Returning from the abyss

Chapter 1504 Offering Prayers
"Five, two short."

The pharmacist raised one hand and bent down one finger at a time.

"You, me, Danxi, Liu, and Poirot. Now that we've found the majority, let's discuss where the biggest problem lies. Before, I thought the superposition of multiple fates caused this scenario to become much more difficult, but I think I was missing a step. Difficulty will manifest itself in a specific form, and that specific form is probably the birth of a god."

“Can you take my place?” Bavotley suddenly asked.

“Ah… if you mean I should take the place of the tourists, then that’s fine, since we’ve already established a cooperative relationship.” The pharmacist smiled. “Sharing memories, sharing knowledge—aside from some differences in habits, or perhaps some of our own secrets, we’re not that different.”

“Okay.” Bavotley nodded. “Now you want to propose cooperation?”

“Making such a request once is enough,” the pharmacist replied. “But I think we can still exchange some limited information, including Danxi, right?”

“She could escape at any time by covering one of her hands with the substance; she’s just considering whether to pay such a huge price.” Bavotley laid bare Dansh’s plan. “So she’s not in the wrong mind; just tell me.”

“I see… Well then, I have something I’m curious about.” The pharmacist carefully recalled Lu Ning’s memories and said, “The order in which we entered.”

The order—a subtle yet crucial point. The arrival and departure points generally had no bias in the timing of visitors entering the area, but this time the waiter specifically reminded everyone that the earlier you entered, the earlier your arrival time. If so, what does this timing bias indicate? Was the order in which the visitors arrived truly accidental?

“I was the second one to arrive,” Bavotley said.

When Danxi saw the pharmacist looking at her, she sneered, "I'm the fifth one to arrive, is there a problem?"

"Given that everything in this scenario is pre-arranged by the distribution center, I have reason to question this order. The distribution center prioritizes fairness for all tourists, and the timing is likely to balance our strengths—"

“—Then, those who enter earlier should have a disadvantage,” Bavotley interjected.

"Isn't this nonsense?" Danxi said with dissatisfaction. "The first to enter always has the advantage!"

“Based solely on strength. To put it bluntly, none of you are my match.” Bavotley spoke frankly. “If the order is merely for balancing strength, then it’s normal for those who enter first to be at a disadvantage. Moreover, in this scenario, the tourists have no opportunity to fight each other before arriving at Violet City.”

“But we will meet,” the pharmacist said immediately. “As Danxi said, it is generally an advantage to enter first. If it is a disadvantage, we should consider balancing the relationship with Violet City.”

Bavotley and Danshi were both experts in this field, and upon hearing the pharmacist's words, they immediately understood what she meant.

“You think that those who enter earlier will be more deeply bound by fate and will find it harder to escape this vortex,” Bavotley said. “There’s some truth to that. But considering that tourists can abandon their fate lines by killing other tourists, it’s not enough.”

"If it's not just about tourists, and the problems here aren't completely resolved, then it makes sense," the pharmacist said.

Danshi suddenly spoke up: "You mean that Rosemerada?"

"A piece of evidence I just encountered, which is somewhat indirect. A plague apostle who called himself the Letterman was preventing me from returning to the Southern Minute Church in the dense forest."

“Ordinary plague apostles can’t stop you,” Bavotley said.

"Perhaps it was just my intuition, but I didn't think he was an ordinary plague apostle. That's why I did some research. The plague apostle's claim was that he didn't want me to go to the Minute Church. But I don't think I have much to do with the birth of a god. Besides, his emphasis on letting others take things back is very suspicious."

Danxi looked at the two young men next to the pharmacist with disbelief.

You mean them?

"They are products of the plague, though it sounds strange to say so. To deliberately create these babies who are not infected and have abnormal physical conditions through the plague, I can only assume that they are cultivating suitable individuals."

The pharmacist turned to look at Joshua and Evangeline, who were also somewhat shocked.

"Therefore, I believe that the plague apostle did not mean to stop me from going back, but rather to let these two people go back alone."

“The person in charge of the Minute Church… I remember his name is Thorne,” Bavotley began. “Does he know about this?”

“This matter is known to everyone of some standing in the church. We haven’t hidden the origins of these two children either. That’s why I need your help—I can’t let them go there on their own; that would fall into the trap of the plague apostles.”

"Ha, if this sorcerer is willing to let me go, I'd be happy to go with you and see what kind of person that plague apostle is."

"can."

“I knew it—what did you say?” Danshi looked at Bavotley in astonishment.

“If I can capture you once, I can capture you a second time. Under the same circumstances, I can prevent you from causing more destruction to history. And you obviously have to deal with that plague apostle. The birth of a god will affect you more than it affects me, especially if this god has authority in the spiritual realm. You will fall into that situation again.”

Danxi's face turned pale, but she still nodded slowly.

"Fine...fine, so you say that? Does that mean I absolutely have to kill that plague apostle who tried to bring about the birth of a god? As long as I stop him—"

“You can’t stop it. You’ve been blinded by anger, you worm,” Bavotley said bluntly. “The gods born in Violet City have been covered by multiple possibilities in the course of history. Unless we confirm this result this time, we will not be able to escape this fate until the gods are born. Now you should understand, right?”

Just as Bavotley finished speaking, all three of them simultaneously heard the voice in their minds.

Main Task Four has been generated.

The Emerging Being: Everyone has realized that beneath the tragedy of Violet, a new god is being conceived. However, many are fit to be, but only one god will ultimately be born beyond the reaches of time. You must witness it, you must seek it, you must elevate your destiny above all others.

“Very good, the distribution center has confirmed this hypothesis for us,” Bavotley said. “Perhaps at this very moment, the last tourist has also confirmed this. So, let me open this passage for you.”

He raised his hand and quickly drew a mark next to him.

"Documentary: Sky-Piercing Colossus".

The legacy of the Third Holy War, later modified by Kiss into a weapon for the main cannons of a large church. He hadn't used this weapon on Danshi before simply because he felt she wasn't worth it, but now, to deal with this dense forest, he was willing to contribute his strength. "There's only one thing I need to ask of you, Pharmacist," Bavotley said, not glancing at Danshi, but addressing the Pharmacist, "and the tourist who shares your body. Your existence proves your morality is above mine, so I will believe your promise."

"You say it."

"If a god must be born here, let it be a god who is both benevolent and wise."

=
Claw marks permeated the space.

"How terrifying." Burdi dodged quickly, his red monk's robe already torn in several places. Even if his body could recover, other things couldn't. The speed of the three eyes was no longer fast enough to catch Liu's movements, and Liu's figure in the red smoke had completely transformed into the shape of a wolf.

"A reflection of the gods. So that's how it is. Your suitability allows you to bear the power of the gods to a certain extent. Given that we all lose the ability to directly connect with the gods after replacing our original bodies, you are actually able to gain a certain degree of enhancement?"

"That's not the case..."

Liu's voice seemed to echo in this space.

"You mean you can no longer communicate with the gods?" Bernd asked.

“Not to a certain extent—I have also obtained the qualifications of a saint, although it hasn’t been that long.” The wolf’s shadow lingered around Burdi. Although the area had been completely turned into Willow’s hunting ground, Burdi’s strange abilities and bizarre method of sharing luck could always interrupt the attack at crucial moments.

“Well, it seems I’m the only one who’s been cursed by luck. You know what? This weapon has a mysterious name, but once you enter the scene, it’s just a slightly sharp blank slate. To fulfill the requirements, I’ll have to rely on my own skills.” Burdi raised the short sword again. “And even if you draw it, it’s random, and some ridiculous abilities are included—like the ability to hold your breath underwater for an hour, or the ability to see things at night as if it were daytime.”

The short sword slashed down, cutting a bright path through the red smoke.

"If one day my luck suddenly turns around, it's probably not a good thing. It means... an even greater calamity is about to befall me."

Bernd walked outside, knowing full well that killing Liu would be far too difficult now. If he wanted to meet the conditions quickly, he had to find the next person with the ability to become a god as soon as possible.

“You heard about the mission… right?” Bernd said.

Where do you think you're going?

"The progress is too slow, so we need to speed things up. I have other options, but I just happened to find you. Now that you've proven to be unexpectedly difficult, it's a good idea to give up quickly."

"You gave up very decisively."

“Someone as unlucky as me needs to know when to stop. Wasting time is pointless; you can’t deal with me, and I can’t touch you. So let… Pan De’ang handle it.”

Bernd's eyes pointed in one direction.

"Still trying to hide?"

A moment later, a woman wearing a black mask that covered the upper half of her face came out.

"Lord Pan De'ang has already left. Since you want this prey, he naturally won't compete with you for it. But now you're going to give it up?"

“I’m not an apostle of plague, and I don’t necessarily need this as my goal.” Burdi glanced at the woman, then turned to look at the smoke behind him. “Oh, but it’s too late. She’s gone too.”

“It’s hard for me not to suspect that you’re putting on an act with her to get her out of our clutches,” the gatekeeper said.

“I don’t care how you interpret it. In the end… Pan De’ang only provided me with a few potential strong individuals, but these are the easiest to satisfy. I found a few loopholes in the surveillance system of the warning hub for you, yet you still managed to do things this way, which makes me doubt your abilities.”

"This level was within expectations," the gatekeeper said.

"Alright, stop trying to coax me with those words. But... I haven't met Pan De'ang in person yet. We've only corresponded by letter. I wonder if this legendary plague apostle would be so kind as to let me meet him? Does he covet Liu's body, intending to use her for rebirth or something? If so, perhaps he also has the potential to become a god."

"Chaotic Numbers" doesn't require qualifications or talent; it only wants the future.

Bernd didn't care who he targeted.

“I’m sorry, but if the opportunity arises, I think Lord Pan De'ang would be willing to see you,” the gatekeeper said. “For now, it’s best if we each go about our own business.”

“Gatekeeper…do you want to establish yourself as king?” Burdi suddenly asked.

The gatekeeper shook his head slightly: "I had no such intention. Chui Ri, do you still want to use me to consecrate your sword?"

“That’s one option, but unfortunately, you still haven’t shown that potential. It’s a real shame.” Burdi smiled and turned around. The smoke and claw marks around him were dissipating, and Liu was no longer there. “I’m heading south. You’d better choose another direction.”

"Varied--"

Just as the gatekeeper was about to speak, a deafening roar accompanied by a tremor that shook the entire city of Violet. Deep in the distant forest, a dazzling light rapidly expanded, then turned from gold to red, transforming into a pillar of fire that shot straight into the sky.

“Look, this is why I have to go.” Bernard quickened his pace. “A grand gathering is about to begin, how can I be absent? Only in such a gathering can I find what I’m looking for.”

The dense forest suffered a devastating blow.

The "Sky-Piercing Machine" was a weapon developed during the Third Holy War to annihilate gods and their transformed armies. It was a weapon designed by humanity in search of how to defeat the gods with mortal strength. Simply summoning it from the shadows of history took a considerable toll on Bavotley, but the effects were undeniable.

Previously, everyone had to follow the rules of the Dark Forest, but now a gap has been torn open by an even more overwhelming force. A large number of dead trees were directly evaporated, and even under the protection of such layers of trees, the giant tree in the core area still had its branches burned off, leaving only a trunk.

After blasting open the dense forest with a single shot, Bavotley once again gathered the shattered blades of his sword.

“Take this silverfish with you when you leave, Pharmacist. I will make sure nothing will stand in your way until you leave the dense forest.”