I just reached the maximum level, and you want me to be a puppet emperor?

Chapter 590 A Meeting at the Top: Why Can't We Trust Ourselves? (Please Subscribe, Please Vote)
Li Chen and the Pope had been alone together for some time, which caused quite a stir among the people outside.

Everyone is speculating about Li Chen's true identity.

Even among the many cardinals of the Vatican, few possessed Li Chen's strength.

Could it be that the Pope has been concealing the strength of this bodyguard all these years?

None of these cardinals had ever seen Li Chen before, and they didn't know his true identity.

However, there was one cardinal who had seen him: Cardinal Chet, who had once attacked Charles in Starfall Kingdom. He must have seen Li Chen.

Because of the attack on Charles, Chet was sentenced to solitary confinement by the Pope, and unless he receives a pardon, he is expected to remain in solitary confinement for many years.

You must understand, this is the Everlasting Empire. Openly attacking Charles would definitely cause unrest if word got out.

Even a cardinal can be punished by the Pope.

But this punishment is considered very lenient. Under the laws of Eternal Day, the execution of the entire family would not be an exaggeration.

This also shows that the Papacy's status is indeed much higher than that of the royal family.

The people of the Papacy only follow the doctrines; they don't care about any royal laws.

This is why the conflict between the Papacy and the royal family is growing.

Cardinal Ludwig kept his eyes fixed on the palace, his mind racing with thoughts.

In his view, the return of the Royal Guard to the Papacy would likely bring about earth-shattering changes to the entire Papacy.

In the garden of the Papal Palace, only the Pope and Li Chen were present.

To some extent, their strength and status were equal, so they could communicate quite casually.

"Your Majesty Li Chen, having served as my personal guard for so many days, you must understand that the doctrines of my Holy See can stabilize the country. Why not vigorously promote them in Tian Ce?"

The Pope also casually probed.

Li Chen did not deny this point, and he could understand why the royal family of the Eternal Day Empire would rely on the Holy See to consolidate their rule.

The Papacy's extreme faith, coupled with its extremely xenophobic and hegemonic rule, has indeed enabled the country to maintain stability.

The problem is that if the Papacy develops in this way, most of the resources and powerful people will belong to the Papacy. The Papacy can then justify itself by saying, "This is how the Papacy is. If you don't believe in us, how can you become stronger?"

In that case, the royal family in a country is equivalent to the papacy managing the country.

Whenever this happens, the royal family becomes a laughingstock.

Li Chen is the emperor, so naturally he wouldn't make that choice.

“You know I don’t really like complicated things. You see, I’m usually out and about, too lazy to deal with politics. I’m only here because you invited me, to see if that amethyst barrier is really that magical.”

Li Chen's answer was so simple that it surprised even the Pope.

I didn't expect this emperor to be so decisive, that's really good.

In contrast, Charles spouts nothing but ambiguous nonsense, his hypocrisy is outrageous.

Charles was unaware of the Pope's thoughts, otherwise he would have been on edge.

"In that case, Your Majesty Li Chen, please come with me." The Pope said, tapping the ground lightly with his scepter.

A golden light flashed, and the two disappeared from the garden in an instant, leaving only a few petals swirling and falling.

In the deepest forbidden area of ​​the Papal Palace, the air seemed to have frozen for millions of years.

A majestic divine tree rose from the ground, its trunk so thick that it would take ten people to encircle it, and liquid holy light flowed between its branches and leaves.

A huge purple crystal mirror is embedded in the heart of the tree. The mirror is as smooth as water, yet its bottom is unfathomable.

"This is the Mirror of Prophecy," the Pope's voice echoed in the empty forbidden area. "It has existed since the founding of the Papacy." He raised his scepter, and twelve holy crystals lit up simultaneously.

When the tip of the scepter touched the mirror, the purple mirror suddenly rippled.

Countless fragmented images flashed rapidly in the mirror: burning cities, shattered mountains and rivers, and ferocious demons tearing the sky apart.
Li Chen's pupils contracted slightly as he saw the imperial city of Tian Ce collapse amidst the demonic flames, and the holy light barrier of the Yong Zhou Empire shatter inch by inch.

The most terrifying thing was a dark shadow that blotted out the sky, and everything withered wherever it went.

"Only by accepting God's protection can we survive this catastrophe." The Pope's voice was solemn like never before.

The image in the mirror suddenly froze on a six-winged angel statue, and holy light dispelled some of the darkness.

Li Chen chuckled lightly: "The gods and immortals are both ethereal beings. Why can't we trust ourselves?"

The Pope's fingers, gripping the scepter, turned slightly white. If anyone else had said those words, they would have been burned to ashes by the sacred flame long ago, but...
"What brilliant idea does Your Majesty Li Chen have?" he asked, barely suppressing his anger.

"I wouldn't call it a brilliant insight." Li Chen reached out and lightly touched the mirror, causing the purple mirror to tremble violently. "I just feel that it's better to take control of one's own destiny than to leave it in the hands of others."

A golden light, even more dazzling than the divine tree, burst forth from his fingertips.
The angel image in the mirror suddenly disappeared, replaced by Li Chen's figure.

He stood atop mountains of corpses and seas of blood, and wherever his long sword pointed, the demons scattered in disarray.

The Pope stared in shock. In all his years, this was the first time he had ever seen someone alter the prophecy of the Mirror of Prophecy!
"Why is this happening?" the Pope murmured to himself in confusion.

"Because what you see is what you can do with your abilities. I just used your method to see my future. Of course, don't believe any of this. It's just a prediction. Who knows what the future will be like?" Li Chen said casually, his tone very relaxed. He didn't seem to care much about this prediction mirror.

The Pope really wanted to refute him, because he was the Pope and had the utmost faith in the gods. If Li Chen offended the gods, he would definitely get angry.

But Li Chen said he only believed in himself, which didn't really offend the gods.

Perhaps it was because he believed in himself that he reached the Saint realm at such a young age.

The Pope, a man of great learning, knew that Li Chen, at such a young age, had cultivated to the Saint Realm, making him a unique figure in the last thousand years. When he said he believed in himself, he was not just making empty promises.

If Li Chen is right, perhaps he is the one who can change the future?
But this made the Pope doubt his own preconceived notions; he didn't doubt God, but rather his own abilities.

The two talked for a long time in the forbidden area until sunset.

When the Pope walked out of the basilica alone, the cardinals who had been waiting for a long time rushed up to him.

The cardinals outside were frantic with worry.

A young cardinal paced back and forth, saying, "Why hasn't he come out yet? Could something be wrong?"

The older female cardinal glared at him: "What could the Pope possibly have to do with anything?"

The tall cardinal asked in confusion, "But why did the Pope tell us to leave?"

A group of loyal cardinals were about to discuss pushing open the door and entering.

The doors of the main hall opened, and the Pope came out.

"Your Majesty! Where is that guard?" Ludwig asked anxiously.

The Pope waved his hand wearily: "He has other matters to attend to."

One sentence was enough to stop everyone from asking any further questions.

Because there are many possibilities regarding what the Pope said about something happening.

The first scenario is when the Pope has something he assigns to his personal guards, and even if they are cardinals, they must recuse themselves from such tasks.

That man is the Pope's personal guard; there's no need for them to discuss their affairs with others, and no one else has the right to ask.

The second scenario is that if a bodyguard needs to leave, the Pope will let him go, and others certainly won't need to interfere in his private affairs.

(End of this chapter)