73: Chapter 73 Palace Coup

In the main temple of the Youying Dynasty,

Pope Ulysses slowly walked out of the pool of Power Of Faith, his eyes brimming with deep regret.

That pool of immeasurably valuable liquid Power Of Faith had now completely dried up, its golden watery light entirely dissipated, leaving only an empty stone platform in the hall.

"What a pity, it failed after all."

He let out a low sigh, then quickly straightened the divine robe on his body, his expression gradually calming down.

Although he had not achieved Perfection in his Breakthrough, this forced infusion of faith was not entirely without gains.

Pope Ulysses sensed his own condition for a moment and then nodded.

"My battle Qi has completely transformed into pure Divine Power."

"The only regret is that I failed to forge a divine body. The current Divine Power decreases by a fraction for every bit used, and it cannot be self-sufficient."

If it were in the past, given him a year or a half to settle and polish, he definitely would have broken through the shackles and ascended to become a Paladin.

But times are different now.

The Xiguang Dynasty had perished, and those monster armies were eyeing them covetously, not knowing when they would make a move; there was simply no time left for him to lie low and develop.

Furthermore, countless testers flooding into the territory were constantly fighting and encroaching upon the borders, while the imperial court and imperial power were stirring, leaving no peaceful opportunity either internally or externally.

He no longer had the time to slowly settle and Breakthrough.

"Wilson, come in."

Pope Ulysses spoke indifferently, his voice carrying a hint of heavy majesty after the transformation.

Outside the hall, Wilson hurried inside.

As soon as he stepped into the main hall, he keenly perceived a drastically different terrifying Aura in the air, his heart suddenly tightening.

Yet he could not see through the specific Realm, and had no way to judge whether Pope Ulysses had truly taken that crucial step.

"Your Holiness, how are the results of this Breakthrough?" Wilson asked respectfully.

Pope Ulysses shook his head gently, his tone carrying a bit of melancholy: "It can be considered a failure, but also half a success. All the battle Qi has been converted into Divine Power, it's just a pity that there is no divine body to carry it, and the Divine Power is only consumed without replenishment. If you give me another year, I will definitely become a Paladin."

Hearing this, although Wilson felt regret, he still quickly cupped his fists in comfort, his eyes filled with fanatical faith: "Your Holiness has already acted in a Heaven-Defying manner! Mere a year, we can still hold our ground and wait. As long as you achieve the status of a Paladin, whether it is the blasphemers or those monsters, they will all be annihilated with a flick of a finger!"

Accompanied by Wilson's heartfelt piety, a wisp of pure Power Of Faith quietly floated out from his body and merged into the body of Pope Ulysses.

The moment this faint yet pure Power Of Faith flowed into his body, the body of Pope Ulysses trembled slightly, and a flash of extreme surprise crossed his eyes.

"I can now directly absorb the faith of living beings..."

He clearly perceived that that wisp of faith not only strengthened his Divine Power, but also imperceptibly nourished his Physical Body, slowly transforming his mortal shell towards the direction of a divine body.

At this thought, countless greedy and restless thoughts quietly sprouted.

He quickly reined in his mind, forcibly suppressing the distracting thoughts, not daring to think deeply into it. Excessively prying into the shortcuts of the Dao was already close to blasphemy.

Pope Ulysses took a deep breath, suppressed the surging desires in his heart, and asked in a deep voice: "During my closed-door cultivation, has anything major happened in the court?"

Hearing this, a sarcastic sneer curled the corner of Wilson's mouth: "Reporting to Your Holiness, that Your Majesty of ours has made constant petty moves recently, secretly and privately winning over various archbishops of the council, attempting to divide the Divine Power and reclaim authority."

"It's just that he is too naive; those clergymen he won over turned around and reported everything in full, selling him out completely."

Pope Ulysses's expression was calm, without a shred of surprise.

He had long seen through the ambition of King Louis XVI.

After the disappearance of the Lord of Mingyuan, this emperor was probably secretly gloating for a long time, single-mindedly wanting to break free from the shackles of Divine Power and hold the supreme power of the Imperial Dynasty alone.

If not for the countless testers invading in the Late Stage, the collapse of the situation, and the continuous shrinking of the Imperial Dynasty's strength, King Louis XVI probably would have long disregarded everything and gone to total war with the council.

"With troubled times at hand, internal division is a major taboo."

A trace of ruthlessness flashed across the eyes of Pope Ulysses, his tone cold and resolute: "The Youying Dynasty must have a unified voice. No need to drag it out any longer, we will make a move tonight."

Wilson's expression changed slightly, and he quickly dissuaded him: "Your Holiness, this move is too hasty! Your Majesty still controls quite a bit of the imperial guards' strength, and the royalists' Foundation in the court is still intact. Acting rashly might trigger civil unrest!"

"It doesn't matter."

Pope Ulysses raised his eyes, faint glimmers of Divine Power revolving around his body, full of confidence: "I have already mastered Divine Power, and can activate the Sacred Artifact sealed by the church. With it in hand, King Louis XVI will make the wisest choice."

Hearing this, the worry in Wilson's eyes instantly dissipated, replaced by extreme exhilaration: "This subordinate will arrange it immediately!"

After Wilson withdrew, only a single person was left in the main hall.

Pope Ulysses looked up towards the boundless Void Realm, his past calmness and restraint completely dissipating, his eyes completely filled with endless greed and desire.

The taste of Divine Power and the temptation of supreme power completely shook his Dao Heart.

The present him was no longer the forbearance and orderly church pope of the past.

The night grew deeper, and the moonlight was silent.

Pope Ulysses personally led dozens of archbishops, marching mighty and grand towards the imperial palace.

Inside the deep palace hall, King Louis XVI looked at the group of clergymen who broke in overnight with a menacing Aura, his expression instantly sinking to the extreme, alarm bells ringing wildly in his heart.

A royalist minister braced himself to step out, cupping his fists and questioning: "Your Holiness, leading a crowd to break into the imperial palace late at night, I wonder what important matter you have?"

Pope Ulysses looked straight ahead, completely ignoring the minister passing the message, his gaze locking directly onto King Louis XVI on the high seat, his voice cold and resolute: "Your Majesty, now that troubled times have overturned and external troubles are looming, if the Youying Dynasty has inconsistent decrees and divided power, it will undoubtedly perish."

King Louis XVI forced himself to remain calm, pretending to be puzzled: "State affairs have always been governed by Us, where is this talk of division?"

"This official believes," Pope Ulysses said with every word clear, echoing through the hall, "that the imperial power of the Imperial Dynasty and the Divine Power of the council shall henceforth merge into one, and supreme power shall return to one."

Hearing this, King Louis XVI instantly showed wild joy, mistakenly believing that the other party was willing to relinquish power and return governance.

"Your Holiness is truly righteous! Being willing to hand over Divine Power to return to the court's unification is truly selfless!"

Responding to him were the rising and falling mocking sneers of all the archbishops present, harsh and abrupt.

Entering his ears, the laughter froze the wild joy on King Louis XVI's face instantly, a chill surging wildly in his heart, and he finally woke up with a start.

His pupils shrank sharply, and he shouted sternly in anger: "You're rebelling! You intend to hollow Us out and monopolize power!"

Pope Ulysses's expression was indifferent, without a shred of fluctuation, and he nodded faintly: "Your Majesty, from now on, you shall be plagued by serious illness and unable to manage state affairs."

"Insolent!"

King Louis XVI was both shocked and angry, completely tearing off his facade, and shouted sternly: "Youyi, Youer, make your move!"

Two dark shadows hidden in the darkness suddenly darted out, their figures like ghosts, carrying a biting murderous intent, lunging straight towards Pope Ulysses. They were top-tier suicide guards cultivated by the royal family.

Facing the fatal sneak attack, Pope Ulysses's expression did not change, and he raised his hand to retrieve a blood-red longbow.

The bowstring vibrated gently, and an extremely condensed blood-red divine arrow pierced through the air, moving so fast it surpassed human sight.

*Puchi!*

Two soft sounds rang out almost simultaneously.

The bodies of the two royal suicide guards at the half-step Paladin Realm stiffened, their eyes filled with disbelief, their vitality instantly cut off, and they crashed limply to the ground.

King Louis XVI's entire body stiffened on the throne, staring blankly at this scene with a face full of horror: "You... how can your strength be so formidable to this degree?"

Pope Ulysses had no intention of explaining the profundity of Divine Power, his tone plain yet carrying absolute control: "Your Majesty, meaningless struggles are pointless. At this moment, the entire imperial city has long been completely controlled by the council."

Looking at the archbishops below with monstrous Aura and stern murderous intent, King Louis XVI no longer had a shred of resistance in his heart. All his strength was completely drained, and he slumped powerlessly onto the throne.

He gave a bitter smile, full of desolation and unwillingness: "You won."

Finished speaking, he wielded his brush and dropped ink, writing a decree of state transmission, completely relinquishing power and handing over all national military and political powers to the council.

"This decree is given to you. From now on, all cities, troops, horses, and officials of the country shall obey your dispatch."

Pope Ulysses took the decree, carefully verified and confirmed it was correct, and a trace of satisfaction flashed across the bottom of his eyes.

He said no more, turned around and led the group of archbishops away.

As everyone withdrew, a massive isolation formation instantly enveloped the entire imperial palace, sealing all entry and exit passages.

From now on, without the council's permission, King Louis XVI was not allowed to step half a step out of the imperial palace for the rest of his life.

The once supreme emperor of the Youying Dynasty was completely reduced to a prisoner trapped in the deep palace.