Judgment

The cathedral bells echoed above the wound of the entire Southern Continent. In the sky, holy angels could be seen circling as they descended, blowing their horns. Beautiful melodies drifted through the wind, and the pitch-black heavens gradually began to crumble. Even the clouds turned vibrant, as if a rainbow were being born within them.

“Did she fail as well...? Could this also be the arrangement of fate?” Albert muttered, his brow furrowed as he spoke each word with a sense of disbelief at the scene before him.

“It is not a true, complete divine descent, but this manifestation is already comparable to that of a lesser god...” Ishtar looked into the sky. From a great distance, she felt an extremely familiar aura rapidly approaching, seemingly about to arrive before her at any moment.

In a mere instant, Blizzard appeared before her. He leaned on his staff, panting heavily. The ice walls he had spent so much effort constructing had vanished in the blink of an eye; even among those of the Disaster rank, there were still vast differences in power.

“Deploy all the outer defense formations. Everyone, it seems we must return to our positions to maintain the magic arrays.” Albert sighed. The worst-case scenario seemed to have arrived.

In a dim room, Clo stood before a massive floor-to-ceiling window. A dragon's tail had appeared behind her. Not far away stood a girl with her limbs bound by chains and her eyes wrapped in white cloth. Her face was devoid of expression, as cold as Clo’s own.

“Shi, although I didn't particularly support Silas in resurrecting the god... as ‘His’ child, I will not allow you to interfere,” Daylight spoke slowly, her pleasant voice like the warble of a warbler.

“This isn't the worst outcome. I'm not in a hurry; I'm just a little annoyed.” Clo pouted. In the air, the chains flying toward her all ground to a halt, unable to advance another inch.

“No matter what, I cannot help her shoulder everything...” Clo looked toward the corner. Within the pitch-black cathedral, she could faintly sense the changes in the outside world. Something had completely awakened from its slumber.

“O Omniscient Lord...” Daylight knelt devoutly. “We have used so much sacrifice and so much brutality to exchange for Your birth. You will surely be able to guide our way.”

“The answer is that He Himself cannot know where the future lies. You know that too, don't you?” Clo retorted mockingly. “Your faith wavered long ago—the moment you discovered Silas’s atrocities, wasn't it?”

“Lying to yourself is useless.” Clo waved her staff, and the weight of time pressed down upon Daylight. “You know it best. Hasn't the Universal Love within you ever opposed you?”

“Shut up...”

“You want to know too, don't you? The outcome of this battle—whether the god you've always believed in truly knows how to move toward the future.” Clo pulled over a chair, adjusted the position of her tail, and sat back down. “You can only trap me for ten more minutes.”

“That is enough to decide the winner.”

Above the Deep Forest, which had already turned into pale dust, the god in the sky reached out a finger toward Silas. Their fingertips touched once more. Silas's eyes snapped open, seemingly awakened by the power of the Divine Lord.

“Divine Lord? You've certainly grown more arrogant with your titles. Tens of thousands of years ago, you were still a humble and courteous deity.” Li Yue’s head throbbed slightly. “Unfortunately, it’s impossible to return to that era.”

She held her long sword, its tip pointing at Silas. His body twitched a few times, and a different kind of brilliance seemed to appear in his grey-white eyes.

“I'll finish you before you adapt to your new body,” Li Yue said calmly. Her figure approached rapidly, arriving before Silas in an instant. But the moment she thrust her sword, a cross thousands of meters long formed above her head, slamming her from the air into the ground.

The earth let out a violent roar from the impact. It seemed that if the force were increased even slightly more, this entire continent would be smashed into the ocean.

“Still as fond of ‘Judgment’ as ever... Unfortunately, you lost the right to it long ago.” Li Yue murmured. She struggled to her feet, but in the next instant, after a flash of golden light, she and Silas had both arrived over the sea.

Within the academy, Kent spat out a large mouthful of blood. His divine robes burst apart inch by inch. Even with the protection of over a dozen professors and three Five Staves mages, teleporting Li Yue and Silas away had nearly cost him his life. And that was with Silas not resisting.

“I do not wish for my cathedral to be destroyed.”

“Do followers still have a use for you after your rebirth, Judgment...?”

“They shall be my followers hereafter, the companions who will join me in judging Sin and Evil!”

Li Yue spat out some blood. Looking at the crosses filling the sky, she felt a strong sense of helplessness for the first time. Her body was smashed from the sky into the ocean, and a giant cross was branded onto the seabed.

“How pathetic...” Li Yue coughed up more blood. Under the power of the Divine Lord, the entire ocean had turned a solid golden color. This power made her wound recovery speed slower and slower, until eventually, her injuries could no longer heal at all.

“I don't want to... completely become Him yet... and my crown...” Li Yue murmured, feeling her consciousness grow heavier and heavier. Countless giant spears emitting holy light were driven into the ocean, triggering bursts of radiance.

“God...” she whispered.