When the dust settled, the people of Atlantis began to clean up their homes that had been destroyed by the disaster. After the joy of victory, the sorrow for the dead quickly followed. The disaster had caused unimaginable damage to the people of Atlantis. Ever since they fled their homes 760,000 years ago, the remaining "descendants of the gods" had been fighting side by side like brothers and sisters. They helped each other in times of need and survived the darkest times together. They had persevered until today because of an almost impossible hope. However, the disaster that fell from the sky had caused nearly two-thirds of them to leave this world forever. In every corner of the city, Atlantean civilians could be seen cleaning up the corpses and dealing with the aftermath. The sorrow in their eyes had almost diluted the joy of victory.
A large number of corpses were gathered in the square in the center of the city. Among them were mutated humans who had been beheaded and city guards who had died in the counterattack. When the abyss retreated, the enemies and allies who had used their last bit of strength to kill each other lay on the same piece of land again. There was no more hatred or fighting, and they accepted the condolences of their people together.
Before Atlantis set sail, Sandora and I left the carrier carrier and came to the city again. There was a ceremony here that required us to be present in person. We had requested to be present.
"Most of the people gathered in this square are the dead who have no relatives. Their entire family has been sacrificed, or they were originally alone," Ares leaned over and whispered into my ear. "Most of them did not survive until the return of the gods. However, your attention and concern can comfort the souls of these warriors. They can go home with peace of mind. "
As Ares spoke, the crowd in the square suddenly dispersed to both sides. It was time. The priest in charge of the requiem ceremony walked out from the crowd. He was wearing a heavy black cloak that completely covered his face. On his chest was the holy emblem of a crystal cross. He held a tray filled with crystal dust and walked barefoot on the cold stone road. Behind the priest were two assistant priests in white cloaks. The assistant priests were holding two pieces of ancient equipment that looked like small suitcases.
"The warriors who shed their blood, the heroes who fell on the battlefield, and the dead who finally got rid of the devil's curse and obtained a clean soul." The priest stood in front of the huge pile of corpses that people almost could not bear to look at. He recited a short prayer with a strange voice that was not very loud but could be transmitted to everyone's ears. "You have gone through a difficult time and experienced a dangerous fate. Now, you can finally relax and welcome this moment of peace. The last battle in the course of your life has ended. You did not retreat or surrender. Regardless of the outcome, you are worthy of the name of Atlantis. Now, the journey at the other end is waiting for you. On this road that the living cannot travel, I hope that you can continue to move forward with the glory bestowed by God. The crystal bestowed by God will comfort your tired body and the pure blue holy light will heal your soul. Children, go on your way. Travel light and let us reunite in our homeland … "
Following the low chanting, the tray in the priest's hand also emitted a soft blue light. Special crystal dust fluttered out and seemed to turn into light and fuse with the corpses on the square. The two assistant priests stepped forward after the crystal dust had completely fused with the corpses and turned on the strange machine in their hands. However, at this moment, a sudden commotion came from outside the crowd and interrupted the ceremony that was about to be completed.
Two small figures strode in through the gaps between the surrounding tall figures. They brought along a serious low pressure along the way, causing the surrounding people to exclaim in surprise.
"Why are you two here?"
I looked at the two twin lolis in front of me in surprise. I quickly held their heads in each hand and comforted them gently. Oh my Jingle, how much determination did these two resentful 1.2m girls have when they walked calmly through the calves and stomachs of a group of giants that were at least twice their height!
Pandora and Visca had listened to my orders and stayed on the mothership obediently. They did not appear even during the final battle (I was really afraid that Visca's battle stance would cause a devastating blow to the morale of the Atlantean warriors), but why did they come out now without saying a word?
I raised my head to look at the surrounding crowd. Obviously, the appearance of Visca had caused a very serious wave of panic. Almost all the civilians looked at us with fear in their eyes. They retreated one after another and whispered softly. The buzzing sound of bees instantly spread throughout the entire square. The words "blood-red vertical pupil demon" spread among the crowd like a curse. The Atlanteans, who did not retreat in the face of the disaster caused by the star ring fragment, erupted in collective fear when they saw Visca.
However, although they were terrified, chaos and violence did not happen. The civilians and warriors only retreated out of instinct and whispered to each other. No one took any hostile actions. Obviously, the saying that "the blood-red pupil demon had been sealed in the body of a god" had been spread by Ares. Everyone looked at the little girl who had once brought them the fear of the end of the world with doubtful eyes. Gradually, after realizing that the latter did not have any hostility, the crowd dared to move a little closer.
"Aren't the two of you afraid of causing chaos?"
I looked at Pandora and Visca with a headache. To be exact, I was saying that to Visca. Pandora was probably just accompanying her younger sister.
"I have to face it eventually. It is impossible for me to appear in front of the Atlanteans forever. Otherwise, Big Brother will definitely be distressed." Visca shook her head. She, who had always been like a little girl who had yet to shed her childishness, revealed an unexpected maturity at this moment. "Big Brother, let Visca be willful for once."
"Well, you are my precious little sister. You can be willful as many times as you want." I shrugged my shoulders helplessly. In my heart, I understood that this was not because of Visca's concept of good and evil or her guilty mentality that prompted her to stand up at this moment. This lass did not have such a thing at all. She only stood up in consideration of "not putting Big Brother in a difficult position in the future". Furthermore, in comparison, Visca's determination was much harder to dispel than Pandora's occasional hot-blooded determination.
This lass could calmly pull her sister who was also 1.2 meters tall and walk under the feet of a group of two to three meters tall giants. This already showed how firm her determination was … Yup, too firm.
"I understand this. The psionic diffuser of the second frequency." Visca strode to the front of the three clergymen and pointed at the suitcase-like "holy item" in their hands. The latter shivered visibly when he saw Visca walking over, but he finally calmed down. The two to three meters tall giants were scared to this extent by a 1.2 meter loli. For some reason, I could not laugh at all. "The two of you can leave now. I think it would be better for these warriors to be sent off by the real Shiring Apostles — Big Sister."
This was the first time that Visca addressed Pandora as her big sister so formally. The latter's eyes obviously lit up. Then, she quickly walked to the side of the black-robed priest. "Continue."
The priest was a little confused, but after all, it was the "God" that he believed in who had personally given the order. He was only stunned for a moment before continuing to chant the prayer that was completely different from the prayers of ordinary religions.
On the other hand, Visca and Pandora closed their eyes slightly. After the psionic power brushed past them swiftly like flames, their hair instantly turned ice blue.
The psionic radiation of a specific frequency slowly spread out along with the movements of the two little loli, forming circles of light. This energy spread outwards at an inconceivably slow speed, like the ripples of water under a slow-motion camera, faintly echoing the prayers of the black-robed priest. I did not really understand the meaning of these religious rituals that the Atlanteans derived from their worship of the Shiring Apostles. However, it seemed that Pandora and Visca knew what they should do now through other means. When the light came into contact with the corpses on the square, the latter immediately began to crystallize.
Perhaps the blue crystal dust that the priest had scattered earlier had become the trigger for the chain reaction. The psionic radiation released by Pandora and Visca had caused the subsequent crystallization. The corpses on the square quickly solidified under the illumination of the blue light, gradually turning into crystal sculptures. This reminded me of the first time I saw Medusa. She had become a crystal spirit due to the psionic radiation. However, the Atlanteans were not energy creatures. Their corpses must have turned into crystals for another reason. Well, it was meaningless to think about this now.
The crystallized corpses did not stop changing. As the priest chanted in a low voice, a faint blue flame rose from these corpses. At first, I thought I was hallucinating because I had been staring at the crystals, but soon, these dream-like blue flames turned into a blazing fire, silently devouring every corpse on the square.
In the pure blue flame, the corpses that had turned into crystal sculptures quickly dissolved. When the ritual reached the end, they finally disappeared completely, leaving only a few blue lights dancing in the air, indicating that the deceased had once existed and made their final stop here.
"They finally completed the final reincarnation of their lives and became a part of their homeland. Their bodies became energy, flowing in the energy network under the city, and their spirits merged with the air of this city. Their souls will burn forever in the years after Atlantis," Ares said with a proud and emotional expression. "Making the best of everything is the greatest virtue that God taught us. These warriors will be proud to contribute their last bit of value to the race."
After hearing this explanation, I finally understood what this religious ritual was about. Although I knew I shouldn't blame them, I still felt a little uncomfortable in my heart. The Old Empire's distortion of this civilization was too severe. Even though we couldn't simply judge whether this distortion was good or bad, seeing Ares proudly burn the corpses of his own kind in exchange for energy was a noble virtue …
"Ah Jun," Sandora squeezed my hand. "If the lives of the dead can be used in this way to leave their value, to live forever in the gratitude and remembrance of future generations, this may be a good way to return home."
Sandora's words might just be a form of consolation, but I could only nod. After all, in the eyes of the Atlanteans, this kind of final sacrifice was the best way to commemorate the dead. Looking at the sorrowful expressions on the faces of the surrounding civilians, perhaps this was the only way to let them feel that the people they cherished were still alive in their hearts.
After the last religious ritual in Atlantis ended, Sandora and I pulled Pandora and Visca back to the spaceship. The actions of the two lolis today were beyond my expectations, but it seemed that they had achieved a good result. As members of the "God", they had personally walked among the mortals and stood at the position of assistant priests to send off the warriors who had died. This kind of behavior greatly won the goodwill of the people, and it also alleviated the fear that the Atlanteans had of the "Red-Eyed Demon". At least from now on, Visca should be able to appear in front of these ancient people who had almost been wiped out by him.
The floating island's power system had been repaired, and the world teleportation system was ready. I set its destination to be Avalon because Ares had said after seeing the scenery of Avalon that it reminded him of the scenery of his hometown. While I was lamenting that the Empire's expedition team had taken environmental protection seriously, we finally decided on where the Atlanteans would live in the future. Fortunately, as a world with only Heroic Spirits living in a vast, sparsely populated world that was still growing, Avalon had plenty of empty space. Its sky was even emptier. With an additional floating island, other than the possibility of affecting the unicorns' sunbathing in certain places, there shouldn't be any other trouble.
On the way back in the spaceship, I gathered the monster girls of the Land of Fantasy and began to discuss about … uh, the issue of the policy housing subsidies.
Eight Cloud Purple, Boli Soul Dream, Rhododendron Spp., Youyouzi, Sixteen Nights, Missy … One by one, the important figures of the Land of Fantasy gathered in the spacious lounge, whispering to each other while eating melon seeds. The atmosphere was very harmonious and lively, fully in line with the atmosphere when we, the higher-ups of the Empire, held a meeting to discuss issues. Under such circumstances, Sandora and I felt especially close to each other as we sipped on our tea and presided over the meeting.
"Ahem, let me say a few words first — Blue, what are you doing?"
I coughed twice to attract everyone's attention. Then, I looked at Rhododendron Spp. with dissatisfaction. This vixen had been playing with her ears since the beginning. Now, she even began to use her willpower to turn both her ears 180 degrees in the opposite direction. Although this didn't affect the others' listening, it seriously affected my concentration. I really wanted to go over and help her tie up her ears.
"Ah, sorry." The fur on the vixen's tail instantly stood up, as though she was shocked by me. "I still have a little tinnitus. You don't have to worry about me. Please continue."
Was it because of the Atlanteans' cheering that lasted for half an hour? An unlucky person with sensitive ears?
After seriously reminding Rhododendron Spp. to be careful, Sandora and I complemented each other and talked about the arrangements for the Land of Fantasy …
Before we set off, we had already designed a lot of plans to deal with the possible damage to the Land of Fantasy. From the worst case scenario of the destruction of the Eastern world to the slightest 70-yard scratch on the Atlantean continent, we had detailed countermeasures.
The current situation was much better than the worst case scenario that Sandora had initially predicted. Atlantis didn't cause the end of the world in the Land of Fantasy, but the disaster was not light. At least, the damage to the Monster Mountain was very serious. Half of the mountain that was inhabited by a large number of monsters had been exposed to the strong radiation from the Atlantean energy vent for a long time. It was estimated that the Chernobyl ruins could be considered a national first-class scenic spot compared to that place. Along with the spread of the water in the mountain, highly toxic radiation had also appeared at the foot of the mountain. The monsters were not afraid of radiation for a short period of time, but they definitely couldn't stand it for a long time.
Obviously, before the radiation dissipated, it was temporarily uninhabitable. This was the most serious disaster.
The area around the Monster Mountain was slightly less affected. Due to the rupture of the Atlantean main energy pipeline, the leakage of psionic residue had caused several forest fires. Although they were all extinguished by me at the first instance, the power of psionic energy was too powerful. Basically, in just an instant, a few kilometers of forest could be turned into steam by the high temperature. No matter how fast we extinguished it, there would still be places that escaped. Therefore, many monsters living on the plains at the foot of the mountain lost their homes. Apart from Ling Meng, who openly declared that she had 27 properties in the forest that needed compensation, we still had to settle a large number of people because of those fires.
The above two points were all the problems that had to be solved. The situation wasn't complicated and the losses weren't serious, but no matter what, it was an unavoidable responsibility. Of course, Fantasy Village had the ability to rebuild the damaged houses and villages in a timely manner after such an incident. However, the places with severe radiation wouldn't be easy to restore in a short period of time. Psionic energy was roaming everywhere in those places. Even with the technology of the Empire, it would take time to deal with the psionic radiation. That was a completely different concept from nuclear radiation. Although Fantasy Village appeared to be harmonious, there was actually a complicated division of power. The division of power was different from the borders of human countries where weapons were easily drawn. Instead, it was based on the monsters' habits and concept of territory. Although the division of power wasn't as strict as the borders of a country, it also meant that different monsters had their own territory. The residents of the Monster Mountain couldn't settle down in the forest, and the individual households on the plains couldn't get a visa to go to the lakeside either. It wasn't a big problem for them to stay for a day or two, but if they stayed for a long time, there would probably be a problem. Everyone knew that the monsters were usually the most troublesome.
So, the idea of letting the guys on the Monster Mountain rent a house at their relatives' house and giving them a severance pay wouldn't work.
Right now, the most ideal solution was to let the group of monsters who lost their homes temporarily move to Avalon. I fully believed that the environment of that place would make anyone with a normal aesthetic sense forget to go home, and in a short period of time, I could trick them into taking out all the compensation to buy a house locally. But the only obstacle now was Boli Soul Dream. In order to extort more compensation, that immoral Red White had been sparing no effort to publicize the time when she and Octopus Purple had toiled like slaves in the City of Shadows, suffering from hunger and cold, working hard to redeem their freedom, striving to make all the residents of Fantasy Village fear the City of Shadows and all the living facilities attached to it. In order to achieve her evil goal of "converting all the residents' compensatory living space into cash to quickly get rich." I had always hated this kind of behavior that poached from the Empire to fill the pockets of individualism, swindled the vast majority of rural residents into the city for legal relocation, and used the unequal information for personal gain. So last night, I urgently called Artemis to hurry up and organize the Heroic Spirits to start writing a set of Avalon living guides. I was also preparing to set up more than 20 public welfare travel agencies, with the most famous Heroic Spirits in Avalon who were good with spears as the travel agency presidents. This would ensure that the residents of Fantasy Village who went on a field trip would have a perfect travel experience (believe me, all unexpected situations would be attracted away by the presidents). On this basis, I would quickly establish a new generation of Avalon real estate development leaders guided by the Empire's values. In any case, I had to quickly let the residents of Fantasy Village move in first no matter what. Even if they didn't move in, I had to quickly use various tourism projects to earn back the compensation money. At the very least, I couldn't let that immoral Soul Dream benefit so easily!
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