Walnut used me to boost her sales performance.

Nasita reached out and touched her head.

It was the first time someone had touched her head; the feeling was novel and unlike anything she had ever experienced before.

"Even a god couldn't be born with wisdom! How can you grow and gain wisdom if you're trapped in a small palace?"

"You can't bask in the sun, feel the breeze, or hear the birds singing inside. All you face are cold walls. Are you happy?"

Nasida was stumped by her question.

Honestly, she wasn't happy staying in Jingshan Palace.

"You have too little temper, that's why no one takes you seriously. It's also because of your indulgence that the Order of the Fathers is going too far with you."

They went so far as to completely ignore her existence, preferring to create a new god rather than pay any attention to this deity.

“I have no temper?” Nasita was stunned once again.

Yes.

She had always tacitly approved of this behavior.

She accepted that the Church's blockade of her was correct, accepted everyone's neglect of her, and accepted that she was not yet qualified to bear the title of Goddess of Wisdom.

To tacitly agree is to condone.

Therefore, she has never enjoyed freedom in 500 years.

Chapter 708 How were you born?

A person's personality cannot be changed overnight. Jiang Bai didn't know much about this deity, and today was their first meeting.

I only said a little more because I felt some sympathy for her situation.

"Do you know what the Council of the Church is actually doing with the void?"

Jiang Bai wanted to see just how unaware this Little Auspicious Grass King was of the affairs of the Order Academy.

Little Lucky Grass King shook her head; she really didn't know what the sages were doing with people's brainpower.

"Yesterday was the Flower Goddess's birthday festival, which was originally being held at the Grand Bazaar, but it was forced to be canceled. When the next day began as they perceived it, time returned to its original state, and that's when I noticed the anomaly and entered a dream..."

"I don't know what kind of experiment requires so much [intelligence]. If this continues without stopping, those whose bodies are already weak might just die..."

"Is it that serious?"

Jiang Bai agreed; something this big couldn't possibly be without any risks.

“That’s the most dangerous situation. I don’t think the Order of the Fathers would go that far.”

Nasita currently harbors no ill will toward the Church, nor is she angry about their imprisonment.

Although stepping out of the Pure Land Palace made her feel the beauty of freedom, she did not blame the sages who had imprisoned her.

After all, she had tacitly approved of the sages' actions.

It's not that she can't get out, it's just that she hasn't thought about it.

She lacked the abilities of the Great Tree King and was not confident that she could manage Mount Sumeru well. The fact that the Order of the Sages had been stable for over five hundred years indicated that they were managing it very well, and there was no need for her, an outsider, to meddle.

Jiang Bai didn't think things were too bad. After all, Little Auspicious Grass King was watching over things. Although it was weak, it was still the Grass God of Sumeru. If the Instruction Academy really over-exploited people's brains, she couldn't just sit idly by.

"What are the operating principles of the void? What is [knowledge and ability]? And what is its relationship with dreams?"

Jiang Bai was extremely curious about the void.

What exactly is the basis of such a powerful technology that encompasses all current knowledge, can extract knowledge based on the content of questions, and can send messages and issue commands to specific people through a virtual terminal?

Why is it that even with such advanced technology, the people of Sumi still rely on primitive means of transportation like animal-drawn carts?

Even giant, man-made mechanical gods have appeared, while the mercenary groups guarding Sumeru City are only equipped with primitive weapons like swords, spears, and halberds.

The technological differences between them are simply too severe.

Naxi Da thought for a moment and explained in a way that Jiang Bai could understand:

"The Void is a legacy left by the Great Tree King five hundred years ago, relying on the Heart of God. The Void can transform dreams into [Knowledge Energy], which you can understand as a consumable energy source."

"Therefore, this is why the Sumeru people do not dream."

Jiang Bai's doubts were suddenly answered.

No wonder the Sumeru people don't dream; their dreams are transformed into knowledge and computing power by the void.

"And what about you? How were you born?"

"I don't know. I only know that I am the [original Void Terminal], and my consciousness has always been connected to the Void. Although I cannot leave the Pure Good Palace, I have been learning about humanity and acquiring knowledge through the Void..."

"That's good. Although your body is imprisoned, your spirit is free. Otherwise, I really can't imagine how you endured five hundred years of loneliness..."

It makes sense. If one's body and consciousness are imprisoned together, and for five hundred years at that, even the most benevolent god would be unable to remain calm.

Perhaps it was the vast and boundless knowledge of the void that made Narcida feel that she was far inferior to it, and that she always felt that she was not qualified to be the Grass God.

"Yes, in the void, I can do many things. I can also transmit my consciousness through the void terminal, allowing myself to be active outside for short periods..."

Those who believe in her were developed through the Void Terminal.

"Then is your power a dream?"

"Yes, I can enter dreams, but Sumeru people only dream when they are young. When they grow up, their dreams are transformed into [knowledge] by the void."

"I sometimes dream at night, don't you notice me?" He doesn't wear the Void Terminal to sleep at night, and he still dreams occasionally.

Naxida was stunned, clearly not having considered this possibility.

"I don't pay special attention to people's dreams, unless they are very unusual dreams..."

Dreams are very special things, like bubbles floating in the air.

These bubbles have no concept of distance. Even if Jiang Bai is the only person in the entire Academy who can dream, he is still an inconspicuous one among the many dream bubbles. Unless you specifically look for him, he will not attract her attention.

"Okay. Can you connect to the World Tree?"

"It won't work in the Pure Land Palace. There's a meditation device left by the Great Compassion Tree King to isolate myself from external things, and I can't connect to the World Tree there."

"Although I've managed to get out, my power is still insufficient to decipher the information left behind by the Great Tree King, and I'm not sure if I can withstand the pollution within the World Tree now."

The meditation of the Great Tree King is not the kind of meditation that scholars practice. Instead, it is about enhancing self-knowledge by achieving a deep state of tranquility, maintaining a good state of mind, and better resisting the pollution from the World Tree.

She needed to use the void as a springboard to connect to the World Tree, which was a bit troublesome, but at least it ensured her safety.

But perhaps because she used a springboard, she was still unable to decipher the message left by the Great Tree King.

"No wonder I felt there was some kind of restriction inside; it took me quite a bit of effort to open the door."

"You're really amazing that you managed to break through the device left by the Great Tree King."

Honestly, Nasita never expected that someone would suddenly appear and force their way in by breaking the seal. It really gave her a big fright.

"That means I'm still pretty strong." Jiang Bai was a little smug.

He said he was very strong, and now it seems he really is.

"Hey, what if I said I've deciphered the message left by the Great Tree King?" Jiang Bai winked playfully.

This is probably someone's signature interjection and gesture; I don't think he'd mind if I borrowed it.

Nasita's eyes lit up. "Really!"

The knowledge left behind by the Great Tree King contains immense pollution, making it extremely difficult to decipher its anomalies.

"I encountered the consciousness of the Great Tree King within the World Tree's space. She said she was the root cause of the World Tree's pollution, and that to heal the World Tree, the world must forget her..."

Chapter 709 What are the chances of obtaining the Heart of God?

"How...how could this be...?"

Nasita clutched her chest, feeling a dull, inexplicable pain.

Even though she had never seen the Great Tree King, she felt an indescribable sadness when she heard that she had to do this.

"What's wrong?" Jiang Bai noticed that her behavior was a bit off.

“I feel so sad…” Nasita’s gaze was unfocused and she looked dazed.

Jiang Bai sighed, "The sages felt much the same way you did when they learned this information..."

The Great Compassion Tree King held such a heavy weight in the hearts of the people of Mount Sumeru that even though they knew the solution, they couldn't bring themselves to do it.

However, the sages must have already made up their minds, otherwise they wouldn't have allowed the void to absorb so much [knowledge].

I just don't know what they plan to do with this knowledge and ability.

Jiang Bai did not disturb Naxida, allowing her to calmly process her emotions.

It took Nasida a long time to recover. Although she wasn't as sad anymore, she still didn't look very well.

"I'm sorry, I'm afraid I'm not capable of doing that right now."

Her power was not strong enough to even resist the pollution from the World Tree, so how could she possibly enter the depths of the World Tree and meet the Great Compassion Tree King?

The Heart of God, which serves as the source of power, is in the void, supporting the operation of the entire void.

"Is the Heart of God necessary?"

"Yes."

"Then let's take out the Heart of God from the Void for now, and put it back when we're done."

Nasita nodded. "That is indeed a good idea, but I need to discuss it with the sages."

The Void is of great importance; she cannot recklessly take the Heart of God directly.

Moreover, the control of the Void is in the hands of the Great Sage and is protected by the Council of the Church. Without his permission, she cannot obtain it.

Jiang Bai thought it would be better to take it directly while he had the chance, but then he remembered that the knowledge and abilities of all the people of Sumeru were being confiscated by the void. If he suddenly took the Heart of God, there was a high risk that he would turn all the people of Sumeru into idiots.

He can't afford such serious consequences.

"You should think about what to do if the Faculty of Religion refuses."

Nasita shook her head, thinking it unlikely they would refuse.

"They've always wanted to completely cure the World Tree. If they just temporarily retrieve the Heart of God and give it to me, the World Tree's problem can be solved. I don't think they'll refuse."

"What if they don't want to forget the Great Tree King? I already told them that."

Not wanting to forget the Great Tree King, they refused to offer the Heart of God and instead created an artificial god to mitigate the pollution from the World Tree.

Judging from their actions, it seems that this is indeed their plan.

But wouldn't it be the stragglers who suffer persecution in this way?

All that effort to become a god only resulted in becoming a tool, a tool used by the Church Council to slow down the pollution of the World Tree.

Jiang Bai suddenly felt very irritable.

Once you learn that a large part of the reason the soldier wants to become a god is because he wants the power to protect him, even the most hard-hearted person can't just sit idly by, right?

He must find a way to make the scattered soldiers into gods, and in doing so, break free from the control of the Siege House and the Fools.

A stragglers should not be used as tools, nor should they need to keep pursuing a life value that has long been denied.

He deserves a life of his own.

Nasida didn't know what Jiang Bai was thinking, and she fell silent in response to the possibility he had proposed.

If we disregard the fact that healing the World Tree requires forgetting the Great Tree King, then obtaining the Heart of God would be a very smooth process.

But the Church of England clearly already knew, which meant she could no longer deceive them with words.

Therefore, obtaining the Heart of God is no easy task.

"What are the chances of obtaining the Heart of God by forcibly entering the void?"

Jiang Bai shrugged. "I don't know."

If one wants to force their way into the void, one will have to face the entire Sumeru. Although Jiang Bai is confident in his strength, he doesn't dare to say that he can fight against the entire Sumeru.

Who knows if there are any exceptionally powerful individuals or weapons hidden within the Order of the Fathers? To recklessly storm in without a plan is tantamount to suicide.

Moreover, doing so would undoubtedly make him a wanted criminal in the entire Sumeru region, and the Order of the Nation might demand that Liyue hand him over due to diplomatic pressure.

Whether Liyue will teach him or not is another matter, but his peaceful life afterward is definitely over.