The Youth Favored by Rasma!

Hearing this response, Karen smiled, thinking this Temple Elder was quite amusing. "By the way, you don't need to use your sword. You can write directly with your finger." "Alright, thank you." Karen put the Sword of Diamante away, extended a finger, and pressed it against the stone stele before him. The stele was writhing. Reason dictated that it should be soft, yet to the touch it was exceptionally hard. When Karen began to "write," mental ripples emanated from within the writhing stele, as if actively calling out to him. After all, "paragons of youth" escorted here for execution were a minority among minorities. Facing the call of this stele before the Gate of Order, the vast majority of youths in the Church of Order would never even consider resisting it. Karen dropped his mental defenses and proactively welcomed this mental wave. Immediately, the instant the connection formed, Karen felt a majestic will sweeping downward. Naturally, one was supposed to feel an affinity with this consciousness, for it contained an exquisitely pure aura of Order—the very existence every believer of Order truly yearned for. However, when this consciousness swept across Karen, an extremely intense feeling of revulsion welled up within him. This revulsion was countless times stronger than walking into his own room and finding his bed piled high with foul-smelling garbage, swarming with flies and maggots. Vaguely, he also sensed a familiarity. Behind him, the floating boy watched Karen freeze with his finger pressed against the stele, not looking surprised in the least, and muttered to himself: "What a pure will of Order. When almost any young person senses it for the first time, their mind is left reeling, freezing there for a long time, wishing this moment would never end." *Gag...* Karen forcefully suppressed the nausea rising inside him. He finally realized where that familiarity came from. This consciousness indeed held an exceptionally pure aura of Order, but when it swept over you, it felt like the master of a house stepping into the kitchen right before lunch to inspect what dishes would be served at the dining table today. When Karen's own hunger addiction flared up, that was exactly how he looked at the souls brought before his "mouth"! It was just that the consciousness inside the stele had been "packaged" so it wouldn't seem so blatant, but in essence, it was identical. We... are all dishes prepared to be served at the table. Carving one's name on this stele was tantamount to recording oneself as an ingredient on the kitchen inventory. Of course, this stele didn't possess any special ability, and leaving one's name wouldn't inflict any extra effects upon you, but symbolic significance was a function in itself. What it conveyed was a lofty, looking-down... contempt. Seen this way, that "young man" who had once cleaved the stele in two with a single sword strike had probably also felt this insulting lack of respect. So, could that young man have been Grandpa himself? Karen took a deep breath to steady his emotions, then opened his eyes and traced the name "Karen Silva" onto the stele with his finger. "Alright, we can go in now. Oh, right, please carry the bones and this frost dragon on your back. According to regulations, I cannot make direct contact with you right now, so I cannot assist you." "Understood." Karen picked up the bones, then hoisted Lady Augie onto his shoulder once more. The boy sighed with feeling. "Thank heavens she is still in human form. I can hardly imagine what an enormous task it would be to carry her if she reverted to a dragon. "Please follow me. What is about to unfold before you is the true appearance of the temple. It is solemn, dignified, majestic, sacred—the crystallization wrought by the Church of Order across countless ages, the place closest to the great God of Order, a true miracle of the world..." Carrying his cargo, Karen walked inside. Before this Gate of Order, his stature truly resembled a tiny ant. Once he stepped through, the scene shifted instantly. The sky here was a profound expanse of stars, gorgeous and vast. Yet on the ground ahead of him, stretches of steles lay collapsed. There were even several massive meteorite craters taking up half the width of the main avenue. The section at the entrance was likely a forest of steles—much like how many schools set up honor walls at their entrance showcasing glorious school history and distinguished alumni. The temple's original design was probably similar, but all of this had collapsed. As for those massive meteorites, if nothing had gone amiss, they were supposed to hang in the sky here originally. At this moment, a construction crew composed of over a hundred giants and a host of Order priests was conducting repairs. In the real world, this construction crew would have been sufficient to easily erect world wonders; yet here, judged by the looks of it, it would take them an immense amount of time to restore the place, because collapsed ruins stretched as far as the eye could see. The boy let out a sigh. "Disappointed?" Karen shook his head. "Still incomparably awe-inspiring." "I remember you once entered the Gate of Samsara?" "Yes." "Then you should have some resistance." "It's different. Very different." "Oh?" "Because this is the Temple of Order, while the Gate of Samsara is currently still kept in Samsara Valley." A smile appeared on the boy's face. "My duty is to guide the youth of our church in and out of the temple. Truly, I can always see vitality in you young people." "Thank you." "In fact, this world has never been peaceful. Even if we priests can see truths ordinary people cannot see, due to our level, the truth we see is far from complete. "Take this place, for example. Seven months ago, an outer evil god attempted to descend. The temple sensed it and intercepted him, ultimately suppressing and slaying that evil god. But the explosion before that evil god's death caused some damage to the temple. "This is a secret. I'm only telling you; do not spread it." "Understood. I will keep this secret." The outer evil god Diss Inmeles. Intercepting an evil god's descent? Didn't they proactively invite him in, only for him to refuse? Still, looking at this massive construction site, Karen truly felt a wave of emotion. After all, all of this destruction had been wrought by his grandfather. Previously, he hadn't had a visceral concept of the explosion of a godhead fragment, and the outside world only rumored that the Temple of Order had suffered tremors. Now, he finally understood why the temple feared Grandpa so much. A godhead fragment possessing the laws of Order could be directly drawn in by the phantom of the Gate of Order, bypassing the entire temple's defense system. Even the Order Knight Order stationed outside had had no way of intercepting it... So when Grandpa detonated the godhead fragment, it truly had exploded directly at the heart of the Temple of Order. And that was just from detonating one fragment. If the remaining two had also blown up, wouldn't the elders in the temple all have to live in ruins? "I originally thought there were only the great Temple Elders in the temple. Turns out there are so many people here." "Yes, most people share that misconception. But in reality..." The boy pointed up at the stars above. "The true temple proper is actually on those stars. This area below can be understood as the outer perimeter of the temple." "Understood." "In addition, this humble self was fortunate enough to make a minuscule contribution to that operation of suppressing and slaying the outer evil god." The boy pointed to himself. "My original body was crushed by a stone stele. What you see now is a puppet body." Karen said, "I'm very sorry." "No, it's fine. Every time I recall that incident, there is only supreme glory in my heart." Guided by the boy, Karen carried Augie into a building. A third of this building had not yet been repaired, with heavy spalling on the outer walls, but the interior wasn't too badly affected—just web-like cracks all over the floor and walls. "Please enter from here, holding this female dragon with you. Oh, right, along with your cat and the bones." "Alright, I understand." "My duty is temporarily complete. When you are ready to come out, I will come back to escort you." "Thank you." "You're welcome." The boy left. Karen carried Augie and walked inward. Upon entering the main hall and continuing down, he found blue liquid seeping out from the floorboards underfoot. "Don't be nervous. Just think of it as taking a bath. It removes the 'impurities' clinging to you." A voice came from above. It was a woman; she was not wearing an Order divine robe, but rather a long red dress. The blue liquid soon rose to Karen's neck. Karen did not move, letting it gradually submerge him. Breathing was unaffected beneath the liquid. How should he put it? It felt like being disinfected before surgery. After about three minutes, the liquid began to recede. The woman floated down holding a book. She said to Karen, "Follow me." "Yes." Led by her, Karen arrived on the fifth floor. It was very empty here, unlike offices in other places filled with clerks. The ceiling of the fifth floor was damaged, exposing nearly half to the open air. Beneath the only remaining covered section stood a long desk. Three old men sat there holding teacups, and beside them stood a young man with a look of slight anticipation. When Karen entered, the young man smiled at him. It was Mavaglio, the inheritor of the "Lord." "Go on in." The woman closed the door while keeping her head down reading her book. "Come, come over here." One of the old men sitting in the middle waved to Karen. Karen walked over. Taking a step forward, Karen found that Lady Augie in his arms had vanished. Taking another step, Purr on his shoulder had vanished. Taking a third step, his surroundings turned entirely white. Karen's clothes, the greatsword, and everything else were all gone; he was completely naked. "Don't be nervous. You are currently inside a mirror," Mavaglio's voice sounded. "We need to conduct a basic examination on you. It won't take long or be troublesome. Please cooperate." "Understood." "In a moment, you will need to open your mental defenses. We need to probe your consciousness space." "Alright." Standing here naked, he still felt a bit uncomfortable. Without clothes to frame him, any posture felt awkward, to the point where one might forget how one usually stood. Karen sat down, hung his head, and idly picked at his fingernails with both hands. ... "Come on, how should we choose?" "Rock-paper-scissors?" "Alright, rock-paper-scissors." Seeing this, Mavaglio smiled. These three old men were veteran staff of the temple's archives. They couldn't fight, but they all shared one trait: immense mental strength. Otherwise, they wouldn't be able to cope with archives so vast they induced dizziness. "Lord Mavaglio, care to join?" one old man asked Mavaglio. "No," Mavaglio politely declined with a smile. "I'll wait until you finish." He hadn't come specifically for Karen's sake, because after their round was finished, he had a round of his own. However, once his round concluded, he could take Karen for a stroll around the temple. Well, going up to those stars was definitely out of the question, but down below they could be more casual. He had always missed the experience of drinking and chatting with Karen on Fire Island. In Mavaglio's eyes, this was just going through the motions. The three old men finished their rock-paper-scissors game. The first winner chose Purr. The second winner smiled at the third old man and chose Karen. The last one had a helpless look, left with no choice but to face that dragon. "I'll go first. I think I'll be the fastest." One old man closed his eyes. After a moment, he began licking his lips, muttering as if talking in his sleep: "This fish tastes truly wonderful. Who knew fish could be prepared like this?" "Ooh, this one tastes even better. I like sweet and sour." "Aha, I love this spicy and sour one too. Delicious, delicious, so delicious. Do I need rice with this? Bread definitely won't do. Oh, there's rice, how thoughtful." "Ohohoho, is there another new dish? The glass noodles over this fish have completely soaked up the sauce. Heavenly, heavenly, absolutely heavenly." "Hey, hey!" "Wake up!" "What are you two yelling about?!" The old man snapped, an expression of lingering longing across his face. Then he looked down, picked up a pen, and began writing the report: "This cat's memories of tonight have been sealed, but I found many wonderful scenes of eating fish in its memory. It's truly delicious; I really want to try it." Mavaglio said, "It can be arranged, Mr. Lister." "Really, Lord Mavaglio?" "After all, isn't this cat's master right here?" "Still, what if the dishes were made by a servant at home?" Mavaglio placed a finger to his lips. "Oh, right, right. Finish the inspection first, finish the inspection first." Lister understood at once. Before Karen finished the procedure, they couldn't have excessive contact. However, Lister was already plotting whether to go steal a few fish from the ornamental pond later. These old men might not hold high positions, but their status was far from low. Even if they acted slightly out of line, no one would say anything. What were a few fish? They could just claim some giant on the construction site outside had stepped on them by accident. "I'll go next. Mine will take a bit longer." The old man stuck with Augie wore a miserable expression. This was a frost dragon, after all. It wasn't that they feared this dragon; rather, they knew just how colossal a dragon's volume was, and how exhausting it would be to inspect its consciousness space. An ordinary person might just be a thatched hut, but a dragon could prop up a skyscraper on sheer volume alone, while the three of them were essentially janitors. "It's fine. Just locate today's relevant memories directly," Lister comforted his old colleague. "I'm sure their memory seal was done very well. What we fear more is a poor job. If we end up seeing things we shouldn't see, that would be truly terrible. I don't want to get reassigned at my age." "Yeah, I know." The old man closed his eyes and began entering Augie's consciousness space. Lister joked, "Dragon meat is probably delicious too." No sooner had the words left his mouth than the old man began to twitch. His eyes rolled back, his mouth puckered, and he continuously made rapid, rhythmic sounds: "Wuu-wuu-wuu-wuu-wuu-wuu-wuu!" Snakes of lightning began darting wildly all over him. Seeing this, Mavaglio immediately reached out and tapped the old man's glabella, breaking the conscious connection. "Phew..." The old man finally stopped convulsing, saliva continuously dripping from the corner of his mouth. Furthermore, his hair stood straight up like utility poles. Lister commented, "This dragon's memory is locked down with lightning. That counts as fine—more stable and unbreakable." The electrocuted old man opened his eyes, looked at his still-numb hands, and said, "Write the report for me. I can't write." "Sure, no problem." Lister took the form in front of the old man and started writing. "Hehe." The last old man gave a gloating chuckle. "Once I finish inspecting that young man, our job will be done." ... Karen sensed a consciousness attempting to make contact with him. Without offering resistance, Karen opened up his consciousness space. He knew very well that his memories hadn't been sealed, but faking the effect of a seal was hardly difficult for him. In particular, knowing how overbearing the seal Rasma had left Lady Augie with was, it gave him even greater room to maneuver. When that consciousness entered his consciousness space, the Karen inside the consciousness space slowly opened his eyes. Behind him, Diss's figure gradually materialized. Karen muttered to himself, "I can't hit too hard. I can only let out a tiny sliver of aura, creating the impression of someone walking the correct path of condensing a godhead fragment, simulating Rasma's current realm. "The difficulty is immense, but it's worth taking a risk." Diss, standing behind Karen clad in a Temple Elder's divine robe, turned his back, and the elder's robe on him began to fade. "No, too faint. He might not recognize it." The divine robe on Diss sharpened again. "Sigh, still needs to be a bit fainter." The robe faded once more. "This should be about right, but it's still not entirely foolproof, so it must be resolved quickly without giving him time to investigate. "Should I mimic Rasma's tone and leave a message? "Wait, would that be too obvious? "Probably not. In any case, Rasma can't make outside contact for two years. "Then what would Rasma say? "Analyzing his personality... Rasma seems to have quite a temper. He was courteous toward Grandpa and the Temple Elders, but to others in the church, he was the High Priest—even if a former one. Simple and brutal it is, then. "Alright, come on!" The old man's consciousness had just entered, before it could even coalesce and expand. Diss's phantom soared up, appearing right above the old man's consciousness, and stomped a foot straight down at him. "Scram!" ... "I say, White, hurry up. I'm still thinking about going fishing." Lister urged as he helped his partner write the report. Old White, who had been sitting in his chair, suddenly shot to his feet, his body rigid. *Pfft!* Spurting a mouthful of blood, he fell backward. Mavaglio and Lister quickly caught him. Old White's face was deathly pale. After a long while, he finally came to his senses, and then burst into tears: "I saw it... I saw it... I'm going to get reassigned... Wuu-wuu-wuu... Do you know what I saw?" "Shut up!" Lister immediately cursed. "Shut your damn mouth, don't say it! If we all get exiled and reassigned, there won't be anyone left to pull strings and fight for your benefits!" Old White's face grew even more bitter. Lister handed him the report form. "Write it yourself." Old White picked up the pen with trembling hands. Lister turned his back immediately. The other electrocuted old man forced himself to roll over, not facing Old White even while half-asleep. Given his special identity, Mavaglio didn't look at the form either, standing up to pour water for the three old men. Old White first wrote the investigation result: "Relevant memories are sealed intact. No possibility of a leak exists." Pausing, Old White wrote further: "I saw a mighty existence leave protective power within this young man's consciousness. This mighty existence is on the verge of condensing a godhead fragment." Mavaglio first settled the three old men. Lister had a ruddy complexion, looking expectant; Old White looked pale as a sheet, full of misery; the other old man, hair sticking straight up like he had just gotten a perm, couldn't help laughing when he thought of his colleague's miserable state, but being short of breath, his laugh blew a huge snot bubble. "I'll submit the reports then." Mavaglio tossed the three reports upward. The report forms transformed into small black falcons, flying straight toward one of the stars above. ... "Rasma handled the matter very well. Fortunately, Rasma was watching over that place." "Indeed. If not for the sudden incident with Inmeles, forcing Rasma to step down and guard that place, Norton wouldn't have ascended so quickly. I truly feel that in less than ten years, our place here will turn into a museum." "It couldn't be helped. When in the history of the church has such an absurd thing ever happened?" "The preliminary investigation report has arrived. Rasma wrapped things up nicely. But something very interesting came up..." "Oh?" "Rasma left a protective seal within the consciousness of that young man named Karen. It seems he thinks very highly of this youth." "If he favored him, there was no need to be so secretive." "Did you forget? In name, Rasma is watching Inmeles there, but he himself is also being watched by Inmeles. He cannot send messages to the outside." "What I mean is, if he favored a young man, he wouldn't need to be so secretive; he could simply issue an announcement. That Inmeles isn't unreasonable to that extent. Yes, he is unruly, but he isn't entirely devoid of reason." "I say, even though Norton demanded that we not interfere in church administration, do you really care nothing about how church affairs operate? Because of his connection to Rasma, Rasma's student has been constantly suppressed within the church." "Norton isn't that petty." "Of course Norton wouldn't do that, but those beneath him watch which way the wind blows. Those departments that once obeyed our decrees now require us to obtain official missives from the Holy See before fulfilling our requests, hehe." "Well, then it seems Rasma didn't want his second student to suffer the same treatment." "Indeed, he felt wronged." "Gentlemen, do not forget: Rasma is the one most likely to condense a godhead fragment and enter the temple next. Barring any surprises, he will sit here in the future, drinking tea with us. "Furthermore, once he condenses a godhead fragment, we will still need his cooperation to resolve the Inmeles matter. His relationship with Inmeles is far from ordinary. "On this matter, none of us can be sure what choice he will make. After all, who would want to take such a massive risk right after condensing a godhead fragment?" "Then on this matter, we must satisfy him." "Not just satisfy him—double it. This young man... what was his name again?" "Karen Silva." "Which department is he from?" "The Whip of Order." "The Whip of Order? *Sigh*, Foden is one of Norton's direct subordinates. I worry that making demands of him in the temple's name might backfire." "We give Norton face by not directly meddling in church administration, so Norton must show us sufficient respect. "Besides, we aren't issuing direct orders to the Whip-Wielder. Pass down the word to pull up this Karen's dossier and send it to our Whip-Wielder. He will understand what it means." "Under normal circumstances, the Whip of Order would definitely commend this Karen. I worry the magnitude won't be enough to convey what you meant by doubling it." "That's simple. Send it in duplicate." ... "Whip-Wielder." Marlene walked in carrying a document. "This is a document transmitted to you from the temple." "Oh." Foden took the document, opened it, and found it was Karen's dossier. "Marlene, what commendation did you draft?" "Yes. Following your instructions, besides honorary citations and point coupon rewards, Karen will be promoted from Captain of the Operations Battalion of the York City Region Disciplinary Investigation Office to Deputy Director of the Office." "Mm, that will do. Leave it at that." Foden nodded in satisfaction and waved for Marlene to leave. Not long after Marlene left, she returned, holding another document in her hands: "Whip-Wielder, another document transmitted to you from the temple." Foden frowned, took the document, opened it, and found it was Karen's dossier again. This forced Foden to compare it with the previous document, only to find they were identical—an exact duplicate. Foden fell silent for a moment, then spoke: "The reward needs to be raised further. He truly accomplished a major feat this time, plus he contributed to reviving organizational work for the Whip of Order in the lower region earlier. We also need to put forth a youthful role model within our department. Let's make him our main focus." "Then appoint him as Director of the Second Office of the Disciplinary Investigation Committee?" "Does that region have a Second Office?" "No. Only the First Office barely has a full roster; the others are currently being organized and established. As you know, the regional system below had been neglected for so long; rebuilding it will take time." Foden looked at the two dossiers resting on his desk. After pondering for a moment, he spoke: "Better make him Director of the First Office. After all, he's familiar with the personnel, so it will run smoothly. Let's not make him break new ground." "Then the original Office Director..." "Reassign him to be Director of the Second Office."