The Will of the God of Order!

The sky above Fire Island had turned blood-red, while the ground below was an even darker shade. In its rampaging madness, the Abyssal Cerberus of Sin was slaughtering the living creatures across the island. The tears that continuously streamed from the corners of its eyes fell to the ground and evaporated almost instantly in the intense heat, forming a thin haze of bitter mist. Terrifying lava, despairing tremors—life had been reduced to the cheapest withered grass, mercilessly reaped by the roaring flames. Above the array hall, the hunched young man gazed excitedly upon the spectacle. Beside him, Blaizt, the Primordial Beguiling Aberrant Demon manifesting as a grimacing face, gave a savage sneer: "I love scenes like this. Truly, I adore this scent! Blood, chaos, shrieks... Oh, heavens, it's intoxicating, utterly entrancing." The hunched young man laughed along, but as his laughter went on, his facial expression began to twitch slightly in visible pain. Wisps of Light aura leaked from his body, forcing him to press his hands against himself to hold them in. Blaizt looked at him. "What, the rejection is starting again?" "Y-yes... My soul... is somewhat overwhelmed." "You were the one who wanted to host so much. We only granted your request, though to be frank, it really is a bit excessive." "Yes, that's right." The hunched young man nodded vigorously. "To revive the Church of Light, I'll do anything. I firmly believe Light will return. After the blood and fire, every obstacle in the way of Light's return will be overturned—including... Order." "Of course. Believe me, the God of Order will fall, and the Church of Order passed down from Him will eventually be annihilated. From the ashes of the Church of Order, a new Light will be born." Blaizt would never forget how that man had looked when he strode into the God-Burial Grounds. Facing the reasonable demands of a host of sleeping gods seeking to renew their covenant with the God of Light, the man had simply replied: "My apologies. The era belonging to Light has come to an end." *** The old captain sat in the crow's nest, staring blankly at the catastrophic, harrowing spectacle ahead. Down on the deck, his crewmen were doing the exact same thing. Then, a shiver ran through the old captain. He saw that at the distant harbor, many ships had begun putting out to sea in a frantic rush to get away from Fire Island. But the old captain started to worry: did those "esteemed masters" need someone to pick them up and assist their evacuation? With something like this happening, those masters were probably still trapped on the island, unable to leave, weren't they? Yet steering toward Fire Island to fetch them filled him with dread. That would literally be leaping into a fiery pit of his own accord. For a time, the old captain was caught in deep conflict. But after glancing down at the notebook in his hand, he finally made up his mind. Sliding down the mast from the crow's nest, he landed on the deck and immediately barked an order: "Start the ship at once! Head for Fire Island harbor to pick them up!" However, the old captain's order wasn't carried out. "Have you lost your mind, Captain? Fire Island, now?" "That's just throwing our lives away, Captain! No way, we're not going!" "That's right, Father! How could we possibly go back right now?!" The old captain found that not only were his crew refusing to obey, but even his own sons were speaking out against him. He couldn't help but sigh inwardly: *Sigh. If only we could get hijacked like last time.* *** In the outer waters, a boat was speeding toward the area. It was an exceedingly small boat—small enough that the old captain's pirate ship, the Jinluo, looked like a behemoth in comparison. On the cramped deck of the small boat sat a little wooden stool. A white-haired elder sat upon it, holding a handful of peanuts. They were boiled peanuts, soft and tender. No peeling required—just a gentle squeeze, pop it to the lips, suck twice, and the juicy nut slipped right into the mouth. Incredibly convenient. Toward the stern of the boat, a man knelt with his backside sticking up, carving an acceleration array with a small knife while grumbling non-stop: "I said it would've been so much better to just hijack a big ship! As it is, this acceleration array lasts at most a day, and then I have to carve it all over again. Why don't you open your eyes and look? I've already carved this stern to splinters!" Tossing the remaining peanut shells into the sea, the elder scolded, "Vick, have you forgotten your faith? Under the Code of Order, using the power of faith against ordinary mortals is a serious crime!" "Can't I do it without using the power of faith? If I just take a rifle and a blade, I'm pretty sure I could seize a ship too." "Certainly. Provided you let me cripple your reservoir of spiritual power and cleanse your physical enhancement first. Then off you go." "You're far too harsh. Sigh, I thought coming along with you would mean having some fun and enjoying the luxurious life of being treated like an honored guest. Who could've thought I'd end up as a daily carving laborer and forced to eat fish for every single meal? Lord Theisen, take a close look—haven't I started growing gills behind my ears?" "Always running your mouth. I didn't ask you to come when we set out. You were the one shamelessly begging until I had no choice but to bring you along." "Hah..." Vick flopped flat onto the deck and said: "Because I knew you had stepped down from office, and I figured I'd accompany you to help you relax. I really didn't expect you were actually here to investigate—and that you'd even ditch the investigation delegation to drift alone on the open sea." "What could an investigation delegation find? Everything you see is staged, utterly meaningless. They'd even arrange local residents to tell me they weren't affected by the war at all, and then host a ball to warmly welcome the Church of Samsara for saving the Mipos Archipelago." "And what's the point even if you uncover the truth yourself? Even if you write the truth of the Mipos Archipelago massacre into a report and submit it to the Roundtable Conference for review, will it pass? Will the High Priest actually follow your recommendation to directly hold the Church of Samsara accountable?" "No," Theisen replied placidly. "Exactly. So what's the point?" "Vick, you're confusing meaning with self-interest." "I'm not," Vick retorted indignantly. "I just don't want to do meaningless things, and I especially don't want to see you do meaningless things." "Yet when each person performs their duty within their link of the chain of Order—that is the very essence of how Order functions smoothly, is it not?" "Don't give me doctrine. The words in the scriptures were polished over countless ages by generations of sages; of course I can't refute them." Just then, Mavaglio emerged from the cabin carrying a plate of pan-fried fish and presented it to Theisen. Theisen picked up a small fried fish with his fingers, tilted his head back, popped it into his mouth, and chewed contentedly before resuming his scolding: "Look at Mavaglio here. Isn't his status far nobler and higher than yours? He can endure the solitude, serve as my cook, and look after my daily needs the whole journey, yet all I ask of you is to carve a simple array and you whine incessantly." Vick brushed it off with a chuckle. "Of course his status is higher than mine. He's the inheritor of the great Lord Marchettini, one of the Twelve Knights of Order! No matter how the winds shift within the Church, he'll always be among those with transcendent standing. "And me? "The student of the former High Priest, Rasma! The label of 'Conservative Dereliction Faction' is practically stamped onto my forehead. "Honestly, my teacher was something else—stepping down without warning. If he was planning to quit, why did he have to take me on as his student just a week prior? "Sure enough, not long after the new High Priest took office, my teacher was branded as part of the conservative dereliction faction, and I was marginalized right along with him. When they assigned jobs after graduation, they dumped me straight into the Church University as a teaching assistant. "Do you have any idea how awkward that was? Right before graduation, I had confessed my feelings to the female dean of students, figuring even if she rejected me, I'd graduate into a Church department and never see her again, so there'd be no embarrassment!" Hearing this, Theisen immediately asked, "Did it work?" "Failed." "Heh heh." Theisen chuckled. "I was worried you'd say it worked." "How merciful of you." "So that's why you resigned?" "What else? Wait around to attend her engagement banquet as her colleague?" "Do you blame your teacher?" "Of course I do. Because he was irresponsible." "Mm, yes, he deserves the blame. He was too selfish." "Huh?" Vick immediately rolled across the deck in a series of somersaults right up to Theisen's feet, looking up at the seated elder. "Do you know where he is now, and why he left?" Theisen pinched his index finger and thumb close together. "Just this tiny bit." "Then hurry up and tell me!" Theisen immediately shook his head. "No, I cannot say. Even High Priest Norton probably doesn't know about this matter. In the Temple of Order, it's considered a taboo subject. "But what I can tell you is that your teacher likely went to guard that secret, and along the way... he's preparing to change robes. "Still, when all's said and done, he was indeed rather selfish. "Although the tacit understanding within the Church was that Norton would be the next High Priest, your teacher should have stayed in the seat for another ten years so we could make proper preparations. "The moment he left, the person who was supposed to act as interim High Priest actually declined, allowing Norton to take power directly. We didn't have time to make any arrangements at all. Over the past six months, we've fallen into complete passivity, completely overtaken and purged as he swiftly consolidated total control." "Honestly, putting aside how my teacher dragged me down, I genuinely think the new High Priest is exceptional—better than my teacher, even." "Right, all of you think so," Theisen said with a faint smile. "Why don't you ask the thick resentful wraiths lingering over the Mipos Archipelago if they share that opinion?" Vick fell silent. Taking another bite of fish, Theisen said, "Radical reform produces visible short-term results, but what bleeds away is our very foundation." "I can't possibly respond to that." "Indeed, you can't." "It's good that you've retired anyway. You can rest, be less distracted by mundane affairs, and who knows—maybe you'll take a shot at condensing a godhead. When the time comes, my great-great-grandsons could still go to you asking for pocket money." "Bullshit. I don't have the potential or talent for that. My body and soul entered decline long ago. Besides, I even feel condensing a godhead is harder now than in the past—except for that fellow who's left everyone speechless from youth right up to the present..." "Who?" "You're not qualified to know." "I'm really curious: who could leave you speechless all the way from youth?" "The kind of person who could make your teacher weep nonstop." "Pfft... Hahaha!" Vick slapped his thigh in delight; he harbored plenty of resentment toward Rasma. Mavaglio suddenly sighed. "It's just a pity about this observation delegation." Vick looked at Mavaglio. "I heard you taught classes to the members of that delegation?" Mavaglio nodded. "Before they went to the trial at the Gate of Samsara. I wouldn't call myself their teacher, but I did interact with most of them. It's just a pity." "Pity my foot!" Theisen cursed again. "A bunch of young opportunists! Better that they died! Otherwise, if they grew up and kept climbing to high positions in the Church, heaven knows what direction they would drag us in!" Mavaglio spoke up, "Lord Theisen, I merely lament the loss of talent. Several among them were truly gifted—especially one named Karen, who left a very deep impression on me." "The captain of that Whip of Order squad?" "Yes, that's him." Theisen blinked. First, he sighed, but he still stubbornly muttered, "Good riddance!" With that, he sighed once more. Vick and Mavaglio exchanged a glance, both shaking their heads helplessly. Just then, terrifying energy fluctuations surged from up ahead. Theisen immediately asked, "That's Fire Island ahead, isn't it?" "Yes, where our designated teleportation array was located," Mavaglio replied. Vick scratched his head. "Looks like trouble. Feels like the aura of a ferocious beast." Mavaglio replied, "It must be the Abyssal Cerberus of Sin, Giragon. There's a memory of it in my memory fragments. Lord Marchettini once wanted to subdue it and forge it into a war beast, but the God of Fire beat him to it. Even the God of Fire couldn't tame it, though, and ultimately had to seal it here." "And then?" Vick pressed. "What happened after that?" "After that, there's nothing in my memory fragments." Mavaglio sighed, seemingly regretful, though no one could tell whether he was telling the truth. Still, Mavaglio added, "Even so, the God of Fire's seal isn't easily broken. Factions that want to break it lack the ability, and those with the ability wouldn't see any need to." "Then let me see for myself what has happened on that island." Theisen closed his eyes and tapped his forehead lightly. The next moment, A cluster of black clouds materialized above. From within the dark cloud, a single eye slowly opened, radiating a majestic, intensely piercing gaze—a truly high-tier spell ranking just below the forbidden curse tier within the Church of Order's sequence. Below, eyes still closed, Theisen spoke: "I see an Angel of the Abyss and Everfallen. I see inheritors of a family faith system bearing a trace of the God of Fire's bloodline. I see a high-ranking beguiling aberrant demon..." "Heh, what a colorful mix," Vick marveled. "Abyss folks actually got involved? Aren't they usually keeping a low profile? Couldn't hold back anymore? And what descendants of the God of Fire—fallen so low they're reduced to a mere family faith system? For you to describe a beguiling aberrant demon as high-ranking... just what kind of existence is it? That island is really lively right now." "I see countless people screaming, wailing, dying horribly, being incinerated and devoured." Vick spoke up, "What are you planning to do? Don't tell me you want to intervene! Your health has always been frail. We can completely contact the Church and let them handle things here. Lord Mavaglio and I can set up a communication array. Even if a teleportation array can't be set up on the fly, Lord Mavaglio can manage a communication array, right?" "Yes," Mavaglio nodded. "I can quickly establish a communication array through the Scythe of War." Theisen continued, "It is as though I am seeing a second Mipos Archipelago." Vick continued to dissuade him, "You need to control yourself, really! If you were in your prime, I wouldn't stop you, but as you are now... you really can't beat that mad hound. Didn't you just say so yourself? Your soul and body have long since entered decline." As if ignoring Vick completely, Theisen went on, "I see that this island has lost its order." "The Church will come to restore order, believe me, Lord! After all, this isn't as sensitive as the Mipos Archipelago with disputes involving two orthodox churches. The Church will handle it according to the Code of Order." The eye in the sky vanished. Theisen opened his eyes, showing a hint of exhaustion, but said through clenched teeth: "Haha! In the past, they only dared sneak around in the shadows; now, they dare act in broad daylight!" "What on earth do you want to do?" Vick asked. Theisen kicked Vick, sending him rolling across the deck once more, and barked, "Still asking? Hurry up and carve the array!" The new acceleration array was quickly carved. The price of that speed was that the little boat began to leak—though it couldn't be ruled out that Vick had intentionally applied a little extra force. *** In the waters surrounding Fire Island, many vessels lay anchored. Some had arrived but dared not approach, while most had fled immediately after disaster struck the island. Pirate ships and merchant vessels now huddled side by side, yet were remarkably orderly and harmonious. The small boat wove among them. Just as it was about to give out completely and sink, Mavaglio grabbed Theisen, and in the next instant, the two transformed into black mist, flying aboard a nearby pirate ship. Mavaglio had deliberately chosen the smallest, most battered pirate ship, knowing Vick would understand his intent. Vick, clutching the small stool Theisen had been sitting on, leaped into the air. He stamped the little boat completely beneath the waves, using the recoil to spring aboard. The moment he landed, Vick yelled: "You cannot violate the Code of Order by using the power of faith to hijack a ship—not unless you cripple your spiritual reservoir and cleanse your physical enhancement!" Clearly, Vick was making one final attempt to stop him. To their surprise, before the three of them could do anything, the veteran sailors on deck froze for a second, then immediately retreated to stand quietly in a corner—yep, experienced pros now. The new hands wanted to grab weapons to attack the intruders, but were cursed out by the veterans, leaving them no choice but to drop their weapons and join the veterans in the corner. Seeing this, the old captain promptly unbuckled his captain's saber and tossed it to the deck. Vick was somewhat baffled by the sight, but beat them to the question: "Where is this ship heading?" Only someone with water in their brain would sail toward Fire Island at a time like this. The old captain immediately shouted back, "We are preparing to set sail for Fire Island!" Vick: "..." Theisen was also taken aback by the answer. Then he suddenly burst into laughter, placed both hands against his chest, and declared in devout reverence: "This is the will of the God of Order!"