"Church of Heim?!"
The leading Devil Hunter sneered, his altered voice carrying a thick native accent, but the mocking tone was impossible to hide.
"How dare you insult our God?"
Morland's face was filled with fury. When it came to their own deity, no priest would back down, and they became exceptionally fierce.
"No! How would I dare insult a true God?"
That Devil Hunter had yellow skin, thick lips, and brown hair tied into many small braids. His clothing and appearance carried a strong South Sea flavor.
"However… for any criminals who attack temple guards and impersonate them, we have the authority to punish!"
"Impersonate?!"
The cold sweat on Bishop Morland's forehead suddenly streamed down, and a very bad premonition stirred in his heart.
"On the Lord's orders! Inspecting for devils!"
However, the short leader before him gave him no chance. The man suddenly shouted, and amid the glow of divine magic, several [Devil Detection] spells were cast toward them.
As the Lord of Hell, Leilin's priests, in addition to basic divine magic, had also gained the ability to detect devils.
Moreover, after the test of time, the [Devil Detection] spell invented by Leilin had a one-hundred-percent accuracy rate! It had never produced a single error!
This meant that when it came to identifying devils, the Devil Hunters were the absolute authority!
And now, Morland had only hesitated slightly, and the situation was already beyond his control.
"Aaah!"
Amid the glow of the devil-detection divine magic, one of his subordinates suddenly changed expression, and then the milky-white divine light instantly turned vivid red.
Amid screams, his subordinate had already sprouted devil horns, and a layer of hellfire directly enveloped him.
Almost in an instant, the former Heim guard had transformed into a full-fledged devil!!!
This dramatic change left not only Morland but everyone else stunned as well.
"How dare you harbor devils and even disguise yourselves as guards of the gods… what blasphemy is this!"
The Devil Hunter leader stepped forward, his face full of righteous indignation. "Wipe them out!"
"Justice! Justice!" The other Devil Hunters roared and charged forward fiercely, hellfire carrying terrifying heat blazing all around them.
"You…"
By this point, how could Bishop Morland not realize that he and his people had fallen into the other party's trap?
But he couldn't understand at all why the
All the questions, all the shock, ultimately transformed into Bishop Morland's furious roar: "How dare you do this???"
Unfortunately, no one would answer his question.
The short leader, seeing that the Church of Heim was still resisting, immediately gave the order: "Transform!"
"Heh heh heh!!!"
Grinning hideously, the high-ranking Devil Hunters' tattoos all came alive.
Amid the terrifying hellfire, a part of their bodies—most often their arms and legs—began undergoing a grotesque devil transformation.
Crimson scales grew out, accompanied by sharp devil claws, yet still wrapped in layers of fine, spiked iron chains.
The transformed Devil Hunters not only completely retained their human reason and abilities but also gained the physical constitution and quasi-spell-like abilities of devils!
This monstrous transformation, combined with the explosive surge in power, instantly overwhelmed the Church of Heim's resistance.
Even Bishop Morland himself, after losing his trump cards one after another, was burned to ash by the hellfire.
"I already know the identities of you two. Please come with me!"
The short Devil Hunter parted from the others and approached the master and servant pair, who were nearly paralyzed with fear.
Although he had returned to his normal human form, the terrifying transformation had been firmly imprinted in the young man's mind and would undoubtedly leave an impression he could never forget for the rest of his life.
Compared to the young man, the old butler was in considerably better shape.
He could at least maintain polite responses, and in his heart there was even a faint envy: "Devil Hunters? What a powerful legion. If my Lord had possessed such strength as his guard, he wouldn't have fallen so quickly…"
After respectfully seeing off the two guests, the short leader immediately changed his expression.
"Is everything ready?"
"Chief!" Another Devil Hunter who resembled a monkey had walked up to him, whispering in his ear. "It's all done! The moment they transformed into devils, everything was recorded with [Image Preservation], and the affected commoners and noble merchants have been arranged…"
"Excellent! Contact the city hall immediately. And the other temples—hurry! Before they can react, make this case ironclad!!!"
The short leader stroked his chin, his eyes gleaming with a wolf's light…
And the clever maneuvering, the stirring struggles, even the layered schemes of these subordinates—when all of it was compiled and sent to the headquarters on Bankers Island, it was reduced to just a few thin reports.
"Hmm?"
Tiphar adjusted his reading glasses. His appearance looked somewhat aged, as if even a [Legendary]-level powerhouse couldn't escape the erosion of time.
But this was entirely intentional on his part, because the image of a kindly old man better matched ordinary people's understanding of a Pontiff.
Tiphar was still the Pontiff of the Giant Serpent Church, and he managed all of its affairs excellently.
After a long period of recuperation, the entire native empire had now recovered to its previous peak state and even improved upon it.
With technological support from the mainland, more fertile fields had been cultivated, and the variety of goods sold on the streets had increased.
More importantly, the opening of numerous blacksmith shops had instantly pushed native civilization into the Iron Age, so it was no longer quite so backward.
Standing at the Giant Serpent Church headquarters, atop the Sacred Mountain, gazing out at the prosperity of the imperial capital, even Tiphar couldn't help but feel a pang of shared pride.
Once his eyes had adjusted, he rubbed the bridge of his nose again and then turned to his subordinate's report.
"Hmm! The matter on Faolan Island was handled very well! The Church of Heim suffered a bitter loss. The specific handler was Tubanke? Send the order—transfer him to headquarters!"
A transfer order stamped with the Pontiff's fire seal was quickly dispatched. The surrounding clergy all felt a twinge of envy—this was clearly a promotion and a sign of greater trust!
But that person had earned it through fighting on the front lines, so there was nothing to complain about.
"Also, that offspring of the Scorpion Lord, accompanied by a high-ranking mage, has already boarded a ship bound here in secret. Estimated arrival in ten days?"
Tiphar turned to the next document, and his expression rarely froze for a moment.
"This kind of matter… I must consult our Lord!"
Tiphar stood up, solemnly adjusted his appearance, and then proceeded behind the palace of the headquarters.
This was a forbidden area within forbidden areas, where even guards were rarely seen, filled with an atmosphere of deep tranquility.
The originally pristine marble architecture, after the polishing and settling of time, had revealed a unique luster, steeped in the aura and charm of history.
Behind the headquarters of the Giant Serpent Church, atop the Sacred Mountain, stood a massive temple.
Ninety-nine enormous marble pillars surrounded it, and at its center stood a colossal Feathered Serpent statue. Wisps of divinity wound around the statue, emanating a sacred radiance.
"My Lord, You are the stars in the heavens, wielding the dominion of slaughter. All natives prostrate beneath Your wings…"
Beneath the colossal Feathered Serpent statue, Tiphar began to pray solemnly.
A thread of unwavering faith connected, and the entire Feathered Serpent statue began to hum. Amid a radiance of golden light, a youthful figure slowly walked out.
Tiphar bowed his body even lower, for he knew that the Lord he worshipped had arrived.
"Tiphar!"
Leilin wore a loose white robe, every structure of his body flawlessly perfect—a natural manifestation after igniting the divine fire. He looked at Tiphar now, with golden light occasionally flashing through his eyes.
"The matter of the Scorpion Lord—I already know about it. You did well!"
Leilin first affirmed Tiphar's work.
"After they arrive, bring them here. I will receive them personally!"
Leilin made his decision.
"Your will is our mission. May Your divine light forever illuminate the earth!" Tiphar agreed excitedly.
He naturally knew that Leilin had been maintaining a low profile and lying low for this period of time, but today's attitude clearly signaled a change in direction.
A god's shift in stance would bring enormous changes to the mortal world.
"Could it be… that moment is approaching?" Tiphar suppressed the excitement in his heart and slowly withdrew.
"What a clever fellow."
Leilin watched Tiphar's retreating figure, the golden light in his eyes growing even more brilliant.
Hundreds of years had passed in the outside
And his preparations for apotheosis were now mature!
Leilin couldn't help but glance at his status panel: [Leilin Faolan. Race: Human (Demigod).
Leilin looked at his data panel with great satisfaction.
"And the native population has multiplied several times over. The faith energy they provide is now sufficient to support a [Slaughter] divine domain… All conditions are now ripe!"