In the Name of Empress-Chapter 540 - 334: Thank You, Christine

Sofia closed her eyes, and when she opened them again, there was no trace of human emotion in her eyes.

Her gaze was as indifferent as the Arctic Glacier, and deep within her eyes flickered a hint of something that frightened Christine.

Christine’s body trembled, just like when she first reverently encountered the Goddess in a dream.

She opened her mouth wide but couldn’t make a sound.

She was sweating profusely, gasping for breath, like a fish leaping out of an oxygen-deprived pond, struggling desperately but unable to breathe, caught by the throat of fate.

The dazed Christine’s soul screamed loudly.

Impossible, how could there be divine brilliance in the eyes of a heretic!

Christine’s mind was blank, staring desperately at Sofia, struggling to see through more.

A blue chill enveloped the entire airship.

When Sofia opened her eyes once more, the fate of the airship was already sealed.

The chill condensed into ice, blowing across the airship. Those it touched died instantly, their blood and flesh turning to ice and shattering to the ground.

The massive airship also began to crack under the cold, teetering on the edge of collapse.

Christine finally understood what kind of terrifying presence she was up against. She didn’t want to become Sofia’s trophy and, summoning her last bit of strength, leaped off the airship platform into the air.

The Power of Light prevented her from freezing instantly; she still had the strength to struggle.

She spread her arms and fell toward the ground, her face bearing a Holy Mark that seemed even more sanctified.

Her brief life played out like a slideshow.

Christine closed her eyes, never regretting her life’s choices, and this time was no exception.

She would die, but Sofia would ultimately accompany her to the grave.

In a vision of pure white, she seemed to see Sofia’s final tragic end, blessed by the three Goddesses, her body bound yet eternally unperishable, her soul burned and unable to struggle.

Bearing the agony sufficient to destroy a soul, in eternal life, until the end of the world.

This is the fate of blasphemy.

She merely lost her life temporarily, entering the cycle of rebirth, while Sofia had to endure divine punishment, bearing far more pain.

At the moment Christine closed her eyes, the chill broke through the milky shield, freezing her flawless body into an ice sculpture.

The ice sculpture spiraled downward. Sofia initially wanted to claim the trophy but felt a dizzying sensation, blood seeping continuously from the corners of her mouth.

Freezing a Saintess blessed by the Gods was a far greater blasphemy than freezing the Holy Spring.

After all, the Holy Spring’s freeze was temporary, recoverable in a few days, while the freezing of the Saintess was death.

Having chosen blasphemy, Sofia couldn’t care less about the level of blasphemy and didn’t regret striking at both the Holy Spring and the Saintess.

The only regret was that her powers were restricted by the Day of Return and couldn’t be fully exerted.

She was soon heading to White Mountain; there was no need to waste energy on the dead.

Sofia forced herself to remain alert, summoning fragments of ice, landing gracefully on them.

Her descent was very elegant, not like the Empress skydiving without a parachute, but rather like a Goddess descending.

Feeling a bit dizzy, Sofia quickly returned to the main camp, and upon seeing the anxious Angelina, her heart finally settled a bit.

"I must sleep immediately. Fortunately, we won this battle. It’s up to you from here on; I’ll awaken before the Day of Return."

Sofia’s face was deathly pale, and she didn’t even bother to conceal it in front of Angelina, directly summoning an ice block to seal herself.

Others would die if frozen in ice; she would just sleep and then wake up revitalized.

Angelina was a bit panicked, her heart almost jumping out of her chest as she looked at the Empress in the ice sculpture.

She hurriedly fetched a blanket to cover the ice sculpture, afraid that this scene would be seen by others and affect morale.

The Empress was right; the outcome of this battle was decided.

Christine fell from the sky; even if she didn’t freeze to death, she would die from the fall. In any case, she was doomed.

The Alliance Army, having lost unified command, would utterly collapse in morale, posing no further threat.

Now it was time to test her micro-management abilities.

Angelina’s lips curled into a slight smile.

She had always been underestimated, but now she finally had a stage to demonstrate her abilities.

In the following pursuit battle, she would give the enemy no chances, aiming to capture Val City and the Holy Spring as gifts for the Empress’s awakening.

Angelina strode out of the main camp, ready to order a full-scale counterattack.

Just as she stepped out of the tent, she bumped into the approaching intelligence officer.

She wouldn’t be easily knocked down, but the reckless intelligence officer was sent flying several meters, landing in disarray.

Angelina frowned, suppressing the urge to curse, and coldly said, "Angui, you’re an intelligence officer; how can you act so rashly? Tell me, which side has the sky fallen on?"

She was mocking Angui’s carelessness, but the intelligence officer scrambled to his feet, shouting in frustration:

"Commander in Chief, our Mad Cavalry..."

"What’s wrong with the Mad Cavalry?" Angelina’s eyelids twitched violently, sensing something was amiss.

"The Mad Cavalry is completely out of combat capability, and they were defeated by the enemy’s special forces before the state of fury even ended."

Angelina: "..."

She grabbed the intelligence officer by the collar, coldly questioning, "Nearly thirty thousand Mad Cavalry is not enough?"

"Y-yes."

The intelligence officer’s words made Angelina’s heart stop.

She could hardly believe her ears.

What was the enemy thinking? With their commander compromised, shouldn’t they be defeated?

No time to ponder, she ordered the Alliance forces to maintain distance, covering each other in retreat.

The Mad Cavalry had fallen, and most other elite troops were likely in no better condition.

She had to retreat; the Empress was still in the ice sculpture, asleep.