"But…" Lily's face was painted with anxiety as she pondered for a moment before she continued to retort. "What about all those people who died because of the sunlight? So many people died!"

Lily let out a snort. "The Light God is still evil!"

"No, You are not evil. You're just too kind and merciful. I know," Lylejay commented while staring at Lily with a gentle gaze filled with an array of emotions.

"If You had known that Your departure would cause the death of so many people, You would have voluntarily remained sealed for the sake of a mere few billion people.

"That's why I lied to You. I hid this fact from you. But it's also understandable that You didn't discover it.

"Who would have thought that the sunlight, which humanity had depended on for survival, could actually kill them that easily?

"A thousand years ago, You even created several suns to hang in the upper air of the Subterranean Sea. Back then, people weren't afraid of sunlight."

Lily's jaw dropped. She looked up, stunned at the revelation of the sunlight and also Lylejay admitting to his monstrous crime.

After her initial shock, she ended up shouting at him, "You… you bastard! You are the worst person in the world!"

Despite Lily's angry outburst, Pope Lylejay flashed a faint smile and nodded in acceptance.

"Yes, indeed. All the blame is on me. Every sin and every wrong is done by me alone. Where there is light, there is shadow. I'm willing to become that shadow that bears it all. All I ask for is to be able to stay by Your side."

In the face of Lylejay's candid attitude, Lily was at a loss for words.

After bringing Lily up to his eye level and saying a few more words, Lylejay turned his head sharply and glared toward the distant bridge where Swan was located. Swann's infant figure was almost slumped over the helm.

As for his servant, Lylejay was certainly not going to treat him the same as how he treated Lily.

"Faster!" Lylejay shouted. "I said the fastest speed!"

"Yes, yes. I got it! As you wish," Swann replied in a humble tone. Several small fleshy mechanical bits detached from his body, leaped onto the control panel, and expertly manipulated the controls.

Using his peripheral vision, Swann cast a fugitive glance toward the pitch-black expanse on his right. A sinister smile crept onto his face.

Three minutes later, one of the fleshy mechanical constructs abruptly pulled down a level to its limit, causing the entire ship to shake violently.

With a feigned look of terror on his face, Swann dashed out of the bridge and made a beeline for Pope Lylejay on the deck.

"Pope! There's a problem! The airship's turbines are malfunctioning! They're about to explode! Damn it! The men we killed has actually left a trap for us!"

"What? Didn't you say you can handle any mechanical issue? Fix it if you don't want to die!"

Lylejay couldn't care less about his own safety, but the Light God was also aboard the ship!

With a distraught expression, Swann was about to explain further when Lylejay suddenly turned his head sharply to the right and peered into the darkness. A swift, dark figure was flying toward them at an incredible speed.

With a lift of his hand, the figure stopped and hovered in mid-air. It was an emaciated young girl.

Lylejay recognized her immediately; he had seen her on Charles' ship! Regardless of why this woman was here, it was clear that Charles had gotten rid of that tentacled entity and was now chasing after him!

At the same time, Lylejay felt a surge of murderous intent from his left. He turned to the left and was immediately greeted with a mass of writhing flesh that measured several meters, lunging at him with its maw opened wide. The force of its attack was so strong that it tore a layer off the deck.

Swann had made his move!

A blinding light burst forth from Lylejay, and his eyes turned a glittering gold. With a voice filled with commanding authority, he bellowed at Swann, "God says: Obey!"

Instantly, the mass of flesh seemed to be forced into submission by the overwhelming authority originating from the Pope. It collapsed to the ground and struggled in vain in an attempt to resist the command.

Despite only having half of his mechanical body left, Swann had no plans to give up. He used his mechanical hand to pry open a compartment on his leg and pulled a lever with all his might.

The cannon behind Lylejay swiveled around. Its barrel, as thick as a bowl, was aimed at Lylejay's head, and a projectile was fired.

However, Lylejay didn't even spare a glance at the incoming shell. With a casual motion, he reached back, grabbed the cannonball, and hurled it at Swann's feet.

Boom!

A resonating explosion rang out, nearly tearing the entire exploration airship into two halves.

"You think you can take me down alone?! You worthless trash! God says: Pierce!"

Blinding golden needles shot out from Lylejay's body and into the dark mist.

When the dazzling golden spikes slowly retracted, they dragged Swann's battered body into view as well. However, a smug grin played upon his half-mangled face. "Pope, let's die together!!"

Realization dawned upon Lylejay. His gaze immediately darted toward the girl hanging off the ship's railing. She was a stark contrast to the girl he had seen earlier.

Her eyes were wide open and filled with determination as her lips moved incessantly, seemingly chanting some arcane and incomprehensible incantation.

With each word she uttered, her abdomen swelled as if pregnant, her pale skin stretching to the point of near transparency.

The next moment, a sudden sensation of terror overwhelmed Lylejay. He couldn't help but tremble involuntarily, and his limbs turned cold. A powerful existence had taken notice of him!

The existence was so powerful that even being the apex of all humans in terms of combat strength, Lylejay was utterly insignificant in His presence.

How did Charles do it! How is it possible that he can wield the power of a Divinity?!

In the split-second of impending doom, Lylejay hurriedly placed Lily into his robe pocket. He then pushed off with his feet and dashed toward Grace with blinding speed, leaving a trail of afterimages, and the deck shattered into pieces.

This woman is the trigger to the Divinity's presence! I have to get rid of her!

Just as Lylejay was about to reach Grace, a barrier of transparent tentacles, cackling with white electric arcs, formed a wall to block his path.

At the same time, similar tentacles sprouted out of Lylejay's body and coiled around his limbs and neck.

Though it was unrealistic to think that the tentacles alone would be able to stop Lylejay, Charles' intention was to delay the Pope for just a moment. When Lylejay was done dealing with the tentacles, a colossal gray tentacle adorned with tendrils reached out from the distant darkness and shot toward the exploration ship.

The massive tentacle looked like a mountain next to the airship, and it struck the ship as though swatting a fly.

In that instant, the airship that had been reinforced by the shipyard crumpled as if it were made from paper. It flattened gradually, but it wasn't being crushed. Instead, it disappeared into a singularity of its own thickness.

If that was the fate of the airship, the occupants aboard mirrored the same horrible fate. Grace, Lylejay, Swann, and everyone else aboard began to meld together like clay before quickly compressing into a flattened mass.

However, almost at the same time, a burst of radiant light shot forth from the mangled heap of flesh. It was the power within Lily.

Seeing this, Lylejay immediately channeled all the Light God's power within him toward her.

As the radiant circle of light expanded, the tentacle recoiled slightly before dissolving into the darkness like foam.