Chapter 266-The Manga Pariah's Guide to Self-Salvation
Three days later, Ye Zheng arrived in the East District of the lower district.
The Holy Journey Knights Order Base was full of unfamiliar faces, its grounds several times larger than when it first started. The frequency of Demonic Domain incursions had noticeably decreased recently, and most members were training inside the base.
Ye Zheng's arrival instantly set the base ablaze with excitement. In an instant, heads crowded together and no one could focus on training. Not all of them had come here because of Ye Zheng, but every single one owed it to Ye Zheng that they had the chance to stand here at all.
Today, Ye Zheng wasn't wearing the Sei Curia's white robes.
She had changed into the same Knight uniform everyone else wore, with a blue emblem embroidered on one side of the cloak—a water droplet encircling a circle, resembling a Blue Sun.
The Blue Sun emblazoned on the white banner had been given gold trim, fluttering high above the base, gleaming brilliantly in the sunlight.
Ye Zheng stepped onto a hastily assembled, modest platform and looked down at the eager, admiring, curious faces below.
She didn't deliver any rousing, impassioned speech. She simply greeted the people who had come from all corners of the Empire and expressed her gratitude for everyone's hard work.
She used no words tinged with divine authority. Her tone was natural yet carried weight. Despite being younger than many of those present, she had a reassuring, trustworthy quality about her—like a dependable elder.
Some of the women below had come here behind their families' backs. Though life in the Holy Journey Knights Order had been reasonably smooth and harmonious, the moment Ye Zheng appeared before them in person—her gentle words lingering in their ears—they felt a sudden sense of grounding. Everything before them was no longer a dream that needed to be questioned.
After the greeting, Ye Zheng toured the entire base, personally observing every aspect of operations. Along the way, she chatted with Wen De and several Knights in charge of management, gaining a general understanding of the base's situation.
"Thank you for your hard work. You've all exceeded my expectations." Ye Zheng said with genuine appreciation.
"I can't suggest anything to make things more perfect, but I do hope we can add more content to the training regimen."
The management team immediately perked up, their expressions turning serious.
"Demonic Domains are our primary enemy... but sometimes, conflict with other people is unavoidable."
A flash of cold crossed Ye Zheng's face; her voice was soft, like bone-chilling snow that melted in an instant.
Throughout history, the Empire's noble ability users had used their powers to flaunt prestige and strength, or as a path to advancement. Commoner ability users were either recruited by nobles to handle security within their territories, or they joined various factions' knight orders to fight Demonic Domains.
Criminal ability users existed, of course, but never in significant numbers. Sierra was the most threatening villain to emerge since the dawn of the Demonic Domain era.
Though the Royal Family and the Sei Curia had kept each other in check, they had never resorted to armed conflict in five hundred years, maintaining an unspoken balance. Battlefields where people slaughtered one another had become ancient legend.
And yet, Ye Zheng had shattered that balance.
A collective tremor ran through those present. They understood that they would face far harsher circumstances in the future—but not one of them showed any sign of retreat.
They offered Ye Zheng their most loyal salute.
*
In her private resting quarters, Ye Zheng changed into casual, lightweight clothes. The moment she stepped out, she found Shu Wan waiting at the door.
"Mother?"
"It hasn't been that long, but you look even more spirited."
Ye Zheng wasn't making the sort of polite small talk common between noble mothers and daughters. Her dark eyes widened imperceptibly as her gaze swept over the other woman.
The woman standing outside the door covered her mouth and laughed. "You're the Pope now—I should be the one using honorifics."
Ye Zheng smiled. It didn't feel like much time had passed, but Shu Wan had become noticeably more lively.
"Lady Shu Wan, I'm relieved to see you've settled in so well here."
Shu Wan's gaze softened even further. With Ye Zheng stirring up storms at the center of the Empire, Shu Wan couldn't help feeling heavy concern and heartache. But those emotions didn't need to be shown in front of Ye Zheng.
She was quite busy these days too, handling the base's large and small miscellaneous affairs. Spending time with the young women had somehow turned back the clock on her mindset, and she no longer dwelled on tangled negative emotions.
"Are you heading back? Let me walk you to the gate."
Ye Zheng tilted her head in thought. "Why don't you take a walk around the East District with me instead."
She had specifically brought Margaret's spinal bone, hoping to search for traces of Dragon Bone in the East District.
Last time, her mother had resonated strangely with that piece of bone. She might be more sensitive to Dragon Bone than Ye Zheng herself. And no matter what happened, Ye Zheng was confident she could keep her safe.
Shu Wan's eyes lit up, laugh lines crinkling at the corners, barely concealing her eagerness.
Ye Zheng told Wen De to stay at the base, and the two of them slipped away quietly.
It had just rained. The sky was a flawless wash of blue—one glance was enough to lift anyone's spirits.
But when Ye Zheng's gaze fell on the damp, dilapidated streets of the impoverished district, she couldn't bring herself to simply bask in the mirror-clear blue sky.
Since the battle against Sykes, Shu Wan hadn't experienced anything particularly harrowing. But she had accumulated plenty of things to say from daily life. She'd meant to mention just a few things casually, but once she started talking, she couldn't stop.
"Those women are in such a pitiful state. I wanted to use my own money to help them, but Cheng Che stopped me."
Shu Wan had been primarily occupied with the Holy Journey Knights Order's expansion efforts, helping the management team screen qualified applicants for admission.
This was a women-only knight order. Beyond the gender requirement, ability standards were also essential—after all, the Holy Journey Knights Order regularly fought Demonic Domains in the lower district. Lowering the requirements would actually be irresponsible.
Some rejected applicants argued heatedly at the gates. Others—women with no abilities at all—had heard from somewhere that the Holy Journey Knights Order was a charitable organization for women. They wept and demanded to be taken in.
Shu Wan had been away from the lower district for too long. Facing these ordinary people left her even more flustered than the Knight members. She wanted to help them with money, but Cheng Che told her that doing so would only attract more people to the Holy Journey Knights Order trying their luck, and even if given temporary relief, it wouldn't change their circumstances.
Ye Zheng thought back to what she'd observed going in and out of the base. Nothing seemed amiss—order was normal, and the area around the base was actually quite lively, with street vendors setting up stalls.
"And then?"
Shu Wan seemed to have been waiting for exactly that question. She brightened. "Well, since the Dragon Bone is stored at the base, a lot of nearby residents took the relocation compensation and left, freeing up a large area."
At this, a smile surfaced in Ye Zheng's eyes. She already knew how they had solved the problem, but she said nothing, content to be a good listener.
"Since handing out money directly wasn't appropriate, I used the funds to set up a small factory. With the recent expansion, we need more properly fitted uniforms. Between your reputation and my old social connections, we can even land orders from the upper district..."
"Some clever women have started selling small goods nearby too. The Knights need little indulgences for themselves, and this area has gradually grown livelier. The ordinary people who've come here now have a space to survive."
The East District was the largest and most prosperous of the lower district's four zones. Even though the upper and middle districts still considered it a slum, for the truly destitute, it could offer opportunities to improve their lives.
Ye Zheng beamed with praise. "That's impressive. With you here, I can rest easy."
Qin Lu, whom she had traded for, was now holed up at the Holy Journey Knights Order Base, absorbed in his inventions. If he could develop a simpler, more efficient production line, she might be able to establish a facility in the East District that rivaled the Royal Alchemy Works.
Receiving her daughter's praise, Shu Wan grew even more animated.
After the Blood Flower incident eleven years ago, she had never wanted to return to the lower district. She had deliberately avoided the blood-soaked reality. But now, walking on this land, beyond a faint melancholy, what she felt most was nostalgia.
Before they knew it, the two had wandered to the Divine Plaza in the East District. The towering statue of the God of Hope stood at its center.
Ye Zheng had plenty of vivid memories tied to this place—she had pulled quite a few stunts here: staging her own kidnapping and execution by Sierra, planting a fake Divine Sword, delivering a public sermon to the masses, cutting her long hair short...
Compared to Ye Zheng's complex memories steeped in schemes and hope, Shu Wan's recollections were far simpler.
"See that big tree? When you were little, on hot days you'd just sit under it and refuse to budge. I had to carry you the whole way..."
Ye Zheng said nothing. She pulled the brim of her hat lower, hiding her exasperated expression.
Shu Wan excitedly pulled Ye Zheng under the tree. Her hand touched the rough bark, and a look of nostalgia spread across her face.
"I remember it wasn't this tall before. Trees are the plants most like people—they record an entire lifetime from youth to old age, just as humans do..."
Ye Zheng quietly kept her mother company. Though she had come to the lower district with an important purpose, indulging a bit of personal sentiment now and then was fine. The upper district nobles who feared her enough to spend their days in anxiety certainly couldn't imagine that at this very moment, she was simply strolling with her mother.
Because of her ability [Summer Flower], her mother had always had a special fondness for plants. She nurtured them with genuine care even as she wielded control over them.
Suddenly, Shu Wan turned with a look of surprise and told her, "This tree's roots go at least twenty meters underground—growing just as strong and sturdy as you..."
Ye Zheng looked up at the lush green tree and recognized it as an oak. She'd heard oaks could develop very deep root systems, but she had little knowledge of botany and instinctively felt that twenty meters was a remarkable number.
"It's grown a bit too much. Normally, even an oak shouldn't go this deep." Shu Wan murmured, puzzled. She tried channeling her ability further, probing its growth patterns. "You can't tell at all from its appearance that its roots are this extensive."
Hearing her mother's muttering, Ye Zheng suddenly blinked, stepped closer, and studied the tree from crown to base.
Then she turned and surveyed her surroundings. It was midday—the time when foot traffic was at its lowest. Barely a soul was in sight.
She reached inside her coat, where Margaret's remains were kept.
"Lady Shu Wan, I'm afraid I need to ask a favor of you."
*
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