Academic gathering with Lich colleagues

"No! To even dream of becoming a dragon is their sin! To worship dragons, to become dragons, is their original sin!!! I will never allow dragon wings to spread over the heads of my people!!! If they become dragons, then they will surely suffer my revenge!!!"

"Foolish missionary!!! Do you still intend to utter the absurd notion of 'original sin at birth'?! Are all people born impure, and can the Holy Light punish us at will?! What difference is there between that and cruelty?!"

"What difference is there between you and the brutal dragon father, Raymond?!"

“I am a Pure One, and my faith is in justice,” Raymond answered without hesitation.

"Screw your justice!!!" Lyle shoved Raymond's arm away, tumbling down the stone steps. He got up from the cold ground, glaring at Raymond with disdain. "The Pure Ones are supreme? Ha, then I am a Pure One too! Raymond the Pure One! I'll tell you, as Lyle the Pure One, that you're wrong! In my eyes, the Holy Light is benevolent and warm, like the sun, but the sun doesn't choose its subjects!"

“Your justice is not my justice! Your justice is one-sided and foolish!” Lyle crossed his arms and staggered out of the chapel under Raymond’s astonished gaze.

Lofdi came to Raymond's side.

“Bishop Raymond, I’m going to bring Lord Lyle back…”

Raymond put his helmet back on.

“Lyle is a Pure One. I can feel his will. I have no doubt about my own righteousness… I thought we would stand side by side…”

Raymond's words were tinged with melancholy, and the insightful nun seized upon those moments.

“Your Majesty Raymond, why don’t you go and see for yourself? Since justice is absolute, surely someone on your side has been blinded. Wouldn’t it be the best way to prove your correctness to the immature Lyle?”

“Arian…”

"The purpose of imposing punishment is to induce repentance and allow the soul to receive the forgiveness of the Holy Light. Your Majesty Raymond, is it difficult for you to slay the dragon once again?"

"My sister, do you also want to forgive those monsters?"

Elian blinked.

“No, Your Majesty Raymond, I am only afraid of losing Mr. Lyle. Showing the true face of the dragon to the lost pure is the best way to demonstrate your justice.”

"...You're right."

Chapter 603 Forgiveness

The blue dragon priest reconstructed the portal, his body wreathed in tentacles, the lich crown perched askew on his head. Lyle, with a solemn expression, strode quickly to the altar.

"Let's begin the ceremony again, teacher."

The towering bone dragon looked at his student, his anger written all over his face; it seemed the kid had gotten his comeuppance. The dragon, however, inexplicably felt a surge of joy at the sight of that sour face.

"It's good that you're back. Appropriate setbacks can help you grow." The dragon, adopting a teacher's demeanor, squatted back down on the altar.

The dragon priests breathed a sigh of relief, their feelings a mix of disappointment and relief. Just as they were trying to regain their composure, Lyle shattered their carefully cultivated peace with a single sentence.

No, he's here.

A giant hand reached out from the shrinking and disappearing portal. Magic was ignited, and light and heat tore the football-sized portal apart completely. Golden chains stabilized the shattered portal, and the angel of light stepped onto solid ground.

The clouds were drawn down from the sky by the holy light, becoming Raymond's veil, but no matter how thick the clouds, they could not block the light from the knight's armor. The sun peeked out from the torn clouds, and sacred songs fell on the dragon priest's altar along with the sunlight.

Raymond's chains were only retracted after Elian and Lofdi stepped out of the portal.

The three members of the Holy Light Omnipotent Order stood before the burned-out portal, confronting the Dragon Priest.

Raymond and Lyle made eye contact, then quickly looked away at the surrounding scenery.

"The environment is nice, somewhat like the backyard of the original Papacy, which makes me feel familiar."

Mr. Raymond's unintentional remark acted like an alarm bell; the Dragon Priest stood in front of the dragon, ice crystals condensing and flames surging, ready to fight at any moment.

The dangerous aura stimulated the nerves of the Holy Light side; psionic blades were drawn, and shadow minions materialized from the shadows.

Mr. Raymond stood with his arms crossed, nodding to Lyle.

"Don't worry about me, I'm just browsing. Please continue your academic research."

The standoff lasted for thirty minutes, during which neither the Holy Light nor the dragon made any move. It was as if both sides were frozen in place, and the sunlight was once again blocked by the gathering clouds.

Raymond made no move, but his oppressive presence would persist. Lyle ceased this time-wasting activity and resumed the ritual.

“That’s a very dangerous thing to do, Lyle.” The black dragon priest’s tone was heavy, his figure was blurring, and he was ready to transform into a dragon at any moment.

"If there was danger, it has already happened. We will resurrect the dragons, even under the very nose of the Holy Light."

The ceremony continued.

Raymond's gaze swept over the ceremonial staff, and almost everyone reacted to this powerless stare, either with a cold snort or a trembling.

"Roar!!!"

A massive figure blocked Raymond's view; the Twilight Dragon Sylvie blocked Raymond's line of sight with her body.

“Bishop Raymond…this seems to be…a living dragon.”

“Yes…it is.” The Angel of Light stared intently into those purple eyes, a hazy sensation washing over him. Fragments of his past memories began to piece together. Raymond clenched his fist, then relaxed it after a moment. “It’s you…”

Crimson lightning coiled around the Protoss's body; he was ready to carry out his leader's will.

"Stop, Lofdi."

"Bishop Raymond?"

"Don't worry about her."

Looking at the pardoned dragon, Elian sensed a turning point.

Lyle was unaware of this minor incident. He was currently focused on flesh and blood transformation, reshaping the dragons' bodies. Now, this was not only to fulfill the long-cherished wish of the dragon priests, but also to prove himself. No one is born sinful, and life is not meant to bear sin. Now, Lyle would give these suppressed dragons the right to struggle.

"My friends, I demand that you sacrifice all the power of the harvested races!" Lyle roared, as the dragon's new physical body was about to take shape.

"But the resurrection ritual only requires these..."

"The resurrection ceremony and the promotion ceremony will be conducted simultaneously! Sylvie, you will take over my duties immediately after I finish my work."

"Ok!"

"No need to hold back, this is the last time!"

The roar of the dragon's soul resounded once more, and a new dragon was resurrected, but the flames of holy light also burned on his body.

The Twilight Dragon appeared before the new king, a shattered crown surfacing above her head—the crown of a bygone era, the crown of her dragon father, Yemortar, which had been passed down to her in the final moments of the dragons' demise. Sylvie tore off her own crown, chewing and crushing it with her teeth. Her dragon's jaws were ravaged by the force, stained with black blood.

The orphan of the era climbed onto the dragon's neck and pried open its mouth.

“I am the Watcher of Twilight, passing on the fate of my people to the Lord I serve.”

Twilight's breath spewed from its mouth, infusing the dragon's body with the power of the shattered crown.

Sylvie collapsed, and the jeweled crown atop the dragon's head instantly shone brightly, its blinding light nearly illuminating the world. The dragon's power surged rapidly, and chains continued to grow from its body.

Six locks.

Seven locks.

Eight locks.

Nine locks...

"It has failed." Raymond's voice was like a divine retribution. In the void, golden chains fell from the sky like lightning, piercing through the dragon's towering body.

"Roar!!!" The Age of Holy Light unleashed its punishment, an eternal vengeance.

The dragon's roar of defiance echoed throughout the world, strained and desperate.

"A bad omen has arrived."

The ominous giant seized the struggling dragon, and countless malices crawled up his body, while black mud devoured his majestic form.

I'm truly defeated by you.

I am a fallen star, destined to rule, an untamed being. Here, I sign a covenant with the ancient chaos, to coexist with this being.

The evil gods are stars that devour each other, the origin of everything. But besides the chaotic mutual devouring, the evil gods also act in other ways, which are the beginning of all acts of unity, transcending contracts, trust, and any agreement.

Lyle and the dragon shared their life force, and the twisted life force of the evil god sustained the completion of the coronation ceremony.

"Is this the future that Nameless saw...?"

Lyle and the dragon were bound together by the power of the evil god, and the flames of holy light burned on their bodies.

Once the ten chains are reached, the oppressive force of the Holy Light will be broken by the newborn dragon father, allowing the dragon to withstand the Holy Light's vengeance and rise again. But this process is destined to be long.

The soul of the dragon can withstand the scorching light of the holy light.

The power of the evil god can withstand the scorching of holy light.

The only thing that would burn away in the holy light was that tender part of humanity, the part named Lyle.

Lyle the Pure One will perish under the flames of holy light.

Upholding justice comes at a price.

The twisted, blurred dragon spread its wings, holy flames burning within its body, yet power also gathered within it. Like a giant cross, upon which hung that small, frail, pure soul.

"I did it." The whisper reached Raymond's ears, weak yet resolute.

Blurred flesh and blood floated in the air, a giant cocoon was giving birth to a new being, and before it, the ashes of a corpse were about to extinguish the last embers.

Raymond moved.

A ten-chained, ten-winged angel hung in the sky, reaching out his hand toward the enormous being and the corpse to which He was connected.

“Death is a chance. It’s for Lyle, and it’s for me…”

"Forgiveness, forgiveness for all sins, redemption for wounded souls."

"Dragons...you are innocent."

A dazzling light fell from the sky; it was holy light descending, bestowing the greatest mercy upon humankind.

"Resurrection spell".

Chapter 604 The Ancient Gods

All sins will be forgiven, all wounds will be healed. Holy light descends from the heavens, mingling with sweet songs; golden rain transforms into sweet dew, irrigating the trembling cross, staining the irregular cocoon with gold, extinguishing the raging flames of holy light. Drops of water from the sea of ​​holy light flow down the intricate root system to that gaunt body.

Lyle's remains had turned into a mummified corpse, his skin and flesh burned away, his charred bones kneeling, their fragile skeletons looking as if they would crumble at the slightest touch. As if new shoots had sprouted from the remains, tiny black tentacles emerged from the cracks, twisting blindly in the air, seemingly trying to grasp something.