Jiang Lin’s mind raced as he thought through these plans. Just then, the Temple Head asked directly, “Why are you asking all this?”
She was curious about what went on inside the head of someone who thought of using 【Strengthening】 to enhance their intestines.
“I’m worried that as a thorn in the side of the cultists, they might send someone to assassinate me. But hearing you say that, Temple Head, puts my mind at ease.”
Jiang Lin came up with a random excuse.
Hearing this, the Temple Head nodded.
“Mm, just pay more attention yourself and don’t be too flashy. If you encounter cultists, find the Temple. Our Temple will always be your strong backing.
“You can also fully trust our staff. Every day when they clock in, we check if they have any ties to the secret cults. You don’t need to worry about spies among the staff.”
Jiang Lin remained noncommittal to this.
After all, the Pope of a secret cult was standing right in front of the Temple Head, and he hadn’t been discovered.
There were bound to be other cultists using unknown methods to hide within the Temple, just like him.
“No problem. I am also determined to eradicate all cultists in the world!”
Afterward, Jiang Lin respectfully bid farewell to the Temple Head and withdrew from her office.
The pressure from the Temple Head was still too strong. As they spoke just now, his back had unconsciously become soaked with cold sweat again.
Reflecting for a moment, he realized he had to face it sooner or later anyway. So, Jiang Lin explained his intention to the staff and, under their guidance, arrived at the Hall of the Seven Gods.
The morning sun poured light through the towering stained-glass dome windows, draping over the seven massive statues carved from pure Holy White Stone.
The air was filled with a sacred and solemn atmosphere.
“Young paladin, please kneel here. The God of Holy Light will grant you guidance.”
A priest spoke, leading Jiang Lin to the correct position.
“Open your mind and accept his guidance. The gates to the God-blessed Land shall open for you.”
Jiang Lin took a deep breath. Thinking that fate was in the hands of the heavens, he closed his eyes and completely opened his mind.
The chanting of the priest reached his ears. In the next moment, a warm and vast power instantly flooded into his body.
Feeling as if he were being brushed by a pair of warm, large hands, Jiang Lin felt warm all over. The Demon Lord Seed at his heart hid itself and was not discovered.
After this power circulated through his body once and seemingly found no abnormalities, it finally etched an extremely complex, white-glowing imprint within him.
“May the holy light guide your path, young paladin. When you are ready to face the challenge, you may activate the imprint to undergo your breakthrough.”
After finishing the chant, the priest gave Jiang Lin a slight smile.
At the same time, an understanding dawned in Jiang Lin’s mind.
【Enter the God-blessed Land and, together with a squad, defeat seven members of foreign races. Time limit: seven days.】
Jiang Lin felt the changes in his body and the information appearing in his mind, then asked the priest beside him.
“Excuse me, is this breakthrough quest the same for everyone?”
The priest nodded with a smile.
“That’s right. The quest to rise from rank-0 to rank-1 is relatively simple. The gods will automatically match you with other adventurers of different classes near you who are also ready to break through. Once seven classes are gathered, you will be sent to the God-blessed Land.”
Jiang Lin asked again, “Is it dangerous in the God-blessed Land? What happens if you die inside?”
The priest maintained that faint smile.
“By the grace of the seven gods, dying in the God-blessed Land does not mean true death. You will simply be ejected from the God-blessed Land and enter a three-month cooldown period. During that time, you will be unable to attempt the breakthrough.”
Jiang Lin nodded. “I see. Thank you for the guidance.”
Pausing, Jiang Lin asked once more, “After completing the breakthrough, do I need to register at the Temple again?”
The priest nodded. “Yes. After you break through, a successful breakthrough imprint will remain in your body. At that time, simply come to the Temple to register. We will record it in your identity file.”
Hearing this, Jiang Lin had a clear idea of what to do.
If he couldn’t teleport into the God-blessed Land from within the Blood Realm, he would immediately pack his bags and start a life on the run after finishing the 【Trial of Blood】.
The same applied if any accidents occurred that caused him to lose the Temple's trust.
Otherwise, he would just complete the registration as normal.
But just then, the priest standing to the side frowned.
“Hmm? The statue seems to still have some reaction?”
After granting Jiang Lin the imprint, the statue had not returned to its original state. Instead, it was faintly shimmering with light.
Closing his eyes to sense for a moment, the priest asked Jiang Lin in confusion, “Did you kill cultists on your own?”
At those words, Jiang Lin’s thoughts raced as he thought quickly.
While there was nothing wrong with him killing cultists, the fact that he hadn’t proactively reported it to the Temple after doing so seemed a bit suspicious.
After all, normally, any regular student who killed a cultist while out would come to the Temple to provide information about that cultist.
He wouldn’t be like he was now, having stayed for so long without mentioning a word.
“Ah? Why do you say that?”
Jiang Lin first asked to clarify how much the other party knew.
“When you kill someone and stand beneath the statue of a god, the god can sense the aura of the souls that died by your hand. If those souls carry the aura of an evil god, the statue will react.”
Jiang Lin was surprised.
So the 【soul-passing incantation】 hadn't worked? It hadn't even removed the soul aura from his body.
However, now was not the time to argue that. Jiang Lin began to change the subject.
“Oh, I remember the Temple has a rule that after killing cultists, you can receive a certain amount of borrowing points, right?”
Seeing that Jiang Lin didn’t deny it but instead cared about this issue, the priest already had his answer.
He replied, “That’s right. Take out your borrowing points card and place it in your palm. The statue will automatically calculate and settle your points.”
'This statue is quite smart, it even has a top-up function,' Jiang Lin thought to himself.
The priest continued to explain to Jiang Lin, “A 1st-rank cultist counts for 1 point, a 2nd-rank is 5 points, a 3rd-rank is 20 points, and a 4th-rank is 50 points. Anything higher is usually not calculated with borrowing points.”
“What about rank-0 cultists?” Jiang Lin asked curiously.
“Rank-0 cultists…” The priest glanced at Jiang Lin. “If there is evidence, you can bring it to the Temple to claim a few silver coins.”
Jiang Lin was silent.
'Do you really not treat us rank-0 cultists as human?'
“So, why did you kill the cultists?” the priest asked, reaching the heart of the matter.
Coughing lightly, Jiang Lin lowered his voice and acted mysterious. “Ahem, well… it’s not convenient to disclose that.
“You know, I just came from the Temple Head’s office. For this kind of thing, those who know, know; those who don't, won't. If I explained it, you might not understand anyway. It’s better to just leave it at that. You don't need to guess; it is what it is…”
After a bunch of nonsense, the priest was left a bit bewildered.
However, since this was the Temple Head’s intent, it wasn't his place to ask further.
So, he signaled for Jiang Lin to complete the points recording himself, as it didn't require his assistance.
Jiang Lin took the points card out of his spatial ring and, following the priest’s instructions, completed the recording.
【Borrowing Points: 5 → 21】
The four people killed by the Blood Demon actually counted toward his total!
It was likely because it was his summon, so anyone killed during the summoning period was credited to him.
Afterward, Jiang Lin took his newly acquired points and prepared to borrow two more high-tier skills, only to be told:
“I’m sorry, Mr. Jiang Lin, you have reached your borrowing limit. Please return the three skill books you currently have before borrowing others.”
Because skill books were precious, the number of books one could borrow at a time was limited.
Jiang Lin understood this and left the Temple with Little Black.
Returning to the classroom, the students who had pulled another all-nighter were currently replenishing their energy for the next day, popping potions one after another.
Among the crowd, Jiang Lin noticed a shield warrior actually using a needle to inject some kind of liquid into his body.
He stepped forward and asked, “What are you doing?”
Seeing his actions being noticed, Simp No. 2 scratched the back of his head and smiled foolishly. “Hehe, this is a new product from the magic potion shop. It can stimulate muscle activity and increase my training efficiency.”
For some reason, hearing this, Jiang Lin felt like the guy was on a path toward becoming a meathead.
“Uh, as long as you know what you’re doing.”
Jiang Lin didn’t try to persuade him further. He returned to his seat and flipped open the newly acquired 【Shield of Divine Grace】.
“Are you learning another high-tier skill?” Aili leaned over.
Jiang Lin kept his eyes fixed on the contents of the skill book. “Naturally.”
“How long does it usually take you to learn a high-tier skill?” Aili blinked her innocent, large eyes.
As he flipped through the book, Jiang Lin held up five fingers toward Aili.
“Five days?”
Aili was a bit confused. Even she could become initiated in a high-tier skill within six or seven days. For a genius of Jiang Lin’s level, wasn't that a bit slow?
Jiang Lin shook his head and continued flipping through the book.
“Five hours?”
Aili was somewhat shocked. If it was that speed, it would truly be terrifying.
However, to her surprise, Jiang Lin shook his head again, turned to the next page, and spoke.
“Five…”
Just as Aili was wondering what he was up to, she heard Jiang Lin continue.
“Four…”
“Three…”
Aili: ???
When the countdown ended, Jiang Lin closed the skill book and placed it by Little Black’s feet.
“I’ve learned it. Now all that’s left is practice.”
Having said that, Jiang Lin ignored the still-shocked Aili. He closed his eyes and sat cross-legged to cultivate, while simultaneously trading with Little Black.
'I can't understand it!'
He could only understand the underlying logic of the limit-broken 【Seven Star Holy Glow Slash】.
He hadn’t learned many of the basics for other high-tier skills yet.
Soon, Jiang Lin and Little Black reached an agreement, and Little Black began explaining 【Shield of Divine Grace】 to him.
An entire morning passed. In his seat, Jiang Lin successfully established the magic essence circuit for this high-tier defensive skill.
In the next moment, a shield glowing with holy light emerged from Jiang Lin’s body.
【Shield of Divine Grace (uninitiated) → (initiated)】
From his previous experience, Jiang Lin knew that training for general defensive skills didn't have high requirements for the venue. He could train just by sitting in his seat.
Unlike skills like 【Seven Star Holy Glow Slash】, 【Light Blade】, and 【Holy Light Heavy Slash】, which caused too much commotion and required outdoor practice.
For this kind of skill, he only needed to construct the magic essence circuit within his body.
Following that, he consumed one 【Random Skill Upgrade】.
【Shield of Divine Grace (initiated) → (superlative)】
Then, Jiang Lin handed the 【Super-speed Thinking】 skill book to Little Black.
Soon, Little Black continued to explain it to him.
Another afternoon passed.
【Super-speed Thinking (uninitiated) → (superlative)】
Jiang Lin planned to save his limit-broken skill for 【Shield of Divine Grace】. After all, as a light-attribute defensive skill, it would be much more effective for him, making it more cost-effective.
However, breaking the limit would surely result in a massive flood of memories that would knock him unconscious.
There was no rush to break the limit now.
Because…
“Jiang Lin, are you free tonight? My father wants to discuss something with you.”
Anya found him and asked.
Jiang Lin naturally agreed. “Of course I’m free. Let’s go.”
With that, Jiang Lin picked up Little Black and left his seat.
The City Lord’s Manor was located in the central area of Boulder City. Unlike the grand solemnity of the Temple, the manor possessed a settled majesty and a heavy sense of history.
High stone walls surrounded it, and the gate was carved with the Castrot family crest—a pattern consisting of a fierce, glaring lion and a holy sword.
However, no guards or similar professions appeared. After all, with a rank-7 powerhouse like the city lord—equivalent to the Temple Head—stationed here, anyone with a brain wouldn't dream of causing trouble at the manor.
The interior decorations were not extravagant, but everywhere showed refinement and a sense of power.
On the walls hung portraits of distinguished members from previous generations of the family. Without exception, all had golden eyes and golden hair.
Finally, Anya led Jiang Lin into a spacious study. In front of a large floor-to-ceiling window sat a wide desk, and behind it was a figure.
“Father, this is Jiang Lin.” Anya introduced him.
“City Lord.” Jiang Lin bowed respectfully. He didn’t dare call him 'Uncle' to act familiar just yet, as he wasn't yet sure of the city lord’s character.
At the same time, he glanced at the Lord of Boulder City.
Unsurprisingly, his right eye began to ache.
'He’s definitely a powerhouse!!'
Jiang Lin felt that he could judge the strength of those whose aura he couldn’t perceive simply by relying on his 【Chronowalker's Evil Eye】.
“Haha, welcome, Jiang Lin. Don’t be nervous, come and sit down. I am Dane Castrot, the Lord of Boulder City.”
As he spoke, the city lord pointed to a chair in front of him, clearly prepared for Jiang Lin.
He didn't look old, appearing to be about forty from his looks alone. However, for powerhouses of this level, one naturally couldn’t judge age by appearance. If they wanted to, they could easily maintain the look of someone in their twenties; a more mature appearance was simply more dignified.
He also had golden hair and golden eyes. His features were forty to fifty percent similar to Anya’s, but his face was more resolute, with lines as if carved by a knife.
“Thank you, City Lord.”
Jiang Lin sat in the chair opposite the desk, while Anya walked over to a sofa on the side.
Facing this man, Jiang Lin felt a strange illusion that he was facing a mountain.
Unlike the Temple Head’s solemn majesty, this city lord was more steady and profound, his gaze as calm as if he could see through one's heart.
Involuntarily, Jiang Lin straightened his back a bit more.
“No need for such formality.”
The city lord put down his documents, crossed his hands on the desk, and looked at Jiang Lin with a gentle gaze.
“I have heard Anya and Salas mention you many times.
“The genius youth who took first place in the Boulder City Junior Magic Academy joint exam, who promoted from level 3 to level 10 at an astonishing speed, and who even single-handedly drove the entire academy and influenced the educational atmosphere of Boulder City.”
“The City Lord overpraises me. I was just lucky,” Jiang Lin said humbly.
In front of such a figure, he didn't dare to brag about being a genius.
“Luck? Is it not the result of accumulation?” A faint smile touched the corner of the city lord’s mouth.
Jiang Lin felt a bit sheepish. “The City Lord is joking.”
Without dwelling too long on the subject, the city lord continued, “Actually, the reason I asked you here today is for something that was mentioned to you before.”
Jiang Lin was a bit confused. “May I ask what it is, City Lord?”
The city lord tapped his dark solid wood desk and spoke four words:
“Marry into the family…”
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