"Mentor?"

He cautiously probed.

"That’s right, Mentor Lord John."

The Dungeon Guard answered devoutly.

Demacia:...

There is always someone better, a mountain higher.

He suddenly felt that perhaps his ability to preach wasn’t as great as he imagined...

Following the Dungeon Guard, as if strolling in his own backyard, Demacia walked deeper into the dungeon.

And the deeper he went, the more his eyelids twitched.

The Light of Faith!

On both sides of the cells, what flickered was all the Light of Faith of the Goddess!

My goodness, starting with white, the deeper he went, the more blue it became, with some blues already beginning to turn purple like the Dungeon Guard!

That’s a sign of becoming a fanatic!

The prisoners in the entire dungeon had almost all been converted into life believers!

This... how much Priestly experience is this worth!

Seeing this scene, Demacia was astonished and deeply pained.

Truthfully, the motivation for him sneaking into the Dorolia Castle Prison, apart from rescuing Old John, was partially to use his rich preaching experience to teach the little buddies inside the prison some ideological lessons.

After all... there’s no place better for indoctrination, or rather, attracting "like-minded individuals" than here.

However, he never expected that the place would already be entirely dyed in the Goddess’s colors.

Demacia didn’t doubt that if not for the strict guards outside the dungeon, and rumors of Legendary Professionals and Saints stationed inside the castle, these people could have long united and broken out...

The accumulation of so many years, each detainee in the dungeon is absolutely a formidable character, if all become followers of the Goddess, the energy would be terrifying!

Of course, to hold so many prisoners, the Dorolia Castle Prison isn’t to be trifled with; even with Demacia’s assistance, uniting the prisoners to break out would likely result in heavy losses.

But as long as he could rescue the Divine Favored John, it would be enough for Demacia.

Led by the Dungeon Guard, Demacia arrived at the end of the dungeon, in a very large cell.

In the center of the cell, a dim magic lamp gave off a soft light, and a middle-aged man sat cross-legged on the ground with a straight back.

It was none other than Old John.

He seemed to emit a faint glow, a manifestation of the power of faith.

However, the magic-restricting shackles on him had not been removed, because they weren’t something the ordinary Dungeon Guard could control, only the Judgement Court of the Eternal Church could manage them.

Yet even so, he still radiated the Light of Faith.

This could only mean one thing.

Even if his power was imprisoned, his faith could still break through to some extent!

This was a sign of faith sublimation...

Demacia’s expression became serious.

In his [Eye of Faith], Old John’s faith radiance was no longer the ordinary light gold of a Divine Favored.

But had transformed into a dazzling, gold emitting points of golden light.

That’s a sight he had only seen on the Big Sister and Alice!

It was the color only those with a dual identity of Saint + Divine Favored would possess!

Even Old John’s NPC avatar frame had changed from the purple epic to the extremely rare gold legend!

At this moment, Demacia’s eyes widened and his heart raced.

No wonder he could sense him from such a distance; his faith purity had surpassed a zealot, reaching the level of a true Saint!

This was the highest level of NPC, second only to the Goddess and a few Mythicals!

He swore to himself that he must cling tightly to this powerful ally this time!

At this moment, Demacia had already ignored his previous thoughts about "Mentor’s grand-student lineage" and began thinking hard about how to curry favor with Old John.

Clinging to a powerful ally, a golden NPC; there’s no shame in that.

Old John remained calm, gently explaining the teachings of the Life Goddess to those around him.

And around him sat prisoners of varying builds, each looking at him with eyes full of respect.

"Mentor, the Chosen One has arrived."

The respectful voice of the Dungeon Guard interrupted his gentle explanation.

Old John looked up and gazed toward Demacia.

He smiled slightly:

"Long time no see, Lord Demacia."

He remembers me!

No, he’s already recognized me!

Demacia was both surprised and delighted in his heart.

After glancing at the considerable favorability score with the other party, Demacia calmed his excitement and solemnly said:

"Mr. John, you’ve suffered, I’m here to rescue you."

However, Old John simply smiled and shook his head gently:

"Thank you for your kindness, Lord Demacia, but I’m quite well staying here."

Quite well?

Demacia couldn’t help but glance at the dirty, chaotic surroundings, his expression strange.

Noticing his expression, Old John kindly explained:

"Here, children from across the continent gathered in bewilderment; to illuminate their paths and light up their hearts— isn’t that a very fulfilling thing?"

Demacia:...

He suppressed the urge to complain, sighed lightly, and said:

"Mr. John, the situation across the continent is becoming increasingly tense. Our conflicts with the Eternal Church are escalating, and the dispatch of judgment knights is becoming more frequent. War... is likely imminent."

"Once war begins, as a Divine Favored, you may be made a sacrifice by the Eternal Church. From what I know, this isn’t uncommon in faith wars..."

"I have a one-time Divine Artifact that can unleash mythical power, breaking through the castle’s True God’s blessing."

"With the Life believers you’ve developed here, we can break out in one fell swoop."

As he spoke, an honorific slipped from Demacia’s lips unintentionally.

In such a short time, developing so many Life believers was worthy of respect for Old John, in any case.

Yet upon hearing his words, Old John still shook his head:

"Breaking out, then what?"

Demacia was slightly stunned.

"Of course, to continue running, return to our territory!"

He replied instinctively.

"But in that process, how many will die? Is the purpose solely for my safety? For me, how many Life believers will be sacrificed?"

Old John questioned him again.

Demacia was speechless.

Recently taken to the dungeon, he had glimpsed a corner of the Dorolia Castle Prison, and it was indeed quite a formidable fortress.

To speak frankly, any patrolling guard atop the castle gave him a fright or a sense of formidable aura.

And the Dungeon Guards too, their strength was probably at least Lower Gold, but they had already been swayed by Old John.

"Lord Demacia."

Old John sighed softly:

"I can vaguely guess what the Eternal Pope wants to do by imprisoning me here... it’s nothing more than executing me before the war begins, and perhaps even humiliating me and the Life Church heavily before execution."

"Though, what he wants to do is exactly what I wish to do."

"I look forward to meeting him, to discuss and compare our respective beliefs and doctrines. In my view, we need such a confrontation."

"This is my trial, and my training."

"Despite the expanding influence of the Goddess’s faith in Segs, unlike you elves, the human faith remains too scattered."

"We need a chance, a true opportunity to ignite the faith in everyone’s hearts, to awaken everyone and unite them as one..."

"At the same time, it’s an opportunity for the people lost in confusion across the continent to thoroughly see the empire’s decadence and the church’s hypocrisy..."

"And I wish to become that torch."

Saying this, Old John raised his head, looking earnestly at Demacia, and sincerely said:

"Lord Demacia, I want to become the light of the people’s faith; can you help me in this process?"

Demacia was slightly taken aback. 𝐟𝚛𝕖𝚎𝕨𝗲𝐛𝚗𝐨𝐯𝐞𝕝.𝐜𝗼𝗺

This time, his gaze became thoroughly complex.