absurd deduction game.

Time passed second by second, and the sun rose high overhead, dispelling the last bit of morning mist and moisture.

The continuous rain over the past few days has really made its presence felt, but unexpectedly, the last day of the dungeon was a sunny day.

The sunlight was a bit dazzling, shining unobstructed onto the wide stone-paved square in front of the Harvest Church.

The square was teeming with people, a dense, dark mass.

All the residents of Yolikev, regardless of their wealth or status, were gathered here in accordance with the golden decree. The crowd spontaneously formed small groups based on their status, class, and familiar circles.

Every so often, a person dressed in a priest's robe or guard uniform stands quietly, their expression serious, their eyes scanning the crowd warily, like an invisible fence that surrounds and confines everyone within the square.

"Dang——dang——dang——"

The bronze bell at the top of the church was struck, its deep and resonant sound echoing throughout the square, announcing the arrival of noon.

The noise of the crowd subsided unconsciously, and everyone's eyes were drawn to the heavy oak door of the church.

The door slowly opened.

Several church members dressed in dark deacon robes and with solemn expressions stepped forward and stood on either side.

Then, the "archbishop," dressed in a magnificent red robe and wearing a golden bishop's crown, appeared in the sunlight, surrounded by a group of high-ranking deacons and nuns.

Sister Tian, ​​disguised as the archbishop, appeared both dignified and kind against the backdrop of her red robe, her gaze sweeping peacefully over the dark mass of people below.

The square fell completely silent, with only the sound of the wind and the occasional suppressed cough from afar.

"My children."

Tian spoke, his voice, amplified by some kind of mystical magic, clearly reaching the ears of everyone in the square. It wasn't loud, but carried a calm and reassuring power.

"May the love of the Mother Goddess shine upon you forever, and may her bountiful harvest bless everyone on this land."

She made a simple and standard prayer gesture, her movements fluid and natural, without any flaws.

"Recently, evil forces have invaded our homeland, bringing fear and pain, but please believe that the Mother Goddess has never abandoned her people. Today, we will hold a grand purification ceremony together here, before the sanctuary, to dispel the remaining gloom with the radiance of the Mother Goddess and to nourish your weary body and mind with holy food."

Her gaze slowly swept across the crowd, and beneath that kind face, a barely perceptible glimpse of a controlling nature flashed by.

"Now, please follow the nuns' instructions to enter the church prayer hall in an orderly manner, where the ceremony will take place."

After giving this brief speech, Tian nodded slightly and turned to walk back into the church. She seemed unconcerned about the crowd's reaction, or rather, she was certain that with the current situation and the "miracle" as a prelude, no one would dare to openly rebel.

Immediately afterwards, nuns who were already prepared emerged from both sides, dressed in pristine white habit and with well-trained, gentle smiles on their faces, and began to guide the crowd into the church in batches.

At the same time, another group of nuns appeared pushing several carts piled high with baskets containing freshly baked, steaming white bread with wheat patterns, and clean water in clean wooden buckets.

"One loaf of bread and one cup of water for each person. Please take them." The nuns distributed the bread while informing everyone in a clear but unquestionable tone, "During the ceremony, please stay in the prayer hall and remain quiet and devout. Please do not leave the church area before dark. This is to ensure the integrity and effectiveness of the purification ceremony, and also for everyone's safety."

The crowd began to move slowly, collecting food, and then, with varying feelings, stepped into the magnificent and secluded church building.

……

Mrs. Furnell stood among a small group of "prominent" people near the church entrance.

Today she changed into a light gold silk dress, with a matching light gauze shawl over it. She looked dazzling in the sunlight, so beautiful that she seemed out of place with the somber atmosphere around her, yet strangely attracted a lot of attention.

She wore her usual, perfectly appropriate social smile, occasionally exchanging a few words in hushed tones with a wealthy businessman or nobleman beside her.

Evan's position was much more off-center.

He sat on a row of benches at the back of the prayer hall. As an "up-and-coming artist," even though he was popular in the circle, he could only stay in the corner in this gathering of the real elite. However, he obviously did not care at all, and even leaned back in his chair with a relaxed posture and closed his eyes slightly.

A young maid with freckles on her face was standing behind him, carefully massaging his shoulders.

Until he heard a portly, wealthy merchant in an expensive silk vest speaking in confusion from the crowd standing with Fernail not far away: "Huh? Why isn't Mr. Defit here? Didn't the church say everyone had to be there? Even old John's father, who's been paralyzed for ten years, was carried here..."

Evan's ears twitched almost imperceptibly.

He remained in a meditative posture with his eyes closed, but his attention was completely focused on that area.

As a close "partner" of Defit, Evan had been unable to contact the banker since early this morning. He initially thought that the high priest of the cult had temporarily sent Defit to carry out some secret mission. After all, with the final ceremony approaching, some secret arrangements were normal.

Hearing someone mention it now, he naturally wanted to hear how Fernail would respond.

Upon hearing this, Fernal sighed softly, a hint of sadness and regret appearing on her beautiful face.

She turned to the portly businessman, lowering her voice and adding just the right amount of sorrow: "Haven't you heard? Poor Mr. Defitt... met with misfortune last night."

The people talking nearby stopped and looked over.

“I heard that a monster sneaked into the vicinity of his mansion last night.” Fernail’s voice carried a hint of lingering fear and sympathy. “Mr. Defitt seemed to hear his deceased wife calling him in the middle of the night, and he walked out of his room in a daze… When the church guards patrolled over there, they only found him lying on the ground covered in blood…”

She paused, as if reluctant to continue, but still added softly, "His neck was slashed by a sharp weapon, and there was no hope of saving him. Alas, may the Mother Goddess accept his kind soul. His body is currently placed behind the church. The deacons say it needs to be carefully cleansed and the wounds on the body thoroughly examined. They must find the monster and murderer who killed this kind and generous gentleman so that he can rest in peace."

"Oh my God!"

"Mother Goddess..."

"Mr. Defit also..."

The gentlemen and ladies around who heard this gasped softly, their faces showing genuine shock and regret.

Duffert was indeed a prominent figure and well-known in the business and high society of Yolikef, and his sudden death was undoubtedly a heavy blow.

Evan's pupils contracted slightly beneath his closed eyes.

Defit is dead, his throat cleanly slit on the eve of the final ritual... This is no accident, nor is it an ordinary monster attack. It is revenge, it is rebellion. Someone has already infiltrated the core of the cult and has begun to eliminate key figures.

Are they investigators from those ideal states?
Or is it that some people in the church have started to retaliate?

Several faces flashed through Evan's mind. He tilted his head slightly, opened his eyelids a crack, and observed Fernail's expression discreetly.

The subtle sadness on Fernell's face hadn't completely faded, but her eyes remained calm and undisturbed, conveying an almost indifferent indifference. Evan's suspicions deepened. Just as he was about to find an opportunity to approach Fernell and ask for more specific details, the nuns finished distributing the food and began urging everyone to eat as soon as possible.

"Please enjoy the blessings of the Mother Goddess. These breads and waters will not only fill your stomachs, but the blessings they contain will also help with the purification rituals to come, enabling you to better resist evil and keep your hearts pure." The nuns' voices echoed in the large prayer hall, gentle yet carrying an urgent tone.

Evan glanced at the warm, soft white bread in his hand, and then noticed the nuns' gazes from nearby. He had no choice but to suppress his thoughts of going to find Fernail, and instead tore off a small piece, stuffed it into his mouth, and chewed it slowly.

He wasn't hungry at all, and his actions were very perfunctory.

Because he knew perfectly well that the so-called group purification prayer that the fake archbishop Tian was about to recite contained filthy incantations from esoteric Buddhism.

If an ordinary person listens to the entire recording, a seed of corruption will be quietly planted deep within their mind, making them easier to manipulate, while esoteric practitioners and fanatics of ancient gods will not be affected in any way.

Just then, a very faint yet exceptionally clear and ethereal sound of crystals colliding entered his ears.

The sound was peculiar; it vibrated slightly in the air and then disappeared.

Evan paused, almost instinctively raising his head, his gaze quickly sweeping over the surrounding crowd, the tall stained-glass windows, and the intricate relief decorations on the church dome.

Nothing.

Was that the sound of an expensive crystal ornament worn by a lady accidentally bumping into each other?
He frowned, sensing something was amiss, but after looking around, he couldn't find the source. The others around him seemed oblivious, continuing to talk in hushed tones or eat quietly.

Evan suppressed the slight unease in his heart and refocused his attention on the present.

Not long after, the nuns distributing food stepped aside, and on the high pulpit in front of the prayer hall, Tian, ​​disguised as the archbishop in a red robe, reappeared.

"Please keep quiet." Her imitation of the archbishop's voice echoed throughout the hall, carrying a solemn and imposing aura. "Next, I will recite the purification prayer of the Mother Goddess for everyone. Please put down everything you are doing, listen attentively with piety."

The last whispers in the hall vanished, and it became so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

Tian took a deep breath, clasped her hands together in front of her chest, and closed her eyes.

Then she began to chant aloud in an ancient, obscure language, yet with a strange rhythm.

The lengthy prayer began.

Mass purification prayers are one of the highest-level mystical arts in the Church, and are usually performed only by clergy of the rank of cardinal or archbishop, with the aid of the Church's own holy power.

The process is extremely mentally and physically demanding, and it is said that a complete prayer can dispel evil, soothe the soul, and even heal psychological trauma.

Of course, the fake archbishop Tian was incapable of performing a genuine purification prayer.

What she was reciting at that moment was a carefully fabricated mixture of righteous prayers and a large number of obscene incantations.

The syllables of the prayer are ancient and difficult to pronounce, and the rise and fall of the tone has a hypnotic effect. To ordinary people, it only feels solemn and sacred, awe-inspiring, and at most a little drowsy. Only those who have a deep understanding of mysticism or who have particularly keen spiritual power can perceive the malicious whispers that slowly seep in like a filthy swamp beneath the smooth and sacred appearance.

Evan concentrated, pretending to listen attentively.

He noticed that only some mid-level deacons and ordinary priests were maintaining order in the hall, while most of the senior deacons who could hear the problem had died in yesterday's Zhenxi operation. The few who had returned with injuries were also busy recuperating and preparing for the evening's battle, so they didn't have time to come to the front.

Time passed slowly in the monotonous and lengthy chanting. More than an hour had passed, and many residents who were physically exhausted or already tired could not help but start to doze off, their heads nodding off.

Evan also felt waves of drowsiness rising up, not only from lack of sleep, but also from the subtle erosion and hypnotic effect of the filthy curse on his mind, though it didn't have a strong effect on him.

Finally, Tian's chanting faded slowly after a soaring syllable, returning to silence.

She opened her eyes, her face bearing a perfect blend of weariness and divine radiance, and nodded slightly to the crowd below: "May the purifying power of the Mother Goddess be with you."

The purification ritual is over.

Evan prepared to observe whether any of the townspeople who had undergone purification showed any abnormalities—such as blank stares, inexplicable depression or excitement, stiff expressions, etc., all of which were signs of initial mental contamination.

However, wherever he looked, people seemed... to be doing as usual.

The person who was dozing off rubbed their eyes and woke up with a dazed look on their face, even with a rosy complexion. They showed no signs of the disharmony between mind and body that one might expect after being planted with the seed of filth.

Evan frowned.

He instinctively looked in the direction where Fernail was.

The elegant smile that was usually on Fernal's face had disappeared without her noticing.

Her beautiful brows furrowed slightly, her gaze sweeping over the seemingly normal crowd in the hall before being replaced by a heavy gloom.

The plan seems to have encountered an unexpected setback.

Fernail sat there with a gloomy expression, quickly thinking of the reason.

The prayer was designed by her personally, the insertion of the filthy curse was flawless, and Tian's chanting was also without error. There was absolutely no way that church personnel below the intermediate level could detect it... Where is the problem?
Her gaze fell on the white bread that had only been bitten into and was casually placed beside her.

She suddenly reached out and grabbed the bread, concentrating her mental energy to sense it carefully.

An extremely subtle yet exceptionally resilient and pure purifying power, like the finest silver thread, is woven into every wisp of aroma and nourishment of the bread!

This purifying power blends seamlessly with the church's own aura of blessing, making it virtually undetectable unless one deliberately seeks it out! It is neither forceful nor ostentatious, yet it acts like the gentlest barrier, silently neutralizing and counteracting the defiled power of the incantations that invade the minds of the listeners along with the prayers.

Fennell suddenly opened her eyes, and for a moment, dark green veins seemed to appear under her eyes.

Someone anticipated the esoteric sect's actions and tampered with the distributed "holy food" beforehand to protect these ordinary people.

Only one person in the entire town of Yolikef could unleash such exquisite purification power, which even she managed to conceal. That person was the true cardinal, the old man who should have been suppressed and sealed beneath the church!
He's escaped oppression? And there must be someone helping him.

Fernail suddenly stood up, her movement creating a gentle breeze.

A nun who was in charge of order in the area seemed to want to go up and ask something, but Fernail just gave her a cold glance.

The nun's eyes darted around for a moment, a look of confusion flashing across her face, before she regained her composure, as if she had forgotten Fernail's sudden movement of getting up, and her gaze naturally shifted elsewhere.

Fernail moved with impunity, making her way to the underground entrance of the church.

Behind her, Yi Qing, fanning herself, followed at a leisurely pace. (End of Chapter)