The more they oppose, the more it shows that I am doing the right thing

Elf skipped work.

An Su's current identity was that of the Quasi-Saint of the Ladder Cult, which might sound impressive, but there were nine cults in the Sanctuary of Chaos, each with their own Saint Heir. He was still a full three major gradients away from Elf's rank.

After all, Elf was not only the Ladder Saintess but also the Saintess of the entire Mysticism of Chaos.

However, there were no followers present with higher status than An Su.

According to the unwritten rules of the Esoteric Sect, in the absence of a Cult's Bishop, its Saint Heir and Saintess have the right to act in the Bishop's stead. If neither the Saint Heir nor Saintess is present, then it is the Quasi-Saint Heir's turn to inherit the temporary authority.

Therefore, when An Su got rid of An Su, he became the Interim Bishop of the Ladder Cult as the mountain had no tigers, and the monkey became king.

After the coronation, An Su's whole demeanor had changed.

He took the Chaos robe from the Witch with his left hand, which was specially made for the Acting Bishop—it was originally for Elf, but she had tossed it aside, considering it ugly.

The edges of the robe were embellished with elaborate and gorgeous patterns, formed by countless tangled lines into chaotic pupils. The entire robe was in shades of black and white. An Su donned the Bishop robe, fastened the long row of buttons, and, at first glance, quite embodied the style of a Bishop of Chaos.

It suited An Su very well.

"Heh heh heh."

He let out the distinctive evil laugh of a great villain learned from books, which made all the surrounding Priests shiver and think how he laughed so debauchedly after his ascension.

Quite the Chaotic demeanor!

They exchanged glances and nodded in praise.

An Su also nodded in satisfaction, recalling that just a day before, he was the temporary ruler of Heaven, the Acting Bishop of the Radiant Holy See. How fate played its hand; within a mere day, he had donned the robe of a Bishop of the Sanctuary of Chaos.

He had achieved an accomplishment never before attained by any follower in history, which was, within one day, to be newly appointed as a Radiant Bishop only to fall and become a Bishop of Chaos, earning the rare feat of the fastest betrayal.

An Su nodded; this sense of achievement from completing a full collection speed run was precisely what every player sought.

The trusted lieutenants of Lord An Su, Bishop of Chaos—Lister and Arthur—had also changed into the garb of Acting Bishop. Arthur put on the robe of the Bishop of Pain adorned with dark chains and white skulls, symbolizing conquest and death; Lister was fully dressed in a sea-blue robe with a full moon's tidal rune at his groin, overflowing with water vapor, symbolic of the tide from the deepest part of the ocean.

The two men stood by An Su's side, taking advantage of their temporary status as leaders, they held their heads high and reveled in the astonished worship of the surrounding Witches.

Bishop Bram and Bishop Rada were also out of contact,

and as newly ascended leaders, they, too, proclaimed themselves kings, becoming Acting Bishops of the Star Cult and the Oceanic Sect.

To avoid exposing themselves and to maintain the prestige of an Archbishop, they also imitated the dignified postures they remembered of Bishops—mainly imitating Bishop Merlin—by turning their backs, stripping off their lower garments, and displaying their falsely robust figures, which caused all the Esoteric Sect Followers to gasp in shock.

This was very Painful, but also full of the sense of Life.

It looked like something straight out of the movies.

The Witches exchanged glances and nodded their approval.

As soon as the three border Bishops took position, they received recognition from the Followers and Priests—it was clear these were great villains.

Now, An Su, dressed in his finery and the Chaos robe, couldn't help feeling a surge of boundless pride; he only awaited leading a thousand cavalries over the hills and taking his Esoteric Sect brothers to storm Heaven and seize Bishop Merlin's position. Then as the great Emperor, they would drink and eat heartily together.

"Acting Saint Heir Your Grace—"

A Priest interrupted An Su's ambitious dreams. Before he could finish,

he saw An Su shaking his head slowly, "Address me by my official title when outside."

"...Acting Bishop Your Grace?"

"Make it shorter," An Su glanced at him, feeling that the man lacked political awareness and was doomed to remain a regional Priest in this lifetime.

"Bishop Your Grace!"

The others realized and promptly addressed him with respect. Although they were all more experienced and of higher realms than An Su, this young upstart had a promising future and might return to headquarters as a permanent figure one day, so it was best to curry favor.

"Bishop Your Grace,"

the prior Priest fixed his greeting and whispered urgently to An Su:

"What are our plans going forward?"

He added,

"The officials from the Church Nation will soon arrive at the Imperial Capital, and if our Cult doesn't produce results, I fear we won't be able to answer to that personage."@@novelbin@@

Upon hearing these words, An Su's eyes narrowed slightly, and he became alert.

Frankly, he hadn't infiltrated the Cult and climbed to the position of Acting Bishop for the purpose of seeking personal gains—okay, it was indeed to seek personal benefits,

but apart from that, he was on a mission.

As Acting Bishop, he could access top-secret information that ordinary Chaotic Followers couldn't.

In the original plot, the [Fall of the Imperial Capital Night] was a pivotal plot point with qualities of a plot murder scene and was therefore part of the game's backdrop, explained rather unclearly. Furthermore, due to the franchise's trademark fragmented storytelling style and lingering massive uncertainties even to now,

various Nether scholars across the internet continuously debated it.

The information that could be confirmed was that the Life Cult led the incident, with both the Life and the Painful Church participating. Stay connected via My Virtual Library Empire

The mastermind behind the plan, apart from the Ladder Saintess Elf disclosed to the players, had no further information.