Su Shang was equally baffled—this paper had just popped out of thin air?
"Subsidy funds: tens, hundreds, thousands, ten thousand, hundred thousand, million... Ha?! No way—this has to be fake?" Scott was floored, immediately questioning the notice's authenticity.
But when he pulled out his phone and checked, he saw a astronomical figure for real. The man froze on the spot.
No way—hadn't he just dropped his tough talk? Retribution this swift?!
Who gets it~ He'd always been the one setting traps for others as a rep for the interstellar peace company—now the Church had turned the tables on him!
Hidden in the crowd, Freesna's lips curved up ever so slightly. Just a smidge of [Eternity] illusion—did they really think her [Emanator] status was for show?
Even Blake could melt Jarilo-VI's eternal winter back to spring; she had her own tricks up her sleeve.
She glanced at the [Ether Tape] in her hand, glowing faintly. Who knew the toy Adrian gave her ten years ago would come in handy? Seemed like punklord tech from the [Ether Editing] side?
The sudden reversal left the onlookers slack-jawed. Su Shang, clueless amid the throng, spotted that familiar silver-haired elf and suddenly it clicked—her uncertain expression flipped to confidence in an instant.
The [Eternity Church] was the real deal!
...
Having exposed Zhongshan's disguise, who knew the gal was a [Tavern] Elation-chaser? Gotta up the vigilance on strangers from now on.
Yeah... What if a Mask of Fools went full-grown-up cosplay?
With her mentor Zhongshan out, Stelle had no choice but to loop back to Adrian and Screwlloyd—might as well flip the table and bail.
"Scared her off? Pity... Miss Zhongshan hasn't even tried the milk tea I slaved over dawn and dusk for her."
Adrian feigned deep regret, musing on having Zhongshan cart the milk tea back to the [Tavern] so HE could let that Elation crew sample the charms of art.
Screwlloyd volunteered in a flash, smoothly usurping the role and taking over Zhongshan's guidance duties for Stelle—his plan complete.
"If mechanical beings exist in such places, they're bound to face tech regression woes. Those inorganic sorts do qualify as [ferocious and endangered]." Screwlloyd noted.
"Impressive as it is, Miss Stelle, your idea's spot-on—but there's a tiny snag... This ain't a plant!"
"The definition of [plant] is pretty flexible—trust me!"
"Mm... I get your drift. We can play up the [plant] angle big time! No issue—mechanical beings are fine."
"Since you proposed it, allow me to make it happen. Please wait."
A breeze brushed Stelle's cheek, carrying a cool touch. By the time she snapped back, Screwlloyd had vanished.
Stelle's fingertips instinctively reached for where the wind had grazed, as if verifying its reality—or chasing the Intelligencer's lingering afterimage.
But she touched only her own chilled skin and empty air. She froze, fingers hovering mid-air.
How come she, an [Eternity] Pathstrider, couldn't teleport? Stelle couldn't help reflecting—was she even a proper [Eternity] Pathstrider?
After a few minutes' wait, Screwlloyd reappeared—hauling a pile of scrapped Automaton Guards.
That familiar look... In those few seconds, Screwlloyd had zipped to Jarilo-VI?!
"Pardon my rudeness, Miss Stelle. Before carting off these problem children, I must ask: Why the interest in a backward snow planet's tech?" Screwlloyd set down the damaged bots and swiftly patched them up.
"Treating obsolete machines as endangered lives, [releasing] them to distant worlds to rack up so-called [merits]."
"Logic: Even with Pontiff Blake thawing the planet's winter, those outdated machines remain an issue to resolve."
"Question: Are machines life? Or is life just a kind of machine?"
"It's all down to personal definitions. Releasing... If it's to shield certain animals from harm, I get that."
As an inorganic life, Screwlloyd—despite his masterful disguises—couldn't truly empathize with humans:
"But seeking to please Aeons through such acts, accumulating merits... Do human actions even matter to Aeons?"
"Or rather, is there truly an eye in the heavens constantly judging everyone's morals? Docking points via punishment when a human harms a life, awarding bonuses when one saves another's?"
"Conclusion: Believing [your actions matter that much] is just humanity's unique arrogance."
Screwlloyd abruptly shifted tones: "Enough... Grumblings from a lowly Church deacon won't sway [Releasers Inc.]'s convictions. Madam, how do you plan to highlight the [plant] traits here?"
No sooner said than Stelle scooped up some dirt, slathering it evenly over the machines—and topping each with a little green sprout.
Screwlloyd: ...
A path HE hadn't foreseen. Humans were wondrous creatures—why else would it fancy playing human? One, for safety; two, to probe [Eternity]'s mysteries.
...
Scale Abyss Realm—the initiation trial would unfold here.
"Stelle, see Bena over there? Use [Persuasion] on her!"
"Huh? Aren't you [Lunatic Faction]? How'd you flip to mentor... Where's that [Zhongshan]?"
"Regrettably, Miss Zhongshan had to step away for personal reasons... The three serve as trial judges, so naturally, the mentoring falls to me."
Screwlloyd explained without missing a beat, swiftly convincing her. She turned her focus to the [release subjects] they'd brought.
"No way... I thought you'd found some fitting release target! Mechanical beings are everywhere—Xianzhou skies are full of mechabirds. How's that endangered?"
"Plus, the [initiation trial] was to resolve our three's food chain mess... How do mechanical beings fix our issues?"
Stelle explained: "Ah, but you don't know—these weak, pitiful, helpless inorganic babies hail from a planet half a step into [Destruction]."
"No more production possible... For such adorable machine babies!" Adrian chimed in supportively.
"Oh, that sounds heartbreaking. So... These are the last remnants of a declining civilization's mechanical lives?"
"Releasing them, freeing them from certain doom, Miss Bena. Conclusion: You'll rack up massive merits."
With Screwlloyd's assist and Adrian's backup—plus Stelle's natural gifts—they [persuaded] all three [Great Benefactors] of [Releasers Inc.] in short order!
The six stood by the seaside, watching the Automaton Guards depart—completing this triumphant release, merits boundless...