775: Chapter 975: The Fire Rises (Two-in-One ga Chapter for Monthly Votes) 775: Chapter 975: The Fire Rises (Two-in-One ga Chapter for Monthly Votes) The cool breeze from outside carried into the house, and a sowhat frail figure of a young boy appeared in everyone’s view.
He was dressed in what seed to be a new down jacket, wrapped in a red scarf, with the fluffy scarf covering half of his cheek, his eyes wide as he stared at the burly n.
“Kid, what are you doing?
How did you get in?”
The burly man with the dagger was taken aback as he looked at the young boy and asked.
“This is for you.”
The boy glanced at the burly man, fumbled in his pocket, and handed over a cloth bag to the burly man.
The burly man hesitated for a mont before reaching out to take the bag, and then cautiously handed it to the leading burly man.
The leading burly man opened the cloth bag to find a folded cloth stained with fresh blood inside.
He unfolded the cloth, which had a ssage written in blood,
[A piece of intelligence useful to you, to be exchanged for information from the cathedral.
This intelligence has a ti limit, and you know where to send it.]
The leading burly man set down the cloth and looked towards the door where the boy stood, asking in a deep voice, “Who gave you this cloth?”
“, I gave it to you.”
The boy spread his hands and stated plainly.
“I’m asking you who gave it to you, kid.”
The burly man at the door clenched his dagger, speaking threateningly.
“See, you wouldn’t believe if I told the truth.”
The boy shrugged, his gaze sweeping over everyone in the room.
Those deep eyes were like the pitch-black night sky, as if they could peer into the deepest recesses of their souls.
The leading burly man’s brows furrowed slightly as he took a careful look at the boy’s frail figure, faintly detecting the scent of blood on the boy, and then glanced again at the bloodstained cloth in his hand.
Perhaps the scent of blood ca from here.
So he paused before asking again, “Did the person who had you deliver this cloth to us say anything else to you?”
“Everything I had to say is written on the cloth.”
The boy spread his hands again.
“You!”
The burly man at the door imdiately tightened his grip on the knife handle, “Kid!”
However, the boy at the door didn’t acknowledge him but turned his gaze toward the leading man, “I ran so far to get here.
Aren’t you going to reimburse for travel expenses?
A hundred federal coins, thank you.”
“You’re asking us for money?”
The man with the dagger pulled out his knife with a buzz.
“Are you trying to skip out on the bill?”
The boy raised his head, his eyes wide, calmly looking at him, his gaze profound.
Under that calm stare, the burly man’s hand stopped mid-motion, involuntarily trembling slightly, and he took half a step back.
“Give him a hundred federal coins.”
The leading burly man shook his head.
After hesitating, the dagger-wielding burly man took out two fifty federal coin notes and passed them to the boy, “Take it.”
The boy took the notes, each verified against the light for authenticity, then nodded with a beam, “Thanks a lot.”
“Brat.”
The man with the dagger cursed under his breath.
“Little brother,”
The leading burly man looked at the boy and asked in a low voice, “Are you sure you have nothing else to tell us?”
“Hmm,”
The boy pocketed the notes, glanced at the cloth in the burly man’s hand, and smiled, “What’s inside is very important to you.
It concerns your lives.”
Then he cast a glance at the people seated in the private room, “I’ve said all that I needed to say, and seen your faces; I’ll be leaving now.”
With that, he turned and walked towards the elevator.
“Boss, there’s sothing off about this kid.”
The man with the dagger glanced at the leading brute and said in a low voice.
“No need to say it, we all saw it.
You just got scared by a kid.”
The brute sitting in the middle put down his glass and burst out laughing.
“I just lost my balance just now!”
The dagger-wielding burly man retorted imdiately, “I’m a bit drunk from the drink.”
“What nonsense are you spouting?
We all saw you didn’t drink a drop!
Ha ha ha!”
The man in the middle imdiately said loudly.
“Wanna try my knife?”
The burly man with the dagger raised his knife, angrily staring at the man in the middle.
“Perhaps this kid is under surveillance by opposite forces.
With all sorts of transcendent powers in this world, so strangeness is to be expected.”
The leading burly man interrupted the dialogue between the two.
“Then, Boss, why didn’t you just…”
The man sitting beside him made a throat-slitting gesture.
“After all, he’s soone sent by the other side.
Moreover, keeping him might help us locate their people,”
The leading burly man shook his head and turned to the woman with the Black Snake tattoo, “Follow him and see where he’s headed.”
“Alright.”
The woman with the black tattoos imdiately stood up, left the private room, and walked toward the elevator.
She stood in front of the elevator, watching it descend to the first floor; then she lit up the button to call it.
At that ti, the leading man in the private room glanced at the man sitting in the middle, “Call the boss of this place and ask her to help us set up an email account that can hide addresses.”
“Boss,”
the man with the saber sitting next to him whispered, “are you going to contact them?
Could he be deceiving us?”
“So intelligence can be shared with them,”
the leading man shook his head and smiled, “The main cathedral of the Heretic Sect isn’t that easy to infiltrate.
Once they discover the strict guards of the cathedral, they will naturally co back to us.
By then, whether they live or die is still up to us, right?
“If they are compliant and willing to accept our teachings, then they can be absorbed.
If they are not, we’ll just find a way to use them as cannon fodder.”
“Boss, that’s brilliant!”
The burly man sitting in the middle imdiately gave a thumbs-up and lifted his bracelet to make a call.
anwhile, the leading man’s bracelet vibrated, and as he lifted it, the smile on his face gradually faded,
“Lost track of her?”
She had just gone downstairs, hadn’t she?
······
Lobby of the first-floor bar
The voluptuous woman in the red dress put out her cigarette, set down her bracelet, and muttered, “I’m just selling so intelligence, do these people take for a maid?”
She glanced at her bracelet and eventually sighed, “Forget it, who’s to complain when they’re paying well?”
She stood up, stretched lazily and said, “Just got back from the Federal Bureau of Investigation and already involved with these big shots; my luck is rotten.”
Just then, she felt a figure swiftly pass by her, heading toward the door.
She was stunned for a mont.
A kid?
Which bastard let a child in here?
She looked up but couldn’t see the child’s figure any longer.
Was she hallucinating?
With fingertips coated in red nail polish, she massaged her temple, then gestured towards the nearest server,
“Soone, block the door, and everyone check IDs ticulously.”
······
By this ti, He Ao’s figure had already moved through the crowd and left the bar.
The biting cold wind brushed against his cheeks, blocked by a soft scarf.
Just as he expected, these people had no good intentions.
But that was normal; not every encounter could bring good people, an enemy’s enemy is not necessarily a friend.
Of course, if used well, an enemy’s enemy could help alleviate so pressure for him.
That ‘eting’ just now, with the help of the Secret Watcher’s Spiritual Vision and the power of Divine Sense, he had roughly assessed the opponent’s strength.
Six people; two C-level, four D-level, and the leading one seed to have so powerful Transcendent Prop in his hand.
He had done everything he intended to do during this eting, and now he was just waiting for the show to start.
He looked up again, surveying the surroundings.
In the corners of the nearby streets, distorted Transcendent forces were hidden.
There were enough forces gathered in this place to scrape together a ga of mahjong.
——
Inside an abandoned building outside the bar
A man in a white robe, with a gentle and refined deanor, was standing in front of a window without glass, holding binoculars and watching the distant bar.
“Master Levins, those heretics are still gathered inside, shall we make a move?”
A young man also dressed in a white robe quickly approached.
“Not yet,”
Levins shook his head, put down the binoculars, “There are so many people in that bar from all directions of the Storm Zone; an incident there would hinder our proselytizing.
Forcing our way in and causing chaos might give them a chance to escape.
“Everyone stay in plain clothes, continue monitoring all the passageways and who cos and goes.
Also, contact the believers who frequently mingle in the bars and have them check the hall and private rooms, discreetly.”
“Yes!”
The young man nodded his head.
During this ti, another young man in white robe rushed in, handing over a docunt to Levins, “Master Levins, a piece of intelligence from the Holy See about the afternoon’s raid and clearance at the Cloud District’s stronghold may be related to the gathering of these heretics.”
Levins took the docunt and quickly flipped through it, casually asking, “Hasn’t their report co out after the support team was repelled by the Federal Bureau of Investigation?”
“Not yet,”
the young man in white shook his head, “The diocese that went to support the Cloud District is not the sa as ours; only the Holy See can contact them.”
“It seems that the person in charge over there is scared of making it too big, afraid of punishnt,”
Levins shook his head, “Such foolish and cowardly people.
The more he shows timidity and lack of responsibility, the less the Holy See and the Holy Seat will trust him.”
Quickly, Levins turned to the last few pages of the docunt, and a color photograph appeared in his line of sight.
He looked at the cute face of the young boy in the picture, “A child?”
“The last ssage from the Cloud District was sent by a high-order priest, saying the attackers were ‘Novis’s youngest son’,”
the young man in white quickly explained,
“According to information from the Holy See, this child fell from a rocky hill at the age of nine, beca brain-dead and was kept alive by his father Novis in a Nutrient Pod.
A few days ago, the Church attacked Novis, and the child’s Nutrient Pod fell into the Storm Sea.
“No photo of the child was transmitted back from the Cloud District church, and there’s no photo of him in the Church’s database.
This photo was created by collecting the looks of his parents and simulating a likely appearance through data algorithms, achieving a resemblance of over 85%.
“The related data model has already been distributed by the Holy See to all dioceses.
The Holy See’s suggestion is to collect facial images through intelligent caras and compare them with the model.”
“A brain-dead child,”
Levins looked at the photo with interest, “Back from the Storm Sea?
The vengeful Ghost?”
“The deduction from the main cathedral is that it should be so type of covert power, utilizing this child’s image, through this child’s unique status to sow discord between the Church and the Security Union,”
explained the young man in the white robe quickly.
“That’s possible,”
Levins nodded lightly, continuing to peruse the information in his hands, “So, the main cathedral sent us this file because they think the gathering of the Heretics this ti might also be related to the power behind this child?
Those Heretics are actually waiting for the power behind this child?”
“Yes.”
The young man in the white robe nodded his head.
“What’s the main cathedral’s opinion on this child?”
Levins closed the file and twisted his head to ask.
“The main cathedral has reported the situation to the Holy See,”
the young man in the white robe answered slowly.
“The Holy See?
How did he respond?”
For the first ti, Levins’s expression turned solemn.
The young man in the white robe paused before saying word by word, “Kill without rcy.”
——
Under the pitch-dark night sky, several off-road vehicles followed at a distance behind the lead off-road vehicle.
“Lord Bayert, just a few more streets ahead and we’ll arrive at the Withered Tree Bar,”
the man in the passenger seat turned back to look at Bayert seated behind.
“The Withered Tree Bar?”
Bayert’s face changed slightly as he gazed distantly at the off-road vehicle about to rge into the darkness ahead, “Isn’t that the territory of the Security Union?”
HIs face lit up with excitent imdiately, “This guy really is a traitor!
Keep up with him!”
The convoy of off-road vehicles slowly continued to follow.
In order to hide their identities and avoid detection, everyone in the team had already taken off their robes of the Eternal Secret Teachings and found a way to change into casual clothes.
The lead off-road vehicle seed unaware of the followers behind and kept moving slowly forward.
Eventually, that off-road vehicle took a turn and entered a street corner.
“That direction leads to the Withered Tree Bar!”
Bayert instantly beca excited, “Step on it!
I’m going to catch him in the act.
It’s our ti to make a mark.”
The off-road vehicles sped forward, making the turn at the street corner.
The giant neon sign of the Withered Tree Bar was already in everyone’s sight, as they saw the off-road vehicle park not too far from the bar’s entrance.
“Sir, should we go over there imdiately?”
The man in the passenger seat twisted his head, looking towards Bayert.
“Wait…”
Just as Bayert was about to speak, he suddenly hesitated; the off-road vehicle had stopped there but no one had gotten out, nor did it look like anyone was approaching.
He instinctively felt sothing was off.
He took a deep breath, “Hold on, don’t rush.
He might be waiting for soone.”
anwhile, he began recalling the observations they had made along the way.
His n had barely escaped with their lives to this area and had just happened to encounter the off-road vehicle carrying Swinte.
Wasn’t this a little too coincidental?
“Give the binoculars.”
He held onto the pendant in his palm and reached his hand out towards the passenger seat.
The passenger imdiately handed over the binoculars, and Bayert lifted them to his eyes, peering out to look at the targeted off-road vehicle.
Indeed, the backseat of the off-road vehicle had a figure that looked very much like Swinte.
They had been chasing the right lead all along.
Then he raised the binoculars to survey other areas.
The mont he lifted the binoculars, he shockingly noticed that in the vicinity of the off-road vehicle, there were so individuals with strange expressions sitting inside the cars near the bar, surveying the surroundings.
He inspected those individuals’ clothing carefully and his expression paused.
“Sir, is sothing wrong?”
The man in the passenger seat leaned over.
“Look over there.”
Bayert passed the binoculars over, pointing towards the direction of the off-road vehicle.
The man in the passenger seat glanced up and his expression imdiately shifted, “There’s an ambush around us.”
The people inside the vehicle tensed up instantly.
“Could it be the Church’s n?”
The slim man sitting beside Bayert asked.
“No,”
the man in the passenger seat imdiately responded, “The people of the Church all have specific outfits.
These look more like the Security Union’s people.”
He also began to realize the situation, looking towards Bayert, “Sir, it’s most likely a trap!
Swinte must be deliberately trying to lure us here to annihilate us in one fell swoop.
Thank goodness for your vigilance!!!”
“Is it possible that it’s mbers of the Church carrying out missions in secret?”
The slim man whispered.
“The Church seldom arranges multiple missions at the sa ti, and we’re already within their striking range,”
After a brief silence, Bayert shook his head, “Inform all the brothers to retreat imdiately.”
The man in the passenger promptly picked up the car radio, “It’s a trap!
Everyone, retreat imdiately.”
anwhile, their off-road vehicle began to turn around.
Upon hearing the command, the other off-road vehicles also started making U-turns.
Having already been routed once by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, they had just managed to regroup, and the order sent them into a panic as they turned around in a disorganized fashion.
······
It was at that mont that the ambushers stationed near the passageway entrance spotted the retreating vehicles.
“Priest, there are vehicles trying to flee over there.
Could they be heretics’ reinforcents?
Have they discovered us?”
Soone in the crowd shouted.
“Send a car after them.
Stop them and see what they’re up to,”
Another voice replied from within the crowd.
Suddenly, a car started up and chased after the vehicles that had turned around.
…
“Sir, there’s a car coming up behind us.”
The man in the passenger seat glanced behind and called out to Bayert in the back.
“Fire,”
Bayert turned to look back, his expression turning cold, “Fire imdiately, hit them hard.
Do we have bombs?
Stop that car and buy ti for everyone else.”
If he lost any more n here, he could kiss his position as a priest goodbye.
Sowhere within the convoy, soone activated a self-destructing mini drone, which, with a ‘swoosh’, attached itself under the chassis of the pursuing vehicle.
Boom—
A massive explosion followed, raging flas catapulting the pursuer into the sky.
Dazzling firelight enveloped the entire street.
In that instant, vehicles previously hidden nearby sprung to life, unhesitatingly rushing towards the backpedaling convoy.
“Ah!!!”
Those who had stepped out of the bar scrambled back in panic.
Rapid gunfire erupted like a relentless beat, with hot bullets pouring down like a torrential rain on the nightti streets.
anwhile, an off-road vehicle that had previously co to a halt, carrying ‘Swinte’, started up amidst the chaos and darted into a small alley nearby.
Another thunderous explosion rang out; this ti, the assailants outside the Withered Tree Bar used a self-destructing drone to flip one of the vehicles in the convoy.
At that mont, atop a neighboring low-rise building, He Ao lay at the edge of the rooftop parapet, watching the flas shoot up into the sky.
The Eternal Secret Teachings’ people are really hot-tempered, how could they just start fighting like that.
He had been ready to ‘encourage a bit of friendship’ between the two sides, but now it seed unnecessary.
He shook his head.
The church’s people really can’t control their emotions.
He then raised his wristband and glanced at his mailbox.
At this mont, a new email account had sent him a ssage titled ‘Heretic Sect Cathedral’.
The email briefly provided the location of the Cathedral of the Eternal Secret Teachings, then specifically warned He Ao that there were many priests from the Eternal Secret Teachings guarding it and advised him not to act rashly.
They also had plans to attack the cathedral and suggested a joint operation when the ti ca.
He Ao skipped over this suggestion.
He didn’t reply directly to the ssage, and when he received a follow-up ssage pressing for a response, he ignored it as well.
Not until this mont, seemingly in response to the gunfire outside, did another email co through.
This ssage was a supplent to the previous one, with straightforward content:
The sender stated that they had never entered the Cathedral of the Eternal Secret Teachings but had heard that the cathedral was not rely a part of the surface world; it seed related to the Eternal Divine Nation and could only be accessed through special ans.
Only high-ranking priests knew of this thod, and the sender proposed they could cooperate with He Ao to capture a high-ranking priest and extract the information.
Furthermore, they reiterated that a large number of guards surrounded the cathedral, and unless they mounted a large-scale assault, it was impregnable; they could ‘cooperate’ with He Ao.
At the end of the email, the sender finally inquired, [There seems to be gunfire outside, what’s happening?]
Corners driven, the sender finally decided to release the information they had been withholding.
This ti, He Ao replied, [You’ve been surrounded by the Eternal Secret Teachings.]
Then he put down his wristband, turned, and took a running leap.
Amidst the roaring explosions, he vaulted across the sky, landing on the rooftop of another low-rise building nearby.
He glanced back at the chaotic streets.
In his mory, the sight of his parents falling in a pool of blood amid rapid gunfire overlaid his vision.
He turned around, his line of sight briefly sweeping over a hidden cara in the corner of the alley across the street as he did so.
Then he turned back, leaping down from the back of the building.
—
In the dilapidated building, Levins looked to the young man beside him, “What’s the situation?”
“It seems heretic faithfuls have been discovered in the east.
They were initially planning to approach the Withered Tree Bar, possibly to support the heretics within, but they encountered our n and opted to flee.
They possess fierce firepower, and their gear is much like ours.
The eastern squad is currently in pursuit,” the young man imdiately replied, “Sir, the heretics inside the bar might have also received intelligence, and,” he paused for a mont, “Our intelligent devices seem to have captured the image of a child, who is still nearby, but we’re not sure if it’s the child from the files.
If it is him, the Transcendent forces posing as ‘him’ might also be near.
Sir, should we call for backup?”
“No need,”
Levins said calmly, “Block all the entrances and exits of the bar, keep an eye on all windows, seal off all the surrounding passages, then activate the third layer of blockade, aim the auto-targeting guns towards the sky, and activate the signal jamming device.”
“And the child…”
The youth said softly.
“Send the child’s location,”
He raised his hand slightly, and with a sharp buzzing sound, an invisible radiance pierced through the void.
In that instant, fine cracks spread across the ground, pillars, and the surface of the building.
Pop pop pop—
All the other intact glass within the building shattered in an instant, turning into shards in the night.
He turned and walked towards the stairwell, his cold voice echoing through the space,
“No one can escape from .”
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