absurd deduction game.

After some time, Qu Xianqing had followed the group out of Yolikev Town and entered the woods west of the town through a dirt road that seemed to be rarely used.

The desolate hills west of the town, as their name suggests, are shrouded in a deathly silence.

The gnarled branches of the ancient, towering trees obscured the already gloomy sky, casting large, unsettling shadows.

The ground was covered with a thick layer of damp, rotting fallen leaves, which felt soft and squishy underfoot, almost absorbing all footsteps.

The air was filled with a strong earthy smell, the scent of humus, and a faint, sweet odor reminiscent of sulfur mixed with blood, just like the lingering smell after a rain in the town, but even more intense and primal.

The accompanying deacon told Qu Xianqing that this road was once trodden by merchants. Many years ago, when the town was first established, some people made a living by going into the forest to collect mushrooms, herbs, and other things.

The townspeople were unfamiliar with the surroundings at the time, and merchants often had to go in for a day or two before they could come out with their goods. However, although it was hard work and they earned little, the food and herbs were all related to the Goddess of Harvest. In an era when everyone regarded the Goddess of Harvest as their only faith, the merchants did not have a low status.

However, as more and more strange events occurred, entering the forest became increasingly dangerous. At the same time, transportation became more developed, and some essential food and medicine could be transported from other towns, making it even more difficult for local merchants to do business.

Gradually, the merchants disappeared, and few people set foot in this forest anymore.

Only this path has been preserved, occasionally used for travel—if one is not afraid of being attacked by the strange creatures that may exist in the forest.

The Church of the Mother Goddess has tried to eradicate the strange phenomena, but after a month or two of each cleanup, they would reappear. Since there weren't many passersby, the church maintained a cleanup frequency of once every six months and also had people patrolling the area regularly.

It's been almost half a year since the last crackdown, but I never expected that the esoteric sect would evade the patrols and make this place their "headquarters" within a few months.

The steward was quite indignant when he said this, but Qu Xianqing didn't think so. She knew that Zhenxi was just a front, and the real "headquarters" was probably still in the town.

Led by the false archbishop, the church procession moved silently and cautiously into the depths of the hills.

Deacon Herbert walked at the front, holding a holy emblem that emitted a soft white light, cautiously surveying the path ahead.

The guards spread out in a fan shape, weapons drawn, their sharp eyes scanning every bush and rock shadow that might conceal danger.

Qu Xianqing followed in the middle of the group, her aura completely concealed, her muscles in a subtle tension. She held the blood sword in her hand, her gaze calmly sweeping over her surroundings, taking in every detail.

There were some unusual traces nearby, but the signs of human intervention were obvious, revealing a deliberate roughness.

Some bushes were hastily cut down with sharp blades, the cuts still fresh. Several boulders showed signs of being moved, but were placed haphazardly, more like obstacles than fortifications. Occasionally, messy footprints of varying depths could be seen on the ground, indicating haste and chaos.

She had already planned it, and could tell that these marks were meant to attract their attention, but the others in the church were unaware of this and became nervous upon seeing them.

About half an hour after venturing deep into the dense forest, the surrounding air began to turn cold and damp.

"Be on high alert!" Deacon Herbert's deep voice echoed through the silent forest. "The enemy is likely nearby!"

Before he finished speaking -

"Whoosh! Whoosh whoosh!"

A sharp whooshing sound suddenly rang out from the dense forest on both sides!
Dozens of rough bone arrows coated with a ghostly green slime shot out like venomous bees. Then, accompanied by a tooth-grinding roar and scratching sounds, twisted figures emerged from behind trees and from rock crevices!

They come in all shapes and sizes. Some still barely retain a human form, but their skin is covered with scales or pustules, and their hands and feet have been transformed into sharp claws. Others have completely turned into spliced ​​monsters that crawl on the ground with many legs and eyes.

Even more were swollen, blood vessel-covered chunks of flesh that wriggled and spewed out corrosive acid—the very monsters commonly used by cultists!

The system announced the triggering of the side quest in Qu Xianqing's mind, and with a series of clanging sounds, her eyes darted around to the back of the monster.

Mixed among them were a few low-level cultists dressed in tattered black robes with fanatical eyes, waving bone daggers or staffs inlaid with twisted symbols and emitting incomprehensible howls.

This was a premeditated ambush.

"Defense! Holy Light Protection!" Deacon Herbert remained calm in the face of danger. With a roar, the holy emblem in his hand burst forth with a dazzling golden light, forming a semi-transparent light shield that blocked most of the bone arrows and acid.

The guards reacted quickly, immediately forming a battle formation with shields in front and spears and swords thrusting out from the gaps. The holy light clashed violently with the monster's corrupt power!
Without any time to prepare, the battle instantly intensified the moment the monsters appeared.

Roars, the clash of weapons, the explosion of spells, the dying howls of monsters... shattered the desolate appearance of the hills.

Qu Xianqing did not rush to the front to fight.

She moved like a ghost along the edge of the battlefield, her blood sword occasionally drawn, always accompanied by a spray of blood or a scream that abruptly stopped.

Her movements were efficient and precise; each strike eliminated the most threatening target or rescued a guard from danger.

But she devoted most of her energy to observation.

She saw that although the attacks of those monsters and low-level cultists were fierce, they lacked effective coordination and tactics, and were more like a group of cannon fodder driven up to their deaths.

Their eyes were filled with chaos and madness, lacking only the calm and cunning glint of true core esoteric practitioners.

She also kept an eye on the fake archbishop's actions.

The "cardinal in red robes" brandished his staff and chanted solemn prayers. Streams of holy light, imbued with purifying power, shot towards the monster like sharp swords. Each attack was powerful and effective.

However, in Qu Xianqing's perception, although this "bishop" was powerful, he always gave people a feeling that was... superficial.

His holy light lacked the profoundness and purity that truly originated from the depths of the soul and was closely connected with the Mother Goddess. It was more like a subtle imitation and a piling up of energy. She observed him quietly for a while and found that the holy light power of this fake archbishop was actually activated by a small rune. He was also very familiar with the monsters of the esoteric sect and even had a suppressive force of the same origin. With the two combined, he did not show any flaws in the battle.

The battle lasted for about fifteen minutes.

With the church's well-trained coordination and overwhelming strength, the ambush of monsters and cultists was swiftly quelled, leaving behind a trail of mangled limbs and a lingering, foul stench. "Clean up the battlefield, check for casualties!" Deacon Herbert ordered, panting heavily. His armor was stained with blood, but his eyes remained sharp.

The fake archbishop stepped forward, his face bearing the "solemnity" of battle. He closed his eyes, gripped his staff tightly, and appeared to be fully focused on sensing the world around him.

A moment later, he suddenly opened his eyes and pointed towards a particularly dark depression deeper in the hills, his tone firm and heavy: "I sense it! Over there... there is an extremely dense, extremely evil sense of concentration! The holy light of the Mother Goddess is warning me that the true source of defilement is there!"

His words carried an unquestionable authority, immediately drawing everyone's attention.

"Attention everyone, rest for five minutes, then proceed in the direction indicated by His Excellency the Archbishop, maintaining formation!" Deacon Herbert carried out the order without hesitation.

A short while later, the group resumed their activities, cautiously advancing towards the depression indicated by the false archbishop.

The closer you get, the stronger the evil aura in the air becomes, and you can even faintly hear a low whimper that sounds like countless tiny sounds overlapping each other.

Upon reaching the edge of the depression, the group noticed that the ground there had an unnatural dark red color, as if it had been stained with blood.

The false archbishop stopped, raised his staff again, and began to chant an even older and more difficult prayer—a sacred incantation begging the Mother Goddess to reveal what was hidden.

As he solemnly chanted, the amber at the tip of his staff emitted a bright light, shining like a searchlight onto a seemingly empty area in the center of the depression.

hum-

Ripples like water spread through the air.

Immediately afterwards, where the light shone, the scene began to distort and deform like a melting wax figure, and a cave entrance that was originally integrated with the mountain and extremely hidden slowly appeared in front of everyone!

The cave entrance was pitch black, like the open throat of a giant beast, from which gushed an even more pungent stench and a dense surge of evil energy.

"It was hidden here after all!" The fake archbishop perked up and took the lead towards the cave entrance. "Good lads, come with me and destroy this evil lair!"

Deacon Herbert immediately arranged for several guards to guard the entrance, while he led the main force, closely following the fake archbishop as they filed in.

Qu Xianqing silently followed at the back of the group, stepping into the darkness.

The cave was more spacious than expected, but the atmosphere was oppressively suffocating. The walls were covered with a slimy, biofilm-like substance that emitted a foul stench.

With the help of the holy symbols and the light provided by the spells, one can see in the center of the cave an exquisite altar made of black stone.

Around the altar, a horrifying scene was scattered—mutilated human limbs, some bearing bite marks; twisted and bizarre monster carcasses, eerily pieced together with human parts; and congealed, dark red blood that almost soaked the ground around the altar.

This doesn't look like a temporary setup.

Qu Xianqing stepped forward and judged that this hidden altar must have indeed been used and recently abandoned, which proved that the heretics had indeed carried out activities here for a period of time some time ago.

It could be before the cult infiltrated the town, or it could simply be a cover to reduce the chances of being discovered by the church.

An intense atmosphere of death and madness filled the air.

"By Mother Goddess..." A young guard couldn't help but gag.

An experienced old deacon, barely suppressing his discomfort, stepped forward to carefully examine the remains and the runic marks on the altar. His expression turned extremely grim: "Your Excellency, Deacon Herbert... judging from these marks, they were performing an extremely blasphemous fusion ritual! Attempting to forcibly fuse humans with monsters... or even different kinds of monsters together. Those 'demons'... were probably born through this ritual!"

However, apart from these nauseating remnants, the entire cave was deserted. There were no members of the expected cult, no ongoing rituals, only deathly silence and lingering evil.

“Something’s not right…” Deacon Herbert frowned, gripping his sword tightly. “They’re not here. Are we too late? Or…”

Before he finished speaking -

hum! ! !
On the altar, the dried, dark red bloodstains and twisted runes suddenly lit up with a dim, ominous pale light!

The light was not dazzling, but it carried a chilling and evil quality that pierced the soul.

Immediately afterwards, an extremely sharp and mournful cry of a baby suddenly burst forth from the center of the altar!
"Whoa—!! Whoaaaaaah—!!!"

The cries were heart-wrenching, filled with endless pain, resentment, and a kind of inhuman madness. They instantly pierced everyone's eardrums and reached the depths of their souls!
Under the horrified gazes of everyone, the pale light at the center of the altar violently twisted and converged, finally forming a tangible entity—

It was a twisted creation that defies description.

It roughly resembles the outline of a baby, but has two heads.

Both heads were bluish-black, covered with blood vessels that writhed like earthworms, their faces were distorted, their eyes were pure black without any whites, and they were opening their mouths, which were filled with fine fangs, and emitting a chilling cry.

Its body was a constantly writhing and changing mass of flesh, forcibly fused together with countless severed limbs, internal organs, and the tentacles of monsters, exuding an extremely dense aura of death and filth!

[Side quest triggered: You have encountered the conjoined twin ghost infants - a vessel for an evil god!]

The system message rang in Qu Xianqing's mind, and she was slightly startled.

A terrifying pressure, far more powerful and evil than any monster she had ever encountered before, erupted from the ghost infant like a tangible tsunami, instantly filling the entire cave!
Its four pure black eyes, like the deepest nightmare, suddenly locked onto all living things that had entered its "birthplace".

"Be on guard!!" Deacon Herbert roared, a tremor he himself didn't even realize. "It's a vessel for an evil god summoned by the cultists!"

The fake archbishop's face also revealed an expression of extreme shock and apprehension. He raised his staff high, and holy light shone again. But this time, the holy light seemed to waver somewhat in the evil force field emanating from the ghost infant.

Qu Xianqing felt a stinging pain in his soul. The monsters before him were all minor troubles, but this ghost baby was indeed very powerful!
A chilling, crimson sword aura swirled around her, slightly repelling the overwhelming malevolent pressure. She gazed coldly at the two-headed ghost infant on the altar, its incessant weeping and emanating a soul-chilling aura. Her left fingertip subtly brushed against the Carlos card paper doll in her pocket. (End of Chapter)