The Adventures of an Overpowered Knight in Another World

Chapter 516: Chapter 516- Great Holy Cleansing (3)

And indeed it was; since for this crusade, the value of this small piece of wood was indispensable.

Besides, even just a piece, a branch of the divine tree was no less than a treasure itself.

No one asked how he acquired such treasures. They simply accepted them, already accustomed to the mysterious and unusualness of the Divine Paladin.

At sunrise, the numerous banners, each one indicating a knight order, began to move. Every knight order was assigned a different region, and the Temple of Light, led by Reinhardt, was ordered to cleanse the region around Snowpoint City. This included territories spanning from the Hollow Veils to the Blackthorn Castle.

.

.

A few days later... Reinhardt marched at the front. With him were hundreds of knights and squires from his order who had joined up with him on the way.

As this was an extremely important expedition, the Queen ordered them to summon the knights from their base and carry out the mission.

Aside from the minimum personnel needed to keep law and order back in Snowpoint City, Reinhardt had summoned almost every knight.

As such, it could be said that the order of the Temple of Light was marching in its full strength. The line-up of so many powerful knights as they rode their horses in an organized formation was quite a sight.

With Reinhardt at the front, the order marched through all kinds of terrains and obstacles.

The Temple of Light led the crusade deep into the heart of untouched lands, perfect hiding places for demons.

The purge was swift; whenever they found any settlement, they would use the trial of fire or water, depending on the terrain. When feasible, they would use the fairy water and sprinkle it on the people.

If not, they would chop down trees to create firewood for people to pass through.

Many passed through unharmed; some burned, their shrieks ringing across the place. In every village, the squires were forced to confront their horrors again and again.

Innocent people turning into demons, hostage situations, and even bloodied bodies that needed healing.

Reinhardt was relentless in his leadership; his aura calm, orders decisive, and momentum unstoppable. That said, he never let his knights or the people face the corruption alone. He was always the first to charge, the first to cut down corrupted forms, the first to hold anyone before they could fall to the ground.

In this Great Holy Cleansing, his presence became the symbol of power and stability.

While the Temple of Light cleansed the Eastern Region of the Blackthorn Castle area, the other knight orders also began their purge in the other regions.

The Order of the Blazing Sun, led by Brutus, cleared the western cities and merchant towns. Clad in gleaming crimson armour, the Flamekeepers pushed into bustling markets where demons had hidden among caravans.

Their more aggressive approach led to public clashes. Demons cornered in warehouses, explosions ringing around the town, and public purification that caused fear and panic among the crowd. Their progress was violent but fast.

On the northern borderlands, beyond the snow-clad Alps that could be seen from Snowpoint City, the cold region had allowed demons to take root here for years. The Guardians of the Divine Radiance proceeded through the cold, unflinching and unbothered.

The Yggdrasil flames in their hands burned brightly in this cold.

Saintess Vanessa and her knights took a more radical approach to eradicate the demons.

The piece of the world tree was dipped into the lakes to purify them entirely in one go. Forests burnt down with the Yggdrasil fire. Any and all demons hiding in any part of the region were exterminated just like that.

In the southern deserts and Oasis cities, the knights of the Lunar Veil, led by Leona, battled demons that hid themselves inside pyramids or disguised themselves as a village in a mirage.

The knights used the fairy water like rain, blessing the dunes until corruption withered. Their progress was slow but steady, pushing demonic forces out from every oasis.

The Knights of Enduring Spirit, the Royal Lion Guards, Thunderstorm Brigade... all the knight orders obeyed the royal decree and carried out the Great Holy Cleansing in their own way...

.

.

Days turned into weeks. More than thirty villages cleansed, eight forests purged, and nineteen towns liberated.

Reinhardt and his order of the Temple of Light marched faster than any other. The treasures he brought back from the spirit realm worked flawlessly. No demons or deception could hide from them.

Village after village, town after town, fort after fort. Corruption was dragged into the open and burned clean.

That said, even though their order was producing great results at an alarming rate, it did not mean that it was not taking a toll on them. Every night, the members camped together. The atmosphere was always heavy.

Physical wounds were trivial and could easily be healed using skills, but what about emotional and mental ones?

The older knights, those who had walked battlefields long before this crusade, endured in silence. They had already buried their innocence years ago. That said, the same cannot be said for the squires and even those who became knights not long ago.

Of course, as the order of the Temple of Light was like one big family, the older knights always looked out for the younger ones, providing words and tales of motivation. That said, in the end, it ultimately depended on the young ones and if they could get over it.

Some shook in their sleep; some stared blankly at their food, and some couldn’t bring themselves to clean their armour, still stained with the ashes of demons disguised as humans only hours ago.

Reinhardt saw everything. He would sit with them, eat the same food, and share the same fire, but never utter any words of encouragement.

Why? It was because he knew that the members of his order weren’t weak. These young budding knights may look fragile, like brittle glass strained beyond limit.

But if one looked deeper, into the depths of their eyes, one would see something else forming.