Chapter 460: The Phenomenon of the Spiritual Steel Seal

Leight had indeed toured the printing factory and was deeply impressed by the astonishing printing machines there—his main purpose for visiting was actually to try printing a new batch of religious texts to aid in missionary work. Yet, he was still taken aback by the number Gawain had proposed.

Clearly, Leight’s original idea of “printing a batch of propaganda materials” was on a completely different scale from what Gawain had in mind.

At first, Leight had only hoped to print a few hundred or a thousand copies of the new scriptures—enough to distribute within the church.

Despite being the first-ever “White Knight” in human history, despite having embarked on reforming the Holy Light Church, and despite leading everyone in understanding the doctrine of the Holy Light, his starting point was still that of a low-ranking missionary. His past experiences severely limited his vision and imagination.

But Gawain believed none of that was a problem—over time, anyone’s perspective could broaden. In the face of the coming magical cataclysms and the era of magical industry that would counter them, no one’s vision would ever be sufficient.

“One hundred thousand copies is just an estimated figure. Even for industrial printing machines, that’s a sizable order, but by no means impossible,” Gawain explained his thoughts. “We need all kinds of propaganda—from simple leaflets to new brochures containing the full doctrine. What pleases me most about Luan City is that it’s a ‘city of clergy.’ The number of priests and their families is huge, and even the common folk are relatively well-off, devout believers close to the church. Their literacy rate is very high—otherwise, our leaflets would be useless.”

Amber, standing nearby, was initially startled by Gawain’s idea but soon grew skeptical. “But, come to think of it, just throwing new doctrine into Luan City—won’t that just rile up those fanatics? Won’t it make them even more fervent in opposing Cecil?”

“Some of them will definitely be provoked and become more determined to resist us,” Gawain said patiently, unsurprised by Amber’s question. “But there will also be those who accept our doctrine, or at least begin to question the old ways of the Holy Light Church. The church is so large, it can’t have produced only one Leight. Even a small group of a dozen people will have internal disagreements over ideology. Do you really think every one of the tens of thousands in Luan City believes the church’s actions over the past year have been flawless?”

Amber stroked her chin thoughtfully. “Hmm… you do have a point…”

“The lord is right,” Leight said with a hint of emotion. “The Holy Light Church is indeed corrupt, but I believe there are still conscientious people among the lower-ranking missionaries. And while my new doctrine is considered heretical by the fanatical conservatives, within the church there has always been debate over whether the right to read and interpret the scriptures should be restricted, and whether the Holy Light belongs to a select few or to the many—that’s a constant point of contention…”

Amber’s eyes widened in surprise. “You actually argue about that? I thought your church was full of stubborn hardliners from top to bottom—well, except for you, of course. You’re the berserker type.”

“Berserker…” Leight choked on the word, then gave a helpless smile. “Of course there are debates. The Holy Light Church may be corrupt and fallen, but we’re not without critical thinking. Low-ranking clergy have always sought the right to study and interpret the scriptures for their own benefit. The debate over whether the Holy Light belongs to the many or the few stems from the fundamental doctrine that ‘the God of Light watches over everyone.’ Besides that, there are many other internal conflicts. I don’t like factional struggles, but I’m not blind to them.”

“Wow…” Amber exclaimed dramatically. “Sounds like your church is way more complicated than I thought…”

Gawain crossed his arms. “A religion that’s lasted this long and grown this large can’t be simple.”

He then stroked his chin thoughtfully and said slowly, “But, to truly shake the Holy Light Church at its spiritual core, printed materials alone won’t be enough… Leight, how is your research on Holy Light magic coming along?”

“I was just about to report on that,” Leight’s expression grew complex as he slightly turned his head toward Emily, who was dozing on his shoulder. “Emily—go get that metal plate from my room.”

Emily let out a clear, ethereal laugh, then transformed into a streak of light, swiftly flying toward the door at the back of the main hall. Before long, she returned—empty-handed.

Just as Gawain began to wonder if the girl had failed to find what Leight wanted, he saw Emily reach inside her translucent body. The little spirit girl rummaged around inside her belly, first pulling out a wooden spinning top, then a handful of smooth, colorful stones, and finally a palm-sized rune baseplate.

She smiled happily and held out the rune baseplate to Leight.

Amber stared in disbelief. “How does she… hide things inside her belly?!”

“I only discovered it by accident,” Leight said as he took the baseplate. “Sometimes small objects in the church mysteriously change places or disappear. After observing, I realized the reason: although Emily is a spirit, she can carry small, lightweight items. And because she’s a spirit, her body has no clear ‘boundaries,’ so she hides things inside her belly. Honestly, I don’t even know what all she’s hiding in there… Last time the reading stand on the pulpit broke, she even pulled out a handful of nails…”

Amber was speechless.

To be honest, Gawain was just as surprised as Amber, but he had seen plenty of strange things under his command and had witnessed one bizarre life form after another over the years. So he quickly composed himself, forcing a serious, calm expression as he took the rune baseplate and examined it carefully.

It was indeed a rune baseplate—the substrate was a second-generation standard blank template produced by the Rune Foundry. But instead of the usual elemental runes in the magic conduction area, it was inscribed with divine runes used only in Holy Light magic.

This was a “Holy Light baseplate.”

“With the help of Kamail and Director Jenny, I reconstructed the first fully rune-based Holy Light spell and commissioned the Rune Foundry to produce this baseplate,” Leight explained the origin of the baseplate. “It discards all runic words that connect to the God of Light, ensuring the entire casting process is ‘godless’—completely based on mortal power.”

Gawain’s eyes lit up as he looked at the faint golden lines glowing on the baseplate. “You… actually succeeded?!”

“Only partially,” Leight said cautiously. He took the baseplate back from Gawain and handed it to a bewildered Amber. “Miss Amber, try activating it.”

Amber blinked, caught off guard. “You want me, a chosen of the Night God, to cast Holy Light magic?! I don’t know how to do that!”

Gawain couldn’t help but tap the elf’s head. “Never mind whether you really are the Night God’s chosen. Have you forgotten how rune baseplates work? You just need to channel mana into it. You’re not casting the spell yourself.”

“Oh, right…” Amber scratched her head, still a bit uneasy as she looked at Leight. “But what if it explodes when I activate it? I’m super fragile, you know…”

“It’s just a Holy Light spell,” Leight said with a wry smile. “I promise.”

Amber pouted. “Fine, I’ll try.”

This was probably the most bizarre experience in the half-elf’s life. Always proud to be the Night God’s chosen and quite resistant to the Holy Light, she now had the chance to release a Holy Light spell with her own power. Though she showed reluctance on her face, she carefully held the rune baseplate and began channeling mana into its copper edges.

The faint golden lines on the baseplate brightened, and the runes lit up one by one. But just as a pure white glow began to coalesce among the runes, it automatically dissipated.

“Hey, it’s not me who broke it!” Amber quickly tossed the baseplate back to Leight. “This thing seems faulty.”

“Actually, it’s fine,” Leight smiled wryly and re-injected mana into the baseplate. Almost instantly, a pure sphere of Holy Light formed on it—a fully formed Holy Light spell.

Emily, floating nearby, let out a happy cry, scooped up the sphere of light, and flew off to a nearby spot to nibble on it—it was her “cookie.”

Amber stared at Emily in shock, then looked back at Leight. “That sphere of light just now… are you sure you didn’t cast it yourself and pretend the baseplate was broken?”

“The Holy Light was definitely released by the rune baseplate,” Leight said seriously. “I’m not lying.”

Amber frowned. “Then why can’t I do it…”

“Because of the Spiritual Steel Seal,” Leight said. “You have a spiritual steel seal of the God of Light in your heart.”

“Don’t be ridiculous! How could I have that thing?!” Amber blinked, then laughed bitterly, waving her hands. “I don’t believe in the God of Light at all! Not one bit!”

“We’ve analyzed this before. The Spiritual Steel Seal is imprinted in every mortal’s soul at birth, regardless of whether you believe in the corresponding deity or even know of their existence. This seal is innately branded deep within every mortal’s spirit,” Gawain said, his expression grave. Just moments ago, he had witnessed the seal’s effect firsthand, which had shaken him deeply, but he remained calm as he analyzed the situation. “It seems the Spiritual Steel Seal is different from what we thought—different from ‘reverence’ or ‘mental interference.’ This thing… is far more troublesome than we imagined.”

“Yes. After creating the Holy Light baseplate, we observed the Spiritual Steel Seal phenomenon. Neither Lady Hetty, Miss Rebecca, nor any mage, knight, or runesmith in the territory could activate this rune baseplate because… the Spiritual Steel Seal exists deep within everyone’s soul. So far, there are only two exceptions: me and Master Kamail.”

“Wha…?” Amber’s eyes widened in disbelief. “I… I’ve been locked by this thing since birth?! And I never even felt it!”

“That’s the terrifying part—you can’t feel it. It hides deeper than your subconscious. It causes you to lose certain freedoms without even realizing it. You think you don’t believe in the God of Light, that you’re not bound by the God of Light, but deep in your mind… you instinctively believe ‘the Holy Light belongs to the God,’” Gawain said, taking a deep breath. “Every single person is its prisoner.”

(End of chapter)