Chapter 13

No matter how much he thought about it, Jiang Junming felt uneasy as he followed the believers of the Church of Care to the Church of Justice and Fairness, where the academy's testing was taking place.

When Jiang Junming arrived, there were already dozens of children waiting for the test. He recognized some of them, mostly the children of wealthy merchants and nobles in the city. They were chatting in small groups, waiting for the test to begin.

These young people were all dressed in clean, luxurious clothes. Compared to them, although Jiang Junming's white robe was washed clean, the corners, collar, and cuffs were already worn out, and there were even patches in inconspicuous places, making him look even more shabby.

Jiang Junming looked around and saw that all the young people were about his age. Outside the crowd, there was a tall, thin child, about twelve or thirteen years old, wearing a simple white outfit, soft, clean, and tidy. However, he was not with the others, coldly watching the crowd with a look of indifference and pride, as if standing with the other young people was a disgrace to himself.

Looking at the proud young man's face, Jiang Junming felt as if he had seen him somewhere before, finding him somewhat familiar.

This child reminded Jiang Junming of the bishop he had seen from a distance during the temple ceremony during the New Year. He looked very similar. However, Jiang Junming couldn't remember which church the bishop belonged to.

"Hey, you poor kid, what are you here for?" A chubby child, seeing Jiang Junming's shabby clothes, loudly said, looking down on him as if he would dirty his own clothes if Jiang Junming got too close.

"To take the entrance test for the Church Academy," Jiang Junming replied. Although he didn't feel inferior, he didn't want to talk much with these arrogant rich kids and simply answered.

"You don't even have a decent outfit, and you're here to take the entrance test for the Church Academy? Look at your shabby appearance, go earn some money by doing hard labor, don't waste your time here." A thin, sharp-faced child next to the chubby one said, mocking Jiang Junming with sharp words. The two of them, one fat and one thin, standing together, looked even more ridiculous.

Jiang Junming didn't argue or get angry, as if nothing had happened. Over the years, he had heard too many such taunts.

"Hey, you poor kid, which church recommended you?" A burly child, clearly very strong, with a thick arm and a face full of muscles, asked loudly in the crowd, followed by three or four other children, acting arrogantly.

"The Church of Care," Jiang Junming said.

"Ah? Hahaha..." Hearing Jiang Junming's answer, the arrogant child laughed loudly, and the children behind him also laughed. One child even exaggeratedly held his stomach and bent over in laughter.

"A poor believer from the West City slums, the Care Church? No wonder you're dressed so shabbily. What church would recommend you? A beggar like you, only the slum's Care Church would recommend. I heard the Care Church can't even gather enough money to rebuild their temple, which is about to collapse. I bet this kid can't even afford a meal, look at how skinny he is like a skeleton," the thin, sharp-faced child said, mocking Jiang Junming and the Church of Care without restraint.

The believer from the Church of Care who had brought Jiang Junming blushed and turned pale, lowering his head and listening to the young men ridicule the Church of Care, not knowing how to respond. He simply kept his head down and said nothing.

"Does the Church of Care even have any priests left? I thought it had already disappeared long ago."

The children's ridicule was ignored by Jiang Junming. He was there to take the test, not to argue with them. He focused on how he had obtained the test qualification and whether he could pass today's test to change the course of his life.

====

In the northwest corner of Moonlight City, at the edge of the West Street slums, there was a building that was slightly taller than the buildings in the West City slums but much shabbier than the houses on the other side of the street. The door lintel was engraved with a mark consisting of three crescent moons, which was the Church of Care in Moonlight City.

The church building had not been renovated for decades and still looked the same as when it was first built. Although it was clean, the passage of time had left its mark on the front and back of the house, the edges of the bricks, and the tiles. These marks of time made the Church of Care look somewhat dilapidated.

Inside the church, a priest was praying devoutly in front of a wooden statue. The passage of time had made the statue lose its original luster, with a blurred face, vaguely resembling a girl in a white robe, her right hand hanging naturally by her side, and her left hand in front, palm up.

A beam of sunlight came through the window, falling on the already whitened wooden floor and the dilapidated statue.

Priest Raphael's expression was extremely devout, his face pale. The sunlight fell on his face, making him look even paler. There was a hint of pain in his brows, especially when he spoke the prayer, which tugged at his lungs. The wounds in his lungs, which had not healed despite treatment, seemed to be tearing again, increasing his pain. Raphael had once lamented that the power of the goddess was not strong enough; if it were the spells of other gods of justice and light, he would have been healed by now.

But as soon as this thought appeared, Raphael suppressed it. The goddess had already given him her favor, which was the best reward for his devotion. Therefore, even though his injuries had not fully healed, Raphael still began to pray devoutly in front of the statue.

Suddenly, the church door was slammed open, and dust was stirred up, swirling and dancing in the light.

"Priest Raphael, I need an explanation from you." A person dressed in the same priestly robes as Raphael pushed the door open and walked in, his steps heavy, his voice deep. His anger made him forget that disturbing a devout prayer might anger the gods.

Raphael, as if he hadn't heard the person's question, continued to pray devoutly. After a few minutes, he stopped praying, slowly turned around, and slightly tilted his head, squinting his eyes as if the sunlight was blinding him. "Priest Aurelian, what explanation do you need?"

******

First update, Little Dragon keeps his word, three updates today! Please continue to collect, recommend, reward, and click. Thank you, Dragon King's fans, you are the captain of this book now!

Page flip AD starts

Page flip AD ends