Jiang Lin stood in the Statue Hall for a moment, letting the feeling of being grounded return to his body.
A hundred and fifty days in Caeous was neither too long nor too short.
The gray-brown soil, the pale purple sky, and the burnt-sweet scent in the air of that planet had now all become memories.
But the hall in front of him, built of white stone, with the soft, pale gold morning light filtering through the stained glass windows, and the scent of incense floating in the air—this was the familiar breath of his own world.
The deacon on duty still stood at the end of the corridor with his back to him, seemingly entirely unaware of when he had appeared.
The light of the teleportation array had already dissipated, and the runes on the statue's pedestal had returned to silence, as if everything that had just happened was merely his own hallucination.
Jiang Lin stepped toward the statue of the God of Holy Light and sat cross-legged on the stone steps before the pedestal.
A wave of warmth came from the Apostle Brand on his chest; the rewards for completing the quest were waiting to be claimed.
He was in no hurry to open them. Instead, he closed his eyes first, quickly running through the experiences of the past hundred and fifty days in his mind.
Ten nodes, one hundred and twenty thousand believers.
The modification of seventeen Demon God statues, and nineteen small tributaries continuously funneling the power of faith to him.
The destruction of that Blood Demon in the Abyss of Slaughter, and the indescribable monsters stitched together from the limbs of countless creatures on the other side of the rift.
He opened his eyes, his golden gaze reflecting the merciful and majestic face of the statue.
“System,”
he muttered in his mind.
The system panel expanded before his eyes. Compared to a hundred and fifty days ago, the numbers on it had changed significantly.
【Name】: Jiang Lin
【Class】: Paladin
【Level】: Level 49
【Stamina】: 2.45 million
【Spirit】: 2.45 million
He was at the 4th-rank late stage, just one step away from the 4th-rank peak.
That final step lay within the rewards of this quest.
He took a deep breath and sank his mind into the Apostle Brand.
A gentle yet vast consciousness enveloped him, and a line of text condensed from holy light surfaced before his eyes:
【Spark Mission · Completed】
【Evaluation: Exceeded (127,430 believers, 19 nodes)】
【Distributing rewards...】
The first wave of warmth surged from the depths of the brand, larger and purer than any faith dividends he had received in Caeous.
The warm current was like a bursting flood, rushing down his meridians, flowing through his dantian, his limbs, and every inch of his flesh and bones.
He could feel his holy light magic essence growing at a rate visible to the naked eye.
The liquid golden magic essence in his dantian, which had originally been just a thin layer, was now being injected with a new spring.
The liquid level rose continuously, its color gradually changing from light gold to a deeper golden-yellow, as thick as molten metal.
His meridians grew slightly hot under the washing of the warm current, as if soaked in warm water, every node greedily absorbing this pure energy.
The values for Stamina and Spirit jumped on the system panel, from 2.45 million to 2.5 million, from 2.5 million to 2.55 million, and from 2.55 million to 2.6 million.
Finally, they stopped at 2.7 million.
This seemed to have already exceeded the limit value he should normally have at the 4th-rank.
According to the previous method of calculation.
He should now possess the baseline attributes of a 6th-rank, which was 2.5 million, and shouldn't be able to increase it further.
However, perhaps because he had broken through his limits at every single rank since he began his cultivation,
his limit seemed to have already surpassed the theoretical upper limit.
【Level】: Level 49 → Level 50
【Stamina】: 2.7 million
【Spirit】: 2.7 million
The 4th-rank peak.
He could feel the bottleneck right ahead, a thin layer like the first sheet of ice on a winter lake.
There was no need to deliberately sense it; it was just there, as clear as the lines on his palm.
He was only one final step away from the 5th-rank.
But not right now.
He still lacked a bit of accumulation, a bit of settling, and a suitable opportunity.
The warm current did not stop.
A second stream of information flowed along the brand into his consciousness. Unlike the previous scattered quest prompts, this was a complete set of information, carved deep into his soul like a brand:
【Apostle of God Status Promotion】
【Current Apostle Level: Low-Rank Apostle → Mid-Rank Apostle】
【Promotion completed】
He felt the Apostle Brand on his chest suddenly grow hot, so hot that he could feel the heat even through his robes.
The shape of the brand changed in his perception, expanding from a simple point of light into a more complex, badge-like rune array.
The badge slowly rotated on his chest, emitting a stable, warm golden light.
He could feel that his connection with the God of Holy Light was much closer than before. It was no longer a one-way “receive commands, execute tasks” dynamic, but had gained a two-way, more equal nature.
A Mid-Rank Apostle.
In the Temple system, Mid-Rank Apostles usually corresponded to the strength of a 6th-rank to 7th-rank.
Such individuals were qualified to independently execute interplanetary missionary quests, speak at high-level Temple meetings, and consult most archived ancient documents.
Yet he, at the 4th-rank peak, had obtained this qualification.
If word got out, probably no one would believe it.
He suppressed the waves in his heart and continued to check the subsequent rewards.
【Holy Light Origin Infusion (Large): Completed】
【Spirit and Stamina upper limits increased, physical constitution slightly improved】
He could feel that his body had indeed undergone some changes.
His meridians were wider, his dantian was larger, and even his bone density seemed to have increased slightly.
Was it because of this that his upper limit had increased?
As he was now, he should be able to easily defeat an ordinary 6th-rank peak.
【Unlocked Divine Grace · Initial Stage】
【Upon receiving fatal damage, the Holy Light Brand will automatically trigger an Absolute Protection lasting for 2 seconds. This can be triggered once per month. With each increase in apostle level, the protection's strength and frequency will increase accordingly.】
Absolute Protection.
Two seconds of invincibility.
In a rapidly changing battle, two seconds was enough to decide life and death.
Though it could only be triggered once a month, this trump card was precious enough.
He silently noted this information in his heart and continued reading.
【Unlocked High-level Temple Authority】
【May borrow skill books below Emperor-tier for free at any Temple containing a statue of the God of Holy Light (up to 6 books per year)】
【The Apostle Badge will receive access authority equivalent to a “Temple Special Envoy.”】
Below Emperor-tier.
The highest-tier skill he currently mastered was only at the King-tier, and Emperor-tier was even higher.
Although he couldn't use it for the time being, he was very clear about the value of this authority.
Those high-tier skill books couldn't even be bought with money outside.
【Holy Art Upgrade Opportunity ×1】
【Current upgradable Holy Arts: Eight Extremities Holy Sword, Instant Light Flash】
【Holy Art Upgrade Opportunity ×1】
【Can be used to perform a secondary evolution on an existing Holy Art, or utilize the “Faith Anchoring” points accumulated during this mission to unlock an entirely new high-tier Holy Art】
The Eight Extremities Holy Sword was the core offensive method he had mastered earliest. From the moment he learned it until now, he had used it in every single battle.
With its platinum blade and eight-colored runes, its condensation speed was fast, its power was stable, and it had no obvious shortcomings.
Yet precisely because it was too balanced, it lacked a “killing move” capable of turning the tide of battle at a critical moment.
Instant Light Flash was an exclusive Holy Art derived from the fusion of spatial magic and the power of holy light.
It forcibly tore through the laws of space to perform a displacement. With no casting pre-delay and no magic fluctuations, it was almost impossible to predict in actual combat.
However, it had one fatal limitation:
After each use, there had to be an interval of at least thirty seconds before it could be used again.
Thirty seconds. In a rapidly changing battle, it usually could only be used once.
What he needed was the latter.
A single precise teleportation was far more valuable than ten head-on clashes.
“Holy Art Upgrade Opportunity, apply to Instant Light Flash,”
he muttered in his mind.
The light within the brand flickered slightly, as if confirming his choice. Then, a brand-new segment of information rushed into his consciousness:
【Holy Art Upgrade: Instant Light Flash → Instant Light Double Flash】
【Effect: Allows consecutive use of Instant Light Flash twice within 30 seconds. After the second use, the cooldown is extended to 60 seconds. If only used once after the cooldown completes, the cooldown remains 30 seconds.】
【Note: Consecutive teleportation doubles the physical strain on the body. Please use with caution.】
Jiang Lin carefully pondered this description, playing out actual combat scenarios in his mind.
The first flash to close in, and the second flash to evade a counterattack or pursue.
There was almost no gap between the two teleportations, which was equivalent to possessing two “space-ignoring” displacement abilities within an extremely short time window.
Although the cooldown doubled afterward, in a critical moment, these two flashes were enough to decide the outcome of a battle.
He nodded in satisfaction and continued reading.
The next reward was a fist-sized, pale gold crystal floating in his consciousness space.
Countless tiny points of light flowed within the crystal, as if a nebula had been compressed into this small gem.
【Obtained Special Reward: Seed of Spark】
【Effect: Allows the establishment of a permanent, miniature faith anchor on any unclaimed planet. Once the anchor is established, the God of Holy Light will begin paying attention to the planet, and will decide whether to incorporate it into the formal faith system based on the host's subsequent contributions.】
【Extra Benefit: If the planet eventually falls under the formal jurisdiction of the God of Holy Light, the host will receive one-tenth of the planet's total power of faith as a pioneering reward.】
【Current Status: Unused】
【Note: This item is extremely precious. Please choose the timing and location of its use with caution.】
Jiang Lin stared at this description for a long time.
One-tenth.
Not one-thousandth, but one-tenth!
He had busied himself in Caeous for a hundred and fifty days, built so many statues of the God of Holy Light, and developed one hundred and twenty thousand believers, yet his dividend was only one-thousandth.
But with this single seed, as long as he found a suitable planet, planted the anchor, and waited for subsequent missionaries to develop it, he could sit back and collect one-tenth.
Of course, the premise was that “a complete faith system is successfully established afterward.”
And he had to be able to find an unclaimed planet suitable for developing the Temple system in the vast void.
This was not something that could be done overnight; it might take years, decades, or even longer.
But the seed had already been planted; the rest was just a matter of time.
He ran the information of the “Seed of Spark” through his mind once more, then withdrew his thoughts and stood up from the stone steps.
The rewards had been fully claimed.
He stretched his limbs, his joints making a slight cracking sound.
The 4th-rank peak, 2.7 million Stamina and Spirit—he was only one last step away from the 5th-rank.
The status of a Mid-Rank Apostle, high-level Temple authority, the life-saving trump card of Divine Grace, and the evolved Instant Light Double Flash.
This trip had yielded quite a harvest.
In addition, there was another matter he was quite concerned about: it seemed that his dividends of the power of faith established over there had been cut off after he teleported back?
Jiang Lin sat cross-legged in front of the statue of the God of Holy Light, closed his eyes, and sank his mind deep into the Apostle Brand.
A moment later, a gentle yet vast consciousness enveloped him, and a line of text condensed from holy light surfaced before his eyes:
【Faith Dividends · Cross-Plane Transmission Instructions】
【The power of faith generated by the faith anchors established by the apostle on foreign planets will continue to remain effective even after the apostle leaves the planet.】
【Claim Method: The apostle must establish a connection with the statue of the God of Holy Light via the Apostle Brand in any Temple containing the statue to collect the accumulated faith dividends.】
【Currently Claimable Faith Dividends: Planet Caeous (Accumulating)】
【Note: Faith dividends will continue to accumulate over time. It is recommended to collect them regularly.】
After reading these instructions, the final stone in Jiang Lin's heart dropped.
So he actually needed to be in front of the statue to claim them.
It was just like money deposited in a bank; one had to go to the counter to withdraw it.
With a slight thought, he chose to claim them.
A warm current surged from the statue's pedestal, flowing along his arms and into his body.
He opened his eyes, a sliver of understanding flashing in his golden gaze.
The time had come.
He had accumulated power in Caeous for a hundred and fifty days and claimed all his rewards. The magic essence in his body had already filled to the limit of the 4th-rank peak.
The bottleneck, already as thin as a cicada's wing, finally began to loosen under the push of the final warm current of the faith dividends.
Jiang Lin did not hesitate.
He closed his eyes again, running his three breathing techniques to their absolute limits simultaneously.
Holy light magic essence, ice soul power, and blood-colored energy—the three forces surged, intertwined, and clashed within his body, like three turbulent rivers converging into one.
The liquid golden magic essence in his dantian began to spin, faster and faster.
The magic essence, which had been as thick as molten metal, gradually became more condensed during the high-speed rotation, its color shifting from a deep golden-yellow to a purer amber.
With every breath, a wisp of magic essence was drawn from the air of the Statue Hall, flowing along his meridians and into his dantian.
The concentration of magic essence in the Royal Capital Temple already far exceeded ordinary areas. Now, under Jiang Lin's full pull, the magic essence within a radius of dozens of meters gathered toward him like it was drawn by a vortex.
The deacon on duty turned around at the end of the corridor. Seeing the figure enveloped in a soft golden light before the statue, his pupils contracted slightly.
He opened his mouth, but ultimately made no sound. He merely backed away quietly to a further position, leaving this area clear.
Jiang Lin was unaware of this.
His entire mind had already sunk into the silent qualitative change within his body.
The cracks on the bottleneck continuously expanded under the persistent impact of the magic essence, going from the width of a hair to a spiderweb, and then to a dense network of fractures.
Every impact brought bursts of swelling pain to his meridians, but that pain was mixed with a strange pleasure, as if something that had been suppressed for a long time was being released.
...
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