Chapter 740: The Exiled Pope
Sadness was merely an emotion, not despair. The little black dragon lowered her head, staring at the line of footprints in the snow, and began to think and calculate rapidly. How much strength had that golden dragon royal from another continent expended when it broke through the crystal wall and returned? Shang Xingzhou had easily defeated it, naturally relying on home-field advantage and having prepared in advance—how could this battle be used to accurately determine this person's true cultivation level? If her chains were unlocked, how much of a chance would she have to defeat him?
Chen Changsheng guessed what she was thinking and said, "Stop thinking about it."
The little black dragon raised her head, staring into his eyes, and said, "The Pope made me your guardian; there must be some meaning to it."
Neither she nor Chen Changsheng knew that the Pope had rescued her from beneath North New Bridge and made her Chen Changsheng's guardian mainly because of the complex relationship between the Xuan Shuang Dragon Clan and White Emperor City.
Hearing the term "guardian" again, Chen Changsheng was silent for a moment, then suddenly said, "Do you know who my master's guardian was back then?"
The little black dragon shook her head.
Chen Changsheng looked toward the direction where that person had just disappeared into the wind and snow and said, "That night, my uncle told me... my master never chose a guardian back then."
A strange glint flashed in the little black dragon's eyes.
Chen Changsheng continued, "My master believed that cultivation could not rely on external objects, nor on others—he alone was enough."
The little black dragon remained silent.
Such a person was too terrifying.
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...
Night passed, and dawn arrived. The wind and snow still shrouded the capital as the continent welcomed a new year.
Many important events occurred on the first day of the new year. For example, the Great Zhou Dynasty officially changed its reign name, and the Li Palace gained a new master.
During the Li Palace's New Year ceremony, something happened that shocked the entire continent.
According to the late Pope's will and the National Religion Proclamation already issued to the world, Chen Changsheng became the new Pope.
However, he did not appear at the New Year ceremony. His figure was nowhere to be seen in the Bright Hall, so naturally, there was no so-called coronation ceremony. This news sparked countless shocked discussions. Whether it was the Li Palace clergy, the teachers and students of the Green Ivy Academies, or the ordinary citizens of the capital, everyone felt bewildered, and then unease began to grow.
Amid the turmoil, the Li Palace issued an authoritative explanation.
The Proclamation bore the Dao-blood seals of the five great powers and Chen Changsheng's personal signature.
Because the Pope was too young and had not cultivated long enough, he had resolved to enter the mortal world for cultivation, to comprehend the Heavenly Dao amidst the mundane world.
When would he return? No one knew, and the Proclamation offered no answer. It only stated very clearly that the Pope could return to the capital and ascend the throne at any time.
The Pope was not in the Li Palace but was traveling incognito, cultivating in seclusion within the world?
This was the first time such a situation had occurred in history.
Shock and confusion filled the entire capital, even the entire continent, to the point that many people failed to remember the Great Zhou Dynasty's new reign name.
When these emotions were finally somewhat diluted by time, people looked back at the past year and recalled the things the previous Pope had done, and they vaguely understood something—all of this was the arrangement of the previous Pope.
If Chen Changsheng stayed in the capital, it would make the imperial court extremely uneasy, and this unease would inevitably lead to war.
His departure from the capital would make the imperial court... more precisely, it would make Shang Xingzhou feel much more at ease.
Although even now, few people understood why Shang Xingzhou was so wary, repulsed, and hateful toward Chen Changsheng's existence.
Just as Chen Changsheng had long realized, and just as Shang Xingzhou had lamented last night in the wind and snow of the National Teaching Academy—if two sides find each other tiresome, then let them not meet.
Give this master and disciple some time, some distance.
Give the imperial court and the National Religion some time, some distance.
Give this world and its countless people a chance.
A war wasn't necessarily required; life-and-death confrontation wasn't inevitable.
Chen Changsheng was still the Pope.
He just couldn't stay in the capital, couldn't stay in the Li Palace.
Even if this lingering game would eventually lead to mutual destruction, at least there could be some breathing room for making moves.
Problems that couldn't be solved now might, in the future, be resolved with greater wisdom from both sides.
This was the arrangement of the previous Pope, and as it stood, it was also the best solution.
Of course, the previous Pope's arrangement had many more details to ensure that even if Chen Changsheng left the capital, the Li Palace could maintain its position.
This unprecedented situation had extremely complex causes and conditions, perfectly embodying the Pope's wisdom and patience.
As the successor, what Chen Changsheng needed to do now was accept this arrangement and continue to enhance his wisdom, patience, and strength.
He needed to rely on wisdom and patience to survive.
As long as he lived, he was the Pope.
When the mountain flowers bloomed in profusion, then we would talk.
Not everyone could see through this matter, and even fewer understood the painstaking care behind the previous Pope's arrangement, or the resolve and boldness the Li Palace had demonstrated through this affair. When the shock faded, what people saw was a simple fact.
—Chen Changsheng had succeeded as Pope but had been driven out of the capital.
From anyone's perspective, this was a victory for the imperial court.
Many believed that Shang Xingzhou, unwilling to see war between the imperial court and the National Religion and also unwilling to veto the late Pope's will, had made a gesture of tolerance.
Tolerance, of course, came from a position of superiority.
A Pope not in the Li Palace, no matter how you looked at it, was a Pope in name only.
It was even more dismal than being a figurehead.
This was an exiled Pope.
...
...
The Orthodox Calendar officially ended.
Heavenly Sea Holy Empress's rule over this continent became a page in history, already turned.
The Great Zhou Dynasty formally changed its reign to New Kingdom, and the unification of north and south was declared successful. When spring returned to the earth, countless affairs would be put into practice. Already, many cultivators had been ordered to travel from the south to the north, joining various military commands.
The demon empress had been executed, the demon lord had died, Snow Old City was in chaos, the Pope had passed away—everything was renewed, and the continent's future was bright.
Humanity would undoubtedly usher in the best era since Emperor Taizong.
No one knew that on an ordinary winter day, the new Pope, Chen Changsheng, had left the National Teaching Academy.
He walked out of Hundred Flowers Lane, merged into the crowd, followed the Luo River, crossed the Naihe Bridge and the stone pillars before the Li Palace, passed through the city gates, and left the capital.
In his arms was a letter, at his waist a sword, and in his hand an umbrella.
By his side was a little girl in black clothes.
The girl was fresh and lovely, but her face was expressionless, appearing exceptionally cold.
In her arms, she held a pot of green leaves.
Chen Changsheng did not walk fast, but the little girl was very small, and to keep up with him, her steps had to be quick.
As she walked, her black hair rose and fell in the cold wind, and the green leaves in her arms also rose and fell.
They were not oars swinging in the spring breeze, but rather what she and this world ought to look like.
...
...
(When I first wrote about the Pope's green leaves, I was thinking of Leon, I wanted to write this scene, so the little black dragon's name really should be Mathilda.)