Chapter 718: I Have Returned

Leikton extended his right hand, which wore the mechanical glove, and gave the empty air a phantom pull.

Every component that makes up this divine realm, every wisp of steam, began to churn, rapidly shifting color and shape.

The ever‑rising steam suddenly sank, losing its hue, and the various mechanical parts became ever smaller, shrunk to a point barely visible to the naked eye.

Then neon‑like colors appeared, and the illusory realm turned into a kaleidoscopic city silhouette, as if it had leapt from the steam age into the electric age in an instant.

As the illusory divine realm stabilized, Leikton's body became ethereal, breaking into streams of data that merged with the realm, intending to erase all marks belonging to the God of Steam and Machinery.

By leveraging the steam‑filled realm and the uniqueness of the Perfecter, Leikton has essentially mastered this path, allowing him to use the aggregating effect of extraordinary traits to perceive the countless illusory stars scattered across the world.

They are big or small, bright or dim; each represents an extraordinary individual on the Perfecter's path, or a magical item, or a transcendent creature.

When Leikton's gaze fell upon them, the illusory stars began to flicker—some vanished outright, some grew brighter, a cacophonous layered sound echoed like a prayer yet indecipherable, while others remained unchanged, as if lifeless.

Among all the illusory stars, two emitted the strongest sense of aggregation, seemingly traits not yet embraced by anyone; even sensing Leikton's gaze, they gave no response.

"These are the Enlightener, excluding the portion swept away by Steam; these two stars represent Bono Va and the lost trait, respectively?"

Muttering to himself, Leikton tried to establish a link with that trait, pinpoint its location, to facilitate later retrieval.

Before he could complete the link, the illusory star abruptly vanished from his sight, as if someone were erasing it piece by piece with an eraser.

"Hidden by someone?" he whispered, and Leikton ceased to pay further attention to it.

As the sole apex of the existing path, he need not do anything; under the pull of fate, that trait will eventually manifest around him of its own accord, through some coincidence or chance, and he only needs to seize the opportunity at the crucial moment.

Calming his thoughts, Leikton focused on the faith belonging to the God of Steam and Machinery; with uniqueness and the divine realm in his grasp, he easily intercepted prayers directed toward the God of Steam and Machinery and responded on its behalf.

All the prayers accumulated over this period flooded Leikton's mind, causing the gently flowing data stream within the divine realm to ripple layer upon layer, flashing chaotic starlight like a sky ablaze with countless stars:

"Great Steam God"

"You are the embodiment of essence, the guardian of craftsmen, the brilliance of technology"

"Merciful Lord, my husband, my children, my kin have perished in the war; what shall I do? I cannot find a reason to keep living?"

"Great Steam God, please let me see Lava once more, even if only in a dream; I truly miss him."

"Great Steam God, recently some in the Church have begun to re‑worship the former 'God of the Craftsmen'; I have covertly gathered information and found the source among certain bishops and deacons. Please tell me whether I should continue investigating."

"Great Steam God, the council has approved the unequal treaty proposed by the new regime of the Southern Continent, intending to carve out Leidon Province, Aolei Province, Suxite Province, Lim Province, Pas Province, and Archipelago Province as cease‑fire bargaining chips."

"Great Steam God, since the war ended the Pope's crown has not appeared; a month has passed—what should we do?"

Settling his mind and listening carefully to the prayers that had accumulated, Leikton noticed that prayers from the upper echelons of the Steam Church were few; they seemed frantic at first, then for unknown reasons gave up.

Within the data‑stream state, he used massive calculations to consider every possibility: "Although not a deity skilled in divination or prophecy, everything has been sequenced to zero; Steam will inevitably have some premonition and make pre‑emptive arrangements."

"If it fails to wrest me away, it will abandon its current identity and revert to the former 'God of the Craftsmen'."

"This must be one of the preparations; it still retains a trait of the Enlightener, and I need to stabilize my own state, await the opening of the Western Continent, and will not deliberately reclaim the trait or suppress it—at least not for now. This is its time to recover and develop."

"After the Divine War, the Steam Church lost some senior members, also swept away many sealed items and a trove of files, intending to restart the Steam Church under the guise of a secret organization?"

Calming his thoughts, Leikton refocused his attention on those prayer light points.

Discarding the meaningless and non‑responsive portions, Leikton used the uniqueness in his hand to give appropriate responses to the rest, causing miracles of the God of Steam and Machinery to reappear among the believers. Then, relying on those prayer light points and the connections he had forged with the God's followers, he linked their consciousnesses to the World Tree, allowing them to glimpse a corner of the Perfect Land and hear their own voices.

At that moment, whether praying believers, priests or bishops conducting Mass, or Heart of Machinery members on a mission, all froze their actions, staring around with caution or stupefied awe.

Layered vivid color blocks twisted into upward‑extending lines; their spirits seemed to be caught in a vast river, drifting uncontrollably with the current, rising ever higher as if to touch the illusory starry sky above and the ever‑rising steam.

After a brief interval, a magnificent realm awash with myriad floating neon hues unfolded before them.

It is a nation built from countless mechanical constructs; every spot, every corner exudes the beauty of lines and machinery, seeming to transcend the current era, evoking inevitable awe and yearning.

To ordinary believers it is merely a fleeting illusion, but to Steam Church clergy and Heart of Machinery members, they see more and hear more.

Leikton's gaze swept over each of them, whether they had secretly left the Church, had already wavered in faith, or still clung to it.

He regarded everyone equally, then a vague silhouette emerged from the clear, weighty light of civilization, revealing the essence and aura of civilization and knowledge.

As members of the Church, those consciousnesses he left behind all sensed a familiar aura belonging to the God of Steam and Machinery, an aura of civilization and knowledge, now more magnificent and overwhelming than before.

They shivered instantly, body and mind unable to steady themselves, forced to bow their heads and pray continuously to ease their inner tension.

Maintaining this pressure, Leikton's calm, steady voice resonated through the divine realm: "I have returned, bringing innovation and a higher civilization."

"I have become versed in all things; not merely the guardian of craftsmen and the brilliance of technology, but also knowledge, civilization, mystery, and truth."

"Those who worship me must obey my precepts: faith from the heart, knowledge supreme, follow civilization, follow reason."

"From today onward, your faith is free, born of the heart, not shackling limbs; faith is a path for all to walk, it may be multiple, overlapping, intersecting—so long as it does not stray from the road of knowledge, I will walk with you always."

"On the road of knowledge, I am at the beginning, in the process, and at the end; I walk with every seeker. When confusion arises, I become a lighthouse; when thorns appear, knowledge is a blade; when ravines gape, civilization can build a bridge."

"The road of knowledge leads to all things; when walking it, remember: no arrogance, all things are equal."

"From today onward, Bono Va will become the new Pope, and the Church's focus will shift to the south of Inditis; stay or advance, you may choose freely."

Inditis, along the coast of the Misty Sea in Pas Province, capital Le Seur, on a hastily erected central square, was packed to the brim with a dense crowd.

Many of them were vibrant youths from various provinces of Inditis, as well as nearby Lunburg, Segal and other locales.

Today marks the first day of Inditis's completed split and the inauguration of the Southern Inditis regime, as well as the first day Roselle reclaimed the imperial title! As a legendary figure known throughout Inditis, whether out of curiosity or idol worship, many relatively well‑off youths boarded steam trains to rush to Le Seur, to attend the founding of the Southern Inditis regime and Roselle's coronation ceremony.

On the sea not far from the harbor, massive ships crossed the Misty Sea, lining up neatly and anchoring steadily, oddly unaffected by wind and waves.

Leading the fleet was a gigantic five‑mast sailing ship, Bernade's "Dawn", with Jadeliya's "Future" moored nearby.

On the deck of the Future, Black Cat Pas wore a despondent expression as he stared at a tiny dried fish that had sprouted from a mushroom, flicking his tongue at it repeatedly yet never managing to swallow it.

After half an hour of probing, he waved his paw, flung the dried fish into the sea, then ran to Jadeliya and asked:

"Captain, why do we still eat Frank's mushrooms now that the war is over?"

Jadeliya did not answer Pas's question, her gaze fixed on the nearby Dawn, watching the tall figure on its deck.

(End of Chapter)