Master the Abyss, starting from an apprentice priest.

Chapter 633 The Emperor's Envoy

Chapter 633 The Emperor's Emissary

After the final battle, according to the normal procedure, all the imperial saints who participated in the final battle had to go to the emperor's residence to pay their respects to Emperor Augustusville.

That was a "report to Emperor Augustusville," and also a way to receive the emperor's reward.

Furthermore, according to the empire's long-standing tradition, all expeditionary forces would return to the battlefield on the third day after the decisive victory. This was to commemorate the fallen in the war. Afterward, the main force of the expeditionary force would return in triumph, leaving a portion of the army to garrison the dark capital and continue to inventory the battlefield.

This was an arrangement that Luo Xiu already knew about.

When he raised his head and looked at the officials holding imperial edicts and hurrying into the hall, he stopped the work he was about to do.

Until a clergyman, who had been leading the “Supreme” official into the inner sanctum, stood before Luo Xiu.

The leading official bowed respectfully to Luo Xiu and greeted him in a clear, resonant voice:

"Greetings, Your Excellency Holy Cardinal, Lord Rosh Carlos."

"First of all, on behalf of His Majesty the Emperor and all the ministries of the Empire, I deeply mourn the martyrdom of His Holiness the Pope of Lorient. We will forever remember His Holiness's sacrifice and dedication."

"The Holy Court is an indispensable ally of the Empire. Even with the passing of Pope Lawrence, this alliance remains as strong as gold and stone, so please rest assured."

"..."

"I have received Your Majesty's message."

Luo Xiu stood up from the main seat and nodded in response to the official.

Offering condolences to Pope Laurent was clearly not the official's primary objective.

The official bowed respectfully to Luo Xiu again and said loudly:
“Your Excellency Holy Cardinal, Lord Rosh Carlos.”

"You are the most distinguished saint in this decisive battle of 'Judgment'. You killed three 'Black Pillars' and one 'Lich King', and together with other saints of the Empire, you killed several more Black Pillars. You even helped seal and capture 'Skull Avatar' Bartel and banish 'Chaos Crown' Mastert..."

"And your achievements go far beyond these. His Majesty the Emperor already knows that you are the primary contributor to the dozen or so great victories in the Songyuan War Zone, and also the one who broke through the waves of disasters. You have wiped out countless calamities and cleared obstacles for the Empire time and time again. Your loyalty and dedication are evident to all."

"Because of you, and the powerful and loyal pillars of the empire who protect it and pave the way for its success, His Majesty the Emperor was able to act without worry, and the empire's 'judgment' of the evil nation was able to end in such a great victory."

“Your Excellency Holy Cardinal, Lord Rosh Carlos, you are fully qualified to go and pay homage to His Majesty the Emperor and receive His Majesty’s highest honors.”

"..."

The arriving "Supreme" official read these words aloud to Luo Xiu.

Unlike the previous officials who simply reported to him, this official was of a much higher rank, as evidenced by the number of other officials following him, the tone of his voice, and the splendor of his robes.

Through panel detection, Luo Xiu had already learned the other party's identity in advance.

—Lagrán Fernánd, the Second Minister of Military Affairs of the Imperial Military Ministry, the second-in-command of the Imperial Military Ministry, personally came to present Emperor Augustusville's invitation to me.

Minister Lagrand was just an ordinary person; he was not a superhuman.

Reaching such a position is basically the limit for an ordinary person.

"On behalf of His Majesty the Emperor, I extend this invitation to you."

Lagrange continued speaking loudly to Rosh.
"Lord Rosh Carlos, I wish you to accompany me to His Majesty the Emperor at two o'clock this afternoon."

"..."

"I understand," Luo Xiu nodded in response.

In the afternoon, together with the Second Minister of Military Affairs, he went to the Emperor's residence to pay homage to the demigod, the "Supreme." Luo Xiu knew that he could not avoid meeting Augustusville, so he accepted Lagrange's "invitation."

He then looked at the clergyman beside Minister Lagrand and said to him:

“Arrange accommodations for His Majesty’s envoys, Grann, without the slightest negligence.”

"And prepare the carriages and horses. At the appointed time this afternoon, I will go with this gentleman to pay homage to His Majesty the Emperor."

"As you command, Lord Roshchuh," the priest nodded respectfully in response.

……

after that.

Luo Xiu watched the priest leave with Minister Lagrán before returning to his seat.

The arrival of the Minister of Military Affairs actually disrupted Luo Xiu's original plans to some extent.

He originally planned to first handle the affairs of the "Holy Court," and then return to his lodgings to secretly travel to the "Holy Abyss" to strengthen and elevate the angels and demons he had contracted.

After all, Tatia is still a "four-winged angel," and "the Lord of the Dead" Sather is still a "true progenitor demon"—in Luo Xiu's plan, he intends to elevate them both to "star spirits"—that is, to elevate Tatia to a "six-winged angel," and then to elevate "the Lord of the Dead" to a "progenitor demon."

This is only part of the plan.

The newly acquired feat, [Seraph's Crown], provides an additional contracted angel slot, as well as a contracted demon slot, which was also obtained when advancing to [Abyss] Styx Apostle. After advancing to "Sevenfold Fate", it is indeed worth considering contracting new angels and demons.

These are all ways to strengthen one's own combat power—however, from a "balance" perspective, it's best to contract angels and demons simultaneously. There's no rush, and with the "Crimson Tide" approaching, it might be necessary to contract new, important demons then. Therefore, it's best to leave empty slots for when necessary.

Luo Xiu was also somewhat worried about Quesanx's condition.

Quesanx had previously pursued "Chaos Crown" Mustard and was injured on his return. Mustard, in his true "Chaos Crown" state, was still terrifyingly powerful—Quesanx could not capture him. However, according to Quesanx himself, he had also inflicted considerable damage on Mustard.

After that, Quesanx returned to the Abyss and is still recovering from his injuries.

"..."

Luo Xiu's mind raced as he recalled these thoughts.

In addition, he has many other things he plans to do.

For example, performing new "divine revelation" rituals, obtaining new divine oracle from "The Great Sun in an Instant," and making preparations in advance for the truly impending terrifying calamities of "Crimson Tide" and "Upside-down Abyss."

Luo Xiu still remembered that in the "Divine Revelation" ritual previously performed to prevent the "Crimson Tide" and the "Abyss Hanging Upside Down," there was a clear time when the "calamity" was about to descend, which was September 20th, 768th year of the Apocalypse Calendar.

And now—it is June 7th, 768 of the Apocalypse Calendar, and there are only a little over a hundred days left until the “Crimson Tide” and the “Upside-down Abyss” arrive.

Time was running out, and Luo Xiu was also focused on another point—during the "Divine Revelation" ritual, in the quest panel for [Divine Revelation—Hanging in the Abyss], there were these two lines—

—[A demigod is about to fall.]

—A demigod is about to be born!

At the time, Luo Xiu thought that the fall of the "demigod" referred to the Dark Duke, and that the birth of the "demigod" did not occur on the continent of Fanor, but on the continent of Crimson.

At the beginning of the "Crimson Tide," the Crimson Continent ruled by "Crimson King" Azagus was not ruled by only one demigod, Azagus.

In Luo Xiu's memory, there were a total of five "demigods"—[Abyss], [Void], [Bitter Tea], [Red Lotus], and [Lost], one of each.

Furthermore, as the intensity of the "Crimson Tide" increases, the other demigods killed by Azagus and his demigods will have their divinity usurped by Azagus, thus being molded into new demigods under Azagus's control.

At the height of the Crimson War, the Crimson King Azagus commanded as many as eleven demigods. Excluding the Balance faction, the actual total number of demigods—or rather, the total number of "godhoods"—across the eight paths of destiny was only twenty.

Luo Xiu had originally thought that the phrase "A demigod will be born!" in the oracle referred to the birth of a new demigod on the Crimson Continent. However, with the fall of Pope Lorend... the oracle might no longer be referring to the Crimson Continent.

Recalling Pope Laurent's dying words that there were fallen saints within the "Holy Court," and their potential coveting of the vacant divine status of [Radiance], this was something that had to be guarded against. "..."

After the envoy of Emperor Augustusville left.

These thoughts were already subconsciously swirling in Luo Xiu's mind.

The more he thought about it, the more things he needed to pay attention to and investigate. Luo Xiu even felt himself becoming somewhat agitated. He shook his head, reactivated his spirituality, and restored his inner peace.

These are things we can only think about now; we can't do them yet.

Luo Xiu simply cleared his mind of those thoughts—treating them only as future plans—and now, his attention was back on the matter of "meeting Emperor Augustusville."

He could vaguely guess that Emperor Augustusville wanted to see him and what he wanted to talk about.

What Lagrange said about his "achievements" was indeed enough to shake the empire's high command.

No one can completely ignore these things, not even Emperor Augustusville—especially now that the Pope of Lorend has fallen and the position of Pope of the "Holy Court" is clearly vacant. It is not hard to guess what that emperor wants to see me for.

"..."

Luo Xiu was actually having a bit of a headache.

On the one hand, from the perspective of interests, he could indeed gain more from Emperor Augustusville based on his achievements.

Whether it's power, wealth, or resources in any way—just based on his status as a newly ascended Saint of the Sevenfold Path of Radiance, and his significant contribution to this "Judgment War," Emperor Augustusville would certainly bestow them upon him without hesitation if he asked.

But that actually strengthened his bond with the Empire—Luo Xiu still knew very well that, from the perspective of security and future development, it was not suitable to get too close to the Empire, whether it was the [Abyss] path he had secretly embarked on or the "contract" with the dragon Quesanx.

To be honest, Luo Xiu asked himself honestly, and he didn't seek to control power within the "empire".

Under the rule of the Supreme, it's actually quite difficult for someone of the Radiant One to truly leverage the Empire's core resources. In fact, just like the previous relationship between the Holy Court and the Empire, an "alliance" is the most suitable approach.

But the Empire… that Emperor Augustusville might not think so.

"Perhaps we should make some preparations."

Luo Xiu thought to himself.

Even though this audience with Emperor Augustusville wouldn't pose any real danger, Luo Xiu still instinctively remained cautious in the face of that supreme demigod.

On his panel lay over two thousand free attribute points, earned from previous settlements. Luo Xiu then added them all to his "Resistance" attribute, causing its value to soar to ten thousand, reaching a level where even a "demigod" could not truly see him.

This is necessary.

After completing this step, Luo Xiu felt his spirituality become more stable, and his soul and body became more resilient. He knew that only now could he meet the Great Emperor with relative peace of mind.

"..."

"……call."

Afterwards, he let out a long sigh of relief.

With this breath, Luo Xiu exhaled the pent-up frustration and anxieties that had accumulated in his chest and abdomen. He then bent down at his desk and continued to handle the affairs that had followed the "Holy Court's" entry into the dark capital.

He planned to work until about 1:30 p.m., then go to see the Emperor with the "Minister of Military Affairs," Lagrand.

……

Time flies.

Luo Xiu placed the last file on top of the stack labeled "Completed".

It was exactly 1:30 p.m., and he could hear the thud of steel boots stepping on the stone pavement.

The Minister of Military Affairs, Lagrand, did indeed arrive at the appointed time, accompanied by clergy.

……

Lagrán Fernánd, the Second Minister of the Imperial Military Affairs, has arrived at the palace.

When he entered the office where Rosh was, he saw that "Acting Cardinal" Rosh Carlos was still working at his desk, and a solemn expression appeared on his face.

Even now, this young acting cardinal is still making contributions to the Empire.

This is undoubtedly a manifestation of loyalty—Lagrán actually knows that the "Acting Cardinal" Rosh could have delegated many of the "Holy Court's" tedious affairs to his other clergy.

Since most of those involved dealing with compensation, reviewing the results of "holy judgments," and carrying out reports on several rounds of investigations into the forbidden supernatural beings hidden in the dark capital—many of these things were completely unnecessary for Rosius Carlos to do personally.

As a highly respected "Sevenfold Destiny" Saint, he should have more free time. In Lagrange's understanding, he should devote more of his time and energy to socializing with other high-ranking individuals and improving his own extraordinary power.

But Luo Xiu… Luo Xiu was still sitting in that position, and he seemed so serious and focused on his work. Watching this, Lagrand gradually formed his own judgment about “Acting Cardinal” Luo Xiu Carlos.

"Rossi Carlos" has indeed made outstanding achievements, and the fact that he is still handling the affairs of the "Holy Court" shows that he is easy to control and command, and should not have any extra ambitions.

Lagrand had indeed seen many such young people—talented and capable, but lacking ambition, or rather, lacking that “real ambition,” young people who were willing to work hard and be readily available.

There are many such talents in the Ministry of Military Affairs. Lagrand had a feeling that people like "Acting Cardinal" Rosius Carlos were the most talented of the "hardworking and dedicated."

—Luo Xiu possesses exceptional talent, and he has also demonstrated strength commensurate with that talent.

He probably has no ambition. If His Majesty intends to restart the plan to "actually control" the Holy Court, in addition to the route of the Fourth Prince Demosth, perhaps the "Acting Cardinal" Rosh Carlos could also be supported.

These are all matters that can be reported to His Majesty the Emperor.

"..."

Lagrange was thinking about these things.

He had already stepped into the hall, raised his head, and was looking at the "Acting Cardinal" Rosius Carlos.

Luo Xiu finished his work, looked up, and stared at him.

"The time has come, Your Excellency Holy Cardinal, Lord Rosh Carlos."

Lagrange bowed respectfully to Rosh and said:

"Please come with me to pay homage to His Majesty the Emperor."

"His Majesty is waiting for you in his bedchamber. Do not keep him waiting too long."

"..."

"it is good."

Luo Xiu nodded in response and stepped down from the main seat.