A wave of six-limbed creatures flowed past Lu Li, rushing toward Trio Street.
The chaos on the street intensified. High above, several night demons descended through the clouds, closing in on the town.
A six-ard monster knelt before Lu Li, holding out an object on its open palms as if presenting a priceless treasure.
The statuette of the Mother of the Swamp flickered, veiled in a hazy glow. A whisper echoed in Lu Li's mind: "I have always watched you... Take this... Do not reject my power..."
Lu Li found himself in the sa predicant as Tristan.
And it seed he had no choice.
At any mont, the six-ard monsters could turn on him at the Mother of the Swamp's command.
Lu Li silently reached out. The counter on his wrist began to click faster and faster as his hand neared the statuette.
A ghostly, pale hand gripped his forearm. Anna shook her head, her crimson eyes flickering with alarm.
Lu Li didn't change his mind, but Anna's warning made him pause. He pulled his hand back for a mont, unfastened his holster, and drew his second Spirit Gun. He handed it to Anna, then, as if scooping a piece of at from a bowl of soup, he used the empty holster to pick up the statuette of the Mother of the Swamp, avoiding direct contact.
The holster was covered in protective runes ant to block ntal influence. It might not have prevented the Mother of the Swamp from maintaining her connection to the statuette, but the counter stopped its frantic clicking and fell silent.
The six-ard monster that had presented the statuette straightened up and scurried toward Trio Street, where the battle raged on.
"We need to go," Lu Li said, approaching the stunned JoJo and Frank.
The Mother of the Swamp could change her mind at any mont.
Or perhaps she already had.
An inexplicable aura emanated from the statuette in the holster. The counter began to accelerate again, emitting a rapid series of clicks.
A ringing filled Lu Li's ears, and snowflakes of static appeared before his eyes. They flickered at the edges of his vision, gradually drifting toward the center.
Lu Li ignored it. Rejoining JoJo and Frank, he quickly made his way toward the church.
The static grew denser, and alien mories began to surface in his mind: flashes of death, prayer, and worship. It felt as if so entity was trying to force its way into his consciousness, to seize control of his thoughts.
Anna imdiately noticed Lu Li falter and steadied him. Her form dissolved as she shifted into the In-Between.
JoJo and Frank gave Lu Li a worried look.
"I'm fine."
Lu Li was already accustod to the hallucinations and delirium caused by a low Mind Level. The Mother of the Swamp's influence was unsettling, but not critical.
Moreover, the fragnts of alien mories were helping him gather intelligence on the Mother of the Swamp.
For instance, one scene repeated more than any other: a gigantic banyan tree blotted out the sky, and beneath it, countless six-ard monsters bowed in worship. Vague human shapes could be seen in the distance, and other banyans grew around the clearing.
A dark opening was visible in the trunk of the central tree, radiating a sinister aura.
With Anna's help, Lu Li made it to the church cetery.
The church's peeling stone walls and the rusted bell on its roof were silent testants to its age, but that was all.
Tenebrae had almost no survivors left, and it faced the sa fate as so many other settlents: abandonnt, decay, and eventual absorption by the darkness.
Sooner or later, the church would fall into ruin and collapse, but for now, it remained one of the sturdiest and safest buildings in town.
Gravestones surrounded the church. As they walked along the path, JoJo suddenly noticed Lu Li veer off toward a trash bin by the church wall and toss the holster—along with the Mother of the Swamp's statuette—inside.
The static before his eyes dissipated, and the whispers in his head faded the mont he was away from the statuette.
The Mind Level counter settled, its clicking finally ceasing.
Anna, however, did not release his arm, supporting him as they walked up the path to the main entrance.
JoJo pushed the door, but it wouldn't budge, as if it had fused with the wall.
Anna waved her hand, and a dull thud sounded from behind the door. JoJo pushed again, and this ti it creaked open.
A stale, damp draft carrying a hint of rot and the faint scent of blood wafted from the opening.
JoJo stepped back, shielding her eyes from the dust that billowed out. Lu Li moved forward and squeezed sideways through the gap.
A blood-red light filtered through the broken windows, illuminating the church's dilapidated interior.
Behind the door lay overturned pews and the body of a night demon.
The demon's body was riddled with wounds, impaled with pickaxes and pitchforks. Lu Li scanned the church before his gaze settled on the far wall.
The stained-glass window was completely shattered, and the wreckage of a pulpit lay scattered beneath it.
A vision flashed through Lu Li's mind: a night demon bursting through the stained-glass window. People scattering in panic, the n grabbing whatever weapons they could find and fighting back, eventually killing the creature.
It was impossible to know how many people had died, as there were no other bodies in the church. The blood-red light and the red carpet concealed any traces of blood.
"The draft is coming from there," JoJo said, pointing to an open hatch near the pulpit that led to a cellar.
The stone door to the cellar, camouflaged to match the wall's stonework, was wide open.
It seed they wouldn't need to ask Frank where the cellar entrance was after all.
Frank, the last to enter, pulled the door shut behind him. Through the crack, he could see the battle on Trio Street still raging. The groan of the closing door muffled the screams and roars from outside.
JoJo and Frank dragged so pews against the door, then rejoined Lu Li and crossed the empty church to the cellar entrance.
A cold, damp air rose from the cellar, slling of mildew and blood.
But sothing else caught their attention.
"There's a light..." Frank whispered in disbelief, a flicker of extinguished hope rekindling in his heart.
The stairs leading down were lost in shadow, but far below, around a bend, flickered the faint light of an oil lamp.
Maybe soone had survived in the church cellar!
Frank thought, looking expectantly at Lu Li.
"I'll check," Anna said quietly. She vanished for a mont before reappearing. "There's no danger. And no survivors."
Frank's hope died.
Lu Li took out his flashlight, switched it on, and was the first to descend into the cellar.
JoJo and Frank followed him in silence.
As they descended, the light from below grew brighter. Despite Anna's words, Frank still clung to a fragile sliver of hope.
That hope was finally shattered when he reached the landing.
Across from the stairs, a bookshelf had been pushed aside, revealing a dark passage. A damp draft, carrying the scent of the Shadow Swamp, wafted out of it.
An oil lamp sat on a small table near the stairs, its fla flickering weakly, on the verge of burning out.
The floor and walls were spattered with dried blood.
Other than them, the cellar was empty.
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