Being Interrogated by the Demon King Counts as a Credential
From the outside, the water dungeon in Fire God Gully looks like a row of large houses with white walls and black tiles, nothing special.
Outsiders peeked in when the door opened and saw that the room seemed to be all flat floor, with no protrusions.
In fact, the water dungeon was designed like a series of square pools dug out of flat ground, each pool covered with an iron fence.
The prisoners brought here were first chained up and then carried into the water dungeon like buckets of water, suspended in mid-air as they fell foot by foot until the sewage reached their waists, at which point the bars were closed.
Finally, the other end of the chain was tied to the iron fence.
In this way, the prisoner is both suspended and soaked, with his acupoints restricted. The sewage is also mixed with unknown poisons, and often within just a few hours, he becomes numb and weak, feeling as if his entire body is no longer under his control.
The church members have been hanging here for a day and half a night.
No one cleaned their wounds, and they weren't even given a drop of water or food.
Several priests, unable to contain themselves any longer, cried out repeatedly, hoping to confess voluntarily, saying whatever came to mind, just in exchange for a little water.
"Oh, how embarrassing."
The priest knew that reprimanding them at this point would be of little use, and he could only feel annoyed inwardly.
The members of the Astronomical Esoteric Monastery have been almost completely wiped out, leaving only two young men. The church has even sent a priest to lead the hunt, which shows how serious they are.
Unexpectedly, those two young people were so resilient, capable, and intelligent that they managed to travel thousands of miles in exile.
The priests and their companions became increasingly engrossed in the pursuit. Initially, they were somewhat complacent and joking, but later they realized that if they couldn't personally capture these two people, they would be ridiculed by their colleagues for the rest of their lives.
"If we had sought help from the Inquisition earlier and sent a different group of ascetics to pursue them, we might have succeeded much sooner."
"Even if we assume the ascetics were lured here, they would likely be able to endure the torture and wouldn't bring such a disgrace to the Church."
The more the priest thought about it, the more hopeless he felt for the rest of his life.
Even if they manage to escape alive, they will inevitably face countless taunts and punishments upon returning.
As he alternated between dejection and resentment, someone went up to the top of the water dungeon and pounded on the bars with a wooden stick.
"Wake up, all of you! Come out and stand trial!!"
The gate was forcibly pried open.
With the skill of these guards, even with many living people hanging below the fence, they could lift it up without much effort.
Other disciples on both sides reached out and grabbed the iron chains, pulling the person upwards.
In his drowsy state, the priest suddenly noticed that the expressions of his disciples were somewhat like a mirror image of his own men.
There's such a stark difference between guards and prisoners, one dressed neatly and the other disheveled.
But the fear and unease in their expressions were remarkably similar.
The priest, filled with curiosity, silently recited the Gospel and prayed for protection, as he was led along in chains.
The stars and moon outside were already faint, and it was still dark; it was early morning. Before long, they arrived at a deep mountain forest.
Ahead lies a courtyard nestled against the mountain and beside the water. Every brick and tile exudes a refined and meticulous beauty, collectively creating a solemn and weathered atmosphere.
The priest heard someone speaking in the main hall of the courtyard.
"I didn't manage to defeat Hou Renyu, but those elders and disciples were all knocked down the moment you opened your eyes."
The Dream-Eating Marquis held his teacup, took two sips, and muttered to himself.
"Since I've come all this way, I should at least be of some use. Otherwise, shouldn't the three of us have launched a surprise attack together in the first place?"
Chu Tianshu sat in the main seat of this spacious hall. The eight-treasure oil-dish chandelier on the beam had a steady flame, producing no smoke or odor, and illuminated the entire hall brightly.
Even his clothes seemed to shimmer with a pale golden light.
"Ha! You've also infiltrated the tunnels. I'm afraid Hou Renyu will sense it beforehand, which would be bad."
Chu Tianshu stroked the black knife in his hand and said, "The distance I calculated for you and the position I arranged were the most appropriate. If you want to blame someone, blame him for not holding out until that place."
The Dream-Eating Marquis couldn't help but glance towards the west side of the main hall.
The layout of the hall is divided into three parts. On the west side, a silk thread hangs from the beam, with a silkworm cocoon suspended from it.
Hou Renyu was wrapped inside a silkworm cocoon, with only his head sticking out, looking half-dead.
The Dream-Eating Marquis shook his head. "Then forget it."
When the priest and the others came in, they happened to follow his gaze and glanced in that direction. They saw Hou Renyu and were immediately shocked, so shocked that they were speechless.
"Having seen the Great Immortal Zongheng, why don't you pay your respects?!"
The disciple escorting the priest struck him on the back with a stick.
The priest staggered half a step, even more shocked.
The Great Immortal Zongheng?!
Back then, Prince Xuan Taizu drove away the religious sects and disliked Buddhism and Daoism, but he was relatively lenient towards the incense offerings of the Great Immortal Zongheng among the people.
People in the church may not be very familiar with the beliefs of other gods and Buddhas in the land of Nine Provinces, but they have a unique affection for the Great Immortal Zongheng.
Many church scholars have studied why the Great Immortal Zongheng Divination" was able to maintain a following under the rule of the Eastern tyrant.
However, these scholars who delved into the study of the "Great Immortal Zongheng" originally intended to "learn from the master's skills to control the master," but many of them, after studying it extensively, became prone to slandering the church and making disrespectful remarks in secret.
This incident clearly confirms that "Great Immortal Zongheng" does indeed possess extraordinary magical power and is very adept at corrupting people.
Has this old demon king actually transformed into a human again and come to walk among Human World?
The priest couldn't help himself; he touched his shoulders, head, and chest, made the sign of the cross, and began to chant the mantra.
"My Lord has mercy, Hallelujah."
As the Buddhist chanting began, Chu Tianshu raised an eyebrow and looked over. The group of people's legs went weak, and they all knelt down.
It's probably because the poison in my leg just took effect.
Just then, Fang Zhenyi and Zhao Sijie walked in from outside, accompanied by several elders from Fire God Gully.
"You've come at the perfect time."
Chu Tianshu beckoned, "These people don't speak fluent Mandarin. Little Zhao, come here. You can ask them for me what's going on with the so-called church having dealings with the current imperial concubine."
Zhao Sijie responded and walked to Chu Tianshu's side, glancing sideways at the priests with a sinister smile.
The priest's heart skipped a beat, and he quickly said, "My Chinese translation is actually quite good—"
This kid is their target, and whenever they pass on a message, they deliberately sabotage it by saying a few insults to the immortal.
The priest dared not imagine the terrible situation he would face.
Being captured by the barbarians of Great Xuan only causes physical pain, but offending the Demon King might cause even the soul to suffer.
"Your accent is so awful to my ears."
Chu Tianshu pressed his left index finger against his earlobe. "Just use your mother tongue to communicate with Little Zhao."
Zhao Sijie was just trying to scare them first.
Misinterpreting and translating the text might insult the priests, but it's also disrespectful to the deity, something Little Zhao refuses to do.
As for revenge, there's no rush, nor is it about dealing with these lackeys who are in charge of taking the job.
Seeing that Zhao Sijie's interrogation and retelling were fluent, concise, and to the point, the priests and others felt somewhat at ease.
God shows no mercy to ordinary fallen beings.
However, if it is a believer being personally targeted by the demon king in disguise, a little more compassion and mercy will be shown.
Being captured by the Demon King might even become a source of pride when recounted in the confessional.
With hope in his heart, the priest dared not lie in his answer.
It turns out that the church once encountered three wise men from the East: one was old, one carried a harp, and one was a mysterious woman.
The old man and the woman had a master-disciple relationship, while the woman carrying the zither did not get along with them.
These three men, without personally participating in the bet, managed to organize the refugees in the wilderness and conquer the territories of several knights in just a few months.
The refugees were chosen to have a new leader who displayed remarkable wisdom, skillfully winning over allies and threatening adversaries.
The tacit understanding that the local aristocratic circle had maintained without breaking apart was thrown into chaos by these refugees.
The frequency, scale, and intensity of wars, and their continued tendency to spread.
The Church could not tolerate such destructive behavior and intervened on several occasions, with the Cardinal Order eventually taking matters into their own hands.
However, when the Cardinal Order intervened, they discovered that they too had become part of the wager.
"Even if you two join forces, you cannot dismantle the power I control before the cult launches a full-scale attack."
"If you want to kill me, you can try now; but if you want to take me in, I'm afraid you can't."
The man carrying the lute appears to have won the bet.
But the battle instead entered into an even more tense stalemate.
At the critical moment, news of the death of the Emperor of Great Xuan arrived. The woman wanted to return to Great Xuan, and the old man also gave up on taking action there. Instead, he invited the religious group to have tea, and the matter ended in peace talks.
"That woman is Xie Luoxian?"
Chu Tianshu said, "So, you two actually have a grudge against each other."
The priest quickly explained, "That was just a misunderstanding. In fact, the wise men promoted talented people among the refugees, and the Church accepted them as nobles, easily suppressing the rest of the refugees."
"This actually helped us resolve a huge hidden danger; a tangled issue that might have taken fifty years to untangle was resolved very quickly."
"The wise men of the order greatly praised the peace talks, and later, when they learned that the sage was the Dowager Princess of the Great Xuan, they frequently corresponded with her."
After hearing Dream-Eating Marquis felt somewhat disappointed.
That's all there is to it. After all, it only happened in a foreign country, so it doesn't seem like enough material to become a bestseller.
He had heard that the Dowager had connections with the church, and he thought he might uncover some juicy gossip.
For example, could Xie Luoxian's biological mother be a saint or something similar from the church, who fled here due to internal strife and persecution, and hid in the Divine Sword Mountain Manor?
The church has now been restored to its proper order, but the saint's successor can no longer return to the church.
The late emperor, who passed away, must have contributed a great deal to this. There are so many things to explore here, such as emotional entanglements, family backgrounds, and strategic brilliance.
Chu Tianshu pondered for a moment, then suddenly asked, "Is Ancestor Qianyang still in the church?"