Chapter 230 Dawn City

The baptism of Sunfire brought profound and far-reaching effects to Castle Morne and its surrounding territories.

It was far more than just purging the sickness of the frenzied flame.

It directly broke the city free from the control of the golden order, granting it true independence and establishing the prototype of another system called the law of the sun, bringing new hope and order.

One must understand that the shattering of the elden ring resulted in more than just the disorder of life and death; even nature itself had gradually lost its balance.

The most direct manifestation was that the procreation of life had become extremely difficult.

Castle Morne had not seen a newborn in many years.

Pregnancies resulted in either miscarriages or the birth of deformed stillborns.

Crop yields were also decreasing year by year; the wheat seeds sown this year had yet to sprout.

The world was facing a massive problem, and it was only getting worse.

Everyone realized this, but they were powerless, only able to pray for the birth of a new king to mend the elden ring.

However, Chen Nuo's appearance provided them with another possibility.

To replace the golden order with the law of the sun.

A so-called 'Order' is an established set of laws.

And the sun itself is the manifestation of natural laws, the original orthodoxy of this world.

This wasn't rebellion; it was restoration.

After undergoing the sun's baptism, the land of Castle Morne regained its vitality.

The wheat seeds that had been sown began to grow at an astonishing speed; in just a few days, they passed the germination and seedling stages, and golden ears of wheat began to emerge from the leaf sheaths of the flag leaves.

It was as if they were trying to reclaim all the lost growth time in one go.

Looking at the golden waves of wheat rolling in the breeze, was there any symbol more representative of hope than this?

The people of Castle Morne had never asked for much.

Now, they viewed this as the grace of the sun and completely cast the golden order from their minds.

One cannot blame the people for their lack of loyalty.

The truth was that for commoners, the Golden Dynasty offered little worth reminiscing about; most of the memories they could recall were of war and death.

Throughout the Golden Dynasty, except for a very brief period of peace and prosperity in the middle, the rest combined was a history of continuous warfare.

The only thing that could be called the gift of immortality had now become a 'curse' to be avoided at all costs.

As for the Omens, the radiance of the Erdtree had never shone upon them from the beginning; they couldn't wait to send the Golden Dynasty into its coffin.

Not to mention, Chen Nuo had promised the First Law, granting them the equality they had long desired but could never obtain in the past.

Though most of them did not survive the sun's baptism.

But the Omens had their own interpretation of this, which required no detailed explanation.

The Golden Dynasty had buried past history, creating a deeply ingrained consensus regarding the 'Omen' curse.

Even the Omens, who were the victims, subconsciously agreed with the notion of their own sinfulness.

After all, those features of the Crucible were indeed not very pleasant to look at.

Ultimately, this world is superficial.

However, after the sun's baptism, the Omens could now face their 'curse' calmly, believing they had washed away their sins.

Edgar wanted to remain loyal to the Gold, but he was now completely dyed in the color of the sun; any follower of the golden order who saw him would view him as a heretic.

The scent of the sun on him was simply too pure.

And since even his own daughter had become a Sun Witch, what else could Edgar do? He could only kneel on one knee before Chen Nuo and swear his fealty.

From then on, Castle Morne was renamed City of Dawn.

Chen Nuo served as the City Lord, while Edgar and Simba served as Vice City Lords.

Who was Simba?

He was the leader of the Omens, that Leonine Misbegotten of outstanding strength.

The name Simba was bestowed upon him by Chen Nuo.

Since he had sworn loyalty, he naturally needed a name.

This matter made the other Omens extremely envious.

It was confirmed from Simba's mouth that the Omen uprising was indeed supported by another force, which provided them with weapons and intelligence.

Otherwise, the Omen rebellion would not have proceeded so smoothly.

Although the other party never revealed their true identity, based on Simba's description, they were undoubtedly a follower of the frenzied flame, and very likely Shabriri.

After all, he is currently the only one walking The Lands Between preaching the frenzied flame.

He was the first person to be infected by the frenzied flame.

Existing like a plague, he spreads massive amounts of despair and curses, and can even inhabit the shells of the deceased.

Of course, whether it was inhabiting or possessing is hard to say for sure.

Such an ability allowed him to easily infiltrate various major factions without being detected.

Perhaps Edgar had dealt with him in the past, just without recognizing his true identity.

However, there was no need to worry about the forces of the frenzied flame lurking in City of Dawn now; they were too busy hiding from Chen Nuo.

Under this newborn hope and sun, despair and madness had no soil to survive in; if they got too close, they would be the first to be annihilated.

What gave Chen Nuo a bit of a headache, however, was that he couldn't leave City of Dawn for long periods.

The radiance of the Erdtree constantly sought to extinguish the Dawn; this wasn't a subjective action, but rather its very existence that brought such suppressive force.

Even though the former had long been heavily damaged, it still possessed the advantage of its established scale.

Chen Nuo had to stay in City of Dawn, or at least not stray too far, to ensure the continued existence of the law of the sun.

With Edgar, the former lord, present, Chen Nuo didn't need to worry about the reconstruction of City of Dawn; he only needed to take some time to preach to Irena.

Ahem, don't misunderstand, this preaching was very proper.

As the only current Sun Witch, Irena's importance and uniqueness went without saying.

Currently, City of Dawn indeed needed the power of faith to combat the intrusion and temptation of Outer Gods.

Such was the environment, so Chen Nuo could only follow the local customs.

If you don't occupy the niche of faith, plenty of Outer Gods will.

As for how exactly to preach?

It was actually quite simple: just stay close to Irena, and she would naturally interpret grace from the sun's radiance, codify the doctrines, and Chen Nuo would only need to perform the final check.

It couldn't be helped; with Melina always following him like a spirit, Chen Nuo couldn't do anything else anyway.

Though the little wooden girl didn't like to talk, she could really be a nuisance.

The Omen community in City of Dawn was managed and educated by Simba.

The Omens had never received any education, having lived as the lowest class of slaves; now that they had finally broken their chains and gained freedom, disciplining them was no easy task.

Furthermore, they had to live alongside the original residents of Castle Morne.

Between the two sides, it wasn't just friction, but blood feuds.

Even though they had received the sun's baptism together and were no longer 'sinners,' conflicts still frequently arose between the two sides.

This was something Chen Nuo found difficult to resolve as well.

Fortunately, City of Dawn was currently empty enough that they could be divided into different living areas; as for complete integration and coexistence, that would be left to the next generation.

Each generation has its own tasks to perform.

What Chen Nuo had to do now was add a bit more spice to his dinner as the bright ingredients sizzled in the iron wok.

Tonight's main course was stir-fried beef.

The one responsible for providing the ingredients was Simba, who had gone to great lengths to catch this wild bull.

*Gulp...*

Simba, standing nearby, couldn't help but swallow hard. He was immediately filled with shame; he had actually behaved so rudely in front of the King. He truly was not a qualified knight.

"Sit down and have a meal with me?"

Chen Nuo invited.

But Simba shook his head in refusal. Having received baptism but not yet repaid the favor, how could he be qualified to share a table with the King?

Chen Nuo did not insist.

Simba was a very responsible Leonine Misbegotten, and this extended to the Omens outside of City of Dawn as well.

Therefore, he hoped that City of Dawn could accept more Omens, so they too could receive the gospel of the sun as he had.

"King..."

Simba was not good with words, especially compared to his prowess with a greatsword. Having squeezed out one word, he didn't know how to continue his petition.

All Omens were like this, not very articulate.

"You want City of Dawn to accept the Omens from outside."

Chen Nuo looked at Simba, knowing what he wanted to say.

Everyone who had received the sun's baptism had established a sort of one-way connection with him.

This allowed Chen Nuo to perceive the other's thoughts to some extent, which facilitated management and communication.

"The King said that beneath the King, all beings are equal."

Simba said with his head bowed. This sentence, at least, was spoken fluently; who knew how many times he had repeated it in private.

"But not everyone can withstand the baptism. Have you thought this through?"

Chen Nuo continued, picking up a piece of beef to taste the seasoning.

Mm, his culinary skills had improved again.

The sun's baptism was both a gift and a trial.

Its primary purpose was to purge the influential power of Outer Gods from their bodies.

The current law of the sun was still too fragile. Perhaps in the near future, such a harsh screening method wouldn't be necessary, but for now, it had to be this way.

"King, if they cannot receive the gift, then let them become kindling!"

Simba said with absolute determination, a hint of fanaticism in his eyes.

If one were to ask who in City of Dawn had the firmest faith in the sun, it would certainly be the Omens. From morning to night, whenever they were free, they would bow in worship toward the palace where Chen Nuo resided.

It made Chen Nuo a bit embarrassed.

"Then it shall be as you wish."

Seeing Simba put it that way, Chen Nuo nodded in agreement.

It just so happened that City of Dawn was short on people, and the population gap between the Omens and the commoners was quite large, so a balance was needed.

"Thank you for your mercy, my King."

Simba bowed his head and quickly walked out of the hall. If he stayed any longer, he feared he would lose his composure again.

The food cooked by my King smells way too good!

Several Omens were already waiting outside.

Seeing Simba's expression as he walked out, they knew the King had granted their request. One by one, they knelt and kowtowed with devout respect before leaving, their hearts filled with gratitude.

Irena rushed back just in time for the meal and witnessed this scene, which immediately made her feel a bit anxious.

Compared to the Omens, the faith of the common people was a bit lacking in devotion; how could this be allowed?

Although all were equal beneath the King.

The seating beneath the throne still had an order of precedence; who wouldn't want to be closer to the King?

Thinking of this, Irena felt she had been a bit lazy; the compilation of the Sun Scripture needed to be accelerated.

Speaking of which, Irena's eyesight had not actually fully recovered, and she still wore the silk blindfold, but her spiritual vision had been completely opened, allowing her to observe the world from another perspective.

In this way, she was no different from a normal person, and could even see things that ordinary people could not.

Irena put aside her stray thoughts, entered the hall, and reported the latest situation to Chen Nuo.

There was nothing major within City of Dawn; everything was on the right track.

Under the law of the sun.

Life and death followed an order, and nature cycled naturally.

Everyone held endless hope for the future.

With such cohesion, the management and construction of the city became easy and simple.

However, outside City of Dawn, a new situation had arisen.

There was originally a sick village near the Callu Baptismal Church, where villagers suffering from the frenzied flame disease lived.

Ever since learning that the frenzied flame was the culprit behind everything, Edgar had been looking for an opportunity to wipe out this village.

On this point, both the commoners and the Omens had reached a rare consensus.

After all, hatred does not disappear; it only shifts.

However, the soldiers Edgar sent to investigate today found that the sick village was empty; those severe sufferers of the frenzied flame disease seemed to have all vanished overnight.

This made Edgar very frustrated.

"Did they run away?"

Chen Nuo murmured after hearing Irena's report, then immediately put it out of his mind.

The frenzied flame was not worth too much of his concern.

The main priority now was how to occupy the Weeping Peninsula; the biggest obstacle blocking the way for City of Dawn was a Minor Erdtree, which could be considered an avatar of It.

But now was not the time to act in haste.

He had to wait a bit longer, until the law of the sun had taken deeper root.

Otherwise, the final counterattack of the Erdtree's avatar might shake the existing foundations of the Order, or perhaps he could find a better way.

"The city is running low on Smithing Stones."

Chen Nuo remembered something and spoke up.

He had recently been researching how to repair the Golem Archer.

That strike with the wok bottom earlier had been a bit too heavy, and coupled with the existing severe damage, repairing it now was proving to be quite difficult.

There were no books or records regarding golem-making techniques in City of Dawn, so Chen Nuo had to completely dismantle the Golem Archer and start studying from scratch.

Progress was currently quite good.

It was just that the consumption of Smithing Stones used for repairs and reinforcement was a bit high; if this continued, there definitely wouldn't be enough in the end.

"City of Dawn has not yet reclaimed the mine that produces Smithing Stones; it is occupied by a group of Scaled Misbegotten."

Irena said with a bit of embarrassment.

The importance of Smithing Stones went without saying; they were needed for the manufacture and reinforcement of weapons.

To have lost such an important resource production point in the past was a disgrace to Edgar's name.

"Then let Simba handle this matter; he happens to have the idea of recruiting more people anyway."

Chen Nuo gave his decision.

Irena nodded without any objection, but suddenly felt that she should perhaps spur her old father on a bit.

Comparison is the thief of joy; it wasn't that Edgar wasn't competent enough, it was just that Simba and his Omens were working too hard!