In the Name of Goodness, Praise Du Chen

Flaying's sudden, thunderous revelation not only stunned Deboning but also caused the "True God" he spoke of – Du Chen himself – to roll his eyes. *Heaven and Earth bear witness!* He mused. *Old One Flaying, your imagination is truly boundless! While his words bore some resemblance to my own thoughts, their essence was fundamentally distinct! They were two entirely different matters!*

The reason for replacing 'Yetha' with 'Du Chen' was precisely to prevent people from attributing all their gratitude to some Yetha God after performing good deeds! He certainly didn't want to see a true Yetha emerge from some forgotten corner one day and, with a single decree, usurp the foundations he'd painstakingly built! Diluting Yetha's influence was imperative. Though followers were few now, once their numbers swelled, the faithful *must* know the name of the God in their hearts would be 'Du Chen', not some Yetha!

Appointing Deboning as Grand Pontiff was indeed a means to transcend worldly affairs, allowing his own name to become an exalted spiritual beacon, subtly guiding people towards goodness.

But... *but!*

His true purpose was simply to facilitate acts of goodness! Why, then, was Flaying gazing at such a benevolent soul as himself with the eyes of an ambitious schemer!? Was doing good deeds a crime? Heaven and Earth bear witness! He harbored not even a sliver of ambition!

Du Chen sighed helplessly, "What Flaying said is largely correct, but I must emphasize one point: the fundamental purpose of this Church is Guiding Towards Goodness. As for 'Du Chen' as a deity... it's merely a more convenient way to teach people goodness – after all, the vast majority of common folk are utterly obedient to a deity's words!" He shrugged. "Moreover, I will not demand a single copper offering from believers, nor will I exploit them for worldly power or conquest! One could say, the Du Chen Church will only give, never take..."

Flaying listened in silence, then suddenly countered with a question, "So, your ultimate goal in reorganizing the Church is simply to make more people benevolent in their hearts?" His expression turned forlorn and bleak.

Yet, Du Chen surprisingly still nodded in agreement. Flaying let out a scoff, seemingly mocking his own previous thoughts, but then, he smirked ambiguously, like a lecher spotting a lone beauty. *Francis, you're still a bit naive,* he thought. *If your impractical ideas genuinely succeed, rewards will present themselves, more than you could possibly count! After all, sometimes pies do fall from the sky, and what Heaven bestows is irresistible!*

Flaying's thoughts were naturally impossible for Du Chen to fathom. With a smile, Du Chen continued, "Then let's concretely discuss the plan of action. The first step will be small-scale acts of Guiding Towards Goodness..."

Night cloaked Battle God Isle. Beneath a clear, star-dusted sky, Dormitory Number Eighteen by Water River was ablaze with lights. Deboning, upon learning he was to become Grand Pontiff, having realized a long-cherished dream, found his enthusiasm soaring to unprecedented heights, continuously putting forward his own suggestions. Flaying, too, fixed on Du Chen, offered a good deal of constructive advice. Little Beibei was dozing off, but Harry's eyes gleamed with excitement – just now, his master had decided to appoint him as the Church's Chief Secretary. *Haha, I'm an important figure now!*

Quietly, muffled declarations began to echo within the dormitory.

"'In the Name of Goodness, Praise Du Chen!'" Du Chen led them in an oath, chanting loudly, a new creed replacing 'Ramepatisu'.

"'Yī shān zhì mìng, zàn méi dú chèn!'" The others struggled to repeat after him, tripping over the words – this phrase was in the Han language, and these foreign disciples even used their battle qi to twist their tongues, yet they still couldn't correct the pronunciation...

Du Chen frowned, teaching them a few more times, then sighed and explained, "Alright, practice more in the future. Also, during the Church's developmental phase, each time you perform a good deed, just repeat this phrase a few times to the person you've helped. Don't say anything else, nothing at all!" He did this to avoid arousing the Holy Church's suspicion.

"Yí shān zhì míng, zàn méi dù chēn..." A chorus of garbled Han language continued to ring out, one after another. Only little Beibei, sticking out her tongue, grumbled unhappily, "Daddy's mean, Daddy made Beibei's tongue hurt..."

As the sun rose in the east and the sky began to lighten, Du Chen opened his window for fresh air. He gazed at the island seascape under the eastern 'fish-belly white' of dawn and let out a low whistle, venting the pent-up air in his chest.

Currently, he had precisely three matters at hand. First, Phil's "dying words" – on May thirteenth, a major event would befall the Saint Sigurd Cain family, and he was to take that ring to the Saint Dak family! Second, he had to prepare for the impending arrival of the world's foremost assassin. The last task was developing the Church – a long-term, significant undertaking, not to be rushed.

However, before all these, there was one minor affair, and that affair was...

"What powerful killing intent!" Flaying flashed beside Du Chen, gazing towards the docks through the window. "Francis, your 'brief agony' has arrived!"

No sooner had he spoken than Du Chen witnessed the trouble firsthand – Keane, the Batuk Family's Head Butler, who had watched Annie grow up since childhood, was storming over with furious strides. The old man made no attempt to conceal his power, emanating a tyrannical aura from his entire being, clearly here to settle a score with Du Chen!

A cold glint flashed in Deboning's eyes. He whispered, "Young Master, openly or covertly!?"

"What openly or covertly? Are you actually planning to eliminate him?" Du Chen rubbed his forehead in exasperation. "Annie ran back home in tears last night, so Betty and Keane coming for me today is expected! Flaying, stay here. Deboning, you come with me!"

"Francis!" Flaying suddenly called out to Du Chen, lowering his voice. "Remember, the word 'hesitation' no longer belongs to you! Matters of the heart are hard to judge right from wrong. You naturally owe Annie nothing, but Annie owes you nothing either! Understand?"

"Understood, Master of Emotions!"

The moment he stepped out of the dormitory gates, Du Chen was met by Keane's blazing, furious gaze. "Francis, yield your life!"

"You want my life? Hmph!" Du Chen stood his ground, unmoving, staring at the fist hurtling towards him. Suddenly, Deboning flashed forward, positioning himself in front of Du Chen. With a raised hand, he met Keane's punch with a thunderous *BOOM* from a single palm.

*Thud! Thud!* Deboning stepped back two paces, clear of Du Chen, leaving two footprints half a foot deep in the stone slab ground before the gates. Keane's body, however, suddenly seemed to shrink by a noticeable margin – his legs had sunk into the earth, submerged below the knees!

"Good! Few can match me in strength, come again!" Without moving his upper body, the earth beneath Keane's feet autonomously pushed his body back to the surface, and he raised his fist, ready to resume his attack!

Deboning snorted, about to retaliate!

"Enough!" Du Chen roared sharply. Glancing at the startled students nearby, not wishing for Deboning to reveal too much of his power in front of them, he lowered his voice, "Mr. Keane, you've come to kill me. Can you tell me why? Or is this Madam Betty's intention?!"

Keane was momentarily stunned by Du Chen's rebuke, and a hint of hesitation surfaced in his heart. Last night, Young Miss Annie had cried to Young Miss Betty, but Madam Betty was dead drunk... He had been forced to watch over Young Miss for the entire night. Only after Young Miss finally fell asleep did he immediately come to settle accounts with Francis! And... he truly had no direct orders from his master!

Du Chen shrugged with a sneer. "Where is Madam Betty now? I will go find her immediately. Perhaps it's time to clarify everything with her completely! By the way, Mr. Keane, do you think I wasn't clear the last time I spoke?!"

Hearing Du Chen's final words, Keane suddenly froze. Indeed, it seemed the young man had already made himself very clear last time. As the Head Butler of the thousand-year-old Batuk Family, he wasn't a bandit; he couldn't be unreasonable. For a moment, he didn't know what to say!

"Oh dear, Keane, I merely had a hangover for a night, and you've already stirred up such a huge mess!" Betty arrived with staggering steps, her face still flushed from drink, though her timing seemed a little *too* coincidental to Du Chen.

Coming before Du Chen, Betty let out a huge yawn, utterly devoid of aristocratic grace, then glared fiercely at Keane: "The older you get, the more muddled you become! Is there any grave matter that cannot be discussed sitting down? Always resorting to violence and murder – do you think this is still the time when you commanded tens of thousands of troops, conquering cities and forts?!"

Keane grumbled inwardly. *Young Miss Betty, can you blame me? Wasn't I blinded by anger?! Young Miss Annie's eyes were swollen from crying. She's the Old Master's darling; had she ever suffered such injustice since childhood!? Find you!? I, I wanted to find you, but you were dead asleep from drink. After all, I am but a servant; how could I dare to forcibly wake a master!?*

"Disperse, disperse! What are you staring at?!" Betty waved her hand, scattering the onlookers, then cordially approached, took Du Chen's hand, and led him into Dormitory Number Eighteen. Instead of entering the inner rooms, Betty released Du Chen's hand right there in the courtyard. Both Deboning and Keane were left outside!

Du Chen gazed at Betty's drunken appearance and suddenly smiled. "Aunt Betty, your timing is impeccable. If you had arrived even half a step later..."

"Enough!" Betty waved her hand, and her expression grew serious. "Let's be frank with each other. I did know Keane was coming to cause you trouble, but feigning a hangover, I tacitly allowed him... I simply wanted to put you in your place! I also know everything that happened last night, Francis. Whether by the rules of the Clandestine Circles or by age and seniority, it's not wrong for you to call me 'Auntie', is it!?"

Du Chen rubbed his nose and chuckled, nodding.

"Very well, then I have just one question for you..." Betty's drunken aura instantly dissipated. "You said you already have a beloved, and that there's a vast difference in your statuses. Tell me, who exactly is that girl?!"