Master the Abyss, starting from an apprentice priest.

Chapter 707 In Red Maple City—

Buzz! ! !
A resounding hum echoed from the heavens, as the figure radiating brilliant light drew ever closer, until the light crashed to the ground with a deafening roar—

Boom! ! !
A burst of dazzling golden light erupted and surged outwards, so intense that the guards watching him were blinded by the blazing light.

But the guards around them were extremely excited and overjoyed—when the surging light finally dissipated, the "Golden Pegasus" shook its long neck, and its master, the "Radiant Wise King" Luo Xiu, had already dismounted from its back.

Luo Xiu smiled, lightly dusting off his already clean and spotless holy robe, and walked towards the direction of Red Maple City.

"Bishop... Your Majesty the Wise King!"

Before Luo Xiu, the guards of Red Maple City stood at attention, gazing at him with reverence and devotion, their eyes gleaming with joy as they saluted him in perfect unison.

"We salute you, Your Majesty the Wise King!"

Luo Xiu smiled and nodded as he watched the Red Maple City guards watching him.

He is back.

Four months later, he finally returned to Red Maple City.

He returned to his loyal Red Maple City!

……

The news that "Radiant Wise King" Rosh Carlos had truly returned had quickly spread throughout the entire Red Maple City.

That instantly raised the already bustling atmosphere of Red Maple City to an unprecedented level.

All the residents of Red Maple City, along with all the guards stationed there, the "Descendants," the clergy of the "Church," the scholars of the "Square Stele Academy," and even the Supreme Knights of the "Frontier Court," came to the streets to welcome Luo Xiu's arrival.

At this moment, Luo Xiu rode the "Golden Pegasus" on the main road of Red Maple City, surrounded by guards outside the city.

He basked in the praise and cheers from the people on both sides of the street as he returned, and he also admired the long-lost scenery of Red Maple City.

Four months have passed, and the scene in Red Maple City is completely different from what it was four months ago.

Many tall buildings have already been erected, and the city has gradually transformed from a "fortress" into a "city".

Around Red Maple City, many imperial citizens have migrated here and become part of Red Maple City's bloodline; a considerable amount of capital has also seen the unlimited potential for Red Maple City's future development and has invested in the city.

Red Maple City's main street, during the "Judgment War," was mostly composed of military buildings, with only small shops, scattered mansions, and structures like churches and blacksmith estates. As the city's main street, it appeared somewhat desolate.

But what Luo Xiu saw now was—

On the main street of Red Maple City, the magnificent Golden Kingdom Bank and the solemn and luxurious Imperial Bank have built their buildings in the bustling central section of the main street; and there are also shops with their own unique characteristics, which are like dyed ribbons on both sides of the main street.
At this moment, the exterior walls of these buildings were decorated with lanterns and colorful windows, which were open to the outside. The staff members crowded at the windows, their eyes filled with excitement and eagerness as they watched Luo Xiu and cheered for his return.
There were also manors built by the wealthy in Red Maple City, with their exquisitely crafted wrought iron gates wide open. Elegantly dressed gentlemen and ladies, surrounded by waiters and servants, walked out of the manors and onto the streets, waving and joining the crowds cheering for Luo Xiu's return.
There were also many quaint taverns, and guests, along with tavern owners and waiters, poured out, joining the actors and patrons of the newly opened theater across the street. They all came out onto the street, cheering loudly with everyone who had come to welcome Luo Xiu.

"The sublime and radiant wise king! Rosh Carlos has returned!"

"—Praise be to you! Your Majesty Rosh Carlos! Praise be to you!"

"We love you! Holy and wise king! Great and wise king!"

"The wise king who brought us victory and hope!"

"—Rosh Carlos! Ah! Rosh Carlos!"

"..."

Such praise and cheers had gathered into a wave of sound. Luo Xiu smiled, and he also strolled in this proud and exciting wave, moving forward lightly with Pegasus.

For the people of Red Maple City—without Rosh Carlos, there would be no Red Maple City as it is today.

Everything has changed dramatically in just six months—the city is now full of vitality and hope for the future.

This is what Luo Xiu wanted to see, and he is very proud of it.

In its previous life, Red Maple City, although serving as the "player's main city," was ravaged by the tug-of-war on the front lines of the Judgment War and was nowhere near as prosperous and bustling as it is now.

Since Luo Xiu arrived in Red Maple City and took office as the "High Priest," this fortified city has never fallen. It has even gradually become a core rear base capable of reliably supplying the front lines with materials and personnel, thus giving Red Maple City the opportunity to develop and filling people with confidence in its future.

Luo Xiu was also recalling these things in his heart.

His first stop upon returning to Red Maple City was the church. So, amidst the cheering waves lining both sides of the main street, he rode towards the church.

……

Soon, surrounded by people, Luo Xiu arrived at the main entrance of the church.

In Luo Xiu's eyes, he saw two old acquaintances.

The holy deacon Hubbard and the "high priest" Anthony had already received the news and led the church clergy to greet them outside the church.

Hubert had only parted ways with him from the capital not long ago, and now he looked much the same as when they parted, except that he seemed more tired and had darker and heavier circles under his eyes than when he was in the capital.
And Anthony... hadn't seen him for four months. In Luo Xiu's eyes, the old captain seemed much more mature and composed. His eyes had become deeper, his hair had turned somewhat gray, and fine wrinkles had appeared on his face.

He is in his thirties, but he looks like he is almost forty or even fifty.

Just like many middle-aged people who overthink things that Luo Xiu had seen in his previous life.

Ever since I set off from Red Maple City on my holy expedition, Anthony took over from me and took over the heavy responsibility of leading the Church of Red Maple City.

He needed to provide support for the clergy who were dedicated to the front lines of the war, maintain the normal operation of the Red Maple City Church, and balance the relationship with the [Intellectual] "Square Stele Court" and the [Supreme] "Frontier Court"...

As the "High Priest," Antony certainly had to consider more—taking on a much heavier workload than before.

While Luo Xiu was active in the war, he heard that Anthony had handled everything in the rear very well, but now Luo Xiu has seen the price... Anthony's physical condition seems to have deteriorated.

On his way to the church, Luo Xiu had already learned from the clergy who came to greet him that their "High Priest" Anthony usually didn't sleep until three or four in the morning because of his work, and then had to wake up at six the next morning to start his arduous and demanding work again. He was practically a superman.

"You've worked hard, Anthony."

Luo Xiu dismounted from Pegasus's back and walked towards Anthony, looking gently at his old captain and extending his hand to him.

Anthony seemed stunned for a moment, stammering as if he had prepared words to welcome Luo Xiu back. But now, he forgot them all, simply looking at Luo Xiu with his eyes welling up with tears.

After a while, Anthony also reached out his hand and shook hands firmly with Luo Xiu's right hand.

A forced smile appeared on his face. Then, he spoke to Luo Xiu in a somewhat hoarse voice:
"Welcome back, Luo Xiu."

……

Roth, along with Hubbard and Anthony, entered the church, surrounded by clergy.

In Luo Xiu's eyes, the church had undergone considerable changes since before he embarked on his expedition. The Red Maple City Church now had more than a thousand full-fledged clergy and had become a "large church," belonging to a medium-to-large scale, with brand-new, towering sacred buildings everywhere.

On the way to the "Holy See of the Bishops," Anthony told Luo Xiu that the Red Maple City Church had recently received personnel and financial support from the Pine Plains General Church, the Sina City Church, and many surrounding churches.
Many clergy members volunteered to be transferred to the Red Maple City Church. On the application list in Anthony's hands, there were nearly two thousand clergy members who had come after learning that "Radiant Wise King" Rosius Carlos was about to establish a new diocese in the new "Saint Carlos Territory".

Before Luo Xiu returned, Anthony only reviewed a portion of the documents for use in expanding the clergy of the Red Maple City Church; the remaining decision-making power would be left to Luo Xiu.

In addition, surrounding churches allocated a large amount of funds to the Red Maple City Church, and Luo Xiu also dispatched a team of clergy from the front lines to transport resources back to Red Maple City, providing ample support for the construction of many new sacred buildings for the church.

Moreover, there is also the assistance of the Supreme Being – in Red Maple City, unlike in the capital where the Supreme Being has no intention of dominating the Radiance, the "Grand Inquisitor" Baines, who remains in charge of the "Frontier Court," has always maintained a fairly good relationship with the Church.

Baines would do his utmost to help the Church expand its size and seek all kinds of external support. On the way to the Holy See, Anthony also told Rosh that since Rosh embarked on his holy journey, Baines had become unusually friendly, unlike someone of the "Supreme."

Perhaps it was because of his own reasons... Luo Xiu knew that as long as his influence remained in Red Maple City, allies of [Supreme] and [Wisdom], while nominally led by [Supreme], actually made important decisions with the Red Maple City Church at the helm.

After all, above Baines—his superior, "General Thunder" Albert—was technically one of his own.

Albert's superiors, Lord Gawain and his father, Marquis Vizia Bakal, had solidified their positions in the Matsubara Territory and even the Empire through their own achievements and by leading the Matsubara Expeditionary Force in the "War of Judgment." Their attitude towards him should have been quite friendly.

Now, Luo Xiu truly felt that—at his current position, in the entire Songyuan Territory, everyone looked at him with approval, and he saw everyone as a good person.

Even the "Supreme"—the true highest-ranking person in the Songyuan Territory, Marquis Vizia Bakal—Luo Xiu had a vague feeling that his current influence might not be greater than his own.

If a comparison must be made, both he and the Marquis of Vizia are "Red-crowned Princes" Marquises, and he currently also has connections with an Imperial Duke.

Oh, and if we include Duke Hakkas, who might become an ally in the future... that's the network of two imperial dukes!
"..."

Luo Xiu was thinking about these things.

While chatting with Hubbard and Anthony, his mind wandered to other things.

Having witnessed the tremendous changes in Red Maple City and the church, he felt a sense of joy. After all, in a sense, he had spent the longest time in Red Maple City, which was his second hometown, and the Red Maple City church was like his home.

……

Along the way, Luo Xiu chatted with Anthony and Hubbard about other recent developments at the Red Maple City Church.

Since the Dark Duchy was completely destroyed in the decisive battle of Dadu, a considerable number of its remnants have fled into the Empire, and a significant portion of them have settled and lurked around Red Maple City. Anthony has organized more than a dozen Holy Judgments, but he has always been unable to completely eradicate the remnants of the Dark Duchy and the heretics.

The remaining resistance forces of the Dark Army, just like after the "Judgment War" in the previous life, have always been a rather troublesome problem. However, this time the "Judgment War" ended even earlier than in the previous life, which means that there are even more Dark Army members on the run, making it much more dangerous to deal with them than in the previous life.

In response, Anthony followed Luo Xiu's instructions before he embarked on the expedition and entrusted the vast majority of the task of clearing out the remaining resistance forces of the Dark Army to the "Descendants." Indeed, the results were excellent, and players were able to find something to do. This became the main activity for players after completing the main quest of version 1.0.

However, this does not affect the interior of Red Maple City. Red Maple City is now the most important city where the "Descendants" have settled. In other words, it is very difficult for the remnants of the Dark Army to sneak into Red Maple City undetected. Therefore, they occupy more of the surrounding small towns or villages, or entrenched in deserted areas.

Luo Xiu had already heard this from Anthony. However, Luo Xiu didn't see these remnants of the Dark Army as a threat he needed to take seriously. On the contrary, they were the perfect monster spawners for players during the "version transition" period…

Their sole purpose is to be amassed by players, draining their pent-up energy when there are no major events, and then, as the Red Maple City Church's largest "special reserve resource," they relentlessly dump gold coins!
"Here we are."

In Luo Xiu's ears came Huber's voice.

Along the way, Rosius, Hubbard, and Anthony arrived before the "Holy Seat of the Bishops".

Hubbard's tone had become somewhat serious, unlike the tone he used only when addressing him. Luo Xiu then stopped his thoughts and looked at what was in front of him—

The familiar bishop's seat, which had been Anthony's main workplace during his absence from the Red Maple City Church, was well-maintained by the clergy and showed no signs of age.

Before Luo Xiu, right at the main entrance to the bishop's seat, stood another saint in magnificent robes, smiling at him.

Luo Xiu recognized him; he was the same saint who, along with Luo Xiu, had been bestowed the title of "Meritorious Person" and "Chosen Saint" by Emperor Augustusville.

“Lord Hardy Lambert, the ‘Red Deacon,’ arrived three days ago.”

Hubbard paused, looked at what was in front of him, then at Luo Xiu, and said in a low voice:

"Lord Hardy has been waiting for you."

"Lord Hardy said... he has resigned from all his positions as a cardinal in the Holy Court and returned the title of 'Chosen Saint' bestowed upon him by the Supreme Being... He has come to Red Maple City as an ordinary holy man... a pilgrim, to serve as your... right arm, to await your... teachings and holy instructions, and to assist you with all his might."

"These are Lord Hardy's exact words."

"..."

"what?"

……

(End of this chapter)