Divine Flame Crystal

Chapter 566: The Radiant Knights

The believers were stunned. Although they were a little shaken before, they immediately rekindled their faith when they heard the words "dark forces". After all, most people who believed in the Church had been instilled with the idea of ​​"light against darkness" since childhood. Now that someone told them that "this is just a conspiracy of darkness", they naturally reaffirmed their trust in the Church.

The Holy See of Light knew that verbal explanations were not enough, and they needed practical actions to appease the people, so they planned a grand public trial. The trial was presided over by the Inquisition itself, and they arrested several scapegoats, accusing them of being "spies of the Dark Cult", spreading rumors and inciting civil unrest. The trial was open to the public and all believers could watch.

During the trial, these scapegoats were severely interrogated, and eventually, under tremendous public pressure, they "confessed". They admitted that they were instructed by some evil forces to try to shake the rule of the Church through rumors. This trial not only attracted a large number of believers to watch, but also spread across the continent through magical images. The Church used this trial to re-establish their credibility and divert public attention by condemning these "criminals".

At the same time, the Vatican also released a detailed report on the flow of funds, clarifying the allegations that the Pope and the cardinals had misappropriated funds. The report was clear and verified by multiple magic appraisers to ensure that it would not be suspected of being a forgery. This series of operations gradually dispelled the doubts of believers.

The bright pope knew that coercion and trial alone could not maintain the church's rule for a long time, so he decided to create an image of a "reborn" church in the hearts of believers. He publicly announced a series of "reform" measures within the church, aiming to improve the transparency and efficiency of the church, combat corruption, and set a new moral standard.

The Vatican also organized a large number of charity events, distributing food, clothing and medicine to comfort the people who were panicked by the turmoil. This "pacification" approach was quickly recognized by believers. Through practical actions, the Vatican let the people see that despite the turmoil they had experienced, the light still shone on them.

The pope even appeared in person at some large religious ceremonies to show his still powerful divine blessing, which deeply moved the shaken believers and rekindled their enthusiasm and confidence in the church, as if the crisis had never really existed.

The Holy See of Light did not stop at calming the storm, they wanted to completely reverse the situation and prevent the enemy from making trouble. Therefore, the propaganda agency of the Holy See launched a comprehensive public opinion counterattack, and began to belittle those forces that tried to undermine the Holy See through various channels, accusing them of being "running dogs of the dark believers" and "accomplices of heresy."

The top leaders of the Holy See also specially issued a long statement, expounding on the greatness and supremacy of the God of Light, reiterating that the existence of the Holy See is the will of the God of Light in the world, and that anyone who attempts to challenge the authority of the Holy See is challenging the God of Light himself. This kind of public opinion offensive has caused many people who originally doubted the Holy See to begin to re-examine the source of these rumors, and gradually turn to believe the Holy See's version.

As time went by, the storm gradually subsided, the believers returned to peace, and the Holy See of Light also demonstrated its still strong power and unshakable position in this crisis.

In the end, the Holy See of Light successfully weathered the rumor storm and re-consolidated its position in the hearts of believers. Although Mo and Xingluo's plan almost succeeded, the Holy See of Light, as a behemoth that has experienced countless storms, successfully resolved the crisis with its strong organizational and control capabilities, and even used this opportunity to reorganize its internal structure and regain new vitality.

Although the Holy See of Light survived the crisis in the public opinion storm carefully planned by Mo, the internal strife and rumors were like a sharp knife, ruthlessly cutting through the sacred coat of the Holy See. Although the Holy See still stood firm, its sacred and inviolable image had been severely damaged. Mo stood in the distance, watching all this with cold eyes, but he had already made up his mind. Although the Holy See was still powerful, its high and mighty majesty was no longer as difficult to touch as before. Now, the situation became delicate, and it was the best time for Mo to launch his next plan.

The Church of Light did not fall as expected, but after Mo's "rumor storm", the Church was obviously seriously injured. Although the internal rifts were temporarily bridged under the strong integration of the Pope, the seeds of doubt sown in the hearts of believers by the rumors carefully spread by Mo were still quietly sprouting.

The God of Light in the hearts of some believers is no longer as pure and flawless. The corruption and power struggles in the Holy See have gradually made them realize that the Holy See is just an organization composed of mortals. This has caused them to waver, and some believers have even quietly left the church to follow other beliefs.

For the Holy See of Light, this weakening of faith is extremely fatal. After all, their power comes from the piety of believers, and once this piety is weakened, the authority and control of the Holy See will also decline. Mo sees this very clearly - although the Holy See has successfully survived the crisis of public opinion, its authority and sacredness have been partially eliminated, and this is his next opportunity.

In this turmoil, Mo not only achieved his goal of weakening the Church, but also took the opportunity to spy on the true power of the Church of Light hidden from the world. Under the surface turmoil, the Church mobilized a "Glorious Knights" that had never appeared in public. This mysterious force appeared in the defense of the Church and assisted the Pope to quickly quell the internal turmoil and the attack on the Church.

Mo's spy quickly passed this information back. He was keenly aware that this hidden force was not an ordinary knight group, but an elite warrior who had been specially trained and equipped with powerful holy light magic. Obviously, the Holy See of Light had secretly cultivated a considerable number of hidden forces in case of emergency. The Holy See not only had religious and judicial power on the surface, but also secretly controlled unknown military and magic forces.

Mo smiled slightly and thought to himself: "Although the existence of this force proves that the Holy See is indeed powerful, its exposure makes me more aware of the true strength of the Holy See. Next, how to plan for these hidden forces is crucial."

Although the Church still maintains the superficial order, its sacred aura is gone. This change seems invisible, but it has brought substantial impacts in many places. In the past, nobles and forces in various countries were obedient to the Church of Light, because in their hearts, the Church was the "spokesman of God" and had unquestionable authority. However, this public opinion storm made many people realize that the Church of Light is just an organization composed of mortals, which will make mistakes, be corrupt, and even have internal struggles.