Night had fallen. Twenty bronze candelabras burning with flames encircled Liberty Square.
Countless priests of the Order stood in neat, orderly rows, postures straight and expressions solemn.
At the edge of the formation in the middle, Phoebe was maintaining a perfectly upright stance when she suddenly felt something soft brush against her thigh.
She looked down and saw two plush Dollmaker Echoes looking up at her, as if inviting her to leave the constraints of the Order's doctrines and go play.
"Shh!"
Phoebe bent down and whispered:
"I'm participating in a sacred and inviolable prayer ceremony right now. I'll play with you after the ceremony ends."
"Ahem! Priestess Phoebe."
A stern middle-aged female voice came from the side, causing Phoebe to give an embarrassed smile. She gently pushed the two Dollmaker Echoes away and resumed her standard posture.
The Order's doctrines were strict. During this ceremony, no priest was permitted to engage in any behavior unrelated to the chanting.
The middle-aged female priest shot Phoebe a critical glare but said nothing more, turning her attention forward.
On the one-meter-high pure white platform, a middle-aged priest stood with his back to the holy statue of the Sentinel. With a serene smile, he opened the sacred text:
"He has bestowed the gospel—"
"Shut up!"
A huge voice blasted through the loudspeaker, instantly drawing the attention of the entire square. Everyone turned to see a young man in white casual clothes striding forward.
After recognizing who it was, Phoebe's eyes widened involuntarily.
It was Noah!
Didn't he say he wanted to convert to the faith? Why would he suddenly interrupt the prayer ceremony hosted by the Order of the Deep?
If she heard correctly, had he just said "Shut up"?!
What an utterly blasphemous act!
Countless big and small questions flooded Phoebe's mind, but she had no time to think—because Noah's next words shattered her worldview again.
"Whoever's up there, come down. I have something to say."
The shocking statement caused the entire square to erupt in an instant, with wave after wave of gasps and exclamations.
"Huh?"
"Ah!"
"Huh?!"
"Silence!"
The middle-aged priest on the platform shouted down all the priests' clamor. Maintaining his serene demeanor, he raised his head toward the uninvited guest:
"Sir, the Order of the Deep is currently presiding over the prayer ceremony. If you accidentally wandered into this venue, in the name of the Sentinel above, the Order can forgive your intrusion. Please kindly leave for the time being—"
The middle-aged priest's tone gradually lost its calm.
Because Noah not only didn't leave—he actually quickened his pace and walked straight toward him.
"Someone come quickly! La Guardia, Sagittario—arrest this fool who is disrupting the prayer ceremony and lock him up!"
Several humanoid Echoes lifted heavy swords and swiftly charged toward Noah under the lead of a few priests at the edge.
"Wait, don't attack!"
A petite figure suddenly stepped in front of Noah. Phoebe looked anxiously toward the middle-aged priest on the platform:
"I'm terribly sorry for interrupting the prayer ceremony, Priest Alessio. This person is my friend. He just arrived in Ragunna. Please allow me to take him away."
"Phoebe, what nonsense are you talking about!" The middle-aged female priest hurried over and grabbed Phoebe forcefully by the arm:
"You don't even know this godless fool. Don't get yourself involved just because of blind kindness."
"Senior, but…" Phoebe still wanted to argue.
"There is no 'but'."
Phoebe was helplessly dragged away by the middle-aged female priest. She turned back and glanced at Noah, who was now surrounded by countless La Guardia.
In that one look, she saw… the man was actually smiling.
Noah took a single step forward. The surrounding La Guardia holding heavy swords were pierced through by vine-like tendrils that moved like spirit serpents. After a few struggles, they fell motionless.
Seeing this, the surrounding priests no longer dared to act rashly. They could only watch warily as Noah walked past them.
"I said, you—come down. I have something to say."
Noah stepped onto the one-meter-high platform, grabbed Alessio like he was picking up a chick, bent down, and casually placed the middle-aged priest on the ground below the platform.
The moment his feet touched the ground, Alessio's legs gave out and he nearly collapsed on the spot.
"Someone actually dares to challenge the authority of the Order to their face?" At the edge of Liberty Square, a woman let out a soft sound of surprise and slowly raised her head.
She had snow-white long hair that seemed woven from moonlight, and a pair of brilliant, opal-like eyes. At this moment, they were watching Noah with great interest:
"He doesn't look like a local from Ragunna… Interesting."
A loud voice resounded across Ragunna Square.
"Hey~ hey hey."
Noah tested the volume of the Huaxu Academy loudspeaker.
This was originally meant for Zhezhi to sell fish with, but by a twist of fate, he ended up using it first.
Perfect. No one in this square would have a louder voice than him now.
"I'm very sorry for interrupting this prayer ceremony—but I did it on purpose."
There were many ways to stop the prayer ceremony. Noah chose the simplest and most brutal one.
It was just a script anyway. He could do whatever he wanted.
He was only testing whether the prayer ceremony was the fundamental reason Leviathan could reshape its body. If not, he could look for other clues in the next script reset.
As for the consequences of doing this… come on, what consequence could possibly be worse than Leviathan submerging Ragunna under the Dark Tide?
If he was going to cause trouble, he was going to cause the biggest trouble possible.
"My name is Noah. I came here to proclaim one truth—the god worshipped by the Order is dead."
The words fell like thunder. The entire square was stunned.
The god is dead?!
Every priest and passerby in the square sucked in a cold breath.
From below the platform, Alessio was secretly contacting the Order to send more and stronger La Guardia. Finally feeling a bit more confident, he raised his head and roared:
"Shut up! Sir, no matter what experiences you've had, I will never tolerate you blaspheming the god of Ragunna like this."
His weak voice was utterly insignificant compared to the Huaxu Academy loudspeaker.
"Ten years ago, Sentinel Imperator sacrificed Itself to seal away Threnodian Leviathan."
Noah calmly narrated, laying the truth bare for all to hear:
"After that, under the pretext of maintaining Ragunna's stability, the Order of the Deep falsely invoked the name of the Sentinel, governed Ragunna with harsh doctrines, and used ruthless methods to send everyone who once knew the truth onto pilgrimage ships!"
"This is the truth the Church has always carefully concealed!"
"The Order lost the ability to communicate with the god. The so-called transmission of divine oracles has been nothing but a ten-year-long lie!"
The truth exploded like a thunderbolt. The crowd in the square looked at Noah in disbelief, unable to stop whispering to one another:
"Is what he's saying true?"
"He even interrupted and confronted the Order's prayer ceremony just to say these words. It doesn't feel like a lie."
"If this were fake, what would he gain from it?"
"Could it be that everything he said is true… that we've been deceived by this hypocritical Order for so long…"
As the commotion grew louder, Alessio trembled all over, cold sweat pouring down his face.
"Silence! The Sentinel is still alive. Its glory shall not be blasphemed. As for everyone sent onto the pilgrimage ships, the Order can account for each of their crimes!"
Finally receiving a loudspeaker of his own, Alessio's voice could now compete with Noah's:
"Everyone, do not be swayed by this fool. He must be dissatisfied with something in his life, which is why he's disrupting the prayer ceremony, spouting nonsense, and grandstanding for attention."
Row after row of La Guardia arrived. The broad blades of their swords reflected cold light, instantly silencing the noisy crowd in the square. No one dared make another sound.
Even if what that man said was the truth, so what? Given the Order's control over Ragunna, even if they knew the truth, everyone would pretend they didn't.
Anyone who dared utter a single word that disrupted unity would immediately be issued a ticket onto a pilgrimage ship.
Under such harsh doctrines, their hearts had long since grown numb. They could no longer break the shackles the Order had bound around their souls. Even if they knew the truth, after a brief flash of anger, they could only remain indifferent.
Looking at the dozens of La Guardia standing ready behind him, Alessio finally regained his confidence. He faced Noah, his voice carrying a clear threat:
"Sir, if you are in any difficulty, the Order is willing to help you. However—I hope you will repent to the Sentinel for your disrespect. For example, you could publicly admit your own faults."
"You want me to publicly admit my own faults?"
"Yes. As long as you voluntarily repent and confess your shortcomings, the Sentinel will surely grant forgiveness."
Seeing Alessio's hypocritical expression, Noah almost laughed out of sheer anger. He immediately went full force:
"Of all the places in Solaris, why does Ragunna face the most difficult Dark Tide? Shouldn't you look for your own problems?"
"Why do all the people of Ragunna have to follow doctrines so harsh they're unreasonable? Shouldn't you look for your own problems?"
"Why did the Carnevale change from once a year to once every ten years? Shouldn't you look for your own problems?"
"Why is Leviathan only targeting you?"
"Why doesn't Imperator send down any more oracles?"
"Why were you sent onto pilgrimage ships?"
"Why don't all of you just look for your own damn problems?"
Each sharp question struck like a hammer directly into the hearts of everyone in the square. They lowered their heads, unconsciously clenching their fists as a flame of anger began to burn in their chests.
"Good!"
A crisp shout of approval rang out:
"That was boldly said! Sir, I completely support your view."
Following the voice, Noah looked down from the one-meter-high platform. He couldn't find the source at first. His head lowered more and more until finally, not far from his legs, he saw a small head with snow-white long hair.
What the heck. He felt a bit helpless—how come the only one brave enough to speak up was a kid?
"Kid, this isn't a place for you. Go call your guardian."
As soon as the words fell, the small head jerked upward with a displeased expression:
"I am, Carlotta Montelli!"