Chapter 1995: Epiphanies

Rui's dark eyes lit up with a flash of interest. "...Gaia?"

The Divine Doctor heaved a soft sigh, glancing at the sky of the manifold.

He grew quiet as his smile faded and his eyes softened.

A profound silence seemed to overtake the atmosphere.

For a moment, he became human.

"You see..." He began, his voice growing soft. "One fine day at dusk, when gazing at the setting Sun, I had an epiphany."

He continued, immersed in a reverie. "I consider it to be the most glorious moment of my long life. Not even overcoming death inspired the depth of emotion that I experienced from this magnificent revelation."

He closed his eyes. "In that moment, I came to realize that this world was not merely a lifeless stage for all life to occupy. It was not merely a dead speck of rock floating about in an infinite void we call the universe. It was not merely sustenance for the Tree of Life."

His eyes opened.

Within then flashed boundless intensity.

"No." His voice grew more intense. "This world is alive. Gaia is alive."

Rui and Kane widened their eyes in shock. "Gaia is...alive?"

Had anyone else uttered it in front of him, Rui would have scoffed and moved on.

Yet, before him was the Divine Doctor.

The prodigy who cured death and lived for more than six centuries, traveling the world and gaining priceless knowledge and experience in the domain of medicine and biology. His sole knowledge and mind exceeded the combined capability of the rest of the international medical community.

Rui stared at him, frozen in shock.

Yet, he was far from done.

"She's not just alive," he insisted, growing more intense. "She is more alive than any of us. She is more alive than all of us! She is the life that nurtures the very Tree of Life of which we are merely an indistinct part!"

Rui simply gazed at him, speechless.

The Divine Doctor's expression fell immediately after, growing regretful. "...Yet, along with the magnificent revelation of her life came a second epiphany."

His intense eyes returned to Rui. "You see, Gaia...she's ill. She's...dying."

"...What?" A stunned whisper escaped Rui. "But how?"

"...I don't know." The Divine Doctor admitted. "I don't know, but I made it my life's mission as the greatest doctor to have ever walked Gaia to heal her. To steer her away from death."

He closed his eyes. "I haven't even come close to diagnosing her condition and her ailments, let alone treating and curing her, unfortunately. Even for someone of my ability, it has proven to be the most difficult endeavor I have ever undertaken in my entire life, far greater than anything I have ever accomplished in my entire life."

The magnitude of the revelations that the Divine Doctor made struck Rui and Kane like a truck, shaking them.

"But how...?" Kane murmured, shocked. "How can a planet be alive?"

"...It is a profound question," the Divine Doctor replied softly. "Yet, it is one that is beyond me. However, I do not find it impossible considering the most extreme forms of life that exist in this world that make it plausible for an enormous planet to be alive."

While his revelations were extremely difficult to digest, Rui agreed with that particular statement. "If deserts and golems can be alive, then it isn't impossible for a planet to be alive."

"Just so." The Divine Doctor nodded. "When considering the exotic and esoteric life that exists in this world, it is only the scale and magnitude of Gaia's life that is truly mind-boggling rather than nature."

A moment of silence overtook the conversation.

"...So that's why you entered the Beast Domain, to look for clues in different parts of Gaia's 'body' for symptoms for a diagnosis." Rui realized. "The Human Domain is transparent, the Beast Domain is a region filled with countless mysteries and was most likely to hold the key."

"Correct." The Divine Doctor nodded, growing more open. "However, the Adventurer's Guild is incompetent, and my friend's sect cannot help me with the Beast Domain, so I consulted the Ecologer, an unparalleled genius and the leading authority on the Beast Domain. Yet, diagnosing Gaia was beyond even her. I was almost out of options until she told me about the existence of the Garden of Salvation and the all- knowing Elder Tree and how I might find the information I sought there, and then..."

He heaved a sigh. "...well, I'm sure you know the rest."

His eyes swam around the entirety of the Mellow Manifold. "Fascinating, but ultimately not what I seek."

Rui exhaled heavily, remembering to breathe.

It was such a fantastical tale that it was almost impossible to believe. Yet, Rui knew that he was almost certainly telling the truth, considering how consistent it was with everything he heard and said in the memories of the countless animals that Rui had scanned and in the memories of the Elder Tree.

Ultimately, however, Rui had not forgotten the objective of bringing up his patient in this conversation. As fascinating as the Divine Doctor's tale was, Rui ultimately didn't give a damn about his mission.

He only cared about securing the cooperation of the Divine Doctor as long as he was able to leverage this to succeed in his negotiations; he was content to consider his words at a later date with more leisure.

"I don't know what ails Gaia," Rui began. "I certainly have no idea whether you will be able to heal her. However..."

His eyes narrowed. "...I know for a fact that you will fail if you don't get out of this place. That is what I am offering. A chance to leave. And in return, I demand you to heal my fa-"

"Fool."

"..." Rui's expression darkened. "Excuse me?"

The Divine Doctor's expression froze as an icy smile appeared on his face. "Do you take me for a fool?"

Rui met his cold gaze with dark eyes.

The air grew tumultuous.

It boiled.

"Your plan needs me just as much as it needs you," his smile deepened. "Do not pretend escape is something you are offering to me rather than a joint accomplishment we seek to achieve together. Did you think I wouldn't see through this trivial, thinly veiled attempt to sneak a demand I owe you not?"