Steampunk Era: Mad Abield

Pastor Zhang looked at the young girl before him and couldn’t help but furrow his brows: "My little teacher, have you truly never thought about yourself?"

"No, Pastor Zhang, I have thought about myself. If it weren’t for this matter, I could leave the order, perhaps even marry Mr. Malin as I mentioned before, because he could help us, and I would use myself to repay that debt of gratitude... But now, that’s no longer possible. My mentor is gravely injured, which means he could pass away at any moment. My three senior brothers are dead, which means I am now the elder of the Chaos Lineage of Sages. The disciples behind me are still so young—they can’t even comprehend what it means to uphold heavenly principle and extinguish human desire, let alone understand what it signifies to become a Sage... To send them to the operating table—the only way that would happen is over my dead body. I will not shirk my mission. Perhaps this is Fate’s test for me."

At this point, Chengshan turned to look at Pastor Zhang, who was seated on the ground: "Do not grieve for me. This is the Sage’s mission."

"But... you are too young. You’re even younger than my lay disciple’s daughter. Child, your youth shouldn’t be lived in suffering."

"But, Pastor Zhang, where in this world can mortals truly feel happiness? Be it happiness or joy, they are nothing more than fleeting moments of pleasure. But life, as it is, is marked by Chaos’s corrosion and the universal suffering of all beings—those are eternal. And we... have vowed to walk the path of ending that suffering."

The office descended into a deathly silence, broken only by the faint scratching sound of a steel pen against a sheet of paper.

After completing the last part of her work, Chengshan stood, walked to the window, and gazed at the fleet setting out to sea.

"He has departed."

"Yes, I heard the sound of the horns."