Chapter 477
In less than three minutes, a knock echoed at the door of the prayer room once more.
“Your Holiness, they have arrived.”
“Please, come in.”
The heavy iron door creaked open, and the Pope slowly lifted her gaze to the newcomers.
To her surprise, the one at the forefront was not the fourth-tier transcendent from the tribunal, but a red-haired girl she did not recognize...
Her eyes...
The dark green flames flickering in the Pope's eyes momentarily dimmed, and she felt a fleeting disorientation—at that moment, gazing at the girl, she had the uncanny sensation of staring directly at a node of the other realm.
Instantly, the Pope straightened slightly; that brief feeling was enough to make her take this meeting seriously.
The iron door closed slowly, sealing off all external sounds, leaving the private prayer room enveloped in silence, save for the sound of breathing.
“Please, have a seat,” the Pope said, raising her hand to indicate the iron cushions before her. “Though I must admit, I have some doubts about your qualifications for cooperation.”
Xia'er did not hesitate. She stepped onto the carpet and sat directly across from the Pope.
“I know what you’re looking for.” Before the Pope could speak, Xia'er continued, “I can help you.”
“Tala.” Xia'er gestured slightly behind her, and Tala quickly stepped forward, handing a notebook to Xia'er.
Without a word, Xia'er took a pen and began to sketch rapidly in the notebook.
A simplified blood array gradually took shape under Xia'er’s pen, alongside a rough depiction of armor.
It wasn’t that Xia'er didn’t want to draw it clearly; rather, as she recalled the details of the armor, they would blur or vanish altogether—its existence seemed to interfere with others' memories.
Even so, the armor Xia'er sketched was clearer than the mural not far behind her.
Rip—
Xia'er tore the page from the notebook and casually handed it to the Pope of the Order of the God of Order.
The Pope remained composed, not angered by Xia'er’s apparent rudeness. Instead, she accepted the paper and glanced at it.
The eye sockets of the tattered armor flickered with green flames as Pope Erygma slowly raised her gaze to the girl before her.
The girl met Erygma’s gaze, the pure white armor of the mural behind her serving as a backdrop, as if standing guard over her.
This is... the node of the other realm, and the being within it...
What is going on?!
This was the deepest secret of the Order of the God of Order, known to no more than ten people, all of whom were high-ranking members with absolute loyalty to the church.
Even among those few, only two or three had ever seen the node of the other realm, all trusted confidants of the Pope, unlikely to betray her.
The key point was... the image the girl had drawn was more complete than all the information they had gathered.
“How do you know these secrets?” Erygma’s tone turned serious as she placed the paper on the ground, looking at Xia'er with a questioning gaze. “Who have you captured? What do you intend to do?”
At first, the Pope suspected that someone from the tribunal had captured one of her confidants for interrogation.
The tension in the private prayer room thickened, and even Henry, who had been waiting by the door, placed his hand on the iron sword at his waist.
“Secrets?” Xia'er raised her gaze slightly, looking at the Pope, and said slowly, “There are no secrets in the other realm... It’s not just you who are researching it.”
“Exactly...”
The Pope wanted to ask more, but Xia'er interrupted her directly.
“Just enter the other realm and ask the being there, and you’ll know how you’ve been ‘disturbing’ it all these years.” A faint smile appeared on Xia'er’s face.
The Pope fell silent.
She looked at the mysterious girl before her, her thoughts swirling.
When had another organization, so deeply knowledgeable about the other realm, emerged without her knowledge...
“Now, am I qualified?” Xia'er asked the Pope, her tone challenging.
The Pope paused for a moment, then slowly raised her right hand to press against her left chest, saying, “Erygma Osira.”
Then, she extended her right hand, palm up, toward Xia'er, inquiring, “May I know your name?”
“Xia'er.” Xia'er nodded slightly.
“You have sufficient qualifications, Lady Xia'er.” Erygma nodded, no longer underestimating her, and placed Xia'er on a more equal footing. “I would like to hear about the cooperation... is it regarding research on the other realm?”
“Rather than cooperation, I prefer to call it an exchange.”
Xia'er looked at the empty eye sockets beneath the Pope’s iron mask.
“I want you to trade the life of a Strong Sound for something from me.”
The life of a Strong Sound?!
The soul fire in Erygma’s eyes flickered, and the metallic hum echoed within her armor.
“Impossible. Please mind your words; I cannot treat this as if it never happened, Lady Xia'er.”
It should be noted that the Order of the God of Order is currently in a close partnership with the Strong Sound, which is crucial for the Order to completely oust the Church of the Savior Goddess and become the sole state religion of Ansu.
Moreover, they had a collaborative research project with the Strong Sound regarding the other realm, relying on their connections for secret studies.
In the Pope’s view, no matter the conditions, she could not allow any rift to form between herself and the Strong Sound; their interests were almost intertwined.
Unless... the price offered...
Xia'er slowly turned to look at the mural behind her, smiling as she pointed at it. “Do you wish to summon it?”
Xia'er withdrew her hand and looked back at the Pope, saying meaningfully, “I can provide you with the method to summon it.”
Her words plunged the Pope into silence once more.
The girl had produced a blood array identical to the highest secrets of the Order of the God of Order, even sketching the image of that being.
But as Erygma thought... these were not entirely true secrets—at least the saints and candidates of the church had seen these to some extent before their deaths.
She couldn’t guarantee whether the girl had obtained the remains of some saint or candidate from somewhere, using mystical means to extract memories from the corpse.
Moreover, as Erygma knew, there was a candidate saint who had once explored the other realm and was still alive, having miraculously evaded several secret captures.
“How can you prove that you truly possess the blood array for summoning it?”
After a long contemplation, Erygma looked at the girl before her and asked directly.
This question seemed to have been anticipated by Xia'er.
She looked at Erygma and said, “If you don’t mind, may I borrow one of your fingers?”
A finger?
There were indeed many abilities and methods in mysticism and among transcendent beings that could harm the essence or even the spirit through physical remains, but Erygma seemed unconcerned.
Because her shell was not her own.
Rather than her own finger, she was more curious about how Xia'er would prove her ability to summon beings from the other realm.
Crack—
Pope Erygma directly reached out and forcefully broke off one of her steel fingers, tossing it to the girl across from her.
Xia'er reached out and caught the finger steadily. Even though her strength far exceeded that of an ordinary person, she could still feel the weight of the finger.
Holding the finger in her left hand, Xia'er extended her right hand toward Tala, who understood immediately and handed her a ritual carving knife.
With the knife, she made a cut on her left index finger.
Spiritual summoning.
As the crimson blood flowed from Xia'er’s finger, it formed threads that wrapped around the steel finger she held in her left hand.
A blood array quickly took shape before Xia'er.
Having summoned Xiao Zuo multiple times within a day, Xia'er was now quite skilled at it.
Xiao Zuo, the diligent one, was also very cooperative, even extending a finger before the blood array was fully formed. In the depths of Xia'er’s mind, the raspy voice of Xiao Zuo echoed, repeatedly calling out, “Lady Xia'er.”
It seemed that it had practiced this phrase quite well.
Until the terrifying left hand, taller than Xia'er herself, appeared before everyone, Henry and the Pope finally showed signs of wavering.
This is... the pure essence of the other realm... this is a genuine being from the other realm!
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