Chapter 1396 - 547: The Return Journey Begins_2

Then he left the church as if fleeing.

At that moment, Archbishop Ann sat not far away.

As one of the three highest Archbishops, he naturally knew Alka could not be of Divine Son status.

It’s just that compared to the Holy Mother Church, he was somewhat special. It wasn’t as mystical as some outsiders or even some insiders rumored.

But today.

Today was different.

He had also gone to the Holy Mother Divine Kingdom to personally meet the Holy Mother.

So he knew very well who the child angel summoned each year to grant grace to the believers was.

Almost every member of the Three-Person Council who traveled to the Divine Kingdom would see this child angel.

But today.

What he saw today.

Made him sit there, lost in thought.

So.

Alka really is?

He couldn’t be sure or guarantee, because even though they knew Alka wasn’t the Saint Son, the Holy Mother didn’t deny it, right?

He started to have slight doubts.

"Archbishop?"

The assistant beside him called out.

The Archbishop then came back to his senses, shook his head to clear those strange thoughts, nodded, and continued with his work.

Meanwhile, outside, Alka and the others left the Great Cathedral and headed to the town below.

On the way, the festive celebrations were clearly visible. The most striking aspect of the celebration was the variety of foods and delicacies in the surrounding merchants’ carts. After all, the Harvest Festival’s theme, aside from the Holy Mother-related rituals, was naturally about eating.

After trying some of the foods they were interested in, they waited for Juanlu to purchase some ingredients, then returned to the ship near nightfall.

"This Trial Island is within the island chain’s range, and at our current speed, it’ll take only half a day, meaning we’ll reach the destination by midnight tonight."

Chadite looked at the map and planned the route and timing before speaking.

"Really? Then let’s go full speed ahead!"

With that said, the Sound of Dawn sped across the waves, quickly heading towards the distance.

...

Tonight.

No one slept.

Under the damned blue moon in the sky.

They finally saw in the distance, emerging from darkness under the moonlight, the tower-shaped silhouette.

The Trial Island with the 11th Tower of Trial appeared before them.

Looking at the island.

They all watched from the deck.

"Ah, how many years has it been?" Jason suddenly asked.

"What?" Juanlu didn’t catch on.

Alka beside him spoke slightly: "How many years have passed since we left the World Scar and started collecting the Towers of Trial?"

"About 8 years..." Chadite, who had been calculating the time, said.

It wasn’t much different from their estimated time.

They could have been faster, but Alka’s advancement slightly slowed their pace.

"Indeed, it’s been so long, finally reaching the 11th Tower of Trial."

This was the last unknown Tower of Trial they had to collect.

And the 12th Tower of Trial was the earliest one they encountered.

Starting from now, they would commence their return journey to the World Scar.

And along this straight return route, they could conveniently secure the 12th Tower of Trial.

As the ship slowly approached.

They could see on the Trial Island, all the dilapidated houses had long been replaced with new buildings, transforming it into a small town.

A group of Wheat Knights was already waiting around.

After completing the handover, Alka lifted the Tower of Trial and placed it into the small world.

At this point.

The 11 Towers of Trial had almost formed a complete circle, leaving only the final gap.

Then, the 12 Towers of Trial would manifest perfectly.

"Honestly, choosing to entrust this task to you all might have been the best decision I’ve made in these tens of thousands of years." Nafutos said with a smile after seeing Alka finish placing the 11th Tower of Trial.

Hearing this, Alka teasingly said to him, "You have good judgement."

"Only one more Tower of Trial left of the 11, after tens of thousands of years, our God’s final legacy and glory will appear at that moment." Nafutos sighed.

Even though he had no face or expressions, Alka could sense the strong anticipation for the future emanating from him.

Alka left the small world, returning to the Sound of Dawn.

"Come on, everyone, the final journey, let’s begin the return trip!"

"Oh!!"

Jason shouted out strangely.

The Sound of Dawn departed from the Trial Island.

On the deck, Alka and Chadite studied the world map in their hands.

The world map of the Endless Sea clearly only marked the Landmark Islands.

Swapped the unused Guiding Banner on the steering wheel.

This Guiding Banner did not point to Southern Cross Island, but directly to the World Scar.

Just as they had planned early on.

Now, they just needed to travel straight to the World Scar from here.

On the way, they would pass through the Broken Sea Region, which was their first destination upon entering the Endless Sea.

Passing Southern Cross Island, arriving at Trial Island to obtain the 12th Tower of Trial.

The final destination, heading toward the World Scar.

This last segment of the journey was also the longest.

From the 11th Tower of Trial to the location of the 12th Tower of Trial, it would take over a year.

And after that, they would need another year to reach the World Scar.