Chapter 553: Worship

Both of the Transcendent Sect's Grand Laws were located in the Uploading Chamber on Basement Level 100, the building's lowest level. Notably, the hundredth floor, while technically just one level, featured a ceiling nearly a hundred meters high. Tier upon tier of spectator seats surrounded a central arena. Back in the long-gone Gray Fox Era, this place might have served as a sports stadium, an arena, or an auction house, functioning as some sort of venue for entertainment.

In the present wasteland era, however, it had become the Transcendent Sect's place of worship.

As seven in the evening drew closer, the seats in the Uploading Chamber gradually filled up. Apart from those assigned to essential duties, nearly every Transcendent believer came to the Uploading Chamber for worship. They never missed it. Every night was the same.

"Our worship isn't nearly this formal," Tahmas said from the aisle, leaning against the wall. His voice came out distorted from beneath his black crow mask. "It's more like a banquet where everyone gets together and chats after dinner."

"During the day, the Crowslaughters are either honing their skills or out hunting criminals. We hardly have any time to gather together. Our only real time to rest is during the nighttime worship after dinner.

"Sometimes a martial attendant who just returned would tell everyone how many Evil Crows he had hunted. Martial attendant commanders Kesh and Kalan, for instance, were among the most prolific hunters. Kalan was particularly good at telling stories. He would go through all the things the Evil Crow had done, talking about how many crimes they had committed and how they had escaped capture. Once the apprentices were worked into a righteous fury, he would change his tone and tell them how he finally caught up with the Evil Crow and subjected them to the Blood Crow Punishment, making their deaths as gruesome as possible. Everyone would applaud happily.

"Oh, right. You might not know what a Blood Crow is. You tear open the Evil Crow's back and pull out their lungs, making them look like a pair of blood-soaked wings. The first time I performed the Blood Crow Punishment, he was the one who taught me.

"Of course, not everyone is consumed by the joy of slaughtering evil crows. Take the debater Anoi, for example. Whenever he attends worship, it inevitably turns into a debate. We discuss what kinds of crimes warrant killing and the difficult situations the Crowslaughters encounter. I debated with him once too. I encountered a sorcerer who had slaughtered a group of traveling merchants, but after following the clues, I discovered that the merchants had actually tried to kill the sorcerer first. The problem was that there were children among the merchants. Other than my mentor, he taught me more than anyone else.

"Besides debates and stories, what most people look forward to during worship are the performances. The Crowslaughters have always had a tradition of dancing. Our murder of crows is the finest song-and-dance performance there is. Yeru is our dance instructor. Whenever she attends worship, everyone ignores Kalan and Anoi and waits for her dance troupe to perform. She has always wanted me to join them, but I don't dare perform in front of so many people.

"And then there's Tahnom. She's incredibly clever. No one knew how to play the piano we found in the ruins, so she figured it out little by little and even composed several songs of her own. Her performances with Yeru are always what we look forward to most when returning home."

As he went on, the pride in Tahmas's voice gradually faded. He gazed at the crowded Uploading Chamber, and no one could tell what melody played in the heart hidden beneath his terrifying, grotesque crow skin.

"Once worship begins, remember not to watch," he said at last. "I know my own limits, but you might fall in within a second."

Ashe and the others nodded one after another.

Worship was a collective ritual existing in every sect. Its fundamental purpose involved replenishing the power of the Grand Laws.

When believers worshipped, the Grand Laws could not only replenish what they had expended, but even grow stronger. The reason the Temple of Calamity Flame remained so firmly convinced of the strength of the Grand Law of Eternal Calamity Flame was that it stood as the oldest Grand Law in existence. In theory, that meant it ranked among the strongest powers on the Myriad Continent.

Calamity power, flame power, mental power, faith power. Every sect offered a similar explanation for why worship could strengthen a Grand Law. Everyone believed that Grand Laws could draw energy from their believers.

Ashe had initially thought the same. Iger, however, had a different theory, based on a single question: Why don't other kingdoms have Grand Laws?

Perhaps believers really could provide the energy needed to sustain Grand Laws, yet that energy could never be anything so straightforward. Otherwise, other kingdoms would have patched their own systems and copied the strategy long ago.

The relationship between Grand Laws and believers was something unique to the Myriad Continent.

In fact, Iger suspected that faith power did not exist at all. Perhaps the Myriad Continent simply had a reward mechanism specifically tied to Grand Laws. Rather than drawing energy from their believers, Grand Laws might instead trigger this reward mechanism by increasing the number of their followers. The best evidence was the Four Pillars Cult. None of the Four Pillar Deities were Grand Laws, yet they still drew energy through worship.

Regardless, worship and Grand Laws were both common knowledge on the Myriad Continent. Every sect had its own form of worship, but they all shared one rule: if you did not intend to follow a sect, you absolutely must not participate in its worship.

Worship not only allowed believers to replenish the power of a Grand Law, but also allowed the Grand Law to establish a connection with its believers.

In Tahmas's words, before they lost the Grand Law of Crowslaughter, no one would waver in the Crowslaughters' ideals. After they lost the Grand Law of Crowslaughter, no one could uphold its will.

Only after they moved away from Tahmas did Iger give Ashe and Harvey this summary. "To put it simply, worship is a brainwashing ritual between a Grand Law and its believers."

That said, Grand Laws themselves had no consciousness. They were merely forces formed from ideals. If someone could hold firmly to an ideal for their entire life and devote everything to realizing it, then on this wasteland, was that really a good thing or a bad thing?

Because of the unique nature of worship, the Transcendent Sect did not prohibit outsiders like Ashe and the others from approaching the Uploading Chamber. If they dared to barge inside, they would not even get to decide what they wore by the time it was over.

When the time displayed on the domed screen reached 18:59, Ashe and the others immediately sharpened their focus.

The Grand Laws were not placed directly in the central arena. Each one was enclosed within a transparent glass cabinet. It might have been glass, but anything designed to protect a Grand Law obviously utilized a special material capable of withstanding even Legendary spells.

They were so certain Silver Lamp would make her move during worship because this was the only time the Transcendent Sect opened the glass cabinets and allowed the Grand Laws to come into full contact with their believers. The cabinets would open one minute before worship began. At that point, worship had yet to start, but the Grand Laws were already exposed, making it the perfect opportunity for Silver Lamp to strike.

Time ticked by. Ashe and the others tightened their grips around their Miracles, ready to unleash everything at Silver Lamp the moment she appeared.

Then the sound of hurried footsteps echoed through the passage.

Ashe turned around and saw a group of elementary school students running toward them. Apparently, they had nearly been late for worship. As they passed Ashe and the others, they turned to glance at Harvey as well. Ashe recognized one of them immediately. It was the little girl who had dared to kiss the necromancer.

The children entered the chamber, and the time finally reached 19:00. The Transcendent Sect's worship officially began.