Secret Phoenix City, this industrial metropolis famous for its steel and automobiles, finally welcomed its first snow of the winter.

Feathers of heavy snow fell in the early morning, and after a whole day, Secret Phoenix City had almost completely changed its appearance. The city, usually firm and cold with its industrial atmosphere, now seemed somewhat softened. The Secret Phoenix River running through the city appeared as a snow-white "Jade Belt," connecting the ice and snow-covered Great Lakes of Saint Martin and Green Dragon Ridge.

From above, the sight of these two was astoundingly beautiful, absolutely enchanting.

Most commoners were extremely excited about the first snow.

The children from Witch School felt the same; without exception, they were all from the Mysterious Side and possessed formidable powers. But since many of them were still children, besides training, tasks, and learning, playing played a large part.

So while the entire Mysterious Side of the Federation was shaken by the significant event that occurred last night, the schools remained peaceful and joyful.

The commoners, too, went about their work and lives as usual.

However, some keen observers quickly noticed something amiss—a sequence of unusual events was unfolding:

In Messer City, students and teachers from Thorny High School received notices early in the morning that the school would be temporarily closed, with an indefinite reopening time. People from the Church would take up residence within the school to conduct routine investigations, and unauthorized individuals must not approach.

In "East Town," also located in the Eastern Federation, a very simple, almost abandoned church had its only remaining priest relocated, replaced shockingly by a priest from headquarters, as well as several knights from the Judgement institution.

In Balrog City of the Northern Federation, the city's three most famous attractions—"Thorns Church", "Confessor Memorial Hall", and "Saint Tower"—received closure notices, no longer admitting any tourists until the "renovations" were complete.

...

Of course, these pieces of news only caused a small stir locally. What really drew attention and made it onto some newspapers was the statute at Jiatai City port, the bronze figure facing the vast ocean, the statue of the Lord of Thorns.

This statue gifted by the Europe Alliance could almost be said to witness the prosperity of the Divine Eagle Federation; it also represents the hardships the Federation went through to establish itself, and it would be very difficult to find a second historical relic that could compare within the entire Federation.

It nearly stood for a part the Federation's glory and was the most famous attraction, welcoming tourists from all over the world.

But on this morning, the management committee of the statue of the Lord of Thorns issued a statement:

"The statue, due to years of neglect, requires at least three days of inspection and repair, thus it will be temporarily closed and will no longer welcome any visitors... To prevent malicious damage, anyone attempting to break in will be treated as a heavy felony criminal, and the guardians are authorized to shoot to kill immediately."

"Heh, as expected of the Church, such swift action."

In front of the workbench on the fourth floor of the Library Tower, Tang Qi held a cup of exceptionally fragrant and bubbling Transcendent milk tea, while reading the headline of the "Mysterious Daily Federation Chapter", he couldn't help but let out a sigh.

If one were a Transcendent not well-informed or lacking in Mysticism knowledge, seeing such a headline might curse the Mysterious Daily for a significant drop in standards.

A mere statue inspection making the front page news?

But for those in the know, they would marvel at the extraordinary connections of the Mysterious Daily.

"The staggering revelation of the Second Rotten Head last night holds immense credibility; if I were part of the Church, right now I'd be on the brink of madness and collapse."

"The believers of the Lord of Light believe that all glory belongs to the 'Master', but beyond that, including the Lord of Thorns, the Mother of Light, the Order Goddess, the Savior's Son... and a whole cohort of deities from the Light Camp, each have a great number of followers."

"Among them, 'thorn' believers are the most prominent across the entire camp."

"The Light Scripture, Saints' Gospels, and similar canonical texts all write such maxims and teachings: Thorns, wrapping around the Light, bloom the Flower of Truth."

"Throughout the long course of time, all believers have come to accept two 'Masters' coexisting - the Lord of Light and the Lord of Thorns, seeing it as an undisputable rule. But now, this rule has suddenly changed and no one can believe it."

"Probably the Holy Father himself is also unwilling to believe and accept all of this; it's practically akin to a collapse of faith."

Tang Qi sipped his milk tea, letting out a contented moan peculiar to an otaku, expressing his sympathy.

He could now imagine that the Bright Church must be caught in an unprecedented bustle; they would need to use every method to confirm whether the Second Rotten Head's revelations are true, and whether the Lord of Thorns indeed betrayed the "Master" in the final battle of the Great Catastrophe.

If true, the Light Camp is facing an unprecedented schism.

At least, some known legendary strong individuals, such as "Thorny Sword Saint", "The Last Preacher" who distinctly believe in the Lord of Thorns, will defect from the Church.

Also, the Church's considerable force, "Bright Knights", is likely to face a major purge.

Sith, the first Professional Level Knight Tang Qi had encountered, probably leaned more towards the thorns in his faith, evident from his recognition of Martin Sims.

"A disaster and major event unprecedented is about to happen. When the Light Festival comes and the Lord of Light and the Gods all awaken, it will be..."

At the final thought, Tang Qi shook his head, suppressing his chaotic mind.

When the Spiritual Tide reaches its peak and the sleeping Gods awaken, what will happen to the entire Origin Star is clearly unpredictable by anyone.

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