74: Chapter 74 The Templars Enter! The Inquisition's Prestige!

Outside Mist Whisper Town, in a hidden valley.

As the pale red mist began to permeate the town, a faint glimmer flashed in Aria's ice-blue eyes.

Her expression, which had always been calm and ripple-free, finally underwent an extremely subtle change.

Cold and sharp.

She withdrew her gaze from the town and turned her head to look at Commander Calvin beside her, who was like a coiled spring ready to strike. Her voice was clear and steady, yet carried an unquestionable decisiveness:

"The omen has appeared; the evil ritual is about to begin."

"Commander Calvin, initiate the operation!"

"Yes!" Commander Calvin replied in a deep voice, sounding like muffled thunder.

He turned abruptly to face the sixty Temple Knights who were already prepared behind him. He struck his left breastplate heavily with his right fist, creating a clanging sound, and roared in a low voice:

"The Goddess of Dawn's glory, light my path!"

"For the Dawn!" the sixty Temple Knights responded in a low, unified shout.

Without further words, Commander Calvin took the lead, charging out of the hidden valley and galloping towards the mist-shrouded Mist Whisper Town!

Behind him, the sixty Temple Knights split into two groups, following closely in a wedge formation.

Aria did not follow immediately.

She stood in place, her pure white priestess robes fluttering slightly in the rising mountain wind.

She lowered her eyes to watch the receding figures, then slowly lifted her gaze to look at the sky above the town.

That setting sun, submerged within the crimson mist, was glowing with a molten gold radiance.

Deep within Aria's eyes, a trace of bone-chilling, icy white flashed and vanished.

Immediately, she began to walk.

Her pace seemed unhurried, yet she strangely maintained a constant distance from the knights galloping ahead, as if treading on light and shadow as she headed toward the town.

The Temple Knight Order charged directly into Mist Whisper Town; the heavy sound of hooves and the clanging of armor broke the silence within the mist.

The town's residents awoke as if from a dream, watching this suddenly appearing troop of knights in terror!

"It's the Temple Knight Order!"

"The Church's people are here!"

"Make way! Quickly, make way!"

People hurriedly retreated to the sides of the street, their whispers rising one after another.

Rowan, at the inn window, took in this scene as well, unable to help but marvel slightly.

The Church's methods of concealment were indeed brilliant; he had not detected the slightest aura of this elite troop outside the town earlier.

The Temple Knight Order had a clear objective and moved with extreme speed, arriving at the high-walled manor in the blink of an eye.

Without needing orders, the knights automatically split into several groups, instantly guarding every exit of the manor so tightly that not even water could pass through.

Only then did the people in the manor's underground altar, who were in the middle of a ritual, notice the anomaly outside!

"What is going on?!"

Count Farrell's expression changed drastically!

He had already sensed the brilliant, holy battle aura and the murderous aura outside, bright as torches!

His heart sank heavily.

The Pale Knight's figure also paused slightly.

The smooth mask turned toward the direction leading to the surface.

Although one could not see an expression, the cold, gloomy aura around his body suddenly became sharp.

"It's the Church's people! The Temple Knight Order! They have surrounded this place!"

A member of the Crimson Knights responsible for perimeter security scrambled down the stairs.

"How is this possible?! How could they have found this place?! And arrived so quickly?!"

Count Farrell was shocked and furious, his gaze shooting toward the Pale Knight like a blade, suspecting that the other party had leaked the information.

The Pale Knight did not respond to his gaze but quickly made a decision:

"The ritual cannot be interrupted!"

"Otherwise, not only will all previous efforts be wasted, but it may also displease my Lord!"

"You, go out and stall for time!"

"At the very least, hold on until the blood moon's radiance is fully channeled and the sacrifice is integrated! Leave this place to me and the priestess!"

Upon hearing this, Count Farrell's face turned livid.

Go out and stall for time?

To face the Temple Knight Order, which appeared to have deployed all its elites?

This was practically asking him to be a living target!

But the Pale Knight was right; once the ritual began, none of them could bear the consequences of a forced interruption.

Moreover, he had no other choice now.

He took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the shock, anger, and panic in his heart, his eyes becoming gloomy and ruthless once again.

He glanced at the Crimson Fallen Knight priest who was still chanting fanatically on the altar, then looked at the Pale Knight, and gritted his teeth, saying:

"Fine! I will go out! You... hurry!"

Having said that, he moved and dashed up the stairs.

He had to find a way, at least to first figure out the situation outside, and stall for as long as he could.

When he reached the first floor of the manor's main building and looked out through the gap in the heavy curtains, his heart sank to the bottom.

The area around the manor had been surrounded by fully armed Temple Knights like an iron barrel.

Further away, some bold townspeople were peeking through the red mist.

And at the front of the knight formation, that tower-like knight commander stood like a mountain, exuding suffocating pressure.

At this moment, the formation of Temple Knights surrounding the manor suddenly and neatly parted to both sides.

Aria stepped forward slowly, her pure white priestess robes appearing exceptionally striking in the pale red mist.

Her ice-blue eyes swept calmly over the manor's closed gates and towering walls, as if looking at a dead object.

She tilted her head slightly, signaling to Commander Calvin beside her.

Commander Calvin understood and stepped forward, taking a parchment scroll sealed with the golden seal of the Church of Dawn from his bosom.

He channeled his battle aura, and his voice, like a booming bell, clearly spread throughout the entire manor area:

"In the name of the Goddess of Dawn, and by the authority granted by the Empire!"

"We, under orders from the Gino County Church of Dawn, have now ascertained that this manor is suspected of harboring evil members of the Crimson Fallen Knights, conducting evil rituals that blaspheme the gods and endanger the Empire!"

"We are now searching the manor in accordance with the law!"

"Those who resist will be treated as evil accomplices and executed on the spot!"

"Owner of the manor, open the gates immediately, cease resistance, and accept investigation!"

"Otherwise, the Temple Knight Order will force an entry!"

As his voice fell, the area inside and outside the manor was deathly silent.

There was only the subtle sound of the red mist flowing and the suppressed exclamations of the townspeople in the distance.

Count Farrell's complexion was already ugly to the extreme.

He knew that the Church had come prepared; they had even prepared the search warrant for a noble manor and the charges!

This was no longer a simple investigation, but a true thunderous strike!

He roared in a low voice to Baron Reed, the owner of the manor beside him:

"You go out! Find a way to stall them!"

"Just say this is your private manor and there are absolutely no evil followers here! Demand that they produce more specific evidence!"

"Every second you can stall counts!"

Baron Grant's face was pale, his legs weak.

What noble had not heard of the renown of the Church of Dawn's Temple Knight Order and the Inquisition?

In the history of the Empire, even a prince, once having entered the Inquisition, had never walked out.

The white-robed priestess in front, wearing the priestess robes of the Inquisition, was terrifying enough to scare people to death.

But under Count Farrell's cold, piercing gaze, Baron Reed had no choice but to bite the bullet, taking two servants who were equally pale-faced and trembling as he walked out.

"Res—respected Lords of the Church... a misunderstanding, it must be a misunderstanding!"

Baron Grant squeezed out a smile that was uglier than crying, bowing repeatedly toward Calvin and Aria:

"This is my humble private manor, and I have always been law-abiding; how could I possibly harbor evil followers? Is there some mistake... could I ask you all to present more, more specific..."

He had not finished speaking.

A cold light flashed in Commander Calvin's eyes; he couldn't be bothered to listen to his nonsense and waved his hand:

"Take him!"

Two wolf-like, tiger-like Temple Knights instantly pounced, and before Baron Grant could react, he had been cleanly and neatly knocked unconscious and subdued.

The two servants were also so scared they collapsed to the ground and were dragged away together.

Seeing this scene, Count Farrell's pupils constricted inside the manor, and the last shred of luck vanished into thin air.

He knew that the Church had made up its mind to launch a forced attack!

They couldn't even be bothered to keep up appearances!

He couldn't wait any longer!

He took a deep breath, straightened his clothes, and his face regained the dignity of an Imperial Count and a hint of anger at being offended as he strode toward the manor's main gate.

The heavy oak doors, pushed by his battle aura, slowly opened inward.

He stood alone at the doorway, facing the Temple Knight Order, which was ready for battle outside the manor, and those two gazes that seemed capable of piercing through all falsehoods.

"Priestess Aliyah, Commander Calvin," Count Farrell's voice was deep and heavy, carrying the pressure of a Great Knight, echoing in the red mist:

"I wonder when the Farrell family's property became a place for harboring filth?"

"For the Church to mobilize such a large force, to break in and search without rhyme or reason, and even detain my vassal... shouldn't you give me an explanation?"

He chose to reveal his identity, using his status to suppress them, making a final struggle and delay.

At the same time, his mental power was locked tightly onto the direction of the underground altar, while in his heart, he prayed frantically for the ritual to be completed as soon as possible.

The pale red mist surged silently.