Volume Four: Withering in the Mortal World - Chapter 364: Embers (I)

Vandosa City.

Located in the central part of the West Saint Continent, although its area is far smaller than that of Sadington, its strategic position is by no means inferior.

Its other name is more widely known than "Vanderssa".

"A stepping stone to the holy city."

Its geographical location is extremely strategic, situated at the intersection of more than a dozen land transport lifelines, and rich in strategic resources such as mineral deposits; it is no exaggeration to call it a choke point. Moreover, its unique terrain makes it a natural barrier for the Holy City Gloria. Once captured, the road between the Rebel Army and the holy city will be unobstructed, becoming a flat plain.

Normally, the Holy See's dozen or so heavily armed paladin legions would surround Vandorsa like an iron barrel, with a large number of Divine Spellcaster on standby in the city. Moreover, the city also has a large teleportation array like Sadington, making it a veritable giant fortress.

However, on the day of the Rakshasa Army's surprise attack, more than half of the troops stationed in Vanderssa received emergency mobilization orders and temporarily returned to the Cathedral of the True God via the Great Teleportation Array to await their fate, due to the predicament of Sadington and its surrounding major cities.

Although the Papacy holds absolute power in the West Saint Continent, this does not mean that its military strength is unlimited. On the contrary, the Papacy's investment in the military has been declining due to too much complacency. In order to completely eliminate the Rebel Army, His Holiness the Pope had to mobilize the elite troops of Vandosa through the Great Teleportation Array, intending to send the troops to support Sadington as soon as the Great Teleportation Array was recaptured.

This created a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to take them down in one fell swoop.

"--So you had this planned all along, Sister Xue..."

"No, it's just that the unexpected events of the last battle against Torres made me more cautious, which is why I came up with this plan."

Torres City, in a medium-sized town controlled by the Revolutionary Army, the high-ranking members of the Blood Blade Knights were gathered, as was Yun Can of the Rakshasa Divine Sect.

Loxue, Nid, Uncle Brad, and all the commanders who participated in this operation were here. Except for Loxue, who was in charge of the overall command, they all had injuries of varying degrees, with bandages, gauze, and splints wrapped around their bodies, and their eyes were filled with exhaustion.

"Everyone's here now... it's time to announce the battle statistics. In this battle, the Revolutionary Army suffered a total loss of over 75,700 men at Sadington."

Upon seeing the pile of forms that Loxue had produced, the group leaders' faces immediately darkened.

Only Loxue remained expressionless, her tone flat.

"This includes the entire Seventh Division, most of the elite troops personally led by Nid and Brad, and Miss Si Nan Xiao as an external ally."

""""..."""""

Although the Seventh Division is the smallest in size, they are irreplaceable in their role of stealth and assassination. As for Si Nan Xiao —they have all witnessed firsthand the strategic significance of this quiet girl. She can transport a large number of troops over long distances at once and even bypass the barriers of the Boundary Protection Saint Domain. Such a person will definitely become a pivotal figure in future battles.

"... However, such a talented person died young because of the sudden appearance of the Second Goddess Heavenly Law, Tianlu."

""""...""""

No one spoke, but each battalion commander unconsciously clenched their fists and gritted their teeth.

Heavenly Laws

Although the appearance of the Templar Knight Chief posed some obstacles, it was the Heavenly Law that truly reversed everything.

More than 75,700 lives were lost, no less than 80% of them, at her hands.

The Sword of God, a bloodless and tearless slayer, the most fanatical believer, a monster devoid of any compassion or pity.

If it weren't for her, the Revolutionary Army would have taken Sadington with minimal losses long ago! Instead, not only have the Revolutionary Army suffered heavy casualties, but the entire Sadington has been reduced to ruins by the Super Divine Spell. The sacrifice of tens of thousands of warriors in Sadington has resulted in rubble covering tens of thousands of square kilometers!

"Judging from the enormous losses, we were tactically defeated."

The gloomy atmosphere grew even stronger.

"But--"

Loxue changed the subject,

"If we elevate this to a strategic level, this battle represents a major strategic victory for us."

"--!"

"Let's take stock of our results," Loxue said, picking up another sheet of paper.

"First, we successfully captured Sadington. Although it came at a great cost, was full of twists and turns, and was ultimately destroyed, the fact remains that we captured this strategic location."

"Secondly, our allies, the Rakshasa Army, successfully captured the important central city of Vanderssa Sadington. This was a contingency plan I had prepared in advance, a last resort that would only come into play if 'an unexpected situation arose in Sadington that could cause the Revolutionary Army to collapse, and the Papacy's focus was entirely on Sadington.'"

If Sadington succeeds in taking control, that would be ideal. If not, then this "failure" can be used as a smokescreen to attract the Papacy's attention and create opportunities for the Rakshasa Army.

"--However, even I didn't expect that we would successfully capture two major cities at the same time. This is undoubtedly an extremely impressive achievement, and now the road to Gloria is completely open."

At this point, Loxue looked up and glanced around. Although she said "impressive results," there was no smile in her eyes.

"Third, and most importantly—thanks to the Blood Emperor and her companions' desperate battle, the Heavenly Law has now been banished to the moon."

"""""""Moon!?""""""

"Don't be surprised, I'm not wrong. It seems to be Miss Haoyue's special ability to make people fall to the moon... I find it hard to describe exactly."

"Wait a minute," Brad interrupted, "So can we assume... that the Vatican's strongest force is dead?"

Upon hearing his words, the other commanders stirred. They knew that if the Blood Emperor and her allies had truly defeated Tian Lu, then the Revolutionary Army's ultimate victory would be virtually guaranteed! The sacrifice of tens of thousands of people for this was simply well worth it!

"--How is that possible?"

But Loxue immediately shattered their beautiful illusions.

"""""""Well..."""""""

"But this is still a huge achievement. Regardless of whether Tianlu can survive in outer space for a long time, at least she will have to go through a lot of trouble to return to the West Saint Continent, so we don't need to worry about her threat in the short term."

In other words—

"Press the opportunity and follow up!"

"Should we take Gloria in one fell swoop?"

"Unfortunately, that's impossible," Loxue shook her head helplessly. "You know, we've suffered heavy losses this time, and we still need to spend a lot of energy consolidating the two cities we just captured. We need to replenish our lost combat power by mobilizing troops from other regions and conscripting militia, and we also need new military supplies... Attacking Gloria now is too risky. The most urgent task is to take advantage of the fact that we don't have to worry about Tianlu's attack for the time being and speed up the completion of these necessary constructions."

""""""""Clear!""""""""

"Oh, right, there's one more thing. I know everyone is grieving for our fallen comrades, but we don't have time to hold funerals for them right now. There are just too many things to do. Let's wait until we've successfully calmed the public down."

Then, everyone dispersed, Yun Can left as well, while Loxue called out to Nid and Brad.

"Wait a moment, I have something important to discuss."

The Cathedral of the True God, the Pope's Room --

"So, the Heavenly Law just used divine magic to send a message saying that she is..." The Pope sighed, rubbing his forehead.

"On the moon, you heard me right, my old friend, our strongest forces are hundreds of thousands of kilometers away, and there is only a vacuum and barren land there." Cardinal Archbishop Latran Carlisle shrugged.

"You mean, she... she got caught in a ditch and died?"

"You should know her strength best. This level of strength isn't enough to kill her, but getting her back will definitely take a lot of effort and time."

"... Uh-huh-huh-huh-huh..."

The Pope's face looked as if he had swallowed a mouthful of berberine. His hands, gripping the armrests of his chair, trembled violently with rage, the veins bulging. He stood up, sat down, and stood up again, opening his mouth as if to shout something, but nothing came out. This went on for about half a minute before he slumped back into his armchair, his features contorted in a grimace.

"In short... we'll discuss the matter of Heavenly Laws later. Now—" The Pope abruptly turned his head, looking at the two people standing in the corner. Every word he spoke trembled with anger, "—what explanation do you two have for me?"

"..."

The useless Goddess —the sacrificial spirit—turned pale and dared not raise her head.

Meanwhile, the disheveled knight, Yang Yujie, still maintained his carefree and nonchalant demeanor.

"Yang Yujie, you, as the Chief Templar Knight, have received numerous reports of your improper attitude and contempt for doctrine... I've let those things slide, but you need to explain yourself! What about taking the Goddess out of Gloria without permission!?"

"Oh dear, this..."

"No—Grandpa Pope, it's not Yu Jie's fault, it's my fault—"

"Um!?"

The Pope's furious eyes swept over her, and she immediately felt her legs go weak and fell silent.

For the first time, Yu Jie frowned.

"Hey, Pope, you can scold me all you want, but don't bully a little girl. It's all my fault, not hers."

"You--"

"The Chief is right," Latran interjected at the opportune moment, "It's precisely in times like these that we need to stay calm, isn't that your motto?"

"... Okay, I was too excited."

The Pope shook his head; he looked ten years older in an instant.

"Since that's the case... then let's announce your punishment. I, in the name of the Pope, declare— Yang Yujie, the Chief Templar Knight, acted on his own initiative and seriously violated the rules of the Church. Although he did play a certain role in hindering the Rebel Army in Sadington, his merits do not outweigh his demerits, and he must be severely punished!"

"No... please, it's really not Yu Jie's fault..."

"Shh, Spirit Sacrifice-chan, the Pope is talking about serious matters, don't interrupt." Yu Jie smiled easily at Ji Ling, who was about to cry, and wagged his index finger.

"... Normally, it wouldn't be surprising if you were sent to the gallows, but now is the time when the Rebel Army are causing trouble, and we can't afford to lose such an important fighting force as you. So from now on, Yang Yujie will be sent to the Confession Hall and confined for one year!"

"Don't want..."

The spirit priest wanted to plead for Yu Jie, but Yu Jie just shrugged.

"Well, this is much easier than I expected. Let's do it this way then. Remember to visit me during this time, okay, Spirit Sacrifice-chan? And now that I'm out of Spirit Sacrifice-chan's sight, I can finally smoke without any worries!"

"You—tsk, a patrol team will be here to pick you up soon. You'd better reflect on your actions in the confessional! As for you, Sacrificial Spirit..."

"..."

The Pope opened and closed his mouth a few times, but in the end he only let out a heavy sigh.

"You... sigh, punishing you is pointless, and you'll even have to perform a memorial service. During this time, a squad of knights will be temporarily assigned to act as your Guardian Knight. Just stay in the Pure Courtyard... and of course, whatever you do, don't cause me any more trouble."

"Understood..."

The spirit bowed its head again.

She knew that anything she said now would only anger the Pope and cause him to take his anger out on Yu Jie.

Her complexion wasn't so bad anymore.

Only his lips remained tightly pressed together.

The things she experienced and saw in the Sadington underground sanctuary flashed through her mind like a slideshow.

A strange feeling began to sprout in her heart.

The Holy City Gloria, where all the beauty of the world resides.

But what about outside?

Is the world really as wonderful as the scriptures describe?

And who was that unfamiliar gray-haired girl with a Goddess -like aura whom she brushed past in the underground?

Are there actually four Goddess?

Ultimately, if the descriptions of the outside world and the Goddess don't match the scriptures—

What exactly is the Divine Law Cult?

The spirit sacrifice, for the first time, began to doubt the world it inhabited.

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The signal was passable at four locations last weekend... but there are still three more to go this week...