Pawn Crossing the River

Both the Eastern and Western worlds now have a typical binary structure, that is, the transcendent and the secular are separated.

The emperor's things belong to the emperor, and the emperor's things belong to the emperor.

Replacing Taishang with Supreme here has the same meaning.

This also solves a very practical problem, that is, the problem of civilization and morality. With the development of the world, it has become increasingly difficult to expand territories. Killing is often the least labor-intensive way to eliminate problems. However, unprovoked killing will not only bear moral condemnation, but also leave great hidden dangers.

This dual structure can solve the problem of expanding territory.

Take the Eastern world as an example. Although Daxuan is the most powerful and core country in the Eastern world and is the main body of the Eastern world, Daxuan has not annexed Weiyuan Kingdom, Dayu Kingdom, Funan Kingdom and other small countries. These small countries are just Daxuan's vassal states, accepting Daxuan's canonization, still manage their own countries. The two belong to the tribute system, so Daxuan is not the so-called invader.

Taoism is the key to maintaining this tribute system. Although you belong to different countries and different ethnic groups, you all believe in Taoism and live in the same civilization. With civilization and faith as the link, the Eastern countries are closely united under Taoism. Under the core tribute framework, they jointly formed the Eastern World. The foundation of Taoist sect is Daxuan, so it is said that Daxuan is the lower Taoist sect. If Daomen is the roof, then Daxuan is the pillar.

In the same way, the Western world does the same thing. It is nothing more than that the Western countries are united under the framework with the Holy Court as the core, so there is the saying of Western forces headed by the Holy Court. The difference is that after the collapse of the Qin Empire, the West lacked a major country that could convince the public, so chaotic wars among Western countries often occurred.

Now it seems that the Rune Kingdom, which controls the northern continent, may become the new master, but the conflict between the Rune Kingdom and the Holy Court cannot be ignored.

Don’t forget that “steam” originated from the Offician Parliament in the Kingdom of Rune. Steam Evangelicalism is inextricably linked to the Offician Parliament. It is more like a rebellious child conceived by the traditional Holy Court and the Offician Parliament. Even Saint York was named after the Duke of York from the Kingdom of Rune.

From this point of view, priests and secular nobles are both rulers, but they are in different positions and have different responsibilities.

The archbishop's name was Orville Swanson.

According to Western customs, familiar friends can be called by their first name, and friends who are not familiar can be called by their last name and honorific. For example, Strawney called Qi Xuansu "Daqi" instead of "Mr. van der Linde". In front of outsiders, Qi Xuansu also calls Strawney "Josiah" instead of "Congressman Strawney." After all, the two are nominally good friends from SNSD.

At this time, Qi Xuansu called the archbishop "Bishop Swanson" instead of "Orville".

This is quite similar to the Eastern expressions. Just as most people would call Qi Xuansu "Zhenren Qi" or "Chief Qi" instead of "Xuansu" or "Tianyuan".

Swanson extended an invitation to the two of them: "If you two still have plenty of time, then we can go to the small hall to discuss some issues of sacred doctrine."

"It's an honor." Strawney put his hat on his chest.

It's the same archbishop, but the weight is different. Just like Chen Jianchou, a fourth-grade Taoist priest named Jiujiu. Because he was Qi Xuansu's secretary, even many third-grade Taoist priests from Youyi would take the initiative to make friends with him and even try to please him.

As the archbishop of St. Paul's Cathedral and a direct subordinate of a cardinal, Swanson is naturally not comparable to ordinary archbishops. Even Strawney, a member of the city council, has to take the initiative to express goodwill.

Under the leadership of Swanson, the three of them came to the small hall behind the hall. There were coffee tables embossed with flower and vine textures and soft and comfortable sofas. It was more like a living room than a religious place.

Qi Xuansu also noticed that the holy emblem hanging on the wall here was somewhat special, consisting of three gears pieced together into an inverted triangle pattern, instead of the traditional inverted triangle.

Swanson sat on the single sofa and looked at Qi Xuansu: "This gentleman does not seem to be a local."

"I came to the New World from Luen." Qi Xuansu leaned forward slightly, "Just yesterday, I just landed."

Strawney added: "Dutch is a friend of mine in the Old World when I was young. Now he wants to come to the New World where there are so many opportunities for a better development."

The "Old Continent" among Westerners refers specifically to the Western Continent.

Swanson smiled and said: "The congressman is right, there are indeed opportunities here. Londinium in the Old World is known as the capital of the world, and St. York will be the capital of the world in the future and the capital of freedom now. ”

Qi Xuansu asked in confusion: "The capital of freedom?"

"Of course it is free." Swanson opened his hands. "The Holy See with the Holy See as its core is the 'big tradition' that integrates the old continent, but outside of this, there are various 'Lesser Tradition'. When they appear to be reactionary to the 'Greater Tradition' in doctrine or organization, the Inquisition of the past and today's Inquisition will rule them as heretics."

"The Inquisition frequently hunts down heretics throughout the Old Continent, but an undercurrent has formed. The so-called 'heresies' have combined with local princes, causing greater shock to the Holy See. As an outlying island in the Old Continent, Rune has a close relationship with the Holy See. It has always been tense. In the 1300th year of the Holy Calendar, the Council of Rune and Offa enacted the Ordination Law, which stipulated that the election of bishops and other clergy would not be subject to papal interference."

"For this reason, Steam Gospel believes that the Holy See should not be centered on the pope and cardinals, but all the electors of the Supreme Will. The only leader of the Holy See is the goddess, not the Pope. In the New World, We have abolished the Inquisition and advocate that a sinner can be saved only by the grace of the Supreme Will of the Creator, relying solely on faith in the Goddess rather than relying on personal behavior. This is different from the Holy See in the Old World who believed that people must be saved by grace except faith. In addition, there must also be sufficient doctrine of atonement for good works, so it is more liberal, more tolerant, and more open.”

Qi Xuansu raised a question: "But I heard that a bill targeting Taoists is about to be introduced here, and a torture rack has been erected in the square..."

Swanson laughed when he heard this, his eyes were like looking at a lost lamb: "Heretics are heretics, heretics are heretics, they cannot be confused."

Strawney calmly changed the subject: "Speaking of Taoists, how does Your Excellency the Bishop view the recent world situation?"

Swanson paused, leaned back in his chair, and then said: "The history of the Old Continent, from the emperor to the first citizen, has always advocated conquest, and this eldest lady from the East has been in the past few years. For hundreds of years, she always wore black silk gloves and sat behind the silk screen, refusing to come out. It was really rare. She was too precocious and surrounded by barbarians who were not as civilized as herself, so she arrogantly believed that she was the sun and all the benefits. They all have to take the initiative to run towards the sun, rather than the sun running towards them.”

Of course, Qi Xuansu would not think that this was a compliment to Dongfang, but more like a mockery, describing Dongfang as being as arrogant and weak as an aristocratic lady.

It is undeniable that since the Jin Dynasty, the East has indeed entered a long period of decline, which is far from being comparable to the Li Dynasty.

Strawny smiled and said: "But it's different now. Ever since the weak 'Confucianism' lost its power in the Eastern world, everything has changed."

Swanson agreed: "Yes, everything has changed. Confucians lack experience in conflict, and even if they have strong power, they often use it internally rather than externally. But Taoists are better at fighting than Confucians , As early as many years ago, 'Tao' realized that she would become one of the only masters in this world, but she was unwilling to take off her silk gloves at that time. Now, the noble Queen of the East wants to take off her. Those expensive silk gloves join this game of hegemony.”

Qi Xuansu did not express any opinion.

Next, some other small talk was made.

Bishop Swanson accidentally mentioned Lower Town.

As I said, there is no vacuum in power. Power has filled the upper and midtown areas, but the harsh environment in the lower city has made the gentlemen on the ground unwilling to carry out in-depth management. They just want to make money, leaving a considerable power gap here.

So the gangs came into being.

There are four gang giants in the lower city: the Beggar King, the Butcher, the Hound, and the Baron.

These four gangsters formed a loose alliance to jointly manage the Lower City, filling the gaps left by the old men, and actually performing the functions of the city council, so they were nicknamed the "Lower Council."

Of course, these four gang giants are not rootless duckweeds. There are also deep-seated interests involved behind them, which can even involve Shangcheng District.

Because of this, when the four gang giants no longer live in harmony, the lower city area will certainly be shaken, and the midtown area will also feel some slight earthquakes.

At least, Archbishop Swanson felt it.

This made Qi Xuansu want to go to Xiacheng District more and more. Of course he couldn't do it with his current status, but don't forget that in addition to being a good fortune martial artist, he was also a good fortune looser.

A martial artist can change his physical appearance at will, while a Sanren can differentiate into another self - the incarnation of Bingjie.

Two people, two roads, two perspectives.

It is true that the incarnation cannot exist for a long time in the Bing Jie Realm that has just begun to glimpse, but there are always exceptions in everything, and the key depends on what is the sustenance.

What if it was a fairy?

If this is not enough, then add an additional condition, what if it is a fairy with autonomous consciousness?

That's right, Qi Xuansu relies on Wu Niang. Even without Qi Xuansu, Wu Niang can survive independently for a long time.

If Qi Xuansu takes Wuniang as his sustenance, then rather than saying that it is Qi Xuansu's incarnation of Bingjie, it is better to say that Qi Xuansu is possessing Wuniang's body. In other words, Qi Xuansu and Wu Niang share the same body.

Qi Xuansu was multitasking. While listening carefully to Archbishop Swanson's conversation, he began to consider the feasibility of the incarnation through military dissolution.