Hearing the words "A pity about a talent," Clyde felt a surge of joy in his heart.
He understood Pope Haytings' choice.
"You may withdraw." Pope Haytings waved his hand and spoke indifferently.
"Yes, Your Holiness." Clyde bowed respectfully, then left the top floor of the Church of Light. Only Pope Haytings remained in the grand hall of that entire top level. Haytings walked to the window and gazed down at the city of Fenn below, remaining silent for a long time.
Knock! Knock! Knock! A knock sounded on the door.
"Enter," Haytings said calmly.
Gilmore, clad in red robes, strode into the hall. Glancing at Haytings' back, he sensed the Pope's mood was likely poor and said respectfully in a low voice, "Your Holiness, how should we persuade Lin Lei?"
"Persuade? No need," Haytings said flatly.
Gilmore looked up in surprise at Haytings. If they were to use Lin Lei, at the very least they should try to persuade him, right? After all, Haytings had recently gravely wounded Lin Lei, and Lin Lei also harbored a deep enmity with Clyde.
"Gilmore, do you know who Lin Lei's mother is?" Haytings turned his head to look at Gilmore.
Gilmore froze, then asked in confusion, "Lin Lei's mother? Wasn't she the one who died in difficult childbirth when Lin Lei's younger brother was born?"
"No."
Haytings shook his head. "When you investigated Lin Lei's mother's information before, you did not uncover the full truth. Lin Lei's mother is, in fact, the woman we obtained twelve years ago."
That woman from twelve years ago!
Gilmore remembered instantly, for that woman had greatly impacted the upper echelons of the Church of Light.
"Ah, his mother was already killed by us, so what?" Gilmore instantly grasped the Pope's worry.
A genius like Lin Lei was indeed tempting. But in the future, if Lin Lei discovered the truth about his mother, the threat to the Church of Light would be immense.
"Gilmore, the 28th of this month is when the Glory of the Lord of Light shines most brilliantly, correct?" Haytings said quite abruptly.
"Yes." Gilmore was somewhat puzzled as to why Haytings mentioned this.
"Prepare yourself. I intend to pray for the 'Lord' to bestow his 'Divine Favor' upon someone late that night," Haytings said calmly.
"Divine Favor?" Gilmore was shocked, but he immediately understood Haytings' thought and secretly sighed, "His Holiness the Pope likely intends to perform the 'Bestowal of Divine Favor' upon that Lin Lei. Although Lin Lei's future achievements will be limited, given his talent, his future won't be too bad. It's just a pity about his talent."
Divine Favor was, in reality, the descent of a wisp of the Lord of Light's own divine belief.
The Lord of Light, as a supreme being among the 'High Gods,' could, through a wip of his divine belief, completely cleanse a person's soul, making that person absolutely devoted and loyal to the Lord of Light. Unless the person's soul had reached the 'Saint' realm, solidifying into substance, they would be unable to withstand the cleansing of the divine belief.
Otherwise... absolutely impossible to resist!
However, a soul cleansed by the Lord of Light's own 'divine belief' would also impact Lin Lei's 'talent,' and his future achievements would certainly be somewhat diminished.
"A pity, a pity about a genius," Haytings sighed softly once more.
Earlier, when he spoke the word "pity" to Clyde, it was for this very reason. Haytings was also quite assured, because once cleansed by the divine belief, even if Lin Lei later learned of his mother's fate, he would still be devoted and loyal to the 'Lord of Light.'
That divine belief penetrated deep into the soul!
In the blink of an eye, ten or so days passed. The entire city of Fenn remained as tranquil as ever, but the great nobles and wealthy merchants of Fenn sensed an atmosphere of oppression. For instance, His Majesty Clyde, whose temper had been exceptionally foul lately, had already executed several nobles and ministers who crossed him.
Beside Xiangxie Avenue, behind a luxurious hotel, within a quiet three-story building, a group had gathered.
Yeru, Rein, and George had all remained there.
Ever since learning of Lin Lei's predicament, the three of them worried about him daily. They understood all too well the magnitude of the trouble Lin Lei had stirred—publicly attacking King Clyde, killing over a thousand elite soldiers of the kingdom. He had even provoked the Pope of Light to intervene personally.
"Boss Yeru, have your people found any news about Third Brother?" George pressed, while Rein also looked at Yeru.
Yeru shook his head.
All three of them looked grim. They had grown up with Lin Lei since childhood, studied together at Ernst Academy, eating and sleeping together. Though not blood brothers, their bond was stronger than kin. They could not simply watch as Lin Lei was executed.
"I have no way. We cannot reach the upper echelons of the Church of Light," Yeru said with some anxiety. "Wait a few more days. My father will arrive very soon."
Yeru's father—
Monroe Dawson!
The president of the Dawson Trading Company, commanding the formidable Dawson family, whose accumulated wealth even made the two great Alliances and four great Empires envious. Their commercial network spanned every city across the Yulan Continent, capable of influencing a nation's economic prosperity or decline.
The three great trading companies, each one's influence was terrifying.
The two great Alliances and four great Empires were unwilling to break ties with the three great trading companies, because if a company truly clashed with an empire, it could very well cause that empire's economy to collapse, instantly setting it back decades and potentially throwing its internal structure into chaos.