The Dark Sun Cyric

It was him!

Cyric!

The moment Avram Krell heard those titles, that name sprang to mind.

He was no stranger to this powerful evil god, who had been active in the Fourth Era.

Graycastle's historical records devoted considerable space to him.

"If the Priests of the Church of the One are all his followers, it's no wonder my predecessor was assassinated."

Graycastle held all the knowledge in the world, so every member of the Church of Knowledge was well versed in all manner of strange magic.

But against Cyric's followers, who excelled at deception, murder, and conspiracy, Avram was impressed that the former bishop had survived three plots.

"And I'm next."

Avram Krell's brow furrowed. "Normally, after openly assassinating a bishop, they'd go into hiding to evade the church's coming manhunt and reappear once things had died down. But the Dark Sun's followers are different... According to the records, he showed signs of madness before his fall. His influence drove those who served him mad as well."

"Madmen are the hardest to predict. I can't count on them hiding like ordinary people... I can tell the Archbishop what I know. And the Paladins of the Church of Justice, too. Those warriors who've received power from Heavenly Mountain despise evil, and the Dark Sun's followers are evil by nature."

"And then there's His Highness. With his protection, I wouldn't have to worry about the Dark Sun's followers."

"The Dark Sun? The Prince of Lies? Didn't he fall?" Fiona Russell asked openly.

Many gods had fallen in the previous era, this powerful evil god among them. Plenty of popular adventure tales mentioned it.

After all, nearly every villain plotting in the shadows in those tales was a follower of the Dark Sun.

"He fell, but that doesn't mean his followers can't draw divine power from him through specific rituals. Besides, gods don't simply stay dead. Graycastle's history books contain countless accounts of gods returning centuries, even millennia, after their fall."

Avram Krell glanced at Ieta Cavendish. The Cavendish family drew its power through rituals from the fallen Lathander, Lord of the Morninglord. They had always worked to resurrect him. If not for the Lord of Dawn's suppression, they would likely still be maintaining the Church of the Morninglord.

Then Avram turned to Jiang Hao. After a moment's hesitation, he spoke. "Your Highness, I'm about to become bishop of the Church of Knowledge's Khedag Branch in the Kingdom of Khedag. I hope to receive your protection. What price would you ask of me?"

Why not seek help from the God of Knowledge? The god had too many followers and rarely paid attention to them. Most of the time, he was a quiet reader in the Hall of Knowledge.

He wants my protection? But I'm not a True God, and I can't leave Ganzros City. How am I supposed to protect him? Jiang Hao considered it, then gave a simple answer.

"Yes."

He paused and revised what he had been about to say. "I'm interested in 'wisdom.' I once tried to claim it, but failed. I want to know which god secretly holds it."

No wonder His Highness said, "You can't afford to repay me for my help." All he's offering is protection, yet he's asking for a divine secret. His price is steep. But that's only natural. He's a great god with countless matters demanding his attention. Of course his help wouldn't come cheap... Ieta Cavendish decided he would avoid asking a god for help unless he had no other choice.

Is this what gods concern themselves with? They really are on a different level from ordinary professionals like us. Fiona Russell listened closely. Maybe one day I'll learn to speak and act like him.

Avram Krell's paper face tightened with conflict. After hesitating for a while, he instinctively lowered his voice. "In fact, my lord is also the Enlightener of Wisdom."

The God of Knowledge, Oghma, secretly holds authority over "wisdom"?

A thought flashed through Jiang Hao's mind.

No wonder I couldn't claim it.

Avram Krell figured that, since he had already said that much, he might as well say more. "According to the historical records, Immanuel, the God of Wisdom, first appeared in the Third Era."

"Magic flourished in that era. Ingenious mages developed all kinds of magical devices based on arcane energy cores, such as floating cities and arcane cannons... Immanuel was one of the most creative mages of his time. After he became a True God, a group of mage followers naturally gathered around him. They called him Immanuel the Wise."

"But the truth is that my lord had already taken hold of Immanuel when he advanced to Legendary rank. Immanuel became my lord's avatar in the mortal world, and my lord controlled him from then on. His supposed ascension to true godhood was also my lord's doing: he supplied the divine power that granted those followers their spells."

"It wasn't until the Fourth Era that Immanuel truly became a True God by claiming authority over 'wisdom.' Soon afterward came news that Immanuel, the God of Wisdom, had fallen. In truth, my lord had reclaimed that avatar. Since then, my lord has also held a hidden title: the Enlightener of Wisdom."

"So it was him." Jiang Hao smiled, pretending he could speak with gods as an equal. Before anyone else could respond, he asked, "I want to know how many Legendary figures and Demigods the Church of Dawn has, what their class abilities are, and how many Divine Artifacts they possess."

"Of course, I'll offer something of equal value in return."

His Highness seems particularly interested in the Lord of Dawn. Is he asking about the Church of Dawn's strongest members because he intends to destroy it? After a moment's thought, Ieta Cavendish said, "Your Highness, may I have a little time? Just a few minutes."

Jiang Hao gave a soft laugh. "Of course."

Ieta Cavendish closed his eyes, and the white light around him dimmed slightly. A moment later, he opened them, collected his thoughts, and said, "The Church of Dawn has three Demigods, sixteen Legendary figures, and two Divine Artifacts."

"The three Demigods are Pope Joseph Duben, Heresy Inquisitor Wilmot, and Nitasabun, the Light of All Worlds."

"The sixteen Legendary figures are Ather the Silver Dragon Slayer, Fulgres the Battlefield Master, Cecil the Arbiter, Sktir the Master Deathprayer, Jolez the Godsworn, Lestapa the Master Illusionist..."