Chapter 148: Take Me to Terra Again

Deep within the Eye of Fear.

At the core wrapped by countless Subspace Energy, this place was once just an ordinary universe.

But because it lay closest to the Great Rift and was the first to be corrupted by Subspace's evil energy, the world here has almost been completely taken over by Subspace.

Later, to forge various profane machines using Subspace laws, this became the densest hub of the Dark Mechanical Church, and due to its prolific production, the core of the Eye of Fear's Rebel Forces.

A shrine world at this moment.

Unlike the National Church's holy world, the Chaos shrine world nearly venerates all the evil deities of Subspace.

Every Chaos follower can find a shrine here to worship their chosen evil god, becoming their final path to spiritual peace.

Only unlike the past Chaos followers who performed bloody profanities there, the recent shrine world is strangely crowded yet quiet.

The Whisperer Legion of the shrine world, watching the sky‑filled fleet in orbit and the densely packed ground army, at one point thought they were still at the Great Banquet!

Because orbit not only teemed with warships, the ground also held Astat, the rebellious Knight Family, and even several Titan Legions!

Seeing these towering Divine Machines, the Whisperers were speechless at how the Dark Mechanical Church truly hides things.

Then they watched those former legions kneel wordlessly in the grand open‑air plaza used for prayer, enduring various bodily corruptions while displaying reverence and hope far beyond any previous worship of evil gods.

Although no new prayers had yet arisen, as more fleets arrived and the amassed army grew denser, within the endless prayers a single name began to drift through the murmurs, roaming the whole world.

"Lord Xisi."

"Mercifully defeat them."

The Chaos Rebel Army rarely calls itself rebel forces, because the Terra War of old had a certain aesthetic of a decisive clash.

Who lost is the rebel!

Thus the nine legions gathered now do not see themselves as betraying the Empire; they merely think they simply didn't win the fight that day.

Now, the suddenly appearing Xisi not only promises to cleanse their corruption, but also to lead them back to Terra, showing the other half of the Empire‑defending legions who truly represents the real Empire.

Such bodily and spiritual salvation attracts the loyalty of these former legions far more than Abadon's endless war driven solely by vengeance.

After all, by the later stages of Abadon's campaign, aside from its core units of former Great Banquet veterans, the rank‑and‑file were almost entirely a new generation of war bands and even hired pirates and steel warriors—neutral factions.

Now, those kneeling on the grand plaza to pray to Xisi include not only countless war bands but also an equally massive, endless host of Ancient Legions veterans.

Even some the Fearless, under the reverent gaze of Ancient Legion veterans, struggle to reach this world where Xisi promised redemption.

Watching these reassembled Ancient Legions, the Whisperers of the shrine world felt a surge reminiscent of the post‑Terra clash, then stubbornly holding the line against the loyalist siege, steadily retreating to the Eye of Fear.

At the same time, a group of shirt‑less white‑washed rebels, clearly broken from their original legions under the guidance of white‑washed Whisperers, transformed the Astat priest aboard the Dream Illusion Vessel, using his iron doctrine to lead the Ancient Legions in repeated devout prayers: "Lord Xisi!"

Heilu now stands before a crowd of Ancient veterans still recalling their Whisperer allegiance, watching them pray Xisi's name under his command; Heilu feels these zealots resemble more fervent devotees of Xisi than he does.

Then, on the other side, the Whisperers who white‑washed earlier have long shed profane scriptures and evil god titles from their faces, replacing them with black‑gold renditions of Xisi's name and the crazy collection of certain "quotes" Xisi once uttered.

These quotes, interpreted by the most devout white‑washed Whisperers, have been turned into various scriptures and begin to be re‑etched onto their exposed, normal bodies.

This prayer did not last only a day or a few; in fact, two months earlier, a massive gathering of Ancient Legions had already assembled here.

During those two months, at every moment more Ancient Legions arrived, piloting equally ancient warships to this spot.

Now, as the moment of Xisi's promise draws nearer, even after two months of meditative prayer, the entire shrine world still shows an uncontrollable agitation.

No one moves, but "Lord Xisi" no longer drifts in murmurs; it now sweeps with shouts!

The momentum is so stirring that even the local Whisperers, though not aligning with Xisi, must project a countdown of time with spirit energy from the plaza's heights.

Then everyone watches the spirit‑energy second hand constantly pointing to the final moment; when all hands fully align, the restless world instantly falls into death‑like silence.

And then…

There was no deliberate delay in its appearance, yet the orbit showed no change at all.

All warships on the orbit with scanners fully active found no sign of any Subspace Leap.

All Astat felt a sudden thud in their hearts, but as they puzzled at Heilu and the white‑washed rebels, in the instant their gazes shifted, above their heads, at the center of the plaza, on the massive spirit‑energy clock, a black‑gold hull emerged from the translucence.

Only then did everyone realize that Xisi's flagship had already appeared in the shrine world.

And it hovered at a face‑to‑face distance, inspecting each legion veteran yearning for Xisi's redemption.

What shocked the veterans even more was that when the flagship fully revealed its shape—though its primary colors and statues had changed—many instantly recognized it as the Dream Illusion Vessel.

Moreover, since the last Great Banquet, this reunion after ten thousand years made the legion veterans' already stirred emotions burn even hotter upon discovering that their newly followed Xisi piloted the Dream Illusion Vessel.

Because even defeated legion veterans, when recalling the Grand Expedition, are filled with boundless reminiscence and glory.

Now, their new legion master will lead them on a new expedition.

And this time, the Dream Illusion Vessel stands on their side!

An endless crowd holds its breath in dead silence.

When Aolake fully revealed its form, its exaggerated barrel aimed at the shrine world beneath its feet, the Whisperer war bands wisely chose to shut down all anti‑air firepower.

Then, under everyone's tense watch, a mass of black lightning rose from Aolake's apex...

Slowly ascending!

"Come out with me."

"I will take you......"

"Go to Terra once more!"