Abyssal Chronicles

Chapter 709 - 710: The Shadows Under Faith

"What exactly are you saying?"

"I think my idea is not without merit. At least, in the eyes of the Goddess, the Chosen Girl is definitely more important than the Son Of Destiny."

Tania said this with certainty. Hearing these words, Asar couldn’t help but take a deep breath.

"Why do you say that?"

"When the Girl of Destiny is in danger, she can trigger miracles, you see. The power of the Goddess will descend upon this world, repel the enemies of the Girl of Destiny, and significantly boost the Girl of Destiny’s strength in a short period. You know all this, right? It’s not a secret anyway."

"Yes..."

"And, by comparison, what about the Son of Destiny?"

Tania looked at Asar meaningfully, twirling her hair with her fingers, and said with a tone of regret:

"Look at Xue Tianao. When he was besieged by the Abyssal Demons and in mortal peril, the Goddess didn’t lift a finger to save him, just watched as the Son of Destiny perished. The previous Son Of Destiny’s too – burned to death, killed by the sword, devoured by the Abyssal Demons... Now, who knows what situation this generation’s Son of Destiny is in? Probably not too good either..."

"..."

Hearing this, Asar fell into silence.

Tania smiled meaningfully, slowly stood up, and began to stroll absentmindedly around the room. As she walked, the girl let out a sigh.

And her voice, as if carrying magic, kept tugging at Asar’s thoughts.

"To be honest, I think the Son of Destiny is quite pitiable. With erased memories, knowing nothing, he was sent into this world by the Goddess. Then, led by the nose by a false mission, stripped of his own dreams and life, reduced to the Goddess’s puppet, continuously cultivating and striving hard, seemingly saving the world. In reality, he’s just like cannon fodder, existing to attract fire for the Girl of Destiny. Even after completing the trials, what can the Son of Destiny gain? The Goddess’s legacy is only given to the Girl of Destiny. What does the Son of Destiny have? Seems like nothing at all. If the Son of Destiny tries to seize the Girl of Destiny’s legacy later, he might even be eliminated by the Goddess... Don’t you think it feels quite pitiable?"

Saying this, Tania’s tone gradually became eerie:

"The Son of Destiny is just a chess piece that the Goddess can discard at any time."

"..."

Hearing these words, Asar fell into an eerie silence.

Why Tania, a mere priest, would know about the replacement of the Son of Destiny, the manner of death of the previous Son of Destiny, and important information about the Goddess’s legacy, Asar was already too exhausted to think, or rather, his consciousness had already ignored this part of the information.

Asar, whose eyes gradually lost their luster, just thoughtfully cast his gaze towards the ground.

"A chess piece, huh..."

...

...

Several hours later, in the Heavenly Garden behind the Asumos Cathedral, Tania was leisurely strolling, admiring the beautifully chaotic and deserted scenery around her. Since the sacred beast Huiming followed Mengxi to the Sunlight unit, the once-forbidden Heavenly Garden had been reopened to the devotees.

However, as it had been neglected for nearly a hundred years, the garden had lost its former beauty and was now a quiet, desolate, and eerily silent forest.

Such a place, even though opened, did not attract the devotees of the church to visit for leisure.

As such,

The Heavenly Garden remained as silent and deserted as it had been for the past century.

And, Tania, having interests quite different from ordinary people, was particularly fond of this place. After finishing her communication with the Son of Destiny, Tania came alone to the Heavenly Garden for a walk to clear her mind. The desolation and silence around her instead brought her a sense of relaxation.

Thinking back to Asar’s reaction after hearing her words earlier, Tania revealed a sinister smile.

’Indeed’

’Choosing the Son of Destiny was the right decision’

’Compared to the now mature Mengxi, his will was simpler and weaker, and more easily influenced. So easily swayed by suggestion... such an easy target...’

"Naively ridiculous..."

The blonde girl murmured to herself.

But as she spoke, Tania seemed to sense something, her eyebrows suddenly furrowing, and she slowly turned her head to the side.

’This aura...’

The next moment,

Under Tania’s serious gaze, the ground covered with withered grass suddenly rippled, and then as if turning into a liquid, a figure wrapped in a white-gold robe quietly appeared before Tania. The ground then immediately returned to normal.

Realizing the identity of the newcomer, Tania suppressed the eerie smile on her face, returning to her usual serious demeanor.

Bowing with a curtsy, the girl respectfully greeted the figure in the white robe,

"Holy Envoy, my lord."

Indeed,

The one who emerged from the ground and appeared before Tania was one of the four Holy Envoys of the Asumos Church, Franzten-Zabro.

In response to Tania’s respectful greeting, Zabro placed his hands behind his back and nodded solemnly. Then, without any pleasantries, he straightforwardly said:

"Tania, the Pope wishes to see you, come with me."

His words were filled with unquestionable authority and assertiveness.

But that was normal,

The status of a Holy Envoy in the Church was much higher than that of an Apostle. Zabro talking to Tania didn’t need to be overly courteous.

Tania, aware of these formalities, didn’t feel displeased but instead respectfully lowered her head,

"Understood, my lord"

"Hm."

Zabro nodded in satisfaction. As he nodded, he also took a moment to observe the blonde girl he hadn’t seen in a long time.

"How is the injury left by the Sword Demon’s heavy blow?"

"Thanks to the Goddess’s grace, it’s nothing serious."

"That’s good to hear. But since you’re fine, then go and train instead of wasting your time at Luminous or in places like this."

Surveying the surrounding forest, Zabro spoke indifferently. There was a hint of dissatisfaction in his tone.

"Ophelia has betrayed the church. Now, with only two of the three Heavenly Apostles remaining, you, as the First Earth Apostle and a peak seventh-level existence, need to break through as soon as possible to fill the vacancy of the Heavenly Apostle. Do you understand?"

"I understand"

After respectfully acknowledging, Tania seemed to think of something and tentatively asked:

"By the way, Holy Envoy, may I ask you a question?"

"Go ahead."

"What should we do if someone... shows disrespect to the Goddess?"

"What to do?"

Hearing this, Zabro frowned displeasedly, then looked sternly at Tania:

"Disrespect to the Goddess! That calls for an immediate honor duel! Anyone who dares insult the Goddess deserves no mercy!"

Mentioning the Goddess, Zabro seemed like a different person, becoming extremely agitated. Undoubtedly, if someone in his presence uttered disrespectful words about the Goddess, Zabro would not hesitate to fight them. He was a typical, fanatical devotee.

After speaking, Zabro asked with confusion:

"Why ask such a question suddenly?"

"No reason."

Having gotten the answer she wanted, Tania shook her head and awkwardly scratched her head:

"Well, I’ve been unconscious in the nutrition tank for a while, so I was just wondering if there have been any policy changes recently."

"Such fundamental things will not change."

Zabro stated emphatically, with a hint of reproach in his eyes.

Clearly, he was displeased with Tania for asking such a foolish question.

"Don’t ask such stupid questions again."

However, the Holy Envoy didn’t dwell on it, and after giving a warning glance, he turned his head towards the direction of the Cathedral and urged:

"Enough talk, come with me to see the Pope. It’s impolite to keep the Pope waiting."

"Sorry, Holy Envoy."

After bowing apologetically, Tania obediently followed Zabro towards the Cathedral.

However,

What Zabro didn’t notice was the cold, eerie smile that flashed across the face of the girl, who he thought was loyal to the church and devoted to the Goddess, as she lowered her head.

’Indeed’

’Even the Holy Envoys are the same, fundamentally devoted to that ’woman’...’

’If that’s the case’

’Then they must be eliminated...’