"It is an honor." Li Ming smiled, his tone very calm.
"You are too modest." The Prophet’s voice revealed no emotion. "Your methods have left us in awe."
"Your organization is no less impressive." Li Ming’s eyes flickered, uncertain if the other knew he had taken out Adas.
The Prophet was silent for a moment, avoiding mention of Adas, and said, "May I ask, Lord, if you can resolve the issue of declining development progress in Desire."
"This..." Li Ming did not answer directly, instead asking, "Where is the Eternal Silence Star? "
There was no sound from the screen. After a long pause, Li Ming heard the Prophet’s reply, his tone drawn out, "Lord Azure Dragon, you are indeed straightforward."
The Holy Mother had anticipated this, guessing that Azure Dragon’s goal was indeed the Eternal Silence Star, though she was surprised by his bluntness.
The Prophet said, "We do not know the whereabouts of the Eternal Silence Star."
Upon hearing this, Li Ming’s voice carried a casual indifference: "You don’t know? If you’ve come to chat with me, shouldn’t you show some sincerity."
The Prophet appeared slightly helpless but could make a rough judgment about the information Li Ming possessed—he knew quite a few secrets, though still distant from the truth.
This was, of course, expected—after all, these events occurred more than four thousand years ago. Some secrets, apart from being verbally passed down by direct participants, had almost never been known by outsiders.
"This involves certain past matters regarding the Holy Mother Church. Out of sincerity, we are willing to recount them for you." The Prophet said earnestly.
Li Ming gave no response. Regarding the Eternal Silence Star, his understanding was indeed limited. The only parties he could probe were the Pioneers and the Holy Mother Church.
Li Ming had no intention of portraying Azure Dragon as all-knowing—such an image would have seemed false and prone to flaws.
When he remained silent, the Prophet began to slowly narrate, "Five thousand years ago, the previous Prophet, Serkaya, joined with the then Glory Saint Emperor, Demis, and bore a child named Adam."
"Through the Empire’s bio-technology and the Holy Mother Church’s specialized methods, Adam’s development potential reached an astonishing Level 57."
Hearing this number, Li Ming’s heart skipped a beat—this was indeed astonishing.
The Prophet continued, "This figure secured Adam a place among the top three in Royal Family history. After Adam came of age, our Holy Mother Church devoted unparalleled resources to nurturing him."
"Another five hundred years passed, and Adam had already become an S-level life form, with a development rate close to 100%, making him the most dazzling descendant of the Glory Saint Emperor."
The Prophet’s voice grew expansive, faintly painting a blood-and-fire era, "Yet, it was in that time that the previous Glory Saint Emperor, Demis, suddenly died of suspicious causes, leaving the Royal Family’s power in a vacuum."
"Adam actively sought our help, promising that when he became the Glory Saint Emperor, he would make the Holy Mother Church the officially recognized, widely promoting sect within the Star Abyss Empire."
Wide promotion... Li Ming’s gaze deepened. In the past, the Holy Mother Church had operated mostly among upper echelons. If it gained widespread imperial support and reached the middle layers, it would become truly terrifying.
The Prophet continued narrating, "With assurances from his mother, coupled with Adam’s reputation for being righteous and honest, we chose to believe him and invested substantial efforts. After two hundred years, he eventually rose to become one of the apex powers in interstellar politics—the Glory Saint Emperor."
The Prophet’s voice finally carried slight waves, "But from the moment Adam ascended as the Glory Saint Emperor, this righteous Adam turned his back on his promises. Not only did he refuse to honor them, but he also decreed our expulsion from the Star Abyss Empire, forbidding us from meddling with even a shred of imperial interests."
Li Ming remained emotionless—within the Prophet’s account, the Holy Mother Church seemed like pure virtue, but one glance told him things weren’t so simple.
The Prophet sighed, "Out of desperation and in an attempt to recover our losses, we stole a secret treasure from the Empire Family—the Eternal Silence Star—and caused his mother, Empress Serkaya, to meet her untimely end."
"The Heart of Eternal Silence belongs to the Empire Family..." Li Ming keenly caught onto that wording. The Empire Family and Empire were separated by merely two words, yet differed monumentally.
"In earlier eras, the Empire was the Royal Family’s Empire." The Prophet nodded, "The Upper and Lower Houses were merely tools devised by the Empire Family to pacify the lower populace. However, over time, the Houses gradually acquired more substantial resources, forcing the Royal Family into continual decline."
"The Eternal Silence Star was originally a secret treasure obtained by the Empire Family."
"Obtained," Li Ming mentally locked onto another key term, though he displayed no outward reaction.
The Eternal Silence Star wasn’t forged by the Empire, yet continued to be regarded as a highly valuable artifact.
Inexplicably, the term "Terrax" surfaced in Li Ming’s mind—it seemed that such treasures could only have come from this once-powerful civilization to maintain their prized status within the Empire and remain elusive throughout their search.
While he speculated, the Prophet pressed on, "Adam flew into a fury and waged a war lasting over seven hundred years. During this time, both the Holy Mother Church and Empire Family suffered immense losses."
"The Upper and Lower Houses expanded entirely. The Eternal Silence Star, amidst the flight, was lost in the Dimension World—its exact location unknown to anyone, ourselves included."
This was a piece of turbulent history. Even though the Prophet merely summarized, his account stretched lengthy.
"Even you don’t know?" Li Ming rubbed his fingers thoughtfully. "Then why do you desperately need Li Ming’s seed? Is it solely for cultivating a powerful tool?"
The Prophet offered no clear response: "Lord, we have answered your questions. Now it is your turn."
Li Ming paused for a moment before saying, "Sorry, I cannot solve it."