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I jumped out of bed and stood in the church's main hall, speaking eloquently.

"The day after General Morden led the rebel army to raise his arms and shout, and issued his declaration of military resistance against tyranny, the entire offshore islands saw that the trend had been established and flocked to respond."

"Decades later, in the same mining town, I have been fortunate enough to rely on the countless goods at the Harvest Festival to resist commercial plunder and market monopoly, and it has been quite effective!"

"I don't understand why everyone is talking about General Morden's defeat and retreat overseas, as if that determines our doom..."

The more I spoke, the smoother the words flowed, and my voice became more confident, but something about the lines just didn't feel right. It was as if some unseen force was planting flags behind me, one by one, and the sense of déjà vu for the following lines grew stronger and stronger—

"No matter what, this business showdown is about the prepared attacking the unprepared, and the righteous attacking the unrighteous; the advantage lies with me!"

After saying that, I felt a chill run down my spine. I knew the next script was: "Expanding the territory with maps, strengthening the country with diaries, annihilating 100 million enemies, and dominating Taiwan."

Fortunately, I had a sudden inspiration and quickly changed my posture from bending over to preach to standing with my hands on my hips, adding that...

"Of course, there are indeed difficulties. For example, the newly formed Outer Sea Alliance, centered around Mineral Town, is like a half-cooked meal for the old Federation forces that have been entrenched for over a hundred years! But half-cooked is half-cooked, and we still have to eat it! When the blazing sun rises from the east, the world will no longer need to lament the faint light emitted by the candle!"

I wiped the cold sweat from my forehead and finally felt better.

The flag behind them disappeared instantly!

Chapter 682 Harvest Festival in Mineral Town (Train Station)

The next day, Father Carter woke up to a noisy commotion.

When he stepped out of the room, the long-empty church was now packed with people. Dozens of people from the entire Mineral Town, along with members of the Brown Pool Tribe caravan, were gathered in this old but dignified church.

This made him rub his eyes, thinking he had come to the wrong place.

He then stared around and finally spotted me standing on the pulpit.

"Marcus, what... what's going on? Am I still dreaming?"

I seized the opportunity to grab him and said to the villagers below the stage, "Perfect timing! The highly respected Father Carter has awakened from God's earnest teachings! Now, let's invite him to speak to us. Let's give him a round of applause!"

Applause erupted from the audience.

With a slight shove from me, Father Carter stood before the familiar yet unfamiliar pulpit, first looking down at the audience, then glancing at me with a slightly uneasy expression.

"Um... Good morning, everyone?"

Scattered applause broke out from the audience—the townspeople were so kind; the sun was already high in the sky, and they still called it morning.

Father Carter steadied his voice and continued, “It is a great honor to have you all gathered here today at the Mineral Town Church, willing to listen to the teachings of the Holy Spirit. This must be the guidance of the Holy Spirit. To thank the Holy Spirit for His mercy, please close your eyes with me and pray silently for one minute.”

After speaking, the priest raised his hands with an air of authority, as if receiving the purest light of the universe.

Due to the church's unique design, the midday sun shines directly onto the pulpit through the skylight, casting a beam of light that falls on Father Carter's gold-trimmed priest's robe, reflecting a soft golden glow and further enhancing its sacred and ethereal atmosphere.

"This is the Holy Spirit, who will be sent in my name. The magnificent Holy Spirit is rising up to teach you all things and to remind you of all the things the Spiritual Son has spoken to you..."

The audience was stunned by this move and followed him, raising their hands and closing their eyes.

The gospel was readily available, making the people praying with their eyes closed appear even more solemn. The uniformity of the ceremony brought an irresistible majesty to the church, which was truly amazing.

What's even more astonishing is the priest's remarkable lack of shrewdness.

On one hand, there's his unimaginable ability to deceive. He usually hides and sleeps, but at crucial moments, he can subtly draw everyone into a religious atmosphere, defusing the awkwardness of my malicious prank on him.

On the other hand, this guy can actually do ventriloquism!

He was able to recite excerpts from the Gospel of the Spirit Child in a loud and clear voice, relying on his abdominal breathing, while simultaneously questioning me in a low voice, both times with perfect pronunciation.

"What's going on? How come I didn't know there was Mass today!?"

I lowered my voice and replied, "What mass? We're holding the closing ceremony of the harvest festival here. I just wanted you to say a few words of reflection, and you're giving me this stunt?"

Carter was furious: "Why are they having a meeting here without me knowing?!"

I asked, puzzled, "Huh? Didn't I tell you last night?"

Carter gritted his teeth: "No..."

"Then I'll tell you now."

I smiled innocently and said, "Are you alright now? If you are, tell everyone to open their eyes quickly, our activities still need to continue."

Upon hearing this, Carter's ventriloquism stumbled, clearly unable to catch his breath, and I nearly choked him to death.

“Open your eyes. The Holy Spirit has returned to the high heavens. But remember that as long as you pray devoutly every day, the Holy Spirit will still pour water on the thirsty, still pour rivers on the parched land, still pour the Spirit on your descendants, and still pour blessings on your children and grandchildren.”

As the last sentence fell, the villagers opened their eyes. The light was still concentrated, and Father Carter picked up the water jug ​​and waved it, scattering countless sparkling water droplets in the sunlight, which gently drifted onto the people.

The townspeople looked at each other with curiosity as the mist swirled around them. When everyone turned their attention back to the pulpit, I was the one standing there!

...Wait a minute, when was I moved here? How could Carter, a priest, possess teleportation abilities?

"Cough cough."

I coughed twice to cover up my embarrassment. "Father Carter's sermon was wonderful, but let's not forget the spirit of materialism. All happiness and a good life must be earned through our own labor. As the saying goes, even religious belief must be in accordance with the basic law. After the founding of the People's Republic of China, we're not allowed to become supernatural beings..."

I was just making something up when I noticed Father Carter, who had mingled in the audience, was glaring at me with increasing menacing intent. I quickly changed the subject, "By the way, we were just talking about this harvest festival, so I'll take this opportunity to introduce the results to everyone. Secretary, bring up my documents..."

A jay came up the steps and handed me a piece of paper.

I glanced at it, quickly covered it up, and then gripped it tightly: "Um... In short, this event was a great success, a grand success, a brilliant success! Please give us a round of applause!"

The audience erupted in applause.

Jay, what do you mean by writing a 20% net loss on your bill? Are you just going to pretend you didn't receive any commission from overseas sales? Doesn't the market share gained after expanding trade routes count as revenue? Are you trying to portray yourself as a business philanthropist?

Seeing my slight embarrassment, Thomas the Tank Engine quickly stood up from his seat and said in an excited, slightly off-key voice, "I'd also like to share something with you all. At this Harvest Festival, Honey Village and Olive Town have signed a friendship agreement with us. Their cargo ships will make regular deliveries here, and trade agreements have also been basically reached!"

Mr. Dick, standing to the side, asked, "What do you mean?"

Thomas proudly declared, "That means I'll get another point on my year-end performance review!"

"roll!"

The town's residents gave a concise and to-the-point response.

Standing on the pulpit, I gestured to suppress everyone's dissatisfaction: "Everyone, please calm down. Mayor Thomas is of great significance and indispensable to Mineral Town. I believe he should play an even more important role."

Thomas rubbed his hands together expectantly: "What do you mean? Am I that important?"

I nodded firmly: "To generate publicity, I suggest Thomas the Tank Engine... cough cough, as a mascot, incorporate this element into Mineral Town!"

Thomas the Tank Engine nodded in agreement: "That's a good idea! I think my looks are perfect for the role! By the way, is it printing themed posters, making chibi-style figurines, or putting my TV commercials on?"

“That won’t work; it would cause legal trouble,” I said, refusing.

Making Thomas the Tank Engine model figures in town? Go ask Mattel if they'd allow it. Would the original author, Reif O'Reilly, allow it? Do you think it's easy for me to write a random tightrope walking fanfic?

"???"

Thomas looked completely bewildered.

I patiently explained, "Moreover, we don't have enough funds. I've spent all the money this time, and it will take some time before we can get it back."

I casually revealed something dangerous, and before Mayor Thomas could react, I continued, "I think for this mascot effect to be effective, it still needs to be combined with the characteristics of our town!"

I pointed at Thomas: "Since we're called Mineral Town, I propose that Thomas wear a miner's uniform and go mining in the mountains every day. The ore he digs out can be sold to tourists as souvenirs! This way, we can generate revenue and have a unique selling point! Who agrees? Who disagrees?"

As soon as he finished speaking, everyone in the church, including the Brownpool tribe, raised their hands and watched Thomas the Tank Engine with smiles on their faces.

"Alright, since everyone agrees, the proposal is approved. Bosses Dick and Jeff, I'll leave this to you to handle... Quick, shut him up!"

"There are outsiders inside... um... you can't... do anything... I'm the town... um..."

Mr. Dick and Mr. Jeff exchanged a smile, grabbed Thomas the Tank Engine from either side as he tried to escape, and covered his mouth as he tried to protest.

Franky whispered to Bertholdt, “Teacher, it seems I was naive—I actually doubted that Marcus was the mayor.”

Bertholdt smiled reassuringly: "It's alright, you're still young, a little misjudgment is to be expected."

I stood on the stage and continued to signal everyone to be quiet.

"I invited everyone here today not only to announce the end of the Harvest Festival, but also because there are some things I would like to talk to you about."

“I was once penniless and hopeless, living each day in a daze with no meaning. Until one day, someone told me that I could choose to come here and inherit the ranch.”

"To be honest, at that time, I didn't know if what I was doing was right or wrong, nor did I know what else I could pursue. But it wasn't until I came here that I realized life has more than one form."

"The harmonious relationships and friendly treatment among neighbors, the banquets and parties, the pastoral idylls, the clear skies and bright moon... all these tell me that coming to Mineral Town is the best decision I have ever made in my life! I once had no family, but after coming here, I have many trustworthy and reliable family members. Mineral Town is my home!"

The audience gradually quieted down, and a smile appeared on Mr. Dart's serious face as he took the lead in applauding.

The applause grew louder and louder, but I raised my voice and said, "It's not you who need to applaud, it's me. Perhaps my youthful arrogance has caused you a lot of trouble, or perhaps I have unintentionally done some things that have earned your approval, but none of that was my intention."

"I'm just a willful guy who acts recklessly in Mineral Town because I feel this is my home, and I can do whatever I want in this home, but I will never allow outsiders to bully me!"

My voice gradually became serious.

“There are people outside who want to destroy this place, and there are people who want to suppress it, but I want them to know that from the time the old miners built the town, from the time the old priest rebuilt Mineral Town, and from the time I came here, the people of Mineral Town cannot be defeated or intimidated! If anyone dares to lay a finger on this place, I will make them pay a terrible price!”

At this point, I took a piece of paper out of my pocket.

“This was an order Thomas received long ago, but he kept it hidden. I’m grateful to him because I know he deliberately concealed it and destroyed the order, even though I still found out.”

Before leaving Mineral Town, Ada Wong secretly visited the ranch's warehouse—as the head of the Federation's special intelligence agency, she had plenty of ways to find out about this non-classified item.

It was there that I saw the photocopies of the documents she left behind, and that's when I learned that the federal government was going to take action against me.

Thomas, who had been restrained, suddenly broke free and shouted, "Marcus, the contents of that order are wrong! I've already appealed! Don't take it seriously!"

Mr. Dick and Mr. Jeff looked at him: "What is that? What's wrong with it?"

Thomas stammered, "It's...it's..."

It was an order from the Federation, issued right in the middle of the period between my disappearance on Kuroshio Island and my return to town from the mine.

After receiving a report from the special operations forces, the Federal Parliament has conducted a special investigation into my identity, presumably for the mysterious foundation I fabricated.

Fearing the Foundation's "powerful" hidden capabilities, they investigated all information about me but found nothing. However, they accidentally discovered my identity as an illegal immigrant, which led to this document: "[Marcus, a resident of Mineral Town, is suspected of customs fraud, forgery of identity documents, and other issues. The Federal Parliament has ordered the revocation of his position as acting sheriff of Mineral Town and his deportation effective immediately.]"

"I'm no longer the sheriff, and I might even be deported."

I looked at the paper, gently tore it off, and said with a smile, but my heart was filled with trepidation.

Who knew that Shining City hated me so much? Not only did they airlift me into the country, but even my identity documents were forged by a smuggling company!

But I soon realized that what I said did not cause any emotional reaction from the audience.

Father Carter, lounging in his seat, gently raised his hand: "So what if you're not the sheriff? You're our Holy Spirit Church's deacon in Mineral Town. What right does the Federation have to expel you?"

He gave me a mysterious smile: "Birth certificates, baptismal certificates, and appointment documents are all archived at the Vatican headquarters in Illling, and the Federation can access them at any time."