Chapter Fifty-Eight: The Visit of the Princess
Modo City suddenly became lively.
Since the appearance of the Floating Island, the transient population of Modo City seems to have increased by thirty percent. Not only were there members from the Northern Witch Council, but also from even more distant wizarding realms, as well as the Ice Snow Witch Group from Arendelle that just arrived via portal this morning. In addition to this, there were many spies from various factions in Modo Harbor, and even the Duchess of Red Dragon, who had previously clashed with Soren, secretly sent people to infiltrate Modo City for intelligence gathering. However, these spies were quickly apprehended by the Wanderers from the Judgment Bureau as soon as they entered Modo City.
Floating City.
For a long time, many spellcasters had never given up their research on the Floating City.
The appearance of the Floating Island in Modo City directly prompted many wizards to plan visits to this city. In just one day’s time, quite a few members from the Northern Witch Council secretly proposed to Gloria that they were willing to serve under her. Ordinary people can hardly imagine the thirst that spellcasters have for such cutting-edge alchemy; just look how easily the puppet mistress was lured away by Soren, and one can understand how astonishingly tempting the Floating City is for them.
Due to the overwhelming number of visitors, Soren could only host them separately. He was responsible for receiving the Ice Snow Witch Group led by the Princess of Arendelle, while Gloria was in charge of receiving His Excellency the Eye of the North, and the Fallen Witch was tasked with negotiating with representatives from the Wizard Alliance. The existence of the Floating Island could no longer be concealed; a portion of the alchemical knowledge could be exchanged, but it all depended on whether they were willing to pay the corresponding price.
Of course.
What Soren was willing to offer was merely the surface aspects of the Floating Tower, and he only hinted at the Floating Ring. As for the core— the Elemental Furnace, Soren would never hand that over.
The energy supply for the Floating Tower could come from various sources, such as artificial means, magic circles, elemental pools, and demi-planes, and the extent of its operation would still depend on the amount of energy provided. Relying solely on elemental pools and demi-planes would only enable it to float briefly, much like a car that has received just a hundred dollars worth of gas. It could run for a while, but once the fuel was exhausted, it would have to wait a long time for the elemental pool to recharge before it could start again. The Elemental Furnace’s greatest function was to provide sustained endurance and maximized energy supply.
As long as Soren held onto this, he was not afraid of other factions creating their own Floating Towers, because their towers simply wouldn’t fly far.
“This is it.”
The Ice Snow Witch Group from Arendelle was settled in the inn of Modo City, and Soren was personally taking the Princess on a tour of the Floating Tower.
Compared to their last meeting, the Princess had become even more beautiful.
However!
She had also grown increasingly cold. Approaching her felt like bringing winter with it, an inexplicable sense of the chill of winter. This was a power belonging to the deities; the Princess was gradually integrating the strength of the “Goddess of the North Wind and Ice and Snow”. Although she had not yet truly ascended to godhood, there was already a touch of that cold, god-like indifference in her treatment of everything like mere ants. Perhaps only those she cared most about could elicit a glimpse of human emotion from her.
In contrast, Soren still carried a more mortal essence.
Even though he was already a True God!
“The core of the Floating Tower consists of three parts: the Elemental Furnace, the Floating Ring, and the demi-plane.”
Soren glanced at the Princess’s indifferent expression; as her divine power fused more deeply, her expressions changed less and less. Her exquisitely beautiful face resembled ancient, unmelting ice. If she could not rediscover herself amidst the struggle against divinity and divine affairs, she would ultimately become like other deities, thoroughly devoid of emotions and compassion, interfered with by divine duties. This was something Soren could not help her with; she had to overcome the disturbances of divinity and divine duty on her own, or she would inevitably walk that path.
Just like the King of the Dead. He had almost been completely bound by his divine duty.
“Mm.”
The Princess nodded lightly, scanning around before slowly saying, “What about the Elemental Furnace? Isn’t it the key to the operation of the Floating Tower?”
Soren smiled and said, “Naturally, the Elemental Furnace, being the core, cannot be placed in plain sight; it has already been moved to the innermost part of the Floating Tower.”
“The Northern Witch Council and the Wizard Alliance have both sent people over.”
“The energy part can rely on the elemental pool and demi-plane, but currently, you are the only one who knows about the Elemental Furnace.”
Upon hearing this, the Princess’s expression changed slightly, and then she asked, “Can you take me to see it?”
Soren immediately agreed.
He then waved his hand to open a portal directly to a small space within the Floating Tower, where the immense Elemental Furnace was located.
“Incredible!”
A hint of divine light flickered in the Princess’s eyes; she seemed intent on deciphering the principles behind the Elemental Furnace, but after watching for a while, she gave up and slowly said, “The alchemical knowledge involved here is too profound. I currently cannot comprehend it.”
Soren was not surprised by this.
Because he himself could not fully understand it either. Currently, in Modo City, only Gloria and the Fallen Witch, who were delving into it, could grasp its essence.
“The Elemental Furnace can be replaced with a demi-plane.”
“With your abilities, it would not be difficult to open a massive elemental pool; harnessing divine power can yield similar effects.”
Soren hesitated for a moment and said, “However, doing so would require a considerable amount of divine power on your part.”
The Princess pondered this for a moment and gently replied, “Divine power is not a concern; I currently have more than enough.”
“I want the structural blueprints for the Floating Ring.”
“The layout diagram for the energy shield, the schematics for the energy transmission nodes, and information related to the Maze.”
Having looked around the Floating Tower, the Princess showed no hesitation in requesting those crucial documents apart from the Elemental Furnace.
Her relationship with Soren was indeed special.
There was no need for the roundabout ways that other factions employed, and Soren did not hesitate much before agreeing on the spot: “I can give it to you tomorrow.”
“Very well.”
Upon hearing this, a slight smile appeared on the Princess’s lips, and she seemed to be in a pleasant mood as she playfully remarked, “These things can be considered as a betrothal gift for Anna!…”
Betrothal gift?!
What the heck?
Soren was momentarily stunned upon hearing this.
His first reaction was that the Princess no longer opposed his relationship with Princess Anna? Then there was the fact that the Princess brought up the words “betrothal gift”? Did she plan to marry Princess Anna to him?
No!
The situation was definitely not that simple.
Soren’s thoughts raced at lightning speed, and the next moment, he grasped the crux of the issue.
Thus.
Soren looked up and deeply regarded the Princess. Slowly, he said, “Are you preparing for your ascension to godhood?!”
The Princess calmly nodded in acknowledgement.
Just as he suspected!
Soren could not help but let out a wry smile. It was indeed for this reason that she had spoken up!
The Princess was going to ascend.
Therefore, she would naturally have to relinquish her reign over Arendelle. As a deity, there were virtually no males in the entire material plane who would suffice in her eyes. She was also very unlikely to create offspring with any male. Given this situation, the royal authority of Arendelle would certainly be passed down to Princess Anna, the first heir. Since Princess Anna was merely a mortal, she would inevitably need to unite with a male to produce offspring to carry on Arendelle’s royal authority. That man, besides Soren, could be no one else.
The Princess had already begun arranging for her successor…
Pfft, pfft, pfft.
It should be said that the Princess was already preparing to handle the mundane affairs for after her ascension. Following such circumstances, the time for her to pass the throne to Princess Anna could even be advanced.
Gods are not meant to interfere too much with the mundane.
Even Soren, who held dominion over a realm, has limitations on his interference in worldly matters. For instance, he currently entrusted most trivial affairs to the council of Modo City; he only made the broad decisions, while he did not engage in the specifics at all. Gods who delve too deeply into worldly matters will inevitably face backlash in the future. After all, Modo City was merely an emerging force, and the internal complexities were still somewhat manageable, so it was not much of an issue with slight oversight.
However, in an established kingdom like Arendelle, if the Princess continued to personally engage in worldly affairs after her ascension, it would undeniably lead to no good outcome.
The Princess must relinquish her royal power to ascend!
Soren walked a path similar to hers; looking at the current situation in Modo City, one could understand his subsequent arrangements.
Gloria was the mistress of Modo City.
Since Soren’s ascension, many matters in Modo City had been handled by Gloria. Not only did Gloria understand this, but many high-ranking officials in Modo City also grasped this notion. Otherwise, why would they be so resolute in supporting Gloria’s control over Modo City? This is the step of Soren gradually shifting from the public eye to the shadows as a deity.
In the future, his core will shift to the Half-Elf Church, and Gloria will, at the appropriate time, become the Lord of Modo City.
Soren will return to the darkness.
He would govern Modo City in his divine capacity by such means, avoiding the interference of what could also be termed “the law of causality” in the rules of his true divinity.
Generally speaking.
The weaker the deity, the more they intervene in the mundane. By the level of the Lord of Radiance, one could say He does not even manage internal church affairs.
As for ancient deities like Ye Ge, that existence was indifferent to whether they had a church or not!
This is how some deities’ principles are contradictory.
When Soren first ascended, he tried to manage both the church and Modo City. But now that he possesses “Medium Divine Power,” he has hardly involved himself with Modo City and merely sets a general direction, while almost all internal church matters have been delegated to the High Priest. Soren has also been gradually reducing his interference in worldly affairs.
Ultimately, his existence must become “higher up” like other deities!
The Princess’s urgent desire to relinquish her royal power is solely explained by the fact that she is soon to ascend to godhood and very likely achieve “Medium Divine Power,” which necessitates a clean break from worldly relations, directly becoming the “Goddess of Ice and Snow” with widespread worship in all cold regions except Arendelle!
………………
(PS: There will be another update today. The website is getting worse.) (To be continued ~^~)
