178: Chapter 178 The Priest's Suspicion! Please unleash divine punishment!

That flash of green, born in this world constructed of congealed blood and eternal black, was in itself a rebellion, a fundamental subversion of the world's Law.

It was not any known color; it was more like a light of creation that split the Chaos, forcibly branding a brand-new concept onto the Soul of every Bloodline Tribesman.

The altar plaza was deathly silent. Even the wind blowing past the Blood Moon seemed to have its throat constricted by this incredible sight, stalling in mid-air.

All Bloodline Tribesmen, young or old, strong or weak, fixed their gaze on that speck of fresh green. In their pupils, that color they had never seen before was reflected, as was their own confusion, shock, and even their collapsing worldview.

Breathing? Long forgotten.

Heartbeat? It seemed to have stopped as well.

"What... what color is that?"

A young Bloodline warrior murmured, his voice dry; he couldn't even find a word to describe what he was seeing.

"Life... is this the color of 'Life' recorded in ancient texts, the one long ago banished by the True God?"

An elderly Bloodline scholar trembled all over, tears of excitement streaming down his face. He had spent his entire life studying those tattered manuscripts describing the old world, yet he had never imagined he would one day witness the legend with his own eyes.

After a brief moment of speechlessness, the dam of the crowd burst.

"It's alive! The Sacred Plant has truly come back to life!"

"The True God is above! This is not an illusion; I can feel it, that power... it is completely different from Blood Energy!"

"The Divine Envoy! It is a miracle brought by the Divine Envoy!"

They rubbed their eyes frantically, trying to confirm that the scene before them was not an illusion created by the Blood Moon. Yet, that green was so real, so tenacious, carrying an innate pride that stung their eyes and cleansed their Souls, which were soaked in slaughter.

The totem pole glowing was a resonance of power, an acknowledgment of the Bloodline.

But the withered wood returning to spring was a reshaping of the Law, the authority of creation!

The shock of the latter far exceeded the former by a hundred, a thousand times!

However, the true miracle had only just begun.

Under the focus of countless gazes, the sprout that had broken through the charred dead bark did not stop its progress. Bathed in the milky-white halo emanating from Su Changge's palm, it stretched its body upwards and outwards at a speed that defied common sense.

"Crackle... snap..."

More subtle cracking sounds rang out, and on the charred trunk, cracks spread like a spiderweb. From every fissure, more green rushed out impatiently.

The sprout grew a thin stem, crystal clear, with veins clearly visible.

On the thin stem, a halo flowed, and two curled tender leaves slowly opened, like a newborn baby opening curious eyes, examining this strange, blood-colored world.

In just a few breaths, a brand-new branch appeared out of thin air on the withered wood that had been dead for a thousand years. It was filled with abundant vitality, and every leaf refracted a warm, holy glimmer under the light of the Blood Moon.

Immediately after, at the tip of the new branch, light gathered, condensing into several rice-sized crystals. The crystals expanded rapidly, turning into delicate, translucent flower buds.

The next instant, amidst the bated breath of everyone, the buds bloomed silently.

They were pure white flowers, with petals layered upon layers, thin as cicada wings, holy and unstained by a speck of dust. Within the stamens, faint golden light spots flickered, as if imprisoning the stars of the sky.

An unprecedented fragrance quietly permeated the air as the flowers bloomed.

This fragrance was different from the sweet greasiness of blood, different from the pungent smell of sulfur, and different from any scent any creature in the Blood Prison Realm could emit.

It was crisp and distant, carrying a tranquility and peace originating from the primordial beginning. Wherever the fragrance passed, the Bloodline Tribesmen felt the innate, unstoppable desire for violence and slaughter within them being soothed. That feeling was like a Vicious Beast struggling in the darkness for ten thousand years, feeling the warmth of sunlight for the first time.

It was strange, yet incredibly addictive. The entire tribe was, at this moment, completely plunged into the peak of fanaticism!

"Flowers... they've bloomed! The Sacred Plant has bloomed!"

"A miracle! This is the true miracle! It is creation! It is rebirth!"

"I can smell it... I feel my Bloodline cheering! This is the most fundamental desire of our lives!"

"Thump!"

"Thump! Thump!"

Thousands of Bloodline Tribesmen could no longer support their bodies, which were trembling with excitement. Their knees went weak, and they knelt down in groups, facing the direction of the altar, facing Su Changge, and facing the ancient tree blooming with new life amidst death, performing the most ancient and devout prostration.

This prostration was completely different from before.

If the previous awe stemmed from fear and submission to unknown power, then at this moment, their awe contained an additional sense of worship, gratitude, and conversion originating from the depths of their Souls.

What Su Changge displayed was the thing most scarce in this world, and also what they desired most— "Life"!

In the crowd, only one person remained standing.

The Old Priest.

He did not kneel, but his wide priestly robe made a "rustling" sound as he trembled violently.

Under the shadow of his hood, his crimson eyes were no longer calm like an ancient well. Half was a fanaticism that burned away reason, and the other half was bone-chilling suspicion. Two diametrically opposed emotions fought crazily in his eyes, almost tearing his Soul apart.

Suspicion!

He knew the essence of the True God's Divine Power better than anyone in the tribe!

It was devouring, it was destruction, it was the extreme of entropy increase! Wherever the True God's Divine Power reached, all things withered, living beings perished, and all tangible matter would turn into the purest Blood Energy to feed the Divine Kingdom. The True God was an ender, not a creator!

Yet the power displayed by this "Divine Envoy" before him was in a completely opposite form.

It was gestation, it was creation, it was a miracle of entropy decrease!

These two types of power were light and dark, life and death, the two poles of order and Chaos; it was impossible for them to appear within the authority of the same deity!

Was this... really the Divine Power of his Lord?

However, coexisting with this deep-seated suspicion was an irrepressible fanaticism!

A miracle!

Everything happening before his eyes was an undeniable, true miracle!

To revive a Sacred Plant that had been withered for a thousand years, to make the root of death bloom with the flower of life!

This was a great power that no Mortal—no, not even those legendary kings in the Blood Prison Realm—could ever possibly touch!

Besides the True God, who could control the Law of life and death?

Countless thoughts collided crazily in the Old Priest's aged mind, stirring up monstrous waves.

Perhaps... perhaps this was not a contradiction?

Was the end of destruction not meant to welcome rebirth?

Was thoroughly cleansing a decaying world and turning it into blood-colored fertile soil not meant to sow seeds more in line with the True God's will?

We... the Bloodline Clan, what we have understood all along might only be the True God's authority of "destruction." But this Divine Envoy before us, what he masters is the more fundamental authority of "creation" that transcends destruction!

He... is closer to the essence of the True God than we are!

Once this thought arose, it was like a prairie fire, instantly burning away all the doubts in the Old Priest's heart, replaced by an even more terrifying fanaticism mixed with awe and ambition!

Su Changge withdrew his palm, and the milky-white halo slowly retracted into his body.

The rapidly changing expression on the Old Priest's face, the entire process from suspicion to self-persuasion, and finally to fanaticism, was clearly captured by him.

He understood that his act of "withered wood returning to spring," while a heaven-shaking feat that established his status as Divine Envoy, had also planted the tiniest thorn in the heart of this calculating Old Priest due to the special nature of its power.

Most tribesmen had already been dizzied by the miracle and would not think deeply. But this old fox, he would think.

And now, this old fox had found a seemingly perfect explanation for himself, but that was not enough. He needed an opportunity, an opportunity that would allow him to completely put this theory into practice and use it to achieve his own goals.

Sure enough, after undergoing a battle between heaven and man, the Old Priest finally made a move. He bowed deeply in the direction of Su Changge, and a mental fluctuation more complex than any before, filled with humility, fanaticism, and probing, was transmitted over.

"Your Divine Power is great, vast, and unquestionable." He first gave supreme affirmation, lowering his posture to the lowest point.

Immediately, he changed the subject.

"However, opening the heaven-reaching altar requires not only the True God's oracle and your guidance. According to the most ancient Legacy of our clan, this is also a bloody celebration to proclaim the glory of the True God and the power of our clan to the entire Blood Prison Realm! A ceremony... that must be baptized with the blood of rebels!"

Su Changge's eyelids lifted slightly, his expression indifferent, waiting quietly for what followed. He knew the old guy's true motive had arrived.

The Old Priest's tone became high-pitched and cold, filled with an irrepressible killing intent.

"Within our clan, in recent years, some traitors have appeared whose Souls have been eroded by filthy things from other worlds! They have forgotten the glory of the True God and questioned the great destiny of our clan to conquer all worlds!"

"Like rats in a sewer, they hide in the darkness, spreading cowardly lies of so-called 'peace' and 'coexistence,' attempting to shake the hearts of our clan's warriors that crave slaughter and glory!"

"I beg you, great Divine Envoy!"

The Old Priest suddenly looked up, and the pair of crimson eyes under the hood shot out two dazzling beams of blood-red light, locking firmly onto Su Changge. That gaze was like a sacrifice, and also like forcing a palace coup.

"In the name of the True God, bring down 'Divine Punishment'!"

"Use your supreme authority to show all the tribesmen, those who are wavering, and especially those lowly traitors, the True God's... side of destruction!"