Alice in the Land of Steam

Chapter 265 Do you want to know the truth of history?

On August 1778, 8, the United Churches and the Kingdom's Ministry of Religious Affairs jointly promulgated the "Decree on Restricting the Operation and Preaching Rights of Illegal Church Organizations Such as Spiritual Prayer Societies and Druids", referred to as the Religious Decree, which prohibits the 12 religions mentioned in the decree from establishing churches and spreading their beliefs in the Western Continent. Violators will be arrested by the United Churches and various countries.

On June 1855, 6, a supplementary decree to the religious decree was promulgated, expanding the scope of restrictions from the 5 religions mentioned in the decree to all religions in the Western Continent except the seven major orthodox churches. All religions, regardless of size, must complete rectification within days. If they exceed the deadline, they will be banned by force.

One hundred and eighty days, or six months, until January 1856, was the final ultimatum issued by the united religious orders to all false religions in the Western Continent. It could also be considered a decree that changed Linger's fate, even before the Blood Moon anomaly brought about by the Heavenly Feasters and the Blood-Red Banquet.

The young man originally thought that his life would continue on the same path and end in a dull and boring way. But a blue-haired girl leading a lamb told him that fate is predetermined, and the person who eats the golden apple will be drawn into a fate that does not belong to him.

But when it comes down to it, is there anyone in this world whose destiny truly belongs to him or her?
Lingge didn't know, so he remained silent.

"I can feel that you are a true believer, Mr. Ling. In your soul, you hide the most devout faith in the world. I have only felt such piety in teachers and leaders, and they have all stood up for their beliefs and fought against an invincible enemy until death."

When talking about his teacher, Rochelle's expression remained calm. This fertile soil sect practitioner was like a rock in the mountains, stubborn and unshakable. Perhaps only by looking directly into the deepest part of his deep eyes could one vaguely see a trace of memories and regret.

"Believers serve the gods, and seek their wishes through their actions. What they receive is the gods' grace, and what they are confused about is the gods' test. Those who have nothing should believe in their gods, and those who know nothing should seek their gods. With sincerity, you can move the gods' grace, and with truth, you can move people's spirituality, and then you can get what you have and what you know. This is the words of the saints, and it is the common sense of the world."

Rochelle said something obscure and difficult to understand, and then cast her eyes on Lingge who had been silent all the time: "The blood moon incident in Linville City is undoubtedly a conspiracy led by the religious orders. They deliberately indulged in this matter, not only successfully wiped out the Heavenly Feasters and the Blood Red Banquet, but also made governments of various countries pay attention to the legitimacy of the "Religious Decree". The people in power do not seek the purity of faith, but the stability of the social situation. Therefore, they will turn a blind eye to the brutal cleansing that will happen next, and let the religious orders go ahead and persecute the pagans. By then, I don't know how many churches will be forced to close, how many believers will be displaced, and even beheaded..."

"It seems that you are more rational than I thought." After staring at me for a while, he looked away and said, "However, I will not be disappointed because faith is a decision made from the heart, not something that is swept away by some external force, like being swept away by a mighty flood."

Lingge replied evasively.

Hearing this, a look of surprise emerged on the walker's face for the first time. He looked down at Lingge and found that the latter's expression was so calm, as if he was talking about a trivial matter, rather than a big thing like closing the church. For the first time, he felt that he could not see through the young man in front of him.

Such a question seems a bit vague.

"This is a test given to the world by God, Mr. Ling." Rochelle's voice was low but very powerful: "If you are a true believer who is unwilling to succumb to the persecution of the Religious Decree and vows to maintain the purity of your faith, you must unite with the church to fight against it. There is no choice."

"It's just a special kind of magic." Rochelle's eyes were deep and profound. "It can gather the power of everyone into one. If used properly, it may be able to counter the power of the Construct Mecha and become a sharp weapon against the combined forces of the cult."

Faith is a decision that comes from the heart... Lingge was a little dazed.

Ling Ge came back to his senses and did not answer. Instead, he asked: "How powerful is it? Is it more powerful than the constructed mecha you just mentioned?"

"I have never heard of such magic."

"I have accepted the conditions of the City Parish Council and closed the church before the Religious Ordinance was enforced." Linger shook his head and said, "It seems that you are disappointed, Mr. Rochelle."

But what he didn't know was -

At this moment, Rochelle suddenly asked him: "If you are given enough power, will you change your choice, Mr. Ling?"

In his opinion, Lingge is undoubtedly a true believer, so he will naturally not accept the harsh restrictions of the "Religious Decree", and in this way, he will definitely unite with the church and become an enemy. As he said, there is no choice, and it is not something that can be solved by saying "I don't want to be an enemy".

"That surprised me."

"Do you think I should know about this kind of magic?"

"It should have been like this." "Originally?"

"Nothing, Mr. Ling." Rochelle shook her head: "Maybe sometimes, not knowing is a good thing."

Linger thought his attitude was a little strange. Why was he so sure that he knew that kind of magic? Or was it that he was not the one who should know, but all the churches affected by the "Religious Decree" were among those who knew about it?

Unfortunately, the Holy Goddess Church seems to be different from other churches.

The two fell into silence, one staring at the old letters in the glass display case in a trance, and the other was thinking about what kind of magic the so-called "special magic" should be. No one took the initiative to speak to break the silence.

Time passed silently. After a few minutes, Rochelle seemed to withdraw his mind from the letter and spoke again, but he mentioned another topic: "What do you think about this Nimser World Expo, Mr. Ling?"

"What do you think?" Ling Ge thought for a moment and said, "It's very grand and interesting, and the theme is also very grand."

"Grand?" Rochelle laughed softly, "Not bad."

The history and future of mankind, in a nutshell, is the entire civilization. Taking "civilization" as the theme is indeed much more grand than the themes of previous World Expos.

but.

"If we trace back history, those buried under the dust are more magnificent." The traveler from the Fertile Soil Sect slowly raised his head and gazed at the magnificent dome and church-style relief murals of the Lubeon Museum. Then, he asked Linger a question: "Do you know why Nimscher can be called the 'International City' and is so well-known that even another name, 'City of Fountains', cannot compare with it?"

When Lingge heard this question, his expression suddenly became strange: not long ago, he had just told his companions this history, but he didn't expect that he would have to tell it for the second time now?

He briefly told Rochelle about the history of the "War of Rectification". Seeing Rochelle's surprised expression, he explained, "I studied history at university and looked for relevant information before coming to Nimsher, so I know about it."

"I see."

Rochelle nodded in understanding, his surprise and confusion gone. He said, "Your explanation is already very comprehensive. I have nothing to add, Mr. Ling. The rest are just questions that puzzle us - and the world: Why did the Kingdom of Great Britta take the initiative to start this war? Why did the kingdom win both battles against two powerful countries? Why did the two invaded countries decide to sit down at the negotiation table and negotiate with the Kingdom of Great Britta after only losing one battle? These questions are still mysteries of history. If they are not solved, it will only be the part that people know about in the exhibition, which cannot represent the history and future of mankind, let alone be a truly grand theme."

Linger disagrees with his statement: "If we cannot trace back in time, I am afraid no one dares to say that they can see through all the fog. Grasping the known history is the limit of human exploration of the long river of time. It is a bit harsh to force it."

"Indeed."

Rochelle's tone was meaningful: "If the fog really exists and is not the result of human manipulation, then what you said is undoubtedly correct, Mr. Ling."

As soon as the words fell, the young man's heart seemed to stop beating for a moment: "What do you mean, Mr. Rochelle? Are you trying to say that the fog of history is actually controlled by someone and someone deliberately covered up the truth?"

"The truth of history is more complicated than that... This will probably be a very long story." Rochelle stared at the dome with a silent look, like an unshakable mountain: "If you are interested, I can tell you."

Lingge turned around and looked in the direction of his companions, and found that they were still visiting various exhibits, discussing something with great interest, and had no intention of leaving for the time being.

So I replied without hesitation: "Please."

　Give me some meow
　　
　
(End of this chapter)