Chapter 60

Chapter 60

"Chill and Flame Twin Pistols," why would this contradictory apostle be here?!

Just last weekend, the Tribunal Headquarters was invaded by their goddess, and a new evil deity emerged in Spire City. Aren't you busy? You should be so busy that you don't even have time to sleep!

The supervisor roared inwardly.

As a member of the Aberrant Sect hiding in Spire City, the supervisor had once predicted what would happen if he ever encountered Hui Cui Dover.

He would definitely become cannon fodder under the guns of this apostle during some operation, right? What else could it be? A counter-kill? Impossible. Years of neglect within the sect had made the supervisor very clear-headed.

But no matter how clear-headed, the supervisor never imagined that "Chill and Flame Twin Pistols" would appear at his workplace.

The supervisor didn't know that the kelp company, which operated this scenic tour route, had sent VIP tickets to many prominent figures in Spire City, including Tribunal Chief Hui Cui Dover.

If he knew, he might have burst into his boss's office, grabbed his shoulders, and shouted, "What have you done?" But because he didn't know, he could only stand on the top deck of the sightseeing boat, drenched in cold sweat, unable to maintain his smile.

His real colleague, Xiang Ang Carter Snake, couldn't see the crowded dock dozens of meters away and could only keep flicking his tongue to sniff the air.

Xiang Ang was nervous and confused. The dense crowd on the dock emitted a chaotic mix of scents, interfering with his judgment. He couldn't understand why he smelled the supervisor's sweat.

Until he heard a voice that etched itself into his memory in just a few seconds.

"Mr. Supervisor," Lin called out, after explaining to the Tribunal Chief about encountering the cultist, "please come over, and the waiter—"

"The Book of Blindness" accurately said the name of the snake person he had only interacted with once, "Mr. Xiang Ang, right? Please come over as well."

Xiang Ang realized something was wrong.

And the supervisor wanted to stab "The Book of Blindness" with the smile still on its face.

So arrogant! So arrogant! Is standing next to "Chill and Flame Twin Pistols" really that impressive?!

But the next second, when the pink eyes of the Dover Birdman also turned to him, the supervisor hastily lowered his head, realizing that it indeed was impressive.

At this moment, the waiters on the platform, who hadn't seen the Tribunal Chief on the dock at first, now looked over following the call.

When they saw clearly, even these professionally trained waiters couldn't control their excitement.

"It's the Tribunal Chief!"

"He's looking this way! No wonder he's the apostle of contradiction! I feel like the Tribunal Chief has killed my bad luck for the week with his gaze!"

"Can we ask for an autograph as a talisman? I've heard the city isn't too stable recently..."

"Why is the Tribunal Chief looking for the supervisor and Xiang Ang?"

Spire City is one of the few cities with an apostle stationed there. But six years ago, before Hui Cui Dover received the blessing of the Contradictory Twins, Spire City was just an ordinary mid-sized city along the Ley River, known primarily for its production of high-quality spinel, a material used in alchemy.

But things are different now. Both the municipal government and the Tribunal are heavily promoting Hui Cui Dover's image. Even though travel is inconvenient in this world, a rudimentary tourism industry has developed in Spire City.

Yes, targeting the believers of the Contradictory Twins who come to pay homage.

Human apostles of the gods have such charisma that their status within the Church is higher than that of the Pope.

The kelp company, which operates the sightseeing boat, has grown with the development of this tourism industry. To them, Hui Cui Dover is a saint who brings fortune, which explains why these waiters were as happy as if they had found money upon seeing him.

Only the supervisor and Xiang Ang couldn't be happy.

To run would mean death.

To die would mean running.

These two thoughts flashed repeatedly in their minds. They knew they couldn't escape this fate. The supervisor was frozen under the gaze of "Chill and Flame Twin Pistols," while Xiang Ang, for the first time, was grateful for his severe nearsightedness. Because he couldn't see the powerful enemy clearly, he didn't feel the overwhelming aura and still had some room to move.

Suicide!

Absolutely cannot let the sect's information be revealed from his mouth!

Carter Snakes are venomous snakes with fangs, said to be derived from the cat-eyed snake, which is also venomous but less potent.

But Xiang Ang's venom is not weak. Enhanced by magic, his venom can easily kill several intermediate-level physical enhancers and cause temporary paralysis in advanced-level practitioners.

Xiang Ang himself is an intermediate-level practitioner, so to commit suicide, he only needed to bite himself with his fangs—

"Mr. Xiang Ang," Hui Cui said, "and Mr. Supervisor, please come over."

A minute later, the two cultists walked stiffly to Hui Cui and Lin, like robots freshly made by a novice mechanic.

They were certainly not coming voluntarily, but after Hui Cui spoke, they found it hard to resist the will of the apostle.

Even if they wanted to commit suicide, to run, or to kill a few citizens before being caught, they could only think about it. Any movement would bring the terrifying sensation of bullets piercing their bodies.

"You actually guessed right," the secretary Lüefeng, who was present but unnoticed by the cultists, said, "this reaction is truly that of a hidden cultist."

"I told you it should be a cultist," Lin said.

"But the evidence you provided was only that the snake person reacted strangely in front of you, and then the supervisor's reaction was also off. If an ordinary citizen sent such a complaint letter to the Tribunal, we wouldn't take it seriously."

"After seeing me, the snake person suddenly panicked a few seconds later and moved away from me quickly, as if trying to escape," Lin explained, having read the snake person's emotions through the mirror's reflection, "and the supervisor was clearly searching for me among the passengers, despite having no prior contact with me. It's hard not to suspect he's the snake person's accomplice."

"?" Lüefeng was puzzled, "I was standing on the dock, waiting for you with the Tribunal Chief. How did I not notice?"

Lin gave the blonde a pitying look.

Lüefeng: "... What do you mean?"

Lin: "Dog people actually have hereditary mild myopia. Of course, compared to snake people, your vision is already quite good, so I won't blame you for poor eyesight."

"Lin!" Secretary Lüefeng said angrily, "Don't you want the reward for successfully reporting the heretics?"

"Aren't you the one who always emphasizes that you don't care about rewards and subsidies?" Lin asked in surprise.

"You can remember this when I'm about to deduct your bonus, but why can't you remember it when you ask me for it!" Lüefeng felt Lin was being deliberate.

"The Inquisition actually deducts bonuses!" Little Black Spot interjected in shock.

"Bad people." Shorttail grabbed the hem of Lin's jacket and then hid behind him again.

"..." Secretary Lüefeng clutched his chest, clearly hurt by the children's words.

He wanted to say something in response, but his duty as a secretary made him sense Hui Cui looking at him.

"Judge," Lüefeng quickly put on his professional secretary expression and stood up straight, asking, "Shall I temporarily postpone some of your work and meetings back at headquarters?"

"Yes, thank you," Hui Cui said, "I will take these two heretics to The Church of the Mother of Blood with Lin."

"I will too? Alright." Lin said, lowering his head to look at the two children, "You two..."

Shorttail glanced at the two heretics, who seemed to be under a binding spell, and the coldness characteristic of her lizard-like species made her grip Lin's jacket tightly. After a moment, she let go.

"...I'll go back with Little Black Spot first, it's fine, Lin. You gave us pocket money today, so we can take the tram." She said understandingly.

"I can protect her well." Little Black Spot also said, patting his chest to show strength, though it only revealed fat.

But Shorttail was clearly afraid because of the encounter with the heretics, Lin thought.

"It's okay, come along, and then you can go home together," Hui Cui softened her expression, "The priests of The Church of the Mother of Blood love children, and they can help with homework."

Little Black Spot's face fell as he suddenly remembered his homework.

Shorttail's expression brightened a bit.

Without needing handcuffs, Hui Cui led the two heretics down the riverbank, with Lin walking behind them. The secretary had already taken out the secret book from his backpack.

He opened the secret book and flipped through it, the rustling of the pages making the two heretics shiver, even after getting into the car provided by The Church of the Mother of Blood.

"Are you meeting with The Church of the Mother of Blood today?" Lin asked the female driver in a red robe.

Hui Cui made the two heretics sit in the same row as Lin, a treatment many people in Spire City would envy, but the expressions of the lizard and snake people looked like they were sitting in an oven.

"Yes, because the power of the Aberrant Sect in Spire City was almost completely wiped out, but now Spire City's position is important, so we need to consider the possibility of them sending people from other cities," Hui Cui explained, "We have already negotiated with the city hall to increase patrols at subway stations and expand the patrol area to the tunnels. If we block the subway route, the remaining infiltration routes for the Aberrant Sect will be the Ley River."

"Judge," Lin said, "When you were speaking just now, the faces of these two heretics changed, as if they were caught."

"The Book of Blindness" is such a hateful person, the foreman and Xiang Ang thought.

"Really?" Not only Hui Cui, but even the driver observed the two heretics through the rearview mirror.

"They did change," Little Black Spot said, "I saw it."

"They did change," Shorttail nodded in agreement.

These two kids are also so hateful, the foreman and Xiang Ang thought.

The church of The Church of the Mother of Blood was on the seventh floor, for easier management of the Ley River segment within Spire City.

When Lin first arrived, he found it hard to understand the ecosystem of the underground city. Even though the fog separated the surface world from the underground world, the underground world could not be entirely detached from the surface.

From the surface to about 100 meters underground, it was the constant temperature layer, but the temperature of this layer was still determined by sunlight, generally equal to the average annual temperature of the surface.

If temperature was like this, what about the underground rivers that decided whether an underground city could be built?

In Lin's common knowledge, underground river water came from snowmelt and rainwater seepage.

How could underground rivers have a source without any connection to the surface world, no rain, and no melting snow?

Lin used to be very puzzled, but later he realized he shouldn't explain this magical world using Earth's ecology.

The underground river water came from The Mother of Blood.

This planet—if it was a planet—had only one continent, and the headquarters of The Church of the Mother of Blood was located at the center of the continent.

The Mother of Blood, this deity, performed powerful miracles, like a heart continuously drawing seawater from afar, purifying it, and pumping it from the center of the continent into rivers flowing in all directions, thus completing the water cycle of the underground world.

If the underground world were seen as a living organism, then the river network would be its veins.

Flowing blood is the source of life, and The Mother of Blood indeed ensured the survival of countless lives in this world.

Entering the church, Lin looked at the large female statue standing on the altar, her long hair covering her face and body, the hair as red as blood, seeming to flow down her body rather than simply hanging.

Lin bowed his head in respect.

Two young priests happily took the two children from him, assuring Lin that he didn't need to worry about leaving them with them.

Lin waved to Little Black Spot and Shorttail, who kept looking back, watching them enter a small room on the side of the church before turning around.

Hui Cui had stopped to wait for him, the two heretics trembling so much they could hardly walk.

"Here is enough, no need to go inside," a steady female voice said, "Under the gaze of our Lord, I will open the minds of these evil ones to see if I can extract information from their gray matter."

The local bishop of The Church of the Mother of Blood walked out.

She and Hui Cui exchanged church courtesies, then turned to Lin.

"Judge Lin," she smiled warmly, with a motherly air, "I hear you are very skilled at observation and analysis. I entrust you with this task this time."