Dark paused and commanded Leomon to scout ahead.

Leomon cautiously took a step forward, placing one hand on the side of the golden door. With a bit of force, it pushed the door open just enough for one person to pass through.

A stale, musty smell rushed out immediately.

But Leomon remained unfazed and, with more strength, pushed the right side of the golden door entirely open!

In an instant, the interior of the temple came into view.

Dark’s eyes widened.

There were no signs of life within the temple. At its center stood four stone pillars, each carved with the familiar images of dancing goddesses.

Between the four pillars was an even larger and more grandiose altar.

A familiar statue of the goddess stood tall, almost lifelike.

As the doors opened, the fire pits atop the pillars automatically ignited, casting light throughout the temple and revealing every detail of the goddess statue.

It was made of pure white jade, with not a speck of dust on it, and it looked almost identical to the one from memory.

However, its posture was different now. It no longer held its hands clasped to its chest in prayer with closed eyes. Instead, it stood in a stern, commanding pose, arms raised high.

In its upraised hand, the statue held a mirror, shaped like a full moon.

The flames reflected upon the mirror, but it did not shine back. It was as though all the light was absorbed into the mirror’s surface, making it appear pitch black.

“This statue…” From a distance, Dark could tell something was different about it.

He cautiously observed his surroundings again. Once he was sure no one else was around, he sent DemiDevimon to check behind the altar.

While this temple was larger than the last, its structure was still clear and straightforward. The only place someone could be hiding was behind the altar.

Yet after circling around, DemiDevimon reported that there were no traces of anyone—human or creature.

→ No one was hiding.

But if no one was hiding, who had opened the temple doors and let the aura leak out?

Dark’s gaze gradually focused on the face of the statue.

The statue was alive!

After the last incident, Dark already knew that the previous statue was not a mere inanimate object.

The events that had unfolded before were all due to a lingering divinity inside the statue of the Moon Goddess.

That lingering divinity, driven by an instinctive desire to be reborn, had manipulated and enchanted students, and Professor Didi had exploited the situation, causing the subsequent chaos.

Now, it seemed that this statue had been born after the destruction of the last one.

It had no cracks and didn’t need repairs. From the beginning, it was in perfect condition.

It seemed all it required was a special ritual to be revived.

“Is this a bait?”

“A deliberate trap, with the door slightly ajar to lure someone in with the leaking aura.”

“And in the end, they’ve caught me, this little fish?”

Dark scrutinized the fine details of the statue’s face.

He wasn’t worried about being “enchanted” like the members of the Seafood Order.

He knew that until the statue fully came to life, he was safe.

A statue that only retained a fragment of divinity, capable of performing minor actions, was, in his eyes, just a fish lying on a chopping block—waiting to be gutted and cleaned.

As he pondered, a faint glimmer suddenly flickered in the statue’s already open eyes.

A hazy pink mist then began to rise from the altar at the base of the statue.

Dark's eyes moved slightly as he stepped into the temple, unaffected.

Walking through the pink mist felt like coming home to him. Not only was there no discomfort, but rather a sense of ease, like a fish in water.

If he weren’t worried that his "Lust" might increase, Dark felt like he could lie down and enjoy a steam bath in the mist.

In no time, Dark had walked through the mist and arrived before the statue.

He looked up again at the face of the Moon Goddess.

Though her expression hadn’t changed, for some reason, she gave off the impression of being embarrassed. Even the light flowing in her eyes seemed to momentarily pause.

After thinking for a moment, Dark softly uttered two words to the statue: "Moon Goddess?"

Among the old gods who once ruled all realms, the Moon Goddess was unique.

But now, what was hidden within this statue of the Moon Goddess was merely a shattered fragment of a soul, too broken to be whole again.

Dark neither overly revered her nor looked down on her—he regarded her with neutrality.

After his quiet call, silence reigned in the temple for a long time.

The mist ebbed away like the tide, but the divine light in the statue’s eyes grew more brilliant.

Then, a delicate, ethereal voice emerged from her mouth. "Who are you?"

...

This question reminded Dark of the classic three questions: Who are you? Where are you? And What are you doing?

And then the answer popped into his mind automatically: I am me. I am here. I am going to beat you.

...

Suppressing the urge to say something inappropriate, Dark spoke clearly: "A person bound by fate."

Fate, in its own mysterious way.

If "Mr. Starfish" was the one bound by fate to the previous Moon Goddess statue, then Dark Demon, the first to find this statue in the vast labyrinth of secret passages, was undoubtedly the one bound by fate to this Moon Goddess statue.

He could already sense the vast amount of Lust stored within this statue.

Although the Lust inside lacked some special factor, making it inferior in quality to Dark’s own Lust, it had the advantage of sheer quantity.

Dark estimated that the statue held at least 100 points of Lust, which, even at a conversion rate of 3:1, would be equivalent to over thirty points of his own Lust.

That would be enough to force-feed DemiDevimon and evolve it into LadyDevimon.

If Dark had access to a more advanced crafting magic circle, he might even be able to craft a [Lust IV . Moon] card on the spot!

Even though a Moon Goddess version of a deadly sin card might cause a magical spirit to lose control, having such a trump card to change the tide of battle at a critical moment wouldn’t be bad.

Unfortunately, Dark had yet to touch the threshold of crafting the exclusive magic circle for Lust IV deadly sin cards.

And without the ability to craft [Lust IV . Moon], the statue's Lust wasn’t of much use to him.

On the contrary, it was the "remnant divinity" within the Moon Goddess statue that was his true reason for coming here.

Upholding the traditional virtue of "courtesy before force," Dark preferred to solve problems through dialogue if possible, and so he restrained himself.

...

Their conversation didn’t use a common language but was a form of mental communication.

After Dark responded to the Moon Goddess's first question, she fell silent again.

Noticing this, Dark spoke up: "And who are you?"

The Moon Goddess’s voice now carried a slight tremor: "I am the Moon Goddess, and also the Mother of the Earth!"

Dark smiled gently. "Apart from your divine role, what else are you?"

The Moon Goddess fell silent once more.

The light in her eyes flickered as if she were racking her brain to think.

Dark wasn’t in a hurry and waited patiently.

But the Moon Goddess still didn’t respond.

It seemed that Dark’s simple question had completely stumped her.

So, Dark, out of the goodness of his heart, asked a different question: "Do you want to know the meaning of your existence?"

This time, the Moon Goddess hesitated for a moment before finally replying: "No need. The meaning of my existence is to recover my primal divinity."

Though it was phrased cryptically, it basically meant resurrection, right?

Indeed, just like the biological instinct to reproduce, this was a fundamental drive.

As Dark thought this over, he added, "Have you ever considered that after you recover your primal divinity, you may no longer be yourself?"

Being just a remnant fragment of a soul, the Moon Goddess's capacity for thought was clearly limited.

After a long mental struggle, she finally asked, "Why?"

Dark patiently explained: "You call yourself the Moon Goddess, but aside from your divine role, you don’t even have a true name. Your divine title is just a façade. You are merely a fragment of consciousness born from this statue. You are a statue, not a goddess."

The Moon Goddess appeared momentarily stunned by this revelation, as if her entire understanding of herself had just been overturned. She exclaimed in shock, "I am a statue?"

At this, Dark raised his hand and pointed to the lifelike sculpture, speaking in an obvious tone: "If you’re not a statue, are you really a goddess?"

"No, I am a goddess!" the Moon Goddess reflexively retorted.

Dark replied softly, "No, you’re just a consciousness born from this statue. You have nothing beyond the title 'Moon Goddess.' The moment you regain your primal divinity will be the moment your self-awareness is devoured by the true consciousness of the Moon Goddess."

"You’re lying!" The Moon Goddess's voice grew more agitated.

Dark spoke with pity: "Why would I lie? What would I gain from lying? You’re just a self-awareness created by a statue, living in the false dream of becoming the Moon Goddess. But in reality, you’re just a tool for the Moon Goddess's resurrection."

The Moon Goddess: "No, I am not!"

Dark nodded slightly: "Yes, you’re not a goddess, you’re a statue."

The Moon Goddess: "No, I’m not a statue! I am a goddess!"

Dark asked curiously: "Do you really believe you’re a goddess? Where is your divinity, your godhood, your divine power?"

The Moon Goddess's voice grew weaker: "That’s only because I’m in my weakest state..."

Dark: "So weak that you became a statue?"

The Moon Goddess: "..."

...

Dark's lips curled into a slight smile as he turned away from the Moon Goddess’s confused remnant, strolling leisurely through the grand temple.

This temple was more magnificent, with a mural carved around the temple, starting from the left side of the entrance and ending on the right.

At a glance, the mural depicted joyful farmers celebrating a bountiful harvest, shepherds mingling with flocks of sheep, and a crying baby under the moonlight...

Dark carefully examined the mural and called for his [Magical Scribe] to record it.

The long mural reminded him of the Golden Kingdom mural he had obtained with Emma.

If he could decipher this mural, it might lead to another discovery.

After completing his walk around the temple, Dark returned to the statue and gazed at it calmly, noticing it was now completely still.

This statue, to him, was utterly harmless.

As for whether the Moon Goddess’s lingering divinity was created by the statue or was truly a remnant soul of the real Moon Goddess—it didn’t matter.

Dark casually said, "You wouldn’t mind changing your living environment, would you?"

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