Mystery Paradise: Wishing Power Demon
Chapter 429 - 427: Blueprint of the New Era

Chapter 429: Chapter 427: Blueprint of the New Era

"They... imprisoned the Goddess of Abundance in the palace’s underground?" Zigwey was stunned, "Why?"

His father had never mentioned this before.

"Because they need weapons more than they need bountiful wheat harvests... and the Goddess of Abundance’s domain is ’growth’, which can apply to both flora and fauna, as well as affect Second Order Constructs with a certain level of cognitive ability."

At this point, Qibo looked toward his younger brother, "You understand now why father left the Laurel Family alive."

He didn’t overthrow the Laurel Family’s reign and annihilate the Tesser family not out of mercy, but to ensure the people wouldn’t immediately abandon the Goddess of Abundance, who was closely associated with the Laurel Family.

Zigwey wasn’t a fool; he had already vaguely grasped what Wilson Longjiu’s true purpose was.

Whether it’s the Goddess of Abundance or the core of the Panlogical Machine, they were components for the God of All Machines to absorb.

The Gao Feng Steward Family was the product of the Longjiu Army taking over Gleck Academy.

These personified mechanical constructs with a certain divine intelligence called Divine Envoys, while stunning in effect, were extremely complex to manufacture. Not only did each product require a Steam Core, but they also had to be baptized by the God of All Machines to awaken the soul.

Considering the extremely high cost of this series and its relatively low practicality, Zigwey was actually not taken with these new products. In his view, even at the peak of its development, the Gao Feng Butler would only ever be a toy for the nobility, which was far from the original goal set by his father—to make the convenience of constructs available to everyone.

Now it seemed his father had likely prepared the last piece of the puzzle a long time ago.

Zigwey’s gaze drifted downwards to the swarms of Steam Knights and suddenly understood many things. These armors weren’t designed for Talents; they probably had no humans controlling them at all. In a sense, they were akin to an armed version of the Gao Feng Butler.

Even now, the family company didn’t need to expend all efforts to make them anymore.

Because they would grow like wheat on their own.

"...Is all of this your father’s last words to you?"

"No, father didn’t tell me anything," Qibo shook his head, "I’ve seen all this with my own eyes. And it wasn’t father who allowed me to see these things, but Lord Kosmos."

Not Duke Longjiu but the divinities?

Had his father even relinquished the right to disclose the inner workings to the God of All Machines?

Zigwey couldn’t help but understand...why his elder brother had looked lost and despondent these past few days. His father didn’t despise his own children, but compared to the goal he wanted to achieve, both he, Qibo, and Zither were no different from the vassals who followed the Longjiu Family.

Truly, he was... the awe-inspiring Duke Wilson Longjiu.

"Is that Gao Feng Butler named Weiden a divine envoy?"

"You could understand it that way, he’s also among the last batch of Gao Feng Butlers to be baptized. The Mechanical Sect will dissolve, and the Lord of Divinities no longer requires the services of mortals to act on His behalf."

"Hold on, hold on! That’s not right at all!" Zither couldn’t help but blurt out, "What are you talking, nonsense, the ones who should rule are those from the Longjiu Family! Shouldn’t the divinities remain high above and not interfere in mortal affairs? My father is dead... next in line to succeed should be my eldest brother, and following his death, it should be my second brother, then me! The one on the throne is the King, not some elusive Kosmos!"

However, everyone looked at him with a peculiar gaze.

"Heh, you still don’t understand, do you, little brother," Zigwey sneered, "Father never intended to ascend the throne, and of course, he never planned for us to ascend it either. Do you remember what he said the first time we walked through the enemy’s blood into Jinsui Palace?"

Zither’s memory also returned to that day: the children of the Laurel Family were killing each other beside the throne, and he had asked his father why not ascend to the precious hall... Duke Longjiu’s answer once again echoed in his ears, "Look forward."

"—Why, after the Laurel Family ascended the throne, did the Goddess of Abundance stop choosing members from their family to become divine envoys? Why, when I led troops southward, did all the lords choose to stay their hands? Perhaps the era during which a king ruled the world is over. The new era belongs to us, those who operate with higher efficiency and can bring in more profit."

At that time, he hadn’t fully grasped his father’s meaning, thinking it was simply because the Longjiu Family’s foundation was not yet solid and the time was not right. Now looking back, every word his father said had an implication.

Compared to the fickle humans, the eternal divinities are indeed more suitable for creating a perfect kingdom.

"That can’t count at all!" Zither looked incredulously at his two brothers, "For something as important as royal succession, you’re using a statement from half a year ago as evidence? Our father was assassinated by an enemy, not a natural death, and he left no will. According to common sense, it should be a family member who succeeds—"

"Fool!" Zigwey impatiently interrupted, "If it were just talk, that naturally wouldn’t count for much. There’s an old saying from Gao Feng Mountain, a deed is worth a thousand words. Instead of arguing with us, you should look at what father did! If someone wants to overthrow the decision made by the God of All Machines and our father, then it’s indeed time to fight these Steam Knights. The person who truly rules this continent must be the strongest one on it; there’s no mistake about that, right!?"

"I..." Zither was at a loss for words.

"I didn’t expect you to accept it so quickly..." Zither looked at his second brother with a bit of emotion, "These past few days, I’ve been thinking about how to break this news to you all..."

"Huh? What’s so hard about it? Do you think I’m some stray cat or dog, that I’d feel abandoned after being dealt a slight blow?" Zigwey snorted, "Please, I was personally trained by Duke Longjiu to be a warrior, and now, seeing the Duke’s wishes gradually coming to fruition, I feel nothing but respect. Besides, managing the kingdom isn’t something I should be doing anyway; leaving it to the divinities isn’t bad."

"But—" his voice took a turn as he coldly scanned the dumbstruck ministers around him, "Brother, this kind of classified information should have been shared with me privately. If I’m not mistaken, the secret room beneath the palace has now become Lord Kosmos’s central hub."

"Don’t worry, I trust that they will not divulge any secrets," Zither shook his head, "Besides, even if the news gets out, it doesn’t matter because the God of All Machines has already recast the underground area of the palace, reaching depths untouchable by ordinary people. That blue key was one-time use only. Now, even I can no longer approach the Lord of Divinities."

"Is that so? You putting it like that eases my mind," Zigwey let out a breath of relief and clapped his elder brother on the shoulder with a grin, "Let’s see how the God of All Machines will manage the kingdom when the time comes."

Zither nodded and didn’t respond further.

His second brother’s acceptance surprised him, while his third brother’s opposition and resistance were within his expectations. But there was one more thing he hadn’t mentioned—in that sinking secret room, he glimpsed the God of All Machines combined with the other two entities. It was like a pillar of steel, and along with the Goddess’s half-statue merged into it, flesh and gears pressed against each other, blood trickling down from the metallic shell—the harrowing image had become the nightmare that haunted him every night as he tried to sleep.