I don't want to conquer witches anymore.

Then, Anne spoke up:

"This apocalyptic fate is a bottleneck and a trial for the Floating City, but also an opportunity and its future. While the interdimensional invasion may destroy the Floating City in the short term, what if it survives? The Floating City has too many spellcasters and researchers. As long as it can withstand the initial onslaught and quickly absorb the technology and magic from different interdimensional realms, the Floating City will experience a surge in scientific research. If it can overcome this apocalyptic fate, the Floating City will become a unique top-tier power on this continent."

"Uh-huh."

Duke nodded.

The opinions of the masses can, to some extent, represent the thoughts of the residents of the floating city about their possible fate in the apocalypse. These thoughts will eventually converge into a trend of thought, ultimately leading to the birth of certain beings within the city.

An existence called God.

Chapter 453 Feels less charismatic than Duke...

The "fall" of the mute was not instantaneous. Ever since the Babel Tower Turtle Soup game, in which the mute's human half was resurrected and their divine half fell into slumber, the mute believers in the floating city have not received a response from the gods. By now, most of the devout believers have probably realized this.

The mute have already "fallen".

To be precise, the mute ones truly "fell" after Duke and the others returned from the "parallel world." Through this journey to the parallel world, Duke and Ida severed their ties with the gods, divine fire, and divine positions. Regaining their divine status was virtually impossible. These were changes in causality, not something that could be resolved by simply rewinding time for a few days. If Carol wanted Duke and Ida to regain their chance to become gods, she would have to go back at least to before Duke came to the floating city.

Only by severing Duke's destiny to ascend to the floating city from its very source can Ida regain her divine status.

However, the "fall" of the mute does not mean that the floating city has lost its god forever. As long as the time and conditions are right, the floating city can give birth to a new god at any time—especially now! Now that the mute has just "fallen" is the best time for a new god to be born.

The followers abandoned by the Old Gods still retain their organizational abilities, the divine positions relinquished by the Old Gods do not resist the approach of humans, and the thoughts of living beings are intensifying due to their impending doom... Duke strongly suspects that Carol has already made arrangements, and someone will soon jump out, become a god in a grand manner, become the official faith of the floating city, and replace the previously less respectable faith of the mute.

Even Duke had already guessed who the best candidate was.

Saint Megan.

She could easily rely on her identical face to Ida, her barely passable legendary cultivation level, and her status as a saint among the mute, to seamlessly connect with the mute faith and become the new main god of the floating city by stepping on the shoulders of the old god (her own mother)—a veritable Zeus of another world.

To be honest, Duke still couldn't figure out how Carol planned to save the floating city—after all, he had already proven in the other world that even a god "savior" born specifically to save the world couldn't save the floating city from its doom, let alone a new god forced into the role.

No way, no way, does anyone really think that Carol is planning to survive the apocalypse by relying on fake aphasic people?

Although Duke couldn't guess what Carol was thinking, Carol couldn't possibly be confused about something he had so "easily" disproved—yes, Duke's actions in the parallel world seemed extremely crazy, gambling his life on the path to godhood, becoming a "savior" to try to save the floating city, and then destroying it after realizing he couldn't do it, thus freeing the floating city from its fate.

Duke's actions were a complete gamble. Not to mention that he didn't know if he could still control his body after becoming a god, even if he could, he didn't know whether destroying the floating city would free it from its fate.

But for Carol, she didn't need to gamble or place any bets. All she needed was to go through a time loop to be sure—and if once wasn't enough, she could do it a few more times.

Carol's seemingly prophetic abilities become understandable. If someone repeats the same period of time many times, is it incomprehensible that she is so prescient?

But Duke doesn't have enough clues yet. He can't figure out how Carol plans to save the floating city, or why she needs the little prince and him...

"Never mind, getting my body is more important first."

The matter of the new god is still far from being established, and Carol's plan is "far from the horizon." Heaven knows how many time loops Duke will have to go through before he can directly access the core of her plan. So at this moment, Duke is just thinking about it in his mind, casually soliciting everyone's opinions on the fate of the apocalypse, in order to make a simple judgment on what kind of thoughts the people of the floating city will have, so as not to be tricked later.

The group moved quickly through the underground passage. Duke had been through this passage once before, and this time he didn't wander around aimlessly. Instead, he ran along the shortest path, racing against time to reach his destination in the shortest possible time.

In the end, neither Carol nor the Little Prince appeared, and the apocalyptic fate did not occur ahead of schedule.

When Duke, who was leading the way and floating at the very front of the group, stopped and looked at the familiar room and the familiar magical supercomputer, the Zun, and saw a transparent coffin filled with green liquid next to the Zun and the original body lying inside, Duke still couldn't put his mind at ease.

Duke felt a little uneasy, as if something unexpected might happen. But the others weren't so worried. Everyone except Duke was visiting the core control room of the floating city for the first time. This included Zun herself (because she didn't have the memories of being the core of the floating city) – Zun's body was like the heart of a giant beast, just like a real heart, vibrating slightly as it operated.

Ida clicked her tongue with interest, strode into the main body of the vessel, reached out and touched the scorching hot supercomputer, then closed her eyes to sense something. Although she was also a predecessor left over from ancient times, she wasn't ancient enough to witness the floating city's takeoff firsthand. Now that she could see the true core of the floating city, she was immediately intrigued, even wanting to disassemble this generation of supercomputer to see what was inside.

But apart from the sentimental Ida and her little fan Alice, everyone else quickly turned their attention to the side, to Duke's original body in the coffin. Even the mechanical dragon girl Zun was no exception—in her eyes, her interest in her own body seemed to be far less than her interest in Duke's original body.

It's understandable. One is herself, someone she knows all too well. Even though she's forgotten she's herself, she's still a robot, and once the data is synchronized, all the records will return. But Duke's original body is one she's never seen before... Just thinking about this, Zun's logical analysis system determined the choice she should make.

So, a large group of women gathered around the transparent coffin, pointing and commenting on Duke's sleeping body inside, saying, "Strange, I always feel like he's not as handsome as Duke."

"There is such a feeling that it is inferior in every aspect... whether it is temperament or actual facial appearance."

"Isn't that for sure? What kind of body did Duke use later? It was a divine body made up of the top-tier artificial human body I created and the leaves of the Tree of Life. This mortal body is obviously no match for those top-tier bodies in terms of strength, agility, or innate charisma!"

"And lying in this coffin, don't you think Duke's body looks much weaker than before? He's obviously malnourished!"

"Malnutrition is actually a good thing; you should be glad he didn't develop lividity!"

"..." Duke's forehead creased with annoyance. He waved his hand and yelled at the girls, "Get rid of them!"

After finally managing to drive away the girls who were staring at his body, Duke stood in front of himself, quietly looking at the body he had once used. The girls were right; he looked much thinner than before, and his charm was far less than it had been now.

After entering the divine body, Duke's charm level soared to 25, a level of charm comparable to that of a mythical creature. Anyone unprepared would be instantly stunned at first glance; he belonged to the realm of an invisible evil god. However, when Duke used the body before him, his charm level was still within the range that humans could possess (charm 18). While still stunningly beautiful, it wasn't enough to kill someone with his beauty.

The reason why Amber and others complained that "it doesn't feel as charming as Duke's..." is mainly because there is no harm without comparison. Duke's charm of 25 during his god-like period was just too overpowered. As a result, after getting used to that face that was so beautiful that it was hard to look directly at, the girls' standards also rose to an absurd level.

For example, Amber... Right now, in her eyes, Duke with a charm of 25 is just a person, so you can imagine how worthless Duke with a charm of 18 is in her eyes.

From any perspective, Duke at Charisma 18 was far more normal than Duke at Charisma 25 during his Godhood era. That was Duke's naive mortal phase, when he relied mainly on his brain to beat the Witch Game. As for now… it's mostly about risking his life. And most of the time, risking his life is useless because his opponents are simply too strong, and the problems he has to solve are simply too difficult!

Duke sighed, put away his memories of the past, stretched out his hands to switch to a state where he could touch everything, and then used brute force to pry open the transparent coffin.

"Wow—"

Green liquid gushed from the coffin, but quickly vaporized and merged into the air, transforming into a vibrant, refreshing life force. Everyone who smelled this aura felt their body healed by some power. Clearly, this green liquid was created by Noelle using the leaves of the Tree of Life. Only the power of the leaves of the Tree of Life could keep a soulless, dead body full of vitality, keeping it alive forever.

If Duke had come back several years later, his original body would most likely have given birth to a completely new soul—that is, become sentient—under the catalysis of the power of the Tree of Life's leaves! Fortunately, Duke arrived in time; it was still only at the level of being lifelike.

Duke reached out, touched his fingers to his body, then closed his eyes, feeling the connection between himself and his body.

One second, two seconds, three seconds...

Time passed quietly, but Duke's spirit remained outside his body, unable to enter it. However, the body, which had been soaked in the power of the Tree of Life's leaves, underwent some changes as it left the green liquid and the coffin, and came into contact with Duke's spirit—some energy changes began to occur within it.

But just as Amber and the others were worried that something unexpected might happen and Duke would be unable to enter his original body, his spirit suddenly burrowed into his body... but Duke's body did not wake up.

The body, which had been lifeless like a specimen, began to breathe slowly and gradually regain its basic bodily functions, but it did not open its eyes.

Ida glanced at his condition, shrugged, and casually explained, "Don't worry, he's just waking up his body. There's no rejection reaction, so there's nothing wrong. Duke will wake up soon."

"I hope that's true."

Amber looked at Duke nervously, hoping he would suddenly open his eyes.

But at that moment, a golden shadow suddenly darted out and rushed toward Duke, who was still asleep.

It was a little boy, and he was incredibly fast, but Amber reacted even faster. Almost without hesitation, she reached out and grabbed the little boy, then used a spatial spell to lift him away from where he stood, before slamming him heavily to the ground without a second thought.

"Little Prince! As long as I'm here, I will never let you take Duke away!"

Amber glared fiercely at the suddenly appearing little boy, like a mother hen fiercely protecting the still-sleeping Duke.

"Are you the little prince of this world?" Ida leaned closer, stroking her chin and looking curiously at the dark-skinned prince. "Wait, something's not right? Aren't you the little prince from a parallel world? How did you end up here, and even change your personality?"

The little prince gave her a disapproving look, completely ignoring Ida, who was still staring intently at Duke.

“Staring at Duke won’t do any good. I owe Duke a favor, so at least for now, I won’t let you lay a hand on him. Give up, little prince…”

Ida's words abruptly stopped there.

Or rather, the whole world suddenly came to a standstill.

Time seemed to stand still.

Ida tried to control her body, but this time the power of time was so heavy that she could hardly move freely.

Was this Carol's attack?

Ida thought coldly, and began to conjure up her own legendary destiny.

She pursued the path to godhood, and her battles relied heavily on divinity, divine status, divine authority, and even divine fire. However, before becoming the Mute, she was a top-tier legend who could rival Scarlet. Yes, she was indeed influenced by the legendary destiny of the Time Witch, but that doesn't mean she was powerless to fight back.

But who was her target? Duke?

Ida waited and waited, but instead of Carol launching an attack, she witnessed the abrupt end of the time stop.

She suddenly looked up at Duke—he was unharmed, still lying in the same spot with his eyes closed, and his soul was indeed inside his body.

"So what was Carol doing here just now?"

She muttered to herself in surprise, then heard Anne beside her ask in astonishment, "Where's Amber? And where's the little prince who just appeared?"

Ida was stunned.

Chapter 454 Mouse, I'm getting angry!

Duke had a dream.

Everything in the dream was blurry.

Even in his dream, Duke couldn't tell what the dream was about, nor could he see the scene around him. Everything he could see, hear, and feel was as blurry as looking at flowers through a fog. But despite this, Duke still vaguely sensed a sense of familiarity from his current state.

But even after searching through his entire memory, he couldn't find out what this place was.

Soon, Duke heard some indistinct voices, as if someone was speaking to him, or as if someone was patting him on the shoulder, but Duke could neither hear her words nor see her face.

Duke opened his eyes wide, trying to make out what the person in front of him was saying. He struggled to decipher her blurry lips, and after a long while, he could barely make out one or two syllables:

"I...will let you...save...change...the...stars..."

These scattered syllables couldn't possibly be pieced together into a coherent sentence, but shortly after the sentence ended, the person's voice suddenly became clear, allowing Duke to understand who she was and what she was saying:

"This is Project Starmap."

That was Carol's voice.

That was... something that happened in the Little Prince game that Duke had completely forgotten.

……

Duke suddenly opened his eyes, and then he smelled a pleasant fragrance. This fragrance jolted Duke, who had just opened his eyes and was still somewhat groggy, awake. He frowned, suddenly sensing something was wrong, and at the same time, he heard the sounds of battle.

"what happens?"

He struggled to crawl out of the broken transparent coffin. Having gotten used to the superhuman bodies of the android and the god, Duke felt somewhat uncomfortable returning to his original ordinary human body—whether in terms of physical strength, power, agility, or dexterity. However, most professionals at Duke's level possess extremely high mystical qualities; their souls can, in turn, modify their bodies.

With just a period of adaptation, Duke's soul can transform his body into a form of corresponding level. Although it certainly cannot compare to a god-like body that is superior in every aspect, it is still feasible to be compared to the artificial human body that Duke has used.

But Duke was slightly taken aback when he saw what was happening outside the transparent coffin.

Because Date made his move.

The goddess seemed somewhat enraged as she attacked her enemy, but her enemy was neither Carol nor the little prince, but a somewhat goofy-looking monster from another dimension. It looked like a stone monster with the body of a lion, and various earth elemental powers were faintly visible on its body, clearly an elemental creature.

Composed entirely of rock, it appears quite large, and its speed and agility are beyond what one would expect from an elemental creature of its material. With its powerful body and innate elemental talent, this stone monster possesses at least the combat strength of an elite adventurer. If its defense were even stronger than it currently appears, many hero-level adventurers without powerful offensive capabilities would likely find it difficult to defeat in a short time.

But in Ida's hands, it was as helpless as a puppet being played with, only able to be toyed with by the former mute, and soon it was exhausted and defeated, collapsing to the ground and turning into a pile of rubble.

"What's going on? What's going on?" Duke asked in a puzzled tone. "Can someone explain to me why Ida personally dealt with monsters of this level?"