Hyperdimensional Player

Chapter 180 Your Emperor is Back!

Temple area.

When Duncan reappeared, he was wearing the priest's robes of the Mechanicus, with the Mechanicus emblem on the front, steel wings on the north side, and gear patterns on the cuffs. He usually wore an even larger cloak over these robes. The Mechanicus's clothing was very oversized because no one knew how many modified gadgets were stuffed underneath.

Along the way, church members saluted Duncan, who wore a gray gear emblem, signifying his status as a novice priest.

By this time, military control over Sector F46 had been largely lifted. Only the Temple District retained a small number of Guardians; other residential and industrial areas had been replaced by locally recruited guards. Tasia's recruits were almost ready; they had obtained their mercenary licenses and would depart in four or five days at most.

The daily routine of the Cult of Machines is not that complicated.

Although it is a theocratic state, the church is independent of everything, and mechanical monks are definitely a privileged class. Unless you intend to make a political contribution, ordinary mechanical monks can move around freely as long as they complete a certain number of tasks.

All mortals are cogs in this enormous machine, while the mechanical priests are the gears responsible for its operation.

Logistics area.

Because District F46 had just been established, the tasks assigned by the church leadership were not very heavy. After entering the steel casting workshop, Duncan took off his burqa, revealing a mechanical interface below his neck, which was a recently implanted mechanical nerve bundle.

"Clerk Duncan".

"This is your task quota for the past week."

A church deacon approached and stood quietly by Duncan's side as he connected the mechanical arm to the neural bundle. Only after Duncan had tested and adjusted the mechanical arm and found it to be flexible and easy to use did the deacon hand over a list, saying, "There are a total of twenty-four pieces of steel-cast armor, all of which are semi-finished products with mechanical prayer inscriptions already completed."

"All you need to do is offer the blessing again."

Duncan took the list expressionlessly, glanced at it, and then handed it to the church deacon beside him, saying indifferently, "I understand."

The monks of the Cult of the Machine God all have a considerable salary, but to receive it, they must honestly work in the factory. Generally, it is the mechanical monks who are not well-off who go to work on the assembly line. Those who are wealthy basically spend their days praying and training, and they do not need the allowances issued by the church.

The tracks on the steel casting plant started running, and soon a piece of steel casting armor about one meter in diameter was delivered to Duncan. There was already someone working directly in front of him. It was the middle-aged man who had passed the trial a day earlier than him. The man had been working on the assembly line for half a month and was now very skilled.

Duncan's hands stroked the steel-cast armor before him. It was produced in the workshops of the industrial zone and then sent to the temple district, where it was blessed and enchanted by mechanical priests, who also inscribed it with mechanical runes unique to the church.

Under his mental control, the two mechanical arms operated simultaneously. One engraved intricate runes, while the other assisted. Duncan inscribed mechanical runes while chanting mechanical prayers. It was a process of blessing, strengthening the steel armor through faith and endowing it with the characteristics of a wondrous object.

Opposite him, two people were doing the job: one was inscribing runes, and the other was applying holy oil to the steel armor while muttering incantations.

It has the assistance of dimensional space.

Duncan worked very quickly, finishing his work in just one morning.

He used a robotic arm to soak pieces of cast steel armor into holy oil, then closed his eyes and channeled his magic, completing the rune infusion by reciting mechanical incantations.

—"Crafting magical artifacts (constructs): Originating from the artifact crafting specialty of the Mystic Age, after being improved by the Mechanicus, it became a production line method, using faith and magic to imbue metal with magic. Unlike the artifact crafting abilities of the Mystics, the Mechanicus monks are more skilled at construct creation."

(Crafting, Engineering, Alchemy, and other skills +10.)
After finishing his work for the day, Duncan went directly to the church deacon to request permission to go out.

The church deacon handed Duncan a black iron plaque, which he could use to apply for some standard equipment and weapons from the quartermaster.

Think Tank Library.

After receiving the plaque, Duncan walked through a long corridor, greeted Ian beside him, and then entered through the church's seal.

The think tank in Zone F46 is very small; it's essentially a central processing unit responsible for controlling the allocation of resources such as electricity, industry, and production. It's a black iron box about three meters in diameter, with a faint blue glow on its surface. There are many mechanical interfaces on the front, allowing you to download knowledge from within via a monitor.

Duncan did not have a brain-computer interface chip implanted and was temporarily unable to download anything, so he went directly to the right-hand corridor. No one had entered this area for a long time, and the old bookshelves were covered in dust.

"Clerk Duncan".

"You came."

The speaker was a very old man with a metal mask covering half of his face and an old mechanical prosthetic arm. He was said to be a retired member of the Christian Guard who was assigned to think tank logistics work because of his meritorious service in an operation.

The man named Negan placed a thick stack of books in front of Duncan and said, "I've found what you wanted."

Mechanicians who come here are usually there for the most advanced knowledge.

But the priest Duncan in front of him was quite the opposite; he was looking for very ancient mechanical knowledge, some of which predates the rise of the Mechanicus and belong to the medieval era, things that no one would be interested in now.

Duncan reached out and took it, nodding slightly and saying, "Thank you."

After saying that, he placed the thick stack of books on the desk in the corner, picked up a few ancient books from the Mechanicus, and quietly sat down to read them.

After opening a very old parchment book, Duncan quickly scanned it and found two key words.

"The God of Craftsmen".

—"The God of Steam and Machinery".

The history of the Mechanicus can be traced back to the Third Age, when their predecessor was the Church of the God of Craftsmen, an ancient deity that has been forgotten.

His divine duties include fire, forging, sculpting, and craftsmanship, similar to Hephaestus, one of the twelve Olympian gods of Greece.

This deity perished at the end of the Third Age.

Then, about a hundred years later, at the end of the Mystic Age, a new god took over His divine office. This was the earliest god of steam and machinery. However, He was denounced as a false god in the canon and only reigned for less than a few decades before falling in the turmoil of the Fourth Age.

In this process, the true god of machines, the master of all machines, was born!

He is not a being who ascends to godhood in the conventional way, but a deity who is summoned and descended by seven guardian angels. This is also the origin of the original 'Descendant of the Mechanical God'. The day He descends is the birthday of the gods in World Three, and also the New Year for ordinary people.

Thus began a series of industrial revolutions, which developed to an astonishing level in just a few hundred years!

The end of the mystical age was marked by the retreat of the gods into seclusion.

However, long before the arrival of the God of Machines, the world had already begun the 'First Industrial Revolution,' and what Duncan was looking for was information on this topic.

"How come it feels like this world evolved from a fantasy/magical civilization to its current state?"

Duncan turned to the last few pages of the ancient book.

It has a short title and contains very little information, summarized in just a few sentences.

—"The Demise of Traditional Wizards": With the end of the mystical age, traditional wizards, mages, sorcerers, occultists, druids and other spellcasters gradually disappeared. They abandoned the corrupt gods and converted to the faith of the great god of all machines.

However, the artifact forging techniques of the Mystic Age were still preserved, and the constructs, golems, and mechanical puppets of the Mystic Age became the earliest mechanical servants.

After the Fourth Age began, the power of magic declined significantly, traditional spellcasters transformed into esoteric Buddhist traditions, and early construct golems were gradually phased out after the death of the god of magic.

There is a hand-drawn golem pattern here.

It looks like a heavy lump of iron, with a shape somewhat similar to an ancient steel statue, the kind that is hand-polished and has a rather rough appearance. It is marked as a 'steel golem', a mage creation from the Mystic Age, which gradually disappeared after the Fourth Age.

However, they can still be encountered in some ancient ruins.

There are also annotations nearby, commenting that 'the manufacturing process is primitive and simple, but the power is not small. It can be severely damaged by electromagnetic weapons, but you must be careful of the poison gas it releases. A small number of ancient golems may awaken self-awareness,' etc.

All the church texts here have a time gap.

That is, the period when the mysterious age ended coincided with the beginning of the First Industrial Revolution, the era of the god of steam and machinery. He fell to the siege of other gods, but his fall also summoned the true god of all machines to descend.

In the chaotic records of this period, in just a few decades, the God of Magic went into seclusion, the God of Justice fell into slumber, the Lord of Nature perished, and so on. The God of War was probably the last god to survive, but He also gradually disappeared in the early Fourth Age.

The god of all machines unified the beliefs of the entire world, thus transitioning from the mystical age to the industrial age.

"found it!"

Duncan spent half a day rummaging through the pile of old books and found more records about the god of steam and machinery. He even saw design drawings of steam engines and textile machines on the old parchment.

This marks the beginning of the transformation from the god of craftsmen to the god of machines!
Dimensional space.

Duncan opened the ancient book in front of him and said with a serious expression, "Inscribe the relevant information!"

"Mark relevant knowledge about the First Industrial Revolution."

On the projected page.

Soon a differentiated panel appeared, and a large amount of data was scanned, recorded, and stored in the dimensional space.

After doing all this, Duncan turned to the last page of the ancient book, which contained a picture depicting the kingdom of the god of steam and machinery, a kingdom built on a giant gear with spiraling tracks on both sides. Steam trains were scattered throughout the kingdom, and believers lived in high-rise buildings made of reinforced concrete. They were like incredibly busy workers who could simply walk out of their homes to board a train and head directly to another giant gear with countless towering chimneys and factories scattered throughout the kingdom.

"In these ancient books, the gods of the mysterious era all have divine kingdoms, but the God of Myriad Machines is the only one who does not!"

Duncan quickly discovered another blind spot.

Before he knew it, a long time had passed. When Duncan turned to the last paragraph, it recorded the fall of the god of steam and machinery. The Industrial Revolution aroused the hostility of the gods of nature, and He was soon besieged by many gods, especially the pantheon of nature gods. At least several powerful gods launched a great siege against Him and His church.

At one point, the situation threatened the early Mechanicus, almost leading to its complete annihilation. The global war forced the Industrial Revolution to a halt, and any books related to mechanical industry were banned by many kingdoms. Those who read and studied this knowledge were executed, nearly causing civilization to regress back to the Mystic Age.

By this time, Duncan had finished recording these ancient records.

In addition to what he had recently collected and organized, a unique mark had appeared on the projected page.

—"The First Industrial Revolution (Magic and Industry): The technology and knowledge that emerged in World Three at the end of the Mystic Age. The god of steam and machinery improved the runes of the Mystic Age, making them applicable to some early industrial technologies. These records focus more on secular industrial technology, but there are also records of mechanical runes improving magical constructs."

When the first Industrial and Magical Revolution broke out, the Church of the God of Steam and Machinery improved the traditional mages' 'anti-gravity runes' and used them to create the first flying machines.

However, the ensuing world war interrupted this research process.

Faced with attacks from countries that adhered to other religious sects, the steam-powered and mechanical church gained a tremendous strategic advantage through airships, lightning chariots, and armored vehicle clusters!
But soon, they had to confront the incarnations of other gods and their chosen people.

This also led to the fall of the God of Steam and Machinery, and the complete destruction of His divine kingdom, the Mechanical Heart.

The first Industrial and Magical Revolution was abruptly halted until the true God of Machines was born, descending upon the world in a construct avatar.

(warn!)

(The data compiled back then, once released, may have influenced the progress of civilizations in other worlds.)
Impact on the progress of civilization?

That's what Duncan has to do.

After the third human host returned to the resting place, he moved his mind and the projection page of the first human host appeared in front of him.

—Avalon in the mist [the blessed land].

Since Duncan retired, the scene here has been relatively static.

Only the country markers on the projection page will show a log update every now and then, and the log intervals will become longer and longer, with only a slight change appearing in the last few decades.

In 489 AD, Queen Raven Triss was elevated to the Goddess of Wizardry and Mystic Arts (with minor divine power), and her secret cult was active on the island of Britain.

—In 492 AD, the Middle Ages ushered in a new wave of mythological decline. Some had already foreseen the coming of the end times. Dead magic zones appeared across much of Europe, and spellcasters of the Mystic Age began a large-scale exodus to the British Isles.

—In 498 AD, Duncan II, through diligent governance, illuminated the national concept of 'ship development'.

—In 503 AD, mythology declined, a religious reformation occurred in Norse religion, colonists began to appear in Iceland, and with the emergence of a national ideology focused on maritime hegemony, the empire vigorously developed shipbuilding technology, and navigators discovered the Granling Islands. —In 512 AD, the first colonist fleet landed on the Granling Islands, and a new national ideology, the 'colonial wave,' emerged in the empire, but due to the limitations of the technology of the time, this ideology did not attract widespread attention.

—In 520 AD, Anya's legend was transformed into the commercial field. Along with the legend of her first human host, she became a myth. As the empress of the empire, Anya also amassed some divine power.

(She is hailed as the first person to buy the throne of queen with astonishing wealth!)

(As Duncan the Great's capable wife, she was highly skilled in business and trade, providing indispensable assistance in Duncan the Great's rise to power. It was because of these achievements that she ultimately surpassed Duncan the Great's other lovers, rising from a widow to the esteemed Empress of the Empire.)
(Anya was promoted to a high-ranking Heroic Spirit, and as time went on, her statue was also enshrined in the temple of Emperor Duncan, where she was worshipped by many merchant groups.)
—In 532 AD, mythology further declined, temples and altars began to lose some of their supernatural power, the Avalon faith experienced a slight decline, and some of the Druid's fertility rituals began to fail.

In 535 AD, Duncan II popularized the national concept of 'refined farming,' which greatly improved the empire's agricultural technology. After the great decline of supernatural powers, the Imperial Academy focused on agricultural technology, and refined farming began to spread throughout the empire's territory, leading to an explosive population growth.

In 536 AD, Duncan II, who had reigned for fifty years, abdicated, and Duncan III ascended the throne. From him onward, the early empire experienced a relatively smooth power transition.

This successor was diligent and hardworking. Although he did not achieve great military exploits, he allowed the empire to recuperate for decades. Following Duncan the Great, he completed the popularization of education and the judiciary, established local courts, abolished blood feuds, and transformed Germania into the core province of the empire, thus ushering in a golden age for the empire.

Thirteen years after his abdication, Duncan II died at the age of 97, becoming the longest-lived monarch on record.

In 542 AD, the Mesopotamian region of the empire fell to the enemy. Subsequently, Duncan III personally led an expedition and recaptured the lost provinces. However, the empire's territory was too vast, and its administrative structure was too bloated, gradually weakening its control over the Middle East. More than twenty years later, Babylon fell again, and pagans massacred and burned temples and churches. The imperial garrison retreated to the Jerusalem area.

In 556 AD, Duncan III illuminated the national concept of 'technological development', and the empire saw technological progress, the maritime industry developed significantly, and Granlin Island already had tens of thousands of colonists.

—In 563 AD, the navigator Barto discovered West Africa, and the early slave trade began.

In 567 AD, Duncan III died, and the new emperor, Duncan IV, was known as a maverick. As a prince, he was famous for his unconventional behavior and numerous lovers. Although he did not achieve much in governing the country, he was one of the emperors with the most offspring.

It seems that starting with Duncan the Great, the tradition of imperial emperors having few children was broken. Duncan IV had dozens of children, but none of them were particularly talented.

In 576 AD, a rebellion broke out in the province of Sarmatia in the empire, and the situation in Carthage in North Africa and Alexandria in Egypt was also unstable. In order to win the support of the increasingly powerful church, Duncan IV converted to monotheism and became the first emperor of the empire to abandon polytheistic beliefs.

The influence of monotheistic religions has increased significantly.

In 586 AD, the dissolute Duncan IV died. Although he had not accomplished anything, he was revered by the Church as a 'convert'. In the same year, Duncan V ascended the throne. With the assistance of the Church, the Empire deepened its rule at the grassroots level, the turmoil gradually subsided, polytheism declined, and Central Europe became the core diocese of monotheism.

—In 593 AD, the British provinces enthroned Duncan VI as emperor.

This heir displayed talents unlike any other from a young age. He possessed immense strength, boundless energy, and a sharp mind, exhibiting extraordinary abilities. He was considered the most like-minded descendant of Duncan the Great since Duncan III, and legend has it that he was born with ice-blue eyes.

With the support of the British provinces, Duncan VI defeated his rivals and quelled the chaos in the empire within a few years, reunifying the situation.

During his reign, this emperor consolidated his rule over Asia Minor, defeated a pagan army on the banks of the Euphrates, and secured the empire's interests in Egypt. However, he had great difficulty conceiving; he only had one prince after eight years on the throne.

In 632 AD, Duncan VII ascended the throne, but he did not have any noteworthy achievements.

In 656 AD, Duncan VIII ascended the throne, and the empire entered a period of turmoil. Severe land annexation gradually eroded the country's vitality, the church gradually gained control of a large amount of land and property, the emperor's authority was weakened, and for the next few decades, the empire failed to produce a long-lived emperor.

In 678 AD, Duncan IX ascended the throne, igniting the intellectual wave of the Renaissance. He was an emperor who reverted to polytheistic beliefs. He carried out sweeping reforms of monotheism, confiscating church land and property and restricting the power of clergy.

Although his reign was short, the empire showed signs of revival during his rule.

—In 703 AD, the Kingdom of France gained independence.

—In 716 AD, the Kingdom of Germany gained independence.

In 732 AD, with the support of the British provinces, Duncan XII ascended the throne. He vigorously developed the maritime industry, and with his support, the empire discovered the Cape of Good Hope in Africa centuries ahead of schedule. He initiated the concept of the 'empire on which the sun never sets,' and the Kingdom of Britain illuminated the national ideal of the 'Age of Exploration.'

The inheritance of the dragon's bloodline has gradually faded away.

As times progressed, the Frankish region prospered, and with the support of the Church, the Kingdom of France rose rapidly, with Monotheism being established as the state religion.

In 806 AD, Duncan XV died without an heir, plunging the empire into turmoil. Faced with escalating pagan invasions, the Church supported the ascension of Duke Hugo Duncan Caesar Augustus of France to the throne. The vast empire gradually disintegrated, and the Kingdom of France conquered the Italian peninsula, establishing the First French Empire in Central Europe.

In 816 AD, with the support of the British people, the Duke of Cornwall, a descendant of Duncan XII, became the new King of Britain.

In the same year, the Kingdom of Britain gained independence.

The struggle for the right to succeed Duncan the Great sparked a war between Britain and France that lasted nearly a century.

—In 832 AD, the Kingdom of Germany completely conquered Northern Europe, extending its territory to Norway and Eurasia. After ruling over the Rus' people, the German Empire was established.

Subsequently, the Second Roman Empire came to an end after lasting 379 years. After its destruction, the Kingdom of Britain, the Kingdom of France, and the Kingdom of Germany all claimed to be the legitimate successors of the empire. After conquering the Balkans, the Kingdom of France showed signs of becoming the Third Reich.

………………

Duncan finished browsing the national logbook in front of him with a blank expression.

After the collapse of the empire he built, the concept of the nation split into three, resulting in three separate pages. The Kingdom of Britain focuses on 'maritime hegemony' and has already activated the corresponding national ideology, triggering the prerequisite elements for the 'Empire on which the sun never sets'.

But India still needs to be discovered.

The First French Empire emphasized 'intensive farming' and 'technological development', and entered the Renaissance centuries earlier than expected. The Kingdom of Germany, due to its geographical location, was relatively remote and thus had the fewest national ideals implemented, but it also possessed its own unique advantages.

—Scandinavian (Nordic): The long-term socio-economic backwardness of the Nordic region actually limited social differentiation, and Nordic farmers were long considered one of the freest groups of workers in Europe. When capitalism began to emerge, the land reforms caused the least amount of pain.

When the Industrial Revolution began, it significantly accelerated the process of social transformation and reduced the impact of unrest.

—The rigorous thinking of the Germans: The German people are excellent but lonely. They cannot find their kind in Europe, so when they are in a good mood, they interrogate the world; when they are in a bad mood, they torture the world.

Both the Franks and Germany were determined to unify Europe and rebuild their empires!
[After triggering the Enlightenment, the requirements for advancing in the tech tree are significantly reduced. After completing military reforms, the army's training level is significantly increased.]

—Army Glory (National Ideal): The Kingdom of Germany possesses one of the strongest armies in Europe. They have inherited the discipline of the Imperial Legion and retained the warlike tradition of the Germanic people.

Now, the world is divided into three.

After the dragon bloodline left by Duncan gradually declined, the French branch began to rise rapidly. After they established monotheism as the state religion, there were already signs of it transforming into the later 'Holy Roman Empire'.

Duncan accelerated the progress of world civilization by nearly five hundred years.

In fact, the Renaissance movement had already emerged by the end of the seventh century AD, but because the empire was gradually weakening, wars were breaking out, and the country was in turmoil, the movement did not transform into a national ideology. It was not until the Kingdom of France rose and gradually quelled the chaos that the Renaissance began to take root.

But all of this is different from history; the Renaissance even influenced places like Paris and London.

—Avalon in the mist.

As Duncan's consciousness was transferred into his first human host, Avalon, shrouded in mist, trembled slightly. Sometime later, a dazzling meteor appeared in the sky above Britain, its fiery red clouds forming the outline of a dragon's head. The meteor's trail resembled a dragon's breath.

Duncan's consciousness entered the real world.

In the deepest part of the blessed land of Avalon, within a magnificent palace, the immortal who had slept there slowly opened his eyes.

Citizens of the Empire!

Your emperor has returned from his work trip.

In an instant.

As Duncan's consciousness descended, in Avalon shrouded in mist, figures that had fallen into slumber due to the receding tide of mythology slowly awoke.

The guardian fairy, Tethys, appeared outside the palace in an instant.

At the entrance of the main hall.

Two imposing statues, clad in full armor, slowly awoke, leaning on their swords and kneeling on one knee towards the hall.

—Kurin (Lower-rank Servant) (Four-star Silver-gray).

— Clegane (Lower-rank Servant) (Four-star Silver-gray).

Sonorous.

Duncan slowly drew Excalibur from beside the throne. The Oathkeeper had been left behind as a legacy of the Empire, and its whereabouts were now unknown.

As his consciousness descended, the heroic spirits who had slumbered in Avalon began to awaken.

Anya, Severus, Balton, and others appeared around this magnificent palace, their figures both real and ethereal. They were attached to this place as a legion of heroic spirits, just like supplicants of the divine kingdom.

"His Majesty."

The guardian fairy, Tethys, bowed slightly and said, "You have awakened."

Due to the decline of faith in Avalon, the nine guardian fairies in the mist have changed to a rotating system. The last ten years or so have been the time for Tethys to take over, while the other guardian fairies have been in hibernation.

Times have changed.

Monotheism ultimately rose to prominence. Although the Renaissance was brought forward, the decline of polytheism was still irreversible, though not completely eradicated, with core parishes still remaining. Avalon, shrouded in mist, initially possessed some strength, but with the arrival of the end times and the ineffectiveness of the Druids' fertility rituals, their faith weakened considerably.

"Ah."

Duncan nodded slightly, adjusting to his spirit-like body. Just as he stood up, he saw a charming figure rushing towards him.

—Anya (High-ranking Heroic Spirit) (Business Sector) (Five-star Whiteboard)

Anya looked even younger now.

After becoming a high-ranking Heroic Spirit, she almost returned to her youthful appearance at the age of twenty. As Duncan's subordinate Heroic Spirit, she also awoke immediately.

"A change of the times has arrived."

"I am going to initiate the first industrial revolution as planned!..."

According to Duncan's original projections, the first industrialization would have occurred at most three or four hundred years earlier. However, with the knowledge gained from the third human host, the enlightenment era of the first industrial revolution should have begun nearly eight hundred years earlier.

As for the future direction of civilization, Duncan must be extremely cautious, because only a small portion of the knowledge of the Mechanicus can be put to use.

The world power ceiling of the third human host is too high.

The mechanical archbishop of any of the hive cities possesses combat power marked with five stars. Duncan cannot go on a killing spree there for the time being. If he attracts the attention of the higher-ups of the Mechanical Church, his third human host will probably have to be forcibly suppressed.

These mechanical monks are emotionless; they'd even drop nuclear bombs.

Given this, after infiltrating the Cult of Machines, Duncan's first task was to give back to the world of his first human host.

The progress of civilization in the world can proceed slowly, with observation and improvement along the way, allowing for timely corrections.

But his private domain is Britain.

It would be entirely possible to first guide the wizarding world's magic and the Industrial Revolution into the Enlightenment era (close to the 18th century).

This is a pilot area for the progress of civilization.

If feasible, then consider gradually popularizing it among the general public, initiating the first wave of the Industrial Revolution. As for the future, Duncan might secretly create a revolutionary civilization zone to guide the world towards modernity.

This is just the first step in the plan.

………………

(End of this chapter)