Dark Wizard: Rise! My undead army!

Upon hearing that his family's bank and all the merit certificates had to be handed over to the state, Victor's face turned bright red.

This is blatant robbery!

"You—what right do you have! Even His Majesty the Emperor hasn't said my church is breaking the law!"

Augustus took the gold badge out of his pocket and placed it on the table.

Victor stared at the badge, the color draining from his face.

He recognized it—the Empire's highest military authorization order, which allowed the holder to mobilize any unit.

"You...you're going to use the army against me?" His voice trembled.

"No need for an army." Augustus put away his badge.

"I'll give you three days. If your church is still standing, your donation coupons are still being sold, and your bank is still taking money from believers after three days—I'll bring people with me."

He turned and walked out of the church.

Victor stood there, his face ashen.

The believers behind him whispered among themselves; some were terrified, some were angry, and some had already begun to walk away.

"Master, what should we do?"

"Let's fight him! We have tens of thousands of followers!"

"Tens of thousands of believers? They have an army!"

Victor did not answer.

As he watched Augustus's departing figure, he suddenly recalled a sentence he had read in his youth: True faith does not need to be bought or sold.

That night, Victor locked himself in his room and drank bottle after bottle of alcohol.

At daybreak, he pushed open the door and said to the assistant guarding the entrance, "Go and tell Augustus that I agree."

Gear Town, Neger's Church.

When the news arrived, Nege was preaching.

He stood on the high platform, with the crude clay statue of the god behind him and thousands of believers kneeling in front of him.

He was speaking at the climax of his story, his voice hoarse and strained.

"The Most High God said that those who believe in Him will have eternal life, and those who do not believe will go to hell! Those false believers, those liars who falsely proclaim divine pronouncements, will all go to hell—"

A subordinate ran up from behind and whispered a few words in his ear. Nege's voice stopped abruptly, and his face changed.

"Victor chickened out?" he asked in a low voice.

The subordinate nodded.

"The entire church has been handed over to the Vatican, the banks have been closed, the donation coupons are no longer sold, and even Victor himself knelt before Augustus to repent."

Nege gritted his teeth and remained silent for a long time.

Then he turned to the believers and shouted, "The false believers have surrendered! But the Most High God will not forgive them! Only we, only the true believers, can receive God's protection!"

The believers cheered.

Nege raised his hand, signaling for quiet.

"They threaten us with their army! But the Most High God will protect us! We are not afraid of the army! We have faith!"

The cheers grew even louder.

Nege jumped off the platform and led several hundred followers into the streets.

They chanted slogans and waved flags as they surged toward the city hall.

Some people smashed windows, some pushed down streetlights, and some blocked passing vehicles.

The town's security team arrived, but upon seeing thousands of fanatical believers, none dared to approach.

When the news reached the capital, the emperor was in a meeting with his ministers.

After listening to the report, he remained silent for a long time, then looked at Augustus sitting in the corner.

"Your people, you deal with them yourself."

Augustus stood up.

"Your Majesty, I need General Wald."

The emperor nodded.

An hour later, the old general Wald stood before Augustus.

He was seventy years old, his hair was completely white, but his back was ramrod straight and his eyes were sharp.

Before retiring, he was the empire's youngest general and had fought in dozens of battles, large and small.

"Archbishop, how many men do you need?" His voice was hoarse but powerful.

"One thousand," Augustus said. "No heavy weapons, no gunfire. Can you do that?"

Wald laughed. "Archbishop, I've fought a lifetime of war, but I've never used a gun."

Gear Town.

The believers of Nege have been gathered at the entrance of the city hall for the third day.

They neither went in nor left; they just shouted slogans and waved flags.

People inside the city hall can't get out, and people outside can't get in.

The shops in town were closed, the factories were shut down, and the schools were closed for the holidays.

Nege stood at the very front, his voice already hoarse from shouting, but he still wouldn't stop.

On the afternoon of the third day, the sound of orderly footsteps could be heard in the distance.

A thousand soldiers surged in from four directions, completely surrounding the city hall square.

They wore heavy armor, carried shields and long clubs, and formed a neat square formation.

There were no guns, no cannons, only shields and sticks.

The followers of Nege became agitated.

Some people retreated, some crouched down and covered their heads, and some rushed forward.

"What are we afraid of! God the Most High will protect us!" Nege shouted.

The dozens of men who charged forward crashed into the soldiers' shield wall as if they had hit an iron wall.

The long stick emerged from the gaps in the shield and struck the knees, shoulders, and wrists with precision.

Screams rose and fell, and dozens of people collapsed in less than a minute.

The believers began to flee.

Some people crawled into the alley, some climbed over the wall, and some knelt on the ground and raised their hands in surrender.

The crowd of several thousand people dispersed in just over ten minutes.

Nege stood there, stunned.

No way, their own thousands upon thousands of fanatical followers were gone in just a few minutes?

A moment later, Nege was dragged to Augustus by two soldiers.

He struggled, still shouting, "False believers! You are all false believers! The Most High God will punish you!"

Augustus looked at him and remained silent for a long time.

"Neg, do you believe in the Most High God?"

Nege was stunned.

"Of course I believe you!"

"So, do you believe in the Supreme God, or in yourself?" Augustus's voice was calm.

"Were the words you shouted your own thoughts, or were they told to you by God?"

Nege opened his mouth, but couldn't say a word.

Augustus turned around.

"Take him away, treat him well, don't hit or scold him, and let him come to me when he calms down."

One month later, Gear Town.

Nege knelt before Augustus, weeping bitterly.

"Archbishop, I was wrong. I used God's name, but I only believed in myself. I thought that numbers equaled strength, and that loud voices equaled truth. I..."

Augustus helped him up.

"You're not the first, and you won't be the last. Get up, and from now on, follow me."

Nege stood up and wiped away her tears.

"Archbishop, those who follow me..."

"Those who want to stay, stay; those who want to leave, we won't stop them."

Augustus said, "But there is one thing—you must obey the doctrine. From now on, you must not smash other people's temples, you must not hit people, you must not curse people. Faith is not passed on by fists."

Nege nodded emphatically.

Within a month, Augustus had wiped out the opposition forces in the Steel City and Gear Town.

Next came Forge City, Steam Fortress, Energy Hub... one city after another, one church after another, which were either incorporated, banned, or merged.

He sent people to build churches in various places.

Every church is the same—stone walls, tin roof, and a black-robed silhouette carved above the main entrance.

There is no gold trim, no gemstones, and no superfluous decoration.

The statues of deities are also uniform.

The two-meter-tall black-robed statue has a blurred face, with only two indentations where the eyes should be.

Although not luxurious, it possesses a unique sense of mystery.