"This is... what you call the Mother Flame?"
Michael followed behind Vegapunk for a long time until they finally arrived at this top-secret area.
He raised his head and looked at the massive device before him—within it, an unextinguishable flame burned fiercely, isolated by some kind of transparent liquid.
"That's right. In my vision, this could bring endless energy to the world..."
"But at the same time, it could also... become the power source for the Ancient Weapons!"
Michael stared at the Mother Flame before him and murmured softly.
As a transmigrator, he naturally knew what the Mother Flame was—and that the destruction of the Kingdom of Lulusia in the original events was actually an experiment to test the compatibility between Uranus and the Mother Flame.
So when he saw the Mother Flame for the first time, what crossed his mind wasn't what it could do...
But how he could destroy it in a way that wouldn't cause a rift between him and Vegapunk.
However, that thought lasted only for a moment.
As Vegapunk's greatest "plug-in," this source of energy rivaled nuclear power—yet it was clean and non-polluting. Even someone like Michael, who knew next to nothing about science, could tell that beyond its potential as a weapon, it could also become a blessing for the entire world.
No matter what, Michael would never choose to destroy something so beneficial out of fear.
"I've thought about that problem too..." Vegapunk said, a trace of struggle appearing on his face.
"That's exactly why I decided to cooperate with the Revolutionary Army. You people, unlike the World Government, actually care about ordinary citizens. You wouldn't misuse the Mother Flame as a weapon."
Michael looked at Vegapunk's earnest expression and nodded slightly.
Dragon had once told him that Vegapunk would never create weapons of mass destruction.
And the fact that he'd once created flowers that bloomed from gunpowder proved his aversion to war.
"Alright, Vegapunk, let's put aside these serious topics for now," Michael said with a smile. "Ever since my lineage factor caused changes in the Seraphim's flames, the way you've been looking at me has been... different. Why is that?"
"You noticed, huh?" Vegapunk sighed and continued, "I'm just... too happy. When I first began researching the Mother Flame, I used Lunarian flames as the base. It worked—but the Mother Flame inherited the Lunarian fire's characteristics... that is, its cyclical transformation."
Michael nodded, understanding immediately.
The Lunarians possessed innate flames with offensive properties, but those flames would periodically vanish—during which their speed increased dramatically...
While their defense weakened at the same time.
It was a unique racial trait, but to think the Mother Flame shared it too.
For the Lunarians, this trait shaped their distinctive fighting style and habits...
But for an energy source, such fluctuations meant...
Instability.
"An unstable power source is never a good thing," Michael muttered, his lips twitching slightly as he eyed the Mother Flame with caution. "I bet Egghead's had its share of explosions, huh?"
"Not exactly... I realized the issue early on. To prevent the energy from becoming a bomb, I made some modifications. The good news is, I eliminated the cyclical problem." Vegapunk placed his hand on the shell of the Mother Flame. "The bad news is, that turned what could have been an infinite, perpetual energy source into a finite one... and it must now be released all at once."
At that, a trace of worry appeared in Vegapunk's eyes.
"A Mother Flame like this... is ironically more suitable for powering weapons of mass destruction."
"So you want me to help you change its properties?" Michael raised an eyebrow, intrigued.
"Because my Holy Flame and Holy Light altered the Lunarian fire?"
"Exactly," Vegapunk said with firm conviction, nodding. "If you could alter the Lunarian flames, then you can also change the Mother Flame, which is based on them."
Michael looked up at the Mother Flame burning within the containment device...
To say he wasn't tempted would be a lie.
If this clean energy could truly be applied across the world...
It would not only improve civilian life dramatically—
It would transform the very foundation of global industry.
And Vegapunk's mind was far too valuable.
If he had access to a near-infinite clean energy source, the kind of technology he could develop would be unimaginable...
"Vegapunk... as expected, you really are the one destined to end the Great Pirate Era."
"Such praise is too much for me to bear," Vegapunk said modestly as he reached out and pulled down a lever.
The transparent liquid isolating the eternal flame inside the device began to drain away.
Without that protective barrier, the flame immediately began to expand violently and uncontrollably.
Michael watched this blatant violation of all known physical laws without much surprise.
After all, this was a world born from fantasy—the so-called laws of physics didn't always apply here.
"What should I do?"
"I don't know either," Vegapunk shrugged. "Just improvise."
"...What kind of scientist are you, damn it!?"
"Sometimes, science is born from spontaneous action," Vegapunk replied as he ran to the side and put on a fireproof suit.
Michael rolled his eyes.
That sounded good on paper, but thinking about it...
Wasn't it just another way of saying "I think it'll work" and "let's see what happens if I go all in"?
Before he could complain further, the flame had already expanded, filling the entire containment chamber.
Michael frowned and channeled his Holy Flame through a nearby conduit, letting it flow into the device.
In the next instant, a sudden change occurred.
The orange, undying flame began to shudder violently the moment it came into contact with the Holy Flame.
Then—
It started shrinking rapidly.
Although its size decreased, the energy it contained did not diminish in the slightest; in fact, under the influence of the Holy Flame, it grew increasingly stable...
And that orange flame began to transform—
Slowly being dyed pure white.
Just like the Seraphim whose flames had been altered by his lineage factor, the undying fire within the Mother Flame was being assimilated by him as well.
Only the very core remained orange.
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