Ye Chui and Gunny walked along the street filled with the aroma of lunch. It was already noon. Although Gunny had eaten a breakfast consisting of seven roasted hams, three barley loaves, and several boiled eggs, enough to satisfy six people properly, she was already feeling hungry again. And when passing a food stall, the little girl stared at the leg of lamb roasting to a golden brown on the stall and simply could not move.
One hand tugged at Ye Chui’s clothes. Her eyes were full of expectation as she looked at Ye Chui, then at the leg of lamb. Her small face bore that endearing, innocent smile. This was a girl who remained cute even with her dark skin. Just those clear, big eyes were enough to win people’s favour.
Of course, one had to ignore the fire-red super greatsword casually slung over her shoulder and the tattered, burned fur sleeves on her arms…
“Two legs of lamb, please.” Ye Chui felt he could not refuse Gunny’s pleading gaze, which was like that of a little sister. So he smiled and said to the stall owner. Just right, the leg of lamb did look delicious. It was sprinkled with some special seasonings from Windrock City. The lamb fat crackled as it roasted, the aroma making one involuntarily swallow saliva.
Then… when the two legs of lamb were handed over by the owner, Gunny took them with one hand. Without minding the heat, she bit into them with a “wow” and took two mouthfuls. Chewing, she said to Ye Chui, “You are so kind to buy me two. One would not fill me up at all.”
Ye Chui, with one hand frozen in mid-air: “Heh, as long as you are happy…”
After settling the bill with the owner, Ye Chui continued leading the voracious, super-strength girl towards the lord’s mansion. By now, Cass and Windsor’s wedding had spread thoroughly throughout Windrock City. On the street, one could hear the citizens discussing it, making their own groundless guesses. One could also see some carriages heading towards the lord’s mansion. Those were the guests fortunate enough to attend the wedding.
Just as they were about to return to the lord’s mansion, Ye Chui spotted Jacob running towards them from afar. The boy looked somewhat out of breath. He wore a rather luxurious robe, prepared for him by the lord’s mansion steward. Although he had been imprisoned in the dungeon for over half a year, enduring cold and hunger, now fortune had smiled upon him. Joining Ye Chui’s magic guild had immediately changed his status. Now dressed in this luxurious attire, though he still appeared somewhat pitifully thin and pale, he carried the air of a wealthy young noble.
“Jacob, what is it?” Seeing his anxious appearance, Ye Chui hurriedly asked.
“President, something bad. The church people just suddenly arrived at the lord’s mansion…” Jacob panted.
“They came to make trouble?”
“No, not that. They said they came to congratulate, but their appearance does not look like congratulations at all. Miss Lesa said they want to chant some wedding blessing chapter. That seems like a terrible thing. Miss Lesa told me to hurry and find you!”
“Wedding blessing chapter?”
Ye Chui’s brows furrowed. Realising the urgency, he hurriedly led Gunny and Jacob towards the lord’s mansion.
Ye Chui now had some understanding of the church’s power of faith. Faith was something everyone possessed, though some believed in money, others in freedom. The church preached the greatness of the elemental gods, leading people to believe in them. Faith in the elemental gods could become power, called the power of faith. It was a power but also a shackle.
For example, Lesa, as a church nun, possessed the power of faith. She had to use her power to serve the church. If she went against the church’s will and acted on her own, her faith power would weaken. Even her holy scripture had directly shattered. That was the shackle of faith power.
Similarly, over thousands of years, the church had profound influence over every capital in the Castro Continent. People’s marriages needed the church’s blessing to be complete. The church’s blessing was not merely superficial. It was an act with binding force. After receiving the church’s blessing, a bond would form between them, like registering a marriage in another world. Their marriage would become legitimate.
For a legitimate marriage, chanting the “wedding blessing chapter” by church believers would make it more perfect. Their bond would deepen. But conversely, if the marriage was illegitimate, not previously blessed by the church, the wedding blessing chapter would become a nightmare for the “unlawful union” of the two. In the blessing chapter, they would suffer fatal blows and demonic temptations. That would be the cruelest punishment.
Some songs sung by bards recorded such events: young lovers who united privately, upon hearing the church’s wedding blessing chapter, went mad and died tragically together.
Cass and Windsor’s wedding had publicly been proclaimed as blessed by Bishop Talbot. But whether Lord Kevin or others who knew the church’s stance, all understood that Bishop Talbot could not possibly have blessed Cass and Windsor’s marriage. Now that Bishop Talbot was dead, and the fourth prince had confirmed such a thing, the church could not directly deny the illegitimacy of Cass and Windsor’s wedding. So they had to use other means.
Chanting the wedding blessing chapter at their wedding, using the power of faith to test whether their marriage was legitimate, or bluntly put, to kill them directly!
Ye Chui was not entirely unprepared for the church doing this.
The imperial throne, the church’s influence, and Lord Kevin’s sway in the northern border of the Starfall Empire formed a complex web of power. The church supported every prince in competing for the throne. This served two purposes: one to control the empire’s power class, the other to consume the empire’s strength through it. A fratricidal struggle for succession was undoubtedly the best way to weaken the empire’s power. Only thus could the church’s influence over the empire grow stronger.
The fourth prince and Windsor’s marriage had been orchestrated by the church. They hoped the fourth prince could gain Lord Kevin’s support to vie for the throne. But now Cass was Ye Chui’s man. Ye Chui had an unclear relationship with Prince Geller and the old emperor. His identity as the illegitimate son was almost confirmed in others’ eyes. So Cass and Windsor’s union was especially intolerable to the church.
Upon arriving at the lord’s mansion entrance, Ye Chui stored Gunny’s super greatsword in his [Storage Space]. The sight of the girl carrying that thing was too shocking. What if it scared the guests?
The lord’s mansion was now bustling with people, more lively than ever. Servants and maids hurried about, decorating for the wedding. Some guests who had received invitations entered the banquet hall to rest under the servants’ guidance. Among them, some noticed Ye Chui’s arrival. Their expressions were somewhat subtle, a mix of fear. They hesitated whether to come over and greet him.
Among them, Ye Chui spotted Lord Kevin’s nephew, Hakim. The teleportation token for entering the Sword Burial Ground had come from this Hakim. Seeing Ye Chui, he looked as if he had seen a ghost and hurriedly hid in the crowd.
Among the many guests, what concerned Ye Chui most were still those believers and nuns. They wore uniform believer attire, stiff and formal, starkly different from the other expensively dressed guests. And upon seeing Ye Chui, the looks they cast were indescribably cold. Ye Chui did not even need his iPad to detect that they must all appear as blood-red dots on his map now.
Among these believers, there was an elder in a white robe, with a strangely styled round hat on his head. All this marked his distinct status. Unlike the others, he did not show cold indifference towards Ye Chui. Instead, he appeared very mild, with a kindly smile.
“He is the priest of Windrock City’s church, Moyne. He is a bishop himself, a bit stronger than Bishop Talbot.” Jacob whispered in Ye Chui’s ear. Having grown up in Windrock City, he naturally recognised the church’s top figure here.
Among believers, bishop was a realm. Believer power was divided into three realms: ordinary believer, bishop, holy believer.
Bishops could be further divided into ordinary bishop, archbishop, cardinal, and so on. Additionally, in the church, believers held positions called clerics. Clerics were classified as divine messengers, priests, divine punishers, etc. Priests managed a city’s church forces. They could communicate directly with the gods and absolve people’s sins on the gods’ behalf.
This Moyne gave Ye Chui a feeling more dangerous than Talbot. No hostility showed on his face towards Ye Chui, yet he carried an innate oppressive presence that made one sense his peril. Especially the holy scripture held in his arms, far larger and thicker than Talbot’s. After meeting Ye Chui’s gaze, Moyne even slightly bowed to him, as a form of salute.
Ye Chui also smiled and nodded back at him. Well, a smile and nod before the official clash, that was polite.
Then Ye Chui, Gunny, and Jacob entered a resting room on one side of the banquet hall. Just as they went in, he heard the argument between Lord Kevin and Windsor.
“… You are mad. Doing this, you will die! Do not think your little tricks can fool me. Bishop Talbot could not possibly have blessed your marriage. You two will suffer hellish punishment in Moyne’s wedding blessing chapter!”
“Father, I believe my love with Cass can overcome any danger!”
“This is different. Moyne brought all of Windrock City’s believers and nuns. United, they chant the wedding blessing chapter. That… that is not something ordinary people can resist!”
“I want to try…”
“You, you… Cass, can you bear to watch Windsor go mad with you?”
“Lord, I understand the terror of the blessing chapter. But… Windsor and I have no way back. No matter what, we will not evade or retreat!”
“You, you are all mad!”
In the room, Prince Geller sat in a chair, silently drinking. Debbie, Lesa, and Green had changed into wedding attire, their expressions worried. Seeing Ye Chui return, they hurriedly came to his side. Cass had changed into a handsome black robe. Windsor wore a fitting white wedding dress. Lord Kevin’s face was full of anger and worry. After Ye Chui returned, he shot Ye Chui a particularly displeased look. If not for Ye Chui’s meddling, how could Cass have disrupted Windsor’s wedding to the fourth prince?
“Lord Kevin, I think you need not worry.” Ye Chui walked to Cass’s side, patted his shoulder, and gave Windsor a comforting glance before continuing to Lord Kevin. “Leave the church side to me.”
“Leave it to you? Do you intend to attack Priest Moyne in front of so many people?” Lord Kevin coldly questioned Ye Chui.
“Of course not.” Ye Chui shook his head with a smile. “But I can counter their wedding blessing chapter.”
The church’s faith power needed chanting to manifest. In Ye Chui’s understanding, chanting was like BGM. And speaking of wedding blessing BGM, Ye Chui’s resource library had loads waiting to be unlocked.
Let us have a BGM showdown!
