On the Azure Star, in the War God's Cathedral in the capital, the teleportation portal had already been opened. Jingle and the other four were saying goodbye to the 'children'. Monina and Eva chatted for a while. Finally, it seemed that Monina wanted to leave a parting gift. She reached into her pocket for a long time and took out a small pendant. "By the way, Eva, I'll give you this as a souvenir. I don't know when I'll be back again."
Eva was pleasantly surprised. She carefully took the seemingly ordinary pendant and held it in front of her chest as if it was a rare treasure. "Goddess, thank you for your gift. I'll treasure it well …"
Ray was so excited that his beard was trembling. "Oh, today is a glorious day. The church has another Epic Relic!"
There was no doubt that even though the pendant was casually taken out by Monina, Ray had already made up his mind to treat it as a holy relic of the church. Sooner or later, the pendant, which was strung together with cotton thread, would be placed in the Holy Church by the believers of the Azure Star and be worshipped by the people. The words' Glass Factory 'on the base of the pendant would shine brightly under the sun of the Azure Star.
After hanging out with the five Protoss Cops for a long time, I was no longer surprised by such occurrences. Religion was such a strange thing. In the timeline, it had an inexplicable magnifying effect. An ordinary and even laughable beginning would become strange after time and faith. Just like the pile of scrap metal that Little Crow dug out from Europe a few days ago when she had a stomach ache, it had now become the holy relic of the Crow God Sect. It was said that only the most powerful of the church's knight commanders were qualified to use them when exterminating demons. But in reality? Before the Little Crow used those scraps of metal to sharpen his beak, those swords were sold in the market by the weight of a kilogram.
Monina's act of leaving a souvenir for Eva immediately reminded Elson and the others. The gods who were not so sure immediately started rummaging through their bodies. It seemed that they all wanted to leave something behind. Elson said as he rummaged, "Wait a minute. I have something good here. Monina is smart. She's meticulous. It's not easy for her to come here, so she has to leave something behind. Oh, I found it! "
Finally, Elson took out a key ring, Lin took off the bracelet on her wrist, and Uncle Kenser took out a blank diary from his pocket (probably to keep it for bookkeeping when he went grocery shopping?). The three gods stuffed everything into Eva's hands. They knew that no matter who these gifts were given to, they would eventually be regarded as holy relics of the church. So, it was more convenient to give them to the Saintess of the church.
Based on my observations, these holy relics that were about to be worshipped by the people should have originated from Yiwu's Small Commodity Wholesale Market. In other words, from a certain perspective, Yiwu's Small Commodity Wholesale Market had already taken the first solid step in humanity's long march to conquer another world …
The few religious bigwigs present hurriedly accepted these "god-bestowed items" with smiles on their faces as though they were celebrating a festival. I really wanted to tell them that these items could be sold in containers in a place called Yiwu, but after thinking about it, I didn't say it. The people of the Blue Star weren't fools. They could probably tell what these gifts were with just a glance. However, this didn't stop them from worshipping a pile of glass beads and small notebooks as holy relics. This was religion, a pure religion. They didn't worship the material, but the idol behind the material. I once again recalled Elson's argument that "Divine artifacts are divine artifacts because they are used by God." I felt that this was indeed an undeniable truth. Let the facts speak for themselves. Wasn't Longinus just a wooden stick with an iron point?
In the end, everyone's gazes focused on my shoulder. There was another person there, one of the five Main Gods of the Blue Star: Tinker Bell. This little one blinked her curious eyes as she looked at everything in front of her. She swung her little feet in the air until all four of her team members turned to look at her. Only then did she realize something and pointed at the tip of her nose. "Oh, Jingle also wants to prepare a gift?"
Icetis snorted. "Nonsense. It wasn't easy to come here. Shouldn't you leave something for the children before you leave? How can you be a God? "
"Oh." Jingle nodded. Then, she revealed an unusually conflicted and pained expression. She seemed to have made up her mind. Then, she took out a lollipop from her dimensional pocket. A moment later, as everyone expected, she took out a lollipop. To her, this was the best thing.
"Ugh …" Jingle raised the lollipop and continued to struggle. She continued to hesitate. In the end, she quickly retracted her hand and peeled off the wrapper of the lollipop. She opened her mouth and took a big bite of the lollipop. Then, she passed the lollipop to Eva. "Here, this is the best thing Jingle has …"
Ray was stunned for the first time. He was stunned for a long time. "Goddess … This … This is not easy to put …"
Gifts from God were to be kept in the holy land as holy relics. How could a lollipop be put in there? It would need to be melted before it could even survive the first summer. I explained it to Jingle and the little one instantly smiled. Crunching, crunching, crunching, she bit off the lollipop in front of everyone. She passed the remaining lollipop stick to Eva and mumbled, "Here!"
Everyone was speechless.
Following Elson's itch, the church's holy relics collection once again broke the bottom line!
In the end, Joe, Ray, Eva, and the others were all chased away by Elson's wave of his hand. Apart from our group of people, there was only one old man in the church who was beyond recognition. He was the Pope, Mu, Elson's spokesperson in this world. Unlike the upstart Liliana, this was an old man who had been working for his God for two hundred years. It was obvious that Elson valued this old man greatly and allowed him to stay until the end. He was also in charge of tidying up the altar after the teleportation portal closes.
In front of the War God statue, Elson patted the shoulders of the old man who was already over two hundred years old. Even though the latter looked so old that he could practically be Elson's great-grandfather, in reality, Elson was the one who was truly giving an explanation to a child. "Then I shall return first. There are still many devastated worlds waiting for me to save in the future …"
We were already suffering from a great deal of guilt by not tearing him down.
"Lord, will you still return to this world?" Mu, a two-hundred-year-old old man who could run all the way from the Fourth Ring to the city center, lowered his head and shrunk his neck, like a child who was looking forward to something but was afraid of being disappointed. He was the most respected Pope in the Azure Star. However, in front of the War God, he was still the wild boy who had gotten into a fight in front of the temple two hundred years ago and had collided with the God's throne. The War God was eternal. Even after so many years, the War God would still be the heroic War God. On the other hand, the wild boy who had been personally pardoned by the God was getting old. After meeting him twice, time had turned everything upside down. I couldn't help but have such a strange feeling in my heart. Thus, even though Elson's unreliable image was deeply ingrained in my heart, I persevered and did not complain. At the same time, I continued to suffer from a great deal of guilt.
"Perhaps he will return, but I'm afraid it will be many years later. God will not overly interfere with the secular world, especially in this kind of world," Elson said calmly. What he implied was that with Mu's lifespan as a mortal, he might not be able to wait until that day. Thus, the old man lowered his head in disappointment. However, Elson seemed to hesitate for a moment before deciding to tell the old man something. "Do you still remember the words in the doctrine?
— — Bow down to the teachings, practice it with your body, temper the soul, and sublimate the body, transcending the mortal world. Mu, it has been two hundred years. You have always done well. In the coming years, you still have to complete the work of the last period of time. Do your part well. After your mission is completed, come to my country. There will be a place for you there. " As soon as I finished speaking, I heard Elson's shouts in the public channel of the spiritual connection. "Oh my god, I couldn't help but tell this kid in advance. I originally wanted to give him a surprise after his death!"
"…" I was speechless. Could you please not speak of something as sacred as being summoned by the Lord to ascend to the Kingdom of God as if it was a two-tier salary increase?
I wasn't sure if it was because he was too old or because what his Lord had said was too unexpected, but Mu was stunned for a full five to six seconds before he regained his senses. Then, as expected, he was extremely excited. Elson was still regretting his loose lips. Seeing this, he decisively waved his hand to interrupt what Grandpa Mu was about to say. Then, he looked straight into the old man's eyes. "Remember the words of the Bible. What you are about to usher in is not only sublimation, but also a greater burden and responsibility. Furthermore, you will not only be responsible for a single race, but even more worlds and countless lives. Right now, you haven't even touched the starting point. Understand? Go back and work hard. "
"Yes, yes." Mu nodded repeatedly. Beside him, Elson revealed a satisfied smile. This scene reminded me of my first day in elementary school. I had listened to my sister's words and decided to study hard. However, from the looks of it, the old man in front of me was much easier to discipline than I was back then …
After leaving the Azure Star, the others went straight home. However, Sandora and I still had to take a detour to another place.
The universe where the Fourth Fleet was located, the capital planet of Kailudak. Sandora and I brought a few administrative experts and command officers who had rushed over from the City of Shadows to this planet once again.
I really didn't expect that when I had first set off from Kailudak, I had thought that it would be a quick and convenient trip through the void. It would be like going out to buy soy sauce. The Parliament was still looking forward to our return to welcome their old friends. In the end, Sandora and I had actually been gone for so many days, and so many twists and turns had happened along the way. Perhaps I really was a man with a halo. Trouble might be a passive skill when it came to me.
This visit to Kailudak was extremely different from the last time. The most obvious difference was the friendliness. The last time we came here, we were almost received by the Parliament in secret. The ordinary citizens of Kailudak didn't even know that the Empire had arrived on their planet. Moreover, there were many high-ranking officials of the Fourth Fleet who were wary of us. But this time, Sandora and I were officially welcomed. The Parliament and the Senior Executive of the Fourth Fleet had completely accepted us. More importantly, they were no longer worried about the unrest that might be caused by the appearance of the Imperial Army on their capital planet. At the very least, the overall positive development was obvious to all.
The Royal Shuttle that Sandora and I boarded was escorted by several small frigates to the Parliament building. Due to the uniqueness of Toberu architecture, the temporary docking area in front of the Parliament building was a half-moon platform parallel to the waist of the building. It relied on anti-gravity technology to float in the air. On both sides of the docking area were officials of the Fourth Fleet and some people who looked like representatives of the citizens. They didn't wear any kind of uniform, so I could only guess that they were representatives of some civilian organizations. Outside the anti-gravity platform, there was a projection screen that welcomed me and Sandora. The screen screen was displayed in all directions and could be seen from the top of any of the towers around the Parliament building. Compared to the events in other worlds that I was dragged to attend, the scale of this welcoming scene was very inconspicuous. But once I remembered that it was the goodwill of the exiles back then, even such a low-key welcome, it was hard to not be moved.
"It's not easy." As the shuttle slowly approached the platform, I couldn't help but look at Sandora. "Just this line of welcome banners that can be put out in public feels more difficult to come by than the ten consecutive victories against the Fallen Apostles."
"And we still have a long way to go." Sandora smiled. She was in a good mood, but she wasn't overly optimistic because of the situation before her. "Look, there is a cordoned off area on the periphery. There are sentries on the top of the buildings in the distance. Moreover, the scale of the welcoming scene and the composition of the personnel have obviously been carefully selected. It can only be said that the Fourth Fleet is now officially in contact with the Empire. This can be considered the initial stage of normalization of diplomatic relations. But at the level of their society as a whole, they are far from reaching the stage where they can bury the hatchet. When the Fifth Fleet completes their emergency renovation and arrives in this universe, the situation should improve further. Cocokina should be working hard to ease the relationship between the exiles and the Empire. "
I understood what Sandora was saying. It was just that the series of events, regardless of whether it was related to the Fallen Apostles or the bottom of the Abyss, had given me a lot of mental pressure. A certain sense of urgency had been growing stronger and stronger over the past few days, making me feel like I didn't have enough time. I wished that everything could be settled in one go. However, everything that I faced required time, a lot of time. Things that could be settled in one go simply didn't exist.
I gazed into the distance. I could see that beyond the cordoned off area, there were many swaying shadows on the top of the towering buildings. Those should be the civilians of the Fourth Fleet. Although most of them had never seen the Empire's warships a year ago, they were the generation that was born and raised under the shadow of the 'Empire Slayer'. They gazed curiously in my direction from beyond the cordoned off area, trying to see what the Empire's warships that had cast a shadow over countless generations looked like.
At that moment, Sandora gently squeezed my hand, indicating that her shuttle had stopped.
On the docking platform, a translucent female figure, accompanied by several high-ranking officials, welcomed us. It was the highest ruler of the Fourth Fleet, the Junard Council. She used a unique etiquette unique to the Naders to welcome me, Sandora, and the people of the Imperial Army behind us. "I believe that the Council can now call all of you friends from a personal point of view."
"That really wasn't easy to come by." I laughed and spoke the truth that was in my heart. Then, I went straight to the point. "The Fifth Fleet is currently undergoing renovation in another military world. Their spaceships aren't in good condition, but fortunately, I managed to successfully complete the mission. All of the spaceships arrived safely."
The Council nodded slightly. "We have already communicated with the captain of the Cocokina warship and understood the situation over there. Knowing that our old friend is safe and sound is the best thing that has happened to us in the past tens of thousands of years. "
The reason why Sandora and I came over was firstly because the two of us had met with an accident that day. Many of the things that we had planned previously were put on hold, including the preparations for the reception of the Fifth Fleet and the arrangements for the Fourth Fleet. Now that we had returned, the first thing we had to do was to prepare everything properly with the Council. Secondly, we wanted to see how effective the 'public opinion campaign' that my sister had suggested was.
Well, it could be confirmed that the public opinion campaign was indeed effective. Due to the fact that we had set out to rescue the Fifth Fleet with great fanfare and high profile, the biggest reward we had now was that the Empire and the exiles had established a preliminary official relationship. Moreover, the Fifth Fleet was going to be settled in this world. Perhaps we could use this opportunity to send people to help them build colonization facilities and a large spaceport in the name of assistance. Even though Sandora and I had no intention of directly leaving a permanent army in this universe, after the 'assistance', the exiles and the Empire had actually formed a tacit support relationship.
More importantly, the new citizens of the Fourth Fleet would also get used to the life of an Empire soldier in the process. To change the impression that the exiles had of the new Empire, this process of getting used to it was more important than anything else.
We discussed many things with the management of the Fourth Fleet in the reception hall of the Council building. Of course, most of the time, it was Sandora and the various experts who were negotiating with the other party. I was basically in the background, basically in the background, between "What are you guys talking about?" and "What are you guys talking about?" Between the two states, I could only interject when it came to the current situation of the Fifth Fleet. I more or less understood this aspect. After all, the entire fleet had been carried around in my 'stomach', and I had used my own spiritual power to scan every single one of their spaceships.
According to a more detailed report sent by Coco Kina, the situation of the Fifth Fleet was extremely bad. Almost none of the spaceships were in good condition. Even after emergency repairs at the civilization community, they could only barely keep operating. And now, the Fourth Fleet had not yet taken care of the matters at hand, so they had no choice but to hand over the heavy responsibility of the Fifth Fleet to the Empire. So, the Council made a difficult decision.
She hoped to get a batch of colony planets that could be put to use in a short period of time.
This was exactly what Sandora and I wanted.
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