Chapter 459: Judgment, Shortcut

"Not a demon believer? Then what Hadun said about you worshipping the 'Creation Mother Goddess' is also a lie? Do you want me to bring him here for a confrontation?" Ouge said disdainfully.

"Creation Mother Goddess?" the Town Mayor muttered to himself, his eyes filled with both relief and unwillingness. Although he had sensed it before, hearing it truly spoken from Ouge's mouth was another matter entirely.

"My lord, the Creation Mother Goddess is not a demon; She is a True God, a benevolent god, it is real, my lord, look—" The Town Mayor hurriedly put his finger into his mouth and bit it open, and blood immediately flowed out.

But he seemed to feel no pain at all, holding his finger up toward Ouge, shouting, "My lord, look, the power bestowed by the Creation Mother Goddess has healing effects. Many people in our town have received Her salvation; how could She be a demon?"

Following the Town Mayor's words, his injured finger healed at a speed almost visible to the naked eye.

But Ouge remained completely unmoved, not changing his previous verdict, and even urged Xia Duo and Zhake, "Aidi, Zhake, what do you say should be done?"

Whether it was a conflict of faith, a dispute of interests, or simply the Empire's attitude toward demons, Xia Duo, caught in the middle, regretted staying behind for the first time.

At this moment, he could only let "Aidi" act on instinct: "Kill!"

At the same time, Zhake also made his decision, the same: "Kill!"

"Good!" Ouge clapped his hands and praised, "Worthy of being the Empire's fine talent, living up to the Empire's cultivation!"

Then he pointed a finger, and an invisible Magic Missile whistled out, piercing the Town Mayor's head, bringing out wisps of brain matter, and then whistled through several townspeople behind the Town Mayor until it disappeared into the distance.

"Kill!"

The ordinary soldiers who heard the order did not hesitate in the slightest and immediately took action. Among these hundred-odd townspeople, some begged for mercy, some dodged, and some who had also perceived Holy Power attempted to use it for protection, but from beginning to end, not one dared to directly resist.

Not until all nearly one hundred townspeople had fallen, and blood had stained a large patch of land, did the stench assault Xia Duo's nasal cavity; for the first time, he felt that the Projection Plane was so real.

On the way back, the atmosphere became somewhat heavy, and no one spoke.

It was not until the team was close to Jilan City that Ouge called Xia Duo and Zhake over and fell behind, "Do you think it is heartless that the Empire did not announce the faith of the 'Creation Mother Goddess' as illegal in advance?"

Xia Duo glanced at Zhake, and neither of them answered.

But Ouge did not mind, instead speaking in a calm tone as if advising a younger generation: "The name 'Creation Mother Goddess' itself is a form of corruption! Saying it too much will attract the attention of demons; you must remember this! Try not to mention this name in the future."

Xia Duo nodded. The name itself indeed contained power, and there were similar claims in the Main Plane, but did this kind of public, title-like name also possess mysterious power?

But regardless, Ouge was able to explain it to the two newcomers. Zhake had already accepted it, and his expression had eased up quite a bit. As for Xia Duo, "Aidi" was much the same, while he himself remained doubtful.

At this time, he also discovered that the Arcane Empire did not have a universal faith, or rather, the faith was the Empire itself, but it was still somewhat insufficient when facing the faith of a True God, especially for the ordinary people at the very bottom.

……

After returning to Jilan City, the Second Tribunal gave Xia Duo two days off. By the third day, Xia Duo was officially part of the Second Tribunal, and the missions outside were not as many as he had imagined.

Basically, after doing one, he could rest for two days. The time was uncertain; when a mission came, it had to be triggered. Tasks like the one in Lettuce Town where nearly a hundred people were killed were very rare; most were investigations, followed by no results, and then returning.

But whenever they encountered anything related to the "Creation Mother Goddess," no matter how innocent or pitiful the person appeared, they could not escape death in the end. The Empire attached great importance to this aspect; it was almost an untouchable red line.

Near Jilan City, there were hundreds of places like Black Stone Town and Lettuce Town that were named towns but were actually collective farms. These towns had populations ranging from hundreds to thousands.

After joining the Second Tribunal, Xia Duo gradually learned the overall situation of the current Arcane Empire. The total population was nearly ten million, among which there were nearly one million spellcasters.

This number was simply terrifying. Xia Duo knew that the total population of Netheril in the Main Plane was only a few million, and there were nearly one million spellcasters here; it was truly hard to imagine.

Thinking about it this way, the Arcane Empire having at least 20-plus Great Arcanists was actually few. Netheril had 15 with such a small population. Perhaps they were hidden due to the needs of the so-called Demon Extermination War, or perhaps they had died in the war.

……

In the blink of an eye, Xia Duo had been projecting in the Arcane Empire for nearly a year. His displayed Spellcasting Level had steadily risen to level 5. Although this speed of improvement was a bit fast, it was not particularly eye-catching in the Arcane Empire, which had nearly a million spellcasters.

At the same time, during this year, Xia Duo had also done well in his main job as an Adjudicator. Guided by the mentality of not seeking merit but seeking to avoid mistakes, he successfully rose to a Level 4 Adjudicator.

Of course, no matter how high the Adjudicator level was, it was useless. If one could not be promoted to a Judge, one would be a grassroots civil servant for life, and a Level 5 Adjudicator was the threshold for becoming a Judge.

This not only required the promotion of superiors but also required one's own strength to reach the level; those below an Intermediate Mage would not be considered at all. The "Aidi" that Xia Duo was playing just happened to meet the minimum requirements.

This day, Aosike called Xia Duo to the First Tribunal, which was also the headquarters of the Jilan City Judgment Court.

"Aidi, you've been in Jilan City for almost a year, right?"

"Yes, my lord!"

"Have you considered how to develop in the future?"

"This—" Xia Duo did not know how to answer. Was he supposed to say he hoped he would give up his position to him? After thinking about it, he said, "My lord, I am preparing to apply for the Judgment Division."

The Judgment Division was the superior organization of the Judgment Court. Being able to enter the Judgment Division basically meant having both power and leisure. Being promoted from the Judgment Court was considered a normal career path, and almost everyone in the Jilan City Judgment Court wanted to be promoted to the Judgment Division.

However, not just anyone could enter the Judgment Division. This was an absolute institution of real power. It was different from the Empire of ordinary people; the institutions of real power in the Arcane Empire all held violence. Even a High Mage could not just enter whenever they wanted; being dragged in was more likely.

Arcanists could, but usually, Arcanists would be treated as Arcanist Seeds and joined to the Research Institute. This was completely outside the scope of Xia Duo's consideration, even though the Research Institute might have access to more things, there was still the hurdle of screening.

And most importantly, Xia Duo could not advance to an Arcanist in the Projection Plane; what he had come here with was only a projection, not his true self.

So entering the Judgment Division was a good choice. This was indeed Xia Duo's true thought, but what he did not say was that he actually did not want to enter the Judgment Division through normal channels.

As for a shortcut, the Aosike before him was one.