The voice echoed within the conference room. The expressions of everyone present varied, but all remained silent.
"This is a person on the Church's wanted list. How could he be together with the other sacrifices?" Parolin narrowed his eyes.
"Mr. Secretary guaranteed ... that there would be no issues with the candidates."
Underwood's expression turned serious: "Cardinal Parolin, we also just discovered this suspicious individual."
He tapped the table lightly with his fingers, feigning a thoughtful look.
"Could he have secretly slipped in halfway..."
As if suddenly rembering sothing, he imdiately turned around.
"Dispatch soone imdiately to investigate where the replaced volunteer went. We must ensure that citizen's safety!"
"Yes, sir!" soone behind him imdiately responded.
Underwood then looked at Claire: "Deploy the Paranormal Special Operations Group inside imdiately. Extract that suspicious individual and hand him over to our Church allies for disposal."
A flash of hesitation crossed Claire's eyes, but she nodded: "Understood."
"Wait."
At this ti, Parolin spoke up again.
"The ritual began the mont the sacrifices entered the cabin. If the Secretary sends people in now, what happens if the summoning of the divine artifact is ruined?"
"This..." Underwood feigned a troubled expression.
Parolin let out a sigh.
"Since things have co to this, we can only observe for now. But this will undoubtedly add many potential risks to the ritual."
His tone then shifted.
"Therefore, moving forward, the Paranormal Operations Squads deployed by the Secretary around the periter of the ritual site... must all follow the Church's orders."
Underwood frowned upon hearing this: "This... I'm afraid this wasn't part of the conditions we agreed upon beforehand."
"Rest assured," Parolin raised a hand to placate him.
"This is rely a safeguard. Once an anomaly occurs during the ritual, I will need those squad mbers equipped with 'evil-purifying' weapons to enter the scene."
A hint of surprise flashed in Underwood's eyes: "Your Eminence is willing to let our people inside?"
"Hmph... Mr. Secretary, I am referring to tis when unexpected situations arise," Parolin specifically emphasized the words "unexpected situations."
"Furthermore, they must follow the Church's orders. Do not forget these two points."
Underwood broke into a smile: "No problem. The Church are the experts in this area. It's only natural."
The corner of Parolin's eye twitched for a mont before he walked toward the conference room door with a dark expression.
"Continue observing. Report any anomalies imdiately," Kalvis ordered the Holy Clergy mbers beside him before quickly following the Cardinal.
Outside the conference room.
"Your Excellency Parolin!"
Hearing the shout, Parolin stopped.
Kalvis jogged up to him and was just about to speak.
But Parolin raised a hand to stop him, then glanced to both sides.
The few Holy Clergy mbers who had followed them imdiately understood. They stepped aside, driving away the lingering North Arican governnt agents in the corridor.
Only after the surroundings were quiet was Kalvis permitted to speak.
"In the previous report from the gas station, that wanted fugitive had been intentionally guiding the sacrifices, seemingly trying to make them realize the anomalies of this trip..."
"Judging from the situation inside the wooden cabin just now, the other party highly likely intends to sabotage this ritual."
At this point, he cautiously glanced at Parolin.
"Previously, you told to ignore him... but now this guy is pushing his luck. Shouldn't we do sothing?"
By this ti, Parolin had long since dropped his serious expression, a faint smile playing on his lips instead.
"You want to follow that Secretary's suggestion and arrest him?" he turned his head and asked.
Kalvis lowered his gaze: "No! I just believe... the Divine Descent Ritual is of unparalleled importance. It is best to eliminate any risk of accidents."
"You're absolutely right," Parolin nodded.
"But the existence of this wanted fugitive... will allow the ritual to proceed even more smoothly."
Hearing this, confusion flooded Kalvis's eyes.
Parolin smiled faintly: "With this person present, North Arica's Source Power weapons can be utilized by us. It would be far too wasteful to leave such precious power in their hands. It's better to leave it all for the ritual's magic array."
"As for what problems might arise during the ritual..."
He patted Kalvis on the shoulder pointedly.
Kalvis's eyes lit up: "I understand!"
Parolin then changed the subject: "However, this person's whereabouts must still be investigated."
"First, the North Arican governnt acquires Source Power weapons. Then, Jolan is rescued. Now, this forr mber of the Priest Order boldly appears at the ritual site wearing a priest's cassock..."
He narrowed his eyes, his tone turning icy.
"I'd like to see which old fossil dares to so blatantly sabotage the Church's millennial grand sche!"
"I will follow your orders strictly!"
Kalvis quickly took his leave.
anwhile, inside the conference room.
Underwood had also left.
Aside from a few Holy Clergy mbers on duty, only the North Arican governnt agents remained on standby.
At this mont, two nuns sat in front of one of the screens.
Even beneath the loose, concealing robes, their beautiful features remained strikingly outstanding.
One of the nuns clenched her fists, her gaze fixed dead on William on the screen.
"Cid... we are currently on a mission for the Priest Order. We cannot be impulsive!" Betis looked around and whispered.
"But... this might be my only chance to confront him!" Cid squeezed the words out through gritted teeth.
Hearing this, Betis sighed softly.
She looked at the familiar figure on the screen, her own gaze equally complex.
Suddenly, Cid stood up, preparing to leave right then and there.
Betis hurriedly grabbed her arm, her eyes filled with anxiety.
"Did you find sothing?"
A Holy Clergy mber noticed their unusual behavior and imdiately ca over to ask.
Betis shook her head slightly at Cid, then smiled at the Holy Clergy mber: "We wanted to look up the information on this wanted fugitive on the screen."
Knowing there was no new intel, the Holy Clergy mber frowned: "Just focus on the task at hand. Others will handle those matters."
"Yes, we understand," Betis bowed slightly, then tugged at Cid again.
Cid remained silent, ultimately choosing to sit back down.
At this ti, William's voice emanated from the conference room screen again.
"We've encountered so many abnormal things along the way, and now there's no sign of a film crew anywhere near the cabin. I think we need to do sothing."
"Do you have any ideas?" the sacrifice nad Dana asked.
"We ca here to have fun in the first place..." William looked thoughtful.
"Why don't we split up and explore the woods on our own. Who knows, we might find other useful clues."
As soon as his voice fell, gasps erupted in the conference room.
"Hey! We absolutely cannot let these people enter the woods right now!"
"Exactly. There are many evil monsters lying in ambush in the dense forest. These sacrifices haven't even obtained their holy artifacts yet. If they encounter a monster, they're dead for sure!"
"Then what should we do! Are we really going to let this guy wreak havoc?"
"Strange... this doesn't seem like Father William's style at all. Isn't he the one most opposed to splitting up?" Betis was also full of confusion, thinking to herself.
Ultimately, a consensus was reached within the conference room. They decided to preemptively expose the chanism hiding the holy artifacts to the sacrifices.
Accompanied by a soft click, one of the floorboards inside the wooden cabin popped up, revealing an entrance underneath.
And prominently placed at the bottom of the entrance was a piece of parchnt, recording the instructions on how to use the holy artifacts.
These noises imdiately caught the attention of the people inside the cabin.
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