The witch hunt within the Papal State has intensified to the point of becoming a product of political correctness.
Countless Vampire were nailed to stakes or burned at the stake, their lives ending in tragedy, never to return to their former arrogance.
With His Holiness Pope Adam's gaze fixed on the Vampire, he naturally had little energy to pay attention to the developments outside.
With the outbreak of war following his strategy of using one enemy to devour another, the Boya Empire and its surrounding smaller states were thrown into chaos, fighting amongst themselves. However, it is undeniable that this move did indeed facilitate the consolidation of power among these states and forced them to undergo reforms.
The only downside was that Pope Adam set a bad precedent for slaughter, which led to massacres whenever the struggle between these nobles and the king reached its climax, resulting in unnecessary bloodshed.
It can be said that the Papal State' massacre completely opened the door to unrestricted warfare.
The once restrictive feudal lord system was gradually replaced by a centralized system. Such a level of national reform was a great advancement for human society, but it also meant that dynastic changes began. (There were no peasant uprisings during the period of Europe feudal states because of their feudal system; with the demise of the feudal system, uprisings naturally followed.)
In contrast, Norton's Blood Court, due to its outdated clan system resembling a feudal system, is actually reversing the course of history.
But His Majesty Norton didn't seem to care.
As the construction of the wonders progressed smoothly, Norton turned his attention back to himself and the Blood Court.
The Blood Court was built primarily to counter and overthrow the Papal State, and also to prevent it from posing a threat to Norton.
What could possibly pose a threat to Norton? Currently, only the Papal State seem to be the answer.
As for whether Norton will eventually be bombed with nuclear weapons as human technology develops, that's too far in the future, and there's no need to throw the baby out with the bathwater.
Therefore, Norton not only did not hinder the growing cultural and intellectual trends among the humans within the Blood Court, but instead guided them to further prosper, thus facilitating advancements in productivity.
No matter how many Vampire there are, they can only defend against sneak attacks from Holy Knight; they still have no advantage against the Papal State.
After all, the Church possesses special methods to combat Vampire. Putting aside everything else, in the event of a large-scale war, if every Church member had a picture of God, the Vampire simply couldn't withstand it.
There's absolutely no need to send troops; simply shining a picture of the image on the ground, within a certain distance, will allow the holiness of God to penetrate clothing and armor, burning the Vampire inside to nothingness.
Therefore, in order for the Blood Court to have the power to fight the Church, in addition to Vampire as combatants, human knights are also needed as vanguards to destroy the walls painted with murals of God and to damage the religious ornaments that symbolize God's holiness.
Therefore, in order to enable the Blood Court to have the means to deal with the Church's special attacks, Norton issued a decree ordering Grand Duke Abraham and Grand Duke Elizabeth to jointly build a human knight force as an effective means of resisting the Church.
Humans who become knights are granted privileges, and the length of their service is recorded in their slave life. After becoming Vampire, they can reduce their slave service time by half and evolve into Third-Generation Vampire more quickly.
As for whether humans might develop some less desirable ideas after gaining power?
Norton wasn't worried about that at all.
Each of them could possess eternal life; as long as they methodically pass the time, they wouldn't have any other thoughts unless they were fools. After all, what difference does it make whether they are ruled by Norton or by someone else?
His Majesty Norton is already so magnanimous and benevolent, even willing to share the blood of immortality. Who else in the world has such a spirit?
The humans of the Blood Court need not worry about whether they will rebel; on the contrary, Norton himself has developed a slight covetousness for his own flesh and blood.
Blood Court Holy City, Tower of Blood.
Swarms of bats danced around the Tower of Blood, which was not only a sacred tower for the Blood Clan but also a sacred tower for bats.
The Norton family, in particular, has grown to an uncountable number over the years, almost turning the Tower of Blood into a Bat Tower.
After years of building wonders, His Majesty Norton, clad in blood-red robes, finally returned to his royal city.
The passage of several years seemed like a dream to His Majesty Norton, with nothing changing... no, there were some changes.
Norton's tall frame seemed to have become a little more hunched, and the festering sores on his body were even more intense, as if flakes of skin could fall off with every step he took.
"Your Majesty!"
Elizabeth, who had been waiting inside the tower, could no longer hide her joy as she looked at the pale, tall monster.
She walked forward, her delicate body trembling, then prostrated herself on the ground, excitedly and humbly stretching out her head to kiss His Majesty's instep.
This pale monster had trained her for five long years. Everything she did was to prove herself in front of this monster. Only by gaining the emperor's approval could she feel satisfied.
In His Majesty's absence, she found it difficult to feel any spiritual fulfillment in doing anything.
Compared to her, Abraham was far more engrossed in power; he had been away on inspection tours for some time and had not yet returned.
After all, he's a local tyrant outside, but if he comes back, he can only be Norton's lackey. Nobody wants to come back then!
Get up.
Norton's dark eyes swept indifferently over Elizabeth, who was kneeling on the ground.
With her further advancement and the disappearance of her two long, pointed front teeth, her already high level of beauty has been elevated to another level, making her look like an ice queen or a typical Vampire beauty.
It's a pity that black reflective leather jackets didn't exist in this era, otherwise I could have cosplayed as the female lead from " Underworld ".
As Norton spoke, Elizabeth stood up with utmost respect, eager to impress him. Even as the pale monster before her grew increasingly hideous, she remained poised and elegant, displaying her charm.
Only her delicate, white toes, gripping the ground tightly, betrayed her still-nervous heart.
But Norton, being quite old, was no longer surprised by this.
"Starting today, dispatch personnel to capture Werewolf, human criminals, and creatures such as deer, wolves, and pigs, and imprison them in the thirtieth floor of the Tower of Blood."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Elizabeth quickly responded, but couldn't help feeling a little disappointed.
His Majesty didn't even glance at her; his intentions are truly unfathomable.
Watching Elizabeth's departing figure, Norton slowly closed his dark eyes.
"Squeak squeak squeak..." Several bats suddenly flapped their wings and flew in from outside the tower, then hung upside down affectionately in the crevices of Norton's withered and festering skin, occasionally nibbling on the bits of skin that fell from his body.
These are the offspring of Coal Ball and Plum Blossom, and also family members who are nearing the end of their lives. They have already acquired the qualifications to feed and evolve.