The Demon King is unfathomable

Chapter 373 The Day of Harvest Has Arrived
On the other side of the virtual world, the Pope of the Solipsians was kneeling before the enormous sacred stone, devoutly offering prayers before nightfall.

This is a tradition passed down through generations of the Solipusi people.

However, to be honest, he actually believed more in the power of gold than in some ethereal deity. After all, in his memory, the church had never accomplished anything using any mysterious power, but it had accomplished countless things with money.

Although legend has it that the giant rock in front of him once blessed the ancestors who lived on this land with a bountiful harvest, who has ever actually seen that true god?

Maybe--

Perhaps our ancestors were wrong.

After all, the Solipos are very good at farming.

They have many hands, allowing them to operate different tools simultaneously. They are clever enough to have invented many useful tools long ago.

As long as they work hard, they will be the richest creatures on this land.

As for how they came into this world and who created them, to be honest... he didn't really care that much.

Of course, deep down he also harbored a longing—he wanted to meet the Lord who only existed in legends.

Many prophets claimed to have seen Him and even painted His likeness on the walls around the Holy Stone—a smooth, beardless face with two lonely eyes hanging from a tube.

To be honest, he thought it was just so-so, even though many theologians regarded it as a treasure and even claimed that they had comprehended the true meaning of the universe from the star-like deep eyes of the true God!

However, if that Lord truly exists, perhaps He has a way to save the Solipsians from their endless descent into the abyss of desire.

Their world is too narrow to satisfy their insatiable ambitions, and tragically, they cannot find a way to leave this world.

Perhaps his piety was finally perceived by his "master".

Just as his faith was about to utterly vanish into nothingness, and he was about to fall asleep during a long prayer, a majestic yet unfamiliar voice suddenly rang clearly in his mind—

"The time has come..."

"Who?!"

The Pope was startled and looked around in alarm, only to find that there was no one around and he was the only one in front of the empty Holy Pool.

In terror, all the tentacles on his body tensed up instantly, twisting into a knot like a pretzel.

He looked around in fear, but could not see the source of the sound. But soon, that deep-seated fear was replaced by an unparalleled ecstasy.

It is the voice of the Lord!
For the first time in five hundred years, their god answered their prayers!
From that whisper from the heavens, he vaguely heard a murmur, which seemed to be the name of a true god—

It seems to be Colin?
“My lord!” Tears streamed down his face, and countless tendrils on his face trembled violently. “You…you have finally answered your humble servant!”

What delighted him even more was that this time, the sacred gaze did not close because of his call; instead, it opened its eyes wide!

He could feel that the great will still resided on the sacred stone, gazing upon his humble soul as insignificant as dust with loving eyes!
He could even feel His heavy breathing!
He mustered his courage and tentatively asked in his mind, "Colin... is that your name, my lord?"

The notes he uttered were transformed into pure spiritual signals, and through the resonance effect of source power, they were converted into frequencies that the magicians of the Academy could understand.

This is a groundbreaking study by the Source Law School—

Although they couldn't understand the language of the otherworldly beings, they could hear whispers from the depths of their souls uttered by some exceptionally inspired individuals!

Inside the Collin Tower, sensing the mental signals fed back through the magic circle, Luo Yan's lips curled into a pleased smile.

Language does not seem to be a barrier to communication.

But it's normal.

They weren't originally communicating with sound, but with a power even closer to the very essence of the universe than any supernatural force—

That is the soul!
Through the magic circle, he delivered a concise yet powerful response to that burning, pulsating soul.

"Yes."

"I permit you to call me by my real name."

Upon receiving an affirmative answer, the Pope trembled even more violently.

He immediately prostrated himself on the ground, pressing all his tentacles tightly against the cold earth, and began to repent for his sins.

“My Lord, the Most High God, Honorable Colin, please forgive your servant’s greed! As you can see, I have amassed gold in your name, but please allow me to defend my sins. All that I have done was not out of selfish desire!”

He paused briefly, then continued his repentance without stopping.

"All that I have done is because the power of the church has grown ever stronger, like a wild horse running rampant in an endless wilderness. As the leader who manages your worldly authority on your behalf, I can only use this worldly wealth to satisfy the insatiable desires and ambitions of the believers! I beg you to forgive my sins, my most devout Lord, please grant guidance to your lost servant!"

Luo Yan did not ask him to do anything, nor did he make any judgment on his behavior. He simply bestowed divine grace upon his child like a kind and dignified father.

“I forgive your sins, and I will grant you power that surpasses that of mortals, and you only need to do one thing for me.”

The Pope was moved to tears, the viscous liquid running down his tendrils and soaking his robes, creating a muddy swamp on the holy floor.

"What do you need me to do?"

Luo Yan said calmly.

"I need nothing, I only need you to write down a covenant about the future in the new covenant of rebirth from the ashes."

He doesn't say what he wants.

He wants them to guess.

Only in this way will they offer their most precious things with trepidation.

Upon hearing that the price of power would not be paid immediately, an uncontrollable surge of elation appeared beneath the tentacled face.

The Pope bowed his head and made his promise in a voice of utmost piety.

"I am willing!"

He dared not disobey.

There is no reason to disobey.

Since the gods can bestow blessings, they can also bring down divine punishment.

He would also use the harshest language to write the doctrines of the New Testament and use the most vicious threats to coerce his descendants into fulfilling them.

Anyway—

He doesn't need to pay for that.

The new testament, written by his own hand, will become a new megalith, deeply engraved in the bones of every Solipsian!

Having completed the contract, Luo Yan ceased his conversation with the Pope and turned his gaze to Miller, who was standing to the side.

The teaching assistant was completely stunned. He never imagined that the virtual realm could be used in this way!

What surprised him even more was that this respected Prince Colin was so skilled that he managed to persuade the people from another world to willingly offer up everything with just a few words!
Is this really his first time exploring the virtual realm?!
"Miller will impart some of the most fundamental concepts of Source Magic, the part about how to guide and release it, to our first 'prophet' through spiritual resonance."

Miller suddenly snapped out of his daze and nodded excitedly.

"Understood! Mentor! It's the one who says, 'If you want to take, you must first give,' right?"

Luo Yan was slightly taken aback, then remembered that he had taught him these words, so he smiled and said.

"That's right, go ahead."

Taf, perched on his shoulder, remained motionless, holding her breath and staring wide-eyed, seemingly still reeling from the shock before her.

She had played the role of a deity before, but she never expected to be able to play it this way.

"You...you're a demon." She whispered in Luo Yan's ear in the Dragon Language, her voice unusually tinged with fear.

If she had previously fantasized about finding her way home through the virtual realm, now she was afraid and even couldn't help but pray that this guy wouldn't find her hometown.

She had no doubt that those naive and innocent girls with extremely high moral standards would definitely be fooled by this man who would stop at nothing!

Although the citizens of the Zeta Empire have extremely high moral character, who doesn't have some private thoughts and desires that are inconvenient to say out loud?
for example--

He promised to enable the Zetas to lay eggs.

Of course, she said this not because she thought it was a good thing, nor because she thought it was comfortable or exciting.

This is just an example!
"Thank you for the compliment."

Luo Yan smiled slightly and quietly waited for his teaching assistants to take action.

Communicating with otherworldly beings is not difficult for the magicians of Xuebang. The difficulty lies only in "how to establish an effective dialogue mechanism" and "what to say during the exchange".

Coincidentally, this is exactly what the top students at the Demon King Academy excel at, and it's a perfect fit for Luo Yan, an outstanding graduate.

The transfer of knowledge began quickly.

Or--

The whispers of the ancient god Corin have begun!

The magician in the hall first activated the source energy on the magic circle, causing the time flow between the two worlds to shift.

This is the basic operation for virtual realm research.

The magicians of the Source School don't have to wait for the same story to repeat itself day after day behind the illusory realm. Instead, they can actively drag the progress bar backward to make time on the other side faster relative to the universe outside the "view of sight".

No need to rush.

Thirty times is about right.

Every night, Miller and his fellow teaching assistants would repeatedly broadcast the Jade Sound into the head of the Solipsian Pope, instilling magical theories about Source Force.

Although these magical techniques seem so primitive to the students, they are just right for the Solipsians, whose spiritual world is barren.

The same was true for the Pope. Although the whispers that reached the depths of his soul tormented him, causing him sleepless nights, the feeling of enlightenment also brought him unparalleled physical and mental pleasure.

He can use magic now!
At first, he could only relight extinguished candles, but gradually he was able to heal people's wounds and even curse his enemies with disease.

Because that world did not develop a systematic theory of magic or cultivate extraordinary individuals based on such a theory, even simple spells were enough for this devout pope to become the absolute authority in his civilization.

He doesn't need to be very powerful.

You only need to be a little bit better than the average person.

There were no surprises—

With the blessing of divine power, he quickly became Colin's "chosen one" and, over time, mastered the knack of wielding extraordinary power.

Guided by destiny, he entered the cities and countryside of the Solipsians with zeal for evangelism, spreading the grace of the true God Colin in the industrial areas filled with chimneys.

His words were like a flame, easily igniting in the people's hearts the longing for the blessings bestowed by the ancient God, and guiding them to remember the days when the God favored them, and the "good old days" before the farmland and pastures were swallowed up by factories.

Regardless of whether the past was truly wonderful, at least the current suffering is visible to them.

His "magic," in particular, was an undeniable miracle, causing countless believers to prostrate themselves at his feet and chant his name in prayer.

An organization called the "Holy Light Society" spread like wildfire, rising from the lowest workshops and the poorest alleys, and then sweeping across the magnificent streets.

A new flame is burning in the ashes!

Just as the Pope was doing his utmost to spread the gospel of the true God, Luo Yan, standing on the other side of the virtual realm, did not stop either.

In order to quickly observe the long-term effects of this intervention, he issued his second instruction to Miller and his team—to increase the output power of the magic circle, to deflect the time axis on both sides of the virtual realm passage more significantly, and to further accelerate the flow of time behind the virtual realm!
Normally, a time flow rate of thirty times is already quite fast. In order to avoid missing important details and to prevent the precious communication time between the two worlds from running out prematurely, the magicians of the Academy usually do not use a higher speed to drag the "progress bar" of the virtual world.

Two worlds don't always intersect in that vast and boundless void, which is even more expansive than the universe. Perhaps only one or two glances in tens of millions of years will happen to coincide.

No one knows how much progress bar is left for the two civilizations; perhaps if they miss this opportunity, they will never meet again.

However, Luo Yan was not worried at all, not only because he had obtained the Void Realm for free, but also because he had enough confidence in his research decisions!
When the magicians of the Academy were studying the illusory realm, their gaze was either on the windmill, on the rotten rocks, or on some lord's crown.

But he is different.

He planted the "viewpoint" of his research directly into the soul of the Solipsians!

From the moment Colin's name became a symbol of the ancient gods, he firmly grasped the soul of this civilization!
As long as the Solipsians and their history do not disappear into the river of time, they will surely meet again in the future!
At most, it's just a matter of changing the person.

Under Luo Yan's command, the entire research team threw themselves into their work with unprecedented enthusiasm.

They continuously poured their surging magic into the magic circle, and the images in the illusory lens began to flow rapidly at a speed visible to the naked eye.

The alternation of the sun and moon, the cycle of the four seasons, all seem to be compressed into a single moment!
The 30x speed was accelerated to 300x!
They no longer focused on trivial details, nor coveted the seemingly tempting but ultimately useless offerings, but instead concentrated their energy on things that were truly worthwhile—

They are to play the roles of the creator gods!

Let the Solipsians, who are already accelerating, continue running at an even faster pace!

The first year passed quickly, and the second year arrived.

This torrent of pure faith has overflowed the dilapidated and desolate streets and alleys, and has officially launched an attack on those greedy old priests!

The former rulers were shocked that their Pope had spearheaded this sweeping reform, but it was too late to stop him.
What's more, this time even the gods stood by his side, supporting him in bringing divine punishment upon the Old Testament-dominated order!

The temple built on gold and lies soon collapsed.

It was not destroyed by the roaring siege cannons, but by the cries of believers who embraced the Holy Light, calling for the truth.

The old priest class was overthrown, and the Holy Light Society naturally became the new ruler of the world.

They identified the name of the ancient god who "brought abundant miracles when the Solipsians were in distress and divine punishment when they were arrogant," and rewrote the new doctrine.

In the third year, the new order was fully established.

The Solipsians created a new calendar, with the "day of the miracle" as the first year of the new era.

The runes symbolizing "Colin" were branded on every new steam engine, hung on the lintel of every newly built factory, and engraved on the dome of every new temple.

The entire civilization revolved around this great deity, embarking on a new evolution and moving into a new historical cycle.

From this point on, the true god "Colin" was no longer just a religious symbol, but a cultural symbol that has been passed down eternally.

Along with it, the reformed doctrines of the "New Testament" were also passed down.

The pope kept his promise, writing his commitment to the true God in the most prominent position in the new testament and emphasizing it three times.

At this moment, his mission was finally accomplished.

Perhaps it was during this process that he came to understand his destiny. After accomplishing everything, he and his disciples quietly withdrew from the limelight, returning the secular world to the people.

They did not disappear.

He no longer appears in public as a ruler, but instead hides in the shadows of history as a mysterious researcher.

An organization called the "Shadow Society" was born.

The pope gradually realized that the whispers from the heavens were not a good thing, and that His schemes might be more terrible than he had imagined.

The cost of the contract may be something his descendants cannot afford.

He was powerless to resist His will, and the Solipsians could not bear the cost of resisting Him, but he could sow the seeds of resistance for the future counterattack the moment the deal was completed.

The pope, who once thought "I don't care what happens after I die," ultimately did not leave everything to future generations who knew nothing about it.

He decided to spend the rest of his life doing this one last thing—

To understand what those whispers from the heavens really mean!
The world behind the virtual realm has undergone earth-shattering changes, while only three days have passed on the continent of Os!

Just as Miller and his team were thrilled with this miraculous research progress and preparing to record more data, another unexpected event occurred—

The previously stable virtual scene suddenly rippled violently, like the surface of a lake being disturbed by the wind.

Just like the accident a few days ago, the azure light that shone on the mirror surface vanished without a trace once again.

The connection... has been lost again.

This time, however, no one was frustrated, and no one was in despair; instead, every face was etched with excitement.

"Mentor!" Miller strode to Colin's side, his expression excited as he suggested, "This is absolutely groundbreaking! We... we've found a way to stably interfere with and guide the evolution of civilizations within the Void Realm! I suggest you immediately publish this finding in the Sage's Gazette within the Academy! I bet this achievement will absolutely shock the entire Great Sage's Tower!"

Luo Yan smiled and readily agreed to the suggestion.

He patted Miller on the shoulder and said, "Very good, that's a good idea. As for the specific writing of the paper, I'll leave it entirely to you, Miller."

He would certainly not refuse to reap the power of faith by preaching, imparting knowledge, and resolving doubts.

This is definitely not for showing off.

"Leave it to me?!" Miller was flattered and so excited he almost jumped up.

He could almost foresee that this paper, led by His Highness the Prince and bearing his own name, would become the most important achievement in his academic career!
Especially considering the academic achievements they are about to present, he has no doubt that this paper will be enough to pave the way for his future academic career!

"That's right, it's up to you. Are you confident you can do it?" Luo Yan teased with a smile, looking at Miller who was so excited he was practically beside himself.

"Yes! Absolutely!" Miller nodded excitedly, swearing a solemn oath, "I swear to Saint Sith! I will do everything in my power to complete the task you have entrusted to me!"

Luo Yan nodded, indicating that he understood, and handed the matter over to him.

As is customary, his name, as the supervisor, would be listed first in the paper's authorship; he didn't need to worry about these trivial details.

The smart people at Xuebang are best at these things.

Once the initial excitement wore off, Miller quickly asked the question he was most curious about.

"By the way, mentor, you still haven't told me how you bestowed this bountiful harvest upon the Solipsians. I never imagined that Source Power could be used in this way. Your magic... seems even more effective than the magic of the Life School."

Upon hearing this, Luo Yan's expression underwent a subtle change.

He certainly couldn't explain the existence of "divinity" or how using the power of faith was as easy for him as breathing.

He pondered for a moment, then answered in a profound and enigmatic tone.

"Well... I'm still in the exploratory stage myself. I'll publish it once I've figured out how to express it theoretically. Is it that important?"

"No, that's not important!"

Miller immediately shook his head vigorously, fearing that His Highness might not publish the paper this time out of academic rigor.

His Highness Colin may not care about showing off, but he desperately needs this opportunity to advance!
He paused for a moment, then chuckled and said.

"Compared to this, our research findings on the evolution of the virtual realm itself are already astonishing enough! I'm just worried that other professors might be curious about this, and writing it in a paper will save us the time of replying to each one individually..."

"I see. Let them be curious for now," Luo Yan said with a faint smile. "We'll talk about the application of source power later. You can just publish your research findings on the evolution of the virtual realm first."

He paused for a moment, then revealed his true purpose.

"Also, please remember to include my lab—the 'Magic Science Lab'—as a collaborating institution on the paper. Is that possible?"

For his newly established "scientific" school of thought, this was undoubtedly an excellent opportunity to make a name for himself in the eyes of the entire academic community.

Regardless of whether this has anything to do with science or not, if he says it does, then it must have.

In any case, the final interpretation right belongs to him alone.

Miller understood his mentor's intentions perfectly well, and he immediately nodded eagerly, a bright, sunny smile spreading across his face.

"No problem! Leave this little thing to me, don't worry, I understand!"

(End of this chapter)