Apotheosis

"Let's begin.." Artisan said deeply, his voice resounding across the world. "Start the engines…"

The entire floating continent rumbled lightly, as huge mechanical doors under the continent began to open, revealing humongous thrusters.

In the machine control, cardinals hurriedly gave everything a final check. The engine condition, the situation of the protective layer, the defence mechanism, the radar, so on.

After the confirmation, they looked at the red button in the middle of the machine control in unison.

Finally, a woman clad in silver robes walked out of the group while emanating a terrifying aura, which told of her sequence; Angel.

She went near the button. With a deep breath, she slammed it with her palm, using all her power. The entire machine room lit up with illusory and colourless light.

Boom!

The thrusters under the continent ignited with illusory light. The thrusters trembled heavily before emitting a gargantuan amount of energy with force and power to make star destroyers look like firecrackers.

Rumble!

The continent, which had been unmoving for a millennia, finally began to ascend under the propulsion brought by the thrusters.

Artisan sat solemnly on a bronze throne in the tallest tower of the floating continent, overlooking and checking the entire process.

He tapped the armrest of the throne after noticing the success of the first stage. With his action, the material rules around the continent began to change and shift. The space surrounding the continent has also started to shimmer.

The entire floating continent was in a different space, adjacent to the reality of earth.

Artisan created the entire dimensional space using his authority over the material rules. He can manipulate space to some extent, as he has deduced a way to achieve that, using his authority and knowledge over material laws.

But now the dimensional space has begun to collapse under the action of Artisan, revealing the continent to the world.

With a chug of space, the floating continent appeared in the sky of the northern continent. It was visible around the world without any obstruction.

The Miracle of Civilization dawned on the world with the hymn of the holy bells resounding across the world.

"Great God of Steam and Machinery…"

"You are the embodiment of essence."

"You are the protector of craftsmen. You are the brilliance of technology…"

"Your name will be sacred in the annals of history. You led us through the crises of war and disaster. You gave us the sacred knowledge. You led civilisation into the new era. You gave us a life of stability and order."

"May your kingdom bless our souls. So, we shall be reborn as your servants in your divine kingdom…"

"You are the paragon of our civilization…"

Under the divine miracle, prayers began to echo around various cities in the world. The believers shed tears from their pious eyes as they gazed at the miracle of civilization.

"Great God of Steam and Machinery…"

"You are the embodiment of essence."

"You are the protector of craftsmen. You are the brilliance of technology…"

"Your name will be sacred in the annals of history. You led us through the crises of war and disaster. You gave us the sacred knowledge. You led civilisation into the new era. You gave us a life of stability and order."

"May your kingdom bless our souls. So, we shall be reborn as your servants in your divine kingdom…"

"You are the paragon of our civilization…"

The prayers resounded again, but there was a change at this time. The voices of millions of believers became one. It all sounded together in order.

"Great God of Steam and Machinery.."

"Great God of Steam and Machinery…"

The prayers thundered across the world, like waves and waves of tsunami, shaking the entire world.

Every incarnation in the prayers seemed to hold an invisible yet terrible power. The powerful incarnations tore through the sky, scattering the clouds heading towards the floating continent, cracking the space in its path as well.

The terrifying power accumulated from the prayers of millions collided with the floating continent.

Boom!

A dazzling light erupted. It was colourless and illusory, made up of countless illusory esoteric symbols and objects.

That was the light of civilization!

The illusory light illuminated the entire world, shining into the hearts of every human being equally, regardless of their differences.

At this sacred moment, Artisan stood up from his throne, surrounded by the illusory light of civilization.

His body was slowly collapsing into formless light particles under the corrosion of light.

He ignored his condition and raised his hands, twisting them. The potion for Paragon appeared in front of him. He calmly took the potion to his lips and gulped down the entire potion at once.

His body completely collapsed into formless light particles and scattered into the light of civilization. He slowly began to combine and assimilate with the light, becoming one with human civilization.

It won't be long before Artisan completely loses himself and is led by the light of civilization, to become the spirit of civilization; a logical and rational being dedicated only to the preservation and advancement of civilization.

As if noticing his perilous situation, a blazing light shot out of the void. It seemed programmed by Artisan to interfere with the situation just at this time. It revealed picture-like projections across the light of civilization.

Some of them recorded humans' helplessness and misery when confronted by supernatural beings. Some of them used an epic-like brush to re-enact scenes of humans fusing with Beyonder ingredients to gain strength and save the race. Some described the distinct cultures and traditions brought about by the Black Emperor, while others carried various points of view, books, and inventions. Some of them resembled the dawn of the present world, starting from machinery that spewed steam, the buildings that rose higher and higher…

It didn't stop there, as a massive image appeared in the projection, dwarfing everything else. It depicted the ruins of a long-forgotten civilization and the miracles that they achieved without the use of any extraordinary means.

The contents made the seemingly thin scroll exude a heaviness and majestic aura that quickly enveloped the entire reality. It could make anyone who looked at it feel the grandeur of this civilization, which even managed to pass on the fire and flourish again.

The history left behind by hundreds of millions of humans before and after the apocalypse was vast and magnificent.

Being imbued with the history of the entire civilization, Artisan's mind was thrown out of the light of civilization.

With his mind as a core, Artisan slowly began to reform his body and guide the fusion of the paragon potion and his body.

The final and most dangerous step of the apotheosis ritual began. If the ritual is to be successful, he needs to reform his body and fuse with the potion of paragon.

Time passed as gods and angels gazed with anticipation upon the floating continent illuminated by light of civilization.

Suddenly, a hymn sounded from within the light of civilization. That sound shook the hearts of all, including even the gods themselves. It resounded far into cosmos, altering even the outer gods.

The Hymn was more than a sound. The gods felt it ever so clearly. It was different. It was beyond.

It was the entire cosmos, whatever we could see, touch, hear and feel. Moreover, it was all that was within their perception and all that was beyond our perception. It was the core of the very existence. It was the substratum of all the things and all the beings of the entire universe. It was an eternal song of the Divine. It is continuously reverberating in silence in the background of everything that exists.

It was the "Truth"!

The hymn was fleeting. It went away quickly, only leaving an indelible imprint on the hearts of gods, while other beings were unable to grasp the hymn within their minds. It was a blessing in disguise, as their feeble minds may never be able to bear any form of "Truth".

With the hymn fading, an illusory light shot out of the tower in the centre of the floating continent, illuminating the world.

At that moment, all machinery creaked together, while esoteric knowledge emerged in the most brilliant minds of civilization, giving them enlightenment and inadvertently advancing the entire civilization by leaps and bounds.

The spiritual world and material world were illuminated together under the illusory light. For a moment, both of these worlds seemed to combine together under this light, reducing reality into countless esoteric and illusory symbols and objects.

The illusory light converged immediately, forming a figure made of metal and gears. He had four black wings, as well as four legs and four hands. His glabella had his sacred emblem and his eyes were all white.

(Image)

The Birth of Paragon!

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