Reigning Supreme in countless worlds With Beast taming

Chapter 318: Chapter 315 Followers of the Light God Use Without Heartache

The Pope quickly arrived with a group of high-ranking officials from the Church Court.

Along the way, young priests respectfully cleared the way.

A gentle smile appeared on the Pope’s face as he walked straight up to Qin Feng through the path cleared by the crowd.

“Your Majesty.”

Qin Feng’s face bore the expression of a naive youth encountering an important figure, somewhat nervous, excited, and reverent; he hurriedly paid his respects.

“Hehe, no need for such formalities.”

…

Clearly, the Pope was very satisfied with Qin Feng’s reverence.

In his view, this was just a youth who had not experienced much of the world and was too naive to challenge his authority, even if this youth had attained the position of Holy Son.

Moreover, although the Holy Son was esteemed, it was merely a symbolic title. Under the Holy Son’s command, there was an exclusive Guardian Army drawn from elite forces of the various Church’s armies, but they could not possibly contend with the Pope.

Each Holy Son’s term was not very long, at most twenty years. After a Holy Son stepped down, the Guardian Army would be disbanded and return to serve in their original armies until the next Holy Son arose. Then, the various armies would select a new batch of elite personnel to guard the Holy Son.

This was a tradition formed over many years by the Church’s upper echelons to prevent any power centers from forming outside of the Pope.

Thus, they did not allow the Guardian Army under each Holy Son to be passed down through generations, as that would make the Army loyal only to the Holy Sons. If a Holy Son developed an absolutely loyal force, it would inevitably impact the Pope’s authority.

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Normally, it was fine as several major families jointly held the position of Holy Son, preventing any disobedience. However, this year, a previously unknown young priest like Qin Feng became the Holy Son. If a power struggle ensued, it could cause significant trouble for the current holders of power.

After all, the Holy Son represented the Light God and acted as his envoy on earth. He was the closest to the Light God and the Church’s most convenient link to the Upper Realm.

In times of need, the Holy Son could summon the angel with whom he had a pact to act as a communication bridge between them and the Divine Realm, relaying messages directly to the divine beings.

Additionally, the angel would convey the requirements and directives from the Divine Realm to the Church, such as collecting various resources, directing the Church’s development, competing for believers with other divine entities’ churches, or even providing covert support.

Therefore, the position of Holy Son was crucial; he was the pivot connecting the two realms.

However, the real power was still held by the Pope.

Whether for power or for profit, the Church’s upper echelons, centered around the Pope, would not allow the Holy Son to intervene too strongly in Church affairs.

Therefore, when the Pope, the Archbishops, and the commanders of the Church’s armies realized that this term’s Holy Son was just a naïve and inexperienced youth, they were immediately reassured.

The Pope softly encouraged him a few times and inquired about his background. When he heard Qin Feng mention that he came from a remote small town and was a disciple of Bishop Ebel from the town’s church, he frowned slightly.

Obviously, his stature did not necessitate focusing on a remote small town.

Behind him, a Cardinal Archbishop immediately stepped forward and informed the Pope about Ebel’s matters in his ear.

The Pope nodded immediately, “So the Holy Son is the disciple of Bishop Ebel. Bishop Ebel is a priest who has devoted his entire life wholeheartedly to the Light God, a servant of God worthy of everyone’s respect. It is fitting that the Holy Son, having been guided by Ebel for many years, has such a temperament.”

Beside him, another Cardinal Archbishop respectfully stepped forward to the Pope and Qin Feng, “Your Majesty, do you see, should we first invite the Holy Son to change his robe, and then commence the ceremony?”

“Yes, that sounds good.”

The Pope said to Qin Feng, “Please accompany them to change into the Holy Son robe, and later, we will conduct the ceremony for Your Majesty.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

Qin Feng, looking puzzled, nodded respectfully and after bowing to the Pope, followed the Cardinal Archbishop toward the back of the Light Temple, heading to the Holy Son Palace, which faced the Pope Palace on opposite sides.

Here, a large number of attendants and maids had already prepared everything, waiting for the arrival of the Holy Son to become the servants of the new Holy Son.

Under the direction of the Cardinal Archbishop, with the help of the attendants, Qin Feng bathed, changed, and donned the sumptuous and intricate robe of the Holy Son.

Then, once again escorted by a group, he arrived back at the Light Temple.

By now, the temple was filled with many people.

There were numerous high-ranking officials from the Church, as well as royalty and nobility from various countries.

At this time, many counts from various kingdoms were not even qualified to enter this grand ceremony; those who could enter were primarily marquises and dukes.

The reason these nobles were allowed to participate was merely to observe the ceremony and see the current Holy Son in person. This way, when the Holy Son toured their countries, spreading the gospel of the Light God, they would not neglect him out of unfamiliarity.

“Meet Your Majesty…”

As soon as Qin Feng entered the grand hall, everyone bowed to him.

He clumsily tried to return the gesture but was stopped by the Cardinal Archbishop, “Your Majesty is a great envoy of the Light God on earth; it is right for them to pay their respects to you. You need not return their gestures, as that would diminish the majesty of the God in their hearts.”

“Oh, I see.”

Qin Feng nodded naively, then, guided by the Cardinal Archbishop, walked expressionlessly through the crowd, heading straight to the upper part of the grand hall.

There are two seats here, one belongs to the Holy Son, and the other to the Pope.

However, usually only the Pope is here, while the Holy Son spends most of his time either staying in his palace or touring various countries, spreading the brilliance of the Light God, promoting the teachings of the Light God Church, and occasionally performing miracles to gain the sincere faith of more people.

As for managing the power of the Church Court, it is still more fitting for the Pope to handle it in the interest of other high-ranking officials.

“Your Majesty.”

One must pay respects to the Pope, though it’s just the simplest gesture of touching one’s chest and slightly bowing.

“Your Holiness.”

The Pope also bowed slightly toward him.

After all, the Holy Son represents the face of the Light God, so no matter how young the Holy Son is, the necessary respect should still be there.

Then, he invited Qin Feng to sit on the Holy Son’s throne and lifted the Holy Crown from another Cardinal Archbishop behind him, crowning Qin Feng.

Then, he brought forth a magnificent scepter and handed it to Qin Feng.

These are the two Demigod Artifacts belonging to successive Holy Sons.

The Holy Crown could enhance spiritual power, allowing the Holy Son to summon angels for longer durations, and once summoned to fight, the angels could sustain their presence for extended periods.

As for the scepter, not only is it a powerful Demigod Artifact that enhances the power of Light Element Magic, but it also symbolizes the succession of the Holy Son over the Holy Son Guardian Army.

However, powerful as these Demigod Artifacts are, Qin Feng valued more the Thorny Crown atop the Pope’s head.

That was a true Divine Artifact, said to be a reward given by the Light God to the Popes of successive generations.

Not to mention, just the large Light Element gemstone on the Thorny Crown alone made Qin Feng envious.

The power aura of that gemstone was too strong. If he could pry it off and refine it, his strength would surely surge. Even if not refined, having an Artifact Refiner create a Spiritual Treasure from it would be immensely powerful.

Regrettably, the Pope’s power was too great; he dared not seize it by force.

“Greetings, Holy Son.”

When Qin Feng, wearing the Holy Crown and holding the scepter, sat on the throne, the high-ranking members of the Church Court and various royal nobilities from different nations paid their respects, formally greeting the new Holy Son.

Qin Feng looked at the crowd in the hall and couldn’t help but have a moment of realization.

So, this was power!

But, it didn’t seem to taste that special, did it?

He wasn’t particularly interested in power. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have refused to be a candidate for the next Sect Master of the Beast Taming Sect. Searᴄh the NôvelFire.nёt website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

The power of the Sect Master of the Beast Taming Sect was much greater than that of a Holy Son of the Light God Church.

Moreover, after this ceremony and the grand banquet the following day, once the Pope and other high-ranking officials explained the powers he controlled and his obligations, Qin Feng disdainfully regarded the so-called prestigious status of Holy Son.

What Holy Son was this? It was clearly just a puppet and laborer.

Despite his noble status, he had to run around the world when needed by the Church, laboring both mentally and physically. For what purpose?

Qin Feng did not believe for a second that the Pope, this old cunning man, would let him, a Holy Son not originating from a well-known big family, stay on the Holy Mountain year-round. Evidently, the Pope was unwilling to have his power checked and was now eagerly discussing with Qin Feng a plan for him to tour several major countries in a few months on the lingering momentum of this Four-Winged Angel descent event and to display some miracles to the believers.

Thus, when Qin Feng understood the Pope’s intention, his interest in the identity of the Holy Son diminished even more.

He wanted to quickly fulfill his initial purpose of coming to the Holy Mountain, then leave the place.

Becoming the Holy Son was accidental for him, and he certainly wouldn’t waste his time spreading the glory of the Light God, as he clearly remembered what his task was.

Moreover, he had previously agreed to meet Xiu Xin outside Iron Wall City on Algu Mountain; hence, he couldn’t stay here too long.

Later, after completing his mission promptly, he planned to leave this realm and return to Cave Heaven Fortress, where it would be safer to be under the protection of the Sect elders.

However, having finally risen to a high position in the Church, he couldn’t just leave directly.

He had to extract some benefits from the Church and discreetly learn some secrets about this world.

If he could access the Church’s confidential archives, that would be even better.

Just not sure if they would open up those secret places to him, who seemed like a puppet-like Holy Son.

Unfortunately, the Sect was not yet ready to attack this realm, and he could not stay in the Church long; otherwise, he might have to utilize his position as the Holy Son to provoke conflicts between the Church and other religions and tribes, which might trigger a large-scale war to deplete the forces of all parties, creating a more favorable situation for the Sect’s invasion.

Even if given time to stay a few more months in the Church, he could lead the Holy Son Guardian Army to hunt down ninth-level Demon Beasts, and if he could find information on that Nine-Headed Snake again, with the power of the Holy Son Guardian Army, they could certainly completely exhaust the Nine-Headed Snake’s strength.

Although this would severely weaken the Guardian Army, these individuals weren’t his people but loyal followers of the Light God, making their use less painful.