Alice in the Land of Steam

Saint Tomi never concealed his experiences in the Heavenly Temple from his students, because he knew that only the spirit of unity could help mankind walk on the right path. His will was just a drop of water, and only with the support of more people could it be gathered into a torrent. These young people who studied under him and had pious hopes and lofty will undoubtedly be the cusp of this torrent. They will face more difficult challenges, but they are also destined to create more glorious achievements.

It was Saint Tomi's honesty, as well as his wisdom, perseverance, and selfless spirit that made the thirteen outstanding young people in the entire human race convinced and became the first believers of the Spiritual Prayer Society. However, the saint was not completely honest in this matter. At least there was one thing he did not mention, which was how he knew the location of the Heavenly Temple and why he was sure that as long as he arrived there, he would have hope.

He once explained that he "received the revelation from the goddess", but this vague statement was obviously not convincing enough, so even if the students did not say it on the surface, they all had their own guesses in secret. Vanos believed that the teacher must have discovered the various messages left by the goddess through summarizing the creation myths of various races, so he called it divine revelation; Mingte judged based on the teacher's footprints on the earth that he had briefly stayed in the sky city of Karagang of the Feather Clan. Perhaps it was in that city that was said to be closest to the sky that he saw the shadow of the Temple of Heaven from afar, so he called it apocalypse; Tutankhamun even swore that in fact, before the birth of the magic potion, extraordinary power had already appeared among humans, but only a few elites could master it. That power came from the oldest tribes, and the teacher was one of them. He brought ancient legends and the truth of the universe, just to spread the secrets that the tribe had guarded for eternity...

All these speculations are based on logic, and no one has considered options beyond logic, because in their cognition, how could a saint who is known for his wisdom and rationality be a person dominated by emotions?

But today, they heard the answer with their own ears.

dream.

The fate of mankind was once determined by a dream.

Although the saint said frankly that dreams are not illusions, but a revelation and a prediction of the future, obviously not everyone can accept such a specious statement, especially when it is beyond the scope of their rationality and logic. But if the facts are in front of us, how can a saint regard such absurd words as facts, and even say them in this learning hall with wisdom and pursuit as its motto?

Kenos's heart was full of contradictions. He couldn't tell whether he was shocked, confused or afraid. Was he afraid of the possibility behind this statement? Or did he realize that he was standing at the dividing point of history, and sadly, no matter what choice he made, he could not change the final direction. The Cursed Ring King, who was always known for his severity and justice in the minds of the people, had a drop of cold sweat on his forehead. He stood up suddenly and took a deep breath, and the sound of his breathing was particularly harsh in the silent hall.

"I don't agree with you, teacher." He said calmly, "Dreams are irrational. Even if we compare them for a moment, they are just one of countless probabilities that happened to happen. But you regard probability as inevitability and let your emotions dominate your will. I think this will lead us down a wrong path."

"us?"

The saint seemed to have anticipated his choice, so he did not have any unexpected reaction. He just asked calmly: "Besides Cenos, is there anyone who opposes this resolution?"

Kenos turned his head and looked at his classmates. Some of them looked calm, some were still hesitant, and some were vaguely fanatical and impulsive. He saw all these reactions, and for some reason he suddenly lost the motivation to continue persuading them. After a moment of silence, he said coldly, "Please forgive me for my poor health and inconvenience in participating in today's decision. Excuse me, teacher."

He turned and left the study hall without waiting for Saint Toumi's response. Among the remaining eleven disciples, Saint Fe of the Silent, Saint Emissary of the Ancients, Vanos the Eye of Death and Patricia the Eternal Sleeper looked at each other, stood up at the same time, and said goodbye to their teacher for the same reason; Abraham the Disaster Blade, Zoroaster the White Griffin, Constantine the Enlightener and Baimon the Blood Drinker were firm in their attitudes and sat in their seats without wavering from beginning to end; Spiritual Mentor Inos, King of Construction Tutankhamun and Sky Knight Dist seemed a little hesitant and were stuck in the middle for a while, but in the end the majesty and wisdom of the saint prevailed, so they chose to stay and listen to what was to come.

The twelve disciples who once surrounded the saint and worked tirelessly for the great cause of human rejuvenation seemed to have faced a split at this moment. For those who were not aware of the situation, this was probably a difficult thing to accept. However, in the eyes of Saint Tomi, it was just a historical necessity.

As he always said, all destinies have signs, but the time has not yet come.

After the students who were unwilling to support this matter left, the saint withdrew his gaze and scanned the remaining students one by one, and finally selected those with a more determined attitude: "Abraham, Zoroaster, Constantine, Baimon, this matter will be led by you. Starting from the Midgraal Plain, unify the four city-states and build the land of mankind. Those who go to the east must face the authority of the dragon; those who go to the west will see the waves of the Mirror Sea; those who go to the north, the shadow of the Sky City lingers in the clouds; and those who go to the south, the army of the dust elves is ready to move. Whether to win over, or to use, or to be an enemy, or to be a friend, it is still up to you to decide. As for how to act, how to expand, how to use faith as a banner, and how to use the extraordinary as a weapon, there is no need for me to tell you one by one. If you want to do something, you must think about it. Anyone who thinks it well can be honored and famous in history books."

He then turned his gaze to the few people who were not so firm in their attitude towards this matter and only stayed because of their trust in the teacher, and said calmly: "Inos, Tutankhamun, and Dester, the three of you will be responsible for assisting in the process of unifying the cities, calming the people's hearts, and strictly preventing certain people with ulterior motives from taking advantage of this to cause trouble and confuse the situation. If necessary, you can use thundering measures, it's all up to you to judge."

The three of them looked at each other, agreed one after another, and secretly breathed a sigh of relief. This was already the best result. In terms of emotions, they were actually unwilling to participate in this unjust war that was called rising but was actually expansion, but they could not just sit back and watch. Therefore, sitting in the rear to stabilize the people's hearts and clearing out the evildoers to deter the scoundrels would not only complete the tasks assigned by the teacher, but also avoid being stained with too much innocent blood. It was the best of both worlds.

Of course, another meaning of having the best of both worlds might be to please neither side. When the three of them looked at each other, they saw the helplessness and wry smiles in each other's eyes.

However, what is a dilemma for them, for others, may just be the perfect opportunity for them to temporarily endure the claws and teeth and look forward to day and night. The truly ambitious people are good at hiding the raging fire in their eyes, using a humble attitude as a disguise, and similar thoughts have been stirring and hinted at countless inconspicuous moments. Abraham suddenly said: "In terms of territory, military strength, resources and even the foundation of ordinary extraordinary people, our human race is indeed qualified to expand outward and spread the goddess's faith. However, in terms of absolute military force, it seems to be lacking. The gods of each tribe are still there, the infinite dragon god Bahamut of the dragon tribe is known to be unparalleled in the world, and the king of the giant tribe is also dominating. If it weren't for the teacher's action, it would be difficult for us to deal with these people with our current strength."

Saint Tumi glanced at the most humble, respectful and restrained student among all the disciples, and saw that his eyes were clear and without any impurities, as if he was really thinking about his great cause when he asked this question. However, the saint knew every one of his disciples very well, so he could naturally hear that the focus of his words was not to emphasize how powerful those people and gods were, or how difficult the great cause was, but a time qualifier: now.

If the gods who cannot be defeated in the "present" are given more room to grow and let go, they will definitely be defeated in the "future", so there is no need to bother the teacher with this. After all, there is only one Saint Tumi, but Wei Ye faces many enemies.

In those pure and clean eyes, there was actually a raging flame. Saint Tomi was absolutely certain that Abraham would be the one who would go the furthest among all his students, because he knew how to restrain his ambitions and desires, and even more so how to release them at the right time, just like releasing a beast trapped in a cage, hunger would drive it to greedily eat everything. "Extraordinary times call for extraordinary measures."

The Saint's tone was calm without a trace of disturbance: "But don't forget that the ultimate goal of this war is to spread the glory of the Goddess and make all races believe in her. It is also to help us humans grab enough resources before the end of the world, so that we can lead all races to survive this catastrophe. So, I hope you can remember these four words -"

He paused, and suddenly in his mind came the words that the stern and cold girl had said to him when he left the Holy Temple a long time ago. Now he repeated them to his students, but it was a little ironic. But who can blame fate for being so ironic? Everything attached to the wheel will eventually return to the starting point: "Enough is enough, everyone."

A faint sigh, accompanied by inexplicable melancholy thoughts, echoed in the ancient learning hall and lasted for a long time.

……

Kenos did not hear the sigh. He walked on the corridor surrounded by huge round arched stone pillars. His steady footsteps could not cover up his worries and impatience. The King of Cursed Rings, who was known for his severity and justice, stopped when he passed the courtyard. Standing on the corridor and looking into the distance, he could just take in the prosperous and bustling scene of Ardes City. Those shops and workshops, water wheels and mills, and the people coming and going, once made him extremely convinced that following the saint to learn was the most correct thing he had ever done in his life.

However, as time goes by, can right turn into wrong, just as the seeds of betrayal were planted at the very beginning of the oath.

He was silent for a while.

The people behind him also stopped and looked at each other. After a while, the Ancient Heavenly Master suddenly said in a soliloquy, "Actually, Abraham and his friends' choice is not unexpected, because they have long been dissatisfied with the oath made by the teacher and the fourteen kings."

Everyone turned their heads and looked at her. Kenos seemed indifferent, but he had clenched his fists. Mingte seemed not to notice their mood and continued to talk to himself: "This is what I observed in my daily interactions. Among the twelve disciples, only Abraham and others have higher aspirations on the path of transcendence, but for us, this realm is the limit. If we want to move forward, we may end up like Mecantheus. This is the price of power, and it is also the reason why Your Majesty wants to tell us to stop when we are satisfied. However, they think that this is an obstacle secretly set up by Your Majesty when He granted the teacher the power of the king. They do not want mortals to reach the realm of true gods, and that oath is more like a bondage of their thoughts and will. For this reason, they have been secretly seeking ways to bypass this obstacle..."

"madness."

Kenos said coldly, interrupting Mingte's words: "Your Majesty has granted humans the power of the kingship, allowing humans to be self-reliant. We humans will spread the faith of Your Majesty the Goddess and abide by the oaths we made to Your Majesties to end disputes and maintain peace. This is the principle of equal exchange. How can there be constraints and obstacles? As for the erosion phenomenon, it is nothing more than a congenital defect of mortal bodies that cannot withstand the power of true gods. If with this weak body, they can be ranked alongside the infinite dragon god Bahamut or the god of the sky Losonov as human gods, wouldn't they feel satisfied?"

"It is difficult for people to feel satisfied, Kenos." Vanos, the Eye of Death, said in a deep voice: "There are differences between five fingers, let alone people's hearts? Different pursuits mean different concepts; different concepts mean different directions; different directions mean different directions, how can we walk side by side?"

Kenos remained silent, while Silent Saint Fe was worried: "Even if you pursue power, you should use appropriate methods. Breaking the agreement with Your Excellencies so harshly may lead to unbearable consequences. Have they really thought it through?"

"I'm afraid I've thought it through very clearly."

Patricia, the long-sleeper who was always taciturn but always able to speak out the key points, suddenly said, "In their minds, I'm afraid the oath is not important, the position is the most important. As long as they stand on the side of mankind, they are already invincible. It's a very simple truth. If Your Majesties are really dissatisfied with such acts of betraying the oath and decide to take back the kingship granted to mankind, will you choose to acquiesce, or stand on the side of Abraham and others and rebel against Your Majesty?"

"Vanus, are you willing to lose this power and let the war reignite on earth? Fei, are you willing to lose this power and let mankind sink again? Mingte, are you willing to lose this power in exchange for the forgiveness of your majesties?"

The people being questioned either frowned and didn't answer, or avoided her gaze. Patricia didn't care. She looked up at the back of the person standing straight in front of her, as if he would never waver. She asked word by word, "And you, Kenos, are you willing to lose this power, let time go back to the past, and pretend that nothing had happened?"

The calm and clear questioning voice echoed in the empty corridor and was gradually diluted by the sound of the wind coming from a distant place.

Kenos still had his back to the crowd. He did not answer, but just pursed his lips.

It suddenly occurred to him that what the teacher said made sense.

The person who knows nothing is actually yourself. (End of this chapter)