“Meow!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!” Pu’er arched forward on her forepaws. Her hind legs stretched taut as she rose up, every strand of fur standing on end.

Earl Rekar leaned back slightly to look at her. “Are you cheering me on, urging me to go and kill him? Though it does not quite feel that way.”

Pu’er firmly stated, “You cannot kill him; He is the one I chose.”

Rekar opened his mouth as he stared at her. “He’s the man you chose?”

“...” Pu’er.

“Are you willingly cooperating with him in these experiments? Have you lost your mind to feelings? Like those idiots who would betray and abandon their family for love?”

“Are you sick in the head!” Pu’er shouted. “Tonight Gloria the Ninth wanted to use that seed and nourish it with the blood of my Allen family. We were forced into a corner. That is why he awakened you; to deal with the queen!”

“Heh...” Rekar laughed and pointed at his own face. “Do you think I am an idiot?”

“...” Pu’er.

“Someone who can awaken me must have a position in the Church of Order equivalent to the Archbishop of Veyn, and yet he cannot deal with a queen of Veyn? He would not even need to act personally. A single word from him and the entire Gloria family would kneel before him in repentance. He needs to awaken me for that? Hahahahaha...”

“The one who awakened you is only a Divine Servant.”

“Ah...” Rekar.

“In the kingdom of Swillen there is a city called York City. There is a family there named Immers. I severed ties with my family and lived with the Immers for a hundred years. I watched his grandfather grow from a child.”

“His... grandfather?” Rekar frowned. “My time is short, and you start your story with his grandfather?”

“To speak of him, it is necessary to begin with his grandfather. There is no way around him. His grandfather, Tiz, is an Inquisitor of the Church of Order.”

Rekar let out a dissatisfied sound.

“In his youth, he condensed a godhead fragment.”

Rekar went wide-eyed, the blue deep in his sockets growing like two lanterns. “The Church of Order has become so terrifying that even an Inquisitor can condense a godhead fragment?”

“No, he simply wanted to be an Inquisitor. That was only one of his identities.”

“I see... So his grandfather is an Elder of the Order Temple?” Rekar nodded. “With an Elder of the Temple as his grandfather, producing an Archbishop of Veyn is not strange.”

The man continued to believe that Karon was an Archbishop.

“Then in his middle age, Tiz condensed another godhead fragment.”

Rekar began coughing. His lungs no longer functioned, yet the memory of their former movement remained. Black water spilled from his mouth. He stared at it, unable to recall what he had eaten before dying.

“And in his old age, Tiz condensed a third godhead fragment.”

Rekar stared at Pu’er with a burning gaze. “Are you telling me a story fit for the church’s mythology?”

“These are facts. Tiz condensed a total of three godhead fragments, yet refused to enter the Order Temple and fought its Elders.”

“Fought?”

“He allowed his youthful state to enter the Temple space with a godhead fragment, then self-detonate, shaking the Temple. In his middle-aged state, he used the Church of Order’s teleportation ritual arrays to repeatedly move about the territory of York City. During that time he killed the patriarch of the Raphael family, which was threatening the Allen family.”

“Raphael?” Rekar murmured. “I recall a foul-faced man named Raphael who arranged prostitutes for my sailors.”

“That was him. His family had long relied on the Allens, only to then turn against us as they grew stronger. They seized seventy percent of our business.”

Rekar opened his hands and nearly roared, “The Raphael family almost swallowed the Allen family? And this Tiz, who condensed three godhead fragments, used a fragment-bearing incarnation, effectively a Temple Elder, to travel here just to kill a Raphael?”

“Yes,” Pu’er said.

“Which fool made that decision?”

“Him.” Pu’er pointed to the unconscious Master Anderson on the floor.

Rekar coldly spat, “He should be thrown into the sea to feed sharks. No, that would stain my beloved ocean.”

Pu’er nodded. “When I learned they had written Raphael’s name on a purple bookmark—”

“Are you referring to the official writ issued by Temple Elders that bear the will of the Church of Order and originating from the mythology of the Light of Order?”

“They wrote Raphael’s name on one.”

Rekar slapped his own face. “So the family isn’t even being raised in captivity, but are fools of their own accord?”

“Yes.”

“Perhaps it would be better if they were captives. At least then they wouldn’t embarrass themselves.”

Pu’er continued, “Young Tiz detonated himself to shock the Temple. Middle-aged Tiz fulfilled the bookmark agreement before giving his godhead fragment to the Temple. Old Tiz agreed to surrender the remaining fragment in the future, then returned home and entered slumber, warning the Temple not to pry into the Immers family. When his life ends, that last fragment will be given to the Church.”

“I understand him,” Rekar said quietly. “Only after a life of brilliance does one realize that home is the final harbor.”

“Before that, Tiz used a blood sacrifice to strip all spirituality from the descendants of the Immers family, except for Karon’s.”

“So he is the sole heir of his bloodline?” Rekar’s gaze sharpened.

“Yes. And he descended through an overly powerful divine descent ritual.”

Rekar glanced to the side. “I saw a dog when I crawled out of my grave...”

“The heretical god summoned by that divine descent is sealed within that dog.”

“And he?”

“He pushed aside the heretical god and took Karon’s body for himself.”

Rekar exhaled softly. “Not even stories would dare to fabricate such a thing.”

Pu’er added, “Before undergoing purification, when he was still an ordinary man, he was already able to perform Awakening at the Inquisitor level.”

Rekar fell silent. He recalled their first meeting. Karon’s eyes at the beginning had not been those of an Archbishop.

“Tiz fell into slumber, hoping his family would live as ordinary people, but Karon wants to see the true splendor of the world. The Allen family was his first stop.”

Pu’er glanced at Master Anderson. “On the first day Karon entered the Allen manor, Anderson gave him the patriarch’s seat at the family table and even gave him the patriarch’s bedroom and study. In effect, he made him the family head. That is why he awakened you when Gloria sought to use Allen blood as nourishment.”

Rekar’s gaze deepened. “He is the sole heir, he pushed aside a heretical god, and he could awaken corpses as an ordinary man?”

“Yes.”

Rekar slammed his palm onto the table and stood up. “Then gather every eligible woman in the clan and have him breed at once!”

Pu’er placed a paw on Eunice’s arm. Rekar looked at the sleeping girl and said heavily, “I am an idiot.”

Pu’er nodded forcefully and said, “Originally, according to our plan, after dealing with Queen Gloria, he would have taken her to live with him, and their wedding would have formally been placed on the family schedule, because there would no longer be any factors left to obstruct the process.

“I know him. He does not like taking responsibility, but with her, he has kissed her and held her. He still carries some moral restraint and burden.”

“Just kissing and holding doesn’t amount to much,” Earl Rekar commented.

Pu’er rolled her eyes and replied to her ancestor, who stood above her and who had once brought the Allen family to true glory, “Not every man is like you, a shameless creature who refuses responsibility.”

Pu’er sat down on the table and continued, “Now look at this. You awakened her bloodline, and her bloodline concentration is very high. It’s as if after the family bloodline declined to a certain point, this generation has finally begun producing geniuses to save itself.

“But she is going to be drowsy for half a year. Half a year! Tell me, were your hands itchy or what?”

“She’ll just be excessively sleepy for half a year, not go into a coma.”

“Excessively sleepy means she won’t be able to date,” Pu’er countered.

“It doesn’t affect getting in bed together.”

Pu’er stared at him in silence.

“It also does not affect pregnancy or childbirth,” Earl Rekar continued. “When pregnant, one should sleep more anyway; It’s good for the fetus.”

“Scum.” Pu’er had always considered romance to be tedious and dull, yet hearing Earl Rekar speak in such a manner was something that not even she could tolerate.

Realizing he had said something wrong, Earl Rekar helplessly placed both hands on his forehead and slapped it a few times.

If others did this, the sound was flesh against flesh, but he was little more than skin and bone, so it sounded like someone was beating a drum. Thump. Thump. Thump.

“I did not think carefully. No, I thought too much. When I first saw him, he said he was the Allen family’s son-in-law. The sea acknowledged his words. That was why I began to grow suspicious that he might have already penned in or taken control of the Allen family, because in reality, he must have stood before my gravestone.

“When I awakened, I saw a Tier-3 cripple from a collateral branch sitting in a wheelchair.”

“He’s a direct descendant.”

“The key point is he’s a cripple.”

“Mm.” Pu’er acknowledged that point.

“Then I saw someone who walks a different faith system. Now, he is no cripple, and even seems to have gone quite far.

“After that, I saw that mysterious dog and a demonkin using a ritual array that clearly gave off the imitative scent of the Church of Principle.

“He told me that Queen Gloria was waiting for me. Before I entered the master bedroom, I heard this generation’s queen shouting again and again, ‘Freedom, freedom, freedom,’ so I thought she was penned in as well. For the sake of Gloria the Third, I granted this generation’s queen release, because I thought death would also be a kind of freedom for her.”

“Your understanding was wrong, but killing her was actually the correct choice. She was not a penned pig, but the greatest crisis tonight.”

“Then I gathered the three most promising descendants in this castle. As for you, I did not search for you, but I sensed you. Your faith-system level is very high, even if you are a cat.

“I also saw those portraits in the study, and I saw a black cat. It was very conspicuous.”

“Mhmm.”

“Then why is my portrait gone? Do you know how long I endured touching Gloria the Third’s backside just to get that painter to paint it?”

“It was taken down to be used. It will be hung back up tomorrow.”

“Oh, so that’s it.

“Originally, when I climbed out of my grave, I intended to immediately ambush him, but when I thought about the fact that I was facing the Archbishop of Veyn, even if he must have paid a price to awaken me, I still hesitated.

“Besides, before launching an ambush, I wanted to return home and see my clan, and first select a few with potential to arrange properly.

“Another reason was that when I first climbed out of the grave, I felt something odd. Only after truly taking action did I realize that because of my death, my family faith system has been elevated, and that I have comprehended the extreme of the water attribute.

“If I had possessed that clarity the moment I crawled out, I might have struck him right then and , because he may have misjudged my faith level.”

“Believe me, if you had attacked him then, he would have been crushed instantly. Although he has received a revelation, I don’t even know if he counts as a Divine Seeker now.

“But fortunately you did not. Otherwise, I, we Allen family, would truly have been finished.”

“This is the Allen family’s opportunity,” Earl Rekar agreed.

“Yes.”

Earl Rekar glanced at Eunice again, then looked at Pu’er. “You, actually... could as well.”

“I am a cat, thank you.”

“You walk the fire path. If my water attribute required death to reach our progenitor’s extreme, then you should require rebirth. If you can change from cat back into a human, that would be a rebirth. When that happens, find a way to return to Tier-9. It is possible that the ceiling of Tier-10 fire will no longer bind you.

“Most importantly, if you return to human form, you can be with him...”

Pu’er rolled her eyes. “I am closer to a holy relic now, so if nothing goes wrong, once he grows, I will enter symbiosis with him.”

“Symbiosis? That is far more intimate than husband and wife.”

“Of course.”

“So, is he willing?”

Pu’er froze. “Why would you ask that?”

“I mean, he also has that dog.”

“You think I would lose to a stupid dog?” Pu’er shot up, waving her paws, as if deeply insulted. “How could I lose to a stupid dog?”

“That is a heretical god dog. In terms of its soul level and developmental potential, in what aspect can you surpass it? If I were him, I would choose the dog for symbiosis, not you. A holy relic is just a holy relic. Even a low-tier holy relic would suffice. That dog could become like you.

“Symbiosis in essence is a bond formed by two souls relying upon a holy relic. The reliance object itself is not that important.”

“That stupid dog is male! That heretical god is male too!”

Earl Rekar’s teeth ground together, producing a sound like laughter. “Heh heh... Since when has gender been a problem?”

“...” Pu’er.

Earl Rekar spread his arms and leaned back against the chair. “My time is short. At dawn, I will probably turn completely into a pile of dead flesh.

“Oh, in my current state, I do not even have much flesh left. Even human traffickers would not pay much for me. You know, at sea, when times were hard, buying and selling human flesh was quite normal. Once you get used to the taste, even when provisions are sufficient, you still crave that bite. Different people have different flavors.”

Pu’er glanced at Judia, still unconscious.

“She called me father the moment she saw me. Ha. I can feel it; She is very much like me. Her water attribute resonates with mine.”

“She is a descendant of Gloria the Third’s family. You left your seed there.”

“No wonder I feel close to her. Then she really is my daughter. My daughter with Gloria the Third.”

“It was Gloria the Third’s daughter who bore a child for you,” Pu’er mocked. “So you do know shame and try to gloss it over.”

“Oh? Which daughter was it that bore my child? I can’t remember.”

Pu’er was struck silent.

Earl Rekar unconsciously reached out and stroked Judia’s hair. “In the past, when I drifted and fought across the sea, I never had a concept of home. I always felt that the sea was my true home. Until after that great battle, when I lost many of my men and was injured myself, I felt weary of the sea for the first time.

“The moment I stepped onto land, I felt moved and fortunate. Because I knew that on land there was always a place waiting for me to return. You wandered outside for a hundred years. You must understand that feeling.”

“Mhmm,” Pu’er responded. “The same.”

“When you see these useless descendants, you get angry, yet you still cannot help considering them. In truth, there is hardly any kinship left between you and them. You just hope that the name Allen can continue to exist. Because it is something your soul clings to. It turns out that even if you have died, when you come back to life and see the family still here, it feels good. Ha.”

Pu’er nodded silently.

“When I first became a pirate, I was captured. I was hung from a mast and begged for mercy. I knelt before stronger enemies, groveled, announced my submission, asked forgiveness, asked them not to unite against me. That was common.

“Although those who made me kneel eventually died beneath my fists, for me, speaking soft words and flattering others was never difficult. A pirate lives upon the sea. One must rise and fall with the waves. So, while I am still conscious...”

“What are you planning to do?” Pu’er asked.

Earl Rekar slowly rose to his feet. He reached up and set his hat back onto his head, straightening it with deliberate care. Then, he said, “I’ll go kneel and knock my head to him.”