Chapter 197: The Enforcer of Punishment

Shenghui Avenue branched into Qiutong Road, a street wide enough for two carriages side-by-side, lined with plane trees. Amid the tall trees, faint, flickering light spilled from a small building covered in ivy.

The inside of the building was simple, almost bare. All the furniture was made of untreated logs, not even painted. The rooms held only the most basic tables and chairs; there were no closets or beds. Wooden pegs were nailed to the walls, from which gray, brown, and black cloaks hung neatly.

Some rooms had rectangular wooden planks laid out on the floor, each one just large enough for a person to lie down upon. The thin bedding laid over them suggested this was where people rested—their ‘beds’.

Everything about the place was extremely simple and austere, verging on harsh.

In the attic at the top of the building, the window in the pointed roof stood open. Cold air swept through freely, creating a temperature low enough to freeze a strong wild boar solid. In this terrifying, bone-chilling cold, a tall, powerfully built man knelt before a Holy Cross Emblem carved from a log. He wore nothing but undergarments.

“My God, my Ancestor, symbol of all Justice, Lord of all Laws! Cleanse the sins of my body. Cleanse the sins of my soul. Cleanse the sins of my spirit! Let the world’s filth stay far from my body, far from my soul, far from my spirit! Let me forever follow the path of Justice and Law! Let me never lose my way! Let my spirit, my soul, always be with You!”

After kowtowing three times to the wooden Holy Cross Emblem, the man gripped a black iron whip. With a sharp flick of his wrist, he brought it crashing down onto his own back.

It was a whip thick as a thumb, woven from iron wires thin as hairs, studded with countless tiny black spikes. He struck with immense force. With the very first lash, his back was torn apart, the white sheen of bone visible. Pale gold blood streamed from the wounds, rapidly misting into a faint golden halo that coiled around him.

Lash after lash, he struck himself nine times. Despite being stronger than a bull, the pain drove him writhing onto the floor. He gasped deeply, pulling the faint golden halo into himself. His wounds healed at incredible speed, and he slowly straightened up.

This ritual: one prayer, three kowtows, nine lashes. After repeating this brutal self-castigation eighteen times, the man, drenched in sweat, slowly rose. He took a pale gold cloak from a wooden peg beside the Holy Cross Emblem and draped it over himself.

He turned and sat leaning against the wall, under the Holy Cross Emblem. The man was tall, powerfully built, with handsome, austere features—every line on his face looked as if it had been carved with an axe. He had golden hair. He took a deep breath, seeming to suck all the air from the building. As he breathed, hundreds of slow, deep breaths echoed throughout the small structure.

Only a tiny lamp barely lit the attic, illuminating just a couple of yards around it. Figures stood indistinctly in the darker corners. It was impossible to tell how many there were, or whether they were male or female.

After several deep breaths, the golden-haired man slowly opened his eyes. Golden Divine Flame burned within them. Where his pupils should have been were radiant golden Holy Cross Emblems, intricately composed of tiny runes. When his eyes opened, his whole body was covered in a faint golden glow, infusing him with an aura of majestic, unyielding Divinity.

“Something seems to have happened,” the golden-haired man sighed softly.

A portly figure carefully emerged from the shadows. He knelt respectfully before the golden-haired man.

“Master Lü, something has happened,” the fat man said, lifting his head. It was Fat Bird Kirk, the one who had been cheated by Long Cheng in Tixiang’s club. He looked up at Master Lü, replying cautiously with the news he had gathered. “Elham, Tolin, Yan, and An, they fell just a quarter hour ago. The Captain of the Ninth Squadron of the Dawn Temple’s Knights of the Night, Ye Jiu, had his right arm destroyed.”

Master Lü’s face, hard as granite, tightened abruptly. He narrowed his eyes, his Divine Flame blazing furiously within them.

“Elham and his ilk were sinners who forsook the natural way and willingly fell into decay. Their fall is justified. But a Captain of the Knights of the Night… that should be someone of the Heaven Rank Lower Stage. Their bodies are tempered by Divine Power; every bone, every muscle is suffused with sacred radiance. In this corrupted, degenerate mortal world, who could harm such a being?”

Fat Bird Kirk pursed his lips, looking nervously at Lü. “They say it was some strangely dressed men from the East. But… who knows? The Archbishop of the Radiant Cathedral has already gone there. The specific information is sealed.”

Lü shook his head. He gave a soft sigh, forming a strange hand sign and placing it over his heart. He closed his eyes and murmured a brief prayer. “The fall of Divine Descendants is unacceptable, no matter what. With Ya and Ling choosing to purify themselves with Divine Flame as well… this means six great Divine Descendants have fallen. This is an unbearable loss for both the Dawn Temple and the Temple of Blazing Flame.”

He opened his eyes and stared at Fat Bird Kirk. A golden Divine Light fell upon Kirk. “Thankfully, you did not defile Ya and Ling. Otherwise, when they chose to purify themselves with Divine Flame, I would have purified you with Divine Fire. Thankfully, you understood your place and status. You didn’t lay hands on the noble Divine Descendants. That’s the only reason you’re still alive.”

The Divine Flame in Lü’s pupils blazed wildly. He suddenly glared at Fat Bird Kirk and shouted harshly, “Above all, Master of Primal Power and Laws! You foolish waste! How did a tracking mark get placed on you? Was it people from Lartus? From Marrs? Are you such a trash that you didn’t even know you were marked?”

A ball of golden Divine Flame shot from Lü’s pupils, engulfing Fat Bird Kirk and burning fiercely. Kirk screamed in agony. A streak of purple spiritual light burst from him, writhing like a flood dragon trying to escape. But the golden fire filled the attic. The purple light lasted only about three breaths before being burned into nothingness.

“A formidable being!” Lü frowned, gazing at where the purple light had vanished. “This place isn’t safe anymore. We must leave immediately. No one must know I brought anyone here. The remaining matters in the Gaul Empire will be handled by…”

He scanned the attic with his eyes, then slowly stood. With disgust, he kicked Fat Bird Kirk, who was trembling on the floor, sending him flying. “Ignorant, incompetent trash. You’ve disappointed me deeply. Arthur, from today you oversee our affairs in Gaul. You’re clever. Abandoning those willingly corrupted sinners to join me was the wisest choice of your life. So, from today, you embody my will in the Gaul Empire. Fat Bird Kirk, you will obey Arthur’s commands unconditionally!”

Kirk’s mouth hung open dumbly. He didn’t dare object, only humbly lowering his bulky frame.

Arthur, a man with golden hair, violet eyes, and one missing eye, stepped eagerly from the shadows. He knelt reverently before Lü. Lü removed a black chain from his own neck and placed it around Arthur’s. The dark chain was plain but gave off an unnerving aura of cold, murderous intent.

Hanging on the chain was a Holy Cross Emblem the size of a baby’s palm. At its center was the image of a scale, a sharp longsword piercing its balance point. Around the emblem, ancient runes inscribed these words: Primordial Power Maintain the world’s balance, Law Sustains the world’s existence, Justice and Truth Above All.

“May the God of Punishment’s glory envelop the Gaul Empire. I hope you can achieve this!” Lü placed a hand on Arthur’s head. “If you succeed, you will gain what you seek. I grant you authority over all personnel and resources of the Penitentiary at the Radiant Cathedral. But beware interference from the Tribunal and the Knight Order. Proceed cautiously. Remember, the world holds too many willingly corrupted sinners who will obstruct the great cause of spreading the God of Punishment’s light over the land.”

Arthur bowed his head respectfully. His heart pounded wildly; excitement flushed his face.

Command over all personnel and resources of the Radiant Cathedral’s Penitentiary meant control of three thousand fanatical Punishment Priests and Punishment Knights—a formidable force. Possessing such terrifying power, who would he fear?

Perhaps it was time to crush Lin Qi beneath his boot.

Lü’s body dissipated in a golden Divine Light. The hundreds of slow, deep breaths within the small building also gradually faded.

Arthur slowly stood up. He looked towards University City, his voice a low growl. “Lin Qi! The time for you to pay has come! But first, I will defeat you. I will show Father that you are no match for me, that you fall far short of me in every way!”

In Lin Qi’s single-room dormitory in University City…

Having painstakingly disarmed over a dozen traps before finally entering his dorm, Lin Qi was clutching a delicate ring and laughing like a madman.

This was a Spatial Artifact, a Spatial Artifact of immense capacity!

His ankle chain could barely hold a space the size of a Four-Wheel Carriage. This ring, however, had ten times the capacity—nearly that of an entire hall. Truly worthy of being a Divine Descendant from the Dawn Temple! Elham’s ring was priceless!

Chuckling delightedly, Lin Qi slid the ring onto the middle finger of his left foot.

After a drop of blood touched it, the ring vanished into his flesh, leaving only an extremely thin line.