Return from the Other Shore: The Fifth Volume - Chapter 438: The Mole

The spirit's consciousness was plunged into darkness.

--Then, it became clear again.

"...?"

Is this what death feels like?

It seems there's not much difference between and?

She opened her eyes--

What you see is a sharp blade being swung down.

And Selace's tattooed head, which was slashed into the air, fell to the ground, and was then kicked away.

"... I'm not targeting any specific person--"

A strong arm embraced him.

The warm darkness enveloped her.

"I just want to say that everyone here is rotten to the core!"

Boom!!!!!

Like liquid darkness erupting forth, it assimilated the surrounding air in an instant! The raging black storm obscured vision and destroyed the walls! Yu Jie roared, holding the sacrificial spirit protected by the black cocoon in one arm and the Sword of Judgment in the other, and charged with all his might toward the hole in the wall!

"You bastard!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

A near-mad roar came from behind him. Yu Jie immediately lowered his body, and a golden beam of light grazed his hair as it flew past! The beam of light not only missed Yu Jie, but instead blasted through the ceiling! Yu Jie stepped on the assimilated air and leaped through the ceiling, heading towards an even higher level!

"Thanks, you little bitch Tianlu~~ You cleared the way for me, aren't you fucking thoughtful?"

"Stop right there!!!!!!"

A flash of holy light shattered the darkness that had been shielding their vision! A figure enveloped in golden light rapidly approached, the Sword of Holy Light in its hand radiating an unparalleled aura of destruction!

"Night's Net!"

With a wave of his hand, Yu Jie unleashed a deluge of darkness upon Tian Lu, instantly blackening the dust in the air and forming layers of impenetrable netting!

"Tsk tsk tsk, it was indeed a bit ill-considered, but it should delay her for a few seconds..."

In the next instant, the Night's Net was pierced by the arrows of holy light.

"Don't run away!!!!"

"... Give me some face!"

From bottom to top, Tian Lu's fist transformed into a diamond-like clarity; from top to bottom, Yu Jie's Sword of Judgment was now covered in darkness and pinkish-purple patterns!

An approaching Divine Envoy, a knight protecting the Princess.

Fist and sword, clashing head-on!

"Cough cough... cough cough..."

From the moment Yu Jie released darkness to assimilate the air, to his escape through the shattered ceiling, and then to the enraged Tian Lu giving chase, everything happened in the span of seconds.

"Ugh... what... is this?!"

A flash of holy light swept away the dust, and the Pope emerged from the rubble. His entire body was covered in silvery divine lightning, which protected him from harm at the crucial moment.

The Pope was, after all, the most powerful Divine Spellcaster in the Divine Law Cult besides the Heavenly Law. Although the incident was sudden and he was old, he immediately released a divine spell to protect himself, showing no less prowess than before.

Although Yu Jie and Tian Lu had long since disappeared, he also choked on a mouthful of ash.

He kicked something, looked down—

It was a bald head covered in tattoos, with a frozen, sinister grin on his face, looking both bloody and comical.

"Dead... Selace, he's actually... dead?"

That usually irresponsible scoundrel actually killed the chief judge and saved the sacrificial spirit who was supposed to be executed by him?

"Bastard... bastard... bastard... bastard!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

The Pope roared in a hoarse voice, never having felt so defeated in his seventy-odd years of life! He had failed to quell the Rebel Army, the Goddess had spied on his secrets, the Chief Templar Knight had rebelled, and now was the moment when he was about to face the Rebel Army in a decisive battle! All the devastating things had come at once; how could he possibly face the Pope of the past if things continued like this!

"Ahem... Pope Holiness! Are you alright?"

The Brother Simon protected the Prayer, Saladin protected Latran, and the few remaining Templar Knight rushed to the Pope's side.

"I'm fine! Everyone, right now—!?"

The Pope's heart skipped a beat for no apparent reason, and a sharp pain, accompanied by dizziness, pierced his brain, as if he had been struck by a heavy hammer! He clutched his head and knelt on the ground, his body trembling uncontrollably, but no one came to help him up—because everyone else was clutching their heads and groaning incessantly!

Although this was the first time he had experienced such pain, the Pope knew what it meant.

This is a warning signal. When the sacred domain surrounding Gloria is in danger, it will send a headache to the people at the core of the barrier. The severity of the headache is proportional to the level of danger.

"Such excruciating pain... could it be... impossible?!"

The Pope's heart skipped a beat, his bloodshot eyes staring ahead as if trying to pierce through walls to see the boundary of the Sanctuary! At the same time, the most urgent divine message resounded in his mind—

"Pope Holiness, something terrible has happened! The main force of the Rebel Army is already approaching Gloria! At least a week ahead of schedule!!!"

"What!? This is impossible!"

He couldn't help but shout it out.

"Impossible! We're not blind. If such a large army were marching here, we would have spotted them from a distance of a thousand miles—no, the moment they set off! Why didn't we receive any intelligence about the enemy's presence before? Why did the news only arrive when they were at the city gates!?"

"I'm sorry... but we don't know either! We haven't received any news from the cities along the way—or perhaps the news was intercepted midway!"

"Damn it, how could this happen! Demon Extermination Thunder Seal!!!"

The Pope raised his hand and pointed above his head, and a beam of light composed entirely of divine lightning flew upwards, blasting through the ceiling! He stomped his foot hard, and a dazzling bolt of lightning appeared at his toes, propelling him upwards!

"Thunder Wings!"

Wings of divine lightning appeared behind him, and fine currents enveloped him, as if he had transformed into a bolt of lightning! In a flash of bright light, he vanished from his spot, leaving only a faint afterimage. The next instant, he passed through the ceiling and appeared above the Cathedral of the True God!

Pope Saint Anicetus was able to defeat countless competitors and sit on the top seat of the Divine Law Cult not only because of his terrifying connections and masterful political maneuvering, but also because of his status and strength.

The Grand Master of High-Ranking Divine Spellcaster, the Chief Divine Spellcaster of the Imperial Guard, and the Head of the Special Divine Sorcerer Class at the Central Divine Academy, he is the strongest Divine Spellcaster besides the Celestial Law Cult. Before being formally incorporated into the Order of the Divine Law Cult, he was already an extremely powerful lightning elemental ability user. Even after his ability was integrated into divine spells by the Order, he still focused on lightning divine spells, which are known for their high burst damage, high speed, and high energy consumption. Although he is no longer young, his mastery of divine spells has not declined, making him a truly vigorous and capable individual despite his advanced age.

However, even he, with his enhanced vision, couldn't help but bite his lip when he saw the city's edge from above using a visual enhancement spell.

It was an army that even he couldn't find fault with; tens of thousands of soldiers in dark red uniforms simultaneously charged the city from four directions, like a blood-red tide crashing onto an isolated island, while the sacred barrier that should have kept the Revolutionary Army out—

"Disappeared..."

Not a trace was left.

Gloria is now like a naked young girl, waiting to be ravaged by the enemy tide.

"Why is this happening...? Gloria's Sanctuary is the most secure, and its central hub is located in the Cathedral of the True God. Only an insider should have the opportunity to disable it..."

Moreover, why did they have to come at this crucial moment, of all times? Did all the troublesome things just happen at this critical juncture?

"Is it that... traitor?"

Following the Sadington Incident, the numerous unusual occurrences of the Sadington garrison, along with the earlier ambush of the Heavy Armor Brigade, led the Pope to deeply suspect the existence of a traitor within the Cathedral of the True God.

Now, a series of events have finally come together—

In the entire Cathedral of the True God, who is the only person of unknown origin yet of extremely high status?

It's that guy.

Who is it that consistently acts abnormally, disregards the law, and shows the least reverence for God?

It's that guy.

In the Battle of Sadington, who made the outrageous move, and who let Nid Bradwich escape?

It's that guy.

If the priests were instigated by someone to spy on the Vatican's taboos, who is that person most likely?

It's that guy.

Who defied orders in front of everyone and killed Selace?

It's that guy.

Why did the Sanctuary malfunction and the Revolutionary Army attack at the exact same time this happened?

It's all because of that guy.

Why didn't I suspect him at all?

"I see..."

His wrinkled hands clenched tightly, his fingernails scratching his skin until it bled.

"So that's how it is... I see! All along, you've always faced everyone with that carefree attitude, and because of that, no matter how outrageous your behavior, others will only attribute it to your 'improperness,' ignoring the more obvious possibilities! By doing the opposite, you've avoided arousing suspicion! You're something else, really something!!!"

Then, the Pope's voice, amplified by divine magic, resounded throughout the entire Cathedral of the True God.

"Attention everyone! All Imperial Guard, immediately go on high alert to repel the Rebel Army! Also—it has been confirmed that Yang Yujie, the Chief Templar Knight, is a traitor within the Revolutionary Army! The target is currently on the run; once spotted, immediately assist the Heavenly Law in eliminating him!!!"

"The Sanctuary's reaction has been confirmed to have completely disappeared. Just as previously agreed, our inside agent will find a way to eliminate the Sanctuary during the attack on Gloria. Moreover, there is new intelligence: at the same time that the Sanctuary disappeared and our main force began its charge, an unknown chaos occurred inside the Cathedral of the True God, severely disrupting their operations."

"It seems the inside man has succeeded without a doubt. Sadington's hard work has not been in vain. It's wonderful that it went so smoothly."

Nid rested his chin on his clasped hands, listening to Saleh's report with a smile.

Although it was a smile, Saleh felt a chill.

"What's the situation at the front?"

"The first and second units are trying their best to draw the fire of the Divine Spellcaster, while the other units are flanking from the side. It seems that the inside agent has indeed blocked the news of our arrival very well. The Papal army is obviously not fully prepared."

"... That being said, how long can the First and Second Units hold out? After all, they're just cannon fodder; if they delay for another twenty minutes or so, they'll probably be wiped out."

Nid stood up and shrugged.

"Cannon fodder," "total annihilation"—these are words he would never have mentioned before, but now he can say them so easily and naturally.

No matter how many times he watched it, Saleh would marvel at how completely Nid had changed. Yet even so, at that final meeting, he did not hesitate to choose to continue following Nid, as did the other captains.

Despite having strayed from their original intentions, Saleh and the division commanders felt a surge of energy they had never experienced before.

"Alright, I've rested enough, it's about time for the battle--"

Nid shouldered the Greatsword that was as thick as himself, his best friend's sword.

"--For the sake of the so-called common people, and for my own petty ambitions."

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