Chapter 005: The Pope’s Hint

Du Fan’s heart pounded wildly; he didn’t know how to respond for a moment. He simply sat there with his head lowered, before finally speaking in a respectful tone, “I am more than willing.”
Anthony continued to gaze at Du Fan calmly, seemingly seeing through his excitement and confusion.
After a while, he gently exhaled and said, “You… come with me!”
With that, Anthony grasped the silver-white magic wand in his hand and tapped it lightly on the ground.
In an instant, Du Fan felt an immense amount of magic emanating from what seemed like an ordinary wand. Soon after, a thin line of magic slowly appeared on the floor of the hall. A blindingly white light flashed by. By the time Du Fan could see clearly again, the stairs and statues had disappeared, replaced by two massive stone doors tightly shut!
Everything around was silent. Earlier, he could still hear faint bird calls and insect noises, but now all sounds had vanished completely. Du Fan couldn’t even hear his own heartbeat.
Yet, he could vaguely sense that there were countless people in this place, but the nature of their existence was beyond Du Fan’s understanding—even someone who had witnessed the true power of the sacred realm.
However, the polar ice beneath him remained, confirming to him that everything he saw was not an illusion.
After hesitating for a moment, Du Fan slowly stood up.
At that moment, Archbishop Anthony, who had previously appeared tired and aged, now had a faint blush on his face, as if he were drunk. He slowly turned to look at Du Fan and pointed at the massive stone doors ahead, saying, “Look!”
Du Fan quickly glanced over and couldn’t help but ask, “What place is this? Why…”
He then pointed at the reliefs on the doors. On these ancient stone doors was an exquisitely detailed relief depicting two crossed holy cross swords. Their design was almost identical to that of the Templar Knights’ weapons, with every tiny detail clearly shown. It could even be said that, aside from being a relief, these cross swords were no different from those used by the Templar Knights.

Seeming to notice Du Fan’s surprise, Anthony smiled faintly, held up the silver-white wand in his hand, and traced the reliefs on the stone door for a moment before saying, “These two crossed holy cross swords, Du Fan, what do you think they resemble?”
Du Fan vaguely recalled something and hesitated for a while before saying, “They seem like… the holy cross runes of our Holy Church?”
A hint of satisfaction flashed in Anthony’s eyes. He nodded and said, “Du Fan, you have good eyesight. This relief originally represented our Holy Church, only… it was from the past.”
“The past?” Du Fan couldn’t help but ask.
“Yes… the past…” A bitter smile appeared on Anthony’s lips as he shook his head and said, “Actually, a long time ago, the symbol used by our Holy Church to represent God was precisely this relief. In those turbulent times, this relief symbolized one thing: the ultimate purpose of using swords is to bring peace…”
Du Fan sighed and said, “That makes sense… But this relief was already extremely perfect. Why did it become the holy cross runes we see today?”
Anthony suddenly sneered and said, “It’s easy to understand, Du Fan. You must know what the symbol of Roland Academy is, right?”
“Of course. Isn’t it just a delicate sword rune?” At that moment, Du Fan’s expression changed, and he said, “Could it be…”
Anthony nodded and gave Du Fan a deep look before saying, “Du Fan, you’re right. It is indeed that ‘could it be’… Originally, this relief represented the Holy Church. But after the Holy Church split, the part related to the sword fell into the hands of Roland Academy. That’s why today, the holy cross runes are the emblem representing our Holy Church, while the sword represents Roland Academy… Du Fan, do you know why successive popes have been so determined to unite these two forces?”
As he spoke, Anthony let out a long sigh. He didn’t seem to want to wait for Du Fan’s answer and simply said, “It’s because successive popes hope that the runes from a thousand years ago can reappear… Neither the holy cross runes nor the sword can represent the God of Light. Only when the two are combined can they represent the supreme and eternal God of Light… Both we and Roland Academy understand that if we don’t unite these two runes, no matter how hard we try, it will be nothing but a joke… Using a rune that cannot represent God to represent God is, after all, our greatest shame!”

Du Fan was slightly stunned and couldn’t help but say, “Then in that case… why do we still need to replace it with the Sacred Church’s rune?”
Anthony glanced at Du Fan and snorted, “Du Fan, you might think this is just a rune, but in reality… hmph, never mind. You’ll understand why later… For now…”
Du Fan nodded slightly, not daring to say more.
Anthony sighed softly again, slowly withdrawing his wand, and said calmly, “This stone door has been here since the founding of my Sacred Church. Behind this door are ancient scrolls left by past generations, containing truthful records of history. If you read them, you’ll realize that the history we know now… hmph, is nothing but a joke fabricated by the empire! Moreover, only those at the rank of cardinal archbishop can enter this place. Even then, without the Pope’s permission, they have no right to enter. Over the past thousand years, not more than a hundred people have ever entered this place within the Sacred Church! Even I have only been in there twice in my life… Du Fan, I can tell you that those who can enter this place hold the highest status within the Sacred Church… Otherwise, they wouldn’t be qualified to read those ancient scrolls!”
Du Fan’s heart raced. True history… a place accessible only with the Pope’s permission… Someone like Anthony had only been in there twice in his life…
To be asked to enter such a place as a mere minor white-robed priest was truly… an honor…
This could almost be considered a code. First, only cardinal archbishops could enter… And he was just a white-robed priest now. Didn’t that imply that he might have a chance to reach that position in the future? Otherwise, wouldn’t the Sacred Church be admitting its own failure? One below all, above all others!
Second, Anthony said that only with the Pope’s permission could one enter this place. So did that mean… he already had the Pope’s permission to enter?
It seemed that the Pope, whom he had never met, was showing him quite a bit of respect! If word of this got out, even if he remained a white-robed priest in the Sacred Church, surely many people would rush to flatter him!
Youngest and most accomplished cardinal archbishop ever—what a great title!

It seemed he had seen through Du Fan’s thoughts. Anthony smiled faintly before his expression suddenly turned serious. He looked at Du Fan carefully and said in a deep voice, “Du Fan, according to the ancient rules of my Holy Church, even in another ten years, with your status, you wouldn’t be qualified to enter this place… But since His Holiness the Pope values you, I have nothing to say! I’m sure you can understand His Holiness’s hint with your own mind. It seems my position will soon belong to you… So, Du Fan, please don’t disappoint me!”
As he spoke, Anthony slowly turned away, but Du Fan clearly felt that, for a moment, there seemed to be a faint… murderous intent emanating from Anthony!?
He… wanted to kill him!?
Du Fan grew wary. He instinctively stepped back, but then forced a faint smile. Under such circumstances, if Anthony really wanted to kill him, he probably wouldn’t even have the strength to fight back!
Moreover, given Anthony’s status, if he really wanted to kill him, why go through all this trouble? Why talk so much with him?
He could just send a squad of Templars to tear him to pieces!
It must have been his imagination!
Du Fan wasn’t sure, but he certainly wouldn’t show those feelings on his face.
Anthony, on the other hand, acted as if nothing had happened. He waved his staff slightly in a gesture of invitation and said calmly, “Du Fan, come. You’re the first person in a thousand years to set foot here as a white-robed priest. This might be the only time ever… So, do you want to push open this door yourself, or shall I help you?”