The Heavens: A Qing, the Yue Girl at the beginning

"According to the Messianic teachings, whether believers or heretics, before ascending to the 'Kingdom of Heaven,' they must be judged by the angels. The fire of judgment burns away the poisonous evil and greed accumulated in their souls, dispelling the painful bondage, so that they can attain great liberation and freedom and see the bright heavens again."

Xiao Shi said.

“On the day the ‘Messiah of Light’ descends, everyone must first experience the first death, atone for their sins in the Pure Realm Mountain. If they can cultivate and cleanse themselves, they can ascend to heaven layer by layer. The second death is only for the wicked, and it is complete annihilation.”

“That’s right,” Zhao Qing smiled slightly. “So, Omega’s ‘exile’ appears to be nothing but destruction on the surface, but at its core it is a premature judgment—those who are targeted by it, regardless of good or evil, are first burned to ashes, and then it is determined whether there are any remnants that can ascend to heaven. If not, not even ashes are left.”

“And so, heaven is no longer far away,” Xiao Shi continued, his voice like snow falling on a bronze bell. “It will be planted in advance on scorched earth, fertilized with billions of corpses, accompanied by praise and weeping.”

On the back of the iron coffin, a line of small Latin script, almost entirely covered in frost, slowly appeared: Dona eis requiem, Domine, et lux perpetua luceat eis.
"Lord, grant them rest and let eternal light shine upon them. But if the light shines too brightly, the rest will become eternal destruction."

“But we all know that the so-called original covenant is nothing but a deception, a fabricated doctrine.”

Zhao Qing raised his hand, and his palm suddenly heated up, accelerating the sublimation of the dry ice inside the coffin. The white mist thickened, and the exotic fragrance became even more intoxicating, as if a garden that had been dormant for a thousand years had blossomed in an instant.

“A tool from a prehistoric civilization must have a practical function, rather than being a religious symbol.”

Xiao Shi nodded: "Its true function is likely to accompany and mark enemies on the battlefield, collect and take away the spirits of those who died in battle, temporarily preserve them in the realm of spiritual alchemy, connect them to and return them to 'heaven,' so that they can be reincarnated and reborn in the future..."

"Although high-ranking dragons that leave eggs do not need this function, it is applicable to low-ranking dragons, humans, hybrids, and ancient species that do not leave eggs, and can be used to replenish troops afterward."

"As for Omega's combat performance itself, it is obviously not outstanding. Although it uses much better materials than the regular 'Seraph,' it is only half a level ahead at best. It cannot be called a main force on the battlefield; it is more like a support weapon..."

"The way to train a warrior is to first solidify one's mind." She emphasized, "With this sharp spirit, it's like placing ten thousand gold coins in a gamble, yet there's no risk of losing. Therefore, one can act boldly, be invincible in every battle, and forge ahead without hesitation."

"There is another possibility: its 'exile' is actually using souls as raw materials to synthesize higher-level creations through spiritual alchemy, such as Apairang, such as the Philosopher's Stone, giving birth to the most outstanding glory in the 'Emerald Record,' the prototype of the transcendent."

"'The primordial Qi gives birth to all things.' The essence and Qi of ten thousand ordinary people, after returning to their origin, are also extremely precious and sacred materials. Their talents and strengths, when combined, may not be inferior to those of a one-in-a-billion genius..."

"Ordinary love and hate, ordinary happiness and suffering, ordinary achievements, the entanglements and bonds formed by ordinary people, may seem insignificant, merely a mirage, but quantitative changes lead to qualitative changes..."

"When everyone is of one mind, it can indeed be transformed into a miracle of 'life creation,' transcending the eternal torment of the mortal world and standing high in the heavens."

Simply put, this is a process of refining and purifying a large number of mortal souls in an attempt to forge a single consciousness that transcends individual limitations, making it more powerful and "perfect," and giving it an essential existence no less than that of high-level dragons.

If the forging is successful, it would represent the realization of the absurd vision of "comparing the mortal body to the gods" in terms of production and investment.

“The Tower of Babel,” Zhao Qing thought of similar content. “If the tower is built, ‘they will become one people and speak the same language. Now that they have begun to do this, there will be nothing they want to do that they will not be able to accomplish.’ The classics clearly state that this thing could threaten the position of God.”

"There is nothing that cannot be done, including defying God himself, and this has been certified by the latter."

She added, "The potential of Gestalt consciousness is astonishing. The insignificance of the individual is shattered and annihilated under a unified will, and what is born afterward may be a new god, or perhaps... a new catastrophe, a raging tide that can sweep everything away."

Zhao Qing had seen similar methods before with the Heavenly Demon Cangqu and was aware of the technical difficulties involved.

As for Herzog's plan to steal blood and usurp the throne, although it was theoretically feasible, it was not worthy of the title "Tower of Babel" at all. Those who steal divine power are ultimately subordinate to the gods.

"However, the specifics naturally need to be verified in practice; just looking at it from the outside is useless," Zhao Qing concluded.

As soon as the words were spoken, a very soft sigh suddenly came from inside the iron coffin. It seemed to come from a distant shore, or like a memory that had been burned away, opening its eyes again in the ashes.

The golden angel statue on the coffin wall trembled slightly, and fine blood vessels seeped from its silver eyes, crawling along the patterns on its wings.

It was as if a scarlet yoke had been nailed to a deity.

Zhao Qing withdrew his hand, wisps of smoke curling between his fingers.

She laughed: "It heard me."

“It’s hungry,” Xiao Shi said softly.

She could sense a primal and pure "desire" emanating from within the four suits of armor—a desire for spiritual energy.

"Then let it eat."

Zhao Qing paused for a moment: "I'll go first."

The carbon dioxide mist that had been swirling around the four suits of armor gradually dissipated, revealing their true forms: extreme beauty and extreme ferocity coexisting on their imposing metallic bodies.

A body as strong as a lion or tiger, paired with arms like a giant ape, yet with unexpectedly slender silver hands, like the delicate hands of a peerless beauty; all the beauty in the world is concentrated in that body.

The final result, however, was chilling.

It doesn't even have a head; instead, a pair of silver metal wings are placed above the torso where the head should be. Essential components of mobile armor, such as eye sockets and mouth slits, are also missing.

It was a headless, faceless monster.

It is not suitable for the mechanical age, but rather for ancient books, in the name of some kind of demon.

Incredible heat rapidly melted the dry ice, and the ice-crystal-like cargo warehouse instantly transformed into the center of a furnace, with raging fire and wind. Omega moved, placing his long, silver hand on her head.

A beautiful golden flame rose from Zhao Qing's body, growing brighter and more dazzling! In the end, the flame was as bright as the sea!

"Fire-based power, with temperatures of tens of thousands of degrees, is simulated by the commands of eternal spiritual elements, equivalent to the power of words for judgment."

She spoke nonchalantly amidst the deadly, blinding light, and continued to pull three more silver hands onto her shoulders and back, "controlling" all four Omega bodies:

"'Judgment' is usually presented as an extremely cold, frozen killing intent, but the duality of yin and yang can also transform into raging inferno..."

The authority of the spiritual element can simulate the power of the four elements, but to maintain it perpetually and operate outside the body for a long time, it is necessary to write profound and mysterious instructions and a matching alchemical matrix.

In theory, if this ability were expanded, it would be possible to create four great monarchs, with unimaginable potential.

"How does it feel?" Xiao Shi asked. "I found that these powers can be superimposed, 1+1+1+1>>4, which does have a bit of a 'Gestalt' feel to it, and also like the sub-entities that powers are divided into."

“…The joys and sorrows of countless souls unfold one by one in the dream corridor,” Zhao Qing closed her eyes, her spirit seemingly flowing upstream along the flames, touching something deeper within Omega, “They built a spiral staircase leading to some void… Something sleeps inside, imprisoned…”

"They are about to come back to life...like people trapped in hell trying to find a way out, but surrounded by impenetrable walls, because everyone is both a sacrifice and a prisoner..."

"The crimson moon will rise, and all things will turn to ashes: the world will burn."

She murmured to herself, as if reciting a prophecy from the distant past, or the ultimate vision she was "seeing" at this moment.

Suddenly, all four Omega cameras tilted their heads back and let out a silent whistle.

It had no mouth, yet invisible sound waves tore through the air, like thousands of invisible knives, instantly slicing the carriage ceiling into pieces.

Moonlight spilled down, illuminating their headless bodies. Their silver wings unfurled, revealing dense, serpentine runes that resembled sacred marks growing from flesh and blood, blazing like the sun.

Xiao Shi couldn't help but take a half step back, her white clothes fluttering in the heat wave:
"They...are responding to you."

Zhao Qing opened her eyes, and four burning golden flames were reflected in her pupils, as if four suns were rising in her eyes.

“No,” she whispered, “it is I who am responding to them.”

Omega's power is enough to easily obliterate the minds of mortals and forge the souls of thousands, but it is powerless against the intentions that Zhao Qing actively releases, and is thus infiltrated and deciphered.

Powered by a mixture of external spiritual elements and some ancient golden blood within the armor, their power seemed to be briefly stimulated to a new peak after coming into contact with Zhao Qing's high-quality "resource," with flames flowing like rainbows and light shining brightly.

In a daze, it seemed as if bright emerald-colored phantoms floated where their heads should have been, casting down a majestic gaze like that of lions.

At the joints of the armor, red electric light flickered and crackled.

At the same time, in the church not far away, a giant pipe organ that reached the sky began to play on its own, the sound like thunder and the roar of a lion.

The red lights on the train, which used to flash monotonously and mechanically, are now responding to the rhythm of the pipe organ.

The icon trembled, the curtain trembled, and the glass windows shattered, turning into a torrential rain of stained glass.

The entire church trembled to the majestic melody, as if ten thousand spirits were singing around it.

We were born in fire.

Repay in the fire.
He died a second time in the fire.

It was resurrected a second time in the fire.

The song was accompanied by a tide of sorrow and longing.

However, the ancient language of the Dragon Clan is not connected with the present world, and only a handful of people present were able to glimpse its true meaning.

That was a fateful echo about birth and death.

……

Thousands of miles away in Florence, the same torrential rain was falling, the same blinding red light and piercing alarms were blaring, lightning was tearing through the clouds from time to time, a sudden gust of wind blew open the windows, the ivory curtains fluttered, and a shower of rain fell on the conference table.

The servants hiding in the shadows rushed to close the window, covered the heavy velvet curtains, and then returned to the shadows to await orders.

The enormous conference table was inlaid with ivory, shells, and turquoise, and candlesticks stretched from one end of the long table to the other.

Elderly people wearing silver masks sat around a table, looking at each other in the red light, creating an extremely gloomy atmosphere.

These people are the Cardinals, the highest-ranking officials in the Papal States. Their identities are kept secret, so they must wear masks.

Only a very small number of people know the complete list of cardinals.

Pope Lombargoia was merely an executor chosen by the cardinals and placed on the front lines, whose military capabilities and fierce personality were used to advance the war against the East.

"How could this be?" an old man broke the silence.

"What's the point of asking how this happened when it's already happened? Here's the thing: there were four Omega remains hidden in the carriages of the World Serpent. Originally, the train was supposed to go to Skull Land after the Phoenix Killing mission, but now, someone has opened Omega's box!"

Some people sounded very anxious.

"The worst has happened. Once the Omega is opened, it will breathe air, and it will wake up within five minutes unless it is injected with the Hypnos drug. But now, even if we send someone with the Hypnos drug, it will be too late."

“It’s been well past five minutes since the alarm system was triggered,” the old man in the head seat said quietly. “What we need to consider now is not how to prevent them from waking up, but how to control them, or… destroy them, once they’ve awakened.”

As the most powerful of the cardinals, he controls some of the largest dioceses in the Papal States and is presiding over this meeting.

"Does anyone know if Omega is on that train? Does Rundstedt know?" someone asked. "Nobody knows. At Rundstedt's level, he wouldn't even know Omega exists."

"Is there any point in us discussing this? This is the first time we've lost Omega since we acquired them, isn't it? The world must never know that those things exist!"

"That would destroy everything we've built!"

"Where is Omega located now? How long will it take for the Templar Armored Division to arrive? Are we confident we can subdue them?"

Finally, someone asked the most crucial practical question.

"The initial incident occurred at the end of the Holy War Road, near the Kinlunga Tunnel... but according to the latest radio reports," a cardinal relaying the intelligence paused, "...the signal source indicates that their current location is likely... near the Royal Mechanics Academy in Marston."

"That's impossible!" someone immediately exclaimed in denial. "Even if the World Python is fast, it couldn't possibly travel that far in such a short time! And the route is completely wrong!"

An old man said hoarsely, "This cannot be explained by common sense."

“Gracch, isn’t the so-called ‘divine calamity’ something incomprehensible? That’s the realm of God and Heaven, which we cannot even cross.” The leading elder tapped the table.
"The Templar Armored Division will take another ten minutes or so to arrive if Omega's position doesn't continue to change or move away from the cordon."

"Lord Cicero, a dozen minutes?"

"This speed is still not enough!"

Archbishop Gracchus remained dissatisfied, his tone revealing alarm: "They've been awake for quite some time now, and they're located in the densely populated academy district! Even after 'Prometheus' descends, they might not have the absolute power to kill them, right? Can this really be covered up?"

"If even one Omega escapes, it can unleash the flames of judgment on instinct, destroying the existing aristocratic system, destroying nations, and even reversing the course of the world!"

"The Templar Armored Division is no longer sufficient as the last line of defense. To save the majority, we must deploy more forces!"

In the year 1847 of the Star Calendar, at the Royal Mechanical Academy of Yenisei, Alexander Petrov, the royal mechanic known as the "Demon of Mithril," was commissioned by the Emperor to create a weapon capable of suppressing the Sky Iron Cavalry.

He proposed an unprecedented design concept. He wanted to create not a motorized armor, but a giant puppet that could be driven like a tank. The first prototype was 7.06 meters tall and carried two motorized rapid-fire cannons, 12 rapid-fire guns, and a 5.45-meter curved sword as its melee weapon.

The first generation of Prometheus was more powerful than most of the Seraphim, forcing the Cardinals of the time to send out their strongest Seraphim, equipped with the holy sword Excalibur, to destroy him with a single strike.

To outsiders, the Black Iron Giants appeared strong on the outside but weak on the inside, easily defeated and utterly incapable of challenging the status of the Blazing Iron Cavalry.

Petrov committed suicide by smashing his own head with a pistol.

Years later, this super weapon, which was recorded in history as a failure, is still quietly being passed down in this world.

Someone immediately expressed support, adding: "Furthermore, we still have no idea who hijacked the train, found and opened the Omega! This unknown force that caused this 'sacred disaster' must also be taken into account!"

"The threat posed by the other party may be no less than that of Omega itself!"

“Then contact Golgotha,” Archbishop Cicero replied in a deep voice, his pupils seemingly flowing with molten lava. “Send men into the ‘Heart of Lava’ on Mount Vesuvius and tell those guys to immediately provide a solution to clean up the mess. We must do everything in our power to prevent the situation from spiraling completely out of control…”

"Could we ask Long to mobilize troops from the front lines to suppress the rebellion?"

"Let's wait until the armored division and Licinius are in position before we talk about it."

Commands, accompanied by top-level encrypted messages, traveled through the rainy night and were delivered in all directions.

……

Minerva Agency, Mount Vesuvius.

Countless railway tracks divide the vast underground space into fragments, with trains coming and going, stopping precisely at the platform, and traffic lights flashing frequently, managing these long steel dragons.

Huge platforms rise and fall along the longitudinal tracks, with cranes lifting newly assembled vehicles from below and pushing them into trains waiting beside the steel platforms, taking them to their destinations.

In the shadowy corner of Florence, "Mount Vesuvius" is not a real volcano, but the world's largest super furnace used to melt the highest-grade weapons alloys.

Top mechanics from all over the world are envious of the Minerva Agency's super furnace, because the super furnace is extremely advantageous for forging super metals. Only super metals can be used to create devastating weapons, including mobile armor.

The towering rotary coal feeder pours tons of coal into the incredible "volcano." When the valves are opened, dozens of dark blue flames shoot out from the fire holes, and the silvery-red liquid explodes in the furnace, like pearls and jade splashing.

No one knows who built Mount Vesuvius, and no one can replicate it. The real secret of Mount Vesuvius lies in its lower layers, in a place known as the "Heart of Lava."

A dark figure stood before the valve, a black hood fluttering in front of him, beneath which were a pair of blood-red eyes reflecting the raging flames.

Although he came on the orders of Shu Ji, as soon as he got close to this place, a fear originating from his life instinct seized him.

“Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” He made the sign of the cross on his chest and softly recited the holy words.

The dark figure stepped into the heart of lava, and the valve slammed shut behind it.

For some reason, the whistling wind seemed to carry the sound of a woman crying, the passage in front of him became distorted, and he could vaguely hear light footsteps behind him, as if something was following him.

But whenever he stopped and turned to look behind him, the footsteps following him would disappear.

He passed a burning spot, where a rusty iron fence surrounded the huge hearth, from which roaring flames spewed out from concentric rings about thirty feet in diameter.

The discarded metal parts melted into molten iron in the flames, flowing along the grooves in the ring, the molten iron gleaming with a brilliant gold.

This is undoubtedly a mechanical marvel.

Witnessing this magnificent scene, however, evoked no joy or admiration whatsoever; all that remained was fear—fear of ultimate power. This thing… was simply not something that humans should create or possess.

He looked around and noticed a thick layer of ash on the ground, which was furnace ash, something that inevitably occurs during combustion.

Wipe away the surface ash, and underneath lies a hardened carbonized layer.

But how could there be an area at the bottom of the furnace that is never cleaned? The furnace ash contains trace amounts of carbon powder, which accumulates over time to form a carbonized layer. If this layer is ignited by the furnace fire, it could cause an accident.

A plausible explanation is that some secret is hidden in that area.

The carbonized layer is nearly half a foot thick. How long would it take for a furnace to burn to accumulate such a thick carbonized layer?
One hundred years? Several hundred years?

Perhaps the origin of the Heart of Lava is not as the Papal States explain it to the outside world; its history may even be longer than that of the Papal States itself.

Where exactly is it?

He looked around; the surroundings were full of pipes and valves, which opened and closed, and thick white steam billowed from the brass pipes. The steam cloud entered the combustion zone, and the flame column lowered slightly.

At that moment, he saw the black iron gate behind the pillar of flame. The giant gate, twelve feet high, should have been easy to spot, but it was covered by a thick layer of carbonization and hidden in the metal wall.

The builders of the Lava Heart were truly clever; they hid the door within the flames.

It was an awe-inspiring door, surrounded by heavy, ancient machinery, and covered by layers upon layers of iron seals, each engraved with a mysterious holy emblem.

Few people know about those patterns now; they are only recorded in the most secret sacred texts, written in ancient scripts that ordinary people cannot read. The purpose of the sacred emblems is to draw strength from the gods and their messengers.

In Eastern terms, those are seals, steel seals, to prevent something behind that door from escaping.

For over a hundred years, the old seal was never removed, and a new seal was always attached using molten tin.

He had reached his goal, but could no longer advance even half a step, because whoever had sealed the door had completely severed any possibility of reopening it. Molten steel poured in through the cracks, welding the giant door firmly to the iron wall.

"How...how could anyone get in?" the dark figure muttered to himself, his face beneath the asbestos protective suit filled with disbelief.

The Cardinal's command was to "enter the secret gate to the Heart of Lava," but faced with these impenetrable seals, he couldn't even take the first step. Did the members of "Golgotha" not reside behind this gate? Or were there other entrances unknown to him?

"Could it be that I... am required to reopen it?"

The thought sent a chill down the spine of the shadowy figure. He looked around; there was nothing but the churning of lava and the ever-present, eerie whispers. The instructions were vague, and there seemed to be no way out.

Tools are destined to be discarded after use. Secrets, on the other hand, are destined to be buried forever.

Just as he was reeling from the shock, a faint yet soul-piercing sob seemed to penetrate the heavy iron gate and the dust of time, reaching his eardrums. It was ancient Hebrew: "?"

"My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"

……

Amidst soaring flames and magnificent melodies, Zhao Qing floated gently in the golden sea of ​​fire. "Signal synchronization complete."

"That's enough." She exhaled a long breath, her voice laced with laughter yet as cold as a broken blade. "Heaven is too far away. Tonight, we'll only pass through, not settle down."

The next instant, the four Omega silver hands retracted simultaneously, the firelight within their chests dimmed, and their silver wings drooped, like giant beasts whose fangs had been pulled out, completely subdued.

"I've found the door, now I just need the key."

Zhao Qing glanced at Xiao Shi beside him: "Give Caesar a 'Seraph' armor and let him go into 'Berserk' mode."

"'Berserk'?"

……

At almost the same time, Mount Vesuvius.

The shadowy figure heard a second Hebrew sentence coming from inside the iron gate, but the voice had changed to a woman's, gentle like a mother lulling someone to sleep: "."

"I commit my soul into your hands."

"boom--"

The fire-breathing jet suddenly rose higher, transforming into a crimson tornado that swept up the entire shadowy figure, instantly vaporizing the asbestos protective suit.

The shadowy figure let out a final scream in the fire, but no one heard it.

The carbonized layer began to writhe, like a hungry mouth, swallowing the burning remains inch by inch.

On the surface of the giant gate, the crack that had been sealed by molten steel suddenly seeped out a dark red color, as if a healed wound had reopened.

Behind the door, something gently inhaled—the entire "volcano" dimmed: "All who enter through me will be redeemed."

...(End of chapter)