Let us first rewind time back to the crucial moment when the Kun Knight Great Legion just entered the city through the Main City Gate.
At that same time, another massive army appeared at the Left City Gate. However, they were intercepted by the gate guards and could not pass immediately, making them a step slower.
But the gate guards were also under immense pressure. It was bad enough they couldn’t go to the Royal City People’s Square today to watch the spectacle, but now they had to block hundreds of foreign knights radiating thick murderous intent?
How much was their monthly salary? Was it really worth risking their lives like this?
But they truly couldn’t just let them through, could they? Who knew what they planned to do once they entered? If they started a massacre, everything would be over.
“My Lords, this is against the regulations…”
The gate Knight Captain’s neck was drenched in sweat, and his voice trembled. It was clear the psychological pressure was too much.
“I am…”
An old knight with a roguish face, who was leading the group, was about to introduce himself.
“I am Countess Juling.” However, the noblewoman beside him stepped forward first and presented her Noble Badge for the gate Knight Captain to see.
“Let them through! Everyone, clear the way!” The gate Knight Captain took one look and immediately granted passage, quickly retreating to the side.
Just like that, a massive, unknown Knight Order, led by Countess Juling, charged into the Royal City and rushed toward the Royal City People’s Square.
This knight force was the [Giant Whale Knights] led by [Knight King Shia], one of the premier Knight Orders within the Kingdom.
This was because Knight King Shia owed the Demon-Hunting Nun Samimi a favor.
When a benefactor was in trouble, he immediately led his Old Tun squad from his own Territory to the Royal City to provide rescue.
And the one who facilitated all of this behind the scenes was Countess Juling, who had suddenly vanished for a long time. After all, she and Samimi had reconciled; with her daughter in trouble, it was impossible for her to sit idly by and watch her daughter be wrongly imprisoned.
“Old man, charge! Charge, charge!” The Countess was anxious. She whipped her horse and galloped at a speed more professional than the actual cavalry, riding at the very front of the Giant Whale Knights.
“Madam, ride slower, be careful not to hit anyone!” Even Knight King Shia couldn’t keep up with her and could only call out from behind.
***
At the same time, another army appeared at the Right City Gate, and their path was similarly blocked by the gate guards.
The same situation played out once more until a woman in a dazzling white Saint robe appeared.
There was no one in the Royal City who did not recognize this woman in white. Without a word, the soldiers immediately stepped aside.
“Merilin, you know what you are about to face next, right?” Saintess Makima asked calmly.
“I know. Thank you for your assistance, Lady Saintess.” The Pope’s Grandson Merilin was hidden within this team. Returning to the Royal City now was meant to bring everything to an end.
Beyond that, the team included the Papal Left Hand, the Director General of the Magic Bureau Frolro, the Commander of the Rebel Army Qinqiduo, as well as several Captains of the Order of Veteran Knights. Even the Pastoralists from the Physicians Association had mobilized in full force.
Behind them were over a thousand veteran Knights from various Church Knight Orders, most of whom were middle-aged or elderly.
“Commander, what should we do?” Frolro asked Qinqiduo.
“Full army, advance!” Qinqiduo knew her sister was teasing her but could only helplessly issue the command.
The Church Rebel Army successfully fought their way into the Royal City, heading straight for the Royal City People’s Square.
The final result was the scene everyone witnessed at the beginning.
Three Legions converged upon the Royal City People’s Square.
While the Kun Knight Great Legion was preparing to deal with the Second Company of Kun Knights and the Demon-Expelling Nuns, the Order of Veteran Knights and the Giant Whale Knights arrived just in time, surrounding the Kun Knight Great Legion in turn.
At this moment, the Grand Leader Wan-ge, who had maintained a calm expression all along, finally showed a flicker of emotion. He surveyed his surroundings, calculating their combat power; it had actually reached a stalemate.
“Reinforcements are here!” The First Company Commander Xin Juzhan also looked at the surrounding allies, his face showing a look of joy.
He had just felt like his life as a Kun Knight was about to end, having been led astray by his junior Samimi, but he hadn’t expected the girl to have hidden such a powerful trump card.
“Old man? Mother?” Samimi looked at the Giant Whale Knights, a complicated light flashing in her eyes.
The Church Rebel Army and the veteran knights on the other side were within her expectations—the chubby Knight Qinqiduo, the Pope’s Grandson Merilin, the Demon-Hunting Knight Frolro, the Papal Left Hand, and the Vice President of the Physicians Association Mandala—it wasn’t strange that they would come to support her.
But for Knight King Shia and the Countess to organize a force to rescue her was something outside of her plans.
Just like Mad Dragon Dan, there were no calculated Miworm tactics involved here. Samimi hadn’t asked them to come; it was a spontaneous action driven entirely by loyalty and familial bonds.
Though this was a world of the Otherworld where the strong preyed on the weak, selfless warmth still existed.
And these emotions and loyalties were her ultimate trump card to turn defeat into victory!
She, Samimi, did not rely solely on schemes and plans to traverse the continent.
“Everyone is here. Let the battle begin.” Samimi tucked away her smile. A smile would only make the enemy underestimate her. she looked coldly at the Grand Leader of the Kun Knights.
She had already seen through and grasped the Grand Leader’s principles of conduct. Although this man seemed unreasonable, he had his own set of rules.
The Kun Knight Grand Leader’s primary principle was to maintain the order of the Cathedral; within his heart sat a pair of Kunpingtu Scales of Justice.
Originally, the importance and status of the two Grand Archbishops were far above those of the Demon-Hunting Nuns. As long as the two Grand Archbishops continued their work, the stability of the Church could be maintained.
However, the power of the Demon-Hunting Nuns had now surpassed that of the two Grand Archbishops, even to the point of threatening the Kun Knight Order.
Interesting. Truly interesting.
A long-absent smile actually appeared on the Holy Knight Grand Captain’s face. To think that someone within the Cathedral could actually challenge the Holy Knight Order.
This should have been impossible, because the very purpose of establishing the Holy Knight Order was to monitor the Pope and the Grand Archbishops, preventing any one faction’s power from expanding excessively.
No, it wasn’t that simple.
The existence of the Kun Knights was to monitor all high-level Saints who could threaten the existence of the Pope.
That was why before, a Holy Knight and the Holy Knight Atre would hover around Saintess Makima. It was called protection, but in reality, it was surveillance, because the Saintess’s power had also grown to a level where it could threaten the Cathedral.
Under the intentional control of the Holy Knight Order, the Church could never be controlled by the will of a single person.
Even if there were higher-level figures monitoring the Holy Knight Order, there were people who would prevent the expansion of the Holy Knight Order’s power—specifically, the two high-level figures.
And then those two high-level figures would be wary of each other. In short, it was an infinite cycle of check and balance.
“My Lord, I didn’t expect even you to come.”
The Holy Knight Grand Captain didn’t care about the Demon-Hunting Nun. Instead, he looked up at one person in the leadership of the Order of Veteran Knights—the Papal Left Hand.
No matter how many people came, only this person in the entire field possessed strength comparable to his own.
Samimi’s prepared lines were completely ignored; the Holy Knight Grand Captain didn’t even spare her a glance.
“If you make a move, then the other high-level Lord will likely appear as well. If both of you show up, the Royal Family’s army certainly won’t sit still. They won’t ignore people like us fighting inside the Royal City,” Wan-ge said.
“I will not make a move,” the Papal Left Hand replied.
“If you won’t make a move, then everyone else combined can’t defeat me. What meaning is there in this then?” Wan-ge asked.
“Both you and I are witnesses. The ones they need to defeat are the Grand Archbishops,” the Papal Left Hand stated.
“Then I am very sorry. Our duty is to protect the Archbishops. We only returned to the Royal City at the Archbishops’ request. Now that the Pope has passed away, the Grand Archbishop is the highest-ranking member of the Church. I cannot hand him over. If I did, how could our Knight Order continue to stand within the Church?” Wan-ge explained.
“Even if they are wrong?” the Papal Left Hand countered.
“It doesn’t matter even if they are wrong. This is a question of the Knight Order’s principles; it is a question of the Church’s survival. The old rules established over thousands of years are just like this. They cannot be overturned just because a few brats teamed up. My Lord, you are being too emotional. You shouldn’t have gotten involved in a struggle of this level,” Wan-ge said.
“But I did get involved. That terrifying Otherworld, the millennial grand policy of the Church, the old lair of the Blood Empress… The fact is that the Demon-Hunting Nun, by her power alone, dragged all of us out, including me. Although I possess strength surpassing hers, I did not have the power to deal with the Blood Empress, nor her wisdom.” The Papal Left Hand’s tone was firm.
“That cannot be a reason to destroy the rules,” Wan-ge questioned.
“Even if it turns the Cathedral into a pile of rubble, I will not stand by and watch her be persecuted by incompetent people. Moreover, the Immortal King and the Blood Empress have both been sealed by us. The original mission for which the Church was created has been completed. This continuity should also come to an end.” The Papal Left Hand looked up at the sky, uttering words that bordered on treason.
“My Lord, you are mad,” Wan-ge said coldly. “It seems we cannot reach an agreement today. In that case, I can only witness your [Festival Left Hand].”
You have your persistence, and I have my reasons. Everyone was stubborn to the bone.
Negotiations failed! Prepare for an internal clash!
The atmosphere gradually grew frigid. All three Legions, including the Second Company of Kun Knights, entered a state of battle readiness.
The Papal Left Hand and the Holy Knight Grand Captain—the strength of these two was likely on the level of the Ecclesiastical Academy Headmaster.
Among the many powerful individuals Samimi had encountered, perhaps only that Grand Elder could firmly suppress them by a fraction.
But such figures weren’t unique in the Church; there were several of them, balancing each other out. And now, they were actually about to go to war with one another.
To the Church, this would be a truly devastating blow. All other Saints were merely gears and parts; these powerful individuals were the heart.
Once the balance was broken, the consequences would be endless.
However, on their side, the “Turtle Saintess” Makima had also returned, along with Mad Dragon Dan and the Goddess of Holy Words. Their combined combat power was significantly stronger, but taking down the Grand Leader and the two Company Commanders still wouldn’t be easy.
In the end, it would surely result in a river of blood and countless casualties. But it seemed there was no other choice.
“My Lords! Please stay your hands! I have a suggestion! I hope you all will listen!”
However, at this very moment, a person no one expected stood up, blocking the outbreak of the civil war.