Chapter 7: Southern Line (10)
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If Lin Nan were a native of this world, then five thousand lives would be a mere drop in the bucket.
In any war, the d*ath toll often exceeds that. And two years from now, the Divine Punishment will turn the Asking Dao Continent into a grim scene of carnage.
After all, her soul is from the modern world, and unlike those five thousand players, she has been a bit luckier.
Plus, ever since they were born near the Imperial Capital, they had been completely imprisoned, never enjoying even a day of player fun.
Therefore, within her control, both emotionally and rationally, she wanted to help them.
That’s why she held back her feelings, even knowing that the damned Emperor was definitely plotting something sneaky and hadn’t approached him about it yet.
“Greetings, Lord Lin!”
After Morris leveled up to a high-ranking Mage, his demeanor and presence were indeed like night and day from before.
“You’ve endured a lot during this time.”
Morris hurriedly reassured, “Oh, this little bit of hardship is nothing, just a minor war of words, really!
My lord, regarding the expansion of the Church of Light, I estimate that the number of believers in the Imperial Capital has already surpassed fifty percent of the total population.”
Lin Nan nodded, “This was within my expectations. After all, the Emperor has become the Son of God; naturally, the Church of Light would attract more and more citizens flocking to them. Now, have you found out anything about the movements of other Mages?”
Morris frowned deeply.
“This is what puzzles me. By all rights, since they are all from the royal lineage, despite years of indulging in wealth and neglecting their training, many no longer deserve to call themselves Mages. But I’ve heard that near the Emperor, there’s a squad of Mages made up of royal offspring, numbering at least two hundred.
However, so far, I have not been able to locate this squad’s whereabouts.”
No wonder the Emperor insisted on only sending armored warriors and Harpists to combat the Beast Legion. It seems the Mage Corps had other secret missions under the Emperor’s command.
Connecting the dots to the posts on the forum, could it be that those guys were all chilling near the sinkhole, which is why they haven’t shown up in the Imperial Capital?
“Hmm, what else have you discovered?”
Morris replied, “Recently, the Emperor has been relentlessly sending jewels, gold, food supplies, and huge shipments of fabrics to the palace, as if he’s preparing to turn the palace into a fortress. Even if he hides inside for a year or two, he probably won’t run out of these supplies.
But the palace is the heart of the Imperial Capital. Even though it has walls and guards, it can’t compare with city walls.
Once the Beast Army breaks through the periphery, the palace can’t possibly remain unscathed. Thus, I don’t quite understand the Emperor’s reasoning behind this.”
Lin Nan said, “Good. Keep earning the Emperor’s trust, and report to me immediately if anything happens.”
“Yes, my lord. I shall take my leave for now.”
Morris donned his cloak and quietly departed.
At this moment, most people at the Harpist Academy, led by the Dean, were rushing to the front lines.
The large campus was nearly deserted.
Lin Nan stood by the tall floor-to-ceiling window, quietly watching Morris’s figure disappear down the street, only to have her attention drawn back to the sounds of battle from the South City.
If it were any other day, she might’ve already been on the city wall, battling it out with those bloodthirsty beasts.
After all, once the city fell, it would be ordinary citizens who’d suffer first.
The Emperor, relying on the Mage Corps, could likely hold out for a while without her assistance.
But thinking about the recent movements of the Church of Light and the fact that fifty percent of the residents of the Imperial Capital already believed in the church, she guessed that at this critical moment, the Emperor would definitely do something to maintain the status of the Church.
Otherwise, he could boast all he wanted, but when faced with real life-or-d*ath situations, the Church of Light, which prided itself on saving every believer, could end up doing nothing.
Even if the Beast Legion were defeated, many followers would likely begin to doubt the Church.
If she could think of this, surely the Emperor could too.
At the same time, as Janet and others were fighting fiercely against dozens of beasts the size of tigers, a massive beast outside the city walls let out another roar, towering almost as high as the walls.
It aimed to collaborate from the outside, preparing to slam its enormous body into the walls.
“Boom!”
The earth shook violently.
The feeble walls trembled on the brink of collapse, and with a mighty thrust, a large gap had already formed.
Ordinary beasts could easily leap up and surge into the city.
The city defense forces were taken aback, mobilizing their reserve troops to block the gap; after all, the beasts hadn’t ceased their attacks elsewhere.
They couldn’t spare too many to seal off the breach.
As they fought fiercely inside and outside the city, it wouldn’t be long before the walls completely fell.
Suddenly, a figure glowing with golden light soared from the palace and rapidly sped toward the battlefield.
Lin Nan, positioned at the highest point of the Harpist Academy, keenly noticed that figure. It seemed the Emperor had found the perfect moment to make his entrance. Now, it was time for his solo performance.
Ha! The sudden Beast Army had inadvertently turned into tools for the Emperor to show off his might.
But who knew if the one leading those beasts would let the Emperor continue to be so cocky.
“The divine decree states that the believers are the foundation of our Church, and there shall be no losses, not even an inch!
As the Son of God and the Emperor of the Empire, I absolutely won’t allow any scoundrels to invade a single inch of our land!
This is my mission!”
Bel’s voice reverberated like a thunderclap over the Imperial Capital.
In an instant, the followers of the Church of Light forgot the threat of the beasts, rushing to open spaces, bowing down to that golden figure above them.
“Thank the grace of the God!”
“God of Light, we are finally saved!”
“Believers, let us pray for the Son of God that he may be victorious in every battle!”
With the synchronized chanting of the believers, the golden light enveloping Bel grew even stronger.
The wyverns that had been hovering in the air dived toward the Emperor, their claws sharper than those of the griffins, decimating the griffin army that had only just fought them.
But before they could get close to the Emperor,
Bel simply raised a hand, and over a hundred beams of golden light, as if they had a physical presence, penetrated the bodies of the wyverns.
Like lightsabers sizzling away, they emitted a “zzzz” sound, and a smell of burning flesh wafted through the air, making everyone gag.
Seeing the Son of God so powerful, effortlessly taking out the wyverns that had been wreaking havoc in the sky, the believers’ confidence surged, their chanting even louder and more synchronized, much like a background score for the battle, the official BGM for the Emperor’s stunning appearance.
“When did the royal leaders become so formidable?”
From a distance, Lilith watched in shock.
Lady Rong Ji, however, had anticipated it. She lightly hummed and said, “Ever since he started tinkering with the Church of Light, I knew this day would come.”
