Warlock of the Magus World (Chapter 901-Chapter 1050)

Even a native would be able to become a cleric or even a bishop! As long as they were devout and prayed piously, of course.

Leylin recalled a famous proverb from his previous life, ‘Everything between heaven and earth is but a stray dog!’

Although there were many interpretations of it, Leylin himself knew that everyone was treated equally by the divine, with no bias. That was the approach the gods of this world had adopted, at least.

However, the truest lack of bias could only be attributed to the various World Wills. Realistically speaking, as long as a majority of his faith came from the pirates and devil worshippers, Leylin would favour them. However, in the future he would have to rely on the power of faith from Debanks Island once he conquered it. The scales would be adjusted then.

It was only pragmatic and necessary to pick up natives and make them priests or saintesses, showing that everyone was equal and giving them hope. Leylin turned his attention to the field using his divine sense.

The battle continued, with not every native being cowed by the fear in their hearts. When a change of faith was forced, ‘heroes’ were wont to step up time and time again. Be it man or woman, youth or elderly, the only similarity was the unwavering resolution in their eyes, and the spirit of martyrdom.

The pirates simply beheaded them, the fresh blood pouring into the battlefield striking more fear into the natives’ hearts. Beautiful woman who did not comply were a way for them to flaunt their manhood as they slayed the old and young.

Isabel did not stop these acts. A change of faith had to be ignited by fresh blood, and those who wouldn’t comply even superficially would only have death awaiting them. If their faith could not be forced from their soul, they would disappear in the flesh.

Before humans grew civilised, killing eliminated problems without solving them. As culture progressed, this method was abandoned. However, the laws of the jungle still prevailed in the World of Gods, even on the mainland.

‘There won’t be thorns sticking out anymore, but there should be some who’ve only complied on the surface. They’ll be scheming something else in the background…’ Leylin mocked this train of thought in his mind. Like the proverbs went, one would grow accustomed to kneeling. Once they swore loyalty to him, he could acquire their faith and strengthen it in the future.

The hidden problems were easy to solve. As a divine being, Leylin could tell deceit and true reverence apart. Those fellows would never climb up the hierarchy, and once they exhibited any signs of rebellion they would be executed immediately.

Using the method of the carrot and the stick, Leylin would convert them completely, making them unwavering in their devotion.

‘It’s just that I don’t have enough time…’ Leylin shook his head.

At this moment, many black-robed clerics flooded the battlefield, soothing the natives like they were lambs. “Forget the false gods you believed in, and put your faith in our Lord. Even your family will experience salvation for your choice.”

A threat to one’s life left them vulnerable in many ways. Tiff understood this himself, having sent the acolytes out to soothe the natives without instruction to. With the gentle words of these acolytes, even more of the natives pledged their faith to Leylin, which strengthened his connection over the Weave even more than before.

A native girl looked up at Tiff, her eyes betraying her apprehension. “If…If I choose to believe in your god, will father be saved?”

Tiff smiled gently, kneeling down. “Who is your father, and where is he?” he asked the girl who had pale yellow skin and dark hair. There were traces of mud and coal on her face.

“He… He was a brave warrior of the tribe. He died today on the shore…” the little girl said timidly.

“He will be,” Tiff stroked her hair, “Our Lord has mastered the massacre domain. All souls that perished under him can definitely be salvaged. If you pledge your faith…”

“Then, I choose to believe!” The girl knelt before the statue and kowtowed with utmost sincerity. It was so much so that her forehead began to bruise, and blood appeared.

“Almighty bishop, I know where a group of the tribe’s warriors have gone, including the chief. They are in a mountain-hole at Bakala.”

The natives stirred in unrest, shocked by the little girl’s betrayal. Her calmness surprised even Tiff.

“Very well, you shall be rewarded!” Tiff eyed an acolyte at the side, who relayed this important information to the other leaders. He looked at the little native girl fondly, trying to think of a reward.

Before he could do that, though, a golden light shone out of the Targaryen statue. The power caused everyone to kneel unconsciously.

“Almighty Lord…”

A divine aura seemed to come to life under the holy light, and a beam of it entered the native girl’s body.

“You are kind yet resolute, you shall be blessed!” The golden light circled the girl’s body, leaving a mark on her forehead.

Once the light dimmed, Tiff looked solemnly at the girl. “Your name?”

“I am Barbara! Barbara Morui!” The girl repeated her name.

“You have received the blessings of the Winged Serpent God. From now, you are the saintess of our church!” Tiff hoisted the girl onto his shoulders, “May the winged serpent always be with you!”

“Kukulkan! Kukulkan!” The numerous acolytes cheered Leylin’s divine name in zealotry.

At the same time, this atmosphere, with Barbara hoisted up high, renewed the hope of the natives. Leylin felt the power from their faith surge again, and the web of their faith grew sturdier.





Chapter 997 – Blackmail


Blackmail

‘Congregations are indeed a good way to embellish the atmosphere… No wonder the churches of my past preferred to hold worship on selected days each week…’ Leylin who had withdrawn his vision shook his head.

It was just a matter of time before the tribes of the Chihuahua Islands would come to his side. He believed that Tiff understood his intentions, and could exploit the worth of a saintess.

After all these matters were settled, Leylin’s gaze turned to Debanks Island. He did not have time to conquer all the tribes of the Chihuahua Islands. He had to conquer the few largest ones first, producing his own divinity and ascending to become a demigod before he could challenge the Sakartes Kingdom.

Once the internal affairs were taken care of, a new round of battle preparations was underway.

‘It isn’t just subjugating the tribes and killing them. The quest to conquer the natives has to be filled with death and plagues.’ To truly win with his small numbers, he had to regard those last two aspects as well.

If he wasn’t limited by secrecy from the outside world, Leylin would even have sent people to ask for help from the Goddess of Plagues. With her belonging to the evil alignment, she would definitely be glad to do it.

‘Forget it, they’d find out I can absorb the natives’ faith. Might as well do it myself.’ Pride welled within Leylin. As a Magus, he wouldn’t find it difficult to create a new plague if he spent some time. Moreover, being a bloodline Warlock he could even come up with one that was very infectious and fatal, capable of eliminating entire tribes.

While he did not have to resort to such extremes, it was still necessary to give them a good scare. Any tribes going against him would contact the plague. With people dying all the time, the only way to save themselves would be to pledge their faith to him. How much power would that produce?

While some clerics could use magic to resist the plague, how sparse were they amongst the commoners? With their limited spell slots, it would be great even if they could just save the nobility.

Furthermore, their gods were just earth-bound spirits or demigods at best. Their divine spells were rank 5 at most, and the number of casts paled in comparison to those of a real god. This was one major limitation.

Having conquered the Chihuahua Islands, Leylin’s army could finally plant their feet down firmly close to Debanks Islands. With the support of their warships, Debanks Island’s counterattacks would not amount to much. Even if they discovered Leylin now and took the most efficient course of action, they wouldn’t be able to chase Leylin away.

In addition, Chihuahua Islands was now a constant source of war supplies, warriors, and most importantly power of faith. The natives Leylin had brought on board were now released, acting as translators and mediators that aided his governance.

While high-ranking cleric spells like Language Proficiency did exist, the acolytes on the ground couldn’t use so many spell scrolls. The likes of translators were of paramount importance.