Chapter 46: The Emergence of the Altar Throne

As Lady Saori surveyed the scene, her gaze suddenly fixed on a mysterious figure standing beside Chunli—a person draped in a cloak. The enigmatic stranger lifted his head and met Lady Saori’s eyes, and she could immediately sense that this man was utterly different from any Bronze Saint she had ever encountered.

“That is…”

At that very moment, Shiryu, whose veins ran with divine blood, suddenly opened his eyes, and his heart began to beat once more. He slowly descended to the ground, and behind him, the constellation of the Dragon appeared in vivid relief. With a powerful shout, Shiryu shed his Dragon Cloth, revealing a robust physique adorned with a distinct Azure Dragon tattoo along his back—a sight that instantly sent the female spectators into a frenzy.

Yet Lady Saori’s attention was wholly captured by the talisman affixed to his chest, resembling a small patch. From that charm, she sensed a cosmos akin to her own—its power had reignited Shiryu’s once-stilled heart. Nor was this strength limited to resurrection alone; the drop of blood gathered on his dragon claw, forming a bright red pearl. From that moment on, Shiryu would have no weakness.

Lady Saori’s expression grew ever darker; she had intended for Shiryu to owe Seiya his life, but her plan had been foiled by another. She could scarcely restrain her urge to eliminate the meddler.

Once Shiryu had recovered, he did not rejoin the arena, but instead approached the mysterious stranger beside Chunli. There, he knelt solemnly on one knee, bowing his head in clear subordination.

In that instant, every camera flash captured this precious image, and the crowd buzzed with speculation about the stranger’s identity.

“Who is this charlatan?” growled Jabu of the Unicorn, plainly displeased. He leapt forward and delivered a direct kick—his famed Unicorn Gallop, a technique striking one hundred times per second, each blow carrying sonic force, a signature move of the Unicorn Bronze Saint.

The impact of Jabu’s flying kick could shatter meteorites. Yet the mysterious man extended a single finger and halted the attack, freezing Jabu mid-air as if gravity itself had vanished.

The arena fell utterly silent; even Hyoga and Shun were left dumbstruck in disbelief.

What kind of cosmos could accomplish this?

Lying on his stretcher, Seiya seemed to recognize something and spoke up, “You are…”

With a flick of his finger, the mysterious man sent a powerful counterforce through Jabu, hurling him backward. With a thunderous crash, Jabu was embedded in the massive stone base of the podium.

The stranger cast aside his cloak, revealing the unmistakable Silver Cloth of the Altar Saint.

“Alex of the Altar, the acting Pope who vanished two years ago!”

Seiya exclaimed, his expression growing complex.

“That legendary figure who became acting Pope…”

Both Hyoga and Shun regarded the enigmatic Feng Zhe with curiosity and astonishment.

“Feng Zhe…”

Lady Saori, well-versed in the hundred orphans dispatched across the globe by Mitsumasa Kido, knew all about this Feng Zhe, who had not only claimed a Saint Cloth but had attained the most mysterious of all— the Silver Cloth of the Altar, out of eighty-eight. Among the orphans, who typically only gained Bronze Cloths, such an achievement was the stuff of legend. Not to mention, as a disciple of the former Pope, acting Pope, and true master of Sanctuary, his string of titles bordered on the impossible.

Yet, this very Feng Zhe had accomplished them all. And judging by his bearing, he was exceedingly powerful.

“Exceptionally powerful…” Lady Saori assessed in her heart.

Feng Zhe stepped forward, glanced at Seiya on the stretcher, and extended a finger, murmuring softly, “Heal.”

Before their eyes, Seiya’s wounds began to close at a pace visible to all. In no time, Seiya stood up from the stretcher, tested his fists, and exclaimed joyfully, “Thank you, Feng Zhe!”

Feng Zhe smiled and turned to Shiryu, saying, “Mortal combat among Saints is forbidden; surely Master Dohko taught you as much?”

“Yes, but this time I was following orders,” Shiryu replied.

Unlike the others, Shiryu had come at Master Dohko’s command.

Feng Zhe acknowledged this with a quiet “Oh.” Seiya then bounded over, brimming with excitement. “Feng Zhe, look! I have a Cloth too—the Pegasus Cloth!”

Feng Zhe congratulated him, then asked, “Who gave you this Cloth?”

“The new Pope held a selection for the Pegasus Cloth, and I was the final victor!”

“The new Pope?!”

Feng Zhe was momentarily taken aback, then realized that Sanctuary could not be without a Pope, and selecting one would naturally fall to the Gold Saints.

“It’s someone named Arved. He succeeded the Papacy shortly after your disappearance,” Seiya explained.

Hearing this, Feng Zhe fell into deep thought. Was there ever a Saint named Arved in the original account?

As he pondered, a sudden realization struck him.

“Damn, it’s the Dark Altar Saint, Arved!”

Feng Zhe’s entire body trembled—not in fear, but in fury. This Dark Altar Arved was the chief disciple of White Rite, senior to Manigold, and a master of Corpse Gas, possessing the strength of a Gold Saint. His extreme and greedy nature led to his expulsion by White Rite, after which he gathered the Dark Saints of Death Queen Island, forming a malignant force in the world. In the end, Manigold himself cast him into the Abyss—a villain of the highest order.

The only ones who could have brought him into Feng Zhe’s timeline were Yoma or perhaps that transcendent being.

Wait—could someone else be manipulating the Saint War of 1,743 years ago? Feng Zhe vividly recalled that his journey to the previous Holy War began at Cancer Palace. With all he knew of the Sacred Flame, even wielding both internal and external Sacred Flames, he doubted he could traverse timelines. Even the Altar Space was merely a mirror node, not a true timeline.

“A conspiracy!”

“This is absolutely a conspiracy!” Feng Zhe could feel an invisible hand orchestrating events from the shadows.

“Lord Alex, the lady requests your presence!”

Saori’s butler, Tatsumi Tokumaru, approached Feng Zhe with utmost respect.

Feng Zhe looked toward Lady Saori at the distant podium, inclined his head to her, and followed the butler away.

As Feng Zhe departed, the world’s major media outlets immediately broadcast the news to every corner of the globe.

…

Sanctuary.

“Your Holiness, something terrible has happened!”

Chief Strategist Burton knelt on the ground, holding the latest newspaper.

Pope Arved, his face masked, glanced at the paper with utter disdain and crumpled it to pieces.

“Just another Saint’s Cloth lost to a defeated dog—what’s so alarming?”

Arved was unmoved, but Chief Strategist Burton pressed on, “That man possesses Silver-level strength and once fought Lord Aiolia to a standstill!”

“So what? Handle it yourself. Don’t bother me!” Arved snapped, then strode off to the Papal Palace to indulge in bathing and wine.

Burton’s expression twisted with malice. “Alex, just you wait!”