Qin He rubbed the dark patterns along the edge of the Black Demon Banner with his fingertips, turning a deaf ear to Long Qingyun's probing remark.
What concerned him more was that colossal entity capable of wielding the Sky-Seeking Mirror, dispatching a High God's avatar, and nailing the label "demon" firmly onto him.
"What exactly is the Divine Court?" Qin He's voice was calm, yet it carried an unquestionable penetrating force.
The bloody "demon" character on the Black Demon Banner dimmed slightly. Long Qingyun's soul-shadow sighed from within the banner, his tone growing grave. "After the Ancient Heavenly Court shattered, the heavens fell into disorder and all laws descended into chaos. The Divine Court seized the chance to raise its banner."
"Their takeover was not merely a display of strength."
"They truly grasped the 'order' of this realm."
Long Qingyun's voice held a trace of awe, along with a trace of unwillingness:
"When you broke through and stirred resonance among the stars, did you feel the response of the laws of heaven and earth? The Divine Court can influence the strength of that response, even affecting the manifestation of laws in specific regions."
Qin He raised a brow slightly.
He recalled the faint sense of restraint when he had broken through in the Demon Abyss, as well as the pressure emanating from the Divine Envoy's Golden War Chariot, so utterly incompatible with the spiritual energy of heaven and earth.
So it had not been mere suppression by cultivation. It had been supremacy on the level of order.
"The Divine Court's hierarchy is strict to the extreme."
Long Qingyun continued, "Below it are various departments that divide authority among themselves. The Divine Punishment Department is only one of them, specifically responsible for hunting evil demons and suppressing rebellions. Its rulers are