**Chapter Thirty-Nine: The Ancient Covenant! [First Update]**
2017-01-21
Author: Floating Tower
Everything is for the soul.
In fact, whether it’s the lofty gods, the demons of the Bottomless Abyss, or the devils of the Hell of Bartok, the wealth they ultimately value is the soul.
For a long time, whether in the Hell of Bartok or the Bottomless Abyss, the souls obtained from the River of Underworld are extremely limited, with most high-quality souls divided among the gods, as the unfaithful are only a small fraction. The remaining souls are mostly of poor quality and hardly useful, which is why the existence of the Soul Thief from the lower planes is prominent. Throughout history, the God of d*ath has been vigilant against the Hell of Bartok and the Bottomless Abyss because the responsibility of the d*ath God System is to maintain the operation of the River of Underworld and ensure the resting place of souls after d*ath; hence, the most common foes faced by the God of d*ath’s servants are the Soul Thieves from the lower planes.
Now it seems that Naraku has colluded with the devils.
The Underworld has largely fallen under Naraku’s control, and some Undead Lords have also reached into the Underworld. After losing control of Klanvor, the devils undoubtedly took a share as well.
Naraku has sold out the interests of the River of Underworld.
In order to make the devils act, one must provide visible benefits, preferably immediate ones. With the devil armies escorting Naraku’s advancements, the gods can be sure that part of the River of Underworld has been stolen by the devils.
This discovery has left the gods somewhat furious and uneasy!
Because all gods adhere to a basic principle: unless it is a particularly outstanding believer’s soul, such as one nearing the level of the Holy Spirit, otherwise, all souls are sent to the divine kingdom via the River of Underworld by the servants of the God of d*ath.
Now!
Who can still trust Naraku’s servants? Who does not worry about their believers’ souls being stolen and desecrated by the devils?
………………
Far in the East.
Just after the southern continent began its counter-offensive against the undead, many monasteries in the Eastern Kingdom united to eradicate mummies and undead.
Some members of the Dragon Witch Sect fled to the vicinity of the d*ath Desert, but these individuals did not give up, as Naraku’s power remains strong. They have aligned themselves with the God of d*ath – Naraku and captured quite a number of sub-species wyverns, recreating a batch of low-level Dragon Liches.
These are puppets controlled by the Dragon Witch Sect, and while their strength may be lacking, they obey orders.
At this moment.
Near a barren mountain range, one of the allied forces from the Eastern Kingdom has approached this area. The undead deep in the desert are awakened by Naraku’s evil powers, as Naraku’s church has spread around the desert for a long time.
Within the ranks of the Allied Forces from the Eastern Kingdom, the figure of the young girl Chan stands out. On one hand, she is incredibly young and stands out among a group of middle-aged legendary monks, while on the other hand, she represents a burgeoning power. This Master of Fist has gained immense fame in battles against ancient evil artifacts and now leads the Night Shadow Monk Troupe. The members of this monk troupe are blessed by the Lord of Shadows and can master and enhance the use of special techniques such as ‘Shadow Step’ and ‘Moon Shadow Style’; this power allows them to become completely invisible, stealthy, and to some extent, leap through shadow spaces, making the monks’ movements increasingly erratic and unpredictable.
This monk troupe is blessed by Soren.
Compared to the past, Chan has rapidly matured through battles, and especially after becoming the leader of a monk troupe, she exudes an air of authority.
The situation in the Eastern Kingdom has improved significantly.
After eliminating ancient evil artifacts, the remaining enemies are much easier to handle. The Roshaya has been steadily retreating, and some of the Yin Evils have been re-sealed. Currently, the most troublesome issue is the army of mummies. The God of d*ath – Naraku has awakened many ancient mummies, and some ancient pyramids even contain mummies older than the Arcane Empire.
This battle is extremely critical.
Because underground here lies Naraku’s Grand Temple, a stronghold for awakening and resurrecting undead.
The temples serving the deities have various standards.
The lowest level is the altar, followed by the shrine, the temple, and then the grand temple. Above that is the giant temple, and as for the Pantheon, it has yet to appear in the Material Plane.
The altar is simple.
It can be activated by conducting a bl**d sacrifice. The shrine requires a bit more effort, needing a period of continuous sacrifices and prayers. Then there’s the temple, which is a place that receives responses from the deities through years of prayers and offerings. Generally, temples can only be found within towns, and their construction takes years, often requiring decades before the divine radiance envelops them.
The temple serves as the main base of formal churches.
A temple is equivalent to half a wizard tower, and most temples take decades or even centuries to establish, so they rarely change locations easily.
Finally, the Grand Temple must have a trace of divine consciousness covering it, just like Soren’s Grand Temple, where he can easily perceive events occurring within; the Grand Temple itself is equivalent to a core base, and the idols inside are possessed by the deity’s physical form.
At present, even Soren has only one Grand Temple, located right in the center of Modo.
Aside from that, other places are at most temple level.
The destruction of any Grand Temple by enemies is a severe blow to the deity, and even in some respects, it directly weakens the power of the deity and the church.
Thus, the defenses here are also very strong!
The collusion between Naraku and the devils has stirred too much hostility. Not only has the Eastern Kingdom launched a counterattack, but other regions are also searching for and destroying Naraku’s temples.
At this moment, at the summit of the mountains ahead, hundreds of Dragon Liches are circling in the sky.
This area is guarded by surviving members of the Dragon Witch Sect, along with some devils apart from the followers of Naraku’s church.
“Our Baiyun Sect and Shadow Sect can undertake the ambush,” said an elderly Master of Fist with graying eyebrows, seated on a chair, facing the other monks and forces present. “But those Dragon Liches are very tricky. They fly in the air, making it difficult for monks on the ground to deal with these foes.”
Monks can leap and briefly fly, but they must learn the ‘Ethereal Body’ technique, which most monks cannot accomplish.
Others frowned upon hearing this; all those gathered are forces from the Eastern Kingdom, mainly consisting of monasteries. Monks are strong on the ground, but it’s uncertain how they measure up in the air.
After a brief pause.
The Master of Fist then turned his gaze to the Eastern Empress on the right, slowly saying, “I think that among everyone here, only the Empress has the means to deal with those Dragon Liches.”
Many elders from the monasteries brightened at these words.
The Eastern Empress then fell into silence, and after a moment, she replied, “I can summon ancient allies to deal with them.”
