Chapter 150: Welcome Imperial Demon Vanguard

As soon as he jumped off, the knights pulled their spears.

Max smiled at them and glanced at the closed gate.

He turned towards the Saint, who gestured for him to move forward and he followed his instructions.

Max paced forward and the closed gate moved in rhythm with him.

He was in awe.

As he took steps, the closed gate widened, revealing the space in the center.

Max could already peer through inside, catching the appearance of a large altar, with the statue at the center, multiple times larger than he had in the prayer consecrated chamber.

Below the altar was definitely an Archbishop, wearing his clerical attire and equipments, staring at him with widened smile.

As soon as the gates was fully opened and he was in the middle, Max heard the Archbishop from a distant.

"Welcome Imperial Demon Vanguard."

Max sighed. "Does it need to be this grand to welcome me?"

"It’s not even grand as you think." The Archbishop shook his head and turned to other senior clergy.

He said, "Prepare the rite of recognition."

Max was startled. He wanted to stop the Archbishop, but his voice appeared absolute, leading every senior clergy he noticed, including the one behind him to make a move inside the grand cathedral.

As Max stood in the center of the wide gate, the senior clergy walked past and forth beside him, until every single one, including knights, or should Max refer as paladins based on the design of their armor, gathered behind him.

Now that the cathedral’s door was completely opened, in rhythmic with the gate and the central aisle was cleared, the senior clergy, led by a Saint in the peak rank walked past Max carrying incense burner.

The incense smoke spread around, and Max noticed the density of divine mana in the surrounding to increase.

He was stunned. Do they carelessly spend huge amount for that?

After the senior clergy, consisted of Saints and High Priests, were the Healer, who carried the position in the church as acolytes.

They carried white banners with the symbol of the Church’s crest at the center.

Everything occurred naturally.

The cathedral choir also began singing an ancient rhythm that not even the Archbishop had heard ever since it was created.

It hasn’t been performed in nearly five hundred years.

Still, the sheet music survived and was finally performed by the cathedral choir who were immensely nervous as they were suddenly summoned and had to sing the ancient rhythm on the spot without a single practice.

The senior clergy and the acolytes gathered around in the Archbishop in full circle.

They faced the statue together as one senior clergy grabbed a white robed and placed it at the Archbishop.

Another senior clergy brought an ancient scripture to the Archbishop and returned to their positions.

The Archbishop glanced at the statue and then read the ancient scripture.

"Light plunged into darkness and created a safe place for living beings, including the mankind..."

He recited the first passage slowly.

Then he reached another passage.

"...A man recognized by the light will push him towards the expanse."

At that exact moment...

The statue of the Godhand of Salvation began glowing.

Max’s eyes widened.

He was deeply familiar by the strange phenomenon of the glowing light from the statue.

He was speechless.

Do they have to answer my inquiry this way?

Max saw the Archbishop and other members of the clergy, including the knights and the people behind him, kneeled.

Max glanced at the statue and, despite the unwillingness at first, kneeled towards the statue.

At the same time, Max finally understood what "recognition" uttered by the Archbishop earlier meant.

"This should be the recognition of the Church that they acknowledged the divine authority manifesting before us.

It’s reacting because of me.

Is it because of the Authority I inherited?

As Max wondered, unknown to him, inside the Sanctuary of Eternal Light...

A sacred relic reacted.

It was the Hand of Saint Aurelius, Divine Rank relic.

A Divine Rank relic was normally equivalent to the SSS-Rank equipment.

But the Hand of Saint Aurelius was not a true Divine Rank—more like an artificial one.

It was only considered as Divine Relic due to the Authority it contained.

The Hand of Saint Aurelius belonged to the first disciple of Godhand of Salvation.

It his preserved right hand that healed, restored, and reached out to humanity during its establishment.

Before his passing, Aurelius entrusted his right hand to the Church as a symbol of unwavering service, declaring that it should remain not as an object of worship but as a witness to those who would one day bear the same divine calling.

For centuries, the relic has rested silently within the Sanctuary of Eternal Light.

It was normally preserved in the Aurelion Prime, but when the Pope personally visited the Dunmarrow Capital City to conduct a burial ceremony to Grand Runesmith Arlen, he brought the Hand of Saint Aurelius with him.

The reason was simple.

The hand of Saint Aurelius, for generations, continued acknowledge and recognize the bearer of Authority of Salvation.

It would come to live especially when a new pope was chosen.

Although one of its abilities would simply recognize the bearer of Authority of Salvation, the Church would offer their support for such specific individuals.

For instance, when a fated Saint, Divine Apostle, and Holy Paragon were born, the Authority of Salvation would recognize them once they visited the Church.

They were, after all, future bearer of the Authority of Salvation and the Church would then invest to such specific individuals.

However, Max’s appearance this time made the Hand of Saint Aurelius, once a Divine Executor at SS-Rank, wanted to awaken independently.

Normally, it would only happen when humanity faces extraordinary peril.

Now, there was another bearer of Authority, not exactly similar as Authority of Salvation, but it was an Authority deeply compatible with it.

Saint Aurelius himself wanted to appear personally and welcome the arrival of Max.

The Hand of Saint Aurelius began radiating light... becoming dense and concentrated to the point it became hot, dissolving the seal.

This extraordinary event didn’t go unnoticed by the Archbishop, opening his eyes wide in shock...

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