Game World: I Can Share Talents

To prove his identity, Westheid also produced the [Mask of Fallen Heaven]. This was a true Sacred Artifact from before Wan Qi's ascension to godhood. Unless the Venerable Master of the Azure Heaven personally descended and declared, "Children, that is not my Sacred Artifact," who would dare question it?

Bringing out the [Mask of Fallen Heaven] ended all debate. The Celestial Vault Elder's "coffin" trembled violently. A fluorescent mechanical arm extended from the nutrient pod and cautiously approached the [Mask of Fallen Heaven], but it didn't dare to actually touch it. After merely brushing the surface lightly, the elder spoke:

"This is the Divine Ancestor's Sacred Artifact. It is absolutely genuine. Even the [Mask of Ascension] worn by the Kings is far less pure than this."

Upon hearing this, the surrounding Celestial Vault People finally confirmed Westheid's identity as the Divine Chosen. Their tense expressions immediately slackened, and they began murmuring amongst themselves:

"The Divine Chosen... wasn't chosen from among our own people?"

"Watch your words! How could we possibly fathom the wisdom of the Divine Ancestor?!"

"Given the current state of our kingdom... it's hardly surprising the Divine Chosen isn't from up here, is it?"

"..."

The Celestial Vault Elder's expression was hidden behind the faceplate of the nutrient pod, but his words were enough to convey his solemnity and respect:

"Haaa... His Excellency the Divine Chosen, was your arrival at this time also part of the Divine Ancestor's plan?"

Westheid was stunned for a moment before realizing the Celestial Vault Elder before him was overthinking things, actually treating him, the Divine Chosen, as a contingency plan laid out by the Venerable Master of the Azure Heaven.

'Well, that *is* what I told Jing Mu and Jing Xiao in the beginning, so it's no surprise the Celestial Vault People misunderstood. On the other hand, this is actually a good thing. At least now I can confirm that the Celestial Vault Kingdom has lost all means of communicating with the Venerable Master of the Azure Heaven.'

'No... I shouldn't be so hasty. Let's test them a little more.'

Westheid nodded and said, "I came at Wan Qi's request."

As soon as he finished speaking, the surrounding Celestial Vault People were confused. Only the pod-bound elder remained silent, and his entire nutrient pod began to tremble slightly.

"You... You're referring to... by name..."

Duke Qinghui feigned a dawning realization and said:

"My apologies. I've grown accustomed to speaking on more familiar terms during my conversations with the Venerable Lord."

The Celestial Vault Elder's nutrient pod moved forward a short distance, and he said in a low voice:

"Oh... I see. You are truly... However, please do not speak such a revered name so lightly. For many of the younger members of our people, if they were to learn the Divine Ancestor's true name, a great many would start praying privately. This is against protocol and could lead to dire consequences."

"Hm? You mean you don't know..."

The Celestial Vault Elder replied, "Not every citizen is so fortunate to receive such favor as you, Your Excellency. I myself only learned our Lord's revered name from the Kings. Nothing more."

"I understand. I will be more careful."

Westheid nodded with a slight smile.

'He was also using this to test the Celestial Vault People. After all, my understanding of this Realm of Order is quite limited. Everyone says the Venerable Master of the Azure Heaven is the most mysterious of the Celestial Gods, but Earthlings know next to nothing about the Celestial Vault Kingdom.'

'It seems that even the Celestial Vault People, the Divine Ancestor's Direct Lineage, are unaware of the details of Wan Qi's ascension. An elder-level figure like him only knows the true name "Wan Qi" and treats it as a secret of the highest order—a piece of knowledge that must be strictly controlled.'

'Is the Venerable Master of the Azure Heaven really so low-key? Then again, the Celestial Gods don't interact much with the Mortal World to begin with. The Radiant Holy Tree is already considered one of the more active ones, and even it only descends once every few years to say a few words. Given Wan Qi's personality... even if it changed drastically after their ascension, they probably wouldn't be very talkative.'

'Still, I thought Wan Qi would be more personable. After all, I can guess the origin of the Celestial Vault People, the very pillar of the Celestial Vault Kingdom. They must have been born from the souls of the few compatriots Wan Qi had left at the time of their ascension. In theory, that makes them the innermost of inner circles, the most direct of Direct Lineages.'

'So even these Celestial Vault People barely ever see the Venerable Master of the Azure Heaven? What exactly is Wan Qi's Status... after their ascension?'

"I've heard from Jing Mu. Thank you for the reinforcements you've brought. They are quite critical for us."

The Celestial Vault Elder went on to discuss the support from the expeditionary fleet. But despite his words, Westheid couldn't detect much genuine feeling. It was as if, in the elder's eyes, the combined fleet from the Imperial forces and the Qinghui Territory was of little consequence; only Westheid himself was worthy of attention.

'But it was true. Before I set out, I also thought this expeditionary fleet was immense. I figured the Celestial Vault Kingdom would welcome us with open arms.'

'But then we were immediately run ragged by a single Dragon Group. It wasn't that we couldn't win, but our victory was nowhere near as effortless as it was for the locals.'

Westheid glanced at the absurdly vast fleet of the Celestial Vault Kingdom and said with a smile:

"Compared to your fleet, are our reinforcements really of any use?"

"Actually, they aren't bad. Your fleet is at about one-third the strength of the Celestial Vault Kingdom's main fleet."

The Celestial Vault Elder said matter-of-factly, "Even looking at sheer numbers, they can help us maintain security across two to four Floating Cities."

'Cannon fodder?'

Mephit, standing behind Westheid, scoffed and said with displeasure:

"Pardon me, but we didn't come here to sit safely in the rear. My Lord answered your call for aid, so we are committed to heading to the most dangerous battlefields. Spare us the condescending remarks. We came here to fight."