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Backlund, at the intersection of Hillston Borough and Empress Borough.
Alger Wilson walked out of the Backlund Bank with a slight ache in his heart. After much deliberation, he decided to sell a Beyonder ingredient he had collected. With his original savings, he had a total of 300 pounds, which he deposited into the anonymous account Mr. Fool had previously provided.
This afternoon was the Tarot Club meeting for the week. Although he felt that Mr. Fool probably wouldn't bother with such a small matter, having already obtained the Wind-Blessed potion formula, he still felt he should be more proactive.
Just then, a commotion came from the more prosperous Empress Borough. Alger turned his head in surprise, his eyes flickering. He pulled down his hat brim and quickly headed towards the source of the chaos.
Qilangos, fully utilizing his Wind-Blessed abilities, passed through the woods and over the artificial lake with the favor of the wind, shaking off his pursuers.
"Once the news spreads, my reputation will spread throughout the Northern and Southern Continents, surpassing the 'Four Kings.' After obtaining the Blasphemy Slate promised by that organization, I might soon become a true demigod..."
The smile on his face was uncontrollable. He looked around, intending to create the illusion of escaping by submerging into the Tussock River through the drainage ditch, then turning to run into Backlund's economic center, Hillston Borough.
By the time the official organizations reacted, he, disguised as a Faceless, would have already swaggered out of Backlund.
Just as he was feeling smug, his vision suddenly blurred, and the various colors in the Darkness became unusually vivid.
The greenish-blue trees became even greener, the bright red fruits became even redder, and the deep blue water became even more profound. Everything was like a canvas splashed with oil paint.
The clear and bright sky suddenly revealed countless transparent shadows of indescribable forms, with clear, different-colored glows containing mysterious knowledge.
Qilangos found himself paused, floating in mid-air. Beneath his feet was a constantly rising dark water surface, and beneath the water surface, pale hands were reaching out.
"Damn it!" Qilangos realized he had fallen into an ambush, and the ambusher's strength was definitely not low!
A giant humanoid skeleton suddenly appeared before his eyes. This Monster was four meters tall, with pitch-black flames burning in its eye sockets, and its white bones were ethereal and hazy.
Qilangos gazed at his enemy emotionlessly, a cold smile playing on his lips.
At the same time, the glove on his left palm burst into brilliant light, appearing as if made of pure gold.
Qilangos leaned back, arms spread, as if embracing the Sun.
A pure, blazing light suddenly descended from the sky, enveloping the giant skeleton. The entire painting-like world vibrated violently, and the pale hands beneath the dark water surface evaporated one by one.
This was the Beyonder ability of a Priest of Light!
This was a Sequence 5 Beyonder ability of the Sun Pathway!
This was the bane of the undead!
The brilliant pillar of light dissipated. The giant skeleton's pitch-black flames in its eye sockets instantly extinguished, then it became transparent, dissipating inch by inch into the air.
Before Qilangos could use the Priest of Light's ability again to break the painting-like world, his expression froze.
He saw another giant skeleton appear to his left, nearly four meters tall, with black flames burning in its eye sockets, exactly like the Monster from before.
Immediately after, similar skeletal Monsters appeared one after another around Qilangos—one, two, three... a total of over a hundred!
Those hundreds of pairs of eyes burning with pitch-black flames simultaneously focused on their target.
And below, the dark water surface was rising higher and higher, almost touching Qilangos's feet.
Pale, ethereal hands grew out again, constantly waving upwards, trying to grasp at a lifeline.
-----------------
Alger, who had rushed quickly from Hillston Borough, suddenly stopped. His eyes reflected the cold lake surface of the clear blue sky, revealing a tall figure near the waterline.
This figure had a distinctive wide chin, brown hair tied into an ancient warrior's topknot at the back of his head, and dark green eyes that were cold yet empty.
"Vice Admiral Hurricane" Qilangos!
Alger was first stunned, then both shocked and delighted, barely believing his eyes and suspecting he was hallucinating.
Before he could react further, he suddenly saw Qilangos's face rapidly decay, rotting until yellowish-green pus flowed, until flesh fell off piece by piece.
Crack! Crack! Crack!
Only white bones remained of Qilangos's face. His two empty eye sockets detached from their hollows, smashing onto the ground by the lake almost simultaneously.
Amidst cracking sounds, Qilangos completely fell apart. His clothes lay on top, covering the rotting flesh and pale white bones, concealing the shimmering light.
In less than twenty seconds, Qilangos, one of the seven Pirate admirals, died so bizarrely before Alger's eyes.
This horrifying scene was deeply imprinted in Alger's mind, making him suspect he was in a terrifying Nightmare.
What happened?
He was a Sequence 6 Wind-Blessed! He was the master of "Creeping Hunger"!
Who did it? Why kill Qilangos...?
Just as countless thoughts uncontrollably flashed through Alger's mind, a strong gust of wind blew past.
An old man wearing a black soft hat and a black robe embroidered with storm symbols, with unusually serious silver eyes, flew in at high speed. He was the Church of the Lord of Storms's Cardinal Archbishop, the Archbishop of the Backlund Diocese, "God of Songs" Ace Snake.
Forcibly reining in his thoughts, Alger revealed his identity and quickly approached the Punishers who were gathering around. He also learned about Duke Negan's assassination.
His body trembling slightly, Alger quickly speculated in his mind who had killed "Vice Admiral Hurricane" Qilangos:
Was it the person or organization who commissioned Qilangos to assassinate Duke Negan?
Was this a case of discarding the donkey after crossing the river?
Unable to confirm his thoughts, he immediately prayed silently to Mr. Fool, but to his surprise, he received no response.
Mr. Fool...
Alger was startled, thinking of a possibility:
The one who acted might be Mr. Fool's Blessed!
He happened to be in Backlund, so he "happened" to help!
Only if Mr. Fool's Blessed acted would it make the matter seem strange and lacking clear purpose!
As his mind wandered, Archbishop Snake was silent for a moment, then said to the other Punishers who were gradually gathering:
"Qilangos is dead. A High-Sequence Beyonder killed him, or perhaps a Sealed Artifact of the same rank was used, but that's quite dangerous and unlikely."
"After initial observation, I believe it was a High-Sequence Beyonder from the Death Pathway, perhaps a member of the Numinous Episcopate, but not the one I know, or possibly a member of another hidden organization."
"The motive is unknown."
"Immediately report this to the Church of Evernight and the Church of the God of Steam and Machinery, and cooperate with the Royal Family for a thorough investigation!"
A High-Sequence Beyonder wandering in Backlund who was not under control was enough to draw the attention of the Kingdom's government and the three major Churches!
Although Beyonders of Sequence 4 and Sequence 3 might not be able to withstand the bombardment of battleships and cannons, they had no need for direct confrontation. They possessed too many bizarre abilities.
Therefore, they were more dangerous than ironclads, as could be seen from the title "demigod" alone!
High-Sequence Beyonder... Yes, only a High-Sequence Beyonder could kill Qilangos in such a short time!
Could it be that one of Mr. Fool's Favored is already a High-Sequence Beyonder...? This is a "demigod"!
Alger, standing on the outermost edge of the Punishers, looked again at the pile of rotten flesh and white bones. His entire state was very detached, as if he had lost all emotions, staring blankly at everything.
If one day, I betray Mr. Fool...
He suddenly had this thought.
Immediately, the horrifying image of Qilangos rapidly decaying flashed in his mind.
Alger involuntarily shivered and lowered his head.
At the same time, he also relaxed.
Since he couldn't escape and it was difficult to resist, he could only choose loyalty.
However, with Qilangos dead, no one would threaten him with that secret anymore!
He let out a sigh, completely settling down.
......
Backlund North Borough, inside a hotel.
Azik, with bronzed skin and a mole near his ear, sat at a desk, gazing at a glove placed before him.
The glove was very thin, as if made of human skin, seeming as though it could transform back into a hand if filled with flesh and blood.
Azik looked for a long time, then suddenly showed a pained and distorted expression, muttering softly:
"I seem, I seem to have cooperated with them..."
Space rippled, and a skeletal messenger, with half its body already gone and a rather miserable appearance, suddenly appeared. A tattered letter drifted down with it.
-----------------
Tingen City, Blackthorn Security Company.
A grey-blue "Gate of Exile" with seven brass keyholes opened. Dunn Smith, still unconscious, was lifted by an invisible force and disappeared into the ethereal Door.
Looking at Klein, who was thoroughly dead, Aaron casually said:
"This incident caused too much of a stir. Amon's gaze must have already turned here. After the matter in Tingen is over, I will recommend Leonard to join the Red Gloves as soon as possible and leave Tingen for Backlund."
Pallez's voice did not sound again, implicitly agreeing to this arrangement.
Looking at the ruins everywhere with burn marks and shattered objects, Aaron held the "Evil God Umbilical Cord" and dispelled the "Judgement Domain," seeing the Punishers and Machinery Hivemind members lined up on the street, ready for action.
The skeletal cathedral above Tingen City, invisible to the naked eye, had disappeared at some unknown time. A deep, thin line cut across the sky and transformed into Anthony Stevenson, wearing a black and red archbishop's robe, in front of Aaron.
Although a little surprised that the Archbishop had come personally, he still nodded in greeting. Facing those deep eyes, Aaron raised the "Evil God Umbilical Cord" in his hand and explained:
"Ince Zangwill escaped using 0-08. Although that Evil God's offspring was dealt with by me, Saint Selena's ashes were still stolen!"
Looking at the ruins and the two Nighthawks who had lost their lives, Anthony Stevenson's expression was gloomy. After a long silence, he said word by word:
"Ince Zangwill..."
-----------------
2 Narcissus Street, Melissa sat in the single armchair, looking at the sunset appearing outside the window, feeling inexplicably irritable.
Since it was Wednesday, Benson and Klein both had to work, so only she and the maid Bella were home.
Suddenly, she heard the doorbell ring, ding-dong, ding-dong.
Looking at the clock on the wall, Melissa, thinking Klein had returned, hurried to the Door. After opening it, she was stunned, as she did not recognize the visitor.
It was a young man with dark hair and green eyes, quite handsome, but his face was unusually pale, and his eyes held deep sadness.
"May I ask who you are?" Melissa asked confusedly.
Leonard, who had been treated by ritual magic, wore a black formal suit over his white shirt. Hearing her, he replied in a hoarse voice:
"I am your brother Klein's colleague."
Melissa's heart suddenly skipped a beat. Instinctively, she stood on tiptoe and looked behind Leonard, but found nothing.
Her voice trembling inexplicably, she asked:
"Where's Klein?"
Leonard closed his eyes for a moment, then took a breath and said:
"I'm very sorry, your brother Klein died at the hands of a vicious criminal while trying to save some people. He was a hero, a true hero."
Melissa fell to the ground, her eyes somewhat vacant, listening to Leonard recount the Sequence of events.
Ever since she was kidnapped by the Tuxedo Clown last time, she had already guessed some things about Beyonders and knew that Klein's job was by no means just the security company on the surface.
After a long silence, as if she had made a decision, Melissa spoke slowly in a hoarse voice:
"I want to know who the murderer who killed Klein is! I want to become a person like him!"
Just then, a voice came, immediately attracting Melissa's and Leonard's attention:
"I can fulfill your request, but once you embark on this Pathway, there's no turning back!"
"I can give you some time to consider. Make your decision before I leave Tingen."
Following the gaze, Melissa saw Duke Aaron, whom she had met once before.
Putting down the slightly strange mechanical construct in his hand, Aaron, who had Spirit World teleported here, turned to look at the stubborn Melissa. He pointed to a palm-sized wooden box that had appeared on the desk and said with a smile:
"However, it seems you've already made up your mind. Inside here are your brother's Relics, which can help you on this Pathway!"
Without giving Leonard another chance to speak, Aaron grabbed his shoulder, and their figures instantly disappeared.
Melissa stumbled to the desk, holding back tears, and tremblingly opened the wooden box. Inside lay a blood-stained light blue brooch, and beneath the brooch was a piece of parchment.
Trembling slightly, she picked up the parchment. Melissa saw that the front was a Sequence 9 Savant potion formula, and the back simply had a passage written on it:
"The Fool not belonging to this era."
"The mysterious ruler above the gray fog."
"The King of Yellow and Black who controls luck."
-----------------
Deepest within Saint Selena Cathedral, Dunn sat up, looking somewhat bewildered at the Evernight Sacred Emblem hanging on the wall.
His memory was still fixated on the hand that pierced Klein's chest. After that, it was as if he had entered an endless Nightmare.
"I, I'm still alive...."
He instinctively lowered his head, unbuttoned his clothes, and looked at his left chest. The gruesome wound and missing heart were now completely intact.
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