Chapter 111: From Now On, You Will Live as a True Human

The instant he saw the item name "Perfect Artificial Soul," even though the description mentioned nothing, Wu Chang knew this was Ebert's exclusive creation for Eileen.

Eileen was Ebert's greatest masterpiece of his life—from the selection of every raw material for her body, to the carving of every alchemical magic circuit, to the creation of the artificial soul.

Ebert poured all his heart, passion, and hope into Eileen, and he witnessed her growth in full from the sidelines.

Only when he looked back did he realize his feelings for Eileen were no longer merely those for a masterpiece, but more like those for his own daughter.

And precisely because of this, when he saw Eileen writhing in agony within the alchemical apparatus, he chose to abandon his greatest dream and risk exposure by the Church to forcibly terminate the experiment.

Ebert's final blood-soaked last words were to destroy the ritual at Jermaine's estate and fully liberate Saint Eileen.

His obsession lay in the four words: "complete liberation."

The incomplete soul devoid of negative emotions was both the Church's method of controlling Eileen and the limit on Eileen's potential after becoming a god.

It ensured that even if she became an artificial deity, she could never defy the Great Mother.

The perfect artificial soul was Ebert's way of freeing Eileen from the Church's control and restoring her freedom.

Wu Chang had reason to suspect that Ebert's cooperation with Jermaine was not because he truly couldn't let go of the artificial god.

But because he sought the forbidden knowledge collected by Jermaine during his hunts of heretics, to complete this perfect artificial soul.

He also used Jermaine's ambition to extract the Holy Mark from Eileen's body.

Once the Holy Mark was gone, Eileen would no longer be irreplaceable to the Church, and then there would be a chance to flee with her beyond the Church's control.

Unfortunately, Ebert underestimated Jermaine and underestimated the Church, and ultimately ruined everything.

There was still a chance to turn things around, but then he met Wu Chang and vanished without explanation, collecting his box.

Eileen, with her soul now complete, had just awakened from a very long dream.

She looked at Wu Chang and said in a heart-wrenching voice: "Can you tell me in detail about the Church, Briver Island, and Professor Ebert?"

"Of course. That's what I promised Professor Ebert."

Wu Chang told Eileen everything—the plot he experienced in the instance dungeon—and his deductions of the truth.

His earlier story had been that Professor Ebert entrusted Eileen to him; to make this act seem reasonable and legitimate, he subtly embellished Ebert's motives.

Ebert was portrayed as being forced by the Church to create the artificial god.

The Church, unable to defend itself, naturally bore all the blame.

Jermaine became a thoroughly evil villain, luring Ebert to the island under the pretense of saving Eileen, imprisoning him, and forcibly controlling him with the Golden Flying Fish.

In short, in Wu Chang's account, the Church and Jermaine were venomous beasts, while Ebert was a completely selfless and brave old father who endured immense suffering to save Eileen.

And he himself was the courageous, upright stranger personally chosen by the old father, entrusted with his final wishes.

He was also the only person Eileen could trust in this world.

Most importantly, all of the above were true.

As Eileen recalled her past, every single event matched the truth Wu Chang described—especially certain incidents only she, Ebert, and Gilman had known.

Unless Ebert had told him directly, Wu Chang could never have known them.

This made it impossible for her to disbelieve.

The shock of her own origins nearly shattered Eileen's entire worldview; she stared at Wu Chang, her eyes misty.

Eyes are the windows to the soul; through Eileen's eyes, Wu Chang saw that this strong, decisive girl—who once faced death without fear—was now filled with cracks inside.

As if a little more pressure would shatter her completely.

"Mr. Sykos, I don't know what's wrong, but I think I'm feeling sad." Wu Chang embraced Eileen and whispered softly into her ear:

"It's alright. From now on, you will live as a true, flesh-and-blood human. You may feel all the emotions you were never allowed to feel before—if you're sad, cry."

For ordinary humans, crying is an innate skill; everyone is born crying.

But for Eileen, crying was utterly unfamiliar.

Watching Eileen, who struggled even to shed tears, he could do nothing but tighten his embrace.

He rarely comforted people in reality, so he could only follow the methods of the natives in the instance dimension.

The nurses at Briver Town Hospital had comforted him with embraces, so he comforted Eileen the same way—it made sense.

Medical staff are always right.

After a cry that was hardly cathartic, Eileen gradually calmed down.

As a Saintess, she already possessed immense willpower; after syncing with Wu Chang's attributes, her willpower reached 94, making her self-control even stronger.

Merely accepting the reality wasn't enough—she needed to understand it.

!

Wu Chang said: "In my world, the vast majority are ordinary people, and their understanding of supernatural power is even lower than that of the Kingdom of Orgre."

"Eileen, your existence is extremely unique. To avoid trouble, you need to prepare slightly—to gain a general understanding of my world first."

Saying this, Wu Chang took out a laptop and opened the preschool curriculum he had downloaded.

After the preschool curriculum came the complete set of elementary, middle, and high school materials.

"Start with the simplest. Once you've grasped these basics, I'll take you out to see my world. Until then, I'll stay here with you."

Eileen looked at Wu Chang, concerned: "Will you be delaying your own affairs outside by staying here with me?"

Wu Chang's true self cleared his throat and said: "There's something I haven't told you yet—what you've been facing all along is actually my avatar, which you can understand as a remotely controlled magical puppet."

As he spoke, the door to the Inner World opened, and Wu Chang's true body walked in.

Eileen stared at the two Wu Changs—different in physique and face, yet identical in aura—and her mouth opened slightly.

"How is this possible?"

She had spent a long time with the true self and had never sensed it was merely a magical puppet.

Wu Chang snapped his fingers; the avatar's physique and face shifted to match his true body exactly.

Both bodies spoke simultaneously: "Now do you believe? Don't worry—though the bodies differ, the consciousness within is mine. Whichever one you speak to, it's still Knight Sykos you know."

"My consciousness can control both bodies simultaneously. Any questions you have, I can answer anytime."

Aileen nodded blankly. Today she had received too many shocks, so much so that Mr. Sekos having two bodies was already the easiest thing for her to understand.

She needed time to digest her own changes, to adapt to these emotions that had appeared out of thin air, and to try to understand Mr. Sekos's world.

There were many things to be busy with, but that was fine too — once she was busy, she could stop thinking about the past, stop thinking about the Church.

Wu Chang came out of the Inner World, turned on the computer, and was just about to relax for a while when he saw a message in the work group chat that Zhao Yan had just created.

In five days, the Bureau's touring lecture team would arrive at Wanghai City, and Sword Star would also come along with the team.

Sword Star would bring additional compensation from the Evolution Faction and provide them with one-on-one guidance. Zhao Yan told them to be sure to set aside time and arrive on time.

Wu Chang glanced at the screen and typed a reply: "Received!"

(End of this chapter)