Chapter 864

【 AMBUSH 】

A player had reincarnated as an NPC.

For Boxlunch, a new journey had only just begun.

He would have to start from scratch, learning how to adapt to this world without the assistance of the player system and how to become a qualified NPC.

Meanwhile, Evé, who had projected her divine consciousness into Earth, also sensed a mysterious change in the blue sphere of light deep within her soul following Boxlunch’s reincarnation.

It was as though some kind of switch had been activated.

To Evé’s surprise, after successfully guiding Boxlunch’s soul through the process of reincarnating into Seigües, she seemed to have established an even deeper connection with Earth.

Deep within her consciousness, she could vaguely perceive a vast world shrouded in mist.

Magnificent nebulae, blazing stars, planets of various sizes revolving endlessly, and, located along one of the enormous spiral arms of a galaxy, a familiar star system consisting of eight planets and one star had appeared…

It was clearly the Universe of Earth.

And beside that familiar star system, within a higher-dimensional region that could neither be detected, observed, nor reached, a gigantic vortex was constantly rotating.

At the heart of that vortex was none other than a wormhole radiating a blue glow. Its radiance was exactly the same as that of the blue sphere within Evé’s soul.

At that moment, a sudden realization arose in Evé’s heart.

This wormhole was most likely closely connected to the blue sphere within her soul. It might even simply be a projection or extension of the blue sphere within the Earth Universe…

With this thought, Evé carefully examined the pale-blue wormhole.

Vaguely, she seemed to sense an ancient and weathered power contained within it as streams of multicolored radiance traveled through the wormhole, appearing dreamlike and illusory.

Probing it further, she realized they were actually streams of the Laws of Origin!

“Laws of Origin… Could these be Neo’s true legacy? Are these the Laws that enabled the [Dimensional Universe] to achieve Greatness? By obtaining them, could one gain access to the path toward Greater Divine Power?”

Evé’s heart stirred.

She examined it more carefully and discovered even more.

The location of this wormhole was extremely peculiar.

Its projection in the three-dimensional world corresponded precisely to the third of the eight planets, a beautiful blue planet covered in water.

That was Earth.

At this moment, Evé could almost confirm that the King of Gods, Neo, had indeed traveled to Earth, and there was an eighty percent chance that he had used this very passage himself!

At the same time, this also presented Evé with an opportunity.

Perhaps, like Neo, who had once controlled this Blue Sphere Origin Key, she could also physically travel to Earth.

However, just as this thought arose in Evé’s mind, she noticed that the mist once again rapidly spread out, concealing everything she had just seen.

The ancient aura emanating from the mist faintly gave her a sense of familiarity.

It was an aura originating from the same source as the Cradle of Origins.

Evé slightly furrowed her brows.

The path to Earth had most likely already been sealed by that mysterious will behind the Seigües Universe.

So if she wanted to obtain the complete sphere of light and completely open the passage between the two universes, then she would have to break the mysterious will’s seal first.

But then again, without achieving Greater Divine Power, how could she possibly break through the seal?

Thoughts raced through Evé’s mind as she considered her options.

First, one thing could be confirmed: reincarnating players from Earth into the Seigües Universe seemed capable of shaking up the seal.

Boxlunch was an example of this.

But clearly, it was not enough.

The disturbance it caused lasted only for an instant, and the power it generated was extremely weak. After sensing the changes just now, Evé quickly calculated that breaking through the seal would require hundreds of millions of people to reincarnate simultaneously.

Fewer people would not be enough, and neither would an inability to concentrate their power at the same moment.

It was impossible.

If she possessed that much power, Evé would have already achieved Greater Divine Power.

“Mass reincarnation is impossible… Then, could I rely on the existing connection with the players, strengthen the relationship between myself and them, and use the game network to indirectly break through the seal?”

“Hmm, on the second thought, perhaps I don’t need to break the seal completely. As long as I strengthen the connection between the blue sphere of light and the blue wormhole to a certain degree, then I might be able to draw those Origin Laws over…”

Evé thought of another possibility.

After sensing it, she determined that this seemed to be a viable path as well. However, it might require a sufficient number of players and a very long period of time to break through the seal.

Divine power surged as the powerful computational abilities of a true god began operating while Evé quickly calculated the most efficient formula.

Assuming the current sealing power remained unchanged, she would need to strengthen the connection through thirty million players and maintain it continuously in the Seigües Universe for at least one hundred years before she had a chance of succeeding.

“Thirty million players… One hundred years… Leaving aside the number of players, one hundred years is simply too long.”

Evé sighed inwardly.

According to the time recorded on the stone monument in the Cradle of Origin, the Seigües Universe had already entered its final stages.

Although the signs of the apocalypse had yet to appear, there was no doubt that, judging from the patterns of previous cosmic cycles, once the final crisis arrived, it would come like an overwhelming tide.

And furthermore… judging from the conflicts between the wills of previous universes and their living beings, it was still uncertain whether the coming catastrophe would once again take the form of an Abyssal invasion.

One thing was certain. Although a Demon Invasion had just taken place in Seigües, Evé knew very well that the apocalypse would certainly not be as simple as the Abyssal Demons they were currently facing.

No one knew when it would arrive.

No one knew in what form it would arrive.

The only thing that could be determined was that one hundred years would probably be too long to wait.

The time left to her was already running short.

Not to mention that there was also the Eternal Lord, another existence who was attempting to ascend into Greater Divine Power.

According to Evé and Diana’s estimation, Etriōu would need at most seventy years to achieve his ascendance. At this rate, he would have already ascended before Evé could succeed.

Of course, there was another method:

That is, she could further increase the current number of players…

But realistically speaking, according to the recent news she saw on the internet, as of now, the total number of people on Earth who possessed virtual gaming pods did not exceed two hundred million.

So even if she managed to summon two hundred million players, it would still take at least fifteen years to break through the seal.

Fifteen years might seem to satisfy the conditions, but such a massive player base was beyond what Evé could currently support.

Although she had already advanced to Higher Divine Power, the maximum number of players she could currently sustain was no more than thirty million.

Any more than that, and she might be unable to maintain the necessary expenditure.

—That is, unless…

she formally launched a full scale war against the Eternal Lord and sustained herself through war.

She could make maximum use of her [Absorb] ability and rely on the players’ [War Sacrifice] ability to maintain the operation of this enormous system.

But this would also mean that the entire Seigües Universe would most likely face a true catastrophe brought about by the Fourth Calamity.

Of course, there was a prerequisite.

Evé would first have to completely drive the Eternal Lord’s power out of the Seigües World. Only then could she rely on the player army to launch multi planetary wars through the various world passageways once Seigües had been completely unsealed.

Although the Gate of Reversal could practically be considered a bug, transporting such a massive player army would still consume a terrifying amount of energy. She would have to rely on the passages connecting the Seigües World to the other worlds as well.

Evé quickly understood everything.

Perhaps… now was the right time to begin closing the net across the Seigües World.

With this thought, Evé returned to her Divine Kingdom and looked toward the model of the Seigües World, formed from divine power within the Supreme Divine Temple.

In the various human kingdoms occupying nearly two-thirds of the continent, countless points of faith connected to her were already spreading like a prairie fire.

And it had only been half a year since she had ordered the players to spread her faith among the territories owned by humans.

The speed at which her faith had spread in such a short time clearly demonstrated just how deeply corrupted the Eternal Church had become.

However, at that moment, Evé’s heart stirred.

She looked toward a certain star of faith in the Garden of Eden’s starry skies.

That particular star shone brightly, radiating dazzling light.

Yet at this moment, it was covered by a layer of shadow that blocked Evé’s perception.

It was the star representing her human saint, Old John…

༺⟐༻

At the border between the Holy Maniya Empire and the Kingdom of Aries, on the banks of the shimmering Vymur River, a group of people riding dragon-scaled horses continued forward.

Many of the people in the group wore hoods and were dressed in luxurious equipment. They were clearly players concealing their identities.

Although… their extravagant equipment had practically exposed their identities already.

Upon closer inspection, it could be seen that the entire group was arranged around a white-robed priest, with everyone constantly protecting him.

That priest was none other than Old John, who had left Larona.

After leaving Larona, Old John had preached as he traveled, following the imperial border and illuminating a long path of faith.

This was a highly effective strategy. The Eternal Church’s control was relatively weak along the Borderlands. Yet thanks to the trade between the two countries, the region was not particularly sparsely populated.

Although many people had fled because of the recent demon invasion, most of those who had left were nobles and wealthy individuals. A great many commoners and impoverished people remained.

Preaching here was therefore an excellent choice.

Several months had passed, and Old John’s name had gradually spread throughout the imperial border. As he preached, more and more people converted to become believers of the Goddess of Life.

As a result, the seventeen players who followed and protected Old John had also gradually become famous, earning the title of the Seventeen Disciples of Saint John.

Old John’s next destination was the eastern territories of the empire.

Recently, two noble lords there had once again gone to war, causing immense suffering among their subjects. The Eternal Church’s influence was also relatively weak there, making it precisely the place where the light of faith was needed.

Thus, he planned to first follow the border toward the southern territories and reunite with Frank, who had already established a foothold there. From there, he would travel through the eastern route into the eastern territories of the empire and spread the Goddess’s teachings.

Several more months passed, and by now, early winter had already arrived.

However, the Vymur River was famous for its warm waters, so traces of greenery could still be seen along its banks.

They were reeds growing beside the river.

The reeds grew extremely tall, reaching two or three meters in height, forming vast and luxuriant meadows.

As the entire group entered one such reed meadow and the players leisurely admired the scenery on both sides, a sudden whistle rang out.

In an instant, more than a hundred arrows shot toward the group from all directions.

Seeing the arrows flashing with magical radiance and sensing the formidable power contained within them, the player leading the group changed expression.

“Not good! Dodge!”

Alas, it was already too late.

Caught completely off guard, four or five players who had already reached the Gold rank were instantly riddled with arrows. They did not even have time to make a sound before transforming into fragments of brilliant light that slowly dissipated.

Although the remaining players managed to withstand the initial attack through sheer luck or strength, half of them had already suffered severe injuries.

Only Old John remained unharmed, largely thanks to being protected by the players and the divine favor buff he had received from the Goddess.

Feeling the numbing force that had traveled through his arms when his shield blocked the arrows, the player specializing in defense who was guarding Old John closely narrowed his eyes.

“Gold-rankers! They’re all Gold-rank Experts!”

As soon as he finished speaking, rustling sounds came from all around them.

The reeds swayed, and fully armed Inquisitorial Knights dressed in silver armor and white robes emerged into the players’ field of vision.

Their gazes were cold, and their strength was formidable. At least a hundred of them quickly surrounded the scattered group in that instant.

“Inquisitorial Knights, the Eternal Church…”

The players’ expressions became increasingly solemn.

Although the route they had taken was pretty discreet, it was not entirely secret. Those with ulterior motives could still deduce their plans.

Clearly, this ambush had been aimed at Old John, whose reputation had recently begun to rise rapidly.

“Lord John, we’ll protect you! Hurry and jump into the river and escape!”

The player leading the group turned around and shouted to Old John.

However, the only response he received was a soft sigh.

“It’s too late.”

As soon as he finished speaking, pale golden radiance gathered in the sky and gradually transformed into a translucent platinum-colored dome, enveloping the entire group.

The Eternal Church’s Divine Descent Spell, [Prison of Order].

It was a forbidden divine spell that could only be cast by a divine envoy of the Eternal Church who had reached Legendary-rank or higher and had been given sufficient time to prepare. It could completely seal off an area and even temporarily suppress the power of the surface-level faith network.

In other words, even though Old John had received the Goddess divine favor, he could no longer draw upon divine power from Evé at this moment.

“Capture that missionary named John. As for everyone else, execute them on the spot!”

The leading Inquisitorial Knight issued the order coldly.

As soon as his voice fell, the knights charged forward and engaged the players in battle.

Weapons clashed, and furious shouts rang out.

The outcome of the battle… was pretty obvious.

The players, already severely wounded by the rain of arrows, were no match for the Inquisitorial Knights. And so, they were forced back the moment the battle began, falling one after another.

In less than five minutes, the final player also vanished into nothingness amid a burst of light, leaving behind only a cry of “Long live the Goddess!” echoing through the air…

Old John, meanwhile, was surrounded and bound with anti-magic chains by the Inquisitorial Knights.

Although he was a divine favored, once the power of the faith network was severed, he could no longer draw upon the Goddess’ divine power.

The Inquisitorial Knights showed no joy at their victory. From beginning to end, their gazes remained cold and emotionless, as though they were machines without feelings.

Silver swords were placed against Old John’s neck one after another.

Then, the knights stepped aside, making way for an Eternal Bishop dressed in black robes.

His gaze settled on Old John, whose expression remained calm, and he smiled faintly.

“John the Heretic, His Holiness the Pope would like to see you.”

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