The Contest for the Position of True God

Dream Realm.

Here stretched an endless expanse of darkness. Even puppet Oran felt up, down, left, and right constantly shifting. It could not imagine what kind of world this was or how it had been formed.

Only dream realm beings like Saint Raphael could pass through without losing themselves.

Puppet Oran perched on Saint Raphael's shoulder. "So, this is the Dream Realm," it murmured, its voice soft with wonder. "The fabled Kingdom of Gods?"

It had previously seen Saint Raphael open the entrance to the Dream Realm and send the Dreams of Life inside.

But this was its first time entering, and only now was it discovering what the Dream Realm was truly like.

Saint Raphael nodded. "Kingdom of Gods," she told Oran. "That's what you seem to call it."

"More formally, it's the Dream Realm. Some also call it the Spirit Realm. I heard that Second-Rank Wisdom Ability users were once called Spirit Realm priests."

Oran did not ask what Spirit Realm priests were, but it roughly understood that the "once" Saint Raphael spoke of referred to an unimaginably distant past.

Saint Raphael continued, introducing other aspects of the Dream Realm. "The Creator's Domain is in the deepest part of here."

"There lies the Dream Starry Sea, the destination of all spirits. It's so beautiful."

"Every morning, the Divine Boat departs from beneath the starry sea and does not return until the next morning."

"The boat is loaded with the dreams of mortals."

"I've read 'Divine Blessing,'" Oran added. "It includes this passage."

"The Divine Blessed King traveled across the starry sea and witnessed the dreams of the deceased from Moonlight City."

"When I first read this as a child, I was deeply moved. The meeting of the dead and the living, the blending of myth and mortal life, created a scene so grand that I could hardly imagine it back then."

However, stories and myths, when only read, remained just myths.

But when a wood nymph stood beside it, the stories it had once read took on a new meaning.

It found itself marveling, "So, it's all true."

"Divine Blessing is real. The Creator's Domain is real."

Puppet Oran turned to look at Saint Raphael beside it. "Even wood nymphs are real."

After walking for a long time, Saint Raphael grew tired. Constantly traveling through this pitch-black world was indeed oppressive, even with a puppet companion to chat with.

Saint Raphael emerged from the Dream Realm, discovering they had reached the Suinhor city-states.

Puppet Oran watched Saint Raphael open an exit, then pointed to another nearby light spot that Saint Raphael's power had made visible.

From here, it seemed, one could see a mirror image of the mortal world.

"I see there's a direct exit nearby," puppet Oran asked. "Why are you opening another one?"

This choice indeed puzzled puppet Oran.

But Saint Raphael immediately adopted an experienced air. "That's a rainbow tree hollow," she told puppet Oran. "Rainbow trees in the mortal world are all very small, and their hollows aren't large either."

"Sometimes, if the hollow is too small, you'll get stuck."

Saint Raphael shuddered, as if recalling the tragic experience of being stuck in a tree hollow while surrounded by onlookers.

Puppet Oran looked at Saint Raphael's expression and understood.

The person who had gotten stuck in the tree hollow was probably Saint Raphael herself.

Surrounded by forest, Saint Raphael found the nearby rainbow tree and retrieved a good amount of delicious food from inside it.

Puppet Oran looked at Saint Raphael's case. "Storage compartments are so precious, yet you fill them with food?"

"Those people store their most important things, utilizing every bit of space."

"Why worry?" Saint Raphael said, taking a bite of food and shrugging. "It's not like I built the storage compartments myself."

She grinned. "Free space is meant to be used, right? Besides, there's still plenty of room left!"

Puppet Oran asked, "Why not put it in your case?"

Saint Raphael hugged her case tightly. "My case contains all my treasures. I can't put things in there carelessly."

Puppet Oran suddenly felt that the nymph before it might have some scheming tendencies, encouraging others to put all their treasures in her spirit realm while keeping her own treasures in a case by her side.

"Why didn't we go straight to the Scarlet Goddess's Blood Kingdom?" puppet Oran asked curiously.

"I've never been there before," Saint Raphael replied with a shrug, "so I don't know the exact coordinates."

Saint Raphael also had something she had not mentioned. She was a Storage Spirit who had changed careers halfway through.

She could use many laws and divine techniques of the spirits, but only to a limited extent. Once she left the spirit realm, their effectiveness diminished significantly.

The two walked for a stretch, then rested for a while. This was a very interesting journey.

In an instant, they could find themselves in a different place, a different city.

The Dream Realm felt like a moving train, with the outside world flashing by like scenes in a window, brief and constantly shifting.

Even as they traveled at a relaxed pace, it was not long before they reached the ocean.

There, they stepped into the domain of another deity.

The Blood Kingdom.

In the strange realm deep within the Silent Sea, a lighthouse glowing with red light suddenly brightened, casting rays of illumination.

It was as if alerting others to an intrusion.

But the "people" within the Blood Kingdom had long been prepared. They knew in advance that someone was coming.

In the blink of an eye, numerous figures appeared below the steps, watching as a whirlpool slowly opened beneath the lighthouse in the plaza. A black-haired girl wearing a flower crown emerged.

She carefully carried her case across the whirlpool, as if crossing a threshold. Her bright, laced leather boots stepped onto the plaza's stone bricks.

The black-haired girl was also visiting here for the first time, but the puppet on her shoulder was undoubtedly the most shocked.

After all, for Saint Raphael, this place could only be considered novel.

For puppet Oran, as a mortal, it had entered a god's domain as a guest.

"The Blood Kingdom of the Deep Sea." Puppet Oran could not help but call out the name of this place.

It looked up at the lighthouse high above, once again hearing the voices of those most ancient species transmitting from the lighthouse.

The most ancient ones once devoutly chanted sacred epic chapters.

Having heard of this place many times, this was its first visit.

It gazed out at the plaza and city ahead, their architecture reminiscent of the mural "The Lost Kingdom." At the heart of it all stood the Temple of Truth, though it hesitated to call it a temple.

Finally, its gaze focused on the mountain peak rising in the center of the Blood Kingdom.

A faint mural with vivid, bright colors seemed to be on the steep mountain wall.

Even from afar, its magnificence was undeniable, a masterpiece that seemed to transcend time itself.

This underwater realm had endured through countless ages, its existence shrouded in mystery.

It was akin to the Lost Kingdom that floated above the clouds, both timeless and awe-inspiring.

At this moment, mythological pressure transmitted from deep within the Temple of Truth.

From the distance, blood-colored flowers began to bloom, their petals unfurling in waves. They spread outward, forming a vibrant path that unrolled before them.

The deity's figure advanced from the end of the flowers, appearing before Saint Raphael and puppet Oran. They watched, as though in a trance.

It was a goddess wearing a brilliant red robe.

Puppet Oran felt a heavy weight settle over its heart, like the crushing presence of a towering mountain. A subtle, unshakable feeling began to stir within.

When it recited Yinsai's divine name, it had seen those demon god shadows entrenched on the earth.

At this moment, the feeling the goddess evoked in it was very similar to those demon god-like shadows.

This deity looked at Saint Raphael with great interest. She was very tall. Saint Raphael herself was quite tall, though rather thin.

The other stood a full head taller, making Saint Raphael seem even smaller by comparison.

The red-haired demigod gazed at Saint Raphael, while Saint Raphael, in turn, curiously examined the demigod's eyes and special hair.

"Your hair is so beautiful, like flames," Saint Raphael observed. Her feeling was completely different from ordinary people. Because of the deity's immense pressure and majesty, most would have felt it was more like blood.

"Black hair, a color like that in myths," the red-haired demigod remarked, her gaze on Saint Raphael's hair sparking a sudden thought. "Wood nymphs are indeed a race beloved by the gods."

The red-haired demigod's lips curved into a warm smile, her voice carrying a welcoming tone.

"Welcome, messenger from the Creator's Domain."

It was clear she greatly liked the nymph race.

Before anything else, she first showed her respect to Yinsai's messenger.

She greeted Saint Raphael warmly, her tone carrying a sense of reverence.

Then, she knelt gracefully, performing the traditional ritual of Trilobite Man worship.

"Messenger of God Yinsai," she said with solemnity.

"I have awaited your arrival, and the divine oracle of Yinsai."

Saint Raphael also became serious. She straightened her body and explained, "I am not sure if it is a divine oracle, but when God Iva heard these words, he considered them to be one."

"If God Yinsai truly intends for me to tell everyone these words, then I will repeat them once more."

The entire divine kingdom fell silent. All the Trilobite Symbiotes behind her also knelt.

Their posture when worshipping deities was completely different from that of the snake people, not only because their physical structure was different, but also because the deities they believed in were completely different from those revered by the snake people.

Beneath the lighthouse, in the center of the blood-colored flower sea, Saint Raphael recalled the scene she had witnessed in the pyramid. At that time, Creator Yinsai was chatting with the Dream Sovereign.

Saint Raphael's thoughts drifted to God's Moon and the Source of Wisdom. She recalled the vision of God's Moon transforming into a doorway, revealing a divine tree emerging from the Source of Wisdom. Its branches bore four radiant fruits, each glowing with an otherworldly light.

Saint Raphael first explained the preceding conversation, the scene where the Creator and Dream Sovereign discussed the Source of Wisdom and true gods.

Finally, she used God Yinsai's tone to speak those crucial words.

"When they establish divine kingdoms in the mortal realm!"

"When they transmit divine grace and wisdom to the mortal world!"

"The wisdom fruits will naturally descend."

For some reason, as she recalled the scene and imitated Creator Yinsai's speech, everyone seemed to truly see eternal stars descending, with endless white light shining down from above.

However, no one, whether kneeling or standing, dared to raise their heads to look at the source of that light.

Finally, it was the Blood Progenitor, Scarlet Goddess Vivien, who broke the tranquility, ending this transmission of the divine oracle.

What God Yinsai brought was not a command, but guidance.

He had opened the door to higher realms for the intelligent species.

"God Yinsai, the wisdom bloodline will always honor Your grace, and the descendants of Redlichia will forever carry Your faith in their hearts."

The red-haired demigod rose, her gaze fixed on the divine messenger standing before her.

"Have you seen God Yinsai?"

"I have seen Him," Saint Raphael nodded thoughtfully, "but I didn't dare truly gaze upon Him."

The red-haired demigod tilted her head slightly, her curiosity clear. "Does the god remain unchanged, as He was before?"

The Trilobite Man's faith in gods was completely different from that of the snake people.

The snake people were too distant from deities, while the Trilobite Man were too close. They were the direct bloodline of the King of Wisdom, the first intelligent species born in the world.

They had once lived in the Creator's Domain, dwelling at the foot of the Pyramid Temple.

That sea of flowers, blooming with Sun Cup Flowers, had once been their God-Given Land.

The divine messenger before her scratched her head, not knowing how to answer such a complex question.

"Eh~"

"I don't know what the god was like before either."

"After all, I'm not God Yinsai. I can't imagine God Yinsai's happiness and anger."

Her words immediately made quite a few of the Trilobite Symbiotes present laugh out loud.

During their last brief meeting, Smerkel had not noticed anything.

Now, with more conversation, something about Saint Raphael's nature seemed to be exposed.

The red-haired demigod's gaze swept over them, and the Trilobite Symbiotes below immediately became serious. However, they all looked at the nymph before them, their eyes suppressing laughter.

However, Saint Raphael was oblivious.

"Moreover, only the Sovereigns can directly see God Yinsai. Even if I looked over, I would only see the god's surface projection in this world."

"I'm just a wood nymph."

Saint Raphael felt somewhat wronged, thinking the red-haired demigod's questions were too difficult for her.

Vivien stopped questioning and instead invited Saint Raphael to visit her domain as a guest.

Hearing about being a guest and eating, Saint Raphael immediately became interested.

She walked into the Temple of Truth, looking at those ancient text stone tablets with eyes full of curiosity.

At this moment, she suddenly remembered a question. "Why do they call you Lady Vivien?" she immediately asked the red-haired demigod.

"Shouldn't they call you a deity?"

"Because I am the Third Generation Sage of Truth," Vivien told Saint Raphael.

"And they are priests of the Temple of Truth."

"To Suinhor, I am their god. To the priests of the Temple of Truth, I am a Sage of Truth."

"I've only read the Hymn of the King of Wisdom and the Yinsai Epic," Saint Raphael said.

"I've also heard of the Temple of Truth, but I can't remember it clearly. Could you tell me about it?"

Hearing this, Vivien suddenly felt somewhat lost.

Had the former Temple of Truth gradually been forgotten?

Even wood nymphs from the Creator's Domain no longer remembered it.

But she still told Saint Raphael about the Temple of Truth's origins.

"The Hymn of the King of Wisdom and the Yinsai Epic were written by the First Generation Saint Tito. He had personally visited the Creator's Domain to have an audience with God Yinsai."

"The Second Generation Saint was his descendant Stan. Stan ended the era of the Royal Bloodline, exchanging his life for miraculous power. He left behind his student, whose name was Sandean."

"And Sandean was the First Sage of Truth."

Vivien spoke of the two generations of saints, speaking of their deeds.

Saint Tito helped the Trilobite Man reclaim their history and uncover their origins, preserving the primordial myths.

Saint Stan brought miracles and hope, guiding the Trilobite Man toward a future filled with myths of their civilization.

The appearance of Sages of Truth pushed the Trilobite Man era to its peak.

Epic, civilization, inheritance.

This was the story after the myths, the story of generations of the Trilobite Man successively creating miracles.

This was the Temple of Truth.

Saint Raphael turned to Vivien. "Is being called a Sage of Truth more meaningful than being called a deity?" she asked.

"Is that why you kept the title?"

"It's not about being more meaningful or noble," Vivien replied with a calm smile.

"It's about purpose."

"Scarlet Goddess is just a title, one I possess because my power reached that level."

"Sage of Truth represents us, represents the meaning of all our existence."

"It represents what we have pursued generation after generation, the root we will never abandon."

She stood within the Temple of Truth, looking at those ancient text stone tablets, looking at the divine technique texts left on the walls.

"Do you see?"

"These are things left by all Temple of Truth priests, things left for everyone."

"They left behind their wisdom, their will," Vivien said softly.

"And their hopes for the future."

She pointed to these things.

"We were born from the saints' will."

"We follow the saints' will."

"We will also forever execute their will."

A weight settled over Saint Raphael's heart, an emotion she could not fully grasp. She turned to the Scarlet Goddess and asked softly, "Scarlet Goddess, what is the saints' will?"

The Scarlet Goddess met her gaze. "It is the drive to forge Yinsai's future," she said, her voice steady and resolute, "and safeguard the legacy of Trilobite Man civilization."

Saint Raphael felt a pang of sadness for the Scarlet Goddess, but still she said, "But Trilobite Man civilization has already disappeared."

"The inheritance remains," the Scarlet Goddess told Saint Raphael.

"Even after 250 million years have passed, the inheritance of the saints' will has never been severed."

"Even though the Trilobite Man bloodline has been severed, we are still here."

The Scarlet Goddess looked toward the mortal earth.

"In the future, true inheritors of the saints' will will appear. They will tell everyone that the inheritance of the saints' will still remains."

"The lighthouse of the Temple of Truth will never be extinguished."

To Saint Raphael, it was simply a tale to be told and heard.

But for puppet Oran, perched on her shoulder, the story cut deep, striking a chord within its very core.

It listened, its blood boiling, its whole body trembling.

It could not help but think of the past, wanting to cover its face and cry out.

But at this moment, it was just a puppet, only able to sit rigidly on Saint Raphael's shoulder.

Puppet Oran deeply lowered its head.

"Two generations of saints."

"Three generations of sages."

"Generation after generation of inherited will, countless people's successive efforts."

Puppet Oran thought of its teacher, thought of the Tower Spirit School.

They had once pursued the same ideals, seeking the future they wanted.

But they lacked the saints' wisdom and perseverance, lacked the Sages of Truth's vision.

They especially lacked that courage to pursue relentlessly, generation after generation.

It was shocked by the priests of the Temple of Truth and by the greatness of the saints.

It also sighed for itself.

"We were far too lacking."

"So we failed, we gave up."

Puppet Oran raised its head to look at the Scarlet Goddess's back. It saw not just a deity, but the final guardian of a civilization.

Guarding civilization's final lighthouse.

Guarding the final light.

The Scarlet Goddess led the two through the Temple of Truth, down a passage behind it and into the depths, finally stopping before a cliff.

They saw a brilliantly colored mural.

Here, with no more buildings blocking the view, they could see the complete picture clearly.

"This is a mural I traced, based on the one in the Sky Temple," the Scarlet Goddess explained.

"There was once a scene of Saint Tito's pilgrimage here, but it had already disappeared in the years of the previous era."

Saint Raphael looked up and immediately recognized the place in the painting.

"This is... the Pyramid Temple?"

"All the Sovereigns are gathered here."

"The Mother of Life sits on the divine platform," the Scarlet Goddess confirmed with a nod. "The God's eldest son stands below the platform, and the Dream Sovereign is positioned to the god's right."

"Two generations of saints crossed the sea of Sun Cup Flowers to have an audience with Yinsai."

"Everything for the Trilobite Man began here. This is the Yinsai myth."

Puppet Oran also looked up at that mural.

In that moment, whispers filled its ears, countless voices of the Trilobite Man murmuring in an ancient tongue. The sounds seemed to blur the line between reality and illusion, pulling it into a trance.

Yet this time, it resisted the urge to utter any names, even though the wisdom language and script remained a mystery to it.

It did not dare utter even a word in the snake people's language, fearing that this place's special scene and this sacred painting might cause a chain reaction.

Puppet Oran focused its mind and looked at this painting.

It had never seen such a magnificent artwork.

Through this painting alone, one could feel a civilization's prosperity. It sensed in it the magnificent brushstrokes reminiscent of Master Breman's "The Lost Kingdom."

But this painting was even superior. It must have been created during a civilization's most prosperous period.

It condensed a civilization's pride, a faith's devotion, and an infinite longing for the future all within it.

Puppet Oran had already heard Saint Raphael tell the creation myth and learned much unimaginable information from other conversations.

It had even heard such shocking words as mortals being able to become deities.

But all of that could not compare to the impact this painting conveyed.

"I saw the origin of everything," it thought. "I saw the beginning of myth."

"Everything originated from wisdom, life, and dreams. I witnessed the divine genealogy of the Sovereign Gods, saw the deity who created everything."

It looked at the three Sovereign Gods.

The Mother of Life was completely different from the familiar temple statue. She nestled at the Creator's feet, looking into the distance with relaxed happiness.

She was no longer a majestic deity, a lofty creator, but more like a little girl.

King of Wisdom Redlichia stood below the platform, gazing directly ahead. It was he who brought the light of wisdom to everyone.

The Dream Sovereign held a Dream Egg, sending His dreams into the distance, granting a destination to all spirits.

But all three originated from the same being.

This did not seem like three deities at the origin of everything, but more like a family portrait, a family gathered around its master.

Puppet Oran's gaze moved upward, looking at the being on the divine platform.

That being had no features, no form, only endless light.

But seeing that light, everyone instantly knew what it represented.

"God Yinsai!"

Puppet Oran, sitting on Saint Raphael's shoulder, did not speak this name aloud, only thinking it in its heart.

At this moment, what it felt was not shock, but a sense of cosmic tranquility embracing it, though its head felt somewhat dizzy.

True greatness and majesty brought far more than just shock.

Instead, it was a feeling that instantly swallowed a person, leaving them lost.

It felt like a moth drawn to a flame, yearning to become one with the light.

"He is the deity that deities believe in," it realized.

"God above gods!"

Finally, puppet Oran uttered two words.

"The Creator."

It had once thought this word was an honorific, an incomparable divine title. But at this moment, Oran felt this title was just a plain adjective before such a being.

No honorific, no weight.

It felt as though it was meant to be.

Looking at this painting, no one spoke.

After a long time, it was puppet Oran who suddenly asked a question.

The question was for the Scarlet Goddess. It was a question puppet Oran felt compelled to ask, hoping this Sage of Truth could provide an answer.

"Deity," puppet Oran began hesitantly, "if the dreams I pursue, the legacy I leave behind, and the hopes I pass to others someday bring disaster to this world..."

"If they cause pain to everyone..."

"What should I do?"

"I dream of a better world, a brighter future," puppet Oran continued.

"But the world doesn't bend to my wishes, nor does it change just because I hope it will."

"Disaster doesn't care about our intentions when it arrives."

Vivien gazed at puppet Oran, her blood-red eyes gleaming like polished gemstones. Her presence and beauty carried an ethereal quality, transcending the bounds of the mortal world.

This also gave her an extremely strong, oppressive presence.

When she spoke, her response came directly in the form of a counter-question.

"If there are stones blocking the path of progress, does that mean we stop walking?"

"We don't know where this path will lead in the end," she said, looking directly into puppet Oran's eyes. "Nor can we truly predict what the distant future will be like."

"We will only know if this path is viable after we've walked it."

"Hesitation and uncertainty cannot bring the future. Each generation does what it must."

"And if there truly comes a day when your actions bring disaster!" Vivien's voice held a steady resolve, her gaze unwavering.

"Then, in that era, there will also be more people who have benefited from the knowledge and ideals you imparted, standing up to save us from that disaster."

Puppet Oran stood up from Saint Raphael's shoulder. As the divine technique the nymph had cast on it gradually lost effect, it transformed to its normal human size and landed on the ground.

It stared intently at the Scarlet Goddess.

It seemed to see a beam of light shining directly into the depths of its heart.

The Scarlet Goddess suddenly smiled, her previous majesty and seriousness momentarily gone.

"Are you surprised?" Vivien asked with a knowing smile.

"But you should know," she continued, "those words were not mine."

She paused for a moment, then asked gently, "Do you know who first spoke them, and who they were meant for?"

Puppet Oran shook its head. The emotions surging in its heart had already left it speechless.

The Scarlet Goddess extended a finger, pointing at puppet Oran's heart.

"The owner of your heart once asked Sage Sandean that question."

"And the words I just spoke were Sandean's answer to her."

Vivien had long noticed this peculiar puppet.

At the same time, she had also noticed the special "heart" within its body.

The current Scarlet Goddess, formerly the Third Generation Sage of Truth, Vivien, told it, "Inheritor of Elena's Heart!"

"The heart you possess also once belonged to the Temple of Truth."

"She practiced the saints' will, following the Sages of Truth to forge a new path. She dreamed of transforming her country and shaping the future of her civilization."

"Elena's ancestors were once those who gave First Generation Saint Tito suffering and torment, yet the Sage of Truth ultimately accepted her as a disciple. This was once their territory, and the original pilgrimage painting on this wall was created by Elena's ancestors."

The Scarlet Goddess's gaze was like flame, seeing through the puppet's heart.

"And now, you have brought her back here, asking nearly identical questions."

Puppet Oran opened its mouth wide. It had never imagined it would be like this.

It was also the first time it learned the origin of the heart in its body.

Even Saint Raphael, standing beside it, was shocked speechless by this news.

The Scarlet Goddess shook her head at puppet Oran. "Learn to believe in the future," she said. "Believe in your juniors."

"This world has given birth to many things and has also destroyed many things."

"But some things will endure forever: the will of the people, their inheritance, and their wisdom."

"As long as life still exists in this world, as long as there are still beings called intelligent species in this world, it will continue to be passed down."

"All things have origins, all things have endings."

"But after endings, there will be people who, on the foundation of their predecessors, begin new chapters again."

Puppet Oran remained silent, lowering its head. Slowly, it extended a hand and placed it gently over its heart.

Oran had once been very grateful for this heart, because its power had allowed it to save situations from disaster.

But Oran also hated this heart, because it imprisoned it and had also killed all the members of the Tower Spirit School.

Now, Oran felt for the first time that this heart had a different meaning.

This heart was not dead. This heart was alive.

It was not a dark, fallen thing meant to devour it.

It was beating, it was surging.

It was burning with hot blood.

Puppet Oran whispered softly, "Elena..." The name seemed to carry a weight of its own.

After Saint Raphael and puppet Oran departed, all the Trilobite Symbiotes gathered in the Temple of Truth. The red-haired demigod also ascended the Flesh Throne.

Everyone began discussing the meaning of God Yinsai's oracle.

Its implications were undeniable, as every divine oracle from Yinsai heralded the dawn of a new era.

His shadow's every appearance in this world guided the future.

The Scarlet Goddess thought for a long time, summarizing the general content of the oracle.

"The Source of Wisdom bears the Wisdom Fruit, also opening the door to the future for Wisdom Ability."

"As for what follows, those are the conditions for receiving the Wisdom Fruit."

"Establish Mortal Divine Systems, compete for the position of true god."

"This era is not one of Life Ability," the Scarlet Goddess declared, turning to the gathered crowd.

"Everything is the same as before. It's still the era of Wisdom Ability."

"Only, in this era, it is destined that a true god of Wisdom Ability will appear."

Alpens hesitated before speaking. "Lady Vivien, does this oracle truly concern us?"

"We are the inheritors of Yinsai," Smerkel countered with conviction. "How could it not?"

Vivien already had an idea in her heart.

She rose to her feet, her expression thoughtful and resolute.

"Maybe it's time for us to find someone who can carry the saints' will and join the race for the position of true god."