Divine Flame Crystal

Chapter 607: Starfall Awakens

"Please respond to us..."

These were the people of the Starfall Territory. They didn't believe in any God of Light, but rather in the Starfall that allowed them to live a good life. Without the Starfall, these skilled humans, treated as the cheapest slaves, would have starved to death in the chaos of war.

In the villages and towns in the heart of the territory, the people of Starfall had not fled when the Vatican army charged in. And now that the Vatican army had been repelled, they would not leave. They gathered in the square, huddled around a stone statue—a statue of a young man in a cloak, his eyes slightly downcast. His face was calm, yet it evoked an endless sense of security.

That was Xingluo, their Earl. Of course, with Xingluo's return, the news of his promotion to Grand Mage spread like wildfire. Now he has been named Duke Xingluo by the Luoshen Empire, a promotion of two levels. The title of Grand Duke Xingluo has spread among the high-ranking officials of the empire.

These people were once abandoned dwarf craftsmen, wandering half-elf carpenters, bankrupt human alchemists, and even bards who were once regarded as "heretics" by the Church of Light.

Their skills were once priceless, but with the decline of the empire and the rule of the Church, they were stripped of their dignity and reduced to slavery.

It was Xingluo who gave them a second life.

"Do you remember? If the Earl hadn't recruited us to build our territory, we would have starved to death under the heavy taxes imposed by the Church..."

"I used to forge magnificent magic swords for the nobles every day, but they wouldn't even give me a bite of bread. Lord Xingluo said, 'Eat first, then forge swords.' One time, he sat next to me at dinner and personally broke half a piece of bread for me... That was a lot of half. I've never eaten bread so delicious before."

"The Earl once said that our craftsmanship is more valuable than the alms of the gods. Yet, he is still trapped in the abyss of consciousness..."

An old dwarf trembled and beat his chest, his rough palms stained with tar and rust, tears dripping down his gray beard: "This land is his, and we are his too... Without him, we are nothing!"

As the night deepened, a dragon's roar echoed through the raging wind. The giant dragon, entrenched in the mountains of Starfall Territory, sensed something and slowly rose. The mist thickened, distorting even vision.

"He...is still alive."

A young female blacksmith hugged the baby in her arms and murmured to herself as she looked at the stone statue, "Lord Xingluo will not abandon us..."

In the square, hundreds of people knelt down, their faces covered with a mixture of mud and tears.

They are not believers of the Holy See of Light and will not pray to the gods above them.

Their beliefs are simple:

"Only the falling stars can keep us fed, clothed, and free from slavery."

“Only when the stars fall can skills and dignity regain their value.”

"Xingluo is the Earl of our territory and our only god."

Suddenly, a glimmer of light flashed in the eyes of the stone statue.

Is it an illusion? No one can see it clearly.

The old dwarf was the first to react. He fell heavily to his knees, raised his hands high, and shouted hoarsely:

"My Lord Earl—please come back!"

The sound echoed in the night sky. Then, more people followed and shouted:

"Lord Xingluo, save us!"

"We are willing to burn our lives to get you back—"

The voices gathered into a tide, rushing towards the abyss.

At the same time, the divine flame crystal within Xingluo's body began to pulse violently. His consciousness was on the verge of fading, but he heard countless faint cries in the void.

"Lord Xingluo..."

"come back……"

"If you perish, we will lose even our faith..."

This sound was like billions of tiny rays of light penetrating the darkness, turning into a golden river and flowing into the depths of his soul.

“…Is that them?”

Xingluo slowly opened his eyes.

He stretched out his hand, feeling the power of those calls.

"This time, even if all my magic power is burned out...

I want to go back too."

Starfall floated quietly between the cracks in space, a dim light flickering on the cracks in the Divine Flame Crystal. Each crack was a scar left by overdrawing his vitality, casting spells beyond his level, and fighting against the demigod.

Here, even time has lost its meaning.

"...Is this...the end?"

His consciousness was being swallowed by nothingness, as if everything was about to be annihilated in this bottomless abyss.

But at this moment, a faint call penetrated the darkness.

"...Lord Xingluo..."

"You... don't leave us..."

Countless tiny figures lit up the void like stars. Xingluo shuddered slightly, his consciousness drawn to look upwards.

He saw it.

Under the starry sky, thousands of people were kneeling in the territory square.

They do not believe in the supreme God of Light, nor do they pray to angels or the Church.

They simply placed their hopes on the young earl who had once fed them and restored their dignity.

"Please come back, Lord Earl..."

"We are willing to sacrifice our lives just for your return!"

An old dwarf craftsman raised his hands high, his chest cut open by the fierce wind, but he still roared: "You are the only one worthy of our faith!!!"

The next moment, Xingluo's pupils suddenly contracted.

bang——

His body was enveloped by a fiery force, and the cold divine flame crystal suddenly made a light "cracking" sound.

A tiny crack was repaired.

“…What kind of power is this?!”

Xingluo felt something different from magic power, source power, or even soul power, madly pouring into his body. This power was filled with fiery emotions.

Trust, dependence, hope, respect...

Is this... the power of faith?

Deep within the Divine Flame Crystal, a low chanting voice could be heard. It was the voice of the former God of Time and Space, the supreme being who, in distant epochs, ruled over time and space and created civilization.

[The shattered godhead...is being repaired by faith.]

The moment the power of faith surged in, Xingluo saw golden threads blooming from the cracks in the crystal, like mended seams, reconnecting the broken divinity.

[Divine Flame Crystal: Fully Ignite]

boom!

The cracks healed completely, and a blue-white flame blazed. As the flames rose, the crystal's form began to change:

It was originally an irregular crystal core, but now a mysterious magical pattern has emerged.

The symbols of the Wheel of Time and the Key of Space flickered in the center, like the eyes of an ancient god.

In the blue-white flame, there was a faint golden divine light wandering, proving that it was transforming into a true godhood.

Xingluo's consciousness was torn apart by a sharp pain, as if it was about to be completely burned. But at the same time, he also felt an unprecedented surge of power:

"Is this the power that God can control?"

At this moment, he understood—

Gods are not believed in because they are powerful, but because they are believed in, they truly become gods! He discovered the secret of the gods.

boom--!

The entire abyss of consciousness shook violently, and countless spatial cracks turned into pieces of crumbling debris like oil paintings ignited by dragon's breath.

Time stopped: rocks falling from the rock face were frozen in mid-air.

Space collapses: the abyss transforms into countless broken mirrors with distorted light and shadow, reflecting Xingluo's figure.

He slowly opened his eyes, and two rotating symbols flashed in his pupils: the Wheel of Time and the Key of Space.

"I am back on the foundation of faith..."

bang——

A pair of illusory divine wings woven from golden light emerged behind him. Each feather was made up of fragments of time and space crystals. When they flapped, the entire space emitted a deafening sound.

Xingluo raised his right hand.

He could feel the voices of countless people in the square surging through the power of faith—

boom--!

The divine flame crystal was completely ignited, and the energy flame shot straight into the sky. The darkness deep in the consciousness began to collapse, and the fragments of space rolled up a terrifying storm.

In the square, people suddenly saw a brilliant beam of light bursting out in the night sky, piercing the dark clouds like a burning spear.

Then, dragon roars, thunder, and storms converged, and the air was filled with a familiar breath—

It’s the breath of falling stars!

"He's awake!"

"No...we woke him up!"

Countless people shed tears and raised their hands as if welcoming the arrival of God.

At this moment, faith is no longer an abstract concept, but the real power that allows a great magician to return from darkness.

"Lord Xingluo, please come back!"

Another burst of blazing divine flames pierced through the darkness, piercing the heavens. The night sky was set ablaze, the dark clouds were torn apart, and a long rainbow of flames stretched across the sky, spanning the heavens and the earth.