186: Chapter 186 The Combination of Divine Power and Technology

Lin Mo walked up to Aiken and raised his left hand, flexing his five fingers nimbly. He even clenched his fist, causing his knuckles to crack slightly.

"You mean this? It was indeed a bit painful last night, but after a night's sleep, it's fine. Your divine arts aren't all that impressive!" Lin Mo said in a flat tone, as if showing off something trivial.

Aiken stared fixedly at that hand, his eyes nearly popping out of their sockets.

"The divine arts... the divine arts have been dispelled..." He stammered incoherently, his voice filled with incredulous fear.

"That is the power of the gods! For mortals without the gods' protection, once wounded by divine arts, the wound will never heal, the flesh will gradually rot, and the soul will be completely eroded! How could you... how could you recover so quickly?!"

Lin Mo lowered his hand and looked down at this once arrogant Temple Knight, a faint curve appearing at the corner of his mouth. "I said it before, the divine arts of your West Federation aren't all that impressive. Could you stop making such a big fuss?"

"No! This is impossible!" Aiken struggled frantically, the chains rattling loudly as he pulled at them.

"Your Daxia has no gods! You are an abandoned kingdom! You have no source of faith, how could you possibly resist the authority of the gods?! Unless... unless..."

He suddenly stopped, a more terrifying thought slithering into his mind like a viper, causing his face to turn instantly pale.

"You... you have already mastered... the power to contend with the gods?"

The dungeon fell into a deathly silence.

Aiken's breathing became heavy and rapid. If this speculation were true, it would be a devastating blow to the entire belief system of the West Federation.

For hundreds of years, the reason the West Federation has been able to maintain an advantage in the confrontation with Daxia, aside from technology, is their greatest reliance: divine arts!

This power, which borrows the strength of the gods and holds absolute suppression over non-believers.

If this suppression failed...

If an individual appeared in Daxia capable of becoming immune to divine arts, or even contending with the gods...

Aiken dared not think any further.

Lin Mo watched the changes in his expression—from shock to fear, and then to despair—and suddenly chuckled.

"Want to learn?"

Lin Mo spoke suddenly, his voice very light, yet it struck Aiken's heart like a hammer.

Aiken was stunned. "You... what did you say?"

Lin Mo leaned forward slightly, those deep eyes fixed on Aiken, his tone carrying a hint of mockery.

"I said, I can teach you the method to resist divine arts, but before that—"

He straightened up and pulled over a chair to sit, his posture as relaxed as if he were chatting in a teahouse. "You must first answer a few questions for me. A fair trade, how about it?"

Aiken's lips trembled. Reason told him he should refuse, that he should maintain the pride of a Temple Knight, but that uninjured hand was like a black hole, devouring all of his resolve.

"Fine... ask." Eventually, he hung his head dejectedly, his voice dry.

Lin Mo snapped his fingers. "First question: what is the true purpose of Augustus launching this war? Don't tell me it's for territory; I don't believe that excuse used to fool children."

Aiken was silent for a moment before finally speaking, his voice low:

"You are right, of course it's not because of territory!"

"Lord Augustus's goal... is the dragon remains!"

"dragon remains? What is that?"

Lin Mo furrowed his brows.

"Deep in the Northern Wasteland, there is a fallen land of the ancient dragon race. Legend has it that a complete skeleton of a dragon god is buried there. Lord Augustus needs it... to comprehend the power beyond the ninth rank."

Lin Mo's gaze flickered, but his expression remained unchanged. "Continue. Second question: what is the essence of divine arts? Why do you believe the people of Daxia cannot resist them?"

"Divine arts... are the power of faith." Aiken looked up, a flash of complexity in his eyes.

"By praying to the Lord of Holy Light, we are able to borrow the authority of the gods. Divine art attacks contain the will of the gods, and this will pollutes and erodes the flesh and soul of mortals. You in Daxia have no gods, no source of faith; you are just like... soldiers without shields, waiting to die when facing a rain of arrows."

He looked at Lin Mo's hand, his voice tinged with bitterness. "But you are different. You seem to have mastered a method to resist this pollution and erosion!"

"Third question," Lin Mo leaned forward slightly, his gaze becoming sharp.

"Regarding the issue of the Mimics, it seems you have some kind of deal with the Mimics?"

Aiken's breath hitched; this was the ultimate secret. But he glanced at Lin Mo's hand, then at the longyuan blade hanging at his waist, and finally closed his eyes in despair:

"Do you know why we Temple Knights are far stronger than ordinary Awakeners? It is because we are a combination of divine power and technology."

"Mimics are different. They are products of divine power contamination. They look no different from ordinary people, and they don't even know they are seeds themselves. Only under the stimulation of a specific divine power frequency will they awaken."

"In Ironwall City, there are already at least three seeds. They could be soldiers, they could be officers, they might even be... people around you."

"However, who these seeds are, and what their purpose is, I do not know. This is top-secret information; only Lord Augustus knows!"

Lin Mo's pupils suddenly constricted.

The dungeon was terrifyingly quiet, save for Aiken's heavy, ragged breathing.

"I've said everything I know!" Aiken looked up, his eyes filled with a reckless, desperate madness.

"Now, fulfill your promise! Let me see... what kind of monster you really are! What method you used... to resist the erosion of the gods!"

Lin Mo stood up, gave him a deep look, and then reached out his right hand, pressing it against Aiken's forehead.

"Fine, then as you wish!"

"Look closely! This is the power beyond your so-called 'gods'!" Lin Mo's voice suddenly became grand and ancient, as if thousands of people were whispering simultaneously.

Boom—!

Within Lin Mo's body, the golden-red dragon blood boiled instantly! The ancient, majestic power surged awake in an instant!

A dazzling golden light lit up his palm. Within that light, a five-clawed golden dragon could be vaguely seen roaring, and the dragon's might surged out like a tide, instantly filling the entire dungeon.

Aiken's eyes widened. He felt a vast will surge from Lin Mo's palm into his mind. It was not some borrowed divine power, but rather something stemming from the origin of life, from the deepest part of the bloodline, something innate that stood above all things... the divine charm of the dragon!

That was a trace of true divinity!

It did not belong to any faith, did not rely on any prayer; it was the primordial divine might of one who is a god unto oneself, who is the authority itself!

"This... this is..." Aiken trembled violently, the madness and paranoia in his eyes collapsing completely, replaced by the deepest level of fear and despair.

"Dragon... Dragon God... why do you have the will of the Dragon God within you..."

Lin Mo released his hand, the dragon's might receded as if nothing had ever happened.

The iron door closed, leaving Aiken slumped alone in the cell, his eyes unfocused, muttering to himself incessantly:

"Why, why is it like this?"

"It's over... it's all over..."