Chapter 14: Purging the Celestial Vault Sect

“Father of the Stars, I am greatly disappointed.”

With Shen Xing’s words, the entire Central Temple was plunged into silence.

The high priests crashed to the ground, writhing in agony, soon drawing their last breaths, their eyes still brimming with terror and confusion.

The crowd began to murmur in hushed tones, unable to comprehend how this young man possessed such overwhelming power, or why he would execute these high priests on the spot.

“The original purpose of the Starry Firmament Faith was to guide people towards kindness and wisdom, to unite and uplift human civilization—not to become a tool for oppression and greed.”

Shen Xing stood atop the temple stairs, his gaze sweeping over the masses below. When he spoke again, his voice was calm, yet filled with authority:

“My name is Shen Xing.”

Only then did the crowd recognize him—the youth descended from the heavens was the legendary Child of the Divine, once spoken of in whispered tales.

It had been twenty years since then; many memories had faded, but in this moment, the stories of him flooded back to them in an instant.

The priests who had fled the temple in panic also heard Shen Xing’s proclamation.

They trembled, suddenly realizing that their long-standing actions may have finally incurred the wrath of the Father of the Stars.

Among the crowd, some began to point angrily at these priests, denouncing their crimes and injustices.

In this tide of condemnation, many priests who had merely followed the current collapsed to their knees, unable to stand.

“Father of the Stars, we were wrong!” one priest cried out, his voice thick with remorse.

“We were blinded by power and forgot your teachings!”

Shen Xing slowly approached one of the kneeling priests.

“Divine Child…”

The priest looked up at Shen Xing in terror, his hands and feet turning cold, as though he had met his death.

Shen Xing’s gaze was deep and penetrating; the priest felt as if his very soul was being laid bare.

“Everyone is given the chance to atone, but only if the repentance is sincere. I see true remorse in your heart—prove your faith with your actions.”

The priest, hearing these words, opened his mouth in disbelief. Then, his heart filled with acceptance, he prostrated himself before Shen Xing.

So, the Divine Child could see into a person’s soul.

If that was so… then all their deeds must have been witnessed by the Father of the Stars as well.

—

Shen Xing continued to peer into the hearts of the priests; in the span of a moment, more than a dozen harbored genuine desire for repentance—their crimes were relatively slight.

Yet in some, he detected lingering thoughts of evasion; for these deeply corrupted souls, Shen Xing would deal with them in due time.

A cheer erupted from the crowd below the temple. They had witnessed the Divine Child’s power and mercy, and saw in the Father of the Stars both justice and forgiveness.

Shen Xing turned, facing everyone. His voice rang out across the entire Central Continent: “From this day forward, the Starry Firmament Faith will undergo a complete cleansing. Every corrupt priest across the Five Continents will be removed, and the temples will return to their true purpose—to guide and protect human civilization!”

His declaration was like a great bell at dawn, awakening faith in the hearts of all.

He pointed to the sky, where constellations appeared—each one marking a pivotal moment in the history of the Starry Firmament Faith.

“These star charts are our foundation. They will guide us back to the righteous path.”

Among the crowd, some began to pray in whispers, others wept with joy.

They felt the care and hope of the Father of the Stars, and their hearts brimmed with hope for the future.

Shen Xing returned to the inner sanctum of the temple, his figure gradually fading into the interplay of light and shadow.

Outside, the priests who had been redeemed rose to their feet, knowing that their remaining days would be devoted to spreading the true teachings of the Father of the Stars and aiding in the faith’s reform.

News of these events spread like wildfire across the entire planet.

People gathered at temples in every region of the Central Continent, demanding reform and justice.

The leadership at the heart of the Starry Firmament Faith was shaken. They realized that without change, they would lose the trust of all followers.

In the months that followed, unprecedented reforms swept through the faith’s institutions.

The finances of every temple were made public, and the incomes and powers of the priests came under scrutiny.

The temples turned their focus to education, medicine, and charity, truly serving their congregations at last.

Shen Xing’s actions sent shockwaves across the world, but he knew the real work of reform had only just begun.

His gaze extended beyond the Central Continent, to other lands—especially those where the Starry Firmament Faith had rotted to its very core.

—

Amidst the fervent reforms of the Central Continent, discontent brewed among the upper echelons of the other continents.

In the West Continent—once prosperous, now plunged into chaos by the faith’s decay—high priests wielded unchecked power within the temples, greedily extorting their followers and indulging their every desire.

—

“Where did this so-called Divine Child come from? Aside from those star omens, there’s not a shred of other news.”

“Those people in the Central Continent still think they’re the legitimate heirs—I bet they’re just fabricating tales out of those celestial signs.”

The Starry Firmament Faith was at its most corrupt in the West Continent. Inside the grand temple, a group of high-ranking priests laughed disdainfully.

“Enough, we’ve already assigned someone to investigate. When the report comes in, we’ll know exactly what’s going on,” one of the senior priests said as the debate grew heated.

“Were you looking for me?”

The sudden voice stunned the high priest and his colleagues, their expressions turning ashen as if plunged into an ice-cold abyss.

“By the Father of the Stars, what is happening?”

The priests panicked, staring at Shen Xing with unprecedented fear.

“Is the name of the Father of the Stars something you parasites are even worthy to utter?” Shen Xing’s cold, piercing gaze swept the temple, his voice echoing with icy authority.

The high priests of the West Continent tried to resist, calling for the temple guards to confront him.

But before Shen Xing, their might was as nothing. With a mere wave of his hand, the guards who rushed in vanished like smoke.

“Who… who are you?” a priest asked, trembling.

“I am Shen Xing, guardian of this world, and emissary of the Father of the Stars whom you have blasphemed for so long.”

At Shen Xing’s words, the very air within the temple seemed to freeze.

A crushing sense of despair pressed down upon the priests.

Shen Xing spoke no further. His footsteps echoed through the temple; with every step, a priest fell.

There were no screams, no struggles—they simply turned to dust beneath his power.

Two minutes later, only a handful of priests remained.

These few, long oppressed by the previous regime, now knelt before Shen Xing in grateful tears, vowing to dedicate themselves to the reformation of the Starry Firmament Faith.