World's End: My Keyword is One More Than Others

Chapter 418: King of Acting

du ge had always believed in striking first. he could reason with you, but only after defeating you—unless he couldn't beat you...

"sun god, do you hear me? today, i will represent the sea god and eliminate this blasphemer for you..." after pinning the pope to the pillar of shame, du ge shouted his declaration of war.

the sea god martial soul unfolded, and the seven-orifice touch quietly condensed, striking the pope, whose face was filled with horror.

it integrated precisely and then froze.

"ugh..."

a short sound squeezed out from the pope's throat. his eyes widened suddenly, and his mouth, sealed by the seven-orifice touch, trapped his words of repentance in his throat.

in the next instant.

the pope suddenly fell, his face filled with astonishment. his staff uncontrollably wrote on the ground: "i am guilty..."

seeing the pope writing on the ground, du ge's eyes widened.

damn, is this even possible?

seal the mouth, and he writes with his hand? doesn't this mean he can seal not just speech but also physical actions?

strike while the iron is hot!

without any special movements, a scroll appeared in du ge's hand and was instantly activated.

wrath of thunder.

lightning enveloped the pope and the bishops around him.

boom!

a bright light flashed across the pope's robe.

before the thunder could descend, it dissipated into smoke.

the pope was indeed a blasphemer, but he was still the sun god's representative. after the initial shock and astonishment, he quickly reacted.

the robe that was immune to all magic blocked du ge's forbidden technique.

he quickly revealed his martial soul.

the twelve-winged angel was magnificent and majestic, slightly smaller than the sea god.

a painful howl.

the ice pillars inserted into the pope's body by the seven-orifice touch were all forced out, carrying bright red blood, scattering to the ground.

able to speak again, the pope completed his written confession with his mouth: "...in the name of heresy, i executed cardinal gareth..."

...

on the city wall.

lather's eyes suddenly turned red, and his martial soul emerged. if old gao hadn't held him back, he would have rushed out.

lather clenched his fists, tears in his eyes, and roared to the sky in grief and anger: "teacher, did you hear that? the pope is the real traitor. you died so unjustly!"

at this moment.

the bishops who accompanied the pope were shocked by the pope's increasing revelations and distanced themselves from him.

fight side by side?

this was under the sun, and the sun god might be watching from above.

even if du ge was truly an evil god, they couldn't be associated with the pope at this moment. if one day the sun god learned of today's events and sent divine punishment, they wouldn't even be able to explain.

no matter what, they had to draw a clear line with the pope...

moreover, who knew if du ge would use judgment on them? they had committed quite a few sins over the years.

if exposed in public, no one could protect them!

of course, the best way was to join forces with the pope and kill du ge, labeling him as an evil god. but they were wary of the sun god and didn't dare to team up with the pope.

no one wanted to be the first to stand out.

there was another concern: if they joined forces with the pope and du ge was defeated, the pope, who had exposed so many conspiracies, wouldn't tolerate them...

so conflicted!

why is life so difficult?

the evil god's skills are terrifying!

...

suddenly.

the twelve-winged angel behind the pope emitted countless dazzling rays of light.

du ge had seen lather use this move before, called judgment, with immense destructive power.

but this holy judgment, combined with the pope's "i am guilty," seemed somewhat eerie. and judging by the range of the twelve-winged angel's judgment light, it was clearly meant to silence witnesses.

silence?

with him around, dream on!

the sea god's staff was raised.

the sea beneath du ge's feet surged into massive waves, blocking all the judgment light. his martial soul indeed had no soul skills, but in terms of mental power, he feared no one.

the spectators on the city wall, seeing the pope's actions, were filled with anger.

they didn't care about the pope's blasphemy.

but the pope, in his rage, turned against them, which was unforgivable.

the pope wanted to silence them; he was indeed a despicable person. everything he said was true...

compared to him, king holly, whom they had slandered as an evil god, was incredibly righteous.

...

"king holly, kill the pope."

"kill that blasphemer."

...

the chaotic voices echoed across the battlefield.

"...i am guilty. i once used a false divine oracle to insult the church's saintess..."

as long as du ge didn't stop his skill, the pope's confession wouldn't cease. with more and more scandals exposed, the pope's gaze towards du ge became increasingly calm.

what else could he do?

his mouth was sealed, yet he stubbornly used his staff to write his sins.

the evil god's technique was essentially divine magic.

damn nobu, if he had told him earlier that the evil god's supernatural power was so formidable, he wouldn't have come to join this mess!

at this point.

only by killing everyone present could he cover up his sins.

the pope hardened his heart.

the sun god was asleep. as long as today's events didn't spread, he would still be the high and mighty pope...

...

magic failed.

du ge decisively put away the scroll and used the seven-orifice touch on the pope again.

his sea god martial soul also raised monstrous waves, sweeping towards the twelve-winged angel behind the pope. in high-level battles, magic-based skills relying on external forces were indeed not reliable. at critical moments, he had to rely on his hard power...

...

"bishops, what are you waiting for? waiting for the pope to silence you?" du ge loudly reminded, his combat instincts making full use of everything in his favor. "he is a blasphemer. he absolutely won't allow today's events to be known by the sun god."

grand duke lynch had a body full of treasures, let alone the pope, who held a higher position.

not knowing the pope's details, du ge naturally needed some cannon fodder to test him first.

these words.

shocked the bishops, who instinctively looked at the pope.

the twelve-winged angel behind the pope coldly swept its gaze over the crowd. the deterrence of the ten-star martial soul and the pope's authority immediately subdued them.

...

"no... i can't fall, this evil man will kill all my people for his reputation..."

...

"i don't believe it, you blasphemer, evil man, why would the sun god choose you? i will fight, i will represent the sea god and kill you!"

...

"king holly!"

"king."

"king holly, stop fighting, run away, you can't beat him..."

"king holly, you're still young. run away, come back after cultivating stronger soul skills to avenge us."

"king, stop holding on, you'll die if you continue!"

"pope, you bastard, even if one of us survives, we will spread your evil deeds across the world..."

...

seeing holly's martial soul being split and re-fused repeatedly, but his body growing weaker, the people on the city wall couldn't hold back anymore.

many shed tears, shouting for du ge to escape, to stop holding on.

at this moment.

du ge, with his strong and realistic acting, won everyone's hearts.

lather and others, worried about du ge, rushed out of the city wall to block the pope and save their king. at this moment, they had forgotten du ge's feat of splitting his martial soul.

but as soon as they rushed out, a water wall blocked them back.

it was du ge.

he, with his heavily injured body, used the water wall technique.

this was the best time for his attribute enhancement, a chance to gain righteousness and split attributes.

he absolutely wouldn't allow a bunch of fools to ruin his good fortune.

du ge staggered to his feet, his back to the pope, shouting in grief: "go, everyone go, you are no match for the pope, coming here will only mean death.

everyone, i underestimated the pope's abilities, putting you in danger, this is my failure.

all citizens, follow my command, leave bask city immediately, go as far as possible, tell more people, let them know the true face of the pope, only then will my sacrifice today not be in vain..."

pfft!

as du ge spoke, he spat out another mouthful of blood.

"king!"

the crowd was heartbroken, but no one left.

"go, i can't hold him off for long." du ge waved his hand forcefully, trying to stand straight. "lather, stephen gao, grand duke lynch, this might be my last order to you, i command you to lead all the citizens of bask city, leave here, protect them at all costs, keep them safe from the church's pursuit until the sun god cleanses the pope. go! do you want me to die in vain?"

the pope heard du ge's words, anxious but unable to say anything else. he had no choice but to use judgment again, aiming to kill lather and the others.

but as the holy light descended, the sea god raised a barrier, blocking all the holy light.

after blocking the holy light, the sea god couldn't even maintain his image on the sea, sitting cross-legged on the sea, stubbornly looking at the twelve-winged angel in the sky.

du ge looked miserably at the pope in the sky, weakly saying: "pope, as long as i have a breath left, i won't let you harm them. stephen, go, don't let me die in vain, if possible, save my father, tell him his son was not possessed by an evil god, holly was always his pride..."

"go! give me my last dignity, do you want to see me die here?" du ge used all his strength to shout, the sea raising a weak water tornado, as if trying to entangle the twelve-winged angel.

"king..." orey rushed forward in grief, but was pulled back by old gao, who, with tears in his eyes, solemnly said: "go, orey, lather, go, don't waste the king's sacrifice, let more people know the true face of the pope, only then can we avenge the king."

orey, looking at the increasingly weak du ge, wiped his tears and shouted to the tearful citizens on the city wall: "go, what are you standing there for, don't let king holly die in vain..."

"king."

"king holly."

the citizens, with tears in their eyes, saluted du ge's back, bidding him a final farewell, then, under old gao's command, began to leave the city wall.

seeing this.

the pope panicked: "i am guilty..."

then.

he used judgment again.

but was blocked by du ge once more, who smiled miserably: "pope, i'm not dead yet."

"...when i was a cardinal, i embezzled gold coins..." the pope gritted his teeth, confessing his sins, controlling the twelve-winged angel to slash at the sea god martial soul, regardless of his own consumption.

du ge cooperated fully, collapsing to the ground, unable to stand...

...

this time.

even the bishops with sealed martial souls were silent.

among everyone.

only grand duke lynch and alien star warrior nobu looked at du ge with astonishment.

grand duke lynch had fought du ge before, knowing he hadn't used his full strength, the small river outside bask city hadn't even stirred a wave.

nobu knew the details of alien star warriors. they indeed could vomit blood, but not as exaggerated as du ge, and he had taken so many hits without dying, always blocking the pope's attacks on others at critical moments, indicating one thing: he was taking the opportunity to farm keywords!

damn it!

could his keyword be masochism?

watching du ge struggle repeatedly yet completely control the battlefield, nobu became increasingly reluctant to alert the pope. the pope was unlikely to defeat him; he had to consider his own escape route!

it was said that du ge would accept alien star warriors from other planets. was that true?

...

du ge's body was covered in blood, his breath weak. he looked at the pope with a mixture of hatred and determination, his voice trembling but resolute: "pope, your sins will not be hidden. even if i fall today, the truth will spread, and the sun god will know of your blasphemies."

the pope's face twisted in rage, his twelve-winged angel raising the giant holy sword once more. "i am guilty... i have betrayed the trust of the sun god and the people..."

the sword descended, aiming to cleave du ge's sea god martial soul again.

but this time, du ge was ready. with a surge of mental power, the sea god martial soul split into countless water droplets, dispersing the impact of the holy sword. the droplets reformed into the sea god, unscathed, standing defiantly against the twelve-winged angel.

the pope's eyes widened in disbelief. "impossible! how can you withstand my divine power?"

du ge's lips curled into a grim smile. "because i am not alone. i carry the will of the sea god and the hopes of my people. your power, no matter how divine, cannot extinguish that."

the pope's fury reached its peak. "then die with your delusions!" he channeled all his remaining power into the twelve-winged angel, the holy sword glowing with an intense, blinding light.

du ge braced himself, his sea god martial soul raising its staff in defiance. the air crackled with energy as the two forces prepared for the final clash.

just as the pope was about to strike, a voice rang out from the city wall.

"stop!"

everyone turned to see grand duke lynch, his face stern and resolute. "this battle is over. the truth is clear. the pope is a blasphemer, and du ge is our true protector."

the pope's eyes narrowed. "you dare defy me, lynch?"

grand duke lynch stepped forward, his own martial soul, a majestic lion, appearing beside him. "i dare because it is the right thing to do. the sun god will judge us all, and you, pope, will face divine retribution for your sins."

the pope's face contorted with rage, but before he could react, the citizens of bask city, emboldened by lynch's words, began to chant.

"du ge! du ge! du ge!"

the chant grew louder, a wave of support and hope washing over the battlefield. the pope's power wavered, the holy sword's light dimming.

du ge seized the moment, his sea god martial soul unleashing a torrent of water that engulfed the twelve-winged angel, extinguishing its divine light.

the pope staggered, his power drained. "no... this cannot be..."

du ge stepped forward, his voice calm but powerful. "your reign of terror ends here, pope. the people have spoken, and the sun god will see your true nature."

with a final surge of mental power, du ge's sea god martial soul struck the pope, shattering his remaining defenses. the pope fell to his knees, defeated and exposed.

the battlefield fell silent, the citizens of bask city watching in awe and relief. du ge, bloodied but unbowed, raised his staff high.

"today, we reclaim our future. today, we stand united against tyranny and blasphemy. today, we honor the true will of the gods."

the crowd erupted in cheers, their faith in du ge and the sea god renewed. the pope, now powerless and disgraced, was taken into custody, his fate to be decided by the people he had wronged.

as the sun set over the battlefield, du ge looked to the horizon, a sense of peace and determination filling his heart. the battle was won, but the journey to rebuild and protect his people had only just begun.