Chapter 98: Changing Fate
A war of god-slaying has come to an end.
Soren has gained quite a bit, but it will take some time to fully digest it.
The power of deities has its peculiarities; one must be especially cautious when absorbing the divinity and divine profession of others. However, Soren still has a ‘hot potato’ in his hands, which is one of the most powerful artifacts in the Material Plane.
—Pale Justice!
Soren is unwilling to return this weapon to the paladins of the Lord of Radiance, for a simple reason: they are all rigid-minded, perpetually at the forefront of fighting evil, and returning it to them could very well lead to it being used against him in the future.
However!
Soren absolutely cannot keep this weapon for himself, as doing so would lead to endless trouble.
Therefore, he decided to try a different approach.
In the desolate wasteland.
After returning the Princess, Soren once again arrived at the dwelling of the Holy Avenger.
The Princess had also absorbed a small portion of divinity and divine rank; her own power was already showing signs of going out of control, and now she needed to properly integrate this divinity and divine rank.
In the context of the Saint’s Cataclysm, god-slaying inevitably leads to some waste of power.
Because everyone is in saint form, they cannot freely condense the powers of divine rank and divinity like in divine form. If it were a complete divine form, Soren would be able to extract and condense the [Animal] domain into a single divine power to bestow upon others, even if he could not integrate it. However, in saint form, one could forget about it; by conventional standards, the strength of saint form might be less than one-third of divine form.
Pale Justice.
This weapon cannot be returned to those paladins, nor can it be kept in his possession.
So what should Soren do now?
Thus, a bold thought arose in his mind: to hand it over to the Holy Avenger, with whom he has a good relationship.
Both are paladins.
The Holy Avenger and the paladins of the Lord of Radiance’s order are completely different, and the former has made even greater contributions since the outbreak of the Saint’s Cataclysm. They maintained the order and rules of the world, not fixating on combating evil like other paladin orders.
Lawful Good.
This faction does have its own focus; the Holy Avenger values [Order] the most, while the Lord of Radiance’s order places greater importance on [Good] and [Justice].
When he met the Warden again, the other party appeared very cautious.
These paladins have their own network of information; the fall of the God of the Hunt—Mara—could not possibly be hidden from them. The fall of an evil god is undoubtedly something to be pleased about. However, if this evil god fell to another powerful evil faction’s deity, then the reality might not be as pleasing.
This could signify the rise of a more powerful evil faction’s deity.
The external evaluation of Soren is quite peculiar.
He is ruthless, bloodthirsty, and cruel, with hardly any virtues related to mercy, kindness, tolerance, or compassion visible on him. Yet this very person has accomplished what countless virtuous heroes could not achieve.
Bringing peace and order to a realm.
The Southern Coast is currently the most stable place in the entire Material Plane, with the lowest population decline and the best living conditions for civilians—essentially, the place least affected by war.
Soren’s iron-fisted rule absolutely does not allow for significant turmoil in his territory.
It’s ironic!
Currently, the most vibrant and thriving place in the entire Material Plane is created by an existence from an evil faction.
“Lord Soren.”
The Warden slightly bowed his head in respect, indicating his deference to a true god. This is the greatest difference of the Holy Avenger; they truly care about the lives of the lowest civilians, showing concern and compassion for these people, unlike other paladins who use morality to strap these poor souls down, ultimately pushing them into even more tragic circumstances through the flames of war.
Their greatest difference is that they understand what it means—compromise!
This is a kind of tragedy.
A tragedy belonging to the paladins, but it is precisely this that allows them to accomplish great things that no other paladins can achieve.
Ending the Saint’s Cataclysm!
The last battle before the energy storm is about to end. The Holy Avenger is a backbone force in ending the turmoil of the Saint’s Cataclysm.
After that battle.
The deities return to their respective divine kingdoms, and demons and evil entities are driven back to the Abyss and Hell. The cracks in the elemental planes are repaired by divine power, the barriers of the planes gradually stabilize, and creatures from the multiverse begin to return one after another.
At that time, the struggles between the deities will follow another set of rules.
They return to being the players. Using the pieces they have dropped to compete, rather than having to personally enter the stage bare-chested.
Two artifacts are important forces in the Saint’s Cataclysm.
One is the Holy Avenger, and the other is Pale Justice. Today, Soren is preparing to do something that may change the trajectory of history, which is to hand ‘Pale Justice’ over to the group of paladins before him.
Clang!
With the light of holiness, Pale Justice was thrust before the Warden.
“What is this?!!!!”
An expression of uncontrollable shock appeared on the Warden’s stern face. He knelt on one knee, not before Soren, but before Pale Justice, slowly reaching out with a slight tremor to touch its blade, which was so sharp, even though it appeared to be an ordinary long sword.
“Pale Justice!!!”
An uncontrollable cry of surprise erupted, and the Warden suddenly stood up, looking at Soren with joy, mumbling, “Is this really Pale Justice!!! My lord?… I… I don’t know how to express my gratitude!…”
Soren did not take out this divine sword just to show off.
Handing Pale Justice to this group of paladins was a decision he had seriously considered.
An artifact cannot change their fate.
But if there are two of the most powerful artifacts in the Material Plane, then the fate of the paladins before him cannot be easily said. (Note: After the full outbreak of the Saint’s Cataclysm, the Holy Avenger lost ninety percent of its paladins. What’s even more remarkable is that after the years of turmoil ended, they did not rely on their glorious past to strive for expansion but chose to return to the desolate wasteland and retire again. They believe that the ancient tradition of the Holy Avenger should continue.)
“You will handle it.”
Soren’s expression was cool, and after tossing aside Pale Justice, he prepared to turn and leave, leaving the other party with a mysterious silhouette.
Factional clashes made it difficult for them to find common ground in their communication.
Furthermore, the upcoming events weren’t particularly glorious. If the Warden were to swallow Pale Justice, it would inevitably lead to disputes with other paladins. However, both sides are paladins guarding justice, and the more experienced Holy Avengers likely have ways to deal with those rigid-minded individuals.
Having paladins quarrel among themselves does evoke a sense of guilt!
But.
Today, Soren finally feels like he has truly changed a bit of the trajectory of fate. (To be continued ~^~)
