Chapter 332: Chapter 332

Since fate had guided Jenkins here, it meant he had already gathered enough clues. Only two things he had experienced or heard about were related to the Pangdon Winery: in the murder case, the gentleman who had passed away a week before the victim had silver appear in his corpse, and the day before his death, he had come here to buy wine; at Mr. Hood's gathering, someone had mentioned that the Church of the Starry Sky and Equilibrium had once transported a batch of bodies out of the city, which had vanished without a trace near the winery and had yet to be found.

He voiced his thoughts, and Miss Miller remarked pensively, "Then we can be almost certain that the Life Sharing Alliance's stronghold is here. In fact, when I was investigating the whereabouts of those photographs, I also tried to find their location. I could only narrow it down to a large area, but I was still searching for the specific spot. If it's here, then it fits perfectly."

Miss Miller had mentioned this during their last meeting, which meant that the successful activation of The Unknown Path was thanks to that very statement.

There was no time to lose. The three of them decided against a bold, direct search and instead went their separate ways.

Shortly after, Miss Audrey, who was visiting Nolan, "accidentally" divined the location of a group of cultists. She notified the local Orthodox Church, which dispatched a combat team to investigate without hesitation.

At that time, Jenkins "happened" to be at the church, consulting with Miss Bevanna about some peculiar questions. Since he was there, he joined her in the operation.

"Yes, although there are dangers, as an honorable Scribe, I must contribute to the Church and the diocese. Only in this way can I live up to the title of 'Saint' bestowed by the Sage."

His declaration at the time left a deep impression on Miss Bevanna, who was present.

Although the followers of the Lord of Immortality had indeed developed a sizable force in the local area, they resisted for less than half an hour before being almost completely annihilated when the main combat units of five Orthodox Churches were deployed.

The creature was generally humanoid in shape, but its skin had the color and texture of flowing mercury. Its body was devoid of hair, had no gender characteristics, and its face was a smooth, featureless surface.

This was a classic artificial being. The cultists had selected this one "talented" corpse from hundreds. Through a ritual, they prayed to the Lord of Immortality, who granted the corpse an excessive amount of life force.

It was nearly impossible to kill. Though it possessed no supernatural abilities, its physical strength, speed, and reaction time were astounding.

Even when its skin was pierced by special rounds, what seeped out was not blood but a liquid similar in material to its skin. Subsequent investigations revealed this fluid to be a silver alloy that remained liquid at room temperature.

Due to the excessive accumulation of life force, its healing abilities were also shockingly formidable. It could regenerate severed limbs in a matter of seconds and even grow two extra arms for more effective combat.

The monster, with its astonishingly vast reserves of life force, had no fatal weaknesses. In fact, it was more like a simple vessel for storing that energy.

It caused considerable trouble for the Church's advance until the Night Watchers from the Church of the Unlit Moon managed to trap it, allowing the follow-up teams to proceed deeper into the winery's underground levels.

But by then, the cultists had long since escaped through another passage. In other words, apart from capturing a few low-level Enchanters responsible for guard duty, the Church had gained very little.

The data stored in this stronghold was also taken by the hastily fleeing cultists. The only thing of value was a single report that had somehow slipped under a cabinet.

The legible parts of the report indicated that even the members of the Life Sharing Alliance didn't know how to deal with the creature. Due to an unrepeatable accident, too much life force had accumulated within it. This energy, influenced by the corpse's essential nature, could no longer be used by the living, and the pseudo-god, the Lord of Immortality, was unwilling to reclaim it.

Its body had transformed into its current state because the cultists had injected it with too much liquid silver. They had intended to use the fluid to replace its blood and resurrect the corpse, but this had unexpectedly led to the monster's creation.

This meant that the monster was, in fact, being held captive in the winery as a burden. Leaving it behind to cover their retreat was likely also a way of shedding that burden.

In any case, through this operation, Jenkins had managed to get a clear picture of the cult's structure hidden within the Pangdon Winery and learned the layout of the secret location. Although the Church hadn't found a way to deal with the monster and could only transport it back for the time being, Jenkins had a plan.

In the evening, after finishing his healing work, Miss Audrey had already hurried off to deal with the Replica Shop incident. Jenkins said a quick word to Captain Bincy at the church and then headed to Miss Miller's apartment.

And Chocolate, who had been lounging lazily in Jenkins's coat pocket all day, occasionally peeking its head out, finally ended its long "hibernation" and eagerly demanded to be held.

Miss Audrey and Miss Miller were already waiting for him in the apartment. The curtains were all drawn, and complex patterns were drawn on the floor.

"We just attempted another divination."

Miss Audrey explained, "We can basically confirm that among the escaped cultists, only one is a Level 7 Enchanter; the rest are below Level 6. They are not the trigger for the disaster you're looking for. The trajectories of their fates are quite clear—they will all die in an accident soon. In other words, the enemy you will face 'tomorrow,' on the final 31st, is that immortal, silver monster."

"The best outcome is that you kill it directly. But if you can't, trapping it like they did today would also work," Miss Miller concluded.

"I have a way to deal with it, but I'll need some materials."

"That's no problem. Come find me directly tomorrow morning. Now, come over here. Let's plan out tomorrow, the real 31st. As of now, you only know that there are four matters to attend to, so you must manage your time wisely. But so far, so good—the four events don't occur at the same time."

The three of them sat together in a circle, the firelight illuminating their serious profiles.

Chocolate lay quietly on the back of the sofa, watching them, its amber eyes narrowed in a thoughtful gaze. The source of thɪs content is NoveI★Fire.net