Raise Joan of Arc to be an empress, then discard her.

The MI7 building.

In the deserted archives, Jane flipped through photos and files, all of whom she considered suspects or people closely related to the incident.

Among them were those of Aaron, those of Eclair, those of fallen colleagues, and numerous spy incidents from the Kingdom of Dok. Related and unrelated, they all converged here. Most of the incidents seemed unrelated, while some were interconnected. What caught Jane's eye were two interconnected incidents.

In February 1357, espionage activities in Lodoren and Birmingham began to increase, and Lucerne spies began to operate frequently in the Kingdom of Doc.

In March 1357, spies from the Ninth Bureau infiltrated Birmingham but were all wiped out for unknown reasons, with only Eclair surviving. Instead of fleeing back to Lucette, she instigated the Government House Incident in Birmingham. The reason for the mass annihilation of the spies is extremely mysterious, suggesting the existence of an unidentified force in Birmingham…

On the evening of March 15, 1357, Birmingham City Hall was attacked by a Lucretian spy. The civil servant Aaron was locked in a standoff with the Lucretian spy Eclair when Claire, the angel of the Church of Judgment, arrived and resolved the crisis.

Jane observed these two incidents, and then at the seemingly related yet unrelated espionage cases and major events, silently pondering the connections between them, and what forces were hidden behind them...

Today is April 21, 1357, the end of the first month of summer. From today onwards, it's a brand new day.

The next day, Aaron woke up to find he had one day of vacation left. Thanks to the housekeeper's help, he had already moved in, and the rent and water bills had been paid. He could spend the day leisurely; there was probably nothing better in the world.

But Aaron didn't let himself get too relaxed. Claire was right; he still had a lot to learn.

Aaron plans to go to St. Anna's Church to see if there are any ways to enhance his supernatural powers.

The new residence was only a ten-minute walk from St. Anne's Church, and Aaron did not change into his judge's clothes, but walked directly to the church.

Today is Tuesday, the Sunday of the Judgment Church. There are many people coming to the church for worship, and Aaron was also mistaken for one of them. The priest gave him a yellow sunflower, which made Aaron both amused and exasperated. However, he had now transformed from a devout believer in the Goddess of Nature into a believer in the God of Judgment, and he joined the other believers in the worship service.

During church service, Aaron was wondering why he hadn't seen Theo and Elliott, wondering if they were also on holiday. Then a familiar voice rang in his ear:

"Hey, newbie, coming to church even on your holiday, that's quite diligent."

Aaron was taken aback. He looked up at the person he was talking to. It was Theo, who had his arms crossed and was looking at him with interest. Aaron turned his head and saw that there was a strange man standing next to him, with an awkward smile on his face.

It was Elliott! Aaron didn't recognize him at first glance.

Elliott wore a scale around his neck and a fitted silver trench coat with the seven buttons symbolizing the seven gods fastened all the way to the top. He looked very proper, and even his unruly blond hair was neatly combed back. He appeared ascetic, just, and self-disciplined, like a true priest.

Rather than resembling him, it's more accurate to say that Eliot was a real priest at that moment. The only problem was that the priest was too handsome, practically a promotional image for the Church of the God of Judgment. People who saw the promotional image probably wouldn't think that the priest in the church really looked like that, but the fact was right in front of them.

Chapter 197 Spiritual Power Test

"Oh……"

Aaron glanced at the solemnly standing Elliot, then at the endless stream of female worshippers at the door, and said to Elliot sincerely, "I didn't expect you to even do the work of a priest."

Aaron's words were very sincere, because he felt that Elliott had a fearless spirit of sacrificing himself to feed the tiger.

“I didn’t want to do this either, but they told me it only had to be done once a week and that it would greatly increase the church’s popularity, so I agreed.” Elliott gave a stiff smile, because he was playing the role of a clergyman and couldn’t even do something as simple as sighing.

“Since you’re here, come and worship with us. As judges, it’s important to be devout to the seven gods.” Elliot pulled Aaron aside and said with a forced smile, “I heard that you attracted the young lady of the Jagger family at school with your looks. I think it would be good for you to be a priest occasionally.”

Aaron imagined himself surrounded by people while wearing a priest's robe, and his expression immediately changed.

The service took almost the entire morning to complete. After Aaron and Elliotcio received communion, they returned to the lounge of St. Anne's Church.

As soon as Elliott sat down, he took off his priest's robes, and his meticulously slicked-back hair was messed up in a few quick strokes. He leaned back in his chair, covered in sweat, and finally caught his breath.

Aaron was also quite tired. He was not used to such a crowded scene, and the Holy Communion at the Church of Judgment only contained so little food that he was far from full...

However, thinking about what Elliot had gone through, he still felt much better off. He had personally witnessed Elliot being surrounded by a group of noble ladies and wives for a long time, and Aaron had even seen those noble ladies making unwanted advances, with one noblewoman constantly trying to take Elliot's hand under the guise of confiding her troubles.

"By the way, what brings you here today? You didn't come just for worship, did you?" Theo asked.

Aaron then remembered that he had important business to attend to, so he said, "I wanted to come to the church to practice, and also to figure out about the mission."

"A mission?" Theo asked curiously. "Would you like to join us on a mission?"

"Ah."

"Do you know your current sequence?" Theo asked with interest. "Do you know about my sequence and Elliott's? You're so eager to participate in this mission?"

Elliott interrupted Theo, saying, "It seems I need to explain this to you."

“We’re not just saying you have a lot to learn when we tell you. Missions are dangerous. Once you start participating in missions, you’ll be fighting real superhumans, and they’re not the students you faced in school. They will do anything to kill you, using any means necessary, such as poisoning, sneak attacks, or stabbing you in the back.”

Elliott calmly stopped Aaron from acting impulsively.

"By borrowing data from our good neighbor, the Church of Nature, the first time a Guardian participates in a mission of rank B or higher, the casualty rate exceeds 63%. Although their survival rate increases significantly after participating in a mission and surviving, their subsequent casualty rate still exceeds 30%, with 10% of them suffering serious injuries, including hemiplegia, which severely impacts their later life. Therefore, young people, it's better to be prepared before taking on missions; it's better for all of us."

In Elliott's eyes, Aaron was a rather calm and methodical person. Having come this far, he thought Aaron wouldn't insist anymore. But to his surprise, Aaron stood in front of him, bowed slightly to him politely, and said, "What if I said I'm ready?"

Elliott looked at him in surprise, not understanding why Aaron insisted on this again and again. In fact, Aaron fully understood Elliott's words, and this was the choice he made after understanding them.

Theo crossed his arms and watched Aaron with great interest. He didn't find it troublesome, but rather very interesting, because Aaron was different from all the newcomers who had joined the Judges so far.

Instead of stopping them, he added fuel to the fire: "You mean, we're supposed to take a Sequence 9 like you on missions? Don't you think that's absurd?"

"Perhaps, but the Church of Judgment probably only has one Sequence Nine Judgment."

Upon hearing this, Theo and Elliott couldn't help but chuckle. Theo stepped forward and said, "How about this, let me ask you a question first."

"What do you think is most important to a superhuman?"

What is the most important thing?

Theo scoffed: "For superhumans, only combat ability matters. Everything else is bullshit. If you go out and wander around for a bit and die, what's the point of everything else? The most important thing is to stay alive."

He looked into Aaron's eyes: "With your current rank, we can't even test your strength, because you'll die as soon as we make a move. How can we know if you're ready?"

Aaron suddenly asked, "What is the most important ability in actual combat?"

Theo was momentarily stumped by the question. Extraordinary powers come in many forms, and each church has a different understanding of its own blessing. The Church of Nature believes that adaptability to the blessing itself is the most important, while the Church of War believes that power is the most important. Each of them has a point, and there is no standard answer.

"If we had to pinpoint a standard, we would say that the ability to control spiritual energy is the most important criterion for judging a good superhuman," Elliott said.

“Elliott is right, we have a method to practice spiritual power.” Theo clapped his hands, intending to end the topic. “Since you’re here to practice, go to the training room and practice for two or three months. Once you’ve made some progress, we can talk about the mission.”

The matter seemed to have been decided, and Elliott had no objections.

Aaron nodded slightly. He stood up, approached Theo respectfully, and bowed slightly: "In that case, please give me a chance."

"Give you a chance?" Theo looked Aaron up and down. "Are you very confident in your spiritual power?"

“I wouldn’t say I’m confident, I just want to try, and I also want to know what level I can achieve right now,” Aaron replied.

The room fell silent for a moment as Aaron remained bowed, and no one spoke for a long time.

Just when Aaron almost thought he had been rejected, Theo smiled and said, "Okay, I like your personality."

"Thank you." Aaron straightened up again.

"Then you'd better not disappoint me, otherwise you'll raise our expectations and waste our time, and we'll be very angry." Theo grinned.

“Elliott, bring that thing in; it’s in this room,” Theo said to Elliott.

He gave Aaron a cruel smile: "Since you're here to prove yourself, you wouldn't mind letting me test you, would you?"

“It is my honor,” Aaron said, remaining respectful.

After Elliot went out, he quickly returned carrying a briefcase. He placed the briefcase on the table. The briefcase was wrapped in a canvas. Logically, Elliot should have brought back something that could test spiritual power, but Aaron couldn't tell what was inside.

Elliott didn't keep them in suspense and quickly lifted the canvas on the box, revealing a transparent eco-box with white trim underneath.

The eco-box seemed to simulate a forest scene, with many green plants inside, making it look lush and green. Among these plants, there was a silkworm that looked like it was well-fed.

This silkworm was unlike any other silkworm Aaron had ever seen. It was pure white and had just been leisurely spinning silk against the wall. When it saw the box lid being opened, it immediately became alert and turned its head toward Aaron, who was unsure if it was its head.

It has six single eyes on its left and right sides, and at this moment, all twelve crimson single eyes are staring at Aaron.

"Is this the project we use to test spiritual power?" Aaron asked.

Unlike the silkworms we usually see, it was almost the size of a mouse, and it looked very agile. Aaron even noticed that it had a pair of transparent wings on its back, which were buzzing alertly.

Without a doubt, this is a spirit beast.

“That’s right, its name is the Weaver, and we also call it the Weaving Silkworm,” Elliott explained, gently patting the terrarium.

"This is a spirit beast we captured from Philan. What you see now is its juvenile form. This spirit beast lives in the forest year-round and likes to inhabit tall trees. Besides its large size, pure white body, and wings, it is most famous for its silk threads."

No wonder Aaron vaguely recognized the name of this silkworm, because he had seen clothes made from its silk. It was said that because of the material properties of the silk it produced, it was often used to make some women's underwear.

Elliott opened the lid of the eco-box, reached inside, and saw a silkworm perched on the edge, watching him warily. Elliott ignored it and took the half-finished cocoon out of the eco-box.

Just like taking an egg from a hen, Aaron had this idea in an instant.

The silkworm tried to struggle, standing on the cocoon to prevent Elliot from taking it out. When it realized that Elliot was ignoring it, it finally gave up, fell back into the terrarium, and silently ate mulberry leaves.

Elliott took out the cocoon, and Theo laid a piece of parchment on the table and placed the cocoon on it. With the parchment as a contrast, the cocoon looked as white as snow.

This was the first time Aaron had observed this silk so closely. The silk was crystal clear, and even though many threads were intertwined, it still showed a beautiful milky white color. One could imagine that clothes woven from this silk would be very beautiful.

Elliott looked at the glistening cocoon and said, "The clothes that rich people wear are actually very delicate. They often wear the same clothes once and then never wear them again. Many people know this. But silk is delicate, and silkworm silk is even more delicate."

Theo didn't say much. He sat down in front of the parchment, a serious expression on his face. He placed his five fingers on the table and moved them like a puppeteer manipulating strings.

Then Aaron witnessed a miraculous scene. It was as if an invisible hand appeared in the air. That hand, like peeling the shell of a fruit, very gently and softly tore off the outer layer of the cocoon, peeling the cocoon layer by layer, slowly revealing the neat white silk threads underneath. Then, that hand precisely picked up the main silk thread in the cocoon and pulled it out, peeling away the cocoon thread by thread.

The main thread was extremely crystalline. When Theo stretched the silk, it had a transparent quality under the light, looking crystal clear and sacred.

Theo didn't avoid the silkworms when he was spinning silk. When the silkworms saw this, they stopped spinning silk and sat by the eco-box, staring blankly.

But what's even more astonishing is Theo's control over spiritual power, which is almost divine. Whether it's peeling off the outer shell of the cocoon or taking out the neat silk threads underneath, he does it perfectly, just like a meticulous textile worker.

Keep in mind that those were cocoons that had just been taken out of the ecological box. When silkworms are making their cocoons, they use a kind of sticky substance to fix the silk threads. Generally speaking, the cocoons need to be boiled in hot water before the silk can be easily extracted. But Theo just pulled the silk out directly, as if the sticky substance on them didn't exist at all.

After removing the silk thread from the cocoon, his work was not over. He then stretched out his other hand, held the silk thread in the air, and extended a finger of his right hand, slowly splitting the silk thread into four strands in the air.

The already delicate silk was split into four even finer threads in the air, spreading out in four directions. When Theo did these actions, it looked as simple as peeling a banana. In just a few seconds, he gently placed the four strips on the parchment.

After doing all this, Theo let out a slight sigh of relief. The silkworms beside him seemed to be stunned, and even stopped eating the mulberry leaves.

No further explanation is needed. Theo just demonstrated an extremely high level of control over spiritual energy. To be able to make spiritual energy as dexterous as a human finger is already a very high level of skill. But to be able to make spiritual energy do things that even human fingers cannot do is to have practiced spiritual energy to a divine level. Without talent and diligent practice, it is impossible to achieve this.

"You haven't practiced for so long, but you're still so capable."

"It's been a long time since I've practiced," Theo said casually after finishing.

“Although the Church of the God of War gives people a barbaric impression, their ability to control spiritual power is probably in the top tier among the Seven Churches of Gods, so their combat talent is also considered to be in a class of its own,” Elliott explained to Aaron.

Aaron nodded. The more powerful the warrior, the more exquisite the fighting skills required. This aligned with his intuition. At the same time, he was also curious: was the Judgment Church's assessment simply a repetition of what Theo had just done? That seemed a bit too easy.

At this moment, Elliott came to the table again, used his spiritual power to pick up the silk thread on the parchment and said, "A single strand of silk is sixteen threads. To sell it, you must divide a single strand of silk into at least two threads. Skilled weavers can use four or six threads to embroider. Legend has it that those with superb skills can use one-sixteenth of a thread to embroider."

Chapter 198 Spiritual Power Test II

"One-sixteenth of a mil, can you imagine?"