Chapter 223: Mother of Nature (Seeking Monthly Votes)

"Surprised?"

Looking at the two men whose faces seemed full of complaints they didn't know how to voice, Cornelius gave an irresponsible laugh: "It doesn't matter... we have plenty of time, we can chat slowly."

"Xiaoximeng, go get three cups of coffee, then go watch the shop."

He invited Aaron and Bruce to sit down at a metal table and looked Bruce over: "You must be Bruce Field, right? Clark mentioned you many times in his letters to me... you were the one he worried about most. By the way, your teacher, is he doing well?"

"My teacher..." Bruce's voice was heavy: "He has passed away."

"Life will eventually return to nature. May the existence he believed in accept his soul..."

Aaron looked at Cornelius's semi-metallic palm and muttered to himself: 'It's actually not "Mechanical Mentor"?'

Aaron pondered on the side: 'As for the one in the Lotus Eater Village, firstly, it's too dangerous, and secondly, only a few of us know about it, so there's no rush at all... In fact, Clark probably wouldn't want Bruce to walk his path again. The nature of a Ghoul is too high; unless one walks the "Mystery" path to the point of opening the Fourth Primordial Substance, I'm afraid there's a high probability of being gradually influenced...'

The expression on Cornelius's face became even more fanatical: "He is the master of vitality, the protector of forests and animals, the Dominator of the Steel Jungle!"

Cornelius took an ancient Secret Transmission from the drawer beside him, with the title written on the cover in Spirit World Language—"Nature Secret Language".

"Bruce, you certainly believe in the Keeper of Secrets, but what about Aaron? Do you have an existence you believe in?"

Aaron apologized.

"I understand. I will work hard to complete the Ritual as soon as possible."

Cornelius displayed his metal palm.

'This is brand new content in the millennium of Occultism development. By concurrently cultivating different aspects, what can be gained, and what can be avoided?'

With many questions, Aaron saw the awkward yet polite smile on Bruce's face as he pretended to listen intently to Cornelius preaching the doctrine of the "Mother of Nature".

Aaron's eyes lit up: 'A Steel Druid? It's quite full of steampunk style... Could it be that he can even transform into something like a howitzer?'

Aaron feigned a conflicted look: "But I haven't had time to make a decision yet."

"Mr. Cornelius, are you a 'Druid'? Does the Ancient Eye School have a 'Druid' lineage?"

Cornelius performed a Ritual gesture.

To be honest, Aaron was still quite curious about this dual-aspect Hidden Existence, so he didn't interrupt and let Cornelius continue.

After Cornelius finished, Aaron asked curiously.

"I think..." Cornelius sipped his coffee and mused: "Your teacher probably wanted me to take you to the Druid Holy Land to complete a 'History Retrospection' Ritual, and then introduce you to the 'Ancient Eye' School... You know, the power contained in every piece of Secret History has a limit, so the number of people in the Ritual must be strictly controlled. The Secret History Yinjie in the Druid Holy Land belongs to your teacher's lineage. Now that your teacher has passed away, a spot has opened up, and he wanted you to inherit this legacy as soon as possible..."

"Then please allow me to introduce to you the great existence I believe in—the Mother of Nature!"

Cornelius did not shy away from this; instead, he introduced it generously to the two, making Aaron feel as if he were seeing those Bishops in the Holy Spirit Church responsible for proselytizing and recruiting.

'And can this path really be walked to the end to become one of the Twelve Siyuan?'

He opened the Secret Transmission directly to the first page: "Don't worry, my Lord is a god of tolerance and love. This Secret Transmission only records some introductory knowledge of Druids and does not have particularly strong pollution."

"Of course, this divergence does not mean that our two factions are mortal enemies. On the contrary, we believe in the same great existence. Although He is not one of the Twelve Siyuan, He has power comparable to the Twelve Siyuan! He encompasses the elements of 'Red' and 'Pupa'... It's just that this existence has two faces, so sometimes He issues contradictory Divine Oracles... This is also seen as the root of the 'Druid' split."

Cornelius laughed: "In your impression, should Druids live in the woods, wear furs, and live like the natives or even savages of South Innis?"

Cornelius shook his head with a smile: "No, I belong to a Druid sect—the Oak Ring! I have not joined Clark's school!"

Aaron responded with a smile, his tone so sincere that Cornelius was deeply moved: "Preaching alone is not intuitive enough. I have a portrait of my Lord here. You can pay your respects to the greatness of my Lord..."

"Mr. Cornelius, you said you are a 'Druid'?"

Bruce gripped his necklace tightly.

After preaching incessantly for half an hour, Cornelius seemed to regain a bit of clarity and apologized first.

'Hmm, as expected, it is a Hidden Existence of "Red" and "Pupa"...'

'Is the Mother of Nature a Hidden Existence outside the Twelve Siyuan... Is He one of the identities of my old friends, or something else?'

"It's nothing, I have also benefited a lot."

This made Aaron have to suspect that the madness and influence he gained after ascending to a higher Primordial Substance might just be—preaching fanaticism!

"I claim to believe in the Holy Spirit externally, but in reality... because of my own path, I might choose those who possess the aspect of 'Light' in the future..."

"Yes, but that's not quite accurate, because 'Druid' is the name of the Fourth Primordial Substance in my school. I am currently only at the Third Primordial Substance..."

Cornelius seemed to fall into a frenzy.

"Hmm... sorry, I have always had some persistence regarding preaching, but I cannot confide in ordinary customers. Xiaoximeng's head only has gears and bearings; he's not much better than an oak stake... It's not easy to have two people who can listen to my preaching seriously."

"No, in fact, within our Druid sect, there is indeed a group of fundamentalists. They are quite stubborn, living in deep mountains and old forests, and will even attack farmers clearing land... But our 'Oak Ring' belongs to the reformist faction. Existence is nature. This huge city, with its countless reinforced concrete buildings, is also a Steel Jungle! Metal and steam, gunpowder, electricity... and everything that exists in the world is part of nature. The eyes of those primitive factions are too narrow; they cannot understand the true meaning of nature! The true meaning of nature lies in flesh and steel... Although we cannot craft Magical Items, we are good at modifying ourselves, perfectly combining flesh, steel, and gunpowder!"

"Then why did my teacher ask me to come to you? And this!" Bruce took out the silver necklace of the "Ancient Eye" from under his collar.

"It is I who was narrow-minded."

At this moment, blood vessels spread across this palm, forming tools such as tweezers, scissors, hammers, and files, bringing a sense of amazement to Bruce and Aaron.

'Hmm, this is different from the "Mechanical Mentor". It's not completely transforming the body into machinery, but a fusion of metal and flesh... Animate metal? Liquid metal?'

"You are... Aaron, right? You really do have a pair of beautiful purple eyes."

'In other words, if I don't inherit it as soon as possible, there is a possibility of it being snatched away? It seems the infighting within Clark's school is also quite intense...'

Aaron glanced over.

The next instant, his pupils constricted, and he found it difficult to control his expression. What was on it was, shockingly...

(End of chapter)