Count Carlo had observed this kid Ansu for several days. He was both satisfied and rather dissatisfied.
His feelings were complicated.
What satisfied him was that this kid Ansu had finally begun staying out all night. Every day, he fooled around with the maid until dawn before coming home. At this rate, Count Carlo figured the day he held his grandchild would not be far off.
Count Carlo had even specifically asked Enya about it, asking what this kid did every night. The answer he received was:
'Bad things Young Master Ansu told me not to talk about.'
Count Carlo then had a fairly good idea of what was going on. He understood most of it and revealed a gratified smile.
What dissatisfied him, however, was that as soon as this kid got home and took a bath, he would go study. After messing around like that every night, his speed and efficiency at solving problems had somehow become even faster.
Was this kid's energy limitless?
He even looked better after coming back from his nightly escapades, growing more radiant by the day, his physique becoming stronger and stronger—wasn't it usually women who became more energetic and rosy-faced the more they did it?
Why was it the other way around with his own son? Could it be this kid had simply been born extraordinarily gifted?
It was truly beyond comprehension.
If not for the sake of his pride, he might even have wanted to ask his own son for some advice.
Past middle age, many things had begun to feel beyond his strength.
At that thought, Count Carlo put down his newspaper and glanced sideways at his son, who was eating at the dining table.
Ansu was enjoying a serving of caviar. He gently scooped up a spoonful and spread it evenly over freshly baked cranberry bread.
Sunlight filtered through the blinds, slanting across Ansu's body. His pure white shirt revealed the smooth skin beneath it, along with the faint outlines of his physique.
Despite not returning home all night, Ansu was remarkably energetic.
Over the past few days, he had gradually adapted to the Mother Goddess of Life's painful blessing.
It hurt, but it was refreshing. Painful yet pleasurable—when it hurt, it truly cleared his head and woke him up.
However, during these recent sacrifices, he had not seen the same blood-sea illusion as last time.
That was rather strange.
In just one week, Ansu had already wiped out three small Esoteric Cultist hideouts.
He had sacrificed a total of forty First-tier Esoteric Cultists and two Second-tier Priests. With the experience bonus from the "The Newborn" title, he had gained a total of twenty Life Points.
In terms of achievements alone, he was a genuine little pioneer in cracking down on evil.
He spent ten points to exchange for the Gift of the Mother Goddess of Life he had long wanted, then used Name Change Magic to remove the three words "Mother Goddess of Life." He spent the remaining ten Life Points entirely on strengthening his body.
His whole body felt more vigorous.
His waist no longer ached, his legs no longer hurt, and he no longer got out of breath from walking.
He was positively glowing.
Ansu felt that if he continued lavishly pouring Life Points into himself like this, he would eventually develop Warrior Talent.
He had also discovered another benefit. Aside from the improvement to his physical qualities, his memory and reaction speed had increased as well.
This was especially obvious when reading and studying. Knowledge that originally took a week to master could now be memorized in a single day.
For next week's Church written examination, Ansu had originally expected that merely passing would be enough. Now, he felt he could make a push for honors.
Reading during the day, sacrificing at night—a Sacrifice Style top student of the New Era.
The Dark Element Magic "Gift of the Gods," paired with the Holy Light element magic "All Things Grow" he had obtained earlier, could summon a Void creature from inside an enemy's stomach, where it would survive for one minute—this was the first trump card of the Ansu Style.
But he could not use this combination casually. First, it was quite destructive; second, it consumed too much mana. Therefore, he still needed to prepare some Magic Books for everyday situations.
And on the Church's side, he had received quite a few rewards as well.
Forty first-tier cultists and two second-tier ones were equivalent to half a month's achievements for a squad of holy disciples.
That came to fifteen Faith Points. Together with the five points he had saved over the previous days, he had twenty points in total, enough to raise his mana by two points.
That meant he would have six mana points.
Two casts of All Things Grow cost four mana points, while Gift of the Gods cost two, making six in total.
He had just barely reached the casting threshold.
But for Ansu, six mana points were nowhere near enough to unleash the Light-Dark Priest School of Thought's potential.
Becoming a Tier 2 Mage was the safer option.
The minimum requirement was ten Magic Points.
And on the Mother Goddess's side, he still had several important Magic Books to obtain.
Only with those preparations could he pass all the Church's tests a week from now without fail.
So far, the number of Esoteric Cultists he had sacrificed was still insufficient, and their quality was not high enough.
He had to step things up.
Level up faster and better.
Waiting for Esoteric Cultists to come kidnap him on their own was simply too slow and inefficient.
It also lacked the most important quality of Chinese players: initiative.
At the same time, perhaps the nearby Esoteric Cultists had caught wind of something, or perhaps they had perceived that all the accomplices who kidnapped Ansu had mysteriously died. Having heard these terrifying rumors, they gradually began to wait and see.
The Esoteric Cultists were not fools. They had vaguely realized that Ansu was fishing.
Over the past three days, only one fool had come to kidnap Ansu.
Since those Esoteric Cultists would not take the bait, and the fish would not come to him, he would go find the fish himself.
The blood moon was approaching. It was time to enter the plan's second stage.
The Day of the Blood Moon was also the Mother Goddess's birthday. Sacrificial effects increased by thirty percent for three days.
That was why many Esoteric Cultists concentrated their sacrifices during the blood moon. The reason Ansu had not taken the initiative to strike these past days was that he had been waiting for the Day of the Blood Moon to arrive.
Ansu was going to sacrifice Esoteric Cultists more efficiently, more industrially, more systematically, and more like an assembly line.
Compared to traditional Church witch hunts, Ansu possessed the Information Advantage of a new industry and could apply the advanced thinking of a New Era transmigrator. This was the enterprising spirit the Church lacked.
Put simply, he clearly remembered the Esoteric Cultist hideouts around the Border City. Give him a map, and he could mark every single hideout.
After all, in his previous life, he had been a top player on the Seventeenth Cycle. He naturally knew the monster spawn locations in the beginner village by heart.
Memorizing monster spawn locations was a basic skill for a Speedrun Player.
And that was Ansu's greatest advantage.
In ordinary Church witch hunts, investigating an Esoteric Cultist base often required more manpower and resources than the actual hunt, and took far longer as well. After all, Esoteric Cultists were simply too good at hiding.
Having made up his mind, Ansu quickly came up with the next step of his plan.
He wolfed down the bread, wiped his mouth with a handkerchief, then stood up. Taking his coat from Enya, he said to his Father, "I'm leaving first."
He was about to hurry out the door.
Count Carlo stared at Ansu with a complicated expression, then glanced at Enya. His thoughts were unsettled. His mouth opened and closed, and only after seeming to hesitate for a long time did he slowly say,
"Take care of yourself. Young people should still know moderation."
Ansu had no idea what his Father was talking about.
He found it utterly baffling.
Moderation?
Moderation in what?
What was there to moderate about leveling up?
He subconsciously glanced at Enya, suspecting that Miss Maid had filled his Father's head with some strange nonsense.
But the Maid had turned her face aside, her gaze fixed on the Wutong Tree outside the window. She pressed her lips together lightly, as though deliberately pretending not to notice Ansu's gaze.
Warm, clear sunlight passed through her thin pleated skirt. Her fine, smooth black hair, like lead, drifted through the air, tangled together with the light.
Her delicate profile reflected in the window, as though it had been carefully painted there by the sunlight.
"Let's go." Ansu gave up thinking about it and said to her, "It's time to go to the Church and pray."
Before you continue