Chapter 1266 - 504: Power City
"Woo woo!"
The sound, akin to a steam whistle, echoed as a steel ship glided past.
Even though the distance between them was possibly a full kilometer, the whistle sound was piercingly loud.
The Sound of Dawn of Alka and the others glided past, with everyone on the deck conversing while looking outside.
"So, our destination is under the control of the Holy Machine Church?" Jason asked.
Alka shook his head: "According to the intelligence, the name of this Landmark Island is Flemis, and the locals, as well as others, call this island Power City.
The primary faith in this region is in the Wise One of the Holy Machine Church. Back at the Demon-Defending Fortress, you must have seen the round cannon and its operators?
Upon hearing Alka’s words, everyone nodded.
The so-called round cannon was a type of cannon they had seen long before, which fired a type of shotgun shell.
It would explode over the heads of demonic hordes, forming a rain of small bombs that decimate the lesser demons in swathes.
The only trouble was its cooling time and the difficulty of loading.
In truth, Power City also provides many Elemental Energy Crystals.
Previously, when Alka was constructing the Elemental Cards, he had used materials from Power City.
"This weapon is supplied by Power City, but as it’s not a major power, it’s primarily under the Holy Machine Church’s command."
Hearing this, everyone seemed to understand.
The churches of the Four Gods all have their own spheres of influence.
But besides their directly governed territories, there are numerous areas that, due to different beliefs in various churches and their lack of strength in the Endless Sea, align themselves with a church’s forces.
However, the church does not intervene with them; they still possess enough autonomy. Only in major issues and crises does the church exercise its governing power over these forces.
This is an unspoken rule among the Four Gods Church.
Though each church has slight differences, the overall approach is similar.
Moreover, not every power can easily join the church ranks; it’s typically because the founders of these powers were once members of a church.
Belief in the Holy Machine Church is also known as Power City, and with the increasing presence of Ironclad Ships around their destination, it already affirms the region’s dominant theme.
This is why the Four Gods Church holds such high prestige in the world.
If such immense power existed without a true Divine to oversee it, it would have long been corrupted and abused. But when real Divines exist in this world, the church eternally adheres to the Divine’s rules.
It becomes the most stable power in this world, unless the Divine they worship falls.
Even if they fall, those who worship Divines will find a way to revive them.
For example, the Flower Children.
Simon was watching the distant Ironclad Ships.
Before long, he concluded, "It’s a pity. These ships can only conduct transport operations around Landmark Island and its chain, and dare not leave this sea area."
This is a very normal situation.
Although it’s an Ironclad Ship and faster than ordinary sail warships,
still, to sail freely across the Endless Sea, unless it’s a Ghost Ship, it’s challenging to withstand it.
Whether it’s an Ironclad Ship or a sail warship, or even a raft, you must follow this principle.
Otherwise, the peculiar shipwrecks along the way would shatter ordinary warships, even Spell Warships, into pieces.
However, the quick transport between islands can still harness the advantages of these Ironclad Ships.
Larger cargo capacity, better means to resist typical shipwrecks, and faster speed.
"That ship... is headed to the World Scar, isn’t it." Chadite suddenly pointed to another Ironclad Ship in the distance.
That Ironclad Ship felt tainted with the scent of the Abyss above it, though very faint, but to Alka and the others, it was too conspicuous.
It also felt like a Ghost Ship with the appearance of an Ironclad Ship. But the abyssal scent was just a result of the outer shell’s contamination.
This is a normal situation for long-term transport between the World Scar and the outside world.
Moreover, through its flags and the ship’s style, it’s evident it’s not merely a supply transport to the World Scar; it likely carries numerous troops.
Thus, the Sound of Dawn sailed swiftly across the sea for another half-day’s time.
Finally, they saw the island from afar.
As they got closer and closer.
The island’s appearance unfolded before them.
It was an island almost devoid of green vegetation.
The island was nearly entirely covered with steel structures, and even above the island, dark clouds loomed, with lightning flashing and thunder roaring.
The most striking feature of the entire island was the dark clouds floating overhead, almost covering the whole island beneath them.
"The element activity level on this island is somewhat too high." Alka remarked upon arrival, sensing the elemental issue here.
This leads to the constant presence of dark clouds above and continuous lightning and thunder, all due to excessively active elements.