Trina did not want to hide anything from Nolan, but there were outsiders present. Only after seeing Miquella nod did she continue:
"We found a way to use the Gate of Divinity. Enter that gate, receive the power of the Crucible through the horns of the Hornsent, and one can return as a god."
"But Enir-Ilim is sealed by the thorns of The Scadutree. Physical bodies cannot enter. Only souls can pass through, and that was one of the reasons we abandoned our bodies."
"It was a backup plan. We truly couldn't find Nolan's soul, and we also suspected that some powerful figure might have interfered from the shadows."
"So we planned to become gods first and use divine power to disrupt the situation. The process did not go exactly as expected, but thankfully, you came back."
A smile of pure, unclouded joy rose at the corners of Trina's lips as she looked at the Lord she had chosen.
Miquella had split the Order and given it to her. She had become a god who embraced all living beings, and she wished to hold all things in her arms. But the one she wanted to embrace most was the person before her.
She stood up, her whole body seeming to be lifted by a breeze. She floated lightly upward, wrapped her arms around Nolan's neck, turned, and settled onto his back.
Nolan felt something strange, as though an intangible connection had formed between him and Trina. It was like pure, bright light, yet also like a wavering flame.
"Do you feel it? This is the essence of a god, like the Goddess of Rot's rot, or The Formless Mother's wound. And this is the glow of fire that belongs to us."
Trina stroked the Lord's cheek and closed her eyes, as if savoring that wonderful "connection." The closer their bond became, the more clearly she could feel the beauty of that true "fire."
"Ah, my Lord. Whether it is a god who possesses absolute power or that god's Lord, only one of the two can exist."
"So please, accept this insignificant power of mine. Let my faint glow light the road ahead for you."
Her voice was almost pleading, and it stirred a tenderness in Nolan's heart. The emotions carried through that close connection could not be false. Trina's heart was filled with blazing love.
"This light is beautiful, and it is bright enough. So I'll carry this firelight and use it to illuminate the road ahead."
Nolan's voice was soft, like a promise and a love confession both. Those few simple words earned him Trina's loving response.
The flowerlike goddess raised her head with the same gentleness as her law, and her soft, petal-like lips brushed lightly against Nolan's cheek.
A gentle goddess loved a gentle Lord as well.
Ranni's eyes widened. Watching this scene still made her angry. She had not given up on Nolan yet.
No one had ever said an Empyrean with an Order could not become a Lord. As long as Nolan was willing, he could still become the Princess's Lord.
Ranni's tiny head raced, thinking of how she might rescue Nolan from the tender trap laid by that shameless younger sister.
She bit her lip tightly, her hands clenching unconsciously into fists, as though she had already made up her mind to wage a woman's battle against that hateful younger sister.
Miquella coughed. "In any case, that is more or less the situation. Everything is a mess now. The Impenetrable Thorns can only be destroyed from the outside, yet the thorns are still there, and you came in anyway."
"If I can get in, then I should be able to get out."
As Nolan spoke, he thrust his hand into the air, but space remained intact. He also heard no delighted moan from that masochistic goddess.
"Strange. I can't sense The Formless Mother's presence anymore."
Only then did Nolan realize that he had not heard that goddess's voice in a long time.
Normally, even if he merely shook his hand, that goddess would start shrieking once or twice. Yet these past few days, there had been no reaction at all. It was truly strange.
"The Scadutree holds an extremely high status, far beyond ordinary gods. Aside from Mother and higher gods, no other power can interfere with this place," Miquella said with a sigh.
"But I still got in, didn't I?" Nolan asked back.
Miquella was left speechless by the question. Their path to godhood had been too rushed, and they did not understand this place deeply enough to answer.
Even with a clever person beside him, Nolan had not abandoned his own brain. He said thoughtfully:
"Then is it possible that the key to my getting in wasn't The Formless Mother, but myself?"
Silence fell before the Gate of Divinity for a moment. Nolan turned around calmly. The surprise on Miquella's face lasted only an instant before it became sudden understanding.
Nolan had used The Formless Mother's power to enter, yet The Formless Mother's power was useless inside because The Formless Mother could no longer be reached through Nolan.
With that thought, everything made sense. Trina and Ranni, perched on his shoulders, glanced at each other without saying a word. Perhaps only the Greater Will's status could surpass the fire inside Nolan's body.
As for the goddess Marika, whether she could compare to that fire was uncertain. After all, their own level was still insufficient for a more accurate judgment.
Nolan had no desire to keep standing around doing nothing. Trina was more passionate than before, and that gentle paradise where she would grant him anything was the kind of place that could easily sap a man's will to fight.
And the best way to keep his will sharp was to stay busy and place himself in the midst of struggle.
If asked whether he liked staying with Trina... he did. But the little flames he carried were still waiting for him to light them.
Right now, Nolan and Trina were nearly one, but his power had not fundamentally improved. After all, Trina herself was weak. He had only gained an additional ability.
Nolan raised his hand, and silver-white "light" emerged from thin air. Pillars of light burst forth one after another, smashing into the southern gate of the Gate of Divinity.
Miquella's light... no, it should be called Trina's light now.
They possessed the same Order to begin with, so the essence of their divinity was much the same. Love and gentleness, or perhaps acceptance.
The massive gate vanished in an instant. It was embraced by that light, and the ultimate gentleness infused with the power of the Crucible produced ultimate destructive force.
Nolan was now undoubtedly Trina's Promised Consort. But unlike a final boss waiting to be challenged, he now had to fight his way out.
In the blink of an eye, not even fragments of the great gate remained. The connected walls shattered and collapsed with it. Looking down, he could see the black, twisted, rotting branches and thorns covering the outer walls of Enir-Ilim.
Nolan could hardly wait to use his own fire to burn those deadwood-like thorns clean away. He badly wanted to verify one thing.
The Scadutree and the Erdtree were equal in nature. If he could deal with these thorns, would that mean Leyndell's thorns were no longer a concern either?
The stone steps outside the gate collapsed. Nolan saw several horned figures falling from midair. They had been waiting for prey, and now the prey they had waited for had come out.
Nolan stepped forward, his body dropping straight down. From a distance, he looked like a meteor tearing through the sky, while the figures on the ground rapidly enlarged in his eyes.
In midair, Nolan turned and landed in one fluid motion. The earth caved in into a huge crater, and dust billowed up until it blotted out the sky. Countless buildings collapsed beneath the impact.
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