Chapter 297 ·Ugly Faces

Ugly Faces

On the other side, Little Black dragged a half-dead Supreme Church follower into an alley where Serea, disguised through Pelam's transformation, had been waiting for some time, accompanied by Celia and Dogsius.

Raven swooped in, and through Raven's eyes, Serea obtained the information about the subject.

Ha Bang, level 20, black Sun Preacher!

As expected—a Black Sun Preacher. And that black sun badge...

Black Sun Imprint (Purple): Inject mental power to activate the skill 'Black Sun Worship.'

Black Sun Worship (Tier 3): Upon use, inflicts spiritual guidance upon the target. The effect scales with the user's own mental strength. Particularly effective against worshippers of the Black Sun deity or those with unstable mental states.

"No doubt about it. He's walking around the Trading Post as a Supreme Church member, but he's really a Black Sun Preacher in disguise!"

Dogsius spoke, then reached out to touch the man and injected mental power to awaken him.

"AAAH!"

The moment he regained consciousness, the man let out a heart-rending scream. With multiple broken bones, even the slightest movement caused him agonizing pain.

"I'll ask questions, and you answer. The self-destruction rune in your hand has already been dismantled, so don't bother resisting."

Dogsius began the interrogation. The captive was, of course, extremely tough—just like those two deathsworn from before. However...

"All right. Please find somewhere to lock him up."

Hearing this, Little White forced a potion down his throat and then left with the half-dead man. In the meantime, the information Dogsius wanted had already been obtained through mind-reading.

The Black Sun Preacher belonged to the Black Sun Church. The main sphere of influence for the Black Sun Church was the Magnis Territory. This time, the Black Sun Church's purpose here was to assist the Luka Merchant Guild and other merchant guilds affiliated with them in seizing control of the Trading Post to amass huge profits.

Their approach for taking over was direct too—using the Supreme Church's identity to control addicted adventurers in the Trading Post, inciting riots, taking the opportunity to control or threaten the ones in power, and if that failed, simply assassinating the leaders and edging out the Xiyun Merchant Guild. When the dust settled, they'll divvy up the lucrative pie of the western jungle for themselves.

If it ever came down to accountability, the blame would fall solely on the 'Supreme Church' front. There's even a chance the Xiyun Merchant Guild might not be able to trace it back to them—after all, this was the Otto Kingdom!

But...

After learning all this, Serea stayed calm. Dealing with an enemy like this was straightforward. Since they wanted to incite the adventurers into rioting, there was no way she'd let them succeed.

The group split into two tracks: Serea took people to handle the controlled "drug addicts," while Pelam and Dogsius went to the Trading Post headquarters.

......

Ten minutes prior, at the Xiyun Merchant Guild headquarters, avril was receiving the guest she least wished to see.

"Oh, what a lavish residence—even the corridors are studded with precious gemstones. The stench of corruption from money has polluted your soul, my esteemed Miss Avril."

Oran stood outside the meeting room and bowed, with two Supreme Church members at his side.

"It's like I've always said: what I do with my wealth is my own business, preacher Oran."

Their words clashed sharply. Now that Avril knew about the dangers of the "Divine Medicine," she'd lost all favor for the Supreme Church—regretting all the gold she'd donated simply because they were a major religion.

Ignoring Avril's cold sarcasm, oran sat down across from her with his people, deliberate and unhurried.

"Miss Avril, I presume you know the reason for my visit?"

"The matter of chapel ownership?"

"That's part of it, but not all. Please look at this first, miss Avril."

With that, oran passed over a contract. A fox tribe guard took it and handed it to Avril, who gave it a cursory read.

Upon glancing over it, avril's brow furrowed deeply.

Contract contents: The Xiyun Merchant Guild would transfer the chapel and guarantee the Supreme Church's sole church status at the Trading Post. The monthly faith fee of 500 gold coins paid to the Supreme Church would be replaced by a transfer of 20% of the Xiyun Merchant Guild's shares.

Robbery. Naked, shameless robbery!

"Preacher Oran, don't you find these terms a bit excessive?"

"In what way? Miss Avril, you're an 'outsider'—there are rules here that must be observed."

What Oran said wasn't entirely untrue. For her foothold in this place, avril had not been stingy in greasing the palms of the Holy See and Otto nobility.

Even though the Supreme Church wasn't huge, it held sway. She held the biggest slice of the western jungle's pie, and certain monetary shares needed to be distributed. But the Trading Post's shares were Avril's bottom line—once forfeited, it would mean surrendering her power and long-term interests in the Trading Post. Absolutely unacceptable.

"What's owed will be given, but what's not rightfully yours—don't even think about taking, or even dreaming of it!"

With that, avril tossed a document onto the table.

"Hmm?"

Oran picked it up, puzzled, then read its contents—a summary of the effects of the "Divine Medicine."

A first glance brought shock!

Oran couldn't believe it. She'd discovered the secret, and yet the hidden effects of the Divine Medicine hadn't even shown up yet—how had she found out?

After his surprise, oran calmly smirked.

"Heh, I underestimated you."

"Preacher Oran, you jest. The facts are here. By categorization, the potion you sell is a banned substance. As Trading Post leader, I am entitled to publicize the risk and ban further sales. So you understand what must be done, right? We don't have to make this hard for each other."

Avril seized the initiative. With this handle on the Supreme Church, she no longer had any fear. But—

"So, miss Avril came prepared. That means we have nothing to talk about?"

"It all depends on your attitude, preacher Oran."

"My attitude is simple."

Oran spoke, wearing a cryptic smile. Seeing it, avril felt a creeping sense of foreboding. Just then, a fox tribe guard hurried in and whispered in Avril's ear.

"Report, miss Avril: some adventurers have suddenly gone berserk and are vandalizing the Trading Post. We've deployed our guard and Captain Leon to maintain order, but there are simply too many rioters to contain."

Upon hearing this, avril fixed her gaze on Oran. His response was—

"The wrath of the gods will burn away all heretics who defile Divine Grace. But not you, miss Avril—the gods are willing to give you one more chance."

As he spoke, oran smoothly slid the contract back to Avril.

"How you handle this is up to you."

At that moment, shouts could be heard from outside. Another fox tribe guard rushed in to report.

"Miss Avril! A large number of adventurers have gathered outside the manor and are preparing to storm the premises. We request authorization to use force for suppression!"

Use armed force?

That was exactly what the other side wanted. If blood was spilled, the aftermath would be endless trouble. Therefore...

"Shut the main gate. All hands, arm yourselves with blunt weapons for defense only—do not attack without orders."

"Yes, Ma'am."

Once she'd issued her order, avril turned back to Oran.

"It's your doing!"

"Therefore, miss Avril, why not take another look?"

Oran pointed to the contract on the table. Avril scowled at it, but suddenly her gaze was drawn to something else.

On the yellow parchment, a black sun imprint glowed, emanating a wave of mental power. Caught off guard, avril's mind was instantly invaded.

All at once, her vision filled with countless ghastly phantoms, and in her ears resounded a low, chaotic whisper.

"Surrender to him. Agree to everything he asks!"

Avril, lost in a daze, could barely resist. Oran smiled faintly.

"Come now, sign it."

He pushed the contract toward her. The fox tribe guards saw only Avril staring blankly at the document; nothing seemed amiss.

But Avril didn't move for a long time, which made Oran anxious.

"This woman's willpower is extraordinary!"

Sweat beaded on his brow. Oran's mental power was nearly spent, but Avril remained merely confused and indecisive—she simply wouldn't submit to his suggestion.

"To hell with it!"

As Avril remained motionless, oran prepared to force her to sign—but just at that moment—

Bang!

The door was flung open. Pelam, in the guise of Serea, entered with Dogsius, Lola, and Celia. The loud crash roused Avril from her stupor.

"Huh...?"

She looked muddled, unaware she'd been under a mental spell. Dogsius quickly stepped to her side and drew out the lingering mental power from her body. Instantly, avril's gaze cleared.

"Madam!"

Aruka rushed over and embraced Avril.

"What happened?"

"We'll talk later—let's deal with this despicable man first!"

After ensuring Avril was unharmed, Aruka gently eased her into a chair, then reached for his sword.

Seeing such a threatening move, oran backed up a few steps.

"Who—who are you? What do you want?"

Sching!

Blade drawn, Aruka, now in Primal Awakening, fixed Oran with his silvery gaze, sending chills down Oran's back.

"We're preachers—you'll be punished by the Empire for attacking us!"

"You are a preacher, sure. But I also know you're a Black Sun Preacher!"

Pelam stepped forward. Oran didn't recognize her, but upon hearing "Black Sun Preacher," his panic deepened.

"You...what are you saying? We're faithful servants of the Supreme Deity, how could—"

Before he could finish, Dogsius picked up the contract and activated the imprint with mental power, making a black sun pattern appear.

"See for yourself. You're not blind, are you?"

Seeing the contract's magic triggered, oran was petrified...

"You—you can use divine power? Impossible!"

"Heh—it's just a minor adjustment in mental power vibrations. And this passes for divine power?"

Dogsius's scorn infuriated Oran.

"Enough! You dare—!"

Swish!

Aruka lunged, smashing the hilt of his sword. Oran dodged, narrowly evading. But the others were not so lucky—Aruka struck a church member.

Bang!

Meanwhile, Celia targeted another with her sheathed sword.

Bang!

Both would-be resisters were knocked out cold, leaving only Oran, cornered.

"Surrender now."

"Heh, you think you'll win just because you have numbers? Lord God, grant me the power to purge all heresy!"

Oran raised his hands skyward. His black sun badge floated up from his chest, emitting pulsing waves of mental energy.

This kind of wave was different—a force to annihilate the mind!

The black radiance spread. Everyone stepped back except Dogsius, who advanced.

Had it been any other power, it might have posed danger. But as for mental power...

Soul Devour!

With a single outstretched hand, Dogsius absorbed all the black light touching him. When it faded, oran's figure was gone.

"We'll pursue him."

Aruka wanted to give chase, but Pelam stopped him.

"Others will take care of him. For now, we need to handle the Trading Post riot."

Outside, the chaos only intensified.

......

At the Xiyun Merchant Guild headquarters, the main gate was sealed. Fox tribe guards, armed with staves and shields, stood ready. Outside, red-eyed crowds besieged the building, clearly controlled or guided together by someone in the shadows.

"Cleanse the heretics who defile Divine Grace!"

"The gods always watch over us!"

Such chants made clear the mob had been brainwashed—using drugs combined with mental magic.

With the riot swelling outside, avril herself ascended the wall.

"What on earth is happening?"

"The Divine Medicine wrecked their minds. Addicts and hallucinations have made them even more violent, and there must be someone behind the scenes manipulating them mentally."

"So this is the Supreme Church's plan!"

Avril clenched her fists in fury. But anger was useless now. Facing so many adventurers controlled by drugs and mental spells, she couldn't use force. But if not, were they just to sit and wait for death?

"Miss Avril, don't worry. The Queen has already found a solution and will arrive soon."

Dogsius said, giving Avril a reassuring smile as she watched him with hope.

Meanwhile, "Candice" had already taken her position.

(To be continued....)