Surviving The Fourth Calamity

Chapter 578: Chapter 376: Teraxil’s Knight’s Path is no longer incomplete

”I swear to treat the weak with kindness,”

”I swear to bravely confront violence,”

”I swear to fight against all that is wrong,”

”I swear to fight for those who are unarmed,”

”I swear to help anyone who seeks my aid,”

”I swear not to harm any woman,”

”I swear to assist my fellow knights,”

”I swear to treat my friends with sincerity,”

”I swear to remain faithful to my beloved until death.”

William repeated the knightly vows he had written for his own Guardian Legion as calmly as he could.

Back then, he was really just having a bout of adolescence, thinking that the knights who followed him had to be perfect, or at least act like proper knights.

Who hasn’t read a bit of Western fantasy literature?

Back then, William had even dubbed these knightly virtues the guidelines for a Guardian Knight.

It was only later, when he discovered that his cousin deeply believed in them and aspired to become a real Guardian Knight, that he started to panic and chose the qualities he thought Naven already possessed to lower the temperature a bit.

If one really had to live by the Eight Virtues, his cousin would have become an ascetic! Even if one day he could become a god of knights, it would still be too painful.

William still liked the proud and confident cousin who sneaked around with him, telling little white lies that were harmless.

But he could never have dreamed that even by strictly adhering to half of these virtues, Naven would forge a unique path.

The difference between a Paladin and a Holy Knight is not just a missing word.

William chuckled ”hehe,” not looking at all like a great Light Orb, wondering how he ended up raising a Paladin?

What now?

Would Naven become a Paladin God in the future?

This was truly a new legendary path that could lead to deification, not just the common belief in deities as in Teraxil.

The best outcome William had ever hoped for his cousin was merely this.

As the most loyal leader of the knights, standing beside his own Divine Kingdom.

Spencer cast a curious look at his monarch, ”Later on, I knew that you didn’t believe it yourself when you spoke. That must be the knightly guidelines passed down from your original world.

But these Eight Virtues, along with the knights’ vows, are truly the only path a knight should follow and the only one that can lead to success.”

Being able to adhere to one virtue could help a knight toward legend,

”I have always been dissatisfied, knowing that the path to becoming a legend is just as arduous—why is there such a disparity between Legendary Knights and Legendary Mages?”

Not until I met the people from the Order of Radiant Knights.

In some ways, they don’t seem very knightly, but the lifespans of Radiant Knights at the legendary stage are the same as those of Legendary Mages!

Like those two demigod-level knights who fought alongside the elves, Teraxil’s Legendary Knights had no chance of becoming demigods!

It’s likely that we took the wrong path from the beginning, one similar to what the dwarves taught.

Our half-understanding of that path resulted in relying on Elemental Power to become legends, but ultimately being suppressed by that same Elemental Power.

”The power of knights should depend on the strength of flesh and blood, transitioning into a being of Elemental Power instead lost them the way forward,”

he mused, ”If possible, it would be best to let the guardians choose different beliefs. I want to see how far they can get by relying on a single philosophy.

Moreover, although the abilities after ascending to legend might be weaker with a single choice, it seems much easier than my situation.

My innards have all transformed into an elemental form, but my body remains my own.

Similar to the Radiant Knights Order, but slightly stronger.”

William asked hesitantly, ”Naven, haven’t you been brainwashed by the World Rules? Why go through such trouble?”

Spencer reluctantly let a silver light swirl around one hand, ”I have a Divine Art that can restore calm, should I use it on you first?”

William coldly twitched his mouth, ”What is this? Honor?”

”Exactly,” Spencer smiled, ”The combination of Honor and Compassion results in a Divine Art that maintains a cool mind. This is fascinating, I should study it thoroughly.

William, once you ascend to the Divine Throne, the guardian army should become the Knights of the Temple of Time and Space.

Even if Belter assumes the throne, he can’t continue to use your followers.

However, they have all taken a knight’s oath, and wherever they go, they will abide by that oath.

You don’t think someone would dare to break an oath sworn before a god, do you?”

However, if they leave the Royal Knights, and the environment in Teraxil once deteriorates, the Guardians will surely be the first to be sacrificed.

Even if you punish those who harm them, they won’t truly vanish completely.

But if most of them return to your Divine Kingdom, the Guardian Corps, into which we’ve put so much effort, will disappear.

Rather than meeting such a fate, it would be better to simply transform them into the Guardian Knights of the Temple of Time and Space.

Regarding the methods that the noble knights can use, they won’t work on the Temple Knights.

As long as you don’t give the order, no one can force them to sacrifice themselves.

To lay down one’s life for the protection of the world and human lives, and to die uselessly for schemes and tricks, every Guardian Knight knows how to choose between the two.

Moreover, without a strong corps of knights, how will you maintain your Divinity?

The World Will of Teraxil does not allow deities to enter at will, does it?

Who knows if there will come a day when deities can’t even exert the kind of influence they do now?

After all, Teraxil is the territory of the Goddess of the Earth, and she does not seem like the kind that is friendly towards all deities.

While it’s understandable that she must really dislike the Elf Deity System,

she can’t possibly only reject the Elf Deities from the earth? If she were to seal the earth, it would be sealed against all deities!

Given this, I think it’s best to ensure that there is a path, even more than one, for the Guardian Knights to ascend to legend.”

William leaned back in the sofa, his right hand lightly resting on his forehead: ”Perhaps when I chose the Divinity of justice and fairness, I should have known that this step might come.”

Spencer said nothing more; he had longed to discuss these matters with William, but even he had not become legendary, so speaking of them was pointless.

He understands that the Gods of Time and Space are resolved not to receive worship, and both the God of Time and Space and William insist very much on their own independent characters, absolutely unwilling to be changed by anything.

But Spencer was also absolutely unwilling to see the Temple of Time and Space fall into complete decline once William left the world.

The people of the Guardian Knights do not have to offer worship to the God of Time and Space or William, they only need to adhere to one of the Chivalric Virtues, not needing to strictly follow all virtues, just acting according to their oath of office is fine.

Spencer felt his method was correct; William had always hoped he could be part of the Gods of Time and Space and not just survive in William’s Divine Kingdom.

This path of the Guardian of the deity was chosen by William for him, and so he must do his utmost to make William’s constellation forever shine in the starry sky!

William looked at his cousin, who had no clue what he was saying, and sighed softly.

He knew what Naven was saying was correct, but he could not control the knight’s path completely.

Otherwise, over time, the Guardian Knights might just become Teraxil’s most powerful force of violence.

For knights, such a mode of advancement is far too tempting, so much so that even knights from other countries would crazily want to join.

And could he really not inform the Saral Nobles? Even though they have many faults, they have indeed followed him sincerely until now.

No matter the reason, even if it is due to the force of William’s power, they have done what they should.

William glanced at his cousin, Naven, was this guy overly excited now? Could they really not tell the Spencer Family?

And as the King of Saral, he couldn’t possibly inform just one family; that would be asking for trouble.

”The Guardians can become the Knights of the Temple of Time and Space,” William decided, ”but how to become an Eight Virtues Knight, must be made public.

Naven, I do not hope that one day, I become the object of the people’s resistance.

You cannot only think of me, if something is only beneficial to me, it doesn’t mean it will always be beneficial.”

Spencer was silent, a knight born from a military noble family, there were some things he still couldn’t see clearly.

He truly hoped the forces around William could become so strong that no one could rival them.

Even with far-reaching vision, Spencer knew he and the deities were not the same; he really couldn’t see what would happen tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of years later.

But he always trusted William’s decisions very much.

His many thoughts regarding the Guardians were genuinely out of concern for those who had followed William for over a decade, fearing they would face misfortune in the future.

Whether the Temple Legion could expand into Teraxil’s strongest military force, although he hoped for this, his wish was not that strong.

Even if just thinking about this outcome thrilled him, if William was not in favour, Spencer would of course give up.

He was all for William’s good, hoping his Monarch would always be as happy, and he would never defy William’s will.

”Then I might as well make a training manual and first let the Undead Tribe use it?” Spencer proposed a compromise at the end, not wanting to let the hard work of him and the Guardians be effortlessly taken by others, as he felt that would make the people of Teraxil call him a fool behind his back.

But if it spreads from the Undead Tribe, it seems more natural.

The Undead have no concept of secrecy.

Anything reaching them, if it can last 10 minutes without being leaked, is already a thanksgiving miracle.

William understood why Spencer wanted to do it via the Undead Tribe and shook his head with a smile: ”First, send a copy to both the Saral Family and Spencer Family. Naven, have you forgotten? We are not yet deities; there are still our own families behind us.”

Spencer answered seriously: ”The day I was abandoned by the Spencer Family, my family consisted only of you, Your Majesty!”