Chapter 128: Ch 127: The Church of Prey

Aiden dragged the dead body outside, and after buying potent acid from the system, he poured it on top of the dead body.

Not only did the acid dissolve the skin, but it also bit into the bones until nothing was left. The ground where the acid fell also became barren, and it was unlikely for anything to grow there.

As a result, Aiden ended up buying the neutralizer as well for the land since he did not want to contaminate it any further, and only then did it stop eating away at everything.

The sun had started to rise by the time he finished, and Aiden headed back to his room to rest for the remaining hours.

The next morning was just as chaotic as ever, and his goddess quickly crawled back onto his shoulder. Her eyes looked at Aiden with a knowing look, but she did not question what happened last night, which Aiden was thankful for.

Breakfast was served, but Aiden did not eat it like usual. Instead, he had some from his inventory, which was safer for him.

The priests from the other lands did not even bat an eye at his behavior, and Aiden noticed how no one touched the food except the local people.

’So we all have the same suspicion? I guess humans are the same deep down.’

After breakfast, it was time for another round of meetings, and Aiden finally brought up the mark that he had found on the body of his intruder.

"Does anyone have any idea what this mark is?"

Aiden pushed the small paper forward, and the priests around him gathered to take a look at it. Their eyes widened with worry and annoyance as soon as they saw the mark.

"This is...the mark of the Church of Prey."

That was a new name Aiden had not come across, but he quickly stored it in his memory to look at it later.

For now, he wanted as much information out of these people as he could.

"Church of Prey? What is that?"

Aiden asked, and the priests looked at each other, wondering how to answer him.

Finally, after debating for a few more seconds among themselves, they decided to tell him what they knew about this church.

"Church of Prey is God Steller’s followers. He is a devotee of Goddess Serenity who hunts down other gods in her name. Especially anyone who feels like the ancient snake goddess. Your goddess must have been targeted because she is a snake goddess as well."

Well, things sure took an unexpected turn with this. Aiden had not expected to run into such an obstacle.

But this was good at the same time. He could make an example out of the Church of Prey and warn the others not to mess with him.

His intentions were clear on his face, but the people around him let out a sigh and quickly warned him.

"Sir Aiden, I know you and your goddess are strong, but it is not an opponent you can handle. God Steller is a Regional God. No one here can fight him and hope to win."

Aiden nodded, not believing a word of what was being said.

So what if his goddess was a Lesser Goddess and one rank below God Steller? That could be fixed once Aiden completed his missions.

His goddess was gaining followers every day, and she was almost at 6,000 followers.

[Current Follower Count: 5,985.]

[Please collect 10,000 followers to become a Regional Goddess.]

See, she was almost there. With a little more push, she could cross that barrier. And it would be even sweeter if she were able to do this after taking away God Steller’s followers.

But to do that, Aiden would need to visit that god’s territory and be promoted there.

"Excuse me, but where does God Steller govern?"

Everyone stopped to look at him with a horrified expression before the priest in front of him placed a hand on his shoulder and gave him a serious look.

"Priest Aiden, I do realize that you are strong. But perhaps it would be for the best if you backed down now. This is not an opponent you can face."

That remained to be seen. Aiden was pretty sure he could take down any opponent he needed to. But the people around him were not convinced.

Not that he was here to hear them try and underestimate him.

"It’s fine. I can handle myself just fine. And it’s not like I am asking you because I want to start a beef. I just want to know which places I need to stay clear of."

He pointed out, and the priests around him let out a sigh of relief.

"I see. So it’s this...well, in that case, we can tell you. But you better make sure you keep yourself out of trouble."

The priest then leaned closer and lowered his voice as if even speaking about God Steller’s territory too loudly might somehow attract unwanted attention.

"His territory is located to the east of here. You will know when you are getting close because the entire region is practically covered by temples dedicated to him. His followers are fanatical about hunting down gods they consider enemies of Goddess Serenity, and they are especially hostile toward snake gods and goddesses."

Aiden nodded as he carefully memorized every word.

"So they really believe they are doing this for Goddess Serenity?"

"Of course. God Steller has always claimed that he is protecting her interests. Most people believe he is simply trying to gain her favor, but nobody is foolish enough to say that in front of his followers."

Aiden hummed thoughtfully before glancing down at the small drawing of the mark.

"So if someone from the Church of Prey came after my goddess, then they probably already know about her."

The priest hesitated before nodding.

"That is likely the case. Unfortunately, you have become a target as well. I would advice you to abandon your goddess and get out of here as soon as you can."