"How... how dare you talk about me like that!" Kironlo trembled on his knees. His old face was ashen. He pointed and roared at Han Shuo like a mad ghoul.
The matter Han Shuo had brought up was Kironlo's sore point. No one ever dared to talk about it in front of him because of his identity. Given Kironlo's temperament, it would be a wonder if he didn't fly into a rage after Han Shuo spoke so harshly about the incident in front of all the cardinals.
But of course, Han Shuo was not afraid of him.
"Ahahahah, what's the matter? Do you feel humiliated? Serves you right!" Han Shuo sneered, ignoring Kironlo's roar of anger. He continued his cutting remarks, "Had it not been for that disastrous mistake you made back then, the Church would not have had to operate in the dark for all these hundreds of years, and most certainly would not have become a target of scorn, hated by everyone on the continent. With the mental capacity you have, you will only bring the Church more ruin by staying. If I were you, I would surely be too embarrassed to see anyone or even show my face in public."
"You, you..." Kironlo pointed at Han Shuo. He was so enraged by these words that he couldn't even form a sentence.
Han Shuo glanced at the Pope of Calamity and saw that he had no intention of stopping him. Han Shuo deduced that the Pope wanted him to use this opportunity to disgrace Kironlo. This emboldened Han Shuo even more, "I don't like people pointing fingers at me. Try pointing at me again. I dare you."
"Young man, you are too bold!" Kironlo was flustered and annoyed. But since he still had misgivings about Han Shuo, he restrained himself as best he could from attacking Han Shuo.
Han Shuo narrowed his eyes and let out a cold groan before lunging at Kironlo. The Domain of Divinity of the Avatar of Destruction within his body suddenly unfolded. In an instant, the entire Hall of Cardinals was transformed into a hair-raising region where only a disorderly Edict of Destruction remained. Elements that were normally present everywhere were suddenly all gone.
The Cardinals of the Church of Calamity, who cultivated in all kinds of elemental energies, suddenly found themselves in a region devoid of the energies they were most familiar with. All of them began to panic as they stared at Han Shuo standing in the centre in horror.
All they could see was Han Shuo suddenly standing in front of Kironlo. Then one of his big hands grabbed Kironlo's neck and lifted him high into the air. His face was icy cold as he stared at Kironlo as he struggled to free himself.
Han Shuo's straightforward and blunt manner of attacking as soon as someone disobeyed him made the crowd's hearts tremble.
Kironlo's face was completely red and he looked like a clown. His frail legs, as thin as bamboo, were kicking and his two hands were desperately slapping Han Shuo's hand. He tried his best to free himself from this humiliating and degrading position, but his actions were futile.
As a mere basegod, once Han Shuo unleashed his Domain of Divinity, Kironlo would have absolutely no way of attacking Han Shuo with elemental energy.
Having lost access to the Elemental Energy of Death that he had relied on for his survival, all he had left was the raw power of his frail physical body. Against Han Shuo's physical body in the realm of the Nine Changes, Kironlo was like a praying mantis trying to stop a chariot. He had used all of his energy and yet was unable to free himself from Han Shuo's one-handed grip. Suspended in midair, Kironlo found it increasingly difficult to breathe. His face was flushed and looked like it was covered in blood.
Kironlo, this great Cardinal of the Church of Calamity, had been revered by most for hundreds of years. He struggled like a bird on a leash, unable to resist. A few of the cardinals who were on good terms with Kironlo had wanted to help him, but were now frozen in fear. Every one of them had flickering eyes that could not turn away from the gruesome scene. They lowered their heads timidly, not daring to look Kironlo in the face as he slowly withered away, as if he might suffocate at any moment.
The bizarre atmosphere without any elemental energy to use so suddenly caused the people in the room to panic. Like fools, they stared at Han Shuo in the centre as he callously grabbed Kironlo by the neck. Their lips were dry and their hands cold. They thought they would lose their weak lives at any moment.
"I have the ability to be insolent!" Han Shuo said arrogantly to Kironlo as he glared at him. This was also a warning to the rest of the cardinals in the hall, telling them that they had better behave.
Many of the high-ranking members of the Church of Calamity had horrified expressions on their faces and were at a complete loss. They were afraid that Han Shuo would take his anger out on them as well. Thoughts raced through their minds as to how best to draw a clear line between themselves and Kironlo.
Meanwhile, the plump pope seemed rather unperturbed, even though his heart was pounding. The Pope was different from Kironlo in that he was not as arrogant. From the rumours that Han Shuo had killed the Pope of Light along with several experts, and the fact that he had laid waste to several hundred thousand orc warriors, the Pope of Calamity had a rough idea of Han Shuo's power.
However, even in this case, the pope was still rather shocked to see Han Shuo holding Kironlo so tightly, not allowing him the slightest ability to resist. If Han Shuo could do this so effortlessly, it also meant that Han Shuo could finish him off just as easily. This fact made him very uncomfortable, but he did not show it.
The fat man saw Kironlo's face turning redder and redder and thought that he might stop breathing at any moment. Seeing that he had almost achieved his goal, he finally spoke up to mediate the situation,
"Erm, Bryan, we are all on the same side. Kironlo had just talked a little too much. The crime wasn't serious enough for the death penalty. Why don't you let him go this time?"
Han Shuo looked around. Wherever his cold eyes passed, the cardinals bowed their heads in fear. They dared not look Han Shuo in the eye.
Han Shuo nodded contentedly and said in a cold voice, "Very well. I will give you face and spare his lowly life this time, but his middle finger that kept pointing at me still has to go!"
Snap! As soon as Han Shuo finished these words, there was a clear snap and crackle from the middle finger that Kironlo had been using to point at Han Shuo.
Han Shuo then casually swatted it away, sending Kironlo flying. He made a loud thud as his body hit the solid wall. Finally able to breathe properly, Kironlo let out a muffled groan and then a blood-curdling scream as he clung to his severed middle finger.
Then Han Shuo's figure suddenly blurred. He flew backwards and returned to his seat as if he had never moved an inch. At the same time, the Domain of Divinity that enveloped the entire hall abruptly disappeared. The pressure that had so frightened the people felt like nothing more than an illusion.
"You... You... " After screaming miserably, Kironlo glared at Han Shuo with his resentful eyes, but remained motionless.
Han Shuo's performance at that moment was too terrifying. From this ordeal, Kironlo realised that even if everyone in the hall united against Han Shuo, it would take Han Shuo less than a minute to finish them all off. It was also at this point that he truly believed in the words of the Six Horned Tribe King. He finally understood why the merciless and cruel Six-Horned Tribe King was so well-behaved in front of Han Shuo.
"You don't even have the qualifications to take revenge on me. You better give up that thought. Otherwise, you will only be digging your own grave!" Han Shuo said contemptuously as he glared at Kironlo arrogantly.
Kironlo glared at Han Shuo with resentment without saying a word even though his heart was overflowing with pain. This was all he could do to show that he had not yet given in. He understood that against such a powerful enemy, he truly wasn't even capable of taking revenge. He felt completely helpless.
""All right, all right, how about we forget whatever happened here and just let it go.
We are all on the same side. Let's not pretend that we're opposing forces on the battlefield," the big fat man mediated hastily. He could foresee that after this incident, there would be no opposition in the entire Church of Calamity, and Han Shuo would become a member of the Church without the slightest resistance. Even if there were any objections, they would just keep it in their hearts and not speak out.
"I showed you courtesy, but you insisted on not accepting it.
What for?" the corners of Han Shuo's mouth turned into a grin as he talked to himself. However, everyone in the room could hear his 'soliloquy'. They all forced a smile on their faces and said nothing, thinking privately that Kironlo was truly unfortunate to have met his nemesis.
Indeed, of all the remaining matters to discuss, Han Shuo met with absolutely no resistance.
Whenever the Pope brought up anything remotely related to Han Shuo, the cardinals, who would normally be in constant debate and stalemate, all had the same favourable opinion during this meeting. Moreover, they even rushed to express their attitude of supporting Han Shuo, for fear that Han Shuo would be displeased otherwise.
Big Fatty, who had watched all of this, was astonished and in awe. In all the years that he had presided over the meetings, every time he had brought up an issue, those cardinals would always stick to their own positions and argue with each other in a condescending manner. It would always be heated and chaotic, just short of a brawl on the spot. Who would have expected that after Han Shuo's arrival, these cardinals would be transformed into completely different people. Not only did they all share the same views and opinions, but they were also quicker to declare their positions than the last.
Indeed, sometimes brute force is the best tool to solve disorder and chaos, the Calamity Pope thought to himself.
Han Shuo, at the young age that he was, became one of the honourable cardinals of the Calamity Church without the slightest resistance, and took on an important role in the Calamity Church. Every single operation of the Church of Calamity within the Lancelot Empire and Brettel City was now completely under Han Shuo's management. Information on every member of the Church of Calamity in these places and the distribution of power was given to Han Shuo by the Pope.
Wolf and Burt Zili, members of the Calamity Church who had originally operated in the Lancelot Empire, were reassigned as Han Shuo's direct subordinates, reporting only to Han Shuo.
In addition, all the agreements that the Church of Calamity had discreetly made with the countries on the Profound Continent, the contact points and methods, as well as the methods of activating the military forces, were all revealed to Han Shuo by the Fat man, as Han Shuo had been given the privilege of using those forces. After informing Han Shuo of a few other minor matters, the Fat Pope finally told Han Shuo of the most important matter of this meeting - in five days, they would begin the ceremony to pray to their evil god, and Han Shuo would have to be present at that time.
Paying particular attention to the required sacrifices was the least of their problems; the ceremony also had to take place at a suitable time. Five days was enough time for the Church of Calamity to make all the necessary preparations, and Han Shuo could rest during that time.
After the meeting was over, all the cardinals rushed to leave the hall in fear and trepidation.
It was only after they were far away from Han Shuo that those cardinals, including Kironlo, heaved a heavy sigh of relief. The six-horned tribal king of the Soul Race, however, remained cold and indifferent the entire time. But before he left, he cast a glance at Han Shuo. It seemed that he was still worried about those energy stones.
When only the big, fat pope and Han Shuo were left in the hall, the pope suddenly burst out laughing. The fat in his cheeks bounced up and down as he laughed. Then he said in a cheerful tone, "Bryan, you are really something! I've never seen this expression on Kironlo's face in all these years! It is truly amusing!"
It was obvious that the Pope was in a good mood.