While My Mage Wife Grinds, I Power Up Idly-Chapter 46: People First

Bishop Midaldas’ power at this moment was overwhelming; just one of his strikes would be enough to kill Ashu.

And because of this, the effect of being a "luminous saint" within the church triggered.

Divine Mother Goddess’ radiance descended and protected Ashu.

"Boom——!"

Even the mere aftershock of the impact caused the conference table to explode, sending fragments of stone into the Outlander buyer’s chest. He was thrown back into the wall, his life uncertain.

"Damn it!"

Midaldas, belatedly realizing, understood that Ashu was a "luminous saint", and it was highly unfavorable for him to strike inside the church.

He hurriedly cast Purification on himself, chanting, "May the Divine Mother Goddess’ radiance cleanse my body!"

Like Kidopriest, he was a double-dealer, practicing both the righteous and the dark arts. Years of righteous cultivation allowed him to utilize the strongest Purification Magic in all of Riven town.

However, when the Holy Light appeared around him, there was no effect. His aging continued, and his power remained unchanged.

"Damn it! Damn it! What have you done to me?!" Midaldas roared at Ashu. The older one grew, the more terrified one became of sudden aging. What was the point of all his corruption and greed? Wasn’t it to enjoy a better, longer life with his loved ones?

If he aged and died immediately, what would be the meaning of all his efforts over the years?

Ashu cautiously observed Midaldas, who was desperately casting Healing, Purification, and Aura spells on himself. The previous strike, though not as powerful as Demon Huntress Nun’s, was the second most terrifying power he had encountered.

If it weren’t for the "luminous saint" protection, Ashu would have fled the scene immediately.

"I just added a little blessing for you," Ashu replied.

"Cunning little brat! Your methods are more despicable than any cultist! I’ll drag you to hell and make you suffer!"

Midaldas bellowed, making the rash decision to act. He didn’t strike at Ashu but instead used Magical Essence to bind him, intending to take the "luminous saint" out of the church and then kill him.

Inside the church, the Divine Mother Goddess’ domain made it impossible for a "luminous saint" to be killed.

At this critical moment, a figure, following their agreement, moved faster than lightning and grabbed Ashu.

When the figure landed, Midaldas saw clearly that it was Vivita Taan, one of the Twelve Demon-Hunting Nuns.

"Apologies, Bishop Midaldas, but you have no right to judge a "luminous saint"," Vivita said coldly.

"Ha! Nun! Get out of my way!"

"Watch your words, Bishop," Vivita warned.

"So what? Do you dare to lay a hand on me?" Midaldas sneered. Even now, according to the rules, Demon Huntress Nuns were still not permitted to strike against him.

Vivita was speechless. She hadn’t expected Ashu to confront Midaldas in this manner.

Upon seeing the Gemstones of Deceit covering the entire ceiling, she had assumed Ashu would choose a more cautious approach.

"He poisoned me, insidious! Despicable! This is not something a "luminous saint" would do. He is a fraud! He deceived you, deceived the Divine Mother Goddess!" Midaldas began to try to break Vivita’s resolve. "Why are you still protecting him? Has the Demon Huntress Nun’s vision been clouded by dog filth?!"

If Ashu’s methods weren’t considered underhanded, then there would be no such thing as underhandedness in this world.

Saying this, he charged forward again. The explosive surge in his power gave him a tremendous sense of confidence, to the point where he dared to try and grab Ashu while under the protection of the Demon Huntress Nun.

Vivita dodged while asking Ashu, "How long will this last?"

"Not for long. Just buy some more time," Ashu replied. As Vivita held him in her arms, every movement made him acutely aware of large, soft objects pressing against him.

As a Bishop, Midaldas wasn’t known for speed. Even with his amplified strength, he couldn’t match Vivita’s swiftness.

He realized that his current state of rapid aging was sustained only by his tremendous power. Once this power dissipated, he would quickly die from the ravages of age. If he couldn’t kill Ashu before then, it would be an absolute loss.

However, the Demon Huntress Nun was simply too fast—like a mouse darting around in the basement, he couldn’t catch her!

Thus, Midaldas stopped holding back.

Today, whether he was delayed in time or his second identity was exposed, it was all the same—he would die either way. His only goal was to drag Ashu down with him.

"Damn beast, don’t think just because she’s protecting you, you’ll get away with it!" Midaldas stopped in his tracks. His aura began to grow chaotic. For a long time, he had presented himself as a righteous figure, exuding an aura of the right path. But in this moment, he no longer cared about anything. He released all his power.

Dark Cidi Evil Power intertwined with the righteous energy, turning into a tangible vortex.

"Quick!" Ashu saw this and immediately released Vivita.

Though the effects of the Gem of Deceit were still in place, Midaldas had already summoned the Cidi Evil Power, a glaringly clear sign of his evil nature. There was no need to hesitate anymore.

Vivita immediately released Ashu and shot forward at full speed!

"Boom——!"

A violent shockwave shook the ground beneath their feet, causing the ceiling made of Gem of Deceit to crack. The explosive force was so strong that even Ashu, a mid-level cultivator, couldn’t open his eyes!

He even worried that the aftershock from the battle would send the entire branch church flying into the sky.

Fortunately, Vivita’s speed was superior. Before the building could collapse, she tore Midaldas into eight pieces.

His dismembered body and entrails splattered across the walls of the basement.

Vivita was just about to stop.

However, Ashu furrowed his brows. He had seen with his own eyes that Midaldas was dead, but the powerful Cidi Parishioner aura still lingered in the air.

"Not good..."

He immediately sensed the impending danger and activated his Flight Magic at full speed, pushing himself to near the speed of sound. freewebnσvel.cøm

But before he had flown even a meter, a blood-red magical array appeared beneath his feet.

Ashu recognized the symbols on the array—they were identical to the ones he had seen on the Cidi Temple’s altar before.

The array immediately trapped him, and a dense aura of evil began to rise from the ground.

Suddenly...

He heard Midaldas’s lingering voice in his ear: "I die, but you won’t have it easy. Hell has more torments waiting for you!"

As soon as Midaldas’s words faded, a powerful Holy Light shot through the church’s statue, piercing the basement like a sharp sword, striking the blood-red magical array beneath Ashu’s feet.

"Ugh!!"

The sound in the air seemed to undergo Divine Judgement, quickly dissipating, and the array vanished as well.

Ashu regained his freedom, the residual force nearly knocking him over. Fortunately, Vivita caught him just in time.

"That... that was... such intense Evil Power..." she said, looking at the ground where the array had vanished, her brows furrowed.

As the one directly involved, Ashu finally understood.

He gritted his teeth and explained, "That was a sacrifice from the Cidi altar. He almost sacrificed me to Cidi. Thankfully, as a ’luminous saint,’ I received protection from the church, and the Divine Mother Goddess’s judgement interrupted the ritual, but..."

Vivita tightened her hold on Ashu. To root out the heretics hiding within the church, this man had once again risked his life—and nearly lost it in the process!

How great, how bright, how righteous!

"But?" she asked.

"But I can’t leave the church now. I can still feel the Evil Power from the ritual lingering. As soon as I step out of the Divine Mother Goddess’s domain, I will die."

As soon as those words left his mouth, even Vivita’s lips turned pale.

Was this sacrifice too great?

As a Demon Huntress Nun, this was the price she was supposed to pay.

"By the way," Ashu continued, "I’ve seen many cultists. Their rituals always have a required sacrifice for success, and a backlash if they fail. Right now, as a sacrifice, you’re being protected by the Divine Mother Goddess. So, as long as we make the ritual fail, the backlash will happen, and you won’t be sacrificed."

Vivita’s eyes narrowed, considering his words. "How do we make it fail?"

"As long as your knowledge of the dark arts exceeds that of the one conducting the ritual, you can turn the tables and cause the ritual to fail."

Ashu observed Vivita carefully, then asked, "You want me to deepen my knowledge of the dark arts? Is that something a Demon Huntress Nun would say?"

Vivita seemed to realize she had crossed a line and quickly began to apologize. "I’m sorry, I have sinned, I shouldn’t have—"

"No, you haven’t sinned," Ashu interrupted her. "What I mean is, when you realize this, your level of enlightenment surpasses that of a Demon Huntress Nun and ascends to the level of a Sage! You’ve reached the point where you can integrate everything, no longer confined by simple rules, but focused on what is truly important—the people!"

"I..." Vivita was shocked. She hadn’t expected such an explanation.

If anyone else had said this, Vivita would have thought it was nonsense! But coming from the "luminous saint," there must be some truth to it!

She then asked, "When you were undercover in the Cidi cult, did you find out what they use to deepen their knowledge?"

Ashu paused for a moment, recalling his experiences with the Cidi cult and Anna’s teachings about Cidi’s knowledge.

It seemed that aside from live human sacrifices, there was only doing things Cidi liked—expressions of Lust.

"Human sacrifices are impossible now. We’ve already hunted down all the cultists in the area. The only thing left is Lust," Ashu replied.

"Lust?" Vivita pondered for a moment, as if making some decision.

Ashu, on the other hand, had already thought about Anna hiding in the mountains. Now that "Riven" town was relatively safe, it was time to bring her out.

"Please help me..."

Ashu was about to ask Vivita to bring Anna over, but to his surprise, before he could finish his sentence, Vivita’s black Nun outfit fell to the ground with a soft thud.

He didn’t even have time to react before a pale, white body stood in front of him.