Looking at the exotic-style buildings, Xing Chen couldn't help but rub his eyes.
After concluding negotiations with Abrana, she had secured ducal-level trade permits for the two of them.
This meant that in economic activities, the two could be considered representatives of a duke.
He had no idea how she managed to do it.
With the permits in hand, Xing Chen and Theresa prepared to return to the human world.
During their time in the town of Tara, Xing Chen had figured out the structure of several common basic Originium mechanical parts and successfully replicated them. He intended to bring this technology back to his country as soon as possible.
"Where did this take me?" Xing Chen was feeling depressed when suddenly, a large piece of trash fell from the sky, passed through his body, and landed on the ground.
He tried to pick up the paper within the trash to understand his current situation, but found that he had lost his physical collision box.
His fingers passed through the paper without touching it at all.
"Theresa, are you there?"
All around was silence.
Suddenly, the sound of steam came from afar. Xing Chen's attention was drawn to it, and in the next instant, he found himself at the exit of the alley.
A continuous industrial zone came into view, with numerous trains shuttling through it. Every so often, the sound of steam would emanate from factories or trains.
Steam and industry—Xing Chen immediately thought of a city: Londinium.
But wasn't he with Theresa in the Tara region?
He currently had no physical body, so conventional methods of movement relying on friction were completely unusable for him.
Just now, he seemed to have focused his attention on the sound of steam, and then he was teleported here.
So, Xing Chen tried to focus his attention on one of the factories, and the next second, he was inside the factory.
"Hey! Feline, why are your broken machines on strike again!"
Xing Chen turned his head and saw several Sarkaz wearing Military Commission uniforms shouting at the workers of Victoria.
Some workers showed expressions of disgust, standing still and saying nothing.
The Sarkaz also didn't resort to violence, simply waiting there with the workers. After an unknown amount of time, finally, one worker timidly stepped forward under the gaze of his colleagues.
He swallowed, then walked towards the machine the Sarkaz were surrounding. After a brief inspection, he said tremblingly, "The power interface is loose..."
After connecting the power cord, the machine began to operate again. The worker who came to help was rewarded with several cans of beast meat. The Sarkaz also refocused their attention on the machine tools.
Xing Chen looked around and found the factory floor somewhat empty. Many reserved machine tool slots were now vacant.
It seemed that Theresis had indeed listened to Theresa's instructions.
As for the workers of Londinium, there was only so much Xing Chen could do for them. Regardless of their quality of life, at least their lives could be preserved.
As for the nobles, well, they could only fend for themselves. They were the ones who let the Sarkaz into the city, so if anything happened, they should just grit their teeth and bear it.
"Wait a minute, if I can move to wherever I think of, can I go directly to Theresa?"
No sooner said than done, Xing Chen immediately silently chanted Theresa's name.
When he opened his eyes again, he found himself in a dark room.
Through the dim light, he saw a giant cultivation tank in the center of the large room, filled with green liquid, and a white figure quietly floating within the liquid.
"Theresa?" Xing Chen called out loudly, but received no response.
He approached again and found that the Theresa before him seemed a little different from the Theresa he knew.
"...So thin, after all. How much did she eat at my place..."
This was Theresa's body, recovered by the Sin Eater after her assassination.
So, what exactly was the Theresa by his side?
Before he could think more, the room lights came on. Several white-horned Sarkaz, accompanied by Theresis and Manfred, entered the room.
"Regent Your Highness, please believe me. Give us a little more time, and we will bring Her Highness the Demon King back to the Sarkaz."
"I have given you many chances. If you fail again this time, I will forbid you from approaching her body."
"Rest assured, Regent Your Highness. This time, I will reclaim the Demon King's crown from the hands of the foreigners."
As the Sin Eater began to manipulate the arcane devices around the tank, amidst chants in ancient Sarkaz, Xing Chen began to hear some familiar voices.
"Please, wake up quickly..."
"Xing Chen, don't let anything happen to you..."
"Don't leave me behind..."
Accompanied by intense pain, Xing Chen opened his eyes. His vision was blurry. A pink shadow was in front of him, wiping his forehead with a towel.
"Xing Chen, you're awake!" Theresa's joyful voice came from beside him. "You scared me to death. I thought you were going to leave me too."
"Don't say such inauspicious things," his eyes slowly focused, Xing Chen lifted his head and wiped away Theresa's tears, "What exactly happened to me just now?"
"It was the day we returned from Tara. I woke up in bed, and you weren't moving at all."
"I thought you wanted to sleep a little longer, so I didn't disturb you. After making breakfast, I came to wake you up and found you couldn't be roused."
"I touched your body; it was ice cold, and your head was burning hot. I went to the kitchen to get a towel to cool you down. Your eyes started to seep blood, and when I pried open your eyelids, your pupils had turned into the pattern of Originium."
The more Theresa spoke, the more agitated she became. Xing Chen struggled to raise his hand and pulled her into his embrace.
"Didn't I come back?" Xing Chen forced a smile, comforting the girl in his arms.
Theresa's emotions gradually calmed. She had witnessed many deaths, including many of her close ones, but no one had made her nearly break down emotionally like Xing Chen.
In Terra, she had many compatriots; if one died, there were others. But in this strange world, she only had Xing Chen; he was her sole connection to her own world.
This near-death experience warned Xing Chen that he was not an invincible being in Terra.
Xing Chen told Theresa about his experiences in Londinium. The two reviewed the entire process of his dream, finally discovering two points of doubt.
Firstly, Theresa had already entrusted the crown to Amiya, but during his battle with Abrana, he had easily used the crown's power.
Secondly, it was the actions of the Sin Eater; they were trying to resurrect Theresa to regain the crown.
"From what you're saying, what happened today is related to the continuation of civilization?"
"Yes, but Theresis has already prohibited the Sin Eater' subsequent actions, which means that in the future, you might have to slightly limit your use of the crown's power."
"Okay, as long as you're fine."
