In the dense jungle. Bishop André, his robes in tatters, scrambled and crawled for his life. A long, serrated blade of grass slashed across his clothing, tearing the already ruined fabric of his cassock and leaving a foot-long crimson welt across his thigh.

"Argh!" A vine, lying low to the ground, tripped André, sending him airborne. He slammed into a massive tree trunk, nearly knocking the breath clean out of him.

"Almighty Lord!"

Accompanied by choked, gasping prayers, André expended the last vestiges of his sacred power to cast a third-level healing divine spell. A holy, white radiance enveloped his body; the myriad wounds, large and small, began to seal, and a fraction of strength returned to his utterly exhausted frame. Shaking his head forcefully, he cast a frantic glance around, then hauled himself up again, stumbling forward in aimless flight.

Two Roman golden crescent-shaped fighters screamed overhead through the canopy; they failed to spot André and swept straight past.

The Holy See’s detached fleet had located the Thirteen Stars System, and the news immediately reached the command center of the Earth Federation’s Heaven Star Expeditionary Force. A detachment from the Federation fleet was urgently dispatched to rendezvous.

But, as had happened countless times in history’s great battles, the moment the report reached the Expeditionary Command, the Romans were also informed. A Roman fleet immediately jumped to this planetary system and engaged the Earth Federation fleet in a desperate, fierce battle. In the chaos, the Holy See’s detached fleet was unfortunately ‘collateral damage’; several warships were destroyed, and André narrowly escaped aboard a life pod.

The battle between the Federation fleet and the Roman fleet lasted less than an hour before a sudden, elite Roman squadron warped into the fray. Composed of sixty Roman first-class warships, this elite force instantly annihilated the entire Federation fleet and immediately commenced a relentless pursuit of André and the other high-ranking officials of the Holy See who had managed to escape.

From the dense woods behind him came the distinct, crisp whistling of the Elven race—their unique signal to coordinate with companions hidden within the foliage. A sharp cry, like that of an eagle, descended from the high heavens; several colossal, snow-white eagles, their wingspans exceeding ten meters, circled above, keeping the entire hundred-mile radius of the jungle under their surveillance.

Footsteps suddenly sounded not far off. A handsome youth, similarly clad in white robes, burst out from the thicket, looking utterly disheveled.

André cried out in surprise, "Your Excellency Fernand!"

Fernand exclaimed in return, "Your Excellency André!"

The two exchanged a brief look, ignoring the need to discuss the fate of their respective life pods, and frantically chose a direction in which to flee headlong. Not long after they ran, another white-robed young man joined them, panting heavily. Both cried out simultaneously, "Heavens, Your Excellency Lagus!"

The three exchanged delighted glances and hurried forward together. This individual, Lagus, still possessed several high-quality Zakra Crystals; he generously distributed one to André and one to Fernand. As they fled, the three absorbed the energy within the crystals, somewhat restoring their flagging spirits.

Fernand and Lagus were the very partners with whom André had previously summoned the Trinity Realm Puppets. All three were the most outstanding elites of the Church’s younger generation, having been awarded the rank of White-Robed Archbishop at a remarkably young age. Their reunion bolstered their chances of survival considerably.

After running forward for several hundred meters, the sharp sound of clashing metal suddenly erupted ahead. Two Holy See Knights, clad in heavy armor, were desperately dragging their greatswords as they fled from behind a massive tree, pursued closely by five Elven warriors driving over a dozen bio-engineered white wolves.

André let out a cry of alarm. The two fleeing Knights abruptly spotted the three White-Robed Archbishops and simultaneously halted their retreat. After a quick glance exchanged between them, the Knights turned as one to face the pursuers. "Almighty God, grant us the strength for a final glory!" The two Knights raised their swords toward the sky and roared in unison.

Intense white light descended from above, instantly pouring into their bodies. The Knights’ physiques rapidly expanded, and a brilliant white light diffused outward from within them. Veins as thick as thumbs bulged beneath their skin; what flowed through these vessels was no longer mere blood, but a near-tangible, immense Holy Power. Their heavy crusader swords slammed down onto the heads of the charging white wolves, cleaving two of the bio-beasts cleanly in half.

The brilliant white light washed over the forest ahead. The two Knights, their speed, strength, and defense multiplied several dozen times over, roared as they mercilessly cut down every pursuer. Pure white Holy Fire enveloped their forms, slowly searing their flesh. Forcing back the agony of the flames consuming them, the two Knights slowly turned and knelt on one knee before André.

Two tears of blood streamed from the corners of André’s eyes. He roared up at the heavens, "Rest assured, I will avenge you!" A long gust of wind swept through the trees, and the two Holy See Knights, along with their white armor and swords, disintegrated into ash, blown away without a trace, leaving only the faint memory of their smiles lingering in the residual Holy Fire.

Fernand clenched his fists, his long nails digging deep into his palms, drawing droplets of blood that stained the earth. He roared, "The Federation Military! Why must there always be so many traitors?" Lagus was also weeping, saying in a low voice, "I truly wish to purify the entire Federation Ministry! If the entire Federation were composed of the most devout believers, how could such a thing happen?" André’s hand moved to the dark pouch beneath his breast; the hard object his palm touched steadied his heart. Gritting his teeth, he said, "No matter what, we must transmit the secret here—to His Holiness the Pope. Even if we die, this message must get through!" Fernand and Lagus were instantly galvanized; they moved to either side of André, guarding him as they continued their desperate flight forward.

A dull rumbling sound echoed from the dense forest behind them. Thousands of grotesque, towering armed robots, several meters high, were charging through the thicket, brutally obliterating every obstacle in their path. Their advance was incredibly fast, like a giant comb raking through the jungle, vaporizing every potential hiding spot with at least a hundred high-energy particle beams.

Ducathol Mhrum stood atop a metallic spider, gazing coldly upon the forest ahead.

The small, charming Lily blew a series of sharp whistles, and similar sounds echoed back from the distant woods. After listening intently for a moment to the signals returned by her kinsmen, Lily lifted her head with dissatisfaction: "Shau, they still haven't been found! Thirteen life pods escaped the encirclement. Based on standard crew numbers, everyone else has been killed, except for André, Fernand, Lagus, and those two Holy See Knights." Her deep gaze flicked to the sky, and Ducathol Mhrum commanded in a low tone, "Find them, kill them, erase every trace, lest the Holy See move against us. How strange that they located Thirteen Star so easily. Humph, does the Holy See just have such good luck?" After whistling a few times to relay the order, Lily made a series of gestures in the air with her hands. Three fist-sized green eagles shrieked out of a ball of green light and shot into the jungle like lightning.

She sighed, "Shau, why is there no contribution from you this time? Why is Polpot punishing you?" Ducathol Mhrum glanced numbly at Lily and replied with a dry tone, "I am merely his shadow; all glory belongs to him!" Lily clenched her fists, raising her tear-filled eyes, only to have them gently wiped dry by a large, tender hand.

Three Roman first-class warships landed on a clearing cleared by the robots. A large contingent of Roman elites poured out rapidly on disc-shaped aerial vehicles. The arrogant Roman warriors moved forward like a flock of well-fed swans, heads held high, radiating an air of supreme disdain, not giving the surroundings a single glance. "Speed up! Find those people and kill them before the Romans do!" Ducathol Mhrum clenched his fist and issued the low command.

Viewed from the air, the Roman army was encircling André and the others from three directions, and the noose was tightening. Fortunately, André was fleeing toward the only exit, but the pursuers behind and to the sides were drawing closer, closer, closer.

Finally, a squad of Elven soldiers riding black panther bio-beasts spotted the figures of the three Archbishops. Maintaining a distance of about a hundred meters, the Elven soldiers dismounted and unleashed twelve ferocious-looking black panthers upon them. The panthers let out deep roars, closing the distance like bolts of black lightning.

Fernand tripped over a root and collapsed heavily, unable to move for a long moment.

Lagus frantically tugged at Fernand’s arm, trying to pull him up. But both men were nearly depleted of energy, and the result was that the one who fell couldn't be raised, while the helper was dragged down with him.

André let out a cry of despair. He suddenly spun around, channeling the tiny bit of energy absorbed while fleeing, catalyzing all his spiritual power, and barely managed to summon a silver puppet.

The silver puppet, barely over a meter tall, strode out of the silver light shouting the Holy Name of the Lord. It swung the silver lightning crackling in its hand, unleashing a bolt of thunder toward the charging black panthers. Two panthers instantly dissolved into dust under the electric discharge; the light jumped to the beasts behind them, causing them to convulse and collapse, only the final panther remaining completely unaffected, continuing its charge toward the men.

Fernand and Lagus were still tangled on the ground, unable to react in time.

André cast a look of utter despair at the two men. His right hand tightly grasped the object in the dark pouch at his chest, and he shouted heavenward, "Almighty God, grant me the strength for a final glory!"

Large cloud masses overhead turned a translucent silvery-white, and a golden light faintly shone from behind the clouds. A shaft of silver holy light pierced down from the depths of the cloud bank, bathing André precisely. Immense Holy Power surged from some unknowable point beyond the heavens. André’s body began to dematerialize within the silver glow, gradually growing to a height of over fifteen meters. He pressed both hands to his chest, and a ball of increasingly intense silver light erupted from his sternum, coalescing before him into an exquisite cross, no larger than the palm of a hand.

The approaching black panther was met by a single glare from André. He merely gave a simple, soft grunt—"Destroy." The panther instantly disintegrated into the finest energy particles, dissipating into a great cloud of light motes.