Shepherd Tantra

Chapter 687: On-hook leveling plan
The reporters were politely persuaded to leave the ceremony after the results came out.

They don't dare to talk too much at this time.

Everyone knew that the next step would be to play a hide-and-seek game with the assassin. Although the reporters were also curious about the final result, in the end no one dared to stay here and get in the way.

The main reason is that they do not dare to incur the suspicion and hostility of the Theocracy - they were invited here by the Theocracy not because they have any face, but because the Theocracy is willing to give them this face. In the same way, if you make people angry, you may have to take back the face.

They are just reporters, not newspaper owners.

If the Theocracy is offended and all reporters under this newspaper are ordered to be banned from entering the Theocracy... then no one can bear this responsibility. They might even run into trouble locally - those officials would definitely do such a thing in order to please the Theocracy.

Therefore, the idea of ​​"exclusive news" just circulated in the mind, and no one dared to wonder who the master assassin who would eventually be caught was.

... Of course, the bigger reason is that news like "Who is the assassin who assassinated the Saint?" is 10,000 percent less powerful than news like "The Pope of Humanity who is only 19 years old."

Many times, the “exclusivity” and “authenticity” of news are not too important. If everyone is discussing something passionately, even if you come up with really valuable exclusive news, it is very likely that no one will pay attention to it.

In the end, only Aiwass and his three people were left here to have lunch by the Gray Saint.

The lunch was very sumptuous...because it was not human cuisine.

Gray, a cleric second only to the previous Eternal Pope, showed Aiwass his unique attainments in advanced divine arts. Served as a feast to celebrate Aivas's papacy.

——She prayed to the host of the banquet and summoned a table full of "hero banquet" out of thin air.

The host of the banquet itself likes to hold banquets for friends, and almost every day is a sumptuous banquet. As long as strangers come to his domain and express respect and kindness, and bring any "gift with enough care", they can be invited to the banquet until they are full.

If you want to come later, you can come at any time with a gift; the more familiar you are, you don’t even need to bring a gift, and you can even order food.

Compared with the almost endless food and wine in the dream world, what Gray asked for was just some dishes from the banquet that day.

There are eleven dishes in total, which is not a lot. But Aiwass didn't recognize each dish at all - because these were all delicacies cooked with dream monsters as ingredients. Those are some delicacies that do not belong to the material world.

For example, there was a dish with silver fish that looked like moonlight. They are still able to move freely in the cold and sweet fish soup. When you eat it, in addition to the cold and sweet taste, you can only taste a texture that is as soft as fish belly and jelly.

Another dish is thickly sliced ​​and grilled dragon tail. It was covered with a thick layer of black sticky sauce, and the spicy taste steamed up with white mist, pouring into the nose from half a meter away.

And the most dangerous thing was a dish that looked quite normal - it was crimson octopus tentacles skewered into iron sticks. But when Aiwass bit it, it suddenly came to life in Aiwass' mouth, and then punched his mouth mercilessly!
In other words, Aiwass was stubborn enough to bite it into pieces and eat it. It finally turned into energy obediently.

These are things that Aiwass can recognize.

There are also some dishes that look very strange but taste quite good - such as a strange "crab claw" as huge as a hammer, a large piece of soft meat with spines like a sea cucumber, and noodles that are quite Chewy pink meat…

When Aiwass took a tentative bite and found that the taste was really good, he made up his mind not to ask the smiling pure white saint "What are they?"

——It’s delicious anyway, so there’s no need to add unnecessary psychological pressure.

This table of extremely sumptuous dishes took more than two hours by the time Aiwass and the others were full.

Including Yanis, there were five of them in total. A few more cardinals joined in the process, and I managed to finish them all without wasting any.

At this time, the cardinals finally tasted "Holy Tree No. 1".

Everyone clinked glasses in a friendly manner, and then they all clinked glasses with Aiwass with a smile, and everyone shouted "His Holiness the Pope" uprightly.

"You are really playing me, right?"

Aiwass couldn't help complaining: "Won't you tell me in advance?"

"Because it would be more real."

Cardinal Galatea on the side replied: "This is a script I wrote - everyone said that because I contracted the twin mirrors, they asked me to do it. Because I didn't know you well before, Aiwasde Pope. I can only choose the safest way... Please forgive me."

Her voice is so cold that it is almost ice-cold, making people think of a frozen and cracked lake, or a crystal wind chime.

She was the girl with a snow-like temperament and long pure white hair who was descended by the twin mirror gods before - the one who was secretly kissed by Henga.

She was the only one sitting at the table and eating nothing.

Because she was a construct—Aiwass knew the word construct. For example, robot dolls and rune golems are considered constructs. And when the game reaches version 6.0, the reputation of the construct family will officially appear... They are the servant race "Star Crystal People" from the extinct ancient civilization "Atlantis".

Roughly speaking, it is a kind of intelligent machine.

But unlike omnics, star crystals have souls, so they can also absorb the power of the path - they are not souls created out of thin air, but the souls of dead "Atlanteans" stored in a crystal. It is then implanted into a replaceable construct, thereby achieving a kind of "mechanical immortality."

Their biggest sign is that there will be a cardinal-like crystal on the surface of their body. The second thing is that their limbs are cold.

In fact, now that I think about it carefully, this actually has something to do with the "Swamp Man" technology.

If nothing else, Galatea should be a star crystal person.

When Aiwass was hesitating whether to say hello to Galatea to confirm, Cardinal Matilda on the side came over.

"I actually said it," Cardinal Matilda said helplessly, "Do I want to tell you in advance... But Gray said no."

"Because I want to give you a surprise."

Gray said with a smile and reached out to touch Aiwass's hair: "I heard that you have some resistance in Avalon? With such an identity...even if it is only for half a year, I will wait for you to come back. After arriving in Avalon, no one will dare to oppose you.

"This is...a thank you gift for the 'Zozi' you gave me."

Isabel on the side suddenly looked over warily, and then Gray quickly touched Isabel's hair in a comforting manner.

"resistance?"

Aivas was stunned for a moment after hearing this.

Do I have resistance in Avalon?

Isn't Avalon...already counted as my treasure?

It was only then that Aiwass realized that it was the persona he and Isabel were co-acting with when he showed weakness.

Ah this...

...but this is not impossible.

Gray is right.

Even if he is only the acting pope for half a year... Although everyone knows that this is just a "puppet pope", a "living coat rack" and "legged one" of Gray who cannot wear the "Holy Crown" because of the stagnant amber. "Safe" takes away "designated PPT preacher, stand-in media spokesperson"...

But even so, Aiwass can still touch part of the power of the Theocracy. Even the king's groom and the earl's steward can be considered high-class people... let alone the eternal pope's substitute.

With this identity, the intimidating power of the name Aiwass will reach a new level. After all, no one knows how many people Aiwass can attract in the Theocracy... and the Eternal Theocracy is a typical humane society. Even if Aiwass only serves temporarily for a period of time, he will definitely get help from the cardinals.

"...But this is such a surprise."

Aiwass was a little helpless: "I was completely unprepared. Sherlock thought I was just here to attend a meeting, gather some heads, and go back in a while. Who would have thought that I would become the Pope when I went out of the door... "

But forget it, after all, he took advantage of it - Aiwass is not the kind of person who takes advantage and behaves.

"Then when will I take over?"

Aiwass asked simply: "Also, what kind of work do I have to do?"

"Nothing to do."

Gray said simply: "As for the specific time... you just have to decide. In fact, the Pope can still hold on for half a month, but if you have nothing to do, you can move forward. It is best to take over within a week."

"No need to do anything?"

Aiwass was a little confused.

Then he suddenly reacted: "You mean... just like today's eternal pope, take a long sleep?"

——Isn’t that going to jail?
Gray said helplessly: "Yes, this is the most important responsibility of the Pope - to put on the Holy Crown, and then fall into a dream. In the dream, the Pope will merge with the entire country of giant trees. 1. The Theocracy’s energy source is inexhaustible, and that’s not just because of the ‘blood of the giant tree’… Or, if the giant tree is just the remaining ‘corpse’, it is simply not enough to feed so many people…”

"……I understand."

Aiwass opened his eyes slightly: "In other words, the Pope actually wants to 'occupy the body of the giant tree' to keep it 'alive'?"

"Yes."

Gray nodded: "Your consciousness will penetrate into every corner of the Theocracy. Of course, you can also condense the power of the blood of the giant tree to create an incarnation. But this incarnation cannot leave the Theocracy...but that's the case. You can also do other things casually.

"And in this process, because of the strong act of devotion, your ability on the path of devotion will be directly pulled to the highest level. The purer the path and the more focused you are on dealing with various matters related to the giant tree, the more likely you will be in the end." You can get more benefits... If nothing else happens, you will soon be preparing to advance to the fifth level. If necessary, I will find someone to accompany you to advance.

"As for the lifespan consumed by driving the Holy Crown... I will also compensate you as soon as possible. These things will be taken care of before I fall into deep sleep."

Gray spoke clearly and clearly, obviously having already thought that Aiwass would ask these questions.

Ah, no wonder...

Aiwass suddenly understood why the Pope was so powerful but could not leave the Theocracy.

Because the "Pope" that people usually see is actually the incarnation of the Pope shaped by the power of a giant tree. It is essentially a phantom, not a living creature. The real Pope basically falls into a deep sleep all the time and cannot wake up for more than a few hours.

In this case, it would be much better than going to jail——

It’s not just lying around doing nothing, it’s just lying down and idle to gain experience!
That would be considered a kind of cultivation retreat!

Alas, but...

Aiwass suddenly remembered that he still had another chance to separate himself!

Today's Aiwass is not particularly "pure" because he still has some power from beyond the path.

But if Aiwass uses the Gap of Two Souls to split himself in two... then he will directly obtain an "absolutely pure" devotee incarnation!
He could have left this devotee clone in Theocratic country to level up. And another incarnation of the transcendent mixed with the Son of the Moon and the Scholar of Sin can take the opportunity to sneak to Star Antimony to have a look.

It just so happened that he had something to go to Xingzhi - he had to find a way to save Lily. We have to rush to the places we need to go and fish out the people we need to fish out before Fallen Sky Secretary comes.

In this way, there is no delay in both!

perfect!

Aiwass nodded with satisfaction.

"...However, since I am now the acting pope," Aiwass said seriously, "then I think the 'war' with Star Antimony can be stopped.

"After all, the initiation of this war has something to do with me. If I, as the acting pope, still support the existence of this 'revenge war', I think the Theocracy's position will appear biased."

——At least it must end before Fallen Sky Division arrives. This is what Aiwass has already calculated.

Otherwise, after Fallen Lord comes down, he might give Avalon a slap in the face when he gets a firm foothold.

"...If you can think so, that would be great!"

Gray was also a little surprised.

Obviously she thought so too, but she didn't dare to mention it to Aiwaste.

"but……"

She glanced at Isabel hesitantly: "Don't you need to discuss this matter with Isabel?"

"Aiwass can represent my attitude and point of view on all matters concerning Avalon and the Theocracy's position."

Isabel replied simply.

Aiwass added: "In fact, my wedding to Isabelle was scheduled for the end of May."

"...Ah, congratulations then."

Gray hesitated when he heard the news.

She frowned and asked: "Then... Your Majesty Isabel, will it be convenient for you to come to the Theocracy then? I'm afraid that Acting Pope Aiwas will not be able to go to Avalon..."

"I'm afraid not," Aiwass shook his head, "because it is also the coronation ceremony of the new queen of Avalon..."

"——I think it's okay."

Isabel said so.

She raised her head and looked at Gray, and said seriously: "Compared to being crowned in Avalon... I think coming to the Theocracy and being crowned at the wedding ceremony with the acting Pope is more sacred and has a higher standard. . In this way, it can also convey a concept to people...

"——We, Avalon and the Theocracy, are a close family."

(End of this chapter)