Chapter 95: Chapter 29: Upper Rank Taboo [Ti Zone Alarm Clock]
He also realized sothing big had happened and followed Vice Bishop Uriah to the side.
At this mont, in the center of the spacious inner hall stood an ordinary rectangular ceremonial table.
A headless body stood there.
Blood flowed in silence.
On the table, next to a rustling alarm clock, was a head.
A head still frozen in the smile it wore before death.
Uriah recognized the owner of the head.
It was Drew Miller, the Vice Bishop in charge of security at the Golden Palm Beach Club.
Just that morning, he had been laughing and joking with the man.
Now, he was on the table.
RUSTLE!
RUSTLE!
The anxious Francis stole a couple of glances at the alarm clock that was making the strange noise.
It had an antiquated design with a twin-bell alarm, a classic style from perhaps forty or fifty years ago.
Its iron casing was flecked with spots of rust.
The peculiar rustling seed to echo deep within his soul.
The longer he looked, the paler his face beca.
’An Upper Rank Level Forbidden Sealed Object... the [Ti Zone Alarm Clock].’
This was one of the Holy Fierce Sun Church’s most terrifying Forbidden Sealed Objects in Ogrande City.
And now, this [Ti Zone Alarm Clock] was sitting right here with them.
If it had simply been placed here and fallen into their hands, it would have undoubtedly been a great victory.
But the problem was, the [Ti Zone Alarm Clock] was currently active.
This ant it wasn’t that the [Ti Zone Alarm Clock] had fallen into their hands.
Instead, it ant they had fallen into an encirclent by the Holy Fierce Sun Church.
An active [Ti Zone Alarm Clock] had a completely different aning than an inactive one.
The incessant rustling was like the whisper of Death, urging its approach.
Every second felt like it was gnawing away at their souls.
Ti ticked by, second by second.
When a specific ti was reached, everyone turned in unison to look at the ceremonial table and at the man sitting behind it. He wore a black trench coat and a fedora hat with its brim pulled down low, and his shoulders were very broad.
Originally, the seat occupied by this mysterious man should have belonged to Lord Bishop Yula Defoe, the Level 7 Holy Light Priestess who served as the Bishop of Ogrande City.
But now, Bishop Yula Defoe stood to the side, her expression exceedingly respectful.
For the Lord Bishop of Ogrande City to show such deference, the man could only be one of the three Cardinals of the Sun Secret Cult.
As for which Cardinal it was, they didn’t know, nor were they qualified to know.
The other seven or eight Vice Bishops, who were in charge of various districts in Ogrande City, and the core Transcendent trainees all focused their gazes on him.
As all eyes converged on him, the man in the fedora hat spoke, his voice low and sowhat hoarse.
"This is the Holy Fierce Sun Church’s highest-tier Sealed Object, the [Ti Zone Alarm Clock]."
His tone was relaxed, and everyone could clearly hear the words he spoke.
"Before this Forbidden Sealed Object is used, it must be left in place for a period. During this ti, it tightens ti, continuously collecting and compressing tilines."
The man in the dark fedora hat slowly explained.
"When a specific point is reached, it begins to release the compressed ti, forming a unique tiline—one that is perfectly out of sync with the outside world."
"We might feel ti passing normally."
"We might see that the world outside looks perfectly fine."
"But in reality, we are rely acting within the ti released by this [Ti Zone Alarm Clock]."
"The tiline we are in now is one that has been controlled, one that has been altered."
"And as a result... we know nothing about the outside world."
"When the alarm rings, we will arrive at a predetermined point in ti."
"We will face the true tiline—one where we are completely surrounded by the enemy."
"Normally, before a eting, a Vice Bishop is required to conduct a sweep of the entire area."
"To ensure the council’s safety."
"But due to soone’s negligence, who thought that since we’ve held many gatherings here before, there would be no danger..."
"And because the enemy was indeed well-prepared."
"This led to..."
The man looked up.
His eyebrows were heavy, his skin weathered and rough from years of exposure to the elents. Combined with his broad shoulders, his coarse, solid features made him look exceptionally sturdy. Just sitting there, he was like a mountain.
"We completed our gathering here like clowns, toyed with by the enemy."
"Of course, he has already paid the price for it!"
The head on the ceremonial table still wore a smile.
The man’s explanation sent a growing tremor of fear through their hearts.
The enemy had them completely surrounded, and they knew nothing.
The man in the fedora rose and walked over to the window.
He narrowed his eyes, ticulously studying the world outside.
The more he saw through the false illusion, the crueler the truth appeared.
He took a deep breath.
The man in the fedora turned around and looked at the core mbers of the Sun Church gathered in the room.
"They knew long ago that we would be gathering here and made arrangents in advance."
"Although the Prophet predicted we would succeed..."
"But... it now seems that this is clearly not that ti!"
"Of course!"
The man in the fedora paused.
"The problems that have occurred so far are not the real problem!"
"The real problem is... how did they know about our plan?"
"This was supposed to be an ordinary Extraordinary Club gathering. No one should have known this was a eting point for the Sun Church."
"The power of Transcendents is flourishing in Ogrande City, and many such Extraordinary Clubs have appeared."
"Even if they did know, they certainly wouldn’t have mobilized such a large force to set this trap."
"But the reality is, they used their top-tier forces to surround this place."
"Not only the [Ti Zone Alarm Clock], but other terrifying powers as well."
"It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say they’ve sent everyone they have."
"Clearly, they know that the great ritual of the [Crying Blood Sun] is about to be unleashed in Ogrande City."
"If that’s the case, then it ans one of you must have leaked this crucial, classified information!"
"To be able to pass on such vital intelligence while under the gaze of the great Sun... you are very resourceful!"
The man in the fedora’s nearly tangible gaze swept over each person one by one.
Every single one of them trembled, so more than others.
"And that... is what I admire most."
"You successfully passed on the information, and we were completely oblivious."
"Once you’re at the card table, you have to be willing to accept your losses, don’t you?"
As soon as he said this, all the Transcendents in the room beca even more terrified.
The [Crying Blood Sun] was one of their Sun Secret Cult’s greatest rituals.
It was the very plan the Prophet had affird would succeed.
It was the beginning of their Sun Church’s official step into the light.
Since they were going to lose this ti, there were bound to be stakes to pay.
And they were, most likely, the stakes that were about to be lost.
But then, the man in the fedora’s next words sent huge waves crashing through their hearts once more.
"But I don’t like to just admit defeat!"
"At the very least, I can still avoid losing so much!"
"There’s an informant among you, isn’t there?"
"So you have ten minutes to prove your innocence!"
"Otherwise... this table has room for all of you!"
Reviews
All reviews (0)