Chapter 705
They moved slowly, caught between idleness and work, savoring the rare tranquility of the morning. It seemed they all wished to prolong this fleeting moment.
“What else can we do?” The lean man known as Peter shook his head and spoke, “The higher-ups have been on good terms with the Salvation Church lately... They must have some news already.”
“How could that be... If so, wouldn’t we always be under their thumb?” The shorter cleric shook his head, pondering for a moment before asking, “Could it be... that this is all just a boast from the Salvation Church? That they haven’t actually achieved ‘uniqueness’?”
“That’s possible,” Peter replied, shaking his head again, then rephrased, “It would be best if that were the case.”
“But no matter how the upper echelons decide, we can’t do anything... We can only pray that this is false.”
The shorter cleric sighed, lamenting, “But the church’s merger is probably no lie... If the Salvation Church merges without infighting, they’ll definitely rise again...”
After a brief hesitation, the tall cleric named Peter turned to the shorter one and said, “I heard... that a girl named Xia’er has been to the Vatican? Do you know anything about that?”
“I don’t know... But I think I heard a blue-robed figure mention a red-haired girl...”
Just then—
A deep, resonant bell interrupted the shorter cleric’s words. Not far away, the Westminster Bell Tower, built by the Salvation Church, chimed, reminding everyone that a new hour had arrived.
The shorter cleric seemed to lose his train of thought due to the booming bell. He looked back at Peter and asked, “What were you saying just now?”
“I was asking what the blue-robed cardinal said about that red-haired girl named Xia’er. When did she come to the Vatican?” Peter, unfazed, brought the conversation back to its previous topic.
But the shorter cleric looked at Peter with a strange expression and said, “What Xia’er? A Pharos person? A newly accepted female believer?”
“It’s Xia—” Peter started to say something more but suddenly froze.
Everything before his eyes began to twist; the once-clear sky was stained crimson. A loud, spiritual alarm buzzed in his mind, and an ethereal voice echoed within him.
*Are you... calling me?*
---
Chapter 360: Interrogation
Cold sweat trickled down Peter’s forehead to his cheek.
Words could hardly capture the shock he felt; he couldn’t articulate the events unfolding before him.
But he knew... he had been exposed.
“Peter, what were you asking just now? Peter...”
The shorter cleric spoke while glancing toward the spot where the tall cleric had been standing, suddenly pausing.
Who was I calling just now?
Was I talking to someone?
It seemed... I had been cleaning up the leaves here all alone...
“Ugh... Why am I starting to talk to myself?” The shorter cleric shook his head and continued sweeping the leaves, dismissing the strange feeling.
Meanwhile, on the circular street of Westminster Square, a figure was sprinting swiftly.
He ran at an incredible speed, his loose clerical robes flapping in the wind, yet the people around him seemed oblivious to his frantic pace.
“Peter” dashed toward Westminster Bridge. Once he crossed this bridge over the canal, he would reach the East District.
He didn’t plan to head to the place where he had hidden things; instead, he chose a completely opposite direction, unsure of how much the other party knew about him, only wanting to put as much distance as possible between himself and Ansu City.
For a long time, changing identities and hiding had become part of his life, and since becoming an extraordinary being, he had grown accustomed to this low-profile existence.
This feeling allowed him to maintain a calm mindset, free from the worry of impending crises...
But now, the sensation of being watched by a pair of crimson eyes made his hair stand on end, sending chills down his spine... It had been a long time since he had experienced this emotion called “fear.”
“Damn it! Who is she?! How does she know my location and identity...?”
“There’s still a chance; as long as I leave Ansu City, there’s still hope...”
“Peter” ran on, his mind screaming as he began to recall everything he had done since entering Ansu, piecing together every detail.
He reached out and grabbed onto a public carriage, hoisting himself onto the roof, scanning the surroundings.
Is she still around me?
I’ve already left the West District...
Why does that feeling of being watched persist?!
Xia’er...
Everyone’s memory of the divine agent named Xia’er had faded...
Along the way, he saw countless newspapers still in circulation, and many people were holding reports about “Xia’er.”
But these newspapers were being casually set ablaze, reduced to ashes on the ground. Simple iron-burning barrels lined the streets, where passersby tossed in news articles about Xia’er... They were actively destroying reports about her.
These people’s perceptions had been altered... Yet his impression of that girl remained intact.
He couldn’t help but think of her name and image, and a more shocking hypothesis began to form in his mind.
This is the ability of a Level 4 “Nightmare.” He understood this; with the help of the “Disaster Apostle,” such a situation could easily be realized...
What’s the purpose of erasing those people’s memories?
To keep those who know about “Xia’er” within a smaller circle.
To... filter me out?
As long as I have an impression of that girl in my mind, can she locate me?!
Where there’s a word, there’s knowledge...
What a joke?!
This is a power only a deity could possess!!!
How is that possible?!
No current path could possibly have such an ability! It’s utterly impossible!
But if it really is like that...
“Peter” gasped heavily, feeling his temples throb, his brain buzzing.
If that’s the case, I’ve already been exposed. According to the organization’s methods...
“God King above...”
Despair flickered in his eyes as “Peter” looked down at his trembling hands, then slowly raised them to press against his head.
Buzz—
A deafening hum exploded in his mind, and a figure suddenly appeared before him.
“Xia’er?”
A red-haired girl stood atop the carriage, facing him with a faint smile.
“Xia’er...” The girl’s face matched the image in his mind, and Peter’s eyes widened in shock. He could no longer suppress his extraordinary abilities; veins bulged in his hands as his own mind began to fade.
Buzz—
The spiritual alarm in his mind blared again, and the girl before him seemed to shift her posture, her hands shielding her flowing red hair from the wind.
What... is happening?
The delayed pain finally registered in Peter’s brain.
His vision blurred, and he instinctively looked down at his hands.
At that moment, he realized that his once intact hands had vanished... They were even coated in a cool, mint-scented green liquid, staunching the flow of blood.
My... hands?!
Peter collapsed onto the carriage, slowly raising his head to look at the girl before him.
In his eyes, there was only pure terror, a fear of the unknown.
This was a force he completely did not understand, one he had never encountered, an absolutely overwhelming power.
This was something he could never achieve.
Peter knew all too well that he had no capacity for resistance left; he was utterly at her mercy.
He understood the weaknesses of his path all too well.
They could erase their existence to the greatest extent, even making it so that no extraordinary being or human could easily perceive them.
Yet, as a cost of this concealment, the activation of their other abilities came with conditions even more stringent than those of the “Subverter.”
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