Lind was actually a bit uncertain whether the fast phrases were indeed the Holy Word Technique. From Seraphiel’s expression, even if they weren’t, they were likely quite similar.
From Seraphiel’s description, there were indeed some individuals in history who had established a connection with 550C, the so-called Saints, who had obtained certain permissions and could use some fast phrases to perform Divine Arts, even enacting authority and miracles.
Of course, the Divine Arts these people could use might not even be as many as Lind could use now. However, most of these individuals were high-level professionals, and the miracles supposedly performed through the Holy Words fundamentally relied on their own magic power to create the literal sense of miracles.
Seeing the eager yet somewhat fervent look in Seraphiel’s eyes, Lind reminded, “Even if you learn these spells, you still won’t be able to use them.”
“We naturally understand that.”
Seraphiel didn’t mind; almost none of the Holy Words from history had been preserved. Those that were preserved had increasingly diverged in pronunciation from their original form, leading to a loss of effect.
Why was Lantern Dream so eager to learn the Holy Word Technique? Why did they say that acquiring it would allow Lantern Dream to once again bask in the Holy Light and return to the orthodox faith?
Because complete and correct Holy Word Techniques could serve as the foundation to establish a new church, continuously passed down. Even if no one in Lantern Dream could use them now, if one or two talented individuals emerged among future generations, they could rely on the Holy Word Techniques to lift the religious banner once more.
Although the Divine Lantern possessed some of the Goddess’s authority, it was essentially a magic tool that couldn’t be easily utilized, let alone used to select gifted followers through the Divine Lantern.
Seraphiel gently took down the lantern from her waist and pushed it onto the table.
“This is our sincerity, as well as our tuition. We believe that you can make better use of this bright lamp than we can.”
Lind wasn’t polite, taking the lantern and examining it closely. Besides the one time he had seen it when Bernice invaded his dreams, this was the first time he had observed it so closely.
Rather than saying the Goddess’s Divine Revelation was this lantern, it was more accurate to say the church had shaped the Goddess’s Divine Revelation into the form of a lantern, while the true Divine Revelation was the fragment within the lantern that emitted light.
At the right moment, Seraphiel’s voice echoed in Lind’s ear: “This Divine Revelation holds the Goddess’s authority over dreams; it is through this authority that we derived the magic to control dreams.”
Upon reflection, 550C had already established connections with people on the ground through souls and minds, so being able to control dreams shouldn’t be too difficult. Historically, that might have been how some “Divine Revelations” were delivered to assist those on the ground.
What struck Lind as a bit strange was that this was actually exclusive authority of the Goddess, and he would have to find a chance to ask 550C about it later.
If Lind had obtained this fragment without knowing of 550C’s existence, he might have thought it was simply a glowing object, and devout followers would only regard it as the Goddess’s Divine Revelation.
When he learned that 550C was still hanging in the sky, and that there was at least one space station up there, Lind looked at the fragment that was said to have fallen from the sky and developed other hypotheses.
“I understand. I’ll just borrow this for a while. After some time, this lantern will be returned to you. In exchange, I can teach you some of the Holy Word Techniques and some basic language knowledge.”
Neither side should cut off their options; cooperation must maintain a thread to keep going.
The lantern was merely borrowed, and Lind had no reason to reveal everything.
Seraphiel, unexpectedly excited that things went so smoothly, asked with a trembling voice, “Then may we set up a church in your territory? We promise to submit everything to your review and act entirely according to your regulations.”
“Let’s initially stay in the Northern Border under the guise of communication. Your previous reputation isn’t very good. You can start by trying to do some things that only you can do, and then gradually transform.”
Transformation isn’t something that happens overnight. Lind’s suggestion also tested the reactions from all sides. What would the Central Church think? What would other churches that had gone to war with Lantern Dream think? Even if Lantern Dream didn’t care, Lind had to consider for them.
Seraphiel nodded; being able to do this was already beyond imagination. Moreover, before awakening, Seraphiel had already considered transformation, and now they just needed a stable environment.
Afterward, Seraphiel discussed in detail with Lind the cooperation arrangements for Lantern Dream in the Northern Border and introduced the authority contained in the Divine Lantern. In exchange, Lind also taught Seraphiel a fast phrase.
Clearly, while Seraphiel was exceptionally talented, she still couldn’t effectively use these phrases on the spot.
Moreover, before these phrases, Seraphiel preceded them with a flurry of honorifics to the Goddess.
Lind didn’t say much about that. Perhaps Seraphiel didn’t understand 550C, but she definitely understood religion better than he did.
After seeing off this group of guests, Lind picked up the lantern on the table and examined it carefully. Although the light within wasn’t very dazzling, it was quite bright; staring directly at it could still be somewhat blinding and made it hard to see its appearance clearly.
Praying to this lantern didn’t produce any strange phenomena.
Although he wanted to visit 550C to clarify things, Lind restrained that impulse, as he was already very mentally fatigued.
Moreover, relying too much on 550C wouldn’t be wise. Lind didn’t want to become a mere transmitter for 550C, leaving everything to be managed by 550C and just shouting for help when encountering problems.
As 550C said, all means of mechanical divination merely create a castle in the air, ultimately leading only to destruction.
“Is it over?”
When Lind returned to the study with the lantern from the reception room, he saw Tia peeking curiously in his direction, astonished at the lantern in his hand.
“Yes, from now on, Lantern Dream will establish itself in the Northern Border. I’ve imposed constraints on them, so they shouldn’t conflict with ordinary people anymore.”
Tia asked doubtfully, “Really?”
“At least they won’t criticize others’ beliefs anymore.”
What Lind said was correct; Lantern Dream’s followers would indeed abide by the rules of the Northern Border and would no longer point fingers at the beliefs of others. However, this bore more of a sense of superiority. After all, the Goddess had awakened, and they had learned the Holy Word Technique from the ancient remnants; they were no longer concerned with the views of other religions but did not genuinely respect others’ beliefs.
“Is this the authority of the Goddess held by Lantern Dream?”
After Lind’s brief introduction, Tia squinted as she examined the lantern in Lind’s hand.
Lind didn’t answer directly but said to the shadow, “Have the research institute send over a light shield.”
Through the light shield, Lind finally saw what the glowing fragment in the lantern was. It was a piece of highly futuristic metal plate, and even under the dark glow of the shield, one could still faintly see the light radiating from it, almost as if it were energy materialized.
On the metal plate, complex circuit patterns were etched with extremely high precision, with fine lines interwoven around it, and at the edges, there was even a place resembling an interface.
Unfortunately, the entire metal plate, especially at the edges, showed clear signs of burning. Although it was still emitting energy, whether it could be used was still questionable.
Tia, looking through the light shield, kept observing this Divine Revelation of the Goddess and asked, “Aren’t the circuits on this similar to those in your magic array?”
Lind didn’t answer but noted this down in his notebook. This object did not resemble the Divine Revelation sent down by 550C; it seemed more like it had accidentally fallen from the sky.
Lind looked up at the sky. Was there really just a space station and AI up there?
Although 550C seemed to have answers to everything, the moment Lind applied for technical support from 550C, its momentary hesitation already indicated that 550C was not just a simple AI.
Saying 550C had emotions was possible, and it may have its own considerations, but Lind could feel that 550C was indeed concealing much from him.
Yet, just as 550C stated, everything it did was for the survival of humanity. From the present perspective, 550C certainly had done a lot for the continuation of humanity.
Setting aside his thoughts, looking at Tia who was cautiously touching the lantern, Lind approached the communication device.
The most important thing now was to send related information about 550C along with the fast phrases to his younger sister.
