Chapter 58

"Bu-but in the tradition of the ECC… lower-ranking clergy… are, are allowed to marry…"

In churches that follow Eastern rites, both priests and deacons are allowed to marry, and there are even deaconesses. The Roman Church, however, no longer has deaconesses.

The more she spoke of this, the redder Elaine's face became. She subconsciously raised her hand to cover half of her face, as if that could hide her shyness.

"Th-then… if you are willing… af-after we get… married…"

Her voice was as faint as a mosquito's hum. With that last sentence, she almost buried her face in her palms, too shy to even lift her head.

"We would naturally… be able to… do… things that express love and intimacy between a married couple…"

As her voice trailed off, she curled into a ball.

A church with nearly two thousand years of history is truly remarkable; if one is willing to look, any rationale can be dug out of its mountain of spaghetti code. They can even make marriage conform to doctrine, and discuss lewd matters with such righteous indignation.

How cute.

Seeing her so shy, Qi Xing found it rather amusing and couldn't help but lean in to tease her: "So, how long will this entire process of transferring, promoting, and renouncing your nun's vows actually take?"

"It will certainly be done within a year…"

"No, a year is too long."

He gently lifted her chin, his fingertips brushing against her burning cheeks.

"The paperwork will take at least half a year at the fastest…"

"That's also too long."

"If we apply a little pressure from [Master Leipu] on the Privy Council, perhaps it can be done within a month…"

A month—given the efficiency of public administration in Italy, they probably couldn't even fix a water pipe in that time. This was truly putting the Demon King in a difficult position. Qi Xing was curious as he listened: "Has any priest here who loves Mapo Tofu ever gone through such a transfer?"

"I've never heard of such a thing."

Fair enough.

A month, honestly, still feels like a long time.

Moreover, to be ashamed, Qi Xing still felt a bit of unease in his heart. It was a kind of anxiety—the inability to feel at ease until he had actually tasted the fruit. But then again, he had already made up his mind to face and control the fear within his heart. So, he could not avoid it.

Besides, life is long, and having done it once doesn't guarantee peace of mind forever. Where does this sense of security actually come from?

The choice for most people is simply trust.

Qi Xing would, of course, trust Elaine, as a reward for her unconditional trust in him.

But since he had the power, would it be okay to cheat a little, to be a bit willful, on top of that trust?

"I am the King who died and rose again."

Qi Xing reached out, gently touched Elaine's head, and chanted the holy verse,

"Whenever and wherever you are in danger, I will surely come to your side."

In an instant, golden divine radiance flickered at Qi Xing's fingertips. Like the rising dawn, it cast majesty upon Elaine.

Elaine's face turned even redder.

Qi Xing just grinned.

——

Elaine's face turned even redder.

Qi Xing just grinned. He did not know what Elaine was thinking.

In fact, Elaine dared not let him know.

Because he came from the heavens, above all things in this world. He struck the villains of this world, defeated many of them, and rescued her from desperate situations time and again.

Therefore, she must repay him. To only take is shameful; she must give back. But she was truly just a weak and foolish person, a frog at the bottom of a well, unable to see the vastness of the sun and moon.

Therefore, she must learn. She wanted to learn everything, and she had indeed learned a lot—very much—and there was still much to learn. For unless she knew enough, she could not give anything.

To dedicate everything, she must learn everything. Every time she learned something, she would repay him a thousand times over. She would become the perfect assistant, so she must learn more to be more useful to him.

Because he liked her—because he loved her too. He was willing to marry her…

Just thinking about this made Elaine's heart pound, and her thoughts felt light and airy.

Of course, she would dedicate everything she had to him, but that alone was not enough—it was far from enough. She hoped he would receive more, the entirety of happiness… so for him to settle only for her would be absolutely unacceptable.

There must be more, better women suitable for him… and most importantly, it absolutely must not be that detestable devil.

Qi Xing had not heard Madame Remina complain earlier that Elaine had low self-esteem, or that she was [a shipper of [Master Leipu]].

He did not know—that Elaine actually loved watching him interact with other heroines.

If Qi Xing knew, he would surely be shocked and retort, [Elaine, is your fetish a bit perverted?]

Elaine was still calculating many things.

——

Shortly after, Elaine left the room to get busy.

Qi Xing pondered for a long time, then spoke: "Samael, come out for a moment."

After a good while, the Loli Evil God lazily poked her head out from the shadows: "What is it?"

"It's probably not because you tried to lose your virginity with the little nun and had to wait a month, so you're horny and planning to vent on me, right? Wow, how scary, how scary!"

A bratty female devil is a bratty female devil; she started mocking him the moment she opened her mouth.

But Qi Xing ignored this provocation and continued directly: "I have already defeated one [Silver Coin Messenger], the first [Demon King]."

"I don't really think Romanie counts as a qualified [Silver Coin Messenger]."

The Loli Evil God pursed her lips, unimpressed, "But that's fine, I'll count it as you completing this achievement—so what?"

This was the line Qi Xing had been waiting for.

"Do you remember? We made a bet before."

He continued calmly, "If I didn't beat Romanie, I would tell you my true wish; if I did win… I would spank your butt."

This statement finally caught the Loli Evil God off guard, and she was instantly stunned: "Wait, hold on. You definitely didn't beat Romanie the first time, did you?"

"That's why I did tell you my true wish," Qi Xing answered calmly. "We talked openly about my fear, hatred, and anger… but, Samael, I didn't lose either, did I? I wasn't beaten to the point of being incapacitated. Less than a day after we finished talking, I rode a missile over and thoroughly killed Romanie."

"You aren't going to go back on your word, are you?"

"…" As expected, this really poked at the Loli Evil God, causing her to freeze instantly.

Qi Xing had long guessed this about this detestable, foolish Creation God. Although she looked down on everyone else in this universe, she at least cared a little bit about her own words—especially when facing him, a [peer], she couldn't just treat them like empty air.

"You aren't really trying to use my delicate, supple, beautiful butt to vent your beastly urges just because you couldn't lose your virginity with the little nun, are you?"

"No. So stop talking nonsense, and hurry up and stick your butt out."

Qi Xing answered expressionlessly.

"Tch, mere human…"

Whether it was because she had agreed beforehand or because of Qi Xing's assertive attitude, the Loli Evil God was actually weaker than usual. Half-resigned, she braced herself against the table, pointed her upturned butt toward Qi Xing… and then closed her eyes: "I will remember this… hurry up and finish."

Qi Xing did not respond to the devil's threat, nor did he speak. He simply pinched the hem of her skirt and lifted it up a little. Samael felt Qi Xing's movement and shuddered violently.

But no matter how she reacted, Qi Xing would not show mercy; he had to strike hard—

"Wah?! It hurts!"

He slapped her butt!

Although it was only a shadow, perhaps because of the prior agreement, Qi Xing could actually hit a [butt] that had sensation. Accompanied by the crisp sound echoing from her buttocks, Samael shrieked in fright: "H-h-how could you actually spank my butt like this!? Even my brother has never hit me!"

"Don't talk nonsense. Didn't you clearly get beaten crippled by your brother?"

Qi Xing retorted sharply.

"No! He always used a sword to slash me!"

Ugh.

Being speechless for a moment, Qi Xing just reached out again, opened his palm, and spanked the Loli Evil God's butt, making it pop with a very crisp sound.

To say that this could bring much harm or pain to the Evil God was obviously impossible. After all, this was only her shadow, but the humiliation was indeed extremely strong.

After hitting her five or six times, Qi Xing stopped and made eye contact with the dumbfounded and blushing devil.

"I told you from the very beginning, it's not that I want to collect [silver coin] for you, but that you must help me find [silver coin] so I can use it to change this world—you said you would obey my orders, let me control the power of [silver coin] myself, and let this world fulfill my wishes—right?"

He said decisively, "It's very clear that you haven't really remembered this hierarchy, have you?"

This scene finally made Samael break into a cold sweat: "Uh, what exactly are you trying to do…"

Hierarchy, power… Samael loved to say before that █ is power, that those who are █ obviously lose power, and those who █ others obviously gain power—spanking is, of course, a form of domination. Their relationship might not have been reversed yet, but Qi Xing had clearly elevated his status significantly.

But her true body was not here; this was just a shadow that couldn't be █ at all. Qi Xing couldn't possibly counter-kill her and completely overturn the hierarchy… right?

Besides, even if he could █, that wasn't Qi Xing's style… he couldn't possibly actually rape anyone!

"Of course I won't actually █ you; █ is power, and I certainly know I haven't gained that much power yet. However,"

Qi Xing finally smiled evilly, "It's thanks to you reminding me, power can be symbolized and manifested in many different ways."

"Devil, you said before that you have many names: the first is Samael (the Blind), the second is Sakaras (the Fool), and the third is Satanel (the Adversary of God)."

Qi Xing could not use the power of the [Master] to change Samael's true name; he didn't have that kind of ability, and perhaps even Samael herself didn't have that kind of ability—but he could still draw inferences and find a clever workaround.

"I am going to give you a nickname, a pet name. Your true names are Samael, Sakaras, and Satanel, so from now on, I will call you—"

After just a moment's thought, Qi Xing made his decision.

"Sasa."

It was just like naming a pet.

"From now on, I will call you—Sasa."

Side Story: Miss Sasa is Very Unhappy

A week had passed since the end of the [Black Spartacus] incident.

Elaine, who had taken over as the president of the [Association], was busy every day.

Qi Xing had been unusually idle recently.

Usually, he couldn't sit still and would spend all day flying around the world, hunting down evil spirits and heretics.

But the Holy See had just suffered a great blow and needed an ultimate powerhouse to guard Rome for a while; they dared not let him go on long journeys. And the evil forces near Rome, having just experienced this great chaos and subsequent strict investigations, were temporarily cleared out.

Qi Xing had originally wanted to take advantage of his free time to go kill that Mafia family called the Galiano family to change his mood—but when he went to check, oh my, they had already been wiped out that very night by those alien necromantic monsters that grew from the █ fluid rain.

After all, entities like vengeful spirits and necromantic beings kill both good and bad people—hatred is often unreasonable—but statistically speaking, those who do more evil are more likely to be hated.

Thus, for the time being, Qi Xing actually had nothing to do.

At least for now, he didn't need to worry about [where to go, who to kill?].

If it were the Qi Xing of the past, he might have been a bit irritable in this situation, perhaps even complaining to Gwendolyn: [Isn't it stupid to keep a combat force like me at the fountain?]

But after experiencing the [Black Spartacus] incident, Qi Xing had overcome a mental hurdle, and his mindset had actually changed a bit.

Perhaps he should take this opportunity to readjust himself.

Although Qi Xing could not be called a grandmaster, he understood most of the fighting techniques that mortals had researched and created. If he wanted to improve, he had to find a higher realm for himself.

Since he had obtained the power of [silver coin], if he could integrate it with his original [Martial Arts]—could Qi Xing find stronger, more invincible killing moves?

Besides that, whether he should go chat with the Loli Evil God Samael—with Miss Sasa—was also a question Qi Xing had to consider.

Ever since Qi Xing spanked Sasa's butt a few days ago, the devil had almost been hiding in the shadows and not coming out. Even if she occasionally came out to wander, the moment she saw Qi Xing, she would immediately hide back into the shadows.

Today, Qi Xing sat in the training room and talked to himself, saying— "How exactly should I push my power further?"

This was both talking to himself and not talking to himself, because the Loli Evil God was right there. If it were before, she would have certainly jumped out immediately to make sarcastic remarks, asserting how rigid and straightforward Qi Xing's [Martial Arts] were, lacking imagination.

However, now she remained silent.