The Time of Extraordinary Appearances

"Bishop?"

Old Harvey and Gais beside him hurriedly helped Little George up; his face was deathly pale, and cold sweat beaded on his forehead.

Did he faint from overexerting his Spirituality? Am I guilty of exploiting child labor...

Ivan felt a pang of guilt, and in the midst of his remorse, he suddenly recalled the Remnant Corpse of Spirituality he had split off earlier that day.

Right, the Remnant Corpse! I remember that when I bestowed it upon Gais, it didn't come with any Beyonder abilities.

Does this mean that the Remnants split off during normal energy consumption can only be used to bestow power upon believers who already possess supernatural abilities?

He decided to test this on Little George.

Ivan focused his mind, attempting to channel the splitting ability into just one tentacle.

The energy of faith dipped by an imperceptible margin, and a tentacle imbued with faint Spirituality was separated, drifting slowly through the void into the center of Little George's brow.

Little George, who had been pale and unconscious, suddenly snapped his eyes open.

He felt his depleted Spirituality rapidly recovering, and his complexion turned ruddy, as if he had regained his vitality in an instant.

"Great Lord, is it You? Was it Your grace that restored my spirit?"

Little George's excited voice reached Gais, who turned to look and found the boy awake and fully revitalized.

This is also the Lord's power? How truly miraculous, how truly great, to be able to wake His believer from a faint instantly!

Praise the great Lord of All Spirits!

Gais prayed silently in his heart, further confirming that the one he followed was an incomparably great existence.

Watching Little George's steady recovery, Ivan gained a rough understanding of the function of the Remnant Corpse.

As expected, a Remnant Corpse produced by consuming a little energy can restore a believer's Spirituality to fullness.

However, I'm curious: if I used the kind of Remnant produced this morning—which consumed over half my energy—would the effect be even better due to the higher concentration of Spirituality?

Uh, surely the excess Spirituality wouldn't cause Little George to explode, would it?

A bloody image flashed through Ivan's mind, and he shook his tentacles.

Probably not. Look at Gais; he absorbed it without any Beyonder abilities and was fine.

Perhaps once their Spirituality is overflowing, it might even allow them to go further on the path of the extraordinary?

I'll experiment on Little George again once I have more energy of faith...

Little George felt as if something in the dark was staring at him; the hair on his arms stood up, and he couldn't help but pray.

"Great Lord of All Spirits, please protect Your believer from the erosion of evil..."

Hm? Where is this evil erosion coming from? I'm still right here...

Ivan looked left and right, scanning the area, but finding nothing unusual, he scratched his head.

"Alright, let's continue asking Old Harvey about the Church of Creation, such as whether they have any Beyonders."

Little George rubbed the goosebumps off his arms, sat up straight, and continued questioning Old Harvey.

"Grandpa Harvey, if everyone's memories have been tampered with, it must be the Beyonders of the Church of Divine Grace—uh, people with special abilities—who altered them."

"Does the Church of Creation have no one who can resist them?"

Old Harvey's fingers twitched unconsciously, and he fell silent for a moment.

"I don't know... I've lived for nearly sixty years, and before the Church of Divine Grace appeared, I had never heard of such things as Beyonders."

He paused, a flicker of confusion passing through his clouded eyes.

"Of course, except for what I saw in the ancient texts of the Church of Creation, like the Shadow of Judgment, the Pupil of All-Seeing, the Witch of Destiny, the Sage of Enlightenment..."

Old Harvey gave a bitter smile, the wrinkles at the corners of his eyes bunching together.

"Back then, the priest said these were all divine messengers beside the omniscient and omnipotent Lord."

"But no one took it seriously; we just thought they were myths and legends of the church."

"Rumors of Beyonders have only spread among the lower circles in the last two years."

"I swear to the omniscient and omnipotent Lord, if I hadn't seen Little George's miraculous ability, I wouldn't believe such people existed even now."

Old Harvey raised a hand to wipe his face, tears streaming down his wrinkles as he slowly knelt on the ground.

"Great Lord of All Spirits, You are as great and merciful as the omniscient and omnipotent Lord."

"I beseech You, I beg You to end the rule of the Church of Divine Grace and return everything to the people at the bottom."

The air fell into silence; Gais and Little George were equally moved by the atmosphere, silently bowing to the empty air.

Ivan's mind was now shrouded in an even heavier fog. If, as Old Harvey said, Beyonders appeared simultaneously with the Church of Divine Grace...

Then what major event happened four years ago that caused such a fundamental change in the world?

The succession of churches, the emergence of the extraordinary...

He became increasingly curious about the truth behind these events, though no one could give him the answers right now.

"I promise you."

Little George hurriedly picked up Old Harvey and told him the Lord's answer, while Gais watched the two embracing with a smile from the side.

In truth, Ivan was well aware that developing the church in the Rhine Kingdom would inevitably lead to conflict with the Church of Divine Grace sooner or later; it was merely a matter of time.

"Now, listen to My revelation."

"Gais, you must spread My name to more people."

"Little George, you and Harvey will be responsible for organizing believer activities from now on. Be sure to rotate locations. Hold a gathering at least once a week to strengthen their faith."

"Of course, you must vet them thoroughly to prevent anyone from the Church of Divine Grace from infiltrating your ranks."

After Old Harvey shared the matters concerning the Church of Creation, Ivan had already come to regard him as a core member of the church; after all, no one would turn away an elder who possessed knowledge of the past.

Gais bowed low, placing his right hand over his chest. Seeing his actions, Little George and Old Harvey hurriedly followed suit.

"We obey your instructions, great Lord of All Spirits."

Ivan rubbed his chin, imagining the Holy Spirit Society growing ever stronger in the air, picturing himself breaking through once he was filled with the energy of faith.

Hmm... as long as it isn't some flashy but useless ability like flying or glowing, that is.

Gais's voice interrupted Ivan, his face wearing a rare expression of hesitation.

"Great Lord of All Spirits, your loyal servant Gais has a matter he is unsure whether to report to you."

Ivan looked at Gais's expression, his heart tightening involuntarily.

Could there be an oversight in my arrangements? Or is the Church of Divine Grace coming to our doorstep?

He suppressed his doubts and said in a calm tone:

"Speak."

"Great Lord of All Spirits, in accordance with your great guidance.

If the Holy Spirit Society is to recruit more brethren who believe in you and maintain weekly gatherings to strengthen their faith,"

Gais paused, looking somewhat embarrassed as he spoke.

"The biggest problem we face right now is a lack of gold pounds."