In the Name of the Queen

The reckoning is always cruel, but Roland has no sympathy for these unfortunate people howling on the stake.

Struggle is always cruel, especially the struggle of faith.

If Christine fails, what kind of cruel treatment she will encounter, Roland doesn't even want to think about it.

This great reckoning is not without winners. The cardinals collectively went to the stake, resulting in nine cardinal positions being vacant. When the bishops of the major dioceses heard such good news, some even cried with joy.

If Lao Deng hadn't gone, they would never have a chance to succeed.

It was still the wise and powerful Pope who took down all these traitors with evil intentions.

The biggest winner is of course not them, but Christine herself.

She won a reputation among believers second only to the goddess.

In addition, the goddess can only influence the material plane through oracles, and there are very few people in the material plane who can listen to the voice of God without going crazy. It is no exaggeration to say that Tia's voice is not as loud as Christine's.

Unless Tia herself descends, Christine has the final right to interpret the oracle.

Others dare not tamper with the content of the oracle, but she dares. Not only does she dare, but she is also very bold in tampering with the content.

The first thing she did after pacifying the civil strife was to prohibit "false oracle transmission".

Any so-called "oracle" that has not been certified by her is false, and whoever spreads it will have his entire family account cancelled.

Although some people are skeptical and think that this will allow the Pope's power to overshadow the goddess, and some even suspect that Bishop Mousse was the real oracle disseminator that day, all doubts must be kept in mind.

After all, only a few people are skeptical. The vast majority of people who have experienced the square duel have almost fanatical trust in Christine.

Some people even shouted slogans such as "We have not seen the goddess in the world, but we have seen the saint in the world."

There is no doubt that this paragraph is indeed from Roland.

Roland, who has experienced the erosion of the fan circle culture in another world, has been somewhat influenced by how to operate personal IP.

He knows very well that this is an excellent opportunity to operate his personal image, and of course he will not miss it.

First, make Christine the human spokesperson of the goddess.

Then make her the spokesperson of light.

Finally, imply that she is the light itself.

Since she is the light itself, the "light attribute demon" from a certain foreign domain is naturally the target of the crusade.

The final victory or defeat depends on the comparison of strength, and these means are all ways to change the comparison of strength.

The power of faith originally went from believers to the divine domain, belonged to the master of light, and then was distributed by the master to the gods of light at all levels who were attached to him.

But under Roland's operation, more and more power of faith turned to Christine.

Many people gradually realized that it was a transgression to directly believe in the goddess without the great pope, and even caused the evil consequences of mistaking the inner demands for the goddess's oracle.

Just like the group of cardinals bewitched by Mousse.

They shed blood for the divine court and made contributions, but their crimes were unforgivable, so they became themselves in the fire.

In order to avoid similar tragedies, more and more believers began to accept the indirect worship system.

They placed their faith in the pope, and the pope conveyed it on their behalf.

It's obvious that this was Roland's idea.

Although some believers had doubts in their hearts, they thought it was reasonable after careful consideration.

A farmer in the countryside would definitely not go to the imperial capital to complain to the emperor. He had to find the town sheriff and administrative officials first.

And Christine was the administrative official who received the benefits in the middle.

Her image has always been good, and coupled with the stunning performance in the Holy Light Square, the believers did not find this change abrupt.

But it was limited to her.

Christine was too lazy to consider the next one.

She would start the endless task mode until the end.

Maybe she would let go of these obsessions in the new era, but not now. Now she needs strength, and she wants to be a powerful helper of Roland.

Taking advantage of this opportunity of rectification, Christine firmly controlled all power in her own hands.

The chief judge originally thought that he would die, but she let him go and was not included in the list of rebels against light. Naturally, he was loyal to her wholeheartedly.

Although Martin was smooth, he succeeded in standing up at the critical moment and firmly grasped the wealth of the second half of his life.

He was appointed as the permanent vice-pope, responsible for presiding over daily work, but important matters and ideological fields were still personally inquired by Christine herself.

This strange job title certainly came from Roland.

Roland's position did not change at all. He was still an honorary knight, but his level was upgraded to become the same as Christine's level of orthodox pope.

His orders had the same effect as Christine's.

Christine promoted a group of young and promising regional bishops who had a bad relationship with the old cardinals to fill the vacancies. Fortunately, the court had a rich talent reserve and had never lacked charlatans. The collective burning of the cardinals at the stake did not have much impact.

They gave up their positions, but made the core team of the court younger.

Most of these young bishops were more capable and qualified than the old cardinals, but they had no position and could only wait patiently, with their skills but no way to display them.

Christine gave them a chance, and their loyalty was naturally beyond doubt.

After establishing an absolutely loyal team, Christine expanded the purge without any pause.

Any clergy who were not conducive to her absolute rule, regardless of whether they colluded with the cardinals, would be labeled as accomplices and ruthlessly executed.

In just two weeks, tens of thousands of people paid the price of their lives for this failed square power grab.

Christine's killing intent was so strong that even Roland was a little scared.

He had to persuade Christine to hold back a little.

"Aren't you worried that they are just afraid of you, not really obedient to you?" Roland frowned slightly.

"Being afraid is enough."

Christine was very calm. She pointed to the goddess statue behind her and said softly: "As long as they don't dare to oppose me before the final return day, it's fine. Anyway, most of them can't get a ticket to the new era."

Since she had made a decision, Roland could only sigh and fully support her.

Of course he understood the reason, but he felt physically uncomfortable looking at the bloody killing list.

He had also done things like cutting the grass and eradicating the roots, and he had also done things like clearing and cleansing, but the cruelty of the struggle in the field of faith still made him sigh.

Compared with this group of charlatans, the struggle of politicians is as gentle as playing house.

Except for the madman Marco, no one would do political struggles so thoroughly.

Christine did nothing wrong. Since it was not certain whether she could win the return day, it was meaningless to consider the future.

She was squeezing the faith of the believers of light to the limit, preparing for the final battle.

As for the sequelae of the new era, let her future self worry about it.

Although Roland supported it, he couldn't help but remind Christine, "We will definitely win, but think about Marco."

Christine nodded silently without refutation.

Watching Roland walk out of the prayer room, she retracted her gaze and looked back at the statue of the goddess.

The statue, which originally exuded a soft luster, was now dim, and the blood on the forehead had long dried up.

Thinking of where the blood came from, she couldn't help but blush.

Sitting back in her seat, she silently spread out several thick books, gathered her mind, and continued to work at her desk.

She was busy with more meaningful things these days.

This matter is far more important than clearing up and killing.

Revise the new canon.

While no one dares to oppose it now, she will quote ancient books, revise and recompile the Canon of Light, and add her own new interpretation.

She will formulate a new canon that allows her to replace some of the functions of the goddess.

This is not easy.

She had to turn this canon with hidden agenda into something that looked very much in line with the original intention of the Canon of Light.

Roland said that you can't deceive everyone all the time, and even the most sophisticated lies will be exposed.

In this case, it is possible to replace the truth with lies for a period of time.

This is the effect she wants.

To revise the new canon, Christine simply stopped pretending and poached the goddess openly.

If the plan succeeds, she will be the new goddess. Tia? Just a false god.

She has basically completed the editing of the new canon, and the newly promoted Martin has made a lot of efforts in the revision process.

Not only did he accurately understand Christine's intentions, but he also had outstanding business capabilities. He was familiar with the canon and various original books, and provided a lot of help to Christine.

Not only that, he also had a unique skill, and was good at making "ancient books".

Not only was he proficient in the language and writing of the ancient era, but he was also proficient in the technology of aging.

Making aging is not a simple job, and it is not easy to do it perfectly.

The butcher knife is effective, but it is not omnipotent. There are many stubborn righteous people in this world. If the books used to compile the new canon are fake, there must be iron-headed people who come out to defend their faith with their lives.

The ancient books used to support the compilation of the canon are both real and fake, but with the support of Martin's aging and forgery technology, there is no flaw.

After all the necessary preparations were made, Christine summoned believers in the Holy Light Square again.

After half a month of bloody storms, the believers of light were a little flustered.

Tens of thousands of people are nothing among the hundreds of millions of believers, and they are basically concentrated in the middle and upper classes, and the scope of influence is not too large.

But after all, it is a purge operation. So many people died, how can everyone not be afraid.

The purge operation was presided over by the chief judge, and he was very cruel to prove his loyalty.

Although many people believe that Christine is the mastermind behind the scenes, most believers don't care. They think that the bad ones are the cardinals, the cruel ones are the chief judge and the church, and Christine is good.

She is the embodiment of light, the only spokesperson for the goddess, and a saint who keeps her body pure. How could she be a bad person?

Mature politicians don't believe that Christine is unaware of the situation, but ordinary believers don't care about that.

They need spiritual sustenance and a sense of security.

Christine convened a rally to give them a sense of security.

Facing hundreds of thousands of uneasy believers, she raised her white arms, and her clear voice seemed to spread ripples in everyone's heart like a spring.

"The chief judge told me yesterday that the cleanup operation has basically ended."

Hearing Christine's words, the believers breathed a sigh of relief, and the high tension of half a month was swept away, and some even cried with joy.

It's finally over.

The believers were ecstatic, but some heard something else.

Basically over does not mean completely over.

If new traitors jump out, they will have to be dealt with.

In the foreseeable future, believers will have a sword hanging over their heads that can be cut down at any time, and it is a death penalty that is undoubted for falsely transmitting oracles.

Some of the cardinals' followers who had not yet been liquidated were even more worried, fearing exposure.

But most believers did not care.

They did not intend to be traitors, and how to deal with traitors had nothing to do with them.

Then the chief judge announced the verdict on the masterminds of the false oracle case.

This judgment is very long, and although it is conveyed in summary form, it is shocking enough.

According to this verdict, the cardinals harbored evil intentions and had plans long ago.

They were so bad that the soles of their feet oozed pus.

Kristine listened expressionlessly to this verdict that seriously deviated from the facts, and her heart was unmoved.

Yes, she was the one who faked the oracle, but so what?

The so-called goddess of light is just a false god, so what qualifications does she have to deliver oracles?

She is still climbing to the top, and she is in competition with Tia, and Tia is only temporarily in the lead.

The road to becoming a god is a long race. A temporary lead is an advantage, but the outcome can be reversed at any time.

Then came the much-loved barbecue party.

Blasphemy was a serious crime, and burning at the stake was of course indispensable.

There are many saints who have been burned at the stake, but few cardinals. Bishop Mousse and others have filled this gap very well.

In order to avoid causing mass panic, these people had their vocal cords removed. They were unable to scream at all and could only twist and struggle desperately.

In the eyes of the faithful, the cardinals struggled in the fire and repented, but it was too late.

After the verdict, Christine came to the podium again, raised the thick scripture in her hand, and said in a deep voice:

"Bishop Mousse also had a firm belief, but after he attained a high position, he lost his sense of awe, did not study the scriptures attentively, did not pray devoutly, and was eventually swallowed up by ambition."

"In order to avoid a recurrence of tragedies, I request that all clergy should organize intensive study of scriptures, and believers should also take the initiative to go to the temple to listen to scripture lectures."

"In the past month and a half, I have read through many ancient books and found that the scriptures have been tampered with and are very different from the goddess's original teachings. Some of the differences are even completely contrary to the goddess's original intentions."

"In order to correct the misunderstanding, I organized experts to revise the scriptures. The textbook used for this intensive study is the newly printed revised edition."

She briefly introduced the differences before and after the revision.

The believers thought it didn't matter, but some couldn't sit still.

The Holy Court of Light has never lacked martyrs, especially ascetics and scripture worshipers.

They dare to fight against any bad behavior, even if the other party is the Pope.

After Christine gave a brief introduction to the revised version, someone stood up and asked coldly: "Your Majesty, the Holy Scriptures are the classics left by the goddess. Modifications must be rigorously demonstrated and have strong evidence."

"Priest Russell, let me reiterate, this is not a modification, but a restoration of the canon to its original appearance."

It was a good point, but the priest representative did not accept this idea. Russell asked indifferently: "What's the basis?"

Christine knew that someone would object and was prepared. She nodded to Martin and motioned for him to explain.

Martin, who had been fully prepared, quickly walked onto the podium, holding a huge box in his arms.

He panted and put the box down, panting somewhat exaggeratedly, "Priest Russell, the basis is here. You can check it at any time. If there are any mistakes, we are willing to accept your criticism."

Russell looked at the huge box, and walked over with some doubts and grabbed a volume of classics. Looking at the traces of time on the classics, most of his doubts had disappeared, but he still couldn't help but ask:

"Let's not talk about anything else. His Majesty the Pope said that clergy can also have soul mates. Where did he come from?"

"Here."

Christine took out a volume of letters from under her loose robe and handed it to Russell.

"Priest Russell, this is a private letter between the goddess and her partner Poseidon when she was still on earth. You can read it, but it is not allowed to be shared."

Russell's gossip was aroused, and he quickly promised not to leak it.

He flipped through it hurriedly and was stunned. These letters were all written by Tia herself, and they were all authentic.

It records the explicit description of Tia expressing her lovesickness to Poseidon, even with some ambiguity.

In some of the letters, Tia even believed that belief in religion did not mean that she could not raise children.

Her reason is quite simple. Great gods all have heirs. If their believers don't have heirs, it would appear that their faith is not pious enough.

She is unequivocally opposed to the so-called "holy saints" and even believes that saints should communicate more with people who have powerful power and secular power.

Although it was not stated explicitly, Russell certainly knew what this communication meant.

He fell silent.

His outlook was shattered.

The goddess does not look like a goddess, is not holy and even a bit snobbish.

Is this still the goddess everyone knows?

Russell returned the letter to Christine in despair, and asked in a strange way: "Will you also look for a partner?"

"Of course, I have to set an example for everyone."

Christine's expression was stern and holy.

She turned her attention to Roland.

Roland appeared in front of him like lightning, and he certainly knew what to do.

With one knee on the ground, white roses in his palms, his voice was particularly gentle.

"Miss Christine, can I be honored to be your soul mate?"

"As you wish, this is also my honor." Christine's cheeks were slightly red and her voice was trembling.

She never dreamed that as the Pope, she could accept a request that was almost a proposal of marriage in public.

Her eyes were a little moist and her voice was choked.

Although this was a pre-planned performance, Roland was serious. Seeing Christine's tears about to fall, he took a half step forward, put the prepared platinum pocket watch on her chest, and then put the ring sleeve on her chest. On her left ring finger.

"By the light of God, in front of all the witnesses today, I, Roland Sussex (dozens of territorial family names omitted here), volunteer to be Miss Christine's soul mate. From now until forever, whether in good times or bad, rich or poor, healthy or sick, happy or sad, I will always love you, cherish you, be loyal to you, live and die with you until the end of my life."

This is clearly the words of the wedding vows, which made the whole square fall into silence.

After an unknown amount of time, someone finally came back to life.

"Promise him!"

"Promise him!"

Amid the booing of everyone, Christine trembled and repeated Roland's oath.

At noon, the sun was shining, hundreds of thousands of people witnessed, and the conservative forces regretted.

Under the witness of everyone, Roland leaned over and kissed her gently.

The red lips were hot and trembling, just like their mood at the moment. (End of this chapter)