Chapter 343: The Gathering of Cardinals
Shortly after, several Holy Clergy Members quietly left the Basilica and subsequently headed to the residences of the various Holy Clans in the Vatican.
Merely an hour later, the Cardinals within these Holy Clans mobilized one after another, heading together toward the Basilica.
Even some old Cardinals who had long since retired made a rare appearance, a scene that piqued the curiosity of many.
After all, only the Cardinal Council could gather so many Cardinals in one place, and every such council meeting signified that a major event had occurred.
For instance, the last time was when Archbishop Jolan was involved in an incident.
But the scale this time was clearly far beyond previous ones. Had something major happened again?
Outside the Papal Basilica.
The Holy See Priest Order was fully deployed, guarding the perimeter of the Basilica.
Among them were two Papal Attendants, a holy office dedicated to protecting the Pope; Archbishop Jolan had also held this position before being confined to the Place of Suffering.
Apart from them, absolutely no one else was permitted to enter.
Inside the Basilica.
Over a dozen Cardinals stood before the statue of the Son of God.
Cardinal Parolin, the rotating chair, wore a solemn expression as he turned to look at the others: "Do any of you have thoughts on this?"
"Could that guy Dracula have done this?"
"Hmph, that old immortal has been serving as fertilizer in the Place of Suffering's botanical garden the whole time. Moreover, what he pierced back then was the vessel storing the Blood of the Son of God. This holy statue merely received the Lord's blessing," someone immediately rebutted.
"Then this means... the bleeding of the holy statue is a revelation from the Lord. Could the Blood of the Son of God be lost?"
Hearing this, Parolin frowned and couldn't help but shoot a glance at the speaker.
The man belonged to the "Aquinas" family, the very clan that authored the Codex of Saint Aquinas.
They had always been dissatisfied with the Sauls safeguarding many of the Church's holy relics, so they would never miss any opportunity to smear the latter.
Not long ago, the attack on the Holy Land had occurred. Fortunately, the Tablets of the Ten Commandments were recovered during the Battle of the Holy Land, which finally shut some people's mouths.
Currently, the Sauls were the rotating heads of the Vatican. Once the focus was shifted to the loss of holy relics, a bout of suspicion and self-proving would be inevitable.
Therefore, Parolin immediately spoke up to argue: "Hmph, the erudition of Lord Aquinas is unmatched in the entire history of the Church, but his descendants have only learned how to sling mud."
"The Holy Blood is a crucial sacrifice for completing that matter. Right now, it is safely stored in the Holy Vault. The Pope and I personally inspected it earlier."
His tone grew cold: "Let us focus our attention on the matter at hand."
The Cardinal from the Aquinas family had no choice but to shut his mouth resentfully.
At this time, someone else spoke up: "Where is Cardinal Brislin of the Isaac family? Are there any new developments regarding the Holy Revelations?"
As soon as he spoke, an old man wearing white and gold robes stepped forward: "There has indeed been a new Holy Revelation recently, but I imagine it has nothing to do with the bleeding holy statue."
The assembled Cardinals all revealed looks of surprise, waiting for him to continue.
Regardless of whether it was related, the prophecies of the Holy Revelations were extremely important to all the Holy Clans.
"The Demon God's legion will descend soon."
Parolin narrowed his eyes: "Hasn't this news been circulating for a while now? Currently, traces of Demon God soldiers can be found in commissions everywhere."
Brislin shook his head: "I am referring to the true legions commanded by the Demon Gods."
"According to the Holy Revelation prophecy, they have already finished assembling. As long as the Source Power passages are opened, these monsters will be able to descend upon the human world."
The many Cardinals present all wore grave expressions.
This news signified a formal invasion of the world by the 72 Demon Gods, and the last time a disaster of this scale occurred was a millennium ago in the Land of the Holy War.
"This... are you sure you haven't misinterpreted it? Every single one of those devils possesses formidable strength; even one attempting to descend with its true body is very difficult to achieve," a Cardinal spoke up.
"Now, multiple are supposed to pass through all at once. It's impossible for such a stable Source Power passage to exist in the current world."
"If this were the past, that would indeed be true, but..." Parolin suddenly spoke, "There will soon be such a passage."
"You mean opening one using the Tablets of the Ten Commandments..."
"Correct," Parolin nodded.
"The Church has many Source Power passages, but only two can be called 'sacred.' These are blessings from the Lord, and the reason we have endured for a millennium..."
"Cardinal Parolin, we do not need you to give a history lesson," a man in a black robe interrupted.
"Heh... Cardinal Sandri Augustine, I merely wished to emphasize the importance of this matter," Parolin said.
The Augustine family had participated in the creation of the theology cultivation system, so he had to show the other party respect.
"The Divine Descent Ritual is our lifelong mission, and merely two sacred passages are clearly insufficient. This is exactly why we exhausted all our efforts to obtain the Tablets of the Ten Commandments."
"Now it seems these villains from Hell have long since set their sights on the new passage."
Brislin frowned: "Can't we postpone it? Even for Demon Gods, maintaining the operation of a legion for an extended period will consume massive amounts of energy."
Parolin sighed: "That's the same for us."
"Ever since the new decree was issued, the increased spiritual awakening rituals have been consuming the Church's existing Source Power, and those two sacred passages are already heavily burdened."
"Hmph, since that's the case, why not use it more sparingly," the Cardinal from the Aquinas family spoke up again.
"Do you want all those believers to defect to the Knights Templar and the Sorcerer Association?" Parolin glared at him coldly.
"People who can't even read the situation should speak less."
"You!"
Sandri interjected: "Are you suggesting the Demon Gods have a way to tamper with the Holy Blood, thereby causing problems with the new Source Power passage, and this is the reason for the holy statue bleeding?"
"That is indeed my guess." Parolin nodded.
"This absolutely cannot be allowed to happen," Sandri's tone was grave.
"Accumulating the Holy Blood is not easy. Excluding the small amount crafted into sealing holy artifacts and the portion that was lost, we have only collected this much over a millennium. We don't have a chance to do it all over again."
"Since that's the case, let's retrieve all the Holy Blood scattered outside," a Cardinal suggested.
"I'm afraid that won't work either," Parolin said. "Those holy artifact sacrifices seal away dangerous evil existences from the past. Destroying them would only invite more trouble."
"Well said," Sandri pondered. "But we cannot ignore this matter."
"Let the Priest Order investigate the Holy Blood seals in various locations to see if there have been any recent anomalies."
"On the other hand, to prevent any mishaps with the Divine Descent Ritual, we must prepare more Holy Blood sacrifices as backups."
"You mean..." Parolin narrowed his eyes.
"Before the Divine Descent Ritual, let us hold a sacrificial ritual first," Sandri said calmly.
Hearing this, the expressions of the assembled Cardinals varied.
After all, this hadn't happened in the Church for a very long time.
"Then... what about the candidates for the sacrifice?" Parolin continued.
"Send messages to the Lord Knights and local authorities everywhere, asking them to come and convene a council." Sandri did not answer directly, but brought up another topic instead.
"The human world does not belong solely to the Church. Since the Demon God's legion is about to descend, everyone must do their part."
Hearing this, Parolin raised an eyebrow: "I understand."
"Is the location for the Divine Descent Ritual ready?" Brislin asked. "Given the tier of a divine existence, the required Source Power will be enormous."
"There's no need to worry about that." Parolin looked at him.
"Not long ago, a case was reported from West Virginia in North America. According to the report, people were disappearing into the forest there at regular intervals. After the Priest Order went to investigate, they indeed found traces of an evil aura. But interestingly, they also discovered an underground facility housing quite a few people. After interrogation, it was confirmed that these are servants of the Old Gods. And that facility is a sacrificial ground; the people who disappeared in the forest earlier all ultimately flowed into here. Upon hearing the news, I requested that location. Given the frequency of the Old God believers' sacrifices, the Source Power preserved there must be incredibly abundant."
Having finished, Sandri looked at the others: "Does anyone have any other suggestions?"
The council chamber was perfectly quiet.
"Alright then, let's put it to a vote," Sandri said. "Those in favor of the ritual location, raise your hand."
Very quickly, the assembled Cardinals raised their arms one after another.
The Cardinal from the Aquinas family frowned but ultimately said nothing more.
Thus, the matter was passed unanimously.
"In a few days, I will send people to escort the Tablets of the Ten Commandments there. I leave the task of contacting the other factions to you." Sandri looked at Parolin.
"That is my duty to begin with." Parolin drew a cross on his chest.
Afterward, the Cardinals departed. The Divine Descent Ritual implicated the interests of all the Holy Clans, so they needed to return and discuss their respective affairs.
Only after the council chamber was completely empty did Holy Clergy Members enter to clean up the remains of the holy statue.
Abbey of St. Carta, Cellar Sacrificial Hall.
William held the Book of the World, looking at the dot on the page representing the Church's Source Power passage, which was currently glowing exceptionally bright.
And there was only a single drop of Holy Blood left in the glass tube; he had intentionally saved it.
Although Valak's avatar had disappeared, who knew if the demon had other backup plans?
Therefore, William planned to use the Holy Blood to reinforce the seal on the stone altar.
On one hand, the Book of the World had already absorbed enough Church power.
On the other hand, this would also disrupt the Church's subsequent investigations.
Since a legendary item like the Holy Blood was used as a sealing sacrifice, it would be very difficult for the Church not to find out what happened here.
If the other party followed the clues and deduced that the Book of the World was with William, he would be in real danger.
Thinking of this, he walked over to the stone altar and poured the last drop of Holy Blood into the fissure.
The next moment, a powerful surge of golden Holy Power erupted abruptly, and the fissure slowly closed up.
"Judging by the intensity of the power, it should only last for a while, but that's enough," William pondered inwardly.
Currently, he hadn't collected enough Legendary Items, so he couldn't preemptively close any Source Power passage, lest it attract unwanted attention.
Subsequently, William stored away the remaining Source Power. The surplus this time was very abundant, even more than what he had collected from Kayako.
After checking one last time to confirm there were no issues, he headed outside.
Shortly after.
Abbey Forest Graveyard.
William held the Blessing Bible, reciting silently, while Gail, Irene, and the others stood beside him.
Before him were many freshly turned graves, inside which lay the remains of the nuns from earlier. Of course, the skeletons dug these graves themselves.
After all, it was their final resting place; they couldn't let William do the labor for them.
In short, after sincerely reciting a few times, William sprinkled a bottle of Holy Water on the ground.
The graves glowed faintly, and subsequently, many transparent spirit bodies slowly drifted toward the sky.
"...May you find true peace," William closed the Bible.
Father Burke and Irene drew a cross on their chests: "Amen."
After burying the deceased here, the group prepared to leave.
Father Burke approached William: "If it weren't for you this time, we would have likely perished here. May I ask where you studied theology?"
William smiled faintly and patted the other man's shoulder: "It's better if you don't know that."
Father Burke assumed the former's identity had certain restrictions, so he hurriedly bowed and said, "Pardon my intrusion."
After that, no further accidents occurred. The group successfully returned to the village, and the villagers, hearing that the evil spirit had been purified, expressed their gratitude to them once again.
Eager to begin his experiments, Mark urged William to leave first.
Watching the three disappear into the horizon, Irene suddenly covered her mouth.
"What's wrong?" Father Burke noticed her odd behavior.
"I remember now! I know that gentleman!" Irene's eyes went wide.
"You mean..." Burke raised an eyebrow.
"I once participated in a commission in Los Angeles, North America..." Irene's face showed she was recalling something.
"At the time, I was responsible for looking after a group of children who had been invaded by evil, but halfway through, a horde of evil spirits suddenly attacked the church, and I was subsequently possessed by evil as a result."
Father Burke looked surprised: "Possessed by evil, that could cause damage to the soul."
Irene nodded: "I also thought I couldn't be saved back then, but a priest named William arrived in time and saved me."
"Afterward, I even followed him to track down the source of the evil spirits. That priest was very experienced in handling paranormal incidents! At the time, that evil spirit was even enraged because of it."
"Although that Mr. Detective's hat somewhat obscured his face, I always felt he looked very familiar."
She clapped her hands together at this point.
"And he was also very careful when setting up defenses against evil spirits!"
Irene was almost certain inwardly.
And Father Burke beside her also revealed a solemn expression.
"William... that name sounds familiar."
He immediately opened his backpack and took out a wanted poster.
"...All diocese Holy Clergy Members must watch out for this person. William, a former newly appointed member of the Holy See Priest Order, secretly colluded with demons, damaging the Church's interests..."
Irene also leaned closer and covered her mouth upon reading the contents.
"Th-this... how is this possible," she looked shocked. "The Father William I know is not that kind of person!"
"The notice was just issued not long ago," Father Burke put the notice back.
At this moment, recalling what that gentleman said before leaving, he was already certain of the other party's identity in his heart.
At the same time, Burke secretly rejoiced. If William had told him his background then, he would have been forced to make a move against him.
Looking at it this way, that gentleman had intangibly protected him once again.
"Sigh..." Burke sighed.
"What... what do we do now." Irene looked worried. "Should we report to the Curia? If Father William truly betrayed the Church, we would have died a long time ago this time."
"Absolutely not!" Burke shook his head.
"Irene, this involves many things. You haven't joined the Church yet, so you can't understand. Regardless of whether the contents mentioned in the notice are true, we shouldn't get involved."
Irene lowered her head: "Then how can we help him."
"With that gentleman's abilities, as long as we don't become a burden to him, that's the biggest help we can offer," Father Burke said in a deep voice.
Subsequently, he looked at the young woman beside him.
"For this commission report, just write... we used the Holy Blood to reinforce the seal, and also encountered people from another organization."
"Another organization?"
"The man and woman accompanying Mr. William," Burke explained. "They were carrying equipment and instruments with them. I guess they should be members of the Light of Humanity."
"But no matter what, you absolutely must not mention Mr. William."
"This... I understand."
North America, Light of Humanity Headquarters.
A week had passed since the trip to Romania.
Ever since returning, Mark had buried himself in the laboratory, developing Source Power weapons.
Because the Source Power William provided this time was incredibly abundant, he also made substantial progress in his research.
During this time, William hadn't been idle either. Besides sorting out the locations of other passages that might harbor legendary items...
He also concurrently held the position of Exorcism Consultant for the Light of Humanity—responsible for answering some of their difficult questions regarding exorcism incidents.
And not long ago, Gail came to him again, expressing her wish to invite him to accompany them to an Exorcism Council in a few days.
According to her, this council was initiated by the Church. Besides the Knights Templar and the Sorcerer Association, even North American officials were on the invitation list.