Chapter 184: Chapter 104: The Sun in Your Eyes

The chanting didn’t take long, yet Duan Mingyuan felt as if he had completed an interstellar journey.

In that vast Star River, he also glimpsed something else.

The birth of the first humanoid, to the first settlement, the first nation.

The first weapon was crafted, followed by conflicts between settlements, wars between nations.

People established an empire that thrived for thousands of years, breaking the boundaries of geography, and spreading the seeds of civilization beyond their planet.

Then a disaster unprecedented occurred, the empire fragmented and disintegrated under the catastrophe, and the few survivors embarked on an "Ark", fleeing their homeworld. In the Star River, they could only watch the planet being thoroughly corrupted.

In the eternal darkness and solitude, the brilliance of the Sun guided their way forward.

Their chant not only praised the eternal Sun King but also seemed to reveal the birth of the company—The imperial survivors who fled their homeland aboard the Ark established the embryonic form of the Universe Company, initially intended to research the disasters and the true cause of the empire’s destruction.

The song ended, and all the visions turned into bubbles.

Duan Mingyuan had also left the Star River and returned to the hall.

"Mr. Mingyuan, Mr. Mingyuan!"

Turning his head, he saw the concerned Jiuyue. The little fox was so anxious that she grabbed his arm. Seeing him regain his senses, she finally sighed in relief and hurriedly asked, "What happened just now? Why did you suddenly become motionless?"

Duan Mingyuan then realized that the flow of time in the two worlds seemed to be different. In the realm of stars, the chanting had just ended, but upon regaining his senses, he found that the choir had already dispersed, and the hall had emptied out. The Second Prince was nowhere to be found, leaving only two familiar figures.

The Third Prince was busy critiquing Cai Die’s Nun’s Robe.

"Didn’t you see?"

Duan Mingyuan asked, thinking of something.

"See what?"

"The stars, the universe, and the Sun."

"No."

Jiuyue shook her head, "I saw them finish singing and leave. The Second Prince even walked past you, and you didn’t acknowledge him... Oh right, I also saw the Sun run into your eyes!"

That was why she was so anxious; for a moment, she suspected the Second Prince had employed some Illusion Technique, causing Mr. Mingyuan to fall for it.

But upon further thought, she found it unlikely.

With the Second Prince’s capability, he couldn’t even defeat a Bai Yu hen, how could he possibly bewitch Mr. Mingyuan?

Yet the Sun had indeed entered Mr. Mingyuan’s eyes, turning them a dazzling golden-red, as if even the temperature around him had risen several degrees.

Jiuyue’s response left Duan Mingyuan contemplative.

Could it be that only he saw that whole sequence of visions?

Rather than a bewildering Illusion Technique, it seemed more like a vivid reenactment of history, a curious revelation from the Sun King’s esoteric language, glimpsing its deeper meaning from the soft chants.

The person who wrote these lyrics had meant to pass down a part of history.

"We are all subjects of the Sun King, who will guide all the faithful back to the sanctuary."

The Third Prince entered such content into the notes on his phone.

The Second Prince hadn’t forbidden his entry; on the contrary, he welcomed him equally and invited him to the praise ceremony.

The chanting was meant to establish a spiritual link, allowing them to sense the presence of the Sun King.

Yet he still couldn’t grasp what the sanctuary referred to.

Seeing Duan Mingyuan approaching him, the Third Prince took the initiative and said, "There’s something odd about this; it’s impossible for the Second Prince to do this alone. Moreover, I’ve searched through the entire Royal Family’s library and couldn’t find any Mysterious Techniques of this sort."

"To be precise, it was I and the other maids who scoured the library while your Highness merely sat back comfortably on a stool, criticizing every aspect of my uniform and sash."

As it turned out, Cai Die had a strong capacity to learn, for in just one afternoon, she managed to master an indifferent tone and a contemptuous look.

This was quite satisfying for the Third Prince, "But at least I played a good role in directing."

"What’s really going on?"

Jiuyue was fed up with the riddler.

"These past few days, many people have had the same dream, in which the Sun King summoned them."

This was also a kind of undercover investigation, except they didn’t need to don their Night Travel Clothes, they just had to dress up as clergy in a perfunctory manner to easily blend into the hall.

The Third Prince observed the main members of the hall, "They are all followers of the Second Prince, supporters of Qing Hua policies, the very same people you saw at the banquet before."

The fall of the company’s flagship had plunged their lives into the abyss as well, leaving them as restless as the Third Prince these days.

And under the verge of a mental breakdown, the Sun King saved them.

"What does the Sun King want them to do?"

Duan Mingyuan asked.

"Nothing."

The Third Prince admitted that he too was surprised by this discovery; at first, he thought this was the Second Prince’s ploy to create a sensation in the Imperial Court under the banner of the Sun King, but after participating in the hall’s ceremonies, he realized that it was the call of worship that attracted them.

It brought them peace and soothed their inner turmoil.

The Sun King didn’t offer any specific directives, and the gatherings in the hall were all organized spontaneously by the attendees.

Clearly, the Second Prince also found his release through this.

He now appeared to have lost all interest in the throne, all he did was gather his supporters around him and form a singing interest group.

This didn’t violate any laws and seemed unlikely to cause trouble for others.

"Faith."

Duan Mingyuan suddenly understood.

The change Fu Ling spoke of had already happened, this was how the inspectors maintained stability—not by issuing any specific directives, but by rooting the belief in the Sun King deep within everyone’s heart, turning all into one entity, with only the distinction between the believers and the master left.

From what was currently known, those whose hearts had fallen into confusion were more susceptible to influence.

The method was through the spread of dreams.

The question was, how exactly did it infiltrate people’s dreams?

According to the information provided by Fu Ling, the inspector was still on the Consortium’s flagship, days away from landing on Blue Star.

"And you, have you been influenced?"

Jiuyue looked at the Third Prince, dressed in a clergyman’s uniform, and asked, "Have you become a follower of the Sun King?"

She had just listened to the choir’s chanting and could only express her indifference towards the Sun King, having no desire whatsoever to become his follower.

"No, I infiltrated this place for another, deeper reason," the Third Prince said, his head lowered, his gaze profound.

"What reason?"

"There are many people here dressed in Nun’s Robes, which made me suddenly realize that there is a certain charm to the main theme of abstinence in such uniforms, hiss—!"

As expected, his eloquent speech once again received the attention of Cai Die’s Nine Nether White Bone Claw.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by Aunomay Read