I am a hero of the former civilization.

Aponia was pleased, but also somewhat disappointed, leaving Ryan wondering what she was thinking. He hesitated for a moment before speaking:

"Then you should go back first. Judging by the time, Qian Jie is almost at his limit."

"Do you have something to do?"

"There are some small things you can't help with, so don't worry about me. Oh, and remember to cook the rice; I'll be back to eat later."

At first, Aponia was a little hesitant, but after hearing the last sentence, she bowed with relief and turned to leave.

"Wait a minute." Ryan called out to her, looking suspicious. "You're so agreeable, aren't you afraid I'll tear down the residence of the Christian representative on the ground?"

The nun was slightly taken aback, not expecting Ryan's question to be so tricky, but quickly chuckled again.

"To me, you are the true spokesperson."

The nun left, leaving behind a graceful silhouette. Ryan stared at her for a long time before scratching his nose.

Having spent so much time with Dead Duck, he was actually getting used to Aponia's straightforwardness. She didn't need to hide anything; she would clearly state, "I need you."

Not bad, saves me from guessing.

Ryan breathed a sigh of relief, realizing that the Aponia faith did exist, but it was twisted, and that what she believed in seemed to be on another level.

"As long as it's not an ordinary charlatan, it's fine. Otherwise, it could be quite troublesome if things get out of hand."

Ryan didn't think much of it. He glanced around and saw that there were no cameras. He seemed to blend into the air and disappeared in the blink of an eye.

Well, physicists have come here to explore theology.

......

As Aponia walked out of the church, the setting sun bathed her face in a golden glow. Not only ordinary believers, but even passing nuns cast surprised glances at her.

She seemed to become a painting simply by standing at the church entrance, making people feel as if she had merged into St. George's Basilica, with an impact even stronger than that of the Pope.

Because his compassionate face held a touch of sacred fervor, and his loving eyes swept over the crowd before finally settling on the evening glow.

Like these people, she once dreamed of making a pilgrimage here, but after too many failed struggles, Aponia suddenly realized that such piety was meaningless and that no matter how much she prayed, she would not receive a response.

The Pope is a fake, the scriptures are fake, and perhaps even God is a fake. The only real things in the world are the devil and the cruel and stubborn fate. The feeling of having a premonition that someone will die, yet being unable to stop it no matter what, is like a curse.

'Only God can change fate; all humanity can do is struggle. Just when I was becoming increasingly pessimistic, a true apostle descended upon me, making me understand that the future truly can be changed.'

Aponia descended the steps, her full breasts bouncing with each step. Such a beautiful scene, yet no one dared to cast a lustful glance. Instead, they all turned their heads away, as if looking at her any longer would be a desecration.

Dang——dang——

The nun, who had reached the edge of the square, turned her head and saw the giant bell swaying, the magnificent St. George's Cathedral bathed in gold, white doves fluttering, and throngs of worshippers.

The picturesque scene was reflected in his azure eyes, yet he showed no amazement, as if he were looking at an ordinary building.

"Compared to you, this is nothing more than a pile of stone houses devoid of any miracles."

Her tone was like a proverb, making it difficult for onlookers to hear clearly, yet they racked their brains trying to understand what she had just said. But by the time they came to their senses, the nun had already disappeared into the square.

Aponia doesn't want to uncover secrets, she won't ask questions; she just wants to keep her eyes wide open.

Let those stubborn images vanish in the hands of a man.

Chapter 256 There really was something underground!

"Who is that nun?"

As Aponia was leaving, not only believers were watching her, but even the Pope cast an admiring glance at her.

From any perspective, she was a devout and perfect nun, as if one could see the shadow of saints of the past in her.

The bishops exchanged glances and quickly replied, "Your Majesty, they are not from the cathedral, but rather from some monastery outside who have come on pilgrimage."

"In these dangerous times, to come to the Holy City despite the risks is a testament to your piety. You should send someone to visit and inquire about their well-being. If they can stay in the Holy City, that would be best."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

No one was jealous, after all, Aponia was too good-looking. Just sitting there, she was basically a spokesperson. Even the Pope was tempted.

“The position has been vacant since the passing of the previous chief nun. If she is willing to take on this important role, she can be included as a candidate.”

"As ordered."

The Pope nodded in satisfaction. The chief nun was the mascot, and the most important thing about a mascot is its appearance. It could even be a mute. It's just that the previous mascot passed away unexpectedly, and there hadn't been a chance to fill the vacancy yet.

"I never expected to meet such a perfect candidate today. It's truly a blessing from the gods."

"Praise be to God, the Almighty."

A group of people prayed on the steps, prompting hundreds of believers to do the same. It took a few seconds before they returned to normal.

"Your Majesty, shall we continue with today's tasks?" a bishop asked in a low voice.

"Of course, in this age of demons, we must have a sword in our hands."

"But we don't have enough volunteers."

“Then let’s go look again. In the Holy City, there are countless people who are willing to become the sword of God, and they have the firm belief to pass the test.”

"Yes, we understand. Then, you..."

“I won’t participate. Moth Chaser has something to do, and I have to go to New York.”

The bishops said no more; they knew the Church's position in the Moths of the Flame was not merely that of a financial backer, but also that it could influence hundreds of millions of believers across national borders.

The Fire Chasing Council must have a place.

But the Pope was thinking more deeply; he too looked at the same sunset and sighed softly.

That person hasn't shown up yet, forcing him to take some risks.

......

"Why hasn't that old guy come back yet?"

Ryan hid in the shadows of the buildings behind the church, which served as the church's offices and residences and remained as ancient ruins for hundreds of years.

The defenses were clearly several levels stronger, with a large number of heavily armed military and police officers on patrol everywhere, but they still couldn't see Ryan right under their noses.

I was hoping to have a good talk with the Pope when he returned, but I waited for several hours and didn't see him at all.

'Tsk, my gut feeling tells me he must know a lot, I didn't expect him to go to New York.'

Ryan overheard the conversation between several servants and shook his head with some regret.

The fact that he went to New York is enough to show that the Pope is indeed a member of the Council of Fire Chasers. And there are not many in the Council who are willing and able to set up secret laboratories, such as the Pure Blood faction in the past and the Faith faction now.

Then I'm too lazy to wait any longer.

Ryan stepped out of the shadows. After observing for a while, he roughly knew where the entrance was: the garden in the center of this building.

Some priests were going in and out, and the guards seemed oblivious. It didn't seem like a very secretive operation, probably because they were using multiple layers of disguise. After all, no normal person would associate charlatans with science.

'It has nothing to do with religious sects. The church's human experimentation is a scandal, but others can find excuses, like St. George, who was one of the earliest fusion warriors.'

Ryan remained invisible, passing through several checkpoints. When it came to sophistry and eloquence, who could compare to these charlatans? Besides, he had already arrested and questioned two priests.

This is a secret research project of the church, seemingly to create some kind of divine sword to start a holy war. All participants are volunteers, and there is absolutely no kidnapping or similar behavior.

"If I were a regular fusion warrior, I wouldn't really do anything to you except report you to my superiors. But I'm very sensitive to things like secret research right now."

Ryan was skeptical. To him, it didn't matter if the church really wanted to wage a holy war. All research should be coordinated by May. Wasn't this a waste of resources?

Moreover, what right do these charlatans have to conduct human body research? Seminaries don't teach biology and physics.

Ryan didn't care about all that. Even if the church really had some relics from a previous civilization, it wouldn't be a loss to snatch them and hand them over to May.

He came to the center of the garden and saw a deep pit, like a lake that had been drained of water, with a silver-white metal gate on one side.

To be honest, it's a little strange to see such a modern gate in a place full of historical sites.

"Triple electronic locks, biometric detectors, and iris scanning; two doors ten meters apart, even if you were invisible, you couldn't get in. The doors are over a meter thick, so cutting them open would take some effort."

His mouth was full of faith, but his body was quite honest. This exceeded the standard of an A-level laboratory, but Ryan had no intention of being a thief.

As the power of the wind dissipated, a gentleman with ice-blue hair suddenly appeared in the center of the pit. He was wearing a slightly flamboyant purplish-red suit, and he pulled out a silver short stick, which quickly transformed into an exquisite cane.

The people in the central monitoring room immediately sat up straight, staring at the screen in astonishment. In the blink of an eye, how could there have been an extra gentleman at the entrance?

"Who is this?"

"I don't know, how did it suddenly appear?"

Before the guards could react, the gentleman had already strode gracefully to the door, placed his left palm on it, and then, a layer of crystalline ice spread out, his palm striking—

Click.

The alloy door shattered like glass, and the intrusion alarm went off.

"Intruders at the main entrance!"

"Quickly notify the garrison of the Firemoth!"

As if waking from a dream, the monitoring room quickly issued an alert. They remained calm and proceeded with their usual drills. At that moment, a middle-aged man in a red robe with a kind face strode in.

"what happened?"

His robes were still somewhat disheveled, clearly indicating that he had been startled awake.

"Bishop Astu, there are intruders at the main gate. They have already breached the second gate, and all internal communications are being disrupted by electromagnetic interference!"

The main entrance? An intruder??

The bishop was a little confused. How could a thief rush in directly through the front door? He subconsciously glanced at the screen.

An elegant man strolled through the passageway, unstoppable by the dense barrage of bullets from sentry guns and laser cutters. The shells and beams were deflected by the ice, and the man himself was soon frozen in place.

It was incredibly powerful, yet exuded an elegance. Its terrifying freezing ability was beyond the capabilities of any human. As the bishop watched, he suddenly shuddered.

"An apostle of God!?"

What kind of apostle of God is this? Doesn't this seem more like a fusion warrior from the Moth of Flame?

"Your Excellency, should we engage them?"

Astu's expression changed drastically. According to the information he had received, wasn't the Fifth Herrscher supposed to have perished? How could she suddenly appear here?

As someone in the know, that was all the information he had, but unfortunately, communications were disrupted, and he couldn't contact His Holiness the Pope.

What should we do? What exactly happened? Why did divine punishment descend upon us?