Chapter 165: Hall of Slaughter

White brick, slaughter, destruction, palace.
The hierarchy of factional influence on the Horned Continent.
Ranging from the guilds in major towns down below to entire cities and regions up above, everything was ranked according to this grading system.
It is said that this classification system was released in the three hundred and ninety-seventh year after the descent of the God Clan. The exact criteria remain unknown to outsiders, but every ten years, the Twelve Heavens publish the latest faction rating chart in the "Record of Gods". The nations of the continent, as well as hidden influences, secret realms, and forbidden zones, are not included on this list.

Qianlong pulled out a slip of paper, on which was the faction rating chart published by the Twelve Heavens three years ago.
"Three years ago... Does that mean the latest rating chart won't be released for another seven years?"
Ye Ran murmured, lowering his head to examine the rating chart in detail.

Qianlong said, "Any faction of the White Brick rank or above can, if they wish, go to the Iron Treasury in the Black Zone to claim twenty thousand gold coins. Of course, this is not free; you must use specific information—such as the Qi energy level, the origin type, and the cultivation technique category of the strongest person within your faction—as an exchange."
"Specific information... What a strange condition,"
Ye Ran said.

Qianlong nodded and said, "This is why the Sixth Heavenly Temple never deals with the Iron Treasury. However, the Iron Treasury has also put out word that whenever any faction needs money, they only need to speak up. The conditions remain unchanged; as long as their terms are accepted, the Iron Treasury will disburse the loans. To my knowledge, the Temple of Thunder agreed to the Iron Treasury's terms last year because their spending on concubines and lovers was simply too exorbitant."
"By now, the Iron Treasury has at least grasped the specific information of deities such as the God of Thunder and Antaeus."

Ye Ran thought about it for a moment, feeling that the Iron Treasury truly possessed boundless and magical powers. He narrowed his brow and continued reading downward.
He saw that both the Sixth Heavenly Temple and the Temple of Thunder belonged to the Slaughter rank.
Meanwhile, the Sea Temple of the Sea God Poseidon belonged to the Destruction rank.

"Just who on earth are the Twelve Heavens and the Iron Treasury? To be able to stir up the winds and clouds with a mere rating chart, and why should people believe them?"
Qianlong shrugged. "This is a prestige accumulated over thousands and thousands of years. This unfathomable, unshakable aura is not built in a day or a night. The 'Record of Gods' published every ten years by these two forces reviews the strength of the gods in each temple, aiming to point a clear path for those who wish to become God-Chosen. At first, the book had numerous loopholes, but through continuous refinement, it has become increasingly perfect—especially as more and more temples trade with the Iron Treasury."

"My goddess, Athena, has warned the gods more than once not to trade with the Iron Treasury, claiming it would bring unimaginable future troubles to the deities. Yet, the allure of gold is boundless, and coupled with the gods' usual idleness, debauchery, extravagance, and the expenses of the God-Chosen ones... temples that can truly maintain a deficit-free ledger are vanishingly rare indeed."
"Still, what the Goddess says is definitely right, muwah."
Qianlong pulled out a portrait of Athena from his bosom and gave it a deep, affectionate kiss.

"Hey, hey, Senior, stop acting all lovey-dovey in broad daylight. Since the Twelve Heavens and the Iron Treasury are so powerful, how come I've never heard of the masters behind these two forces?"
Ye Ran asked.

Qianlong put away the portrait with lingering affection and said, "You can't really be blamed for that. Let alone you, even Goddess Athena has no idea what the true identities of the masters of these two forces are. People only know that on the surface, the Dark Archangel of the Twelve Heavens can exercise certain authorities; he resides year-round in the Judgment Hall within the Black Zone. Meanwhile, the public-facing head of the Iron Treasury is the omnipotent God of Wealth. This person has reach extending across the heavens and is exceedingly mysterious, holding countless amounts of gold."
"The Dark Archangel? The God of Wealth?"
Ye Ran felt that matters were becoming increasingly bizarre and uncanny.

Angels came from the Divine Realm, and fallen angels belonged to the Demon Clan, but the name "Dark Archangel" had never been heard of before.
Yet, to be able to treat a Dark Archangel like a puppet on a string, the person behind the Twelve Heavens was truly unfathomable.

Qianlong patted him on the shoulder and smiled. "Hey, I think once your temple is built, if you ever run short of money, you could also go to the Iron Treasury to borrow some to spend. At worst, you can just leak a little bit of information about the Six Dumas to the God of Wealth."
"Senior, doing that isn't very honorable. Besides, I don't even know the specific criteria for the Twelve Heavens' ratings, but reaching the White Brick rank probably isn't all that easy."
"Well, that's true."
"Also, Senior, that is not *my* temple, but *our* temple."
"Haha, I know, I know."
......

Five days later, they finally walked out of the Gray Fourteenth District. Past the Fourteenth District, the number of wranglers decreased significantly. North of the Fourteenth District and south of the Eleventh District lay a peculiar region. Polan established a nation and built an enterprise here, but what truly deterred the wranglers was not Polan's army, but two Slaughter-rank factions: the Combat League and the Metamorphs.

These two organizations were not hidden factions; quite a few of their members had fought on the God-Fighting Stage. However, very few people could clearly explain the internal structures of these two factions.
What people did know was that members of the Combat League were adept at using strange weapons. For example, the Minor Military Immortal—who had dueled the Crimson Lotus Knight on the God-Fighting Stage not long ago—wielded the Water-Fire Ruyi Staff; though narrowly defeated by Alphart, it was a defeat that brought honor.

Meanwhile, the members of the Metamorphs seemed to have a mysterious connection with all beasts in the forest and various major races. Some could control powerful giant beasts, some could control tiny mosquitoes, and some could even fuse their own flesh and blood with other races... In short, this was a group of people with unique origins.
When it came to solo combat, members of the Metamorphs might not match the Combat League, but in group battles, the Metamorphs undoubtedly held the greater advantage.

On the previous rating chart, both the Metamorphs and the Combat League were graded as "Slaughter Rank," with the note "Approaching Destruction Rank" appended to them. Their influence was almost comparable to the major temples.

The carriage slowly came to a halt. Charlie stepped out of the carriage and gazed at the magnificent landscape ahead.
The knight on horseback dismounted, removed his Mask of Redemption, took a deep look at her profile, and said, "Lady Charlie, please forgive Gerland for not being able to accompany you any further. The happy times spent with you are always so fleeting."
"Gerland, I sincerely hope you can successfully restore your nation soon,"
Charlie said with a light smile.

"If I succeed in restoring my nation, I will surely take you as my queen."
His sudden confession caused a sudden flush on Charlie's cheeks. She turned her head slightly to look. Ye Ran, who had been about to step out of the carriage, gave a dry cough and obediently sat back down, turning his head away as well.
"Gerland, please forgive me; as a divine envoy, I cannot become your queen..."
Charlie tried hard to make her refusal sound tactful, but when she met Gerland's affectionate, steadfast gaze, her heart softened, and she could no longer remember what she said next.

"Lady Charlie, Gerland's heart has always—and forever will—belong only to you."
The knight did not press her on her refusal; he bowed, kissed the back of her hand, mounted his horse, and rode away. Charlie turned her head somewhat unnaturally to look at Ye Ran.