Published: March 2, 2025
Faced with Tang Haofei's overwhelming might, Fran really didn't want to dwell on the recent destructive scene and could only change the subject.
However, Lin Haifeng gently shook his head.
“Bullshit divinity…”
A soft sigh escaped Lin Haifeng's lips. Seeing Tang Haofei leave, the terrifying aura that had enveloped Beijing gradually faded, allowing him to regain his composure from the earlier pressure.
At this moment, discussing Tang Haofei seemed to be a form of self-regulation.
Thus, the old man naturally took over Fran's line of conversation.
“The so-called cost of power is merely a mindset, or perhaps it's just desire…”
“Oh?”
Fran raised an eyebrow, clearly interested in this topic—after Tang Haofei's 'simple display of power,' no one could help but be intrigued by him. Those in the know understood very well the so-called cost of power!
Lin Haifeng walked back to his desk and brewed himself another cup of tea, glancing at the television screen, which had already changed—drones couldn't keep up with Tang Haofei's speed, and the live broadcast of the battle had to be halted.
But the outcome was something even a fool could guess!
Watching the host on television loudly praise Tang Haofei, as if they had found a savior, Lin Haifeng couldn’t help but smile.
Taking a sip of hot tea, Lin Haifeng slowly began to speak.
“This isn’t an illness, nor is it some bullshit divinity. The so-called cost of power is really just a mindset.”
Seeing Fran's puzzled expression and hearing the lively commotion outside, which felt like a festival, Lin Haifeng pointed to a large book beside him.
“What is this?”
“The legal documents of the Beijing gathering place, which I presided over the revision of!”
“Used to manage whom?”
“The residents of the Beijing gathering place and the Eternal Sky City.”
“Wrong. Let me ask you again, used to manage whom?”
Fran looked slightly confused, but Lin Haifeng smiled and pointed outside: “That guy is also a resident of the Beijing gathering place!”
Fran immediately realized, and Lin Haifeng didn’t need Fran's answer.
“The laws we formulated are essentially meant to restrain the weak. You know that for sequence-level experts, we have another set of metrics, not to mention that guy, Tang Haofei!”
“So, laws can essentially only restrain the weak. What about the strong? What do we use to restrain the strong?”
Fran fell silent.
“Morality, we use morality to restrain the strong! Or rather, it’s not restraining but regulating... Whether the strong adhere to morality depends on their own thoughts, just like the ancient kings of Huaxia. They wielded great power, so they had to use benevolence, righteousness, propriety, wisdom, and trust to regulate royal authority. But overall, it still depended on the king’s self-awareness—however, the current situation is different from back then!”
“Back then, if a king was cruel and unkind, he would naturally be overthrown by a rebellion. However, when individual power reaches an extreme, like that guy flying out now, who can bring him down?”
“So, in the apocalypse, apart from inner morality, there’s nothing that can restrain someone like Tang Haofei or Wen Yu at that level…”
“In the past, Tang Haofei used morality to regulate his behavior, and he did this very well! As the strongest being in the world, he didn’t bully others, didn’t fight for power or wealth, and had no ambitions; he devoted himself to the human race and the Earth, which was indeed wonderful and perfect! However, when his power surged, he lacked the mindset and self-discipline that matched his strength. In other words, the cost of power has a particularly simple explanation—it’s that his mindset has collapsed…”
“Desire has lost its shackles, and wildness has broken free!”
“I don’t know if you’ve heard the saying: a person must have the ability to match their ambitions, but conversely, a person must also have ambitions that match their abilities.”