Chapter 73 - 73

Chapter 195: Trissy Cheek Is Actually Already in My Shape

"Good."

Talim saw that Klein Moretti had accepted the task and heaved a sigh of relief. He spoke solemnly to the Klein Moretti before him, "Detective Sherlock Moriarty, this matter is of great importance. Today—hmm, I will report your reply to Prince Edessak and contact you before tonight."

Klein Moretti was naturally happy with this. He still needed time to report to Captain Dunn Smith and then perform divination on what he was about to do, in order to determine the level of danger involved. "No problem."

Walking out of the Khoy Club, Klein Moretti boarded a public carriage and suddenly heard a sharp child's voice from outside: "Extra! Extra!"

"Human trafficker Capin killed, trade records made public, Aurora Order announces responsibility—"

Klein Moretti bought a newspaper and discovered that the logo at the top of the paper belonged to the Backlund Daily.

Not a report from Nimrod's company? Using this kind of description, it looks very biased—Klein Moretti raised an eyebrow and flipped through the specific content of the newspaper.

"Not bad. You earned your wages."

Nimrod put down the newspaper in his hand, praised them casually, and leaned leisurely against the Black Iron Throne.

He was not disguised at this moment, but was sitting on the throne using the appearance of Hugues Artois, a refined scoundrel. His original body was still in the safe house of the Fried Company, while this clone was the main aid for his current actions.

As for the various reports in the newspapers—most of the large and small newspaper offices in Backlund had the support of Dionysus, one of Nimrod's alter egos, either through public investment or private bribery.

As for why those official newspapers also used a similar method to report on the Capin affair?

In the Kingdom of Loen, the churches and the royal family did not stand on the same front, and the stance between the churches and the True Gods they worshipped were not necessarily identical—the gods acquiesced to George III becoming a god, but it was merely an acquiescence.

If the churches under them discovered that the royal family was disrupting social stability and conducting evil sacrifices, then the churches would likewise bite a piece of flesh off the royal family.

Suddenly, Nimrod raised his right hand, and the letter paper placed on the side fell into his hand.

This was the letter Klein Moretti sent him.

He narrowed his eyes and said with a smile, "Ince Zangwill has really started to arrange things for Klein Moretti?"

"He wants to use Klein Moretti's identity as a Red Glove of the Church of the Night to put pressure on the Demoness Sect. It seems the Demoness Sect has backed down from the matter of besieging Anthony Stevenson because of recent events."

"Unfortunately, the Demoness Sect can back down, but Ince Zangwill cannot. If he cannot obtain the Sequence 3 potion, the only outcome is being besieged here by the Church of the Night—"

"But why does it feel so familiar?"

Nimrod's voice gradually lowered, and in the end, a thousand words only brewed into one name in his heart: "Adam?"

At a time like this, he absolutely dared not speak this name aloud; thinking about it in his heart was fine—if his Sequence was sufficient to support him thinking about those existences with the characteristic of 'to be spoken of is to be known', then if he let it slip and was perceived, the fun would be huge.

Without the support of Beyonder characteristics and Authority, Sequence was ultimately just duckweed without roots.

"Ince Zangwill cannot push the Great Smog of Backlund as smoothly as originally intended. Regardless of whether Adam is the pusher behind the scenes, he must now consider how to proceed—"

Characters flickered in Nimrod's eyes. The ability to "Decode" pushed him to analyze exactly who was making moves on this chessboard named "Backlund" at this moment.

First, the first group is the royal family, the Demoness Sect, and Ince Zangwill.

The royal family needs the Demoness Sect to cover up their actions, causing the two major churches to lose control over the number of missing people in Backlund, and by the way, clear out the East Borough, making the entire East Borough more "vibrant".

For this, the royal family is prepared to pay with a "Conqueror" characteristic—and this is precisely the first goal of the Demoness Sect, and even of the Primordial Demoness Cheek.

And the Demoness Sect's second goal is to prepare a Divine Descent vessel named "Trissy Cheek" for the Primordial Demoness.

From Nimrod's understanding of the Primordial Demoness, although Cheek likely arranged this casually, for this crazy woman who wants to become the "Original Creator in the mirror," success would be best, but if not, she could set off a super firework in Backlund, and by the way, kill George III to reduce the number of gods who could stop her in the future.

And Ince Zangwill—this guy's goal is very obvious and very pure. The fact that he could survive after being gutted by him with the "life-hunting blade" was purely because a demigod has a tough life, but even so, after advancing to a demigod, he has been hovering on the edge of losing control.

His current actions are mainly "008 connects to the brain, Adam does the thinking".

To survive, Ince Zangwill can only pin his hopes on the high-Sequence powerhouses of the Demoness Sect assisting him in besieging "Anthony Stevenson." This is an extension of the transaction between the royal family and the Demoness Sect, and also a backup plan prepared by the Demoness Sect to secretly transport the "Conqueror" characteristic.

And the second group of "chess players" is full of experts: Evernight Goddess Amanises, True Creator, Angel of Imagination Adam.

Tsk, all acquaintances.

The Evernight Goddess naturally needs no introduction. After discovering that the "Lord of the Mysteries" had mysteriously awakened and likely exploded into a pile of cockroaches, she began to cultivate Klein Moretti, a "Nighthawk" who has more humanity than Amon and naturally identifies with her.

For this, the Evernight Goddess is bound to make up for the incident where she released "0-08" and allowed Ince Zangwill to nearly kill Klein Moretti. Therefore, with the help of the Evernight Goddess, the high-Sequence Nighthawks in Backlund are all paying attention to Ince Zangwill, and the members of the Tingen Squad have also received opportunities for promotion.

The former is to deal with the potential backup plans of the Demoness Sect, while the latter is to deal with the incoming Ince Zangwill in the absence of all high-Sequence powerhouses.

If this move by the Evernight Goddess lands, Klein Moretti will have three "anchors" to stabilize his humanity: "Dunn Smith," "Daly Simone," and "Leonard Mitchell."

This is both an investment in Klein Moretti and a strategic deterrent against Nimrod.

Adam needs no introduction. Still competing with the True Creator for dominance, His most important goal now is to seize "0-08" in Backlund with the help of the Divine Descent prepared by the "True Creator," and later return to the throne of God through the George III affair.

And the arrangements made by the "True Creator" were quite obscure; in a sense, one could even say it was a joint plan with Nimrod.

He is not lacking characteristics like Adam; what He needs is simply to descend from the Forsaken Land of the Gods and complete a "Divine Descent."

With Nimrod's help, as long as He descends, He can truly possess a body unaffected by the "God Almighty." Even if He can only recover to the level of an angel and cannot directly return to the throne of God, it is still much, much better than the previous situation.

At that time, the True Creator will part the seas and walk into the Southern Continent, using the Southern Continent as a cornerstone to rebuild His Kingdom of God on Earth.

After all, compared to gods like the "Lord of Storms," "Eternal Blazing Sun," "God of knowledge and Wisdom," etc., who can descend at any time, the "True Creator," who once ruled the Northern Continent with the "Black Emperor" Solomon, going to the Southern Continent is practically equivalent to bullying newbies.

Even if the "Mother Tree of Desire" and "Mother Goddess of Depravity" have widespread beliefs in the Southern Continent, they ultimately have no way to descend.

Nimrod calculated carefully. By that time, the only one who could trade blows with the "True Creator" would be the "Abomination" Suah—

Haha.

After Nimrod finished calculating the "chess players" in Backlund, he quite naturally shifted his thoughts to another problem:

He needed to verify his own stance and attitude in the eyes of several gods.

For the "Evernight Goddess," Nimrod displayed a strange kind of "humanity," and she would not easily kill Nimrod before he showed his evil, terrifying side.

After all, on the path of the "Lord of the Mysteries," there are still powerful opponents like "Amon," "Mr. Door," "Zaratul," etc., and Nimrod counts as a kind of fallback.

For "Adam," he is a hidden existence supporting the "True Creator," an ancient one highly suspected to be the "Celestial Worthy." Although there is the point of contention of Amon between them, the enemy of "God Almighty" is a friend, and coupled with Adam's LYB style, at least in the current Backlund, he will not scheme against him.

That's a matter for later.

And the "True Creator" is currently his most stable ally, with an unbreakable alliance. He can maintain his self under the erosion of the will of God Almighty entirely thanks to the cleansing of Sefirah Castle, while he is the foundation for the True Creator to influence the Aurora Order.

Of course, if his stealing of the "Monster" and "Fate" Pathways is discovered, then the True Creator must prepare early to prevent this will, highly suspected to be the "Lord of the Mysteries," from "losing control" again.

"There is no fatal problem. Now both of my bodies can count as the original body—this counts as an extra life. Since that's the case, I can indeed provide some help for Klein Moretti's investigation."

"Since it is Ince Zangwill's plan to use a borrowed knife to kill Klein Moretti, what he needs is not for others to help him investigate, but to eliminate the possibility of encountering other dangers."

"What other schemes involving high Sequences are in Backlund recently? The master of that Demon Dog, the member of the Belia family arranged by Adam to assassinate Duke Nigen?"

"Other dangers might also be on Trissy Cheek. The curse of a 'Witch' is intangible. Perhaps Ince Zangwill, in order to force the Demoness Sect to submit, will also guide Trissy Cheek to accidentally kill Klein Moretti, drawing the attention of the Church—which would be killing two birds with one stone."

"Thinking about it this way, the arrangements made earlier can just be used. Just in case, I should go there personally."

Thinking of this, Nimrod suddenly chuckled and said with a hint of malice: "Sorry, Prince Edessak, Trissy Cheek's body is already in my shape."

Referring to the boon of the gray fog that transformed Trissy Cheek.

After speaking, he adjusted his sitting posture and declared in a majestic tone: "Trissy Cheek."

Gray fog rose, and a spirit body slowly took shape in the hall.

"Prince Edessak, is this the reason you chose me?"

In the lush green horse racing field, Klein Moretti spoke to the Prince Edessak before him. The attendant beside Prince Edessak properly put away a piece of paper emitting golden light, following closely by Prince Edessak's side.

"Yes, Great Detective Moriarty." Prince Edessak Augustus laughed softly: "As a prince, how much power you have is how much lack of freedom you have. Many things cannot be done by the people around me; too many eyes are watching me."

"I will help you hide your secret. The Church will not know that you are a wild Beyonder, especially now that the Church of Storms is investigating."

"Besides this, I will also give you enough help, such as the identity of a military Beyonder informant, for example, enough money. Of course, the help I give you cannot be too obvious; that would attract the attention of the Punishers."

Klein Moretti nodded gently, and he and Prince Edessak continued walking forward as if strolling. When they reached a place far from the other servants, Klein Moretti asked "seemingly" curiously: "Prince Edessak, aren't you worried that I am a 'Punisher' or a 'Nighthawk'?"

"Punisher? You?"

Prince Edessak shook his head with a slight amusement: "You cannot be a Punisher. I carefully had people investigate your background—and if you were a Nighthawk, I would actually feel more at ease."

"Why?" Klein Moretti was actually curious this time.

"Because you signed the contract I provided you. The only thing I worry about is my father, brothers, and the Church causing Trissy Cheek to suffer disaster because of this matter." Prince Edessak slowed his pace: "Although my faith is also the Storm, it is precisely because of this that I am clearer about what kind of outcome this matter will cause for Trissy Cheek."

"You seem to worship the Evernight Goddess? Heh, if it were a Nighthawk who hadn't signed a notarized contract with me, I would be worried about whether he would arrest Trissy Cheek, but you have already signed the contract with me."

This contract has Beyonder effects!

"Is that so—"

Klein Moretti looked as if he had suddenly realized something, nodded gently, and did not speak again.

Prince Edessak was also happy with this, but just as he wanted to add some details, he suddenly saw Klein Moretti slowly take out a pair of bright Red Gloves from his pocket and put them on his hands: "Prince Edessak, please have your attendants move away from here—I have some things I need to explain to you alone."

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#196Chapter 196 These are all tasks assigned to me by my master.

Chapter 196: This is All a Task Assigned to Me by the Lord

Seeing Detective Sherlock Moriarty put on those iconic bright Red Gloves, Prince Edessak felt dazed.

"Are you really a 'Nighthawk'?"

However, despite his mixed emotions, Prince Edessak quickly adjusted his mindset. He gave his servant behind him a look, forcibly controlling his expression to return to normal: "May I ask what Detective Sherlock Moriarty wishes to say to me? As a 'Red Gloves', you should know that members of the royal family have always believed in the Lord of Storms, and royal matters are generally handled by the Church of Storms."

"Prince Edessak, please don't say that. We have signed a contract."

Klein chuckled. "Besides, you should know the identity of the princess you have chosen—the Church of the Night has personally issued a warrant for her, and we have the right to enforce the law against her."

Hearing Klein's words, Prince Edessak's expression darkened slightly. After a long while, Prince Edessak spoke to Klein again: "However, you shouldn't have come just to tell me this, right?"

If he really wanted to capture Trissy Cheek, this Red Gloves wouldn't have gone to such lengths to appear as a detective around people he might know, and then used this method to take on his own mission.

Is this just a coincidence?

Very clever—Klein chuckled inwardly and said to Prince Edessak, "Of course."

"Your Highness, before refuting me, please think carefully about why you fell in love with Triss so crazily and recklessly?"

"I believe you have met many outstanding women, but why are you so obsessed with pursuing Triss, whom you have only met once, and have forgotten the objects you once pursued and liked?"

Prince Edessak was stunned and, for a moment, couldn't answer Klein's words. He took a deep breath and asked Klein suspiciously: "Detective Sherlock Moriarty, what do you mean by this?"

I've given him such a reminder, and he still can't see that he has been influenced? That's true; when I was being arranged, I couldn't see that I was being arranged either—

Klein pondered for a moment, thinking about whether his current actions were part of Ince Zangwill's script, and reached a general conclusion: "Nimrod and I can be unaffected by Ince Zangwill's script to a certain extent—"

"Strictly speaking, I will be guided by the script, but the writing aimed at me personally will not take effect;

Nimrod is more special; he doesn't seem to appear in Ince Zangwill's script, just like—"

"Just like my state when I was Above the Gray Fog!"

"This should be the different focus for the two of us. I can connect to the gray fog, but Nimrod cannot; Nimrod's status is higher, while I am not as good as him. Looking at it this way, I was indeed a bit 'reckless' in coming here today."

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"This is very likely. No, I should directly regard this as Ince Zangwill's deliberate guidance!"

"From Tingen City to now, Ince Zangwill should already know the special nature of me being unaffected. If that's the case, he should use other ways to induce me to come over."

"But why did he send me to the side of the foundation of the cooperation between the royal family and the Demoness Sect? Is his cooperation with the Demoness Sect broken, or is he preparing to kill me with the help of the Demoness Sect?"

"I might be in danger later!"

Although Klein thought of these things, his expression remained unchanged on the surface. He said to Prince Edessak calmly: "I just came to remind Prince Edessak that Triss's identity might have some problems—you should have noticed it, otherwise you wouldn't have wanted to find someone to investigate things related to her."

"She is a Demoness and a member of the Demoness Sect. After all, you are among the most powerful members of the Kingdom of Loen—surely the Demoness Sect definitely didn't do this just to send you a princess."

As Klein spoke, a strange illusion suddenly emerged from his heart:

He saw himself cough, and then in a very short time, his whole body festered and died.

This is the danger premonition of a 'Clown'!

He seemed to see the fate of himself possibly suffering from a serious illness and dying suddenly at any time!

A high-Sequence powerhouse of the Demoness Sect? Klein was shocked, tightened his grip on the Azik Aegis copper whistle he carried in his pocket, and said to Prince Edessak with an unchanging expression: "I should leave too, Prince Edessak."

"You know, I am just an ordinary detective now. I cannot stay here for too long; it will arouse suspicion from others."

"Frankly speaking, if we hadn't signed a confidentiality contract, I might not have even revealed my true identity to you."

The corners of Klein's mouth curled up. Under Prince Edessak's slightly gloomy face, he was sent out of the manor. While getting into the carriage, Klein's heart suddenly jumped to his throat.

If his danger premonition just now was not wrong, then it was very likely that a high-Sequence Beyonder of the Demoness Sect had set their sights on him the moment he revealed his identity.

Fortunately, there was only himself in the entire carriage, and the royal carriage was large enough—Klein's heart tightened. He quickly walked four steps in reverse to head Above the Gray Fog to take off 'creeping hunger' and the iron-black 'Disciplinary Knight' gloves, and put them on his hands, one on the left and one on the right.

The Azik Aegis copper whistle in his pocket was also ready. Klein had already made up his mind that as soon as he left the carriage, he would cross the city at the fastest speed and go to the Serenity Church to seek help from the deacon and the archbishop!

Prince Edessak's expression was gloomy. He walked through the corridor in his manor and slowly knocked on the wooden door with his fingers.

With a "creak," Prince Edessak pushed the wooden door open, his eyes sweeping over the scene in the room.

In this room, a lady with a round face and exquisite features sat on the bed, looking at Prince Edessak with calm eyes.

She wore a sapphire ring on her finger and a black dress.

"——Triss."

Prince Edessak let out a breath and said to the lady in front of him in a deep voice: "I want to talk to you."

"Talk about what?" Triss raised her head and looked at Prince Edessak, her eyes showing a bit of banter: "Talk about how you wanted to force me during this time, and forcibly imprison me here?"

"I! I never thought about that."

Prince Edessak found it difficult to control his emotions just seeing Triss. "When I brought you here, you never expressed any opposition—but why are you trying to escape again and again now?"

"Why don't you think about my identity? Prince Edessak, I don't believe you haven't investigated my identity." Triss laughed in a low voice: "You should know by now, right? I am a hostage arranged by the Demoness Sect by your side. If the person who arranged for me to come here hadn't moved their gaze away from us, we wouldn't even be able to talk about this matter now."

"This is indeed the life I wanted—"

Speaking of this, Triss stood up, looked at the beautiful manor with a pastoral landscape in the distance, looked at the maids busy outside the house, and said to Prince Edessak as if with emotion and resentment: "It's just a pity, I have never felt happy being a Demoness."

"Ha, do you think it's crazy that I suddenly said these things to you? Do you think my words are baffling?"

"Because you don't know, I used to be a man, and my real name was Triss."

"You have seen my wanted poster, didn't you have any associations, didn't you see my other photo?"

"Ah, aren't you always curious about why I want to run away? Because I am a hostage of the cooperation between the royal family and the Demoness Sect, and you are the object that can be abandoned—if the Lord hadn't told me the real reason, I would still be kept in the dark."

"——The Lord?"

"Isn't your faith the Primordial Demoness?"

After hearing Triss's words, Prince Edessak was struck by lightning and froze there immediately, as if he had suddenly understood something in these few seconds, and recalled his behavior over this period.

After a long time, in front of the wall where the faint gray fog was flowing quietly, Prince Edessak finally recovered and muttered to Triss: "But, but why are you telling me these things now?"

The corners of Triss's mouth curled up slightly, and her tone carried strong malice: "Prince Edessak, I've made it so clear, has your IQ disappeared along with your lower body's impulses?"

"Because this is all a task assigned to me by the Lord."

"The Lord asked me to tell you these things so that you can have the possibility of not being killed by your own father and surviving in the future!"

"Hehe, I don't resent you, because I know we are just two poor people—" Triss's voice became lower. In her mind, the scene that "the Lord" showed her a few days ago emerged:

George III attempting to become a god.

Prince Edessak going to his death alone.

Herself dying for Prince Edessak.

Simply—made Triss feel a chill and disgust.

She wanted to control her own life, wanted to stop mixing in bloody killings, and become a rich person living a prosperous life.

This was the simplest wish of an 'Assassin' who grew up in the Theosophy Order, apart from improving her Beyonder powers.

And the price of improving Beyonder powers—to be honest, Triss had been suffering from this price for the past few months.

So after that mysterious Great Being showed her this vision of the future, she was immediately tempted—this was not only her chance to escape from here, but also her opportunity to break away from the Demoness Sect!

As for why that Great Being who called himself the 'Angel of Time' would do this, Triss didn't care.

Prince Edessak listened to Triss's words in silence. Soon, he turned his head sharply and checked his surroundings quickly to see if there were eavesdroppers.

Triss sneered: "I have already arranged everything here, my 'dear' Prince."

"If it weren't for the Lord's gift, how would I dare to risk exposing myself under the noses of those demigods of the Demoness Sect to tell you this?"

"You are not that kind of fool, Prince Edessak. It was your father who betrayed you first and abandoned you. Don't tell me you are the kind of guy who is willing to give up your life for your father; then I would really have misjudged you."

Prince Edessak was certainly not that kind of person—if he were really that kind of person, he wouldn't have forced Triss to stay by his side after learning about her situation.

His only response was: "I hope to know the honorable name of the Lord you believe in."

"My Lord calls himself the 'Angel of Time', He is the light when the end comes, He is the Ancient One who does not belong to this world, He calls himself—" Listening to Prince Edessak's words, Triss smiled with satisfaction, deliberately distinguishing between "He" and "He"—this was the Lord's requirement, and Triss strictly followed this requirement: "[Celestial Worthy of Heaven and Earth for Blessings]."

"FU, SHEN, XUAN—" Prince Edessak recited these six syllables with some difficulty, unable to understand the meaning for a moment: "Is this some kind of title unique to Him, or some kind of language? It sounds like one of the possible pronunciations of 'Roselle's language' that some scholars have researched."

"Perhaps." Triss didn't understand the obscure knowledge that Prince Edessak knew. Anyway, she didn't care much about Roselle.

She raised her head and glanced obscurely at the faint gray fog that she had summoned around her earlier, cleared her throat, and prepared to tell Prince Edessak what he needed to do next, completely unaware of the gray figure standing in the corner of the room, almost merging with the surrounding gray fog.

"Prince Edessak—" There was a hint of thought in Nimrod's eyes as he cast his gaze on the round-faced prince.

A prince abandoned by his own father, a cast-off involved in an evil god sect.

If George III successfully became a god, even if Prince Edessak didn't die, the best he could hope for in the rest of his life would be to live a stable life in a remote place—but what if George III failed to become a god?

George III was cruel and incompetent, harming civilians; the ill-fated prince would destroy his relatives for the sake of righteousness, assisting the Church in reclaiming the country that belonged to him.

How pleasing to the ear.

Even if this probability was small, it was the reason for Nimrod to invest in the Prince Edessak before him.

The most critical thing was that even if it was exposed, it didn't matter. After all, the one investing in Prince Edessak was that ancient 'Angel of Time', the light when the end comes—

Amon was probably still playing mind games with the "mysterious will that killed a large number of his avatars", the "possible controller of Sefirah Castle", and the "Pallez who received the support of a True God".

Nimrod shook his head slightly, dispelling the state of responding to Triss through Sefirah Castle and descending with his spirit body, and opened his eyes again.

What caught his eyes was the church in front of the 'Yuge Atuva' avatar.

The church of the 'Earth Mother'!

Chapter 197: The Arrangers

The Church of Earth Mother remained as silent and solemn as ever; or rather, every church of the orthodox deities in this world possessed a soul-stirring sense of holiness and tranquility.

Father Utravsky sat before the sacred emblem of the church, praying quietly. Somewhat eye-catching, however, was a young man standing by the statue, wearing clothes that didn't quite fit him—this young man had black hair and red eyes. The characteristic red eyes had already exposed the young man's race: Sanguine.

The Sanguine were a human-like species of Beyonder born with the "Vampire" Beyonder Sequence, followers of the ancient deity, the "Ancestor of the Sanguine," Lilith. Lilith was also the current "Earth Mother."

When he saw this strange guest walking into the church, a glimmer of hope and joy flashed through Emelyn White's heart, thinking he might be saved. However, that luck vanished instantly when he saw Nimrod start chatting with Father Utravsky.

"When will I ever be able to get out of here—this old man has no intention of letting me go!" Just as Emelyn was impatiently hitting the ground with his broom for the eleventh time, Nimrod's voice drifted over from a little further away: "What's the deal with this Sanguine?"

Finally, someone called me Sanguine! A spark of joy suddenly rose in Emelyn's heart. He knew that most people he had encountered who didn't understand the internal affairs of the Sanguine usually called him a "Vampire," which was a derogatory term for him.

For a moment, Emelyn, who was sweeping the floor, straightened his back a little more.

"He is a Vampire who accidentally broke in here earlier," Father Utravsky said in a calm tone. "When he fell into a state of craving blood, to prevent him from harming innocent people, I placed a suggestion on him that he cannot leave this place."

"I have clearly recovered now!" Hearing Father Utravsky's words, Emelyn White immediately shouted in dissatisfaction, "It's you, old man, who hasn't lifted my psychological suggestion and is trapping me here!"

"Your psychological suggestion has affected my faith, making me gradually become a Believer of the Mot—of Earth Mother!"

After hearing Emelyn's words, the gazes of both Father Utravsky and Nimrod flickered subtly. Just as Emelyn felt something was strange, Nimrod's voice came softly: "How long has this symptom lasted?"

Father Utravsky was silent for a long moment before speaking slowly, "About a week and a half ago."

What does that mean? Emelyn's gaze shifted back and forth between the two, and finally, he asked hesitantly, "What are you talking about?"

"Forgive me for not being able to use Loen social etiquette to tell you the truth tactfully," Nimrod sighed slightly, a hint of pity appearing in his eyes. "Father Utravsky said that the psychological suggestion he left you was only meant to keep you in the church for this period, hoping you could take this opportunity to fully appreciate the value of life and the joy of the harvest."

"Even if you leave the church, you will only return after a while; there was no force compelling you to change your faith."

Emelyn stood there, as if he had turned into a stone sculpture about to crack.

"I'm really leaving—" Emelyn's voice came from outside the Church of Earth Mother, while Father Utravsky sat down before the sacred emblem once again.

Nimrod, wearing the appearance of Hugues Artois, stepped forward slightly and walked to Father Utravsky's side, speaking softly: "Father Utravsky, aren't you going to ask about my identity? I don't look like a Loenese."

Father Utravsky sat where he was, speaking in a calm and benevolent voice, "All of this is the arrangement of Mother."

The light in Nimrod's eyes flickered slightly. He spoke softly, asking Father Utravsky, "Which Mother?"

"—I don't understand what you mean." Father Utravsky hesitated for a moment, but ultimately followed his inner thoughts and began to explain the teachings of Earth Mother to Nimrod: "The Church of Earth Mother never rejects anyone, whether they are equally devout Believers or heretics. All of this is the arrangement or test of Mother."

Father Utravsky shook his head gently: "Besides, you didn't intentionally avoid it just now; instead, you chatted with me in the church about Mother. I can see that you yourself do not harbor any malice."

"You seem to know Emelyn White. I originally thought you had been entrusted by Emelyn White's family to bring him back—but I didn't expect that you were not the person who accepted the commission."

Speaking of this, Father Utravsky changed direction, still using a benevolent tone: "But Emelyn White has also left the church of Mother because of this. This is the arrangement of fate, the arrangement of Mother. Come to think of it, I still don't know how to address you."

"Just call me Hugues Artois." Nimrod smiled and said to Father Utravsky, while the spirit body of "Hugues Artois" inside him seemed to weaken imperceptibly: "I hope to borrow a room in the Church of Earth Mother to spend these two nights under the protection of Earth Mother."

"However, I do know Emelyn. In the future, I hope to reach some—cooperation with Mr. Emelyn White. This might also require the support of your church."

Nimrod's gaze moved upward, looking at the sacred emblem at the top of the church. Father Utravsky, however, didn't react immediately. He said with some confusion: "But Emelyn White has only just realized the value of life; he has not joined the church of Mother."

"Although I also believe he will be a devout Believer of Mother, life has its own choices. I cannot make decisions for Emelyn White."

"I know." Nimrod smiled and moved his gaze away from the sacred emblem of Earth Mother: "Therefore, I am just stating my hope before Mother. Perhaps one day this hope will blossom and bear fruit. If such a day really comes, I believe Emelyn will make that decision himself."

Earth Mother would naturally send it to her own Vampire. Just like how Klein put on a "favored of the Fool" vest for himself, Nimrod's operation was similar, putting a "favored of the mystery" vest on one of his avatars.

Of course, Beyonders in the mystery domain have a classic tradition of wearing vest upon vest.

The gaze of a deity will not always fall upon the real world. Nimrod had only given Bishop Utravsky, who believed in Earth Mother, some suggestions, intending to achieve a delayed notification effect through the bishop's day-to-day prayers and mentions.

Of course, it wouldn't matter if Earth Mother Lilith found out in advance—isn't that where the use of another "favored of Sefirah Castle," Trissy Cheek, comes in?

The parasitism of a "Parasite" is very difficult to detect. Even a church like the Church of the Night, which has many Beyonders in Backlund, requires a very cumbersome process to discover a "Parasite" inside a Beyonder. If it weren't so, "Parasitism" wouldn't be qualified to be a core ability at the demigod level.

And this "Worm of Time" that he split off with the help of Sefirah Castle carried the same level as the main body; it was impossible for anyone below an Outer Deity to discover the existence of this "Worm of Time."

When out and about, one gives oneself an identity. Such an identity helps someone possessing an Outer Deity Pathway to walk openly in Backlund—and Nimrod had just accomplished this statement through realistic means.

As for why Nimrod wanted to do this, it was because he was preparing to act as the oriole, seizing the "blasphemy card"!

Recently, the Celestial Worthy in Sefirah Castle had not been idle, but was analyzing the corruption regarding the Mother Goddess of Depravity within the "blasphemy card."

It had to be guarded against. For the Celestial Worthy, this Mother Goddess of Depravity, whose social circle was a mess—being a spouse, sister, niece, Mother, and even half of oneself—would truly join forces with his old rival, the "Primordial God Almighty."

Moreover—for the Celestial Worthy reviving within Nimrod, in fact, the other self outside was also an object that needed to be eliminated.

[Sigh, I knew the world was difficult, but I never thought that I would be an enemy to the whole world.] The Celestial Worthy sighed in Nimrod's ear, sounding somewhat sorrowful.

Nimrod glanced at the projection of the Celestial Worthy who had shamelessly said this, and withdrew his gaze.

Without the protection of the main body's level, he had to find a church to provide him with shelter. After thinking it over, only the Church of Earth Mother here was the most inclusive.

Nimrod stood up, and Father Utravsky followed him toward the corridor to the side. In the deep, quiet corridor that emitted a plant-like fragrance, Father Utravsky suddenly asked: "Did you come here specifically for something?"

"Is this also a revelation given to you by Mother?" Nimrod glanced at Father Utravsky and asked him.

Father Utravsky just nodded gently and continued walking forward with his figure, which was much taller than an ordinary person's.

Seeing that Father Utravsky had no intention of answering, Nimrod spoke slowly: "I need to kill a person, no, a Devil."

"A Devil?" Utravsky asked with confusion.

"A true Devil walking on the earth, a Sequence 5 'Desire Apostle'."

Father Utravsky's figure swayed under the light. The two walked through the corridor and arrived in front of a simple, wooden door.

"This room has incense and the sacred emblem of Mother." Father Utravsky didn't seem troubled by Nimrod's words, just saying after helping Nimrod open the door: "Eliminating a Devil who has committed many sins and sending them back to reincarnation is both a form of mercy and a form of redemption—whether for themselves or for those who might be harmed by the Devil."

Nimrod didn't answer, just walked into the room and closed the door.

He didn't lock it—doing such a thing in the Church of Earth Mother was simply too superfluous. Nimrod lay on the bed and quickly entered a deep dream.

He opened his eyes.

He, with the appearance of Hugues Artois, stood in a field of grain and grass. A plump figure seemed to be leaning against a scarecrow by the field, casting a gaze containing scrutiny toward Nimrod from afar.

The spirit body was complete, with two different characteristics inside. The power of the Outer Deity was tightly bound within this body by the gray fog, and a pair of narrow, long eyes that could only be seen as bright yellow and mysterious black were hidden behind the figure, seemingly looking at him along with this gaze.

This was the gaze belonging to the Celestial Worthy of Heaven and Earth for Blessings, the "Lord of the Mysteries."

—This is a favored of the mystery, not an avatar of the mystery.

Lilith quickly reached a conclusion. She closed her eyes again. It seemed that the fatigue of enduring the erosion of the Mother Goddess of Depravity day after day made it difficult for Her to descend Her attention to the real world. Only a voice fell into Nimrod's ears along with the wind of the wheat field: "Beware of the Mother" card—"

"Tell Him, I will give Him a revelation—"

When Nimrod again controlled this body and woke up from sleep, the sunlight outside the window had already risen. He tidied his clothes and walked out of the church.

—Thirty minutes remaining until Jason Beria assassinates Duke Nigen.

On the streets of Cherwood Borough, a pair of pale golden eyes scanned the street, erased any traces of his existence, and disappeared completely from Backlund.

Obtaining "0-08" and assassinating Duke Nigen were equally important matters to Adam. He was not stingy about bestowing the "Abyss" card upon the Devil who completed the assassination. As long as he could successfully escape and return to the safe house he had prepared, he would find the "Abyss" card placed on the table at home.

Adam sighed softly, his figure dissipated. Even if the "Lord of Storms" arrived in person, he would not be able to find any traces of this son of the creator having existed.

"Are you ready?" Soest said solemnly to the team members beside him, who were wearing Red Gloves and black woolen coats.

As the captain of the "Red Gloves," Soest knew about the newly promoted Red Gloves squad and their true captain, "Dunn Smith." The Demon Dog case that Dunn submitted was logically handed over to them.

During this time, they had been investigating the Devil who had committed the murder, Patrick Jason.

In this incident, the Nighthawks of the Church of the Night and the Machinery Hivemind of the Church of Steam had been searching together, and a certain deacon had been constantly sacrificing his own life in the process—social death is also death, after all.

And now, they had finally found the exact whereabouts of this cunning "Desire Apostle."

—After confirming that his team members were all prepared, Soest said in a deep voice: "Let's go!"

"I suspect he will make some big moves soon."

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#198Chapter 198 I'll only leave a little bit of the underworld so you'll know I'm playing the thief game.

Chapter 198: Only by retaining a bit of the netherworld can you tell I'm playing a Marauder.

"Change the armor wearer, continue the pursuit."

Following a violent shattering sound, Jason Beria compressed his shadow into a single point and slipped into the filthy, muddy sewer.

In the quiet garden, Soest gave orders to the other Nighthawks, his expression grave.

They had arrived a little late; now it seemed that Jason Beria's escape was likely a foregone conclusion.

The only thing that puzzled this Red Gloves captain, Soest, was:

Why had the Singer of God, Ace Snake, not arrived even after Duke Nigen was assassinated?

I succeeded?

Having been dismembered by that bizarre suit of metal armor, Jason Beria, now only a spirit body in a shadowed state, fled rapidly from the dark sewer, and after turning through another area, he completely shook off the Nighthawks in Backlund.

After confirming this, even Jason Beria, a Cold-blooded who had lost strong emotions under the influence of the potion, could not help but feel ecstatic.

One must know that the Belial family had gradually weakened, and after the Abyss was no longer suitable for Devils to survive, Devils at the demigod level and above had become increasingly rare, with only the old-school high-Sequence members of a few major families remaining.

Naturally, there was no such thing as relationships maintained by emotion between Devil families; what could be utilized were the interests they craved from each other.

Nowadays, the Beyonder Pathways for seeking promotion had been severed, and for these Devils who were constantly drowning in malice and hovering on the edge of losing control, being able to obtain the hope of becoming a demigod was their greatest desire!

Or rather, most Beyonders who had reached mid-Sequence found it difficult to abandon the instinct to consume Beyonder characteristics of the same or adjacent Pathways of a higher Sequence; only a few would suppress this instinct due to fear, which was the manifestation of the Extraordinary Aggregation Principle in every Beyonder.

Originally, Jason Beria could only endure and wait for the opportunity to obtain the potion formula for the demigod level, and higher levels only existed in his dreams.

It was precisely for this reason that when a member of the Twilight Hermit Order placed a blasphemy card before him as a reward, he chose to accept this mission without the slightest hesitation.

It was nothing more than never setting foot in the Kingdom of Loen again; as long as he knocked on the door of divinity, he could truly become a half-human, half-god powerhouse!

Thinking of this, Jason Beria rested slowly for a while, not leaving the underground, but adjusting his state and calming his tendency to lose control at any moment.

After a while, he raised his head and said in a low voice to his companion beside him: "I am ready."

"Good." His companion said calmly, seemingly a bit surprised by the severity of Jason Beria's injuries: "Your condition is very poor right now; let's leave Backlund first and go to the safe house you prepared earlier."

"Before that, you need to prepare a body for me." Jason Beria said unceremoniously: "Before I fully recover, it is impossible for me to tell you the location of the blasphemy card."

His companion seemed to snort coldly: "Rest assured, I have prepared all the corrupted souls and sinful lives you need to perform the ritual; we can hold the ritual at any time."

Jason Beria asked calmly: "At what location?"

"Rest assured." His companion again emitted a malicious smile: "I know what you are worried about; I will not make such a low-level mistake. The place I have prepared for you is on the sea—those pirates not protected by the kingdom are the most suitable materials."

"The sea—" Jason said in a low voice: "This will take quite some time; fortunately, I do not need to risk returning to Loen again."

"The place where you receive the reward is not in the Kingdom of Loen?" the companion asked suspiciously.

"Of course." Jason Beria said dismissively; naturally, he could not be tricked into revealing anything, so he said nothing.

Suddenly, Jason blinked, and his thin body, which seemed to be composed entirely of shadows, appeared to waver.

He scanned the surroundings with some vigilance, and only after confirming that he had shaken off that group of detestable Nighthawks did he quickly embark on the long journey alone once again.

Blood splattered all around; the ability of the Desire Apostle was displayed to the fullest on the pirate ship filled with darkness and filth, as everyone seemed to have been dismembered by their own desires. The blood-red Moon hung high in the sky, and the spirituality of tonight seemed exceptionally high.

Amidst the bone ritual filled with cruel beauty, Jason Beria moved his newly born body. He had used the bloody ritual to recreate a body for himself, restoring his state to its best.

After revealing a chilling smile, Jason Beria also began to calculate his next plans:

First, take a pirate ship to the nearest Feysac private port, and then use public transportation to travel to his safe house.

He firmly believed in the reward from the person who had given the commission, and every time he thought of the blasphemy card that might fall into his hands at any moment, a fervent emotion would rise in his heart.

It wouldn't take long before he had the chance to become a demigod!

"What do you think about us disguising ourselves as monks of Feynapotter?" Just then, Jason heard an annoying voice in his ear. He cast his gaze over with slight irritation and said casually: "No problem. Heh, your idea is really good; they would never think that a devout monk would be a Devil who assassinated a Duke of the Kingdom of Loen."

"I once heard the elders of the family discuss a secret history." The companion beside him said while carefully polishing the skull of a pirate nearby, looking as if he wanted to grind out a bone alms bowl during this time: "It is said that the Devil Monarch once received the favor of the Earth Mother and tried to put down his evil thoughts and attempt asceticism, which is why there are monks who believe in the Earth Mother."

"Even the craziest Devil wouldn't have such an absurd fantasy." Jason sneered: "Is this the stuff those old things said? Then they are indeed more like Devils than I am."

Jason looked at the companion who did not answer, but instead held the alms bowl polished from the half-skull with his palm, and gradually fell into deep thought.

The Demon Dog he had raised for so long had died—the assets had been transferred, but he also needed to redevelop his connections.

Perhaps this guy in front of me can provide me with some help?

Jason took the alms bowl handed to him by his companion, stood up, unfurled the sails on the empty ship, and waited silently for the ship to reach the private port.

A week later, Jason kept changing directions from the city where the private port he landed at was located, striving to completely clear himself of suspicion.

In a hotel that did not require identity verification, Jason opened the suitcase his companion had handed him, took out a well-preserved piece of human skin from the hidden compartment of the suitcase, and after putting it on, he finally revealed a smile and left the hotel through the window.

Taking advantage of the night, Jason Beria approached his safe house. The closer he got to the safe house, the more intense the desire in his heart became, but he still cautiously locked the door beside him and carefully checked the room for traces of anyone else having entered.

After confirming that his safe house had still not been visited by anyone, Jason Beria breathed a sigh of relief, walked impatiently toward the bookshelf, and opened the secret door.

Devils are cautious and crazy; he was even cautious enough to arrange a secret room in his safe house to receive the reward for this mission!

In the pitch-black room, a suitcase was placed upright on the desk. At this moment, even with the composure of a Cold-blooded, Jason Beria found it difficult to control the thoughts constantly popping up in his heart. He opened the suitcase, and rich blood-red colors and pitch-black text suddenly emerged from the suitcase:

In the very center of the suitcase, there was a playing card emitting a strange light, and a Roselle Gustav with two horns on his head and blood-red light in his eyes stood lifelike on the face of the card.

"Sequence 0: Abyss"!

Sequence 1 "Filthy Monarch", Sequence 2 "Bloody Archduke", Sequence 3 "Eat-Words"—Jason Beria's gaze stared fixedly at the information constantly emerging from this blasphemy card, and for a moment he actually felt as if he were in a dream.

But just at this moment, Jason Beria suddenly saw a hand grasp the "Abyss" card, and wisps of gray fog, as if they had life, spread along the edges of the "Abyss" card, causing this "Abyss" card to disappear before Jason's eyes.

It disappeared!

This "blasphemy card" had just disappeared into thin air in his dream.

Jason's pupils slowly dilated, and he looked with disbelief at the figure that had walked out from beside him.

Memories flooded in like a tide; the memories of "walking alone" that had originally stayed securely in Jason Beria's mind seemed to have undergone some changes.

In the sewer, in the carriage, on the pirate ship, in the port, on the train—

Beside him, there had always been a middle-aged man dressed neatly with an unchanging smile on his face following him; he had talked and lived with him, but he hadn't noticed it at all?

What kind of bizarre Beyonder ability is this?

"Demigod?"

Jason Beria immediately wanted to influence the emotions of this mysterious person in front of him to buy himself time to escape, but he did not perceive the slightest bit of strange emotion.

In the shell before him, there was only calmness, a deathly calmness.

How could a demigod-level powerhouse follow me silently like this?

After realizing this, Jason's emotions immediately fluctuated significantly. He hesitated not at all and charged toward the location of the secret door; in the process, he even wanted to turn into a "Devil"—but Jason was shocked to discover that he could not complete the transformation.

It was as if he had completely lost the ability to "transform into a Devil"!

"Please do not worry; I am not a demigod, just an ordinary Sequence 5."

Nimrod smiled and explained to Jason: "I had originally thought that when I followed you here, I would meet the one who hired you—but seeing it now, it is quite a good result; it seems that person does not care who the owner of a blasphemy card is."

"It seems my luck played a certain role; this is very good."

"You see, the protection of the Earth Mother is indeed very effective; before I stole your 'danger premonition', the protection of the Earth Mother never let you discover that I would pose a threat to you."

"Do you remember the story I told you about the 'Devil Monarch'? That story is half true."

Jason's eyes flickered, and he lunged backward, wanting to leave this place while the person in front of him was slacking off after obtaining the "blasphemy card"!

In his view, the person in front of him had bizarre methods and terrifying actions; he was a bona fide demigod!

If he wasn't a demigod, how could he, a Sequence 5 "Desire Apostle" who had completely digested the potion, have no ability to counter, and how could he have discovered no premonition of danger?

However, Nimrod did not stop Jason Beria's thoughts; he just smiled and said softly: "Bang."

The next moment, the body of Jason Beria, this Desire Apostle, suddenly burst into a puddle of invisible black mud, and only after a few seconds did he barely recover his senses, slowly reforming into a human shape.

Under the status provided by Sefirah Castle and the protection of the Earth Mother, the first thing stolen from Jason was his "danger premonition". After that, the abilities belonging to the Devil were stolen one by one by Nimrod and temporarily stored on his own body.

This could last for a week, and after using the stolen abilities, the person who was stolen from would still find it difficult to use these abilities that belonged to him for the rest of the week.

Nimrod walked forward step by step, and amidst Jason Beria's gaze filled with resistance and despair, he thrust his hand through his chest, and a mass of irregular, semi-liquid, semi-gaseous black mist fell into his hand.

Along this journey, "Theft" accompanied by "Illusion", "Luck Transference" stacked with "Thought Misdirection", having had his Beyonder abilities stolen, and Jason Beria, who was hanging many layers of "bad luck" and "confusion" buffs, if he could still put up resistance now, then Nimrod's efforts and sweat would be laughable.

Nimrod closed his eyes, feeling the sense of fragmentation of the Beyonder characteristic within his body, and a touch of surprise could not help but appear in his eyes.

In this week of active acting, the digestion of the "Dream Stealer" potion had been completely completed.

Nimrod did not summon a messenger to directly "Spirit World travel", but instead walked out calmly like an ordinary person, embarking on the journey back to the Kingdom of Loen.

Gray fog surged; when "Hugues Artois" opened his eyes again, a respectful voice came: "Mr. Artois, people from the Church of the Eternal Blazing Sun have come to visit you."

Chapter 199: circlet timeline · BOOM!

In the middle of "dream-crafting" for Jason Beria, it was time for the crossing, so Nimrod took the time to return to the "circlet timeline."

Facts proved that those Outer Deity Believers were quite capable, using various means to eliminate both their competitors and their own allies, causing those few fools with decaying faith to give up on the idea of causing trouble—at least, they didn't have any thoughts of causing trouble while he was elected as a councilor.

The complete digestion of "Dream Stealer" was a good thing for Nimrod, as it meant that all the Beyonder abilities that had been deleted by Amon before becoming a demigod had returned to his grasp.

This included the most important improvement: "Steal Fate."

"Steal Fate" allowed Nimrod to disguise himself as a Believer of any deity and steal their responses.

For example, the "Eternal Blazing Sun" worshipped by Hugues Artois.

However, Nimrod still felt some concern in his heart. Although Lumianna was currently developing in the direction Adam wanted, no one knew if Adam would use other methods to deepen Lumianna's beliefs.

For a person who could even sacrifice himself, sacrificing others was not something that needed to be considered.

Furthermore, Lumian currently truly possessed an Angel representing Fate—!

Although it was already dead, the symbol of "Fate" itself carried a certain negative tendency. Although Amon, who was sealed within it, had to avoid him, it could still use this symbol to influence Lumian's Fate.

And then there was Jenna, a pure female Demoness—making Jenna, who had a certain relationship with Lumianna, become more extreme in order to cultivate a backup plan against the "Primordial Demoness" was also part of Adam's script.

Come to think of it, this could also be considered a variation of "they shout about friendship and bonds and just rush in," except that friendship and bonds were merely a means used by Great Beings to stimulate the vessel of "Calamity."

Thinking of this, Nimrod stood up and said with a smile to the government staff in front of him, "Alright, I'll be right there, please ask them to wait a moment."

Lumianna stood in the Darkness, listening to the two different voices coming from her ears, and smiled slowly, "You mean, as long as you are with me, the disasters around me cannot be stopped, including this one?"

"I do not know which Hidden Being your godfather is." Amon, disguised as "Termiboros," said with a grand, overlapping voice, "But I need to remind you, He may not necessarily hold good intentions toward you."

"I certainly know he doesn't hold good intentions toward me." Lumianna sneered and casually made up a reason, "But he promised me that he would help me save my sister."

Amon, disguised as "Termiboros," did not give up but reminded her, "Then that means He has concealed the corresponding price. Also, you should respectfully refer to a Hidden Being as 'He.' You are too presumptuous; if you anger that Hidden Being, I might be able to escape, but I might also perish along with you."

"Moreover, if you are only craving to resurrect your sister, release me, and I can also promise to resurrect her."

"Resurrect—" A trace of ferocity appeared on Lumianna's face, and her long-suppressed emotions surfaced, "Are you going to resurrect Aurore, or that evil god Believer who occupied my sister's body?"

Speaking of this, Lumianna's face, hidden under her hood, changed to a slightly softer expression. She chuckled in a low voice, "After becoming a 'Witch,' I have been able to suppress my emotions very well. I don't know your past, nor do I know if you are a liar or a monk, but I will not believe a word you say. Even if I encounter danger, I will make the exact opposite choice."

"Ha, will you continue to try to bewitch me or lead me astray? At worst, when that time comes, we will both be finished—BOOM, we'll explode together."

Seeing that Termiboros in her mind no longer spoke, Lumianna immediately lost the desire to "Provoke" Him in her heart. Instead, she noted down Termiboros's words, intending to report them to her godfather upon returning.

Son of a sow, Termiboros still dared to bewitch her; it must be because the boon wasn't extracted enough—it needed a heavy blow!

Playing the Witch every day, it wouldn't be long before she could fully digest this potion—two months or three? By then, she would eat another "Pyromaniac" potion. Once it was almost digested, she would have her godfather extract two more portions of the boon from her body to weaken Termiboros's power!

Speaking of this, Lumianna, who was completely shrouded in a black robe, said in a low voice to a familiar subordinate nearby, "Charles has told me about his relationship with Franca. You go and deliver this letter to 'Red Boots' as quickly as possible."

"Understood, Boss Triona."

The gang thug under her command said respectfully to Lumianna. The reason he was so afraid of this new boss was not only because she was Charles's sister, but also because this boss was a true, terrifying "Witch."

Before this, some gang squad leaders who saw Charles leave and wanted to set up their own portals had all died inexplicably in their own homes.

And just when everyone was in a panic, Ms. Triona openly held a meeting for the gang squads, declaring that she would be responsible for this matter.

At the same time, the other new boss, Anthony, who had been promoted by Charles, also strongly supported this Witch-like cadre, quickly gaining control of the "Passion" organization, which had become somewhat unstable due to Charles's departure.

And for Lumianna, everything she did had a traceable pattern.

Although these subordinates of hers were not familiar with her, she was all too familiar with them. If anyone showed signs of wanting to deceive her, then she was sorry, but she would not show mercy to those who wanted to betray her.

Bringing calamity and spreading curses were also one of the core rules of playing a "Witch."

Lumianna stood up and, like a shadow, merged into the surrounding Darkness. In the letter she had her subordinate send to "Red Boots" Franca, it contained the following content:

A fire is about to break out at the Goodwell Chemical Plant, and Jenna's Mother is inside.

This was the information her godfather had given her just now while she was listening to Termiboros's voice.

As for why this chemical plant would explode, and why her godfather would know about these things?

—The godfather was a Hidden Being, wasn't it perfectly normal for him to know these things?

However, Lumianna did have some narcissistic thoughts.

She guessed that it was very likely because Jenna had a certain relationship with her, and in order to prevent her from developing new psychological problems due to the death of someone familiar's Mother, her godfather had specifically reminded her, hoping she would go and save this acquaintance's Mother.

However, Lumianna quickly cast these thoughts aside and arrived at the gate of the Goodwell Chemical Plant. At this moment, explosions were still occurring one after another. People on the street were fleeing in panic, and large groups of workers were either wailing or fleeing in a panic from the collapsing factory buildings. Lumianna turned around and took out several mystical materials from her bosom.

As a "Witch," she naturally possessed the ability of divination and no longer had to worry about whether her spirituality would be rapidly depleted.

Although Lumian had seen Jenna's Mother, Elodie, trying to find one person in this chaotic scene was like looking for a needle in a haystack—it was too difficult.

Lumianna had once seen her at the Golden Rooster Inn. After "Passion" bought the Golden Rooster Inn, they had continued the contract with Elodie and increased her workload and corresponding remuneration—at the very least, Lumianna could not stand the Golden Rooster Inn being dirty all day long.

Lumianna let out a soft breath and found a deserted corner to begin setting up the materials needed for the divination in an orderly manner.

Her divination tutorial had been taught to her by her godfather.

For some reason, Lumianna felt that this teaching seemed like a distillation of a certain Seer's experience, casting aside many metaphysical contents and summarizing the experience of divination in common language.

Was her godfather also a "Seer"?

Although she had doubts, Lumianna did not think too much about it. Instead, she quickly leaned against the wall and used the ritual to enter a dream state. Soon, she obtained the result of the dream divination and received certain revelations with detailed images.

But just as she obtained the divination, an extremely sharp sound came from not far away. This sound was deafening, and it immediately triggered a series of chain reactions.

The explosions were not over yet.

Suddenly ignited flames, crumbling walls, and large amounts of toxic gas emerged from everywhere at once. Lumianna did not hesitate; after reacting, she immediately took a step forward and entered the Darkness again.

For a moment, she merged directly with the surrounding shadows, and after simply identifying the street signs nearby, she proceeded rapidly toward the interior of the chemical plant at a lightning-fast speed.

If it were an ordinary Witch, facing this situation, she might feel somewhat troublesome, and might even inevitably be eroded by these deadly chemical gases, having to use one or even several mirror substitutes. But for Lumianna, there were no such complications.

The "Hunter's" adaptability to the environment was terrifying; merely some toxic gases had no way of harming a "Hunter's" body—and Lumianna, who had jumped Pathways at Sequence 7 and possessed complete, multiple Witch Beyonder characteristics from Sequence 9 to Sequence 7, was likewise not afraid of the harsh environment before her.

She did not spend much time and soon arrived at the depths of the chemical plant.

This seemed to be the source of the explosion. Because of the severe collapse and explosion, most of the workers here had fallen into a coma. Coupled with the continuous inhalation of these harmful chemical gases, their comas were becoming deeper and deeper. Some of the weaker ones already had lips that had turned a poisonous blue-purple, and they might lose their lives because of this.

After arriving here, the first step Lumianna took was to cast her gaze toward the location of the tanks storing chemical gases in this area. She looked over there, and a faint light flashed in her eyes.

The next moment, ice began to "grow" on the metal tanks—completely repairing the damaged parts of the entire tank storing the chemical gases.

After doing all this, she identified the appearance of these workers lying on the ground and quickly locked onto the target she needed to rescue.

This was Jenna's Mother, Elodie!

Grabbing Elodie into her hands, Lumianna, wearing a black robe, scanned the surroundings expressionlessly, a trace of pity appearing in her eyes.

She reached out, and a thin layer of ice mist condensed inside the large expanse of pungent gas around her, slowing down the spread of the gas as much as possible.

The next moment, she quite nimbly picked up Elodie, who hadn't yet figured out the situation, and quickly left the chemical plant with her.

Franca got into a carriage and told the coachman to immediately drive toward the direction of the Goodwell Chemical Plant. But halfway there, she suddenly discovered that the carriage had stopped, so she asked the coachman somewhat irritably, "Why aren't we continuing forward?"

"The road ahead is restricted, Ms. 'Red Boots'." The "Sava Party" carriage driver said quite helplessly to his employer, "It seems like there has been an accident ahead, and many people have gathered here—"

Why did it have to be at this time? Franca cursed in her heart but said nothing. She just jumped off the carriage and quite naturally merged into the surrounding shadows, preparing to head to the chemical plant on foot.

However, before she had moved forward for a distance, Franca's gaze was attracted. She deactivated her stealth state and grabbed the girl in a dress beside her somewhat nervously, "Jenna, why are you here?"

"I originally wanted to go to the dance hall, damn, but the public carriage was stopped ahead, so I had to walk over." Jenna scratched her hair somewhat irritably and said to Franca, "What did you come here for?"

"I just received news that there might be an accident at the Goodwell Chemical Plant—" Franca spoke halfway, but saw that the expression of the Jenna in front of her suddenly changed, turning deathly pale, "Franca, what did you say?"

"What's wrong? What happened?" Franca also realized something was wrong at this moment. Her expression changed slightly, and she asked Jenna urgently.

Jenna gritted her teeth, seemingly forcing herself to suppress the anxiety appearing on her face, "When I came, I heard a sound like an explosion, but I couldn't distinguish its direction. I, I originally thought—"

"Let's go quickly. We'll rush over now; maybe we can still find your Mother."

After realizing that the chemical plant might have already exploded, Franca immediately said to the Jenna before her. Jenna also nodded and followed Franca, jogging forward together.

Along the way, she was exceptionally silent, making Franca somewhat worried that Jenna had received too many, too severe blows at once.

She also hadn't expected that she would run into Jenna on the road!

The speed of the two Demonesses was not slow. They soon arrived at the location of the Goodwell Chemical Plant. At this moment, however, they saw a figure walk out from the side, carrying Elodie, who was wearing worker's clothes, on her shoulder.

For a moment, a beautiful girl with a cold expression and long black hair with golden highlights draped over her shoulders came into Jenna's sight.

When noticing the face of the woman she was carrying on her shoulder, Jenna was unable to control her emotions for a moment and directly called out loudly, "Mom!"

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#200Chapter 200 The Red Reaper

Chapter 200: Red Death

The moment Jenna saw Lumianna, she anxiously rushed forward and caught her Mother, who was sliding off Lumianna's shoulder, her face filled with visible panic.

Franca quickly checked Jenna's Mother's condition. After confirming that nothing serious had happened to her, she also let out a sigh of relief.

She raised her head and looked around, only to see the black-gold haired girl silently turn around, casting her gaze deep into the chemical plant.

Seeing Lumianna's expression, Franca froze for a moment. As if realizing a certain possibility, she hurriedly called out to her, "Lu—Trieuna, what are you trying to do? You're not thinking of going into this chemical plant alone, are you?"

Was Lumian actually such a helpful person? The chemical plant was currently filled with toxic chemical gas, which would still cause some harm and impact even to Beyonders of a decent Sequence.

Franca suspected that the girl named Trieuna in front of her wasn't actually Lumian in disguise, but was truly Lumian's sister.

Lumianna didn't turn back, merely walking inside on her own as she chuckled softly. "It's fine. If I really run into danger, I will request that person's help."

"I've divined it. The official Beyonders won't arrive so quickly. During this time, the only thing that could be considered dangerous is the toxic chemical gas inside, but that doesn't really harm me."

Lumianna's gaze darkened slightly, and her body suddenly seemed to turn into a shadow hiding in the Darkness, merging into the fire-lit shadows before her like a river returning to the sea.

What she didn't tell Franca was that right after she rescued Jenna's Mother, the Godfather's voice had echoed in her mind, telling her the cause of the explosion.

This was a purge, a sacrifice, and even more, a coincidence.

And the plight of the people at the scene reminded Lumianna of herself, who had almost been sacrificed in Cordu Village.

Anger. She felt nothing but anger.

Angry at her own weakness, angry at those cultists and evil gods.

The combination of her extreme emotions and the tendency to lose control caused by the Beyonder characteristics made her mood even gloomier at this moment.

Her body reappeared at the half-collapsed factory building of the chemical plant, and step by step, she walked into the Darkness.

"Someone still betrayed us."

Nimrod spoke, wearing Hugues Artois's face, as a circle of Outer God Believers sat around the table with solemn expressions.

After a long silence, Rhone, who wore gold-rimmed glasses, couldn't help but defend himself, "Mr. Artois, we had already recognized our mistake before this and strictly forbade Bono Goodville from carrying out his idea of destroying his own chemical plant! We don't know why he did it either. After hearing you tell us about the matters related to the Great Being we believe in, we really have no such intentions now."

Nimrod nodded and said noncommittally, "I can see that you aren't lying. But since it has already happened, you need to take responsibility for it."

"You must not forget that it is because of this minor mistake that our grand plan has been delayed. Rhone, go contact Bono Goodville, suppress this matter, and promptly give the families of the deceased the compensation they deserve."

"Next, we still have to face the official investigation."

How could he not know who did this?

It was definitely Adam's doing.

Although he was dissatisfied with Adam's methods, Nimrod had no other choice for now. He could only hide behind the scenes, trying to guess where Adam's next move would land and prepare in advance.

But—now, protected by layers of disguises, Nimrod had barely managed to step onto the chessboard of the "Great Beings."

Rhone hesitated for a moment and said to Hugues Artois, "Adequate compensation? But our current funds are extremely tight. If we compensate those commoners here, our funds for bribing other members of parliament might be a bit—"

"No, why should we allocate funds for compensation? Let Bono Goodville handle this," Nimrod said mercilessly. "This is his responsibility to begin with, and I don't want such an incident to occur just as I have become a member of parliament. It would make my previous promises look like a circus Clown."

"Heh, sometimes those decrees that benefit us cannot succeed solely by relying on other members of parliament. As the member of parliament for the Market District, I need to leverage the power of the Market District's citizens."

"Tell him that if he doesn't do as I say, he will lose my protection. Let him think carefully. We have already established contact with the Aurora Order. Does he still want to do business with the Passion Chamber of Commerce and the Sava Party Chamber of Commerce?

If he does, he must offer his allegiance."

Rhone hesitated, seemingly weighing the pros and cons. Once he figured it out, he nodded and said, "I understand. I will contact Bono Goodville right away."

Nimrod gave a soft hum. "Tibert, you go with Rhone as well. This isn't something he can resolve alone. If you don't want the Church of the Sun to discover your true identities, do it as quickly as possible."

Tibert also nodded and walked out with Rhone.

After the two Believers of Decay left, Cassandra, a red-haired descendant of the Sauron family, said in a raspy voice, "Mr. Artois, did you have some hidden motive for saying that just now?"

Hidden motive? Naturally, there was none. He simply wanted to beat down this group of stubborn evil god Believers—and Nimrod suspected that Adam had a hand in this matter, so he had already warned Lumian and Anthony, letting Passion play its part.

He wasn't some pink-skinned moldy octopus. The foundation of Passion was, on one hand, to gather clues about Beyonder characteristics for himself in this world and provide financial support; on the other hand, it was to prepare for Lumian's Iron-Blooded Knight ritual.

He was hidden behind the scenes for now, but he couldn't stay there forever.

However, "no hidden motive" only applied to Nimrod's true identity. Wearing Hugues Artois's face, Nimrod spoke solemnly, "Anthony Reid of Passion has pressured me. Heh, not only is he a Sequence 7, but he has also received the boon of a Great Being."

"Bono Goodville's chemical plant ultimately has to do business with other factories. Unfortunately, some of the chambers of commerce he contacted recently belong to merchants of the Passion Chamber of Commerce."

"Passion seems to hope to establish a new order here, rather than letting all things decay."

"I know you all believe in Great Beings, but your infighting cannot be brought into the open. As for Rhone and the other—they went a bit too far this time. Not only did they ignore my warnings, but they also insisted on making all of us bear the consequences of their actions." Nimrod said meaningfully, "Even if it really was just a coincidence, what the two of them did was wrong—the Believers of Decay are truly too thoughtless."

"After all, I can still clearly distinguish who can provide me with votes for the next election."

Hearing Hugues Artois finish speaking to himself like this, Cassandra, who stood to the side with red hair, suddenly felt a chill run down her spine.

She guessed a possibility, but found it somewhat hard to believe.

Mr. Artois's methods seemed to have become even more ruthless than before—was there a new Great Being supporting him, making the previously disobedient factions unimportant?

Cassandra narrowed her eyes slightly, her mind weighing unknown options. "You are right."

Nimrod smiled and quietly sent Rhone and Tibert's route to Lumianna. "Go back and rest. We are very short-handed right now."

The corners of Lumianna's mouth curved up slightly. She placed the eighth person she had dragged out of the center of the explosion onto the open ground and said to Anthony, who stood nearby wearing a black formal suit and a soft hat, "The boss gave me some tasks. I'm going to take care of some things."

Anthony didn't question her, merely nodding. "You can leave things here to me."

As a Sequence 7 Psychiatrist plus a sequence 8 Sex—cough, he didn't really like this title, a sequence 8 Desire Apostle (youth version), Anthony had become quite reliable after taking control of the Passion organization. The captains of the gang units under him were completely loyal to him.

For a "Spectator," this was not a difficult task.

He had these subordinates carry out the duty of maintaining order—Anthony had even arranged for some people to cause chaos. After all, if a gang behaved in such a militaristic and institutionalized manner, the police and military would be the ones most anxious.

Moreover, Anthony felt that his boss had a deeper meaning in establishing this organization, and it was best not to attract attention beyond the scope of a "gang."

By now, Lumianna had already set off toward the alley, her body wrapped in a black robe, dark flames dancing in her eyes.

Lumianna's body moved swiftly through the alleyways, and soon, two figures came into her view:

A secretary wearing gold-rimmed glasses who looked like a refined scoundrel, and a pale man who looked like he could die of illness at any moment, walking one after the other in the alley.

They seemed to be conversing in low voices, but that was not something Lumianna intended to care about.

The corners of Lumianna's mouth curved slightly. She raised her hand, and her slender figure vanished.

In the next moment, Tibert, who was walking to the side and looking gravely ill, suddenly coughed, spitting out some purulent blood containing black solid matter.

Walking beside Tibert, "Secretary" Rhone glanced at the "Patient" beside him with some disdain. In his view, this guy who had been sick for so long and still hadn't received a boon would really bring him a lot of trouble.

boon recipients were just like this; their own personalities were largely distorted by the boon. Even when a companion with reasonable needs caused them trouble, the "secretary" would subconsciously feel disgust.

But in the very next second, a petite figure completely covered in a pitch-black robe appeared behind Tibert.

Her body was like a reversal of being erased by an eraser, materializing in the air inch by inch starting from where her arm was.

Just as Rhone began to look at the owner of this arm with a look of shock and uncertainty, he suddenly realized that the black purulent blood Tibert had spat out earlier was actually body tissue coughed up after his body had been pierced and his internal organs shattered!

How terrifying was the full-strength blow of an "Assassin" enhanced by two Beyonder Sequences, combined with the strongest strike erupted from the extra physical enhancement of the "Hunter" Pathway's sequence 8?

It took Lumianna only half a second to unleash the power of her dual Pathways.

By first actively using her Beyonder abilities, and then performing a minor "ritual magic" with the help of incantations and Beyonder materials, she could make her body completely transparent. Combined with the Witch's unique anti-divination, before Lumianna approached Tibert, the two didn't even notice a single sign.

"A Patient, a secretary," Lumianna whispered softly, keeping the latter half of her sentence hidden in her heart:

Weak. They are simply too weak.

According to the Sequence descriptions provided to her by the Godfather, the lethality of this abnormal Pathway at Sequence 9, sequence 8, and even up to Sequence 7 "Pest" against a single Beyonder was extremely limited. Their Beyonder abilities were mainly focused on targeting organizations or teams.

But the power of a team could not help them preserve their lives. Just as they might be very skilled at criticizing others and sowing discord in a team, the weapon of criticism could never replace the criticism of weapons. When the two of them walked alone, their fragile nature was instantly exposed.

And most crucially, even if they usually had members of the Eighth Bureau protecting them, right now the two of them were going to suppress an incident related to the god they believed in.

This time, they were on a secret operation, so they didn't have a single person around to protect them.

Lumianna violently twisted her wrist. In the next moment, black flames spread outward from Tibert's chest, and Tibert's body tore apart under this immense force.

As the flames spread, the pathogens on Tibert's body that possessed tiny spiritual bodies, and even his own spirit, let out extremely shrill wails—the Demoness's flames could corrode spirits, and the pathogens carried by the "Patient" likewise possessed spirits.

As the dark flames dissipated, Tibert lay in pieces on the sewage-covered ground, his once-elegant clothing now stained with filth, no longer needing to worry about the irritability of being sick.

Black and red liquids trickled down from where Tibert had exploded, staining Lumianna's black robe with a layer of dark red, making her look like a red Death.

As for Lumianna, she slightly raised her head, the upper half of her face shrouded in Darkness, revealing only her smooth lower chin. Cold light seemed to flow in her eyes, making Rhone's hair stand on end.

It was the gaze one reserved for prey.

With a swish, Lumianna vanished from the spot.