Magical Girl's Knight Brother

Chapter 573 The Truth About Magical Girls

Tang Zijun already had some guesses about the origins of magical girls, and now, after hearing Scáthach's account and Trova's additions, his initial speculations were confirmed. Magical girls do indeed have a significant relationship with the gods of Earth.

In fact, after learning that the legends of this world were true, and that gods had indeed been born in ancient times, Tang Zijun automatically attributed all extraordinary events to the gods. After all, with such a splendid example before them, even though the era of the gods was waning, it was impossible for a group of magical girls to appear out of thin air without any origin. Of course, this was also influenced by the term "magical girl." When Tang Zijun first heard this term, she couldn't help but think of it in a dark and gruesome direction. Now, it seemed that Tang Cao and Qin Nan... were more like a group of beings chosen by the gods.

"When I first heard you mention magic, it sounded familiar, and now that I've actually seen these magical girls," Scáthach said, glancing at Qin Nan again before continuing, "I can confirm that they are indeed mortals who have received blessings akin to those of the gods."

"It was not uncommon in ancient times for mortals to be blessed by the gods and gain greater power. Such lucky individuals would appear in any land." "In the era of the gods, magic was mostly inherited by demigods and priests. The gods needed them to maintain their divine authority and to consolidate the status of their divine realm in the human world. Therefore, simply bestowing some power upon mortals in exchange for their fanatical loyalty was the most convenient means."

Tang Zijun listened and nodded. It was like in the current environment, a boss was hiring people with a salary of tens of thousands, working from nine to five, with five days on and two days off, no overtime, and triple pay plus bonuses for overtime. Such conditions might not be much to the boss, but to the employees, it was no different from training suicide soldiers.

In ancient times, possessing extraordinary power, whether it was prophecy or something else, was a stepping stone to the realm of the gods. No one wanted to be one of the gods, even if it was just to serve them tea and water or be their secretary. And having extraordinary power was a necessary condition.

Therefore, the gods' use of this method as leverage undoubtedly precisely hit people's greatest needs.

What Tang Zijun hadn't expected was that even after the gods had vanished, this power still existed in the world, and it was still influencing people's lives. "If magic is an ability bestowed upon humanity by the gods, then how exactly are magical girls created?" Tang Zijun asked, frowning. "Could it be that there are unknown gods in this world, selecting spirit beasts and girls to bestow blessings?"

"Your idea is interesting," Scáthach chuckled. "However, it's probably impossible. After that battle, all the remaining gods moved to the dream world, except for my shadow and Trova, who is a special being. There can't be any exceptions."

"Are there really no exceptions?" Tang Zijun asked seriously. "Although I don't know what the situation was at the time, isn't it a bit too absolute to say it's impossible?" "You don't understand. Granting magic to mortals is not easy. It's something only beings with divine power can do. Just like you can lend me the power from your cards at will, that's an exchange of power, not something any self-proclaimed god can do."

Scáthach spoke slowly. "And such beings have basically all perished in that battle. Even those who survived have sacrificed themselves to create the dream world. Such beings would never appear in the real world."

"That's strange." Hearing Scáthach's words, Tang Zijun frowned even more deeply, then continued to ask, "If it's not the work of the gods, then how do magical girls awaken?" "The answer to that question isn't actually that hard to figure out." Scáthach looked at Tang Zijun. "There's only one reason why magical girls appear, and that is..." As she spoke, she pointed at Tang Zijun.

Seeing Scáthach's action, Tang Zijun was slightly taken aback, pointing to herself with some confusion and asking, "Me?"

"That can't be right, what does this have to do with me? I only came into this world ten years ago."

Of course, Tang Zijun didn't say the last sentence out loud; she just silently complained to herself.

Scáthach spoke calmly. "Not you, but those beings like you—the Mirror People. You now call yourselves the Greedy Ones, right? That name is quite accurate. And those guys from the Otherworld, and the monsters that came out of the shadows."

"The Outer Path Demons and the Shadow Clan? Is this matter related to them?"

“Of course,” Scáthach asked. “Do you know how they were originally created?”

Tang Zijun thought for a moment and tentatively replied, "It's an energy body born from negative energy, from human desires and evil thoughts, and then it possesses something to form a physical entity." "That's right, negative energy, born from human negative energy. Haven't you ever thought that human negative energy can give birth to monsters? Can't positive energy give birth to something else?" "You mean!" Tang Zijun immediately understood Scáthach's meaning.

Seeing that Tang Zijun had figured it out, Scáthach also smiled, though it was a somewhat unnatural smile. "That's right, just as you thought. Magical girls are the embodiment of humanity's positive energy." "When negative energy reaches a certain point, a breach will open, but at the same time, a positive energy for survival will also arise, just like the instinct that emerges when life is on the verge of death. That kind of willpower is enough to shake the remaining laws of the real world."

"Actually... human willpower is truly an incredibly powerful force, even for the gods." Scáthach sighed softly. "Anyway, time has passed, and I have nothing to hide." In ancient times, humans actually possessed the talent to access the extraordinary, but the gods "stifled" this talent, appropriating it for themselves and controlling humanity's limits... Tang Zijun immediately grasped the key point in her words. "You mean, positive and negative energy already began to manifest in the time of the gods?" "Even earlier." Scáthach's words carried a hint of感慨 (gǎnkǎi, a complex emotion encompassing regret, regret, and a sense of awe). "Do you know what this positive energy was called in ancient times?" Without giving Tang Zijun a chance to answer, Scáthach revealed the truth.

"The power of faith".

"Humanity's yearning for a better world, its love for the world, its love for itself—all of its will and emotions—have been transferred to the gods, becoming the power of faith." "This positive energy from humanity has become the source of power for the gods' divine realm. As long as people believe in the gods, a continuous stream of positive energy will flow into the divine realm, adding to the gods' divine power." "But because of this, human talents are controlled by the gods. In fact, there are some humans who can come into contact with the gods, but because they lack this power, they can never cross that threshold in their entire lives." Tang Zijun listened attentively to Scáthach's explanation, her eyes growing increasingly solemn.

No wonder.

No wonder the historical accounts and legends have always been somewhat inconsistent regarding the domestic and international situations.

So, back in ancient times, foreign gods were already playing with the "Das Kapital" approach, while in China, it was still a matter of "heroes being created by the times." Simply put, China's development was based on the concept of Taoism, where everyone could cultivate immortality. Whether it was the principle of "only teaching the extraordinary" or "education for all," it carried a concept of equality for all, which led to a continuous stream of immortals being born from among mortals. Take Nezha, for example, who, even after death, could have his golden body restored through temples and offerings from mortals.

In other countries, however, the path to ascension for mortals is tightly controlled by the gods, who frequently unleash natural disasters upon the mortal realm to maintain their supreme rule. They even use plagues to wreak havoc on humanity, leaving people with no choice but to pray to the gods.

Different civilizations and ideologies collided, leading to different developmental processes. Tang Zijun wasn't criticizing anything at the moment, but rather focusing on the matter at hand. "So, in that sense, magical girls are actually a manifestation of the gods 'returning' humanity's original power after Ragnarok, right?"