Chapter 411: Is the Holy Light Church the Righteous Vanguard or a Demonic Giant?

Sigh, it's not that, this old guy… shouldn't someone who's seen a lot be more open‑minded? Why are you still remembering this?

After threatening everything, the Archbishop, whose eyes had just turned purple as if stained with pigment, regained his former dignified composure.

"Let's treat today's events as if they never happened. I'm a dying man, I can't manage so many affairs, but… I still hope everything you said is true."

"At least don't have me step down, not even get a chance to greet the old acquaintances, only to see a crowd of old acquaintances packed behind me—that would be too ironic."

Having said that, she walked a few steps away and waved without looking back.

"Alright, you go ahead, you don't have to worry about me."

"Oh."

…

The Archbishop turned around.

"Eh? Go, why are you just agreeing and not moving?"

Ji Ming pointed behind him.

"Aren't you leaving?"

"I… already said, I still need to go up the mountain for a while."

"Very well."

Ji Ming slipped over.

"Then lead me, anyway tonight and tomorrow are the same. I don't want to climb the mountain; get me up earlier, so I can worship the Holy Light Elder sooner."

So Te Nisi thought to herself, this young man… shouldn't youthful bravado make one act openly? Why are you still remembering this?

"Fine, just wait a moment."

After thinking it over, she helplessly waved her hand and began rummaging through the storage ring.

…

"What are you doing?"

"Be patient, let me find a sturdier rope, bind you like a crab and lift you up… hmm?"

At this point, she suddenly sensed something was off, because why was Ji Ming speaking from a diagonal above her?

She followed the voice and saw that Ji Ming was now wrapped in a bolt of lightning, floating effortlessly in midair.

Yangyue World does have magic that grants flight, but either the effect is poor or the cost is huge, so races born with innate auxiliary flight abilities are indeed of higher quality.

And someone like Ji Ming, who can pull off such pretentious tricks, must be a transmuter above level 50; given Yangyue's unique level‑experience system, he is already a high‑tier figure in the pyramid.

But isn't he only in his thirties level? Even if others can deceive, this one can't be faked any more!

So.

Ji Ming grabbed a bolt of lightning and, like SpongeBob demonstrating "imagination," arched it over his head.

"Don't be afraid, this is part of my ability— not much, but enough."

"…Fine, I believe you're a high‑dimensional alien now."

Logically, Ji Ming could fly up himself, but he feared that, due to illegal flight, the Holy Light Church would send someone to yank him down from the sky.

Although it will ultimately be a misunderstanding, if you can avoid a crash, why say "Seeyouagain"? Moreover, his caution was correct.

Because the Archbishop, while in the air, transmitted some signal with several chains of Holy Light flashes; in the darkness, a few hidden outposts lit up instantly, also flashing Holy Light to respond to her command.

"Rest assured, since you now have autonomous flight, the council will surely give you an entry‑exit code, so next time you won't need me to lead."

"…Oh, that's actually good."

"Hm? I just simultaneously performed at least five independent high‑intensity Holy Light flashes, and you are still so confident in your demonic power and control? What else haven't you told me?"

Still fishing! Still fishing!

Ji Ming could only give a faint smile.

"Actually, I talk with the divine master every night; do you believe it?"

"Who would believe such an outrageous fact?" Te Nisi could only purse her lips, shake her head, and then signal Ji Ming to be silent.

"Even if you're allowed to fly, the Holy See won't let you wander here unchecked, so a squad of Pegasus knights has taken to the sky to approach and negotiate with them."

"The Archbishop's face‑recognition ability is still acknowledged; after all, there is no second succubus who would boldly fly into the Holy Light headquarters—once seen, a salute ends it."

"But Ji Ming was different; this squad of knights could not believe that the supposedly otherworldly, scholarly chosen one could actually fly, and only after repeated confirmation did they reluctantly allow passage."

"Are you sure you don't need to ride a horse? Our Pegasus are very docile and can be lent to you temporarily."

"No need."

"Really don't need it? … Please forgive me, protecting every colleague is the duty of our church knights."

"Really don't need it!"

"Alright, so you are heading to the Holy Light Sanctuary? That's fine; Site 3 is currently unbooked, please follow us!"

"Yes, the 'release' here doesn't mean being left alone; it means under the knights' escort, you must land at the designated spot near your destination, with no errors."

"This is a rule the Archbishop cannot simply ignore; even if the Pope arrived today, he would still be taken away—because this is a regulation set by the Holy Light God."

"Old Sun (both eyebrows raised): My rule is the rule!"

"Having come this far, all this professionalism and meticulousness made Ji Ming can't help but feel impressed."

"Tsk, truly a five‑century‑old enterprise, not to mention the navigators but also the escort pilots—it's more upscale than the commercial planes we used to take."

"As for the so‑called Holy Light Sanctuary, needn't say more—it naturally sits atop the Sun‑Rising Peak in the mountain's centre."

"Moreover, the surrounding peaks, no matter how sheer, can only be considered dangerous; the divine mountains they guard truly possess a hint of celestial aura."

"Mainly, Ji Ming, who earlier viewed from afar, thought this place was filled with magical lanterns, but now up close, he sees it's a real deal!"

"From the foothills to the summit, from rocks to soil, including the flora and trees growing there, and the pavilions and towers built atop it."

"Every inch, every millimeter that lies on this mountain emits a remarkably strong Holy Light."

"Considering concentration alone, they are still inferior to Ji Ming's divine ring ornament, but in total volume, if you could bundle the entire mountain and toss it into Wendygo's damp little group."

With this light, we can have grilled venison tonight!

Tenisi has already brought many people up Sun-chasing Peak; seeing Ji Ming constantly looking down, he began to explain like a tour guide.

As it turns out, this mountain is where the Holy Light God, back then transcending the mundane, formally ascended to godhood and left the Yangyue Main World.

And as everyone knows, gods are formless.

Because He had turned into a strand of holy light energy and left this place, His original flesh became ownerless and remained where it was.

But proving the Dao to become a true god and reaching max level are necessary conditions, and during ascension this vessel will also receive a baptism of pure divine power.

Therefore, this immortal's shed shell actually possesses considerable powerful strength.

Armor made from the skin can let even a mighty being of over ninety level, if they die while wearing it, fully revive on the spot.

Eyeballs dug out and inlaid on the staff let even an enemy who can travel a thousand miles with divine movement and break the sound barrier in flesh be auto-aim locked on the head, guaranteeing a hit.

As for the other parts, they are even more terrifying, possessing various heaven-defying effects, including organs like the heart, liver, kidney, especially……

Never mind, in short, that ancient figure who slaughtered the heavenly gods until their heads rolled is said to have started his career by relying on a fallen true god's shed shell.

But this shed shell, strong as it is, Kamisama had just waved his hand and risen amid everyone's blessings, and you lot of believers then turned around and skinned him, stripped his tendons, and made him into boneless meat……

Ha ha, might be a bit impolite.

Therefore many churches will enshrine their own true god's shed shell as a life-size figurine, for example the elf ancestral god Jueqiao, whose flesh sits in the shrine under the holy tree, receiving incense for over ten thousand years.

But aside from such humanoid gods, because the damned level experience system actually further increases the value of racial talent, more true gods are still those rare, powerful species.

For example, the God of the Dense Forest was an immortal vine before ascension; now it twines around the central pillar of the divine palace, and because of its plant nature, even if damaged it can slowly recover, so the badge of the flower-rank emissaries is actually made from flowers plucked from it.

So the problem is, the Holy Light God before ascension was a Titan who could, with all his might, stretch his body to even surpass mountains; making a life-size figurine of him, even if the believers work themselves to death, they cannot produce a suitable figurine box.

What to do?

The Holy Light God thought it over and simply learned a very obscure magic before ascension.

No idea which bored mage came up with this magic; its main effect is to turn oneself into a stone of equal volume.

【Laxative, the fifty-fifth generation savior, in the original world was some world's top ninja; besides turning into stone, he could also turn into water, fire, and gold, but after running into a cannibal tribe's fire-elemental rock devourers ganging up to rob, he voluntarily paid to have them eat a three-dish one-soup meal】

In short, on the day of ascension, the merciful and compassionate Holy Light God first revealed his full-body form, then released the 【Flesh-to-Stone Technique】, turning into a huge mountain that pierces the sky.

This mountain peak, as he expected, constantly emits holy light; it is the best blessed land for his loyal followers, and even if he himself leaves, it counts as leaving a refuge for them.

The worshipping believers, seeing this, were indeed moved to tears, each wailing loudly; but the Holy Light, upon hearing what they were crying about, instantly was stunned.

"Oh my dear father, your mountain shining so bright it hurts the eyes is bad enough, but it also makes objects on it shine together; sleeping here is basically doing an extreme sleep experiment until sudden death, right?"

Holy Light: ……

Holy shit, it really is!

No choice; the Holy Light God could only hurriedly make amends, using a bug while he had one foot in the divine realm and one foot still outside to pour massive divine power and create the Holy Light Mountains, so that everyone in the Holy See could have a relatively normal place to sleep.

However, according to the church's beautified external statement, it is the merciful God who, to let believers have a peaceful land even in the most perilous times, bestowed divine power to let the mountains rise and guard his shed shell, blah blah.

Anyway, five hundred years have passed; aside from Tenisi, such an immortal eyewitness, even the current pope only believes this much better-sounding new version, after all the Almighty God ought to be this perfect.

But no matter what, the light pollution problem of Sun-chasing Peak cannot be solved, and the closer you get, the more glaring; if they ever land, they'd probably have to walk with eyes closed.

But this environmental problem can't be solved; could it be that we can't even solve ourselves? We just need to… uh! Not dig out our eyes and wait to go out to treat! Rather——

Just then, the surrounding flying knights simultaneously triggered the magic formation on their armor, causing a black piece to fall onto the visor and cover the eyes.

Ji Ming also thought, no wonder they are Holy See knights; this guarding duty indeed has more flair than wandering outside, and they even have to wear sunglasses when they go out—just damn professional!

As a result, turning his head, he saw the nearby flying archbishop also wearing a pair, and he even got one for himself.

Logically speaking, even sunglasses will, at the moment of landing, be assimilated by Sun-chasing Peak into a super blind-maker, giving the wearer a little unexpected surprise.

But as the leader of the righteous faction for five hundred years, the Holy Light Sect—no, the Holy Light Church—has also slain many evil gods, among them naturally there are those who have become prominent.

One of them even stepped onto the threshold of level eighty, and speaking of race, if we must say, it is actually still considered a relative of the Holy Light God—the Mountain Ridge Giant.

Therefore, how to handle His corpse after death is undoubtedly a problem, but upon discovering this thing, as long as it itself does not land, it can be immune to the Holy Mountain's assimilation after……

"Uh, so this thing is made from the corpse of that unlucky thing?"

"Yeah, and we named it after His name, calling it the Mangdun Mirror."

This is the fate of a fallen god, and moreover, the stronger, the more valuable; if you are as weak as the Cold Iron God, you can instead rest in peace and barely manage a whole corpse.

Also thanks to the elf kingdom's priests back then, who desperately transferred away the Jueqiao God's shed shell; otherwise, Little Lion's classic image might have been wearing a full set……

No, considering that the Jueqiao God's essence is a female elf, while Little Lion at that time was vigorous and spirited, even possibly……

Alright, stop; the strange associations end here, now Ji Ming and Tenisi, under the knights' guidance, have finally landed on Sun-chasing Peak.

He glanced at the platform's vertical height; he guessed this should be the position of the old sun's waist, at least 108,000 li from the peak.

It's not surprising that artisans would build the important divine palace in such a 'low' place, after all the holy mountain's light pollution is already very tormenting.

For such a high-use building, we still shouldn't add debuffs like cold climate, thin air, howling winds, to reduce everyone's lifespan.

But when they entered the Holy Light Divine Palace, Ji Ming still had to expend great effort to control his expression and not laugh out loud.

Nothing else, no matter men, women, old or young, their attire and the fact that everyone on average wears sunglasses is simply too comical; plus the stern knights on both sides, it gives a rather feeling of a gang branch coming to see the boss at home.

(End of chapter)