Translated by XephiZ

Edited by Aelryinth

"Humph, where did this clown come from? You really think by putting up a show, we'll assume that you're the true Salan?" Dulanc seemed rather calm, as if he was well aware of the person's true intentions.

"Great Magistrate, are you implying that she is not Salan, and she's only trying to distract us so Ye Xinxia can escape?" another Magistrate said.

"Exactly, how could a cunning person like Salan walk right into a trap?" Great Magistrate Dulanc said.

Salan would be a fool to show up in the Parthenon Temple and walk into the magic formation on the sacred mountain. It was no different than walking right into a trap!

Dulanc's words were quite convincing, but to everyone's surprise, the woman wearing a hat with laces suddenly burst out laughing. Her laughter was piercing their ears harshly.

"She is Salan!" Song Qiming said with a long sigh.

Song Qiming was once the Clergyman of the Parthenon Temple. He knew more about the past than most people present. As a matter of fact, when Pang Lai told him about the death of the Master of the Shadow Element, Essendale, Song Qiming had already guessed Salan's true identity!

"Do you dare place your blood on this stone?" Great Muse Mellaura was holding the Cardinal Blood Stone as she snapped furiously.

Mellaura tossed the Cardinal Blood Stone forward. Salan caught the stone and touched the veins on its surface...

"The Supreme Pontiff has the other half of the Cardinal Blood Stones in order to control the seven Red Cardinals, to ensure that the Red Cardinals will not betray the Black Vatican. I could not help but wonder why the other half of my Cardinal Blood Stone is in your hands?" Salan played with the Cardinal Blood Stone and asked in an intrigued voice.

"Stop trying to scare us, we took it from the main headquarters of the Black Vatican after sacrificing lots of our men. You devil, hand over the antidote at once, or we won't let you go!" a Holy Court Mage named Bol snapped furiously.

The woman did not bother looking at Bol. She slowly moved her finger to her lips and bit it.

A line of blood flowed down her finger, before a drop of blood fell onto the Cardinal Blood Stone.

The blood opened the Cardinal Blood Stone that had been sealed for many years like a key. The runes on the surface of the Cardinal Blood Stone vanished instantly, emitting a blood-colored light that covered the entire mountain top!

The crowd was stunned!

The Cardinal Blood Stone only reacted slightly to Xinxia's blood, but it was far from enough to open up the seal of the Cardinal Blood Stone. The terrifying red light burst out of the stone like the gate to Hell had just opened. A strong sense of death lingered in the air!

"It's been so long," the woman stared at the Cardinal Blood Stone like a mother looking at her long lost child, displaying a weird affection for the stone.

The people soon noticed that the woman was holding onto another similar stone. It fit perfectly with the Cardinal Blood Stone. When they were combined together, it was like the bright red heart of a devil. The people almost felt like they were suffocating when they heard it beating!

"This..." the Magistrates were utterly dumbfounded.

Mellaura stood there with a blank face.

Not only did the woman awaken the Cardinal Blood Stone, she even took out the other half of the Cardinal Blood Stone, which only a Red Cardinal would have. When the two Cardinal Blood Stones combined into one, they were able to unleash an overwhelming evil aura!

She had Awakened the Blood Stone, and even possessed the other half of it!

The woman was the real Salan!

The Cardinal Blood Stone was the evidence that had convinced everyone that Xinxia was Salan, but now, someone else had thoroughly awakened the Cardinal Blood Stone. Not only did it prove that Xinxia was innocent, it also proved that the woman was the real Red Cardinal of the Black Vatican, the one responsible for the Festival of Death at the Ancient Capital: Salan!

"I have come for two things. First, I will be taking back my Blood Stone, and second, I will be taking Dulanc's life. It was just a spur of the moment that I decided to chop Izisha into pieces, nothing else. I have lots of time to settle my debts with her..." Salan admitted her identity, and even when she was alone among the people of the Parthenon Temple, she did not seem to be worried at all.

The people of the Parthenon Temple felt like their lungs were about to explode after hearing her words.

Izisha was their previous Goddess, the source of faith of the Parthenon Temple, yet the woman had chopped her remains into pieces. It was worse than killing her, and in addition to it, she even described it like it was nothing worth mentioning.

Just a spur of the moment, nothing else!

"Take her down!" The Hall Mother could not stand it any further.

The Black Totem Snake from China had given the armed forces of the Parthenon Temple a great slap in the face, and now, Salan's actions had completely destroyed the Parthenon Temple's dignity. How could the Parthenon Temple possibly retain their authority if they failed to eliminate these two heretics!?

"Yes!" Seven Golden Sun Knights that were standing close to the Hall Mother immediately stepped forward.

These seven Golden Sun Knights were responsible for the safety of the future Goddess of the Parthenon Temple. They did not attack when the Black Totem Snake showed up, as they were responsible for the safety of the Hall Mother and the Great Muse.

The seven Golden Sun Knights were obliged to obey the Hall Mother's orders when the Goddess had not been elected yet. They could easily bring destruction to an entire country with their four fully-cultivated Elements!

Even if Salan was powerful, she had no chance against the seven Golden Sun Knights.

The seven Golden Sun Knights swiftly made their moves, yet Salan had no intention of running away. She surprisingly spread her arms, as if she was waiting to be arrested. However, the grin on her face was a clear indication that she had some other plan in mind!

The seven Golden Sun Knights subdued Salan in no time, yet the enraged Hall Mother suddenly vomited a mouthful of black blood onto Great Muse Mellaura.

Mellaura's expression fell when she smelled the foul blood.

The knights immediately panicked. They quickly surrounded the Hall Mother, together with the Muses and the servants.

"How...how did you do it? That's impossible!" The Hall Mother's mouth was covered in black blood. She pointed a shaking finger at Salan in disbelief.

She was the Hall Mother of the Hall of the Goddess. She had the strongest Healing Magic, apart from the Goddess herself. She was basically immune to any kind of poison, it was impossible that the Black Vatican's poison could threaten her!

"You can kill me now, I won't resist, but if I die here, your Hall Mother is coming with me too!" Salan said calmly.

"You devil, what do you want!?" Mellaura snapped furiously.

Everyone assumed that only the Magistrates were poisoned, and their lives were currently in Salan's control. To their surprise, even the Hall Mother had fallen victim to it. The Hall Mother's cultivation was outstanding, yet the poison totally disregarded it. Even the Healing Magic was useless against it!

How did Salan do it? Could it be that the Black Vatican had penetrated the Parthenon Temple too!?

If so, the influence of the Black Vatican was simply too terrifying!

Salan did not speak. She glanced at the enormous snake that had almost broken through the magic formation.

"Song Qiming, you're familiar with the poison. Why don't you explain it to them?" Salan said.

Old Bao did not seem surprised that Salan knew what his name was. He let out a sigh and said, "It is a kind of parasitic poison. The poison can hide in a person's body for a long time, and a creature called the Sudden-Death Poison Queen acts as a trigger to it. She must have the creature with her, and if the Sudden-Death Poison Queen dies, the poison will spread to the victim's heart ten times quicker. There's no cure for it, apart from the Spell of Resurrection."

The Sudden-Death Poison Queen that Blue Deacon Fang Shaoli had was only a prototype. Old Bao had discovered how terrifying the Sudden-Death Poison Queen was after conducting more experiments on the creature. Old Bao initially thought the Black Vatican was still unable to fully control the creature, but it turned out that Salan already had a Sudden-Death Poison Queen that was much stronger.

The Sudden-Death Poison Queen was different from the one that Mo Fan stumbled into. If the queen died, the people that were poisoned would all be in danger!

Salan was obviously well-prepared before she dared to show up in the Parthenon Temple; the people had no idea how many of them were already poisoned!

"Pamise, are you ready to die with me?" Salan smiled. She seemed quite familiar with Pamise. It sounded like she was talking to an old friend.

The Hall Mother's face was extremely pale. She was no longer able to talk properly, as blood kept surging out of her throat...

Salan stared at Pamise. She began to vomit black blood too!

As more black blood poured out of Salan's mouth, her life was draining away rapidly.

Magistrate Leonard and Hall Mother Pamise both vomited mouthfuls of black blood. The foul odor spread through the air.

"Hall Mother!'

"Hall Mother!'

"Magistrate!"

The Muses and the Holy Court Mages immediately panicked, but there was nothing they could do. They could only stand and watch.

"Stop...stop it..." the Hall Mother blurted out. While Salan was ending her own life, the Hall Mother could sense the poison spreading even quicker inside her body!

The poison was not incurable. The Hall Mother believed she could cure herself given enough time, but Salan was threatening to suicide in exchange for the Hall Mother's life!. The Hall Mother definitely did not stand a chance if the poison began to spread ten times faster!