Lake Heart Island, still shrouded in ice and snow, where students immersed in joy and peace, the "Abnormalities" voluntarily guarding the school, faculty members coming and going, and the Mysterious Craftsmen who had just completed the "Flame Goddess" and were receiving their reward, along with the pirates and monsters at the bottom of the lake... Everyone seemed to share the same illusion.

They all saw the highly respected "Mr. Principal" with an irresistibly cordial smile, appearing here and there, even briefly stopping by the "Outer Institute," and interacting with the staff of the Merada Special Education School.

Tang Qi visited almost every corner of the school.

As dusk began to envelop Lake Heart Island, Tang Qi's silhouette emerged on the fourth floor of the Library Tower amid the gathering shadows.

While all the students, faculty, and Abnormalities were asleep, he picked up the scattered books and put them back in their rightful places. Gluttony, Night Beast, and the Vilnas Fairy, who all clearly knew something, followed closely behind Tang Qi.

The Little Fairy, now accustomed to the role of "Librarian," had eyes like gemstones, filled with reluctance.

After tidying up, Tang Qi sat down at the now pristine workbench, setting the stack of finely made registers by his side and quickly browsing through the battle reports he hadn't had time to read in the morning.

The first report, and a common one, instantly drew Tang Qi's thoughts into the boiling chaos of the "Mysterious."

"The current Bright Pope of the Divine Eagle Federation, 'Charles I,' has declared that he will carry out a holy judgement against the Confessors, whether it be Martin Sims himself, the Thorny Sword Saint, Ludwig, or any of their followers, led by dozens of Red Robed Bishops holding various Holy Relics, to hunt down Ludwig, who is parasitized by the Second Rotten Head."

"Anyone who obstructs the Church's actions shall be seen as an enemy and killed without mercy!"

"Tonight, the Holy Light will shine upon the dark, Nihility-filled Mysterious World."

In just a few breaths, Tang Qi put down the almost identical battle reports.

Without much guessing, any Transcendent could foresee the situation in the "Mysterious" tonight.

The Bright Church!

This unfathomably profound entity had finally made its full move.

That brief "declaration" shook not just the Federation, but the whole Origin Star.

All Extraordinary Organizations, including those infamous, lawless ones like the Rotten Head, the Eternal Council, the Mam Sanatorium, the Doomsday Sect... even these madmen had to consider whether to confront the enraged Church.

The answer was clear.

Even the official parties would choose to temporarily retreat. This was also the stance of the Holy Eagle Nest Society, whose members rejected the Church's proposal from the "Rotating Chairman" to collectively hunt down Ludwig and chose to remain neutral at this moment.

Almost all Transcendents would watch tonight's confrontation between the furious Church and Martin Sims's camp, the Holy Confessor.

Despite Martin Sims's great reputation, very few people were optimistic about his chances.

"No one can imagine the strength of the Church," Tang Qi uttered inwardly, his tone laced with indescribable excitement.

Quickly, he retrieved a quill and blank paper, his correspondence with Mrs. Loring never having ceased.

Soon, the Knowledge Seeker's copy was updated with Mrs. Loring's answers to the last set of questions Tang Qi had asked.

Skipping most of the content, Tang Qi's gaze fell on the most prominent question and answer.

"Dear Tang, although I don't know which reincarnation of the Divine you seek, out of our friendship, I must warn you that this is extremely dangerous and without a definite answer."

"The Divine can't be looked upon directly, cannot be divined, and must not be desecrated... You may make some guesses, but it will likely fail, unless you too achieve divinity and not be led astray."

...

"This time, the gossip has it that Mr. Pedro truly caused trouble; he had an abnormal relationship with a Contained Object, but he had always adhered to the special agent conduct code; after each interaction with the Contained Object, he underwent stringent pollution cleansing procedures. However, he did not anticipate that the Exotic Realm Creature, in its zeal to leave descendants, forcibly accelerated the breeding process, laying over tens of thousands of eggs in three seconds, filling and flooding the containment room."

"Although the base acted promptly, eliminating all eggs and re-containment was carried out, by the time the room was cleaned Pedro and that special Contained Object had both suffocated to death."

"...So, love cautiously."

Tang Qi hadn't expected that last piece of shocking gossip to have even more unbelievable follow-up news.

Though it was a "tragedy," it somewhat lightened Tang Qi's somewhat heavy heart.

A smile tugged at the corner of his mouth, and then Tang Qi raised his quill.

He didn't write back quickly, but after hovering in the air for a few seconds, he finally put pen to paper.

To my dear friend Rose:

"I think I need to tell you frankly that this may be the last time I can write back for the upcoming period. I will be partaking in an extremely dangerous adventure, which could lead to my demise or possibly bring trouble to those associated with me."

"For that reason, I must endure the painful severing..."

Writing to this point, Tang Qi suddenly paused, shook his head, and crossed out the few sentences he had just written. Although the Knowledge Seeker's copy could be set to "upload on a timer," there were still some risks involved.

Even though a relationship of trust had been established between Tang Qi and Mrs. Loring.

This was evident from the fact he knew the rarely shared real name of "Mrs. Loring."

Despite the fact that the two had never met, both could clearly sense a tacit understanding on a spiritual level, not only recognizing each other's intellectual pursuits and profound knowledge as "polymaths" but also resonating on a personal level.

Several weeks of frequent correspondence had made the two of them privy to some of each other's secrets.

Tang Qi believed that even if he wrote those contents, Mrs. Loring would not reveal a single bit of it.

But for his own safety, as well as Mrs. Loring's, Tang Qi still chose to erase the aforementioned content.

Then, he continued to write:

"I am about to embark on a dangerous adventure, which leaves me no spare time to communicate with you... Believe me, for someone as thirsty for knowledge as I am, this is an exceedingly painful thing. I can anticipate I will greatly miss your erudition and the astonishing gossip you share."

"Please allow me to bid you a brief farewell. I look forward with great eagerness to our next exchange. Wishing my dear friend, the beautiful and wise Rose, a healthy physique, and an undying spirit of exploration and pursuit of knowledge."

"Your friend, Tang Qi."

Having written a restrained, concise reply, Tang Qi reviewed it carefully, then, in silence, set it to "scheduled upload"—it would be a number of days before Mrs. Loring received his response.

Instead of returning the copy to the drawer as he usually did, he stuffed it into the belly of Gluttony.

Having done all this, Tang Qi leaned slightly back in his chair, turned gently, and there before him, through the massive floor-to-ceiling window against the night sky, the breathtaking sight of Dragon Heart Castle and Green Dragon Ridge Lake came into view.

After appreciating the view for a few seconds, a certain moment that Tang Qi had been calculating in the back of his mind arrived.

"The answer is about to be revealed."

As Tang Qi uttered this sentence, a dim light automatically took shape before him.

Within it, the unfolding scenes from within the "Mysterious" were rapidly reflected.

A darkness void of the concept of time, like a frozen painting, depicted a scene of an epic saga, a myth beyond mortal imagination.

Armies of Bright Knights on white horses, warriors in heavy armor, Judgers with swords in hand, bishops in Red Robes... Each and every one of them cloaked in a blinding holy radiance, forming together a Bright Kingdom.

Above the kingdom, endless phantoms of angels appeared.

They were chanting:

Vengeance is mine... I shall repay!

Vengeance is mine... I shall repay!

In the depths of the space filled with light, thorns emerged and shadows were born. Between the seam of light and shadow, there sat a figure with countless scars, akin to a dried-up corpse—still wearing the "thorny crown," draped in the "Thorny Clothes," with the Second Rotten Head, seemingly lifeless, quietly resting by Ludwig's ear.

Ludwig, with his head bowed, his cracked and bloodstained lips slowly parted, as if cautioning, as if preaching.

"Not... the path... of personal practice."

"Is the path... of Magic!"

His voice was weak to the extreme.

Beneath the shine of Holy Light, the flame of his life was about to be completely extinguished.

Facing the prolonged siege by the Bright Church, even with the copious help left behind by the "Holy Confessor" and the presence of the Thorny Suit, there was still no stopping Ludwig's march toward death. For this devout Ascetic, this might well be a trial of death.

Tang Qi, alongside the strong from the Mysterious Side, watched this unfold.

Everyone knew that what came next was not war at all. Any "Bright Knight" could step forward and slay Ludwig, stripping the Thorny Suit off his body.

Yet at this moment, no one moved.

Everyone from the Church seemed to be waiting for something to arrive.

Suddenly, the Angels' chanting reached its climax.

The Bright Kingdom surrounding Ludwig, like a giant "Light Ball," pierced through the Mysterious and descended in a dissolving world; as all observing strong adapted to the chaotic, violent Light Fragments, the kingdom landed in the Federation.

Boom!

Ludwig's fragile body suddenly fell onto a hard, mottled metal surface. As the Life Flame within him fluctuated violently, everyone could see where he now was.

Jiatai City, atop the crown of the Lord of Thorns' statue.

The sharp and mottled copper thorns cut open Ludwig's already fragile skin. Drops of crimson blood fell onto the bird droppings and dust that had accumulated for many years on top of the statue, and his body rolled into it.

After the initial glance, no one looked at Ludwig anymore. Everyone, through the vast space, looked towards the figure clad in a golden vestment robe, wearing red shoes and gloves, donning the Bright Heavy Crown made from countless overlaid crowns.

He held his head high, cold and noble, as if he were the "Master" of this Earth.

He stepped on the mottled stone bricks of Thorns Square, step by step, walking towards the statue of the Lord of Thorns.

In his hands, he held a scroll of ancient "Contract," indescribable and unbearable to look upon.

"God's Contract?"

A notion of incredulity emerged in the minds of the crowd.

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