Chapter 482: Hard to Change the Defeat, Blessing of Other Gods

The Shadow of the God at the heart of the Theocracy of the Light began to fade as its power waned with terrifying speed. Its pace in dragging the "Node" slowed, causing the transformation of the surrounding environment to stutter and grind toward a near-total standstill.

This gave the inhabitants of the outer reaches more time to flee. At this moment, the circular zone of altered reality spanned roughly seventy percent of the kingdom’s total area.

Within this expanse, save for a handful of Arch-Knight-level mages and warriors who had managed to withstand the void’s distortion, the remaining populace had already been transmuted into void-spawn and slaughtered. This meant that nearly half of the kingdom’s citizens had yet to be touched by the Node’s influence.

The change in the God’s Shadow did not go unnoticed by other entities beyond the borders. Though they could not fathom why the God of Light had suddenly faltered in its task, they recognized the reprieve as a chance to escape, to run for their lives.

"Boom!"

Massive alchemical constructs plummeted from the sky, crashing into the Theocracy. Because they were not deployed in a single location but scattered as widely as the Sky Mechanical City could reach, their descent inevitably crushed houses and shops, grinding residents and their belongings into dust. Yet, at this hour, no one cared for such trifles.

Upon landing, these constructs unfolded from their dormant spherical or cube-like states, shifting into humanoid forms or the spider-like configurations of the "Worker Bees"—the most common maintenance drones of the Sky Mechanical City. With a screech of grinding metal, they broadcasted their purpose to the survivors before commencing the evacuation.

Coordinated by the entities aboard the Sky Mechanical City, the operation was executed with surgical precision. In the inner zones, constructs equipped with spatial teleportation arrays were deployed, while the outer perimeter was handled by more mobile units.

The rescue strategy was twofold: in the outer zones, the spider-like drones cleared paths for the alchemical constructs to ferry residents out of the Theocracy, while in the inner zones, survivors were gathered and whisked away via spatial displacement.

The efficiency of this operation was remarkable, though the sheer scale of the Theocracy presented a logistical nightmare. Even the Sky Mechanical City could not cover the entire kingdom; the rescue was confined to its inner half.

Racing against time, driven by necessity, the Sky Mechanical City sought only to save as many souls as possible.

"Hurry!"

A devotee of the God of Light, once a dual-practitioner of priesthood and sorcery, now found himself a mere mage, stripped of divine aid. He whipped up gales of wind to lift those who had realized the constructs were their only hope, ushering them toward the machines.

"Clack, clack, clack..."

Metallic limbs hammered against the earth, carrying the refugees at breakneck speed beyond the reach of the Node’s influence.

Flashes of light signaled the teleportation of those within the inner arrays, appearing instantly near the borders of the Theocracy, where high-mobility constructs waited to whisk them to safety.

They were not teleported directly out of the kingdom because the distance pushed the limits of the Sky Mechanical City’s mass-teleportation arrays; the spatial load and resource consumption were simply too great.

The mechanical efficiency was indeed high. With the aid of the local believers, the evacuation of the sector under the Sky Mechanical City’s watch was nearly complete within minutes. It was at this juncture that the faltering Shadow of the God resumed its movement, dragging the Node once more.

Just as the Sky Mechanical City had been baffled by the God’s sudden pause, they were now equally ignorant of why it had resumed. All they knew was that even with the movement restarted, the expansion of the Node’s influence was not as rapid as it had been at the start—and that their time was running out.

"The God of Light has resumed its actions, continuing to drag the object required by the Utopia organization. The void’s erosion is spreading at a pace significantly slower than the initial surge. We estimate we have roughly thirty minutes before the environment of the half-void, half-material world consumes the entire Theocracy."

The observers aboard the Sky Mechanical City calculated and relayed their findings with desperate speed, allowing the command staff to make their next move.

"Ensure the current evacuation is completed, then extend the coverage as far as possible. And warn the believers within the kingdom to flee immediately. Without the protection of their deity, even those with exceptional resistance will be consumed by the void."

Icarus issued the next set of orders within ten seconds. The Sky Mechanical City ignited its engines, circling the Theocracy to extend its rescue range into the previously uncovered half of the kingdom, while simultaneously broadcasting warnings to the believers still trapped within.

...

"Gilan, I am awestruck by the beings your influence has birthed, but I am afraid that even so, the conflict between knowing and not knowing the truth is too great. They cannot truly grasp the power they possess, and thus, they cannot wield it..."

In the void, Sura had detached from the great sphere of light. Only the believers of the Utopia organization remained within, manipulating the now-diminished "God of Light," forcing it to continue the act of dragging—and that was all it was: an act.

Yes, the "God of Light" dragging the Node was merely performing a pantomime. The true force pulling the Node came from the several Utopia towers stationed in the surrounding region. The Shadow of the God was nothing more than a facade for the Sky Mechanical City and the believers to witness.

The "God of Light," powered only by the Utopia cultists, had long since lost the strength to move the Node; it could only maintain the visual illusion of the deity’s labor.

By contrast, the great sphere of light coalesced nearby was the true God of Light. In the process of its reconstruction, it had reclaimed nearly all of its original essence, possessing power comparable to its former self.

In other words, this deity had the power to stop the Utopia organization. But it could not. The illusion of the "God of Light" dragging the Node kept the Sky Mechanical City and the believers from realizing the truth of what was happening in the void.

The Sky Mechanical City dared not strike at the God of Light, and the believers, still reeling from the shock of "blasphemy," remained unable to reconcile with their deity in their hearts.

Even though the new God of Light had been reborn, seeing the "God of Light" still dragging the Node made it impossible for them to pray for strength. Yet, unbeknownst to them, they were being shielded by the reconstructed deity, keeping them from being devoured by the void.

Despite having the power to stop the Utopia organization, the Sky Mechanical City and the believers were paralyzed, unable to act. Even the fate of the remaining half of the kingdom’s residents remained a mystery.

"A truly disheartening predicament. To be blinded by the ignorance of the truth, or to lose the capacity for faith upon learning it—it is, quite frankly, lamentable."

Sura mused, observing the changes from the void. The Node was being pulled into the material world at a steady pace by the Utopia towers, and while the rescue operation continued, it was clear they would not make it in time.

The expansion of the Node’s influence was accelerating. The estimated thirty minutes were, in reality, only fifteen. The Sky Mechanical City’s rescue efforts were limited; they had managed to cover only another fifth of the kingdom.

"It’s too late. We never anticipated that the Utopia organization would strike a kingdom as powerful as the Theocracy, protected by the God of Light. Even the 'Net' of the Five-Race Alliance doesn't cover this sector. It would take two hours to mobilize the nearest legion. A failure, then? Is this the end of it?"

Icarus watched the progress, brow furrowed, whispering to himself while issuing commands. It was highly likely they would have to abandon the remaining residents. The Sky Mechanical City itself would need to retreat; who knew if this region held threats that could jeopardize the entire aerial fortress?

"Hm?"

A sudden magical communication caused the commander to pause. The source—would this bring a turning point?

...

Within the Theocracy, in the regions the Sky Mechanical City could not reach, residents were fleeing with every ounce of strength they possessed. The sight of countless others twisting and dying from void erosion had filled them with primal terror.

But the zone of influence was spreading faster than they could run. In an instant, those closest to the center were overtaken. The void began its merciless work of internal transformation.

Yet, in the next heartbeat, a faint darkness shimmered over their bodies, cloaking them. The void’s erosion lost its lethal edge as it passed through this veil of night-divinity.

"Push harder. Run, quickly."

Many others were touched by this same power. In the moment before the void could claim them, they were shielded by the Lady of the Night, her soft voice whispering in their ears, urging them to flee the kingdom.

The residents did not know how close they had come to death; they only felt a sudden, inexplicable peace, and they quickened their pace, relying on their own legs and the eventual arrival of the Sky Mechanical City to escape the Theocracy.

"The Lady of the Night... even more peculiar than I imagined. Is it related to that existence? Her power is looser and weaker than that of the God of Light, and thus, perhaps, more free? It seems I must find an opportune moment to deal with this."

Sura watched the starlit Tree of the Night Sky from the void, speaking to himself.

With the help of the deity worshipped by the Night Church, the remaining residents of the Theocracy were saved. But this battle could not be called a victory. A second "Node" had been forged by the Utopia organization, over half a million residents had perished, and the Theocracy’s connection to the God of Light appeared severed...

It was, without question, a crushing defeat.