At the heart of the island, at the Flower of Heaven, stood a number of priests and various church members busy at work.
The Great Gardener, the leader of the Land of All Spirits, was preparing with the priests nearby.
Apart from these people, there was another figure who seemed somewhat out of place.
That was Simon, who sat in a corner, adjusting some mechanical construct.
After adjusting the construct in front of him, he turned to look at a young woman in a church robe standing beside him.
"I'm going to begin. Is that all right?"
"No problem, sir. You're always welcome."
Simon nodded, closed his eyes, and then opened them slightly.
A blue light could be seen emanating from his eyes, a light so concentrated that it didn't spread out.
His eye sockets and the pupils between them had transformed into a mechanical structure.
The treasure index finger resting on the Precision Hand also shimmered with a faint blue light, unusually focused.
He raised his Precision Hand and inserted the entire arm into the groove of the device in front of him.
He raised the mechanical arm on his left hand and placed it on top of the mechanical structure.
The floating platform carrying Zero and Shi slowly ascended, the mechanical platform fixed to the top of the entire mechanical structure, connecting them together.
Magical patterns appeared on the bottom of the platform.
Shi sat there, drowsy.
Zero remained at her side, guarding her.
The entire mechanical structure began to emit the noise of gears.
Blue light emanated from some of the gaps in the structure.
This place indeed attracted a lot of attention, but no one came to disturb it.
...
Soldiers patrolling in various locations.
The metal objects they held began to flicker and sway.
"Captain, this thing's moving."
Hearing this, the squad leader turned and watched as a mechanical construct in the hands of a soldier was shaking slightly.
"Quick, inject some magic power into it."
The soldier nodded and immediately channeled a bit of magic power into it.
With the infusion of magic power, faint lines appeared on the surface of the entire mechanical construct.
One of the lines connected together, forming a spell, and the mechanical construct instantly vanished in a flash of light.
"Disappeared?" the captain asked.
"No, it's still in my hand, invisible," said the soldier holding the mechanical device.
"It's moving, it's moving, it's flying," the soldier said, and the weight in his hand vanished.
A buzzing sound filled everyone's ears.
The invisible construct transformed into a sentinel aircraft and soared into the sky.
A buzzing sound echoed from everywhere.
Countless sentinel aircraft simultaneously took to the sky.
At the same time,
The puppet knights, divided into six groups, were stationed at six nodes throughout the city.
If their nodes were connected, they would form a hexagram.
They weren't standing randomly, but in hidden corners. Beneath them was a two-meter-tall cylindrical stone pillar.
The surface appeared to be made of stone, but within was a sophisticated mechanical structure.
At the same time, the mechanical structure began to transform and rotate.
Seeing this transformation,
The puppet girl, the leader, immediately took out a blue crystal pillar, roughly the same size as herself, which she carried on her back and inserted it into the groove revealed by the construct.
Afterward, the girls set up watch.
…
Time flew by.
Arka and the others were scattered across the area, fully prepared, quietly waiting.
Waiting for a possible enemy.
A day passed quickly.
But the residents and tourists who had begun to stroll through the streets didn't leave because of the approaching darkness.
Instead, they grew even more excited.
There were many more people at night than during the day.
Arka stood beneath the massive altar before her, looking up at the starry sky.
Tonight's sky seemed to have undergone another transformation.
Although every day was different,
this day was particularly interesting.
Some of the stars in the sky were clearly moving and forming new formations. They seemed to be converging above their heads.
"This scene looks so familiar," Sofia couldn't help but exclaim as he observed the changes in the sky.
Julia nodded in agreement.
The changes that day were so dramatic that they nearly frightened them to death.
"Really? Why didn't I feel it?" Alka observed the changes in the sky, finding nothing familiar.
Upon hearing this, the people around him glanced at him, but didn't say much.
It seemed to be related to him.
And since everyone's eyes weren't friendly, Alka decided to keep his mouth shut and not say anything more.
He reflected carefully.
The only time this scene had ever occurred was when they had just escaped the Broken Islands and he had consumed a fragment of the god in his dream.
According to Sofia and the others, the changes in the sky back then were probably similar to what they were experiencing now.
That's about right...
As expected, once something is connected to the gods, the stars on the screen will change.
Thinking of this, Alka took note.
As night fell,
Tonight was also very different from the past.
Every flower's stamens were in full bloom, emitting light.
Like bright lights at night.
The light from the countless giant flowers on the island, resembling greenhouses, instantly illuminated the entire island as bright as day.
The light was soft and varied with the color of the flowers.
Judging from their appearance, it was clear that the dazzling radiance would not fade anytime soon.
Feeling the colorful lights around him,
The atmosphere of a grand festival night suddenly took over.
A smile broke out on Alka's face.
"You look so happy. Does it remind you of something?" Sofia asked beside him.
"Well, memories from the past."
Even at night, it was as bright as day, that feeling of feasting and revelry.
It had been so long since he'd seen such a scene, and seeing something like it naturally brought back memories.
At this moment, melodious music wafted in, accompanied by the stirring beats of drums.
Everyone looked toward the altar.
Many church members in robes ascended the altar.
The center of the altar was decorated as a flowerbed, filled with a variety of precious flowers.
That spot was the largest source of light.
Then, dozens of strong men pushed carts into the area where everyone was.
They all made way for him.
Alka looked.
Two or three strong men formed a group, pushing a wide container about a meter tall.
The container was made of emerald green vines, with green branches growing from it.
Inside the container were irregular brown particles, one after another.
Each particle was about the size of a thumb.
The container was pushed past Alka and the others, toward the base of the altar.
"It's seeds. What's inside is seeds," Julia said, looking at the particles in the container.
"Seeds?" Jason was puzzled.
"Is this some kind of ritual?"
The others didn't quite understand, so they could only stay where they were, waiting for the ceremony to begin.
Up to now, the tall Sky Flower in the distance hadn't yet begun to bloom.
This meant the ceremony hadn't begun yet.
So, they didn't seem particularly nervous.
After all, as long as the ceremony hasn't begun, there's a tall person holding it up.
With curious eyes, the crowd waited as the flower pots were pushed under the machine.
A church member stood at the altar, looking at the crowd below.
"Children of the Flower, take the seeds and write your own characters and faith on them.
The seeds will carry your hopes and your faith to the Flower Fairy. May it thrive."
The believers below began to chant.
They chanted the Flower Fairy's prayer.
As they waited for the prayer to end, the residents and tourists below began to orderly go up to take the seeds.
"Shall we take some too?" Porolo asked, looking at the crowd.
"Why not? It's such a participatory thing," Jason said with a smile.
Soon, it was their turn.
They each took a seed.
The church members standing by the flowerpots watched them.
He softly explained, "You can use magic to imprint your wishes on them."
The few who heard this nodded.
This was clearly meant for them.
They waited until the seeds in the flowerpots were almost all taken.
Everyone present held a different seed in their hands.
"Begin."
As the words fell,
The believers held the seeds in their palms, closed their eyes, and began to pray.
The fragrance of the flowers began to spread, and petals fluttered around.
These petals began to fly back and forth above the area where they were, passing through the crowd.
"How beautiful!" Sofia said, looking up at the sky.
Amidst the soft, multicolored light, the fragrance of the flowers and petals...
It was truly breathtakingly beautiful.
"Look at the chests," Jason pointed at them.
On the bodies of the residents next to them.
The flowers they had placed everywhere were in full bloom, but not all of them.
Many people's flowers were in full bloom, and those who saw theirs blossomed smiled brightly.
"My flowers are blooming, my love," a young girl in an elegant dress exclaimed joyfully as she watched the bright black flowers blossom on her chest.
Those whose flowers hadn't bloomed felt somewhat dejected, and prayed even more devoutly, hoping their devotion would shed light on their wishes.
The flowers on Alka and Sofia's chests blossomed under these circumstances, and a faint, distinct floral fragrance filled their nostrils.
Besides their own flowers... The flower on Mathilda's chest also blossomed. Seeing the blossoms on Mathilda's chest, the flower on Porro's chest also blossomed.
Even the flower on Julia's ear blossomed.
"Why doesn't mine? You're discriminating against me, aren't you?" Jason said, looking at the flower on his chest, which remained motionless.
Looking at the flower on Jason's chest, the gray flower on Juanlu's chest also blossomed.
"Do you want to see what the flower on your chest is?" Juanlu couldn't help but scoff.
Jason glanced down: "Oh, okay."
He smiled awkwardly.
The flower on his chest had already been fixed into the shape of crystal. How could it possibly blossom?
"But what does the flower on your chest mean? Isn't it meant to bring a blessing?"
Hearing Jason's words, Juanlu shrugged.
"How would I know? I just picked one at random."
"What a shame."
As the flowers bloomed, countless people opened their palms, revealing different words imprinted on the seeds.
The words were incredibly small.
They were carved with the power of their devotion.
"We'll have to use our own magic to carve them. After all, we don't believe in flower fairies," Jason said.
Everyone had already begun to work.
The words, imprinted with magic, were affixed to the seeds, serving as fertilizer without damaging them.
A long moment passed like this.
The melodious music suddenly rose.
The drumbeats, stirring humanity, began to beat fiercely.
A scent of flowers wafted in.
All the other scents were dispelled, leaving only this one.
This scent was so familiar to Alka.
He would never forget it.
It was the scent of the Flower Fairy.
As the scent reached them, everyone around looked up at the enormous Heavenly Flower in the distance.
Everyone looked.
The buds of the Heavenly Flower, once tightly closed, now emitted a soft glow.
The petals began to slowly open.
The Heavenly Flower blossomed.
The ceremony began.
Everyone placed the flower seeds in their palms and lifted them slightly upward.
Everyone followed suit.
As if drawn to something, the flower seeds flew into the air, heading towards the heart of the Heavenly Flower.
"Praise the Flower Fairy! Praise our God!"
The person presiding over the ceremony roared loudly, his voice filled with passion.
The surrounding music and drumbeats reached a climax at this moment.
All the believers around them began to sing.
However, Alka and the others had already dispersed, scattered throughout the crowd. Their expressions had turned from casual to serious.
Because the ceremony had begun.
The most dangerous moment of the entire Blooming Festival had arrived.
He took out his hourglass and turned the dial on the top to 2, noting the time and starting to reverse.
Fine sand began to flow downward, and fine gravel began to slowly accumulate below.
When the sand finished flowing, the two hours were over.
No matter how powerful the enemy, if they could hold out for two hours, they would be victorious.
In Alka's hand, a mirror wrapped around a mechanical structure appeared.
The two were perfectly integrated, the design beautiful.
Alka and Simon provided the technology, and Sofia designed the exterior and construction.
Words appeared on the mirror.
"Something's happening out there. The enemy may have already started moving. Be careful."
At this, Alka hung the front of the communication mirror against his waist.
"Roar!"
A strong roar suddenly came from not far away.
Following this roar...
Voices began to rise and fall, and all sorts of bloody roars began to be heard.
"Ahhh! There's a monster!"
The entire scene became extremely chaotic.
Alka and the others immediately took action.
In the crowd, people kept transforming into the monsters they had seen before, amidst angry roars and roars.
However, not every one of them was as powerful as they had seen before.
Some only grew slightly larger, looking uncomfortably thin.And these monsters had strange appearances.
Thes The monsters scattered throughout the crowd, indiscriminately attacking those around them.
The entire scene erupted in chaos.
"Flower children, the flower fairies are here, don't panic! Leave under the guidance of the soldiers; they will protect you."
The voice echoed everywhere.
With this voice, the slightly chaotic situation finally eased somewhat.
The soldiers who had been maintaining order in various locations began to move.
Areas had long been set up around the altar to defend and protect different residents.
With a leap, Alka leaped into the air.
A pair of wings appeared on his back, feathers formed from some kind of cloud.
Alka's eyes also transformed into vertical pupils like an eagle, and his hair became a cloud-like, feathery mass.
This was a dream creature he had simulated.
It was one of his mist-like children, a creature he had thoroughly mastered through his research.
The reason for the imitation was that the mist-like creature resembled human wings. They weren't connected to the hands, but rather grew from the back.
It suited him perfectly.
As soon as he soared into the air, Alka took in the entire field.
The mirrored cards began to scatter frantically.
He no longer needed to wave his hands around them.
As if they could track the monsters slaughtering them, they flew towards them.
The moment they struck them, they exploded.
Mist and debris began to swirl around them, strangling them.
The stench of blood and screams echoed.
"Ah!" A little girl screamed in fear at the sight of the claws before her.
Before the attack could reach him, a spinning mirror flew past, shattering the arm and falling to the ground.
The father nearby immediately scooped up his daughter and quickly threw her away.
He kept muttering, "Thank you, thank you!"
A blinding beam of light began to move wildly around, refracting through the crowd.
Countless mirrors, large and small, began to appear in the sky above the surrounding area.
"Ah, help me!" A middle-aged woman collapsed to the ground, screaming.
The monster, its sharp teeth exposed, charged toward her.
A flash of light.
The middle-aged woman felt a blur before her eyes.
In a trance, she seemed to see the figure of a young girl.
The upper body of the monster before her was completely crushed into a ball, and the sound of flesh and bone crushing could be heard.
With a loud bang, the corpse fell to the ground.