Chapter 350: Could It Be This Coincidental?

As long as Ange doesn't feel awkward, everyone else does—how could Ange feel awkward? He didn't even understand what awkwardness was; if he could grow things, he'd stand there until tomorrow.

Usually, someone would step forward to guide him and spare others embarrassment, but now everyone's sense of mischief kicked in—they wanted to see Kaloq's embarrassment.

No response, no return greeting, not even a word—pure, unambiguous dismissal. Kaloq's face turned from pale to black, his expression darkening.

No, this show couldn't end so soon—Negril hurriedly whispered in Ange's mind: "Speak, say anything."

Ange said: "Holy light—not pure."

Kaloq's face instantly turned ashen.

Ange spoke a fact, but to every member of the Church of Light, those words were a severe accusation.

Clergy always boasted their holy radiance as pure and untainted—now someone claimed his holy light was impure?

Impure was authentic; Ange's excessive purity was fake—but no one else knew that. Not everyone could tell whose light was purer, like Xiamala could.

Wasn't that like pointing at Kaloq's nose and calling him a liar?

Worse still, Ange's words carried devastating power—they could instantly destroy Kaloq's reputation. What was Ange? A penitent monk.

In the Church of Light, no one was purer than a penitent monk. If he says your light isn't pure, you can't defend yourself—everyone would believe the penitent monk.

"You slander me!" Kaloq screamed in fury.

Ange tilted his head.

Kaloq nearly spat blood. What did tilting his head mean? Acting cute? Say something, for heaven's sake!

He'd always hated people who talked too much, like Antongni—now he suddenly found those who spoke half-truths even more unbearable.

Kaloq turned to Antongni: "Antongni, what is the meaning of this? Are you slandering me? My honor is my life—if you don't explain, I'll fight you to the death."

Antongni weakly replied: "But… but I didn't say that. I'm not even close to Lord Ange." He shrank back, looking as innocent as possible.

Kaloq gritted his teeth and muttered: "Disgraceful."

Not close? Then why does he keep showing up to back you up? From the northern Heishan Luolan to this desolate southern coast—only someone with supreme status could command a penitent monk. Dare he claim they weren't close?

Kaloq was enraged—he'd forgotten why he'd come. He roared, holy light erupting from his body as he drew his Sword of Judgment.

Other clergy wielded standard-issue longswords or greatswords—none had names. Only the Inquisition's standard longsword bore a name: Judgment.

But his impulsiveness enraged a cleric behind the group, who muttered: "Idiot."

They'd come under the pretext of judging a witch—so noble, so righteous. Even if this went to the Papacy, they'd have the moral high ground.

But Kaloq's rashness erased that "righteousness," turning it into personal grievance. Because a penitent monk said your light wasn't pure, you attack him?

No choice—initiate early. The cleric reached into his robe, crushing a communication amulet. Its faint ripple spread outward.

But when he looked up, he saw Ange and Antongni both staring at him.

"Damn, caught." The cleric's heart tightened.

But after one glance, Antongni wore an inscrutable expression, then turned away.

Lu Se shoved the last bite of beetroot into his mouth, yanked out his longsword, and roared: "How dare you offend Lord Ange! Taste my Dragon-Grain Steel Core…"

Because Negril and the others were too recognizable, they never showed up in such situations. Lu Se was too excited—finally, no one would steal his moment in the spotlight. His blade could finally drink blood. Whatever it was, he'd slash first.

"Judgment!" Kaloq roared, swinging his sword.

Judgment wasn't just a sword—it was a technique. Paired with the Sword of Judgment, it ignored all defenses, delivering holy judgment directly.

Only a high-rank Sword Saint could withstand it with hardened aura—otherwise, the firmer the block, the heavier the holy damage.

CLANG! Weapons clashed with a deafening ring. A pillar of holy light erupted from the Sword of Judgment and struck Lu Se, engulfing him.

But when the light vanished, Lu Se was unharmed—while Kaloq's hands trembled with numbness.

"High-rank Sword Saint?!" Kaloq gasped.

Lu Se smiled faintly: "More than that. Let me digest this first—I'll beat your shit out."

Lu Se held off Kaloq; Antongni's guards surged forward, clashing with Kaloq's Judgment Knights.

Antongni, who claimed he "wasn't close" to Ange, tilted his ear, then leaned close and whispered: "Strange. Boerke didn't detect any ambush—what's this cleric trying to warn?"

Negril asked: "Ange, did Baihou and the Bone Dragon spot anything?"

Above, a bone dragon, draped in a hide, hid among the clouds. Baihou stood on its back, peering around.

The bone dragon looked different—its hide bulged, as if inflated from within.

It was inflated. After Du Luo discovered its hollow interior, he immediately thought: "Why not turn it into an airship?"

A small modification: install an intake at the dragon's mouth, run a long airway through its body with several warming magic arrays. As air entered, it heated into hot air, providing ample lift—even without flapping wings, the dragon could float.

For hovering, just inhale and heat. For speed, expel the air—its body reverts to streamlined form.

Thus, the bone dragon became a floating aerial platform, able to hover and scout at will.

But its field of view was narrow compared to true dragons, so it usually operated with Baihou, who served as its eyes.

Yet when Baihou's sharp gaze swept the ground, he saw no large-scale movement.

Ange shook his head—Baihou found nothing—but he pointed at the sea: "There. Something's there."

Antongni's face darkened: "Ambush at sea? How treacherous!"

Though treacherous, it was effective—Antongni himself hadn't thought of the sea.

This world's seafaring technology was primitive. The open ocean held little value—only scattered islands. Aside from pirates, no one ventured far out. It was a blind spot in thinking.

Prompted, Antongni gazed far across the sea—faint sails appeared on the horizon.

…

DONG! DONG! DONG! Kaloq felt the opponent's strength growing—his palms went numb. This wasn't high-rank Sword Saint power—was it Truth Sword Saint? But why was this face unfamiliar?

Even high-rank Sword Saints were few enough to count on two hands, and Kaloq knew most of them—had seen their portraits. Why had he never seen this man before?

"Who are you?!" Kaloq gasped between blows.

"Lu Se Luo Fen!" Lu Se shouted excitedly.

Finally, someone asked his name! Finally, a chance to announce it! Waaah—before, he never got to declare his name before the fight ended. His sword had never even been drawn.

"Luo Fen family? Never heard of them." Kaloq frowned.

"Now you have. Die! Shatter! Shatter Strike!" Lu Se's aura surged, slashing four rapid blows.

CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! Suddenly, his sword felt light—he and Kaloq's Sword of Judgment both shattered.

"Aaaah… my Dragon-Grain Steel Core, Silver-Threaded, Enchanted, Tempered, Gem-Enhanced, Piercing, Dual-Edged Sword!" He'd never drawn it before—now he finally did, and it broke in one fight? This junk!

Both sides, now weaponless, punched each other and stepped back, creating distance.

Kaloq panted and laughed: "Nice long name. But useless."

"Pfft. Yours shattered too. What's so great?" Lu Se spat, clenching his fists—aura coalesced into a blade.

"Didn't anyone tell you Judgment is the Inquisition's standard weapon? Everyone carries one. I've got dozens." As he spoke, Kaloq drew another Sword of Judgment from his storage space.

Lu Se's face darkened. Kaloq was strong. Without a weapon, relying only on aura-blades, he'd be at a disadvantage—aura couldn't anchor to a physical form.

At that moment, Lu Se felt something bouncing beside him. He turned—there was the little angel, hopping with its Archangel's Staff, clearly offering it.

Lu Se's heart warmed. He smiled: "Thanks, but no. Watch me beat him senseless with bare hands."

The Archangel's Staff couldn't be used for slashing, and it had been broken recently—unsuitable for bashing. But he felt the little angel's intent.

"Aaaoh!" The little angel tucked the Archangel's Staff away and pulled out a hammer.

Good—perfect for smashing. Too bad Lu Se couldn't lift it.

"Aaoh!" The little angel tucked the Earthly Saint's Hammer away and pulled out a sword.

"Huh?!"

"Huh?!"

The sword's appearance triggered gasps. Even Negril, projected onto Ange, couldn't help whispering.

But everyone's eyes were locked on the sword—no one noticed its voice.

"Holy… Sword of Judgment and Exile?! The Judgment God's weapon? How… how is it here?!" Kaloq's eyes bulged.

Negril suddenly remembered something and shouted inside Ange: "Ku Ba Da! The little angel was the first to rush into the Redemption Goddess's temple—it must've hidden it then!"

"Sword of Judgment and Exile?" Lu Se took it, gripped it tightly, and grumbled: "Ugh, ugly name. Whatever. I'll use it for now. I'll swap it later. Thanks, little angel."

"Aaoh!" The little angel chirped.

Lu Se half-understood: "You want me to let you beat him?"

The little angel nodded.

Lu Se shook his head like a rattle: "No way, no way. I haven't even had fun yet. Next time, next time." Without waiting for a reply, he charged forward with the sword.

The little angel trudged back, dejected. As it reached Ange's side, it was grabbed by the neck and hoisted up.

"Aaoh?" Ange asked.

"Aaoh!" The little angel replied, indignant.

Ange grabbed its feet, turned it upside down, and shook it—seventeen storage bags tumbled out.

Negril had felt sorry seeing the little angel inverted—but when it saw the bags, it instantly decided this was justified.

"Ku Ba Da, how much did you hoard? Are you a giant cat?" Negril scolded.

At that moment, Kaloq roared mid-battle: "Divine Blessing! Arbiter's Light!"

As he shouted, a beam of light erupted from his body, radiating overwhelming power—as if some force had projected onto him.

"Damn! Arbiter God's Divine Blessing!" Antongni's face changed. He stepped forward immediately.

Kaloq had already begun summoning the Arbiter God. This was no longer ordinary combat—it was clerical warfare.

But before Antongni's foot even landed, Kaloq screamed. Lu Se's Sword of Judgment and Exile passed through the holy light without resistance and pierced Kaloq's chest.

"Why… why…?" Kaloq clutched the blade, eyes wide. Why did his protective holy light do nothing? He'd used Divine Blessing!

Lu Se was stunned too. He'd clearly been powering up—why was it weaker than before? He felt zero resistance from the Arbiter's Light.

"Uh… could it be… this sword is the Arbiter's weapon, so the Arbiter's power ignores it?" Antongni murmured, stunned.

"No way—if this is true, you've died too unfairly." Lu Se twisted his wrist as he spoke, twisting the blade to carve a bloody hole.

A familiar aura emerged from Kalock's body, then froze in confusion; at the same time, Kalock, whose chest had been torn open, lost all strength and collapsed backward.

Without a physical vessel to anchor it, the projected force could not be sustained and quickly dissipated. As it vanished, everyone sensed the aura's deep confusion.

"Last time it was this same aura—it's the Arbiter God, isn't it? Already failed to appear a second time…" Nageleis said, half-laughing, half-crying.

Wooo—the piercing blast of a horn echoed from far across the sea. Several large sailing ships appeared on the water, charging toward the shore at tremendous speed. Even as they entered the shallows, they did not slow, as if preparing to beach themselves.

All these ships flew pirate flags bearing skull emblems, but the two largest ships bore different flags: beneath the skull, the bones had been replaced by a scythe and a sheaf of grain.

Besides the pirate flags, there was also a flag depicting a fat black bird.

Seeing that flag, Andong and Lu Se exchanged a glance, thinking inwardly: Could it really be this coincidental?