A few days later.
The slump brought about by the Sea God Stone trade still had not completely faded. The once-prosperous Imperial Main City remained cold and deserted.
Under such circumstances, many shops chose to close temporarily or even permanently. It was hard to make a living in a big city... Better to go back home and raise pigs.
Yet at this very moment, a building in District DC appeared before the public after undergoing some simple renovations.
This area had always been a mixed bag, so naturally, the common folk could not miss such a development.
"Isn't this property that used to belong to the Iron Wing Family? It's been abandoned ever since Grand Duke Gu Jian confiscated their estate twelve years ago... Who bought it?"
"No idea. Probably some bastard who got rich off Sea God Stones... What did they turn it into? The doors are shut in broad daylight. Who knows what they're selling?"
"Here, here! Why is the sign so small? And it's hanging crooked... What is this? Sacred Fire... Cat Cult?"
After going through so much trouble just to find the sign, everyone was utterly confused.
But someone was the first to realize that something was wrong. "Could this be some kind of... blasphemous gathering?"
With the Church looming overhead, all unofficial gatherings were strictly regulated. If anything showed signs of growing, the Church's priests and Templar Knights would immediately be dispatched, leaving blood in their wake wherever they went.
Such incidents were not common, but whenever one occurred, it was never a small matter. It was a grave crime, practically on par with treason.
For the people of the Hualan Empire, the most memorable case had been five years ago. Back then, a noble had used a similar pretext to throw a massive party.