—Update schedule is back to normal, begging for monthly tickets~
………………………………………………………………………………
Dressed in deep crimson robes and wearing a soft cap, Filibel shot to his feet and accepted the intelligence report from the priest with an exceptionally grave expression. Had Nicola and Valentine succeeded in assassinating Felipe, sending the Magic Parliament into a fury? Was the Supreme Council now preparing an all-out assault on the cathedrals of the Holm diocese, washing away their humiliation with blood?
Only that could explain why the bribed mage had urgently passed along the intelligence. If the Magic Parliament breached the Grand Cathedral of the Holm diocese, it would easily expose the fact that they had been bribed. And for their own profit, maintaining the standoff between the Holm diocese and the Magic Parliament was the best option.
Filibel's eyes blazed with pure Holy Light—like an "angel's"—as they swept over the report in his hands. He had presided over the Holm diocese for many years and was accustomed to dealing with mages both openly and covertly. He was well aware of their insidious, arcane methods: curses, inexplicable toxins, media that could trigger "Mind Invasion" magic, and the like. So no matter how concerned he was about this matter, he did not relax his scrutiny of the intelligence enclosed in the envelope.
Only after confirming that no hidden arcane traps lay within did Filibel tear open the envelope and pull out a thin sheet of paper, shaking it open.
"Several senior members of the Elemental Will designed a simple experiment to simulate the original natural environment… Under the direct observation of numerous Archanists and two Night Watch agents, free from arcane interference and divine intervention, after a cycle of seven days, the earliest Life Source was born within the experimental apparatus, including Asparagine Source, among others. Two Night Watch agents and an elderly mage who had long worshipped the God of Truth suffered a complete collapse of their cognitive worlds and were destroyed on the spot by their own Holy Light or spiritual energy."
"Seven days to create the world—is that what this 'seven days' refers to, Cardinal Filibel?"
The white paper was densely packed with words. The content was not complex, describing mainly the experimental apparatus, materials, and results—as though they were not worried about anyone verifying it.
"Life Source? The original natural environment?" Even a man as deeply calculating as Filibel found himself murmuring as if in a trance. The handwriting on the letter was not unfamiliar to him. Living in the Holm Kingdom, he had many opportunities to see it. It belonged to Douglas, the President of the Magic Parliament—a Grand Archanist who had never deigned to lie and was obsessed with pursuing truth.
Since Douglas dared to write this, and had even attached the complete experimental design, the authenticity of the experiment was beyond doubt.
The hand holding the letter began to tremble as if struck by palsy, the liver spots on its back a testament to his aging and helplessness. "Lord, are you testing our faith? Lord, why would you allow nature to produce miracles that belong solely to the gods? Lord, why would you allow mortals to enter the domain of gods?"
His "Saint's Soul"—pure and crystalline as crystal—manifested within his mortal frame. Waves of radiance filled the study with a quiet softness, and the letter in his hand seemed to float down gently, as if cradled by an invisible force.
"Filibel, what's wrong with you? How can you waver in your faith?!" Bahaula, who had noticed something was wrong with Filibel, roared. Black ripples materialized around him one after another, devouring and suppressing Filibel's blazing Holy Light.
Filibel regained his composure and shook his head. "Bahaula, Valenshiel, I have never wavered in my faith, and you need not worry about me suffering a collapse of my cognitive world. After the success of the artificial synthesis experiments for urea and fatty acids, I had foreseen that this day would come. I simply hadn't expected the results to be so devastating—nearly enough to damage my soul. Mortals have begun to covet the authority of gods!"
"What exactly does this intelligence report say?" Valenshiel, inferring from Filibel's words that it concerned follow-up experiments on the Doctrine of Human Vitality, believed he had already "corrected" his understanding of the matter during this period and was mentally prepared. So he boldly picked up the letter drifting down from Filibel's hand.
Filibel did not stop him, silently watching Valenshiel's reaction, his eyes growing cloudy yet unfathomably deep.
"Bastards! Those damnable heretical mages who deserve to be damned ten thousand times! They actually dared to enter the gods' sacred forbidden domain! They—they actually managed to make Life Source form in a natural environment?!"
Valenshiel had never expected such a terrifying experiment. It not only overturned the Doctrine of Human Vitality, but shook the core tenet of the "Doctrine of Divine Life Bestowal"—that only gods can bestow life. This was something he could neither tolerate nor accept. He felt his understanding of the True God, of the world, of life, of faith, and of moral conduct begin to crumble—and these were precisely the core pillars that constituted his world of prayer.
Pfft—golden blood sprayed from Valenshiel's mouth, and his body blazed with a hazy glow of Holy Light. Ignoring the damage to his soul, he ground his teeth and declared: "All-out war! We must launch an all-out war! Only by thoroughly purging the entire Magic Parliament can we restore the Lord's glory!"
Fortunately, the earlier two experiments had already cushioned the blow, and without physical specimens or a live demonstration, even with Douglas's "credibility guarantee," Valenshiel had not suffered critical damage—much less been consumed by Holy Light. But such an injury was something this leader of the ascetics had not experienced in the one hundred and sixty-nine years since becoming a Holy Spirit Priest.
In contrast, the hot-tempered Bahaula, after taking the letter, showed no extreme reaction—his face simply turned extraordinarily grim. Word by word, through clenched teeth, he spat out: "I believe we ought to shift our primary attention from the heretics in the north to these blasphemous, heretical mages. They are already attempting to enter the gods' sacred domain!"
He was an Epic Knight. His power came from his own will and the divinely bestowed bloodline. Though faith and prayer to the gods were the main pillars supporting his will, he possessed no cognitive world or anything of the sort. Even if his beliefs wavered, it would only diminish his faith and slightly weaken his will—it would not cause his bloodline power to go out of control. At most, he would be unable to perfectly command his bloodline in battle, unable to fully unleash his strength.
"The most urgent priority now is to suppress the news, stabilize morale, and then gradually shift the understanding of the priests and bishops on the Doctrine of Divine Life Bestowal," Filibel emphasized the main issue at hand.
The letter-carrying priest, trembling slightly, watched the reactions of the three Cardinals in the study, unwilling and afraid to glance at the letter Bahaula had placed on the desk.
At that moment, hurried footsteps sounded from outside the study. A Cardinal dressed in red robes with a matching square cap burst in. Despite being a formidable figure himself, his expression carried a faint trace of panic and urgency: "Lord Filibel, a priest in the Grand Cathedral of Radiance has been consumed by Holy Light. Moreover, the major cathedrals across the diocese have urgently reported that most of their priests and bishops are emotionally unstable! Although very few have been consumed by Holy Light—only two—and those who dare not pray are also few—fewer than thirty—all are deeply confused. They are urgently requesting that you confirm the experiment about Life Source forming in a natural environment is a fabrication!"
"What?!" Filibel looked even more shocked than when he had first read the letter. How had the Magic Parliament managed this?
…………