Starting from scratch, Batman crushed my dream of getting rich

Chapter 264 The Man Who Can Never Be Saved

A panicked Constantine ran out of the church.

He had never intended to confront Namos head-on, but he hadn't expected to run into its clone today and be bewitched by its buzzing sound—that sound had a terrifying magic that could arouse the deepest desires in people's hearts, amplify them, and amplify them again and again, until they reached the point of losing their minds.

He saw Namos, having lost its prey, buzz angrily, and saw it charge toward the priest in the church—yes, of course, since it had escaped, the priest would be the unfortunate one.

Constantine stood by the door, his face filled with terror, watching the swarm of insects knock the priest to the ground, watching him struggle desperately, waving the cross in his hand, watching Namos stick his long tongue into the priest's mouth.

He felt like a spectator watching a traffic accident, powerless to do anything but stand by indifferently.

Constantine can do nothing.

He screamed and ran out of the church, but at the same time, a familiar figure brushed past him and ran into the church.

"Old Ma! Don't go!"

Emma and Constantine both screamed and turned around at the same time. They saw Ma Zhaodi carrying a wooden sword. His figure flashed like a ghost a few times and then he stood still in the church.

Ma Zhaodi didn't have time to answer Constantine's question right now. At this moment, he had already seen Namos's true form, which had transformed into a dark swarm of insects. The terrifying evil power was also spreading in the air, about to be poured into the priest's throat.

"Damn it, take this sword!"

He tossed the wooden sword he was holding, and a deafening clap of thunder suddenly erupted. A blinding, crimson bolt of lightning shot from his hand, slashing towards the swarm of insects that blotted out the sky.

In that instant, Constantine couldn't help but blink—as the light of thunder shone, the shadows of the three saints on the stained glass were also illuminated with dazzling light, and the huge stained glass projection on Old Man Marcus seemed to drape him in a hazy glow.

Is it an illusion?

Boom!

"Om~"

This sword strike nearly severed the threads of Namos's spirit. Inside the church, black swarms of insects began to scatter and collide in all directions, and a million voices simultaneously emitted a bewildered, weak buzzing sound—it seemed to know nothing of pain.

"What are you waiting for? Run!"

Awakened by Ma Zhaodi's shouts, the pastor stumbled toward the church door. Ma Zhaodi, however, waved his hand, and a vine instantly pulled the wooden sword from the ground back into his hand.

"Sorry I'm a little late." After letting out a sigh of relief, he turned around and left the church, explaining to Constantine, "That man wasn't dead, so I stayed behind to check on the situation."

"you--"

Before Constantine could say anything, the priest rushed out and slammed the door shut behind him. His hands and feet were trembling as he shouted, "Run! We have to run! The devil is coming out!"

"Why are you running?" Constantine asked. "That sword strike almost sent Namos to meet Satan. A few more strikes and he would have been killed instantly."

“Uh,” Ma Zhaodi gave an awkward but polite smile: “No, that sword has used up my magic power, or as you would say.”

"?"

Boom!
At this moment, the church doors behind them began to pound loudly. With just one bang, the wooden doors creaked and groaned under the strain.

"Run!"

Ma Zhaodi immediately took out two talismans and pasted them on the door. [Spirit-Suppressing Talisman]
Price: $5,000

Note: The most impartial spell, whether it is a great demon or a small ghost, it takes the same amount of time to break it - but then again, is this reasonable?
Note 2: What's your relationship with the True Sight?

The thumping from inside the door continued, but it seemed that Moss was indeed temporarily trapped. Constantine grabbed Ma Zhaodi and fled, and as they ran, the two gradually left the priest behind.

“Ignore him, he’s safe now,” Constantine said to Ma Zhaodi. “Let’s just shake him off and avoid trouble.”

“Alright,” Ma Zhaodi said, “but we’ve run far enough, and your lungs are about to burst—”

"Cough! Cough! Cough—"

Before he could finish speaking, Constantine began to cough violently. He stopped and stood by the roadside, coughing uncontrollably for a long time before he recovered.

“Smoking too much is bad for your health.” Ma Zhaodi patted Constantine on the shoulder: “You’ll end up like this after just a few steps. You’re lucky you didn’t cough up blood.”

Constantine ignored him, took out a cigarette and put it in his mouth. The scene just now was too shocking, and he urgently needed to light one to calm himself down.

If it weren't for Emma, ​​Namos would have turned me into a dried-up corpse, Constantine thought. I owe her again. Perhaps I also owe Ma Zhaodi.

Ma Zhaodi could tell that he wanted to take a break, so he didn't say anything more, and the two walked silently down the road.

Constantine had thought he no longer had superfluous feelings of guilt or conscience, but when he ran out of the church, he realized he was wrong.

At that moment, his mind was filled with the priest's miserable state. He knew he was powerless; Namos was far superior to him. He knew he only wanted to survive, and there was nothing wrong with running away. He knew that if he died in the church, no one could cooperate with Old Man Midnight and resolve this crisis.

He has a thousand reasons to live.

But as he ran away, he couldn't help but think that he really couldn't do anything but escape.

Perhaps he knew that Constantine's life meant the death of that innocent priest, perhaps he even wanted this outcome because he was afraid of death. Deep down, a voice reminded him: selfish, shameless, and incompetent, Constantine, this is your true nature; you were never some exorcising demon and saving the world hero.

He wanted to deny the voice, but he couldn't, so he kept running, leaving everything behind. Until he saw someone running towards him, running all the way into the church to confront the demon he dared not face.

"Ma Zhaodi! Don't go!"

He screamed and turned around, trying to stop the man, because he knew that Ma Zhaodi might have many strange things about him, but he was an upright and good person and he shouldn't die.

At least they shouldn't have died meaninglessly.

But things didn't go as he expected. Ma Zhaodi stabbed Namos and rescued the priest.

Upon witnessing this scene, Constantine felt a sense of relief—at least this time, no one died because of him.

Am I saved?

Yes, although I still have to continue being a scoundrel, and although ghosts still follow me, tonight I didn't have to carry an extra life on my shoulders.

Constantine lowered his head, took a drag of his cigarette, and thought silently, "I'm saved, albeit only a little."

This feels so good.

(End of this chapter)