A Night Full of Wonders

When Cheng Shi appeared next to Mo Shu's body, Tullatin had already left.

For some reason, he took off his clothes, so when Cheng Shi used the Dice he had stuffed in his pocket to chase after him, he couldn't find him, but instead saw the corpse of a Cleaner.

Of course, to be precise, he is no longer Cleaner, but a pile of flesh and blood that has lost its identity.

Mo Shu's clone did indeed die, succumbing to Zhang Jizu's Scalpel, while his physical embodiment died at the hands of Tullatin.

My actions backfired and killed him, but it seems... I haven't left any karmic consequences?

But that's not actually the case, because Mo Shu wouldn't care who ultimately killed him; he would only remember who stabbed him in the first, inevitable blow.

Thinking about this, Cheng Shi clicked his tongue in annoyance. He had provoked a master for nothing by using a Clown Substitute; it was a bit of a loss.

That the Great One was right; Greed is indeed a path to death...

Now, I can only hope that after the Trials, my Lord of Grace will reward me more for my hard work in helping Him recover His gifts, to make up for my "emotional trauma".

"It looks like it's heading in the direction of the church!"

Cheng Shi glanced at the footprints on the ground, hastily buried "Mo Shu" in the soil, and then quickly chased after it.

He had a way to return directly to the church, but he carefully followed Tullatin's footsteps so that he wouldn't encounter any accidents on the way back.

Now that the "greatest threat" in the Trials has been eliminated, as long as the Tullatin is rescued, the rest should be a pleasant speedrun!

There shouldn't be any surprises...

Bar?

Let's rewind a little, back to the moment when Cheng Shi and Mo Shu first clashed.

Divine Nurturing Church.

For the church staff, there were too many unexpected events tonight. First, the Church Leader's Son was kidnapped without cause. Then, various blasphemous rumors suddenly spread in the church. Next, a fire burned down the Evil Infant Tribunal, and a thunderbolt destroyed a house in the city.

This series of events shattered the tranquility of Dolgo D, adding a touch of unease to the deep darkness of the night.

The head priest Berios, stood in front of the assembly hall, gazing solemnly into the direction where the thunder still echoed.

He had already heard the worst news from the believers. Many people outside were saying that the church's act of taking in the Wuma Sinners was the greatest blasphemy. The forgiving Lord of Grace had given the Divine Nurturing Church many opportunities, but the church, under the leadership of certain people, had not reflected on the past. So tonight, His wrath was finally provoked.

Otherwise, the fire wouldn't have burned in the Evil Infant Tribunal the Wuma Sinners were located, and the Thunderbolt wouldn't have happened to strike Dolgo D.

Many people are already calling for the head of church to step down and atone for the deaths of those who died tonight, but Berios knows that these rumors could not have come from the general public. They could only have been spread by the church's higher-ups and then carried back by ignorant public opinion.

Because ordinary people had no idea that the staff left behind in the Evil Infant Tribunal were those Wuma Sinners, anyone who had any doubts had long been secretly dealt with by him.

Therefore, in his view, tonight's farce was nothing more than a clumsy attempt by some people to force him to abdicate.

But Berios was not in a hurry. During his years in charge of the church, this kind of thing had happened many times. What concerned him most was what role his son, who hated heaven and earth and was disgusted with everything, played and what function he had in this power struggle.

Was his disappearance a deliberate act by someone with ulterior motives, or... was he one of the instigators of this chaos?

The Believer behind him looked anxiously at their leader, hoping he would quickly order the quelling of the chaos. Berios sensed the increasingly astonishing power of the distant Thunderbolt, his gaze sharpening as he said in a deep voice:

"Sing in unison, and I will invite the Divine Descent and purge heresy."

"Praise be to the head of the church, Beauty God, praise be to my Lord!"

Your devout Believer prostrate themselves here, singing hymns of gestation for you, begging for your gaze, pleading for your mercy and protection. Under your radiant light, may Dolgo D be free from evil disturbances, and may the Church be free from defilement!

A large number of fanatical church followers knelt on the ground and prayed loudly. Amid the harmonious chorus of the crowd, Berios gradually ascended to the top of the church tower, raised the heavy staff of the patriarch, and lightly tapped it on the towering Idol of Worship at the top of the church tower.

The Idol of Worship was stroking its belly, suddenly shone brightly, its swollen abdomen bursting forth with light like a small sun.

As blinding holy light shone upon every corner of the church, the top of the tower was suddenly ripped open, and an enormous tentacle with countless Abyss black eyes shot out from it, stretching and swaying in the high sky. It stood tall amidst the chanting of the masses, and then transformed into a whip that tore through the wind and shattered the thunder, Thunderbolt out at the place where the cult leader's staff pointed.

With a loud "boom," the ruins where Cheng Shi and Mo Shu fought were once again lowered by a third.

Even the thunder echoing across the ruins was dispersed by this terrifying giant tentacles.

At this moment, Cheng Shi was on his way back to the church when he saw a huge shadow looming over him from behind. He froze, threw a Dice, and dodged away. At the same time, his eyes widened and his expression became extremely solemn.

What the hell is this?!

His [Divine Pillar]?

It doesn't seem like it; I don't sense any aura of "Birth".

But the shapes are too similar.

Oh no, Change has probably happened in the church that I'm not even aware of. But who caused this Change – my teammates or Tullatin?

Or perhaps some other unexpected event occurred?

Thinking of this, Cheng Shi stopped tracing the trail and instead snapped his fingers to return to the outer courtyard of the church where he had separated from the other two. As soon as he landed, he heard a sacred and solemn voice coming from the church tower, with sound waves spreading throughout the entire church.

"All that is happening tonight is a deception by heretics. I have invoked the Divine Descent. Under the protection and guidance of my Lord, we will eventually break through the illusions and defeat all evil."

Praise be to [Birth]!

"Praise be to [the Birth]!" A deafening roar of praise echoed through the assembly hall. Cheng Shi stared intently at the figure atop the tower, his expression slightly grim.

He didn't know if the cult leader knew anything, nor did he know what the tentacles on the tower that resembled the "Divine Pillar of Birth" were. He only knew that his plan to speed through seemed to have failed again, because the Divine Nurturing Church clearly had powerful means to eliminate threats.

In this way, even if they spread the news of the [Filth and Decay] Holy Infant, they could very well be killed by a single tentacle. It's possible that not only the fabricated Holy Infant would be killed, but also the unfortunate player.

What on earth happened?!

Cheng Shi frowned and began searching for his teammates. He searched many places in the frenzied church crowd and the chaotic church compound, and finally found his two teammates, Scorpio and Gao Ya, not far from the rest hall where he was born.

The two men stared at each other with grave expressions, clearly having encountered a major problem.

Cheng Shi rushed over and patted Scorpio on the shoulder. Scorpio forced a stiff smile when he saw him return.

Cheng Shi seeing this, Cheng Shi's heart skipped a beat, but he still smiled and asked:

"I have some good news, and I hope to get some good news in return from you."

Scorpio's expression tightened, and he said awkwardly, "I originally had some good news, but now... it's hard to say."

"?"

Cheng Shi frowned and looked at Gao Ya. Judging from the current situation, it seemed that this "Folly" Believer could explain more clearly what happened in the church during the time he left to kill Mo Shu.

Gao Ya understood Cheng Shi's meaning, and she scoffed:

"Our Assassin teammate didn't want to hold you back, so he slightly modified the original solution, making this not-too-complex problem... a little more complicated."

"..."

Cheng Shi gave a cold laugh, "Speak like a human being, or the cake will be given to the chief."

"!!!"

Gao Ya's expression froze for a moment, then he swallowed all his resentment and said bitterly:

"He went to the future and overwrote the results of his deductions into the present. As for what he overwrote, I didn't even get a chance to ask before you came back."

"?"

Cheng Shi looked at Scorpio, his eyes narrowing slightly. "Don't tell me you're the one who caused this huge commotion in the church."

Scorpio shook his head stiffly. "Don't rush... The church's actions have nothing to do with me, but it's hard to say what the chain reaction will be, because I brought someone back from the future."

Did they bring someone back from the future?

Cheng Shi was taken aback, then exclaimed in astonishment, "You have such extraordinary talent? You're quite something. But... who did you bring back?"

"... a person who knows when that the Life That Should Not Be Born will be born!"

"?"