Chapter 65

Chapter 65

Almost at the same moment Andy was pondering, another presence descended without warning.

In the soft-opening banquet hall, the green leaves of potted plants instantly withered, rotted, and turned into black powder, swallowed by a gray mist.

That gray mist carried an unprecedented chill and aura of decay, as if a summons from the underworld.

The Old God Remnants the temple members had been confronting were called "Hundred Forms," who once served the God of Death.

But the one descending now, "Corrosion," was a former servant of the God of Rot!

Andy’s face instantly changed.

This was the first time since the Gods’ War ended that they encountered two beings devoted to different Old Gods joining forces!

Unlike "Hundred Forms," who focused on endurance and was hard to kill, "Corrosion" was far more aggressive.

The gray mist it commanded could cause the skin of ordinary humans and eerie creatures to fester upon mere exposure, penetrating deep into muscles and bones, rotting living beings completely.

The situation was urgent. Andy and the few lying in wait in the restaurant used their abilities to barely separate the gray mist from the ordinary people, but Corrosion’s target…

In just a few moments, countless possibilities flashed through Andy’s mind, and he exchanged several moves with Corrosion. He thought the enemy’s goal would be clear, but Corrosion itself seemed to be searching for something, the gray mist looping through the banquet hall several times.

Were they risking appearing here without even knowing their true target?

From the moment the gray mist appeared, regular superhumans could no longer clearly see what was happening in other directions.

The three members of the Jiang family were still struggling to evade attacks from the elephant and various wild animals, their hair disheveled and shoes lost, completely lacking the dignity they always prided themselves on as nobles of the capital.

For them, this single minute felt like the most unwillingly recalled moment of their lives.

The gray mist blocked the restaurant’s exit, preventing them from leaving. After cursing the restaurant eight hundred times in their hearts, the Jiang family had no choice but to draw closer to Jiang Bingzhu.

—In such chaos, even a little extra help was better than nothing.

Although Jiang Bingzhu always appeared unbothered no matter the situation, the Jiang family felt a sense of relief upon seeing him.

It was a subtle feeling, more like an instinctive intuition than a reasoned conclusion, making them feel vaguely reassured when near him.

But that reassurance lasted less than a second.

The next moment, they watched as the strange gray mist abruptly turned, sharp as an arrow, and shot straight toward Jiang Bingzhu!

The mist emitted a whistling sound, and the Jiang family instinctively recoiled without a second thought.

They had approached Jiang Bingzhu thinking there was safety in numbers, but now, his side was definitely not a safe place. Though they didn’t understand the mist’s logic, this contradicted their original intention.

They even felt a bit relieved that they hadn’t gotten too close to Jiang Bingzhu, avoiding missing their chance to escape.

Meanwhile, a server leaped out from an unseen corner, closely pursuing the gray mist.

Was he trying to get himself killed?!

The Jiang family wondered briefly but didn’t waste more energy on these insignificant people.

They left without a second thought, just as Andy stepped forward without a moment’s delay.

Jiang Bingzhu was someone the Supreme Temple’s high-ranking members had instructed them to treat seriously, but even without those orders, how could he qualify to serve in the temple if he did nothing when a comrade was in danger?

Before rising to his current station, Andy was an entirely ordinary human. In the village where he grew up, a widely spread saying went: "Do not pin unrealistic hopes on Higher Beings."

The temples of the Old Gods were dangerous places; even the most devout followers could perish by their mere thought, never knowing why.

But the Supreme God’s temple was entirely different from the legends of the Old Gods. In Andy’s memory, the higher-ups he had met and most of his colleagues would never retreat when ordinary people were harmed.

This was why he had to step forward now!

Andy vaulted over the row of long tables blocking his path. His server’s waistcoat was torn in several places by the eerie creatures in his way, but he paid no mind, fully focused on chanting incantations to manipulate death.

As the obscure words echoed, withered leaves and phantoms of dead beings gathered in the air. These relics, summoned by the power of death, formed a shield in front of Jiang Bingzhu, taking the shape of the banquet hall’s plates yet as sturdy as a fortress.

The "shield" shone with light and blazed with fire, an aura of majesty surrounding it, reinforcing it like a steel wall.

—The other temple members had made their move!

Though "Corrosion’s" appearance was unexpected, with their combined efforts, its attack was halted for a critical second.

For superhumans, even a single second was enough to turn the tide!

Andy gripped the red pendant around his neck, channeling his superpower into it.

Facing two long-established servants of the Old Gods, "Corrosion" and Hundred Forms, they might not have the upper hand.

But unlike these Old God Remnants who must hide, they worshiped the most powerful Supreme Being in existence. Even if their own ranks were lacking, they had the confidence to confront both here!

Despite this, Andy was nervous. He had a habit of whispering prayers to the Supreme God and had recently received a detailed reply. The plate-like shield he’d conjured was an improvised application of that knowledge.

Perhaps because of this, Andy had an inexplicably irrational premonition.

If anyone were to respond today, it might be…

"Boom—"

A massive explosion cut off his thoughts.

In that one second, it wasn’t just Andy who acted—his enemies did too.

Seeing "Corrosion’s" attack blocked, "Hundred Forms" disengaged recklessly from its fierce battle, gathering all its remaining power into an unstoppable blow!

But its target wasn’t Jiang Bingzhu or the shield protecting him—it was the defenseless humans in the restaurant!

It could clearly see that the Supreme Temple’s members had a naive, impractical care for ordinary people.

They had ascended to the rank of Chosen, worthy of being called "He," and shouldn’t possess such unnecessary emotions. "Hundred Forms" didn’t understand why they clung to this foolish weakness, but it knew it was their fatal flaw!

If the Supreme Temple’s members hesitated for even a moment between Jiang Bingzhu and the humans, Corrosion’s attack would shatter the shield and kill Jiang Bingzhu—that human with an aura similar to the Prophet!

"Embrace death!" it laughed maniacally.

As "Hundred Forms" predicted, upon realizing its intent, Andy did hesitate for a second. But the next moment, he felt the red pendant around his neck turn icy cold, and an aura deeply familiar from the temple slowly descended.

Even someone as steady as Andy couldn’t help but widen his eyes.

This presence, this aura… was it… Lord Lindsay?

The Attendant Deity who wielded the Scepter of Death on behalf of the Supreme God?

Even though his superpower derived from the Scepter of Death, Andy never imagined he would receive Lord Lindsay’s aid today.

The four attendant deities under the Supreme God each wield one or two authorities on His behalf. In any previous era, they were powerful enough to rival True Gods possessing divine authority.

Among the four, Lindsay is the coldest and most enigmatic.

But unlike Adelaiya, who was born with supernatural abilities, or Iris, who originated from an eerie creature, this icy attendant deity, who seems to despise everything and holds dominion over death, was once the most ordinary of humans.

Even until his physical death, he never acquired any supernatural abilities.

Even after becoming an attendant deity, Lindsay remains cloaked in a voluminous black robe. No one dares to speculate whether what lies beneath is an incorporeal wraith or a skeleton with decaying flesh.

Yet His voice is unexpectedly youthful.

"Young mage..." Lindsay's voice drifted like a phantom in Andy's mind, "You are indeed naive."

With those words, the four states of "birth, aging, sickness, and death" that Hundred Forms had been wielding so effortlessly froze instantly. Energy reversed in an instant, returning all states to their source.

Hundred Forms' body simultaneously displayed the four states—youth, aging, disease, and death. In agony, He partially revealed His true form, and the attacks He had launched earlier veered off course one by one, swallowed entirely by shadowy darkness.

Lindsay's voice rang out once more, saying, "But you are fortunate."

"You need not witness any sacrifice, nor make any choices among living beings."

"Because you believe in... the greatest being in this world."

As the voice of the attendant deity Lindsay faded, Andy gazed up, dazed.

He noticed that many of his colleagues had done the same.

—Like him, they had also prayed to the Supreme God during the emergency. Their prayers materialized as shimmering points of light, floating in the air, drifting past the oblivious, bewildered humans.

These points of light seemed to carry a clear direction, floating leisurely over the chaotic mess of the restaurant, illuminating the casually standing black-haired youth in the deep night.