Awakening

Fortunately, this force, consisting of three Steam- powered land Warship and twelve Steam mortars, was only accompanied by six [Knight]-level Awakened and ventured deep into the icy wilderness to carry out its mission.

Even more fortunately, Song Shige still retained a trace of his Martial Will and began to quickly rebuild his skills. In half a day, he defeated the team and hid in the deep snow with supplies and equipment.

The tent was military green, and when covered in snow, it looked like a raised snow mound from the air. The boiler chimney had been modified to vent smoke close to the ground, and the white Steam spread across the snow without melting it or being detected by distant sentries.

"This damn Dungeon weakened us to the point of being useless, then left us with just a tiny seed of transcendence, all to torment us."

Next to Song Shige, a man dressed in flashy clothes sat on the scorching Steam boiler, arms crossed, complaining without paying any attention to his backside, which was already smelling quite sweet from the heat.

"Be content. Our initial environment was too harsh. Without the seed of extraordinary talent, relying solely on our mortal bodies, we might have died in the icy wilderness without even having time to develop."

During the conversation, Song Shige thought of Su Luo.

If he were in this Dungeon, his rebuild speed would be incredibly fast, right?

"That's true. With our starting identities, ordinary people are basically doomed from the start."

The flashy man pulled out a cigarette from this world, Ignite on the boiler under his buttocks, and began to puff out clouds of smoke.

Their identities, supposedly ordinary people joining the army, were actually just bait used by the artillery regiment to lure out [the troublemakers]. Once they entered the Dungeon, they were immediately cannon fodder, with no chance to recover.

Whether facing the calamity head-on with a mortal body, or escaping one disaster only to be indiscriminately cooked by the subsequent barrage of artillery fire, it's all quite extraordinary.

The flashy man evaded the commander with simple hypnosis, while Song Shige relied on his Martial Will will to dance amidst the gunfire and dodge attacks and Offense and Defense as One, gaining a little time to develop and ultimately defeating the entire squad.

"Another incredibly bad start, I think our start was the worst ever... But Dungeons are usually balanced, so is it possible that those Survivor started in the heart of the Empire might encounter other crises, or be nerfed even more severely?"

The flamboyant man talked a lot, but seeing Song Shige close his eyes to rest, he sighed and remained silent.

One man smoked, another reconstructed his body, and a small Steam engine ran nearby, providing light and heat. The boiler's iron sheet was glowing slightly red, emitting a mixture of rust and coal ash odors.

In the distance, the white snow blended with the crimson, and where the snow had been blasted open by artillery fire, the black permafrost beneath was exposed, with traces of blood still clinging to it.

After a long while, Song Shige opened his eyes and spoke:

"Don't you need to start over? You're still just a mortal."

He could clearly sense that this person's three Attributes were not much different from when he first entered the Dungeon. His lower body had been roasted in the boiler and he was unable to move, but he didn't seem to care much.

"What's the panic? This crappy place doesn't have the conditions for me to rebuild... Besides, this Large Dungeon is clearly a team effort; we're working together. Right, Demon King?"

Song Shige was somewhat distracted, pondering whether killing so many Survivors in Large Dungeon while they were rebuilding would actually result in their deaths.

After death, the Zhanmadao likely won't receive any resources. So, will the class's passive skill be applied to the original body or the weakened, rebuilt body?

"By the way, I don't think I see you much on the World Channel, Fu Li."

"Of course you rarely see me. I rarely speak on the World Channel. I'm rather carefree, but in a way, I'm quite famous."

Fu Li finished smoking his cigarette.

"Speaking of which, this cigarette is really no good. I was the one who posted the 'Another World Flower-Seeking Diary' on the World Channel back then."

"That's certainly quite famous." Song Shige's lips twitched.

There's no point in criticizing him; this guy definitely gets a lot more attention on the World Channel than Song Shige, since everyone loves watching certain kinds of things, even transcending gender and race.

"Isn't your '[Another World Flower-Seeking Diary]' a novel? The Protagonist in different chapters have completely different identities."

Fu Li took out a new cigarette and lit it. "That's just one of my little quirks. What's next? I need to get back into normal society to start over, and this crappy place doesn't give me access to the world's Dungeon or the [Era] theme."

Song Shige turned and looked back at the unseen front-line military post. Rumors circulated there that Awakened of the [Bishop] level were active there, and they were not people they could afford to mess with right now.

"After I've spent some time rebuilding, we'll cross the sea directly back to the Empire and check on the [Awakening Ritual]."

"Brother, is it really okay for us to come in like this?"

Su Luo and her group of five entered the imposing main gate of the [Church] without any fanfare. Apart from showing a miniature token upon entry, Su Luo did nothing but continue walking forward.

Qi Yuan's body was a bit stiff, and he couldn't immediately project the aura of someone who "had never tied his own shoelaces or dressed himself since birth." So Su Luo decisively made him her servant.

This is something that really can't be changed; kids from poor families are generally addicted to masturbation. Generally speaking, people who masturbate all the time can't project an aristocratic aura.

But it doesn't matter. Aristocratic aura isn't a good thing, and masturbation is just human nature.

"Mr. Leonhart, please come this way."

A Nun in a pristine white robe led the five to a room with alternating light and shadow, where they awaited the arrival of the priest who would preside over the Awakening Ritual.

This large glass panel, a rarity for its time, was installed on the ceiling of the church. The glassmaking process was still very crude at that time, and large pieces of glass would have bubbles, ripples, and uneven color streaks.

But from a distance, those imperfections become part of the beauty; sunlight shines through the glass, distorted by the bubbles and ripples, casting a golden sea of light across the ceiling and floor.

The natural Sun, after being refracted, shone into the church, making it appear Outer God. The occasional volunteers and Nuns walking around, their solemn gazes adding to the holy atmosphere of the Church.

"So, I'll be the one to awaken it?" Qi Yuan asked, looking both wanting and not wanting to.

These people were clearly using him as a guinea pig, but he did desperately need power; Awakened was a power he had always desired.

"Of course, this is an opportunity I earned by spending all my savings," Su Luo said earnestly.

He went out in the middle of the night, and based on the information from the nobles, he chose the most suitable one to visit and reward him with a "family annihilation gift package." Then he covered up the incident at the banquet and used resources to exchange for a qualification to awaken that day.

It is said that the Awakened are chosen by the Holy Light, so it seems that the Holy Light also recognizes money.

Many things happened in the city last night, not only the [Calamity] invasion and the tavern explosion, but the chaos in the city last night was explosive, most likely due to the Survivors ' tricks. So today, the [Judgment Knights ] who were originally staying at the [Church] went to a meeting, and a portion of the entire Church's defense force was drawn away. The rest were on alert and had no energy to pay attention to a noble who had come to awaken.