67. The Will of the Lord

Bishop Ding stood alone right beneath the center of the cathedral's domed ceiling, facing the brightly colored sacred mural, with his head bowed in earnest prayer.

"You are very devout."

The old man slowly turned around, his gaze filled with reverence as he looked at the handsome angel standing by the entrance:

"I am merely executing the will of the Lord."

They were all servants of the Lord.

This was the seventh time in Bishop Ding's life that he had witnessed the descent of an angel.

The first time was when he had just become a bishop, catching a vague glimpse of an angel's outline and figure, while the remaining five times were related to that Saint.

Four years ago, however, a different angel had descended.

"Are you here to help us deal with these irreverent cultists?" he asked expectantly.

Chen Yun's guardian shook his head:

"No, this is a dispute among you mortals, and we cannot intervene at will."

Heaven indeed strictly forbade angels from arbitrarily interfering in mortal disputes. If they were to easily plunge into mortal combat, it would easily lead to certain truths being discovered by them.

This was no longer an era where the Church held secular power; the number of non-believers was growing exponentially. If the specific details of the witch hunts were exposed, it would undoubtedly provoke resistance and questioning from many hypocrites.

Modern mortals had also established quite a few secular forces. Although this forced the angels to act with caution, mortals harbored irreconcilable conflicts with these hellish entities, and thus they often handled the demons and devils attempting to invade the mortal realm on the angels' behalf.

Among them, an organization called the Supernatural Coordination Bureau was currently dealing with the demons for them.

This organization enjoyed quite a lofty reputation even in Heaven. Although the Coordination Bureau had very few Tier V superhuman entities capable of rivaling six-winged angels, their leader was somewhat extraordinary.

Since she assumed office, officials within the federal government who believed in the Holy Church had been subjected to considerable covert restraint and control. Consequently, after discussions among the Principalities and Archangels at the time, it was decided to deliver a judgment upon this mortal who was causing them trouble.

However, when four six-winged angels descended to the mortal realm and prepared to approach this mortal...

Qin Luan, from a thousand miles away, looked toward them.

After a second round of discussion, the four angels who had descended that day arrived at a new conclusion.

Even if they won, the cost would likely outweigh the gain. Therefore, those four angels merely gave her some "warnings" across a vast distance and returned to Heaven.

In hindsight, this was undoubtedly the correct decision.

Bishop Ding asked with some bewilderment:

"Then..."

The angel said:

"You have already met Maine, haven't you?"

Bishop Ding nodded:

"Yes, although he does not practice the faith, he is a good boy."

The angel said:

"Or perhaps a pitiable wretch possessed by a demon."

Bishop Ding looked at the angel in astonishment:

"How could that be? Could it be that he was hospitalized back then precisely because he was possessed by a demon?"

The angel replied:

"We have some suspicions regarding this. Perhaps he is a seduced traitor, or someone who was once possessed by a demon, or perhaps he truly is simply mentally ill. When the Saint was attacked back then, there were some inexplicable manifestations about him.

"For a time, we felt that he merely had psychological issues, but now Maine has been discharged again, making the answer unclear once more. Do you have any opinions on the matter?"

In truth, the angel still suspected that Maine was actually mentally ill. After all, as far as he knew, the bond between Maine and Chen Yun was exceptionally intimate.

Maine had no reason whatsoever to harm his own family member.

Yet many other angels held differing views, such as his partner who shared the guarding mission.

They didn't particularly suspect Maine, but they cared deeply about another matter.

That was the fact that when spending time with Maine, Chen Yun's sanctity diminished. Her doting and indulgence toward her younger brother did not conform to the doctrines they advocated. Consequently, most of the angels who monitored Chen Yun harbored grievances regarding Maine's existence.

If her sacred heart continued to waver, she might fail to successfully become the figure they expected.

To his compatriots, if they could find the slightest trace of evidence proving that Maine had issues—such as whether he had inadvertently committed some fault during the Saint's attack—they would have a reason to banish Maine to some remote corner of the world.

Meanwhile, other more radical angels were more inclined to believe that Maine's very existence was a sin. Therefore, as long as they could find any so-called evidence matching their expectations, they would personally cast this mortal who had defiled the Saint into the flames of judgment, so that his soul might be purified and offered.

After all, if he were truly innocent, he would suffer no harm in the holy flames.

And if Maine were burned to death, it would prove that he got what he deserved.

Yet looking back through history, very few people had ever truly emerged from the holy flames unscathed, and all of them had stepped into them voluntarily, rather than being thrown in by angels.

Bishop Ding furrowed his brow slightly and pondered:

"I never met Maine before his hospitalization, but according to what other priests have told me, he should have been a very obedient and good boy. He shouldn't be capable of doing anything to harm his sister."

The angel disagreed with his reasoning:

"Looking obedient does not equate to being kind-hearted; it is also very likely that he learned from an early age how to win the favor of others. The matters of demons and cultists can be set aside for the moment; your current focus must be placed on Maine."

Bishop Ding asked with a bewildered expression:

"We don't need to deal with the demons?"

The angel nodded and said:

"The Lord has already arranged for suitable individuals to resolve that issue."

He was, of course, referring to the Coordination Bureau.

All things in the world operated under the will of the Lord. Although He had temporarily departed from His creation, His great will was still intervening in this world.

Moreover, since the leader of this farce was a cultist of the devil, there was even less need for concern.

Bishop Ding wore an expression of understanding:

"I see."

Everything was the will of the Lord.

The angel said:

"Go. Find Maine, and uncover whether he truly suffers from psychological issues. If there is a problem with this matter, return to find me, and my compatriots will bestow punishment and judgment upon this apostate."

Bishop Ding said with a resolute gaze:

"I will surely find the truth."

In truth, this alone was insufficient to prove Maine's actual guilt, but his compatriots could no longer bear to watch Maine destroy Chen Yun's sanctity. Justice and anger made them care far less about procedural fairness.

And while he did not particularly support this approach, he raised no objections either.

After all, regardless of the circumstances, Maine's continued survival drained Chen Yun's sanctity.

If they wished for the Lord to cast His gaze upon their world once more, sacrifices had to be made. All mortals ought to understand this principle, for it was precisely the sins of mortals...

that caused the Lord to forsake them.