Industrial Cthulhu, starting from the island lord

Chapter 495 We scholars are best at analysis

Hunter blinked, his expression not showing, but he found it amusing.

He realized that his previous mistake was merely due to momentary carelessness and a loss of focus. As a scholar, his greatest strength lay in thinking and analysis, and as long as he thought things through carefully, there would be no problem.

Judging from their tense expressions, there must be something quite shocking ahead, right?

They seem worried about being further agitated.

But as long as you think it through beforehand and have expectations in mind, you won't be scared and you won't encounter any embarrassing situations.

What lies ahead? It's not hard to guess.

Thinking, analyzing, and observing are the most important abilities of a scholar. Even as a prisoner, Hunter never emptied his mind and continued to analyze things carefully.

First of all, the place they were going to was called "Castel Cathedral," which means that this matter was likely related to religion.

Given their connection to religion and the fact that both were members of the "Defenders of the Faith," this church should be the headquarters of the so-called "Imperial Truth."

Hunter had noticed something long ago: the Church of Imperial Truth had never appeared on the continent before, and he had never even heard of the name.

However, it developed rapidly in a short period of time, and a large number of believers appeared inexplicably. Castel, an unknown desert island, suddenly had many strange creations.

Hunter, a scholar with a proper lineage, may not have reached the extraordinary realm, but he still knows quite a bit about some secrets.

For example, the Church of Poseidon.

Scholars in the North have a way of dealing with submerged memories. They interweave secret histories with normal accounts and then weave them into songs with unique rhythms, thus engraving things destined to be forgotten into the soul.

Hunter had heard about the Church of the Sea God; they had once been glorious, and their influence once extended across the vast seas of the seven oceans.

Recently, the Church of the Sea God has suddenly disappeared.

You must know that the Church of the Sea God was once one of the five major churches, with an ambiguous relationship with the Pirate King and actual control over the entire Storm Ocean. How could it just disappear inexplicably like that?

If you calculate the timeline, the disappearance of the Pirate King and the Church of the Sea God coincides exactly with the rise of Castel and the Empire of Truth!

Is it really possible for something to happen so coincidentally?
Hunter sneered inwardly.

Pirates have a bad reputation; if they want to expand onto the mainland, they need to change their name.

The Church of Poseidon was even blocked by the four major churches, and they couldn't set foot on land without changing their identity.

As expected, no truth can withstand careful analysis. By peeling back the layers and searching for clues, the truth about Castells has become clear.

The so-called Castel is just a pirate with a different name, and the so-called Imperial Truth is just a subordinate church of the Church of the Sea God.

The island's rapid development was probably due to the strong support of the Church of the Sea God and the treasures of the pirates.

Those astonishing creations must also have the extraordinary power of the Church of the Sea God working behind the scenes, right?
Hunter felt a little relieved. He couldn't figure out the principle behind the airship, not because he lacked knowledge, but because it was influenced by supernatural forces. It was not a simple mechanical creation at all.

The powerful force was not Castel, but the Church of the Sea God and the pirates.

It's not that he himself is incapable, but rather that those creations cannot be analyzed using mechanical principles.

Once you understand these things, the reason why the two friars were nervous becomes clear.

Once he enters the church, he will probably see some things related to the Church of the Sea God, such as a statue of the Sea God.
Although the Church of Poseidon doesn't dare to publicize its activities openly, it will inevitably engage in underhanded tactics, such as secretly hiding things that cannot be shown to others in the church. This is exactly what they would do.

Hunter's face suddenly lit up with realization. No wonder the two friars couldn't even articulate the Church's doctrines. Ah, it wasn't that they couldn't speak, but that they dared not.
If I were to reveal the doctrines of the Church of the Sea God in front of a scholar like myself, I'd probably be exposed on the spot.

Hunter smiled.

"I must say, you two are smart people, it's a pity you ran into me."

The two guards looked at each other, somewhat puzzled.

"Please rest assured, both of you. I know exactly what's inside. Please don't underestimate a scholar's analytical abilities."

Hunter spoke with a smile.

"Really?"

"Of course it's true. Look at me now, I don't look crazy at all." Seeing that the two of them still looked a little suspicious, Hunter whispered, "Deep Sea."

The two guards gasped, their eyes filled with admiration as they looked at Hunter.

"hiss!"

"You, you actually guessed it?"

"As expected of scholars from the North, we were quite taken aback when we first met them."

The two men sighed in admiration, and Hunter held his head high with satisfaction, basking in the praise and respect in their eyes.

But at this moment, he was, after all, a prisoner, so he still had to be somewhat humble and put on a show of politeness.
"Fortunately, this is mainly because I am knowledgeable enough. If you learn more, you can also deduce the truth of things like I have."

"Makes sense."

"Knowledge is power."

The two nodded in agreement, then took out the holy book and began to open it.

Hunter was taken aback; this was the first time he had ever heard the phrase "knowledge is power."

Although this statement is quite simplistic and blunt, the more you think about it, the more you realize that it gets to the heart of the matter and makes a lot of sense.

Hunter pondered for a while, and was about to discuss it with the two when he suddenly noticed that they were looking at the holy book.

This left Hunter somewhat disheartened. He had thought the two were also interested in knowledge and was even planning to give them some pointers, but unexpectedly, they veered back to the sacred texts.

How much knowledge can the church's scriptures contain? They are nothing but repetitive and absurd hymns, which only ignorant believers would treasure.

Castells actually had a copy of the holy book on him; it was given to him by the guards who were escorting him on the ship.

Now that I think about it, Hunter suddenly felt something was off. Weren't the people escorting him members of the Secret Order? Why would members of the Secret Order be carrying the sacred text of Imperial Truth?
He didn't have time to read that holy book, but—what could the church's holy book possibly contain?
It wasn't that he was arrogant; the academic organization in the North was quite famous, and even had some connection with the former Society of Mechanics. Yet, within such an academic organization, there was virtually no positive evaluation of the Church. This could only mean that the Church's scriptures were truly of low value.

Thinking of this, he felt a little sad.

Castel, this remote island, probably has no academic societies, let alone any academic traditions; he may be the only scholar here.

With a long sigh, Hunter stood up with two guards and followed the crowd toward the car door.

Arrived.

(End of this chapter)