Mystery Detective of the Steam World

Chapter 433 Ancient Faith

Levi didn't know much about the Holy Bishop, but fortunately, MI7 had experts in this field.

For example, a certain nun.

“Sams…? I do know some records about that name.”

Elizabeth Delaney's voice came through the microphone as calmly as ever, as if it were no trouble at all.

"However, the situation may be a bit complicated..."

"It's alright, we have all night."

Li Wei glanced at Qi Ya, who was yawning and heading back to her room to sleep, then sat down on the sofa next to her. The phone bill was expensive, but Li Wei wasn't short of money; besides, it was all reimbursed by the seven departments, wasn't it?
“Very well… I think Sir Levy should know something about the ancient beliefs, right?”

"I have some understanding of it."

Li Wei knew what Elizabeth was talking about. The official mainstream version was that the Holy Lord defeated the other gods and then unified the world for all eternity. However, there was another popular version: the gods couldn't bear to see humanity suffer because of their divine wars, so they merged into one, forming the Holy Lord.

As for where this idea came from, Livy could now guess. Emperor Arthur had conquered from south to north, defeating one nation after another, annexing other countries and absorbing their beliefs. Just like many mythological figures in Livy's world, they too originated from conquered civilizations and races.

It's not impossible that this could happen.

For example, Emperor Arthur himself promoted this idea in order to consolidate his rule. After all, the gods couldn't bear to see their believers suffer, so they merged into one to form a new god. This was a relatively easy-to-accept explanation for those who had been defeated.

If you really did what the Holy Bishop said, that the Holy Lord eliminated the other gods and then ruled the world for eternity, wouldn't the followers of those other gods come after you? Believers are fanatical in their pursuit of faith, even risking their lives. But for Emperor Arthur, doing so would clearly increase the difficulty of governing the territories he conquered…

Of course, another possibility is that the bishop and Emperor Arthur did indeed make this announcement, but other believers, while outwardly accepting it, actually fabricated this story in an attempt to usurp the throne.

In this way, my worship of the All-Seeing Eye is not worship of your false god, but my true god, since you can't tell anyway.

As for the specific origin of this, it is now impossible to verify. In any case, the Holy Bishop certainly regarded it as heresy.

"At that time, there was also a saying about the Holy Lord, that is, the Holy Lord acts with different faces, different images, and different names."

"Oh?"

Upon hearing this, Li Wei raised an eyebrow.

"That's an interesting point of view."

"This statement comes from a debate in which someone asked the Pope, 'If God is indeed the God of this world, then why does He bring us suffering, death, and calamities? We have never disobeyed Him, nor have we ever turned our backs on Him, yet we and our children can only die in despair amidst these disasters. If God is truly merciful, why does He not have mercy on us?'"

"Interesting. What was the Pope's response?"

"The pope at the time claimed that God would bring life and death, prosperity and disaster. All of this was a gift from God to mankind, a test and a trial, but also a reward and a blessing."

"Well, then what?"

"It was because of this debate that this idea arose that the Holy Lord had different images and names when doing different things. The origin of this idea is unknown, but I think it is understandable why this idea would have emerged at that time."

"That is."

Li Wei nodded. If what the Pope said was true, the Holy Lord would save people while killing them, bless abundance while bringing down calamities.

He didn't know what others thought, but he just felt that the Holy Lord was a schizophrenic lunatic.

However, if the Holy Lord has different incarnations, each with its own responsibilities, then it becomes easier to understand.

"However, this view is easily equated with ancient heresies, so the Holy Bishop has rejected this explanation."

"After saying all this, you still haven't said how this name relates to what you've been saying... although I've already guessed it."

"Yes."

Elizabeth had clearly already realized what Levi was thinking.

"Samus is an incarnation of the Holy Lord. According to those heretical doctrines, Samus controls calamities and plagues, leaving corpses strewn everywhere and barren land in its wake. It represents the Holy Lord's wrath, punishing those apathetic mortals. It is hideous and obese, with wings resembling flies, and constantly emits deadly poisonous gas. Those who inhale the gas will contract the plague, their bodies covered in blisters, and die in excruciating pain... But their souls will never find peace; even after death, they will suffer eternal torment..."

"It doesn't quite fit the image of the Holy Lord, does it?"

Upon hearing this, Li Wei joked, and Elizabeth readily agreed.

“That’s right, so the Holy Sepulchre prohibited the spread of this claim. In fact, the name is rarely heard now. Generally, only scholars and high-ranking members of the Holy Sepulchre who specialize in the history of heresy might know about this. Sir Levy, where did you learn of this…?”

I heard it on the radio.

"???"

"It does not matter."

Li Wei clearly had no intention of telling Elizabeth the whole story.

"So do you know how to deal with this thing?" "………………Are you asking me how to destroy the Holy Lord's incarnation?"

"Didn't you say the Holy Bishop didn't believe in this?"

Li Wei clearly didn't care about the feelings of the Holy Bishop, or rather, he didn't care much about the feelings of the Holy Lord either.

"…………"

"Would you mind if I explained it in more detail?"

Li Wei silently took out his notebook. When it came time to fight the BOSS, he knew he had to remember its characteristics.

"Actually, it's not that difficult, but it's also difficult."

"How to say?"

"fire."

Elizabeth quickly gave her an answer.

"All impurities can be purified with fire, so logically speaking, it is not difficult."

"So where does the difficulty lie?"

"According to records and legends, this incarnation and its servants mainly appear in the water. They hunt people and fishermen who live near the water and use their corpses to cultivate the power of corruption and mutation. Once the power is strong enough, they will spread germs and plagues to other places along the water flow."

At this point, Elizabeth paused for a moment.

"Now you understand, Sir Levi. That's why I said it's not difficult. After all, you can't use fire in water."

"That's true, provided it's in the water."

Li Wei smiled slightly and closed the notebook.

"Thank you for your help, Miss Elizabeth."

"You're welcome. Although I don't know what happened to you, I wish you all the best."

"Thank you."

Li Wei hung up the phone and quickly dialed another number. After a while, Olivia's languid voice rang out.

"Hello………?"

“It’s me, Miss Olivia.”

Sir Levi?

Upon hearing Li Wei's voice, Olivia on the other end of the microphone seemed to finally come to her senses. Li Wei only heard her scream, followed by a "thump" sound from the other end of the microphone. A moment later, Olivia's voice rang out again.

"Feel sorry………"

"Are you okay?"

"It's nothing. It's so late, is there anything I can help you with?"

"Well, something's come up. Send someone to arrest that curly-haired guy right now."

"Under what pretext?"

Olivia could arrest Curly-haired Boy anytime, but the pretext is important. He can't just say he's unhappy because Curly-haired Boy stepped in with his left foot today, and then arrest him and throw him in jail.

"Promoting heresies and false doctrines."

Li Wei briefly explained what he had said earlier to Olivia.

"The name this guy played on the radio is one of the heretical names recognized by the Holy Bishop. I don't know why he played it so late at night, but it's not appropriate to play that kind of thing on the radio, is it?"

"That's definitely not appropriate."

At this moment, Olivia quickly calmed down and immediately realized the danger involved.

Just kidding, your own radio station was taken over by cultists to broadcast heresies.
Just thinking about it makes me realize this is a huge problem!
"I'll prepare now and take my men to the radio station immediately!"

With this in mind, Olivia made her decision without hesitation.

　Finally got a new computer! I'm overwhelmed with emotions. This old computer has been with me for about 10 years, so I have a deep emotional attachment to it. If it weren't for the outdated CPU and the fact that many games don't support certain features, I wouldn't have bothered replacing it. Even now that I've replaced it, I plan to keep it as a backup. I'm grateful it's been with me for so long…sigh…

　　
　
(End of this chapter)