Starting from Ainz Ooal Gown, simultaneously traveling through time

Chapter 146 The Parliament of the Slane Theocracy

One day later.

A letter was delivered to the desk of the highest authority in the Slane Theocracy.

The way the message was delivered was a bit unusual; a dragon was thrown down from the sky.

At this moment, twelve people sat around a round table, the atmosphere subtle.

The High Priest, an elderly man with white hair and beard, sat at the head of the table. His face was kind yet dignified. He pointed to the letter on the table and said, "Everyone, take a look. It was delivered by a dragon."

Dragons?

The six high priests and the other department heads exchanged glances, their faces showing a hint of surprise.

The relationship between the Slane Theocracy and the Dragon Clan cannot be described as bad; rather, they are mutually repulsive.

One is a descendant of the six great gods, and the other is a descendant of the true dragon king. The two sides are at odds from the root. Why would the dragon clan send a message to them? That's more bizarre than the sun rising in the west.

The letter was passed around among the twelve people.

After reading it, everyone's expressions became even more complicated.

The letter was about the "century-old aftershocks," those otherworldly visitors and monsters that would descend every hundred years.

Of course they knew about this; it was clearly recorded in the legacy of the six great gods, and the Slane Theocracy had been preparing for it throughout its history.

The problem is, the letter was sent by the dragons.

The letter clearly stated that it was sent by King Leylin of the Kingdom of Inberia.

The Earth High Priest was a middle-aged man with a straightforward personality and a direct manner: "So what do those dragons mean? And how did this Leylin command the dragons to deliver the message? Could it be that he's colluding with the dragons?"

The Vulcan chief shook his head. He was a composed middle-aged man, speaking slowly and deliberately: "It's not collusion. If that person wanted to deal with us, there was no need to go through such a roundabout way. This should be a well-intentioned reminder."

"Goodwill?" The Earth High Priest frowned. "I don't think so."

The Dark High Priest, a thin old man, interjected quietly, "You've all witnessed his ability to shatter a mountain with a single punch. If he truly harbored any ill intentions, would we still be sitting here having this meeting?"

After these words were spoken, the room fell silent for a few seconds.

Everyone's eyes involuntarily glanced out the window.

In the distance, on the edge of the capital, there used to be a low mountain. Although it was not high, it was still a landmark.

It's a pit there now.

A standard, circular, bottomless impact crater.

That was a "souvenir" left by Leylin when he last "visited".

To be honest, when the six high priests faced Leylin's proposal for "peaceful unification," they didn't just show simple vigilance, but were completely terrified.

One punch can shatter a mountain.

What does this mean? Perhaps only the legendary six great gods could accomplish this?

After they calmed down, they regretted it more and more. If they had known the other party was this powerful, they should have been more tactful in their words. Although they could not agree to his request, they should have at least not made the relationship so strained.

Unfortunately, regret is regret, but it's impossible to get them to agree to Leylin's demands, as that would be tantamount to betraying their faith.

Moreover, even if they wanted to agree, the people wouldn't. The fervent atmosphere of the entire country had already taken over everything, and no one dared to open the door.

Fanatical religion is a double-edged sword; it can harm both the enemy and oneself.

The Wind Goddess was a capable woman in charge of intelligence work for the Wind Flower Holy Scripture. She cleared her throat and said, "Everyone, I have some news that I might need you to hear."

The Water Priest chimed in, "My people from the Water Scriptures also went, but—" He gave a wry smile, "one unlucky fellow was caught by a local farmer as a vegetable thief and was just released a few days ago."

Everyone turned their attention to the two priests in charge of intelligence.

"You go first," the High Priest said, gesturing to the Wind Priest.

The Wind God Chief nodded and opened the file beside him.

"The people from the Wind and Flower Scripture went to Inberia to investigate. The news they received was astonishing."

She paused, as if organizing her thoughts.

"That country was originally just a small country on the central edge of the continent, but in the past sixty years, they have expanded all the way and swallowed up countless countries, including the powerful six central countries, as well as some countries that you know were once subhuman and alien races."

"Now, those places have all become Inberia's territory, and their borders have already advanced to the borders of our theocracy."

The Vulcan Chieftain frowned: "What about their army? How strong is their fighting force?"

The Wind God Chieftain glanced at him and slowly uttered a number: "If you randomly pull out tens of thousands of people, their combat power is no less than our Sunshine Festival and Fire Extinction Festival."

The room fell silent again.

What are the Sunshine Ceremony and the Fire Extinction Ceremony? They are the most elite troops of the Slane Theocracy, warriors handpicked from countless believers, equipped with the legacy gear left by the six great gods.

The Slane Theocracy couldn't possibly muster ten thousand troops like that, even if they tried their best.

And Inbelia—just a few tens of thousands of people?

"That's not even the most outrageous part," the Wind God Chieftain continued. "According to our scouts, the physical abilities of ordinary citizens in that country are already comparable to or even surpass those of strong orcs."

The chief earth priest couldn't help but interject, "How is that possible? Even if they train every day, it's impossible for everyone to reach this level!"

"It is said that it was that person who bestowed the blessing," said the Wind God Chieftain. "That person used a method akin to a miracle to bless all the people, causing their strength to increase dramatically."

At this moment, the High Priest of Water spoke up: "The Water Scriptures also captured an interesting person, someone who had once received a blessing but later lost it."

All eyes turned to him.

"That person said that he used to be a citizen of Inberia, but his blessing was taken away because he opposed that person's rule." The water priest paused. "He is now an ordinary person, but he said that after losing his blessing, he realized how powerful he once was."

This statement made everyone fall into deep thought.

Leylin can bestow blessings, and he can also take them back.

He did not bless the Slane Church.

Why?

Was it disdain? Or—intentional?

It is likely that the Slane Theocracy did not receive the so-called blessing because it opposed the rule of the Kingdom of Inberia.

Yes, Leylin did not bless the people of the Slane Theocracy.

After all, following the incident where someone used his blessings to oppose his rule, he stopped bestowing blessings indiscriminately.

The entire Slane Theocracy was composed of religious fanatics, and Leylin estimated that if he were to bless them, something extremely bad might happen, so he did not.

Therefore, the strength of the Slane Theocracy did not increase dramatically; it remained at the same level.

The High Priest slowly spoke: "If his blessing can bring all the people to this level—then he is even greater than the Six Great Gods—"

He didn't finish speaking, but everyone understood what he meant.

After all, even the six great gods of the past couldn't significantly improve the strength of everyone in the entire Slane Theocracy.

The six gods only left behind some bloodlines, which improved the strength of some people through bloodline inheritance, but Leylin directly made the entire population stronger.

The difference is enormous.

The High Priestess of Light, an elderly woman, couldn't help but sigh, "It's a pity that he's not one of us. If only he were a descendant of the Six Great Gods, or a follower of them."

The Vulcan chieftain shook his head: "That person cannot be a descendant of the six great gods. He is probably a powerful being from outside the world, just like the six great gods. Only in this way can we explain his immense strength."

Suddenly, the Wind God Chieftain said, "Actually, according to the information we have gathered, he is not an outsider. He is the son of the previous king of Inberia, a native of this world."

The Earth High Priest immediately retorted, "This is definitely a disguise! How could an ordinary human possess such immense power? He must have come from beyond this world and has simply fabricated an identity for himself."

The Dark High Priest said quietly, "Regardless of where that person came from, at least he has no ill intentions towards humanity, and is even trying his best to help humanity become stronger. I think you all agree on that, right?"

Everyone fell silent.

Indeed, no matter how you look at it, Leylin's help to humanity is real and substantial. He made the entire nation stronger and wiped out the subhuman and alien races that feed on humans. These are things that the Slane Theocracy could not do.

If he truly harbored ill will towards humanity, he would have no reason to do these things.

The High Priest remained silent for a long time before finally speaking.

"This letter is a token of his goodwill, and we cannot betray it." His gaze swept over everyone present. "From now on, do everything in our power to guide the people and avoid any conflict with Inbelia."

He paused, then added, "I know it's difficult, but it has to be done."

Everyone nodded.

Despite differing beliefs, conflicting ideologies, and not being a human supremacist, Inberia is, after all, a human-dominated nation where humans hold a dominant position. It's best to avoid war if possible.

Moreover, the messages sent back by the Wind Flower Holy Scripture and the Water Bright Holy Scripture are enough to illustrate the point: even the strength that the other party has revealed on the surface is definitely not something they can easily provoke.

Even if they mobilize that "Awakened God," even if they use all the resources left behind by the Six Great Gods, and fight against Inbelia, it's still uncertain who will defeat whom.

Therefore, peace comes first.

This is the most correct thought in the minds of the twelve supreme rulers at this moment.

The question is, in this country that produces so many fanatics, will the people listen to them?

That's not necessarily true.

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