When Ed heard nursery rhymes like "When the Son of God comes, there will be no taxes" ringing in his ears, Ed had to forcefully suppress the upward curve of his lips.
Although he doesn't know how many times this has happened, he still has to say it—the players are incredibly creative.
At this moment, all four gates of Black Pine City had fallen, and most of the Holy Crusaders had been captured or surrendered, with only a small number still putting up a stubborn resistance.
It's unclear how much the Tree Worship Church is paying these guys to be so dedicated, or perhaps some of them know they'll be purged, which is why they're still resisting.
However, there are positive aspects as well. Due to the decades-long problems plaguing Black Pine City and the increased average level of players, conquering it was indeed slightly easier than conquering Fir City.
The three churches in the city, one large and two small, could be put into use with almost no renovations.
As for what it's used for?
It's definitely not a statue for worshipping the World Tree.
The cathedral will continue to be a rotating Dungeon for the Grand Knights, while the smaller chapel will serve as a branch of the Adventurers' Guild and a branch of the High-Quality Charcoal Processing Plant.
The Dungeon, designed for players to level up and enjoy combat, go without saying. The Adventurers' Guild, jointly managed by NPCs and players, have now become the administrative organization of the Second Holy See. After all, for a little silver or copper coins, new players will help solve most of the problems encountered by the NPCs.
The common people of the Tree Worship Church, no longer facing hardship, are less likely to cause trouble because they won't go hungry. This is one of the reasons why the Second Holy See has a high degree of overall stability.
As for the High-Quality Charcoal Processing Plant, the main plant in Valhalla is already overcrowded and it's really difficult to squeeze in any more people.
The chapel in Fitz Province stepped in at this critical moment, providing much-needed relief.
With the examples of Aduolin Province and Fitz Province already set, it's believed that players will continue to handle new provinces they conquer in the same way.
In this way, Ed doesn't have to worry too much about this matter, at least not until they reach the Holy City.
Inside the Black Pine City Cathedral, Ed and Duma sat facing each other.
Although the four eyes made the demon's expression look somewhat incongruous, Ed could still sense the genuine joy on Duma's face.
You did a great job this time.
Ed first praised the demon in front of him, while Duma bowed his head and said:
"It's all thanks to the Son of God's skillful command."
Ed thought to himself that this was no way to flatter someone. He hadn't done anything, so praising his ideas would have been enough. Instead, he had to say that he had given excellent command. He didn't even know what he had actually commanded.
However, since things had come to this point, Ed nodded and took out the map he had prepared, spreading it out between the two of them:
" Duma."
His tone became more formal:
"For the next period of time, my attention will be focused on the Blood Corpse in the Wilderness of Chaos of the East. I intend to hand over the entire battlefront of the Tree Worship Church to you."
As Ed pointed to several other provinces bordering Fitz Province and Aduolin Province and said:
"As the territory of the Second Holy See expands, there will be more and more things you need to pay attention to, and your energy will inevitably be spread out."
"However, there are advantages as well. The existence of the Second Holy See and me is no longer a secret, and as information spreads, some people will gradually become more ambitious."
" My Son of God, do you mean...?"
Duma asked thoughtfully, while Ed nodded:
"Some pragmatic people will contact you. After all, it's human nature to be opportunistic. If someone is willing to surrender their entire city to the Second Holy See, the Soul Returner can go and receive them directly."
"As for how to establish a local Adventurers' Guild branch and how to appease the common people, you can decide those things yourself. You don't need to report everything to me."
"Just one thing to clarify beforehand..."
Ed looked into Duma's eyes and said:
" Those Stained Ones, even if they surrender voluntarily, cannot escape punishment. After investigation, the severity of their crimes must still be assessed, and they will be sent to High-Quality Charcoal Processing Plant or Dungeon, depending on the results."
Duma nodded upon hearing this:
"Yes, Son of God Highness."
He had experienced and heard of such things many times, especially during the war between the two human nations before the Demonic Tide. There were always things like surrendering and having one's crimes wiped clean. Duma was used to it.
He was surprised by Ed's still harsh attitude towards the Stained Ones had surrendered.
However, upon closer examination, it becomes clear that the reason why two human nations are using this method to undermine each other is essentially because they cannot achieve overwhelming power and are forced to make some concessions.
Although the Second Holy See now only occupies two provinces, its number of combat-ready troops is no less than half of the Tree Worship Church Theocracy.
And then, considering these guys' fearlessness and ability to resurrect, Duma suddenly understood everything.
The Second Holy See's overwhelming power over its neighbors meant that Ed could disregard conventions such as the reduced sentence for voluntary surrender.
Moreover, given the current situation, Duma knew this was those guys' last chance; otherwise, it would be too late to do anything once the Soul Returner' army was on their way.
"Of course, it's fine if they don't surrender voluntarily. We can just take them down one by one according to the map. The advice we gave to the Soul Returner still applies. If you find that some Soul Returner have surpassed the Low Tier Middle Grade level, you can proactively suggest that they go to the Eastern Front. The Grand Duke there is about to be revived and needs quite a few people."
Duma nodded and wrote down Ed's suggestion, while the boy in front of her said:
"One last thing, a new colleague has joined us, come out--"
As Ed finished speaking, a Pixel Blue Dragon appeared in front of Duma.
The demon also had certain Root Network permissions, so it could see a Blue Dragon made up of a bunch of pixels flapping its wings at the edge of its field of vision.
" My Son of God, what is this?"
Duma had never seen Noya in any form before, so he was inevitably a little curious.
"She is the remnant soul of a Blue Dragon, currently residing in my Root Network to help me handle relevant matters."
"If you have any needs regarding resource allocation, recruiting Soul Returner, or issuing missions, you can contact her directly."
"I understand."
Duma lowered his head deeply.
Although he had lived for over a thousand years, the demon Duma had not encountered many dragons.
He knew that dragons were arrogant and conceited, but not very bright; they were like powder kegs, ready to explode at the slightest provocation.
Now, two proud dragons are respectfully serving the Son of God before them ( Seraphina:?), which makes Duma glad that he chose the right side.
I wonder how things are going in the Holy City. Has Geliwusi not made a decision yet?
Should we write him a letter to urge him on?