This heretic cannot be burned, he must be hung up and whipped!

"The Lord will judge them with fire from heaven!" "Burn the heretics at the stake!" "Yes! Stuff Beelzebub in a barrel of holy oil and fry him!"

Another man brandished a Molotov cocktail, the liquid glowing orange inside the glass—napalm laced with holy salt.

As if to make up for their previous "blasphemous" thoughts, the pilgrims were filled with indignation and shouted loudly:

"No, burning at the stake is too easy for them. We need to use the Catherine wheel! The wheel!" "After we catch Beelzebub, I'm going to pour holy water into his mouth - no, disinfectant!" "Go to the seven rings of hell! Capture Lucifer alive! Tie him up on the Catherine wheel, open his back with holy oil, and then let the hermits of the shrine crush every inch of his bones!" Everyone was cursing and insulting hell. In just a few minutes, the household register of the Lord of Hell (if it really had one) had been cleared out.

"boom!"

The hellish creatures outside the church seemed to vaguely hear these blasphemous words. The roar of the six-armed corpse monster almost shattered the church glass: "The Great Lord of Flies has set his sights on you! Cursed One! He has reserved a place for you in Hell. Everyone - everyone will suffer eternal torture!!"

Seeing the corpse monsters outside the church raging helplessly, Neos gained some courage. He climbed up the ladder, slightly opened the glass window, and shouted outside:

"What did you call your horse? Go back and tell your master to clean his ass in hell and wait for me to give him an enema with disinfectant!"

“Damn the cursed one—!!!”

Ignoring the impotent rage of the corpse monster outside, Neos immediately closed the window and climbed down the ladder. He said in the admiring eyes of everyone:

"Look, if you were truly bewitched by Hell, you wouldn't say such things!"

He thought for a moment and then asked, "So, what do you think of Jesus—er...I mean, our Lord, or our church?"

Neos observed the warriors, who had been so fervent just now. Their vocabulary of insults against Hell was staggering, but when the topic turned to the Church, the atmosphere suddenly froze. Some repeatedly crossed themselves, while others lowered their heads and touched holy objects, as if they could absorb blasphemous thoughts.

Everyone looked at each other, and no one dared to speak their true feelings. After all, if Saint Neos had not been here to protect them, their previous remarks would have already reached the standard of "sinner" in the church's eyes.

Sergeant Valentine was about to say something, but when he looked up and saw Jesus crucified on the cross, he hesitated and said:

"Sometimes the church...um...does things that, while well-intentioned, may have some problems with execution, leading to some...uh...dissatisfaction among the people?"

"Indeed, although we are Orthodox, in my hometown, the church's sometimes overly simple and rough policies do affect some...more loyal people." Amos also echoed this, and the believers also criticized it more tactfully - or made some suggestions for improvement.

After all, Jesus, who was nailed to the cross in the hall, was still watching. He had just helped to block the soldiers of hell. Now it was really immoral for him to pick up his bowl to eat and then put down his chopsticks to curse.

----------------

At the same moment, St. Peter's Basilica in Rome, thousands of miles away, was bathed in holiness.

The new Pope Benedict stood on the gilded pulpit, with twelve cardinals on both sides. Their red robes looked like pools of solidified blood in the sunlight filtering through the stained glass.

"May the Lord bless his lamb." Benedict spread his arms, and the diamond-encrusted patriarch's staff struck the ground with a hollow echo. The angel in the dome fresco seemed to lower his head, his pupils made of gold and gemstones hiding sneers.

Pius, the former pope who chose to abdicate voluntarily like many of his predecessors, stood in the shadows, his skinny fingers stroking the "Three Holy Nails" necklace hanging on his chest - a holy relic made from the ribs of a saint by a pope during the Three Holy Nails Civil War in 1215.

He could smell conspiracy in the air: the Chancellor of the Exchequer was stroking the account book in his sleeve, the holy sword worn by the Chief of Military Affairs was stained with the blood of his political enemies last night, and even the children's voices in the choir sounded like poison coated in honey.

It's so ridiculous, like a dream.

Just a few days ago, the previous Pope Pius suddenly decided to retire and convened a new round of conferences in Rome to elect the next Pope. Before this thunderous news could reach the remote areas of Europe, the numerous selections and fierce struggles (both physically and politically) had already begun.

No matter how many tricks he used before, Benedict eventually became the new Pope.

Now he will lead the entire Christian world (Orthodox:?) in a powerful response to the stirrings of hell, proving the Church’s loyalty to God.

“Your Holiness Pope Benedict, I have—” “Ahem!”

"Withdraw first. We'll discuss everything tomorrow. Note, everything!" Pius coughed, and the cardinals bowed and withdrew in unison. Benedict noticed that when the Normandy bishop, known as the "most pious," turned around, a corner of yellowed letter paper appeared from his sleeve - it was printed with the wax seal of the Iron Wall Sultanate.

After sending away the bishops who had come to attend Benedict's coronation, Pope Pius' expression didn't relax, but instead became even more solemn. He sent away the remaining irrelevant people around him, even the most loyal guards of the Church!

"Respected Pius, what are you doing?" Benedict was a little puzzled. You know, this was not the first or second time that the Pope was assassinated by Hell. Without the close protection of the guards, he really didn't dare to be alone in a room.

"Benedict, what I'm about to show you is our church's greatest secret since the First Crusade and the appearance of the devil."

"What...what?" Benedict looked at the complicated expression on Pius's face, his palms sweating, and he thought to himself: "Is he a demon? He deliberately sent the guards away just to let Hell control me? Should I..."

With this in mind, he took a step back towards the door, and all of this was seen by former Pope Pius.

Pius sighed: “It’s not what you think, there is nothing from hell here, have you ever thought about a question?”

"Please tell me."

"Why would I choose you as the shepherd who will rule the entire Christian world, and not someone else? As a technical priest, Mendeleev is better than you, and Stalin of the Orthodox Church has greater achievements than you. There are many candidates who are more loyal to the Church or to me, but you know better than anyone that you are completely unqualified to stand here.

Have you ever expressed doubts about this?"

Benedict was silent for a moment, then gritted his teeth and said, "No, no, I serve our Lord wholeheartedly, and for this—"

"If you keep talking like that, you can put down that crown now and prepare for lobotomy." Pius frowned and said:

"Since 1215, all popes of the Catholic Church have inherited this decision, that is, when choosing the next pope, they must pay attention to certain special qualities, such as-"

"Like what?" Benedict seemed to be hiding some secrets as well. His forehead was already covered with fine beads of sweat, and he asked anxiously.

Pius smiled meaningfully and whispered with interest, "Disloyalty to God, or... questioning."

"No! I am completely and forever loyal to God! Please retract your false accusation! This is the greatest insult to my faith!"

Disloyalty to God is the second most serious crime in Europe, second only to surrendering to Hell, though many priests believe the two crimes are essentially the same. Many people might say, "My disloyalty to God does not necessarily mean surrendering to Hell," but this statement is generally considered appropriate by the Chief Judge to be addressed to God while digging trenches in Heaven.

This zero-frame accusation was like a thunderclap in Benedict's mind. He was horrified and slapped his body with his hands, as if trying to -

"Are you looking for—this?"

PS: 200 votes, next update 4.5k!

In Flames: 1914: Chapter 11: The Pinnacle of Power or Clown on a Tightrope? (5.4k)

Pius spread his hands, and the bright light in the room suddenly twisted into a chaotic vortex above his palms. The temperature plummeted, and the white breath Benedict exhaled instantly condensed into ice crystals, drifting in the frozen air.

"It seems that you are indeed not very loyal. You dare to enter here with weapons." Pius's laughter frightened the new Pope more than the cold wind.

"What—when did you—!"

Pius's withered fingers twisted slightly, and the space above his palm suddenly cracked into a dark crack, and a dazzling blue-white flame burst out from inside.

Benedict stumbled back, and a familiar miniature pistol fell from the crack, with scorch marks from burning sulfur still on the barrel.

"I brought your 'little toy' out of the Lord's kingdom - feel it and see if it's yours. If not, I have to return this little toy to the Almighty Lord." Pius seemed completely unaware of the tense atmosphere here and joked.

"This is..." Benedict's fingertips trembled, "How do you know..."

"This is not a power given to us by God, but a spark deep in the human soul." Seeing that the new Pope did not dare to take the pistol, Pius snapped his fingers.

"Clap!"

A ball of pale yellow flame appeared at his fingertips: "Perhaps most ordinary people will never be able to develop their abilities in their lifetime, but throughout history there have always been a small number of special groups who can carefully use this extraordinary power.

To ignite this flame of the soul, it always requires some opportunity. The opportunity that the sages of the Iron Wall Sultanate have spent their entire lives seeking may not be as good as the flash of inspiration of a gifted person - such as the courage you had to question the Book of Genesis at the age of fourteen, or the blood on your hands along the way. "

Benedict's knees went weak. He had no idea how the "handle" he had handled so cleanly had fallen into Pius' hands. He knelt heavily on the marble floor.

Now the serpent was more crafty than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And the serpent said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You shall not eat from every tree of the garden?’ ”

The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden, but of the fruit of the tree that is in the middle of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat of it, and you shall not touch it, or you will die.’”

The serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. For God knows that if you eat of the fruit, your eyes will be opened, and you will be like gods, knowing good and evil.”

So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate it, and gave also to her husband with her, and he ate it.

Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves aprons.”

When the old pope said this, his eyes flashed with emotion, and his voice became louder and louder: "You said; 'Then why didn't Jehovah God punish the snake hiding in the orchard, but instead banished Adam and Eve who made mistakes to the mortal world? Moreover, if the Lord is omnipotent, why did he allow the devil to come?'

That's what nearly sent you to digging trenches in Paradise, right?"

PS: This excerpt is from Genesis 3. The man and woman are Adam and Eve, and the snake is generally considered by Christians to be the devil Satan. More descriptions of the devil can be found in the Book of Revelation.

"Reverend Pope Pius! Please forgive my sins!"

This wise and resourceful attitude amused Pius, who smiled and put the weapon into his pocket.

He chuckled, and the flames, like ripples of moonlight, dissipated between his fingers.

"Rise up, young Pope. If I were to judge you, you would have burned at the stake twenty years ago. Don't worry, I'll be going to see... God soon.

"Once I choose a successor, I will not change my mind. Later, someone will come to help you stimulate your potential—oh, I forgot, you have actually stimulated this potential. How does it feel to use this power to appease the Lamb of the Lord? Do you feel like a god?"

"...I..."

Pius teased, and seeing Benedict remained silent and didn't dare to stand up easily, he curled his lips:

"It's boring. I feel more comfortable talking to the technical priests. We political animals are only fit to be lone wolves. Now follow me. Remember, stick to your beliefs. On the way, don't say anything you see, and don't do anything unnecessary. This is the 'journey of truth' that every new Pope must go through."

He tucked the weapon back into the new Pope's scarlet robes. "After all, doubt is the gift of our kind."

"So, how did you acquire this talent?" Benedict suddenly asked.

"Me? Haha..." Pius's thoughts once again went back to forty-three years ago.

.....

November 28, 1871, Cologne Cathedral, Holy Roman Empire

The fifteen-year-old young believer knelt on the cold marble floor while the bishop on the stage was explaining the Book of Genesis.

"At that time, the accents and languages ​​of people all over the world were the same.

As they migrated eastward, they found a plain in the land of Shinar and settled there.

They said to one another, "Come, let us make bricks and bake them thoroughly." So they used bricks for stone and bitumen for mortar.

They said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city and a tower with its top in the heavens, and let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth.””

"Mankind vainly attempts to build the Tower of Babel, reaching to the heavens, in order to rival the Most High!" The bishop's ring struck the gilded Bible, startling a flock of white doves that flew over the ribs of the vault. "So the Lord confounded their language; he scattered the proud people like dust—"

"Your Excellency!" Pius suddenly stood up, and the parchment scroll slipped from his knees. The young man's Adam's apple rolled on his pale neck:

"If God truly wanted humanity to be content, why did He grant us the wisdom to measure the stars? Even an old cow licks its calf, and a crow feeds its young. Why would the Most High God despise the work of His own creation, leading to countless wars and casualties?"

"You!!" "Shut up!"

The choir's children's voices suddenly stopped, and the children's frightened breathing made the candles tremble.

The old monk who was sweeping the floor at the door was so frightened that he quickly picked up the broom and hid to avoid being splashed with blood when Pius died.

"How dare you!" the bishop clenched the cross with his dry, branch-like fingers. "How dare you question the sacred teachings of Genesis?"

"I question fear." Pius took a step forward. At that moment, he thought of the ancient Greek manuscripts rescued from the clutches of hell in the monastery's scriptorium, Archimedes's wild idea of ​​using a lever to move the earth, and Ptolemy's bronze instrument that calculated the orbits of the stars...

"While Noah's Ark carries hope, the ruins of the Tower of Babel bury possibilities. What do you want me to bow to? Is it God's glory, or God's fear of man?"

PS: According to the Book of Genesis, Noah's Ark was built by humans. After the flood receded, humans gradually multiplied. They decided to build a city and a tower with the top reaching the sky. The purpose was to spread their name and avoid being scattered all over the earth.

“Heresy!” “He’s crazy!” The believers exclaimed in panic.

Pius saw a strangely bound book locked on a silver chain beneath the bishop's purple robe:

AH Becquerel: The Natural Radioactivity of the Uranium Atom

PS: Historically, Becquerel's discovery of uranium salts is considered the beginning of modern nuclear physics.

That was the manuscript he had hidden in the confessional last night! Cold beads of sweat slid into the collar of his linen robe, and he suddenly realized that this sermon was a stake set for him.

"You heard it!" The bishop's trembling voice tore through the silence. "This heretic actually compared the Holy Ark with the Tower of Sin!"

The clatter of the scepter startled more white doves, and the sound of flapping wings and the clashing of armor echoed simultaneously: "Send him to the West Square! Let the fire of hell purify this blasphemous soul!"

"Confess your last words, my son." The bishop held the torch before him. "The lesson of the Tower of Babel is this: One must not transgress the boundaries set by God."

Pius looked up at the gray pigeons circling in the smoke, crossing the steel cables between the church towers. There seemed to be several strange dark shadows there. "If you burn one of me to death today, there will be millions of me tomorrow to continue building the Tower of Babel!"

"Hmph, save these words for when you go to heaven." Just as Bishop Sanba was about to throw down the torch, several figures suddenly jumped down from the church tower and a burst of black smoke rose up. When the smoke dissipated, there was no one on the stake.

...

"What I did back then was much more radical than you. Luckily the old Pope sent people to protect me in advance. Get up. It was also my fault that you were not tried." Pius smiled and shook his head. He did not want to recall those old things, and pulled up the new Pope who was kneeling on the ground.

"By the way, your question does remind me. Remember to allocate more money to the French Academy of Sciences. Ernest Lawrence has been writing to me saying that his particle accelerator seems to have produced some remarkable results."

PS; The first DC particle accelerator in human history was born in 1932. It used alpha particles to knock helium into a nuclear reaction, and nuclear fission was discovered a few years later.

"Yes."