The male supporting character was actually myself.

However, even in taverns, restaurants, and on the streets, the topics of conversation all revolved around the church, monumental heroes, the emerging mysteries and the abyss, as well as the five major bandit groups and the charitable organizations revealed by Jiang Chen.

"I just finished reading the hero's explanation, and now I'm incredibly worried! Why do you think all the Weirdos suddenly retreated back to the abyss back then?" A fat man at the table tried to join the heated discussion of a few young girls at the next table while eating noodles.

One of the girls, dressed in a black dress, whispered, "The church keeps saying that the enforcers killed the monsters so badly they dared not come back, but the Monument Heroes say that the monsters retreated on their own. Whom should we believe?"

"Of course they believe in heroes! Do you think those guys in the church will tell the truth? Look at what they've done!"

"Yes, I can't speak for the others. But the Skeleton Hands and the Aryan Brotherhood, those two notorious criminal gangs, have been admitted by the church's higher-ups to be entirely composed of their own people!"

The fat man slurped up some noodles and muttered, "Didn't the hero himself say that he didn't know what strange thing had happened that led to the sudden retreat? What if they're plotting something even more terrible? Are we going to rely on those cowardly executors who always run away in the face of trouble? We'll be devoured alive by those monsters sooner or later!"

You can't say that.

The customer who had been quietly eating noodles in the corner looked up, his violet eyes sparkling, and his voice lively: "There are good people and bad people everywhere. The church actually bears many important responsibilities that the public is unaware of."

Therefore, we cannot generalize and condemn everyone based on a single instance.

Otherwise, if some beings become unhappy and abandon their posts, the human world might collapse instantly.

"Tch~ You think you can teach those good-for-nothing, bragging guys?"

The fat man scoffed, "Anyway, I'm not counting on them anymore. If the supernatural really does make a comeback someday, only the Monument Heroes will be reliable!"

The handsome and elegant young man stood up, placed two silver coins on the table, smiled politely, and left.

More voices echoed from behind, and the fat man's louder cursing of the church grew even louder.

Screens throughout the streets and alleys are repeatedly playing super-exciting videos of the hero of the Monument taking down the bizarre and Jiang Chen single-handedly storming the bandits' lair. Compared to the computer-generated fake and bizarre battles and flashy combat in blockbuster movies, these realistic and powerful records are obviously more impactful.

The release of these high-energy videos has even caused a decline in the popularity of the action film "The Abyss: Girl from Another Dimension" starring actress Joey, which was being promoted. As a result, many of her competitors hired online trolls to spread negative rumors about her acting skills and claim that the videos were poorly edited and unrealistic.

Many film companies are also trying to find out the source of this video through connections, hoping to contact Monument Heroes to purchase the rights and adapt it into a movie...

"It's really lively here." The young man strolled leisurely down the street with one hand in his pocket, looked up at the huge promotional photo that had been hung up just a few days ago, and couldn't help but chuckle. "Joey, Joey, you're in your sixties or seventies and still playing teenage girls? If you don't change your roles soon, I won't even bother buying you a movie ticket."

Chapter Twenty-One: The Tavern Owner – Gerson

The hustle and bustle of the world seemed to be blocked by him. The young man wore a beautiful white outfit embroidered with intricate patterns, and a pair of equally white leather shoes walked across the slightly damp road, but the soles of his shoes were not stained at all.

He brushed past others, and occasionally a girl's eyes would light up slightly at the sight of his handsome appearance, but she would pause for a moment and then continue on her way without making any impression on him.

Even the noodle shop owner looked somewhat bewildered when he picked up the two silver coins. "I don't remember any customers sitting here. They're really generous!"

The fat man continued to spread the idea that the church was useless, and the others nodded in agreement.

As for the memory of the young man who had just gotten up and left, they seemed to have completely forgotten it at the same time.

"Huh? That fluctuation feels so familiar... Could it be...?" He held the movie tickets he had just bought in his hand, then suddenly looked up at the distance, his violet eyes narrowing slightly, a faint smile appearing on his face. "Looks like I can join in the fun!"

The young man casually placed the movie ticket on the counter and turned to leave.

The church headquarters remained as quiet and solemn as ever.

Even at night, it exudes a strong sense of antiquity and simplicity when viewed from the outside.

However, the interior is brightly lit and decorated in a low-key luxury. The staircases change direction under the control of magic, and staff in black uniforms and robes move around, giving it a feel of a magic academy.

"Greetings, Holy Son! Is there anything I can do for you?"

Deep underground lies a magnificent hall, dotted with over a dozen massive teleportation arrays. This is the operational hub of the entire church; activating the corresponding array allows for immediate teleportation to church branches across the country or to a specific coordinate location.

Upon seeing the Holy Son, who was radiating holy light, arrive, the staff in charge of the teleportation array hurriedly stood up and respectfully greeted him.

The Holy Son's voice remained androgynous and easily forgotten: "I need to go to the Dragonbone City Church branch to open the teleportation array for me."

"Okay, please wait at teleportation array number one."

The staff worked swiftly, and then a flash of light appeared before the Holy Son standing in the teleportation array vanished without a trace.

He then registered the transmission record on his computer and uploaded it to the database simultaneously.

"Squeak!"

"Ring ring..."

Li Moran pushed open the wooden door of a small tavern, and a series of clear wind chimes rang out.

This is a tavern completely different from the one the original owner remembered. There were no drunken, noisy customers, and no alluring women dancing and flirting.

The overall decor has a rugged medieval feel reminiscent of movies and TV shows. Firewood crackles in the fireplace, guests sit at long wooden tables, sipping wine and chatting softly, and light music fills the tavern, like an elven maiden gently plucking the strings.

"Hmm, this tavern is quite different from what I imagined." Jiang Chen looked at the stylish and tasteful decorations and became even more curious about the mysterious tavern owner.

Li Moran replied softly, "This place only accepts members, so it's quite quiet and suitable for chatting and relaxing."

He raised an eyebrow, thinking to himself that he was indeed a candidate for Best Supporting Actor. Although he was a bit ugly, his character was quite interesting.

"Hey, what brings you here?" Sensing the familiar presence of the other person, the tavern owner, Gerson, pushed open a small door from the back room and walked behind the bar. His scarred face twitched slightly, looking somewhat menacing. "What would you like to drink? It's on me today."

"So generous? Then I won't stand on ceremony. Of course, I'll have to have a glass of your best drink!" Li Moran turned around and introduced to Jiang Chen, "His name is Gerson. He's the owner here. He's very good at brewing. Just tell him what you want to drink and don't be polite."

"Hey, this is a kid I just met named Jiang Chen. Please look after him from now on."

Gerson grinned and said, "Since the last battle ten years ago, you've finally made some new friends. That's quite an achievement. Jiang Chen, right? I saw the video of you single-handedly taking down the entire bandit gang. It was unbelievable! I just couldn't understand how you did it."

Jiang Chen: ...

Damn! Dude, how can you be so talkative with such a fierce face?

How can this be explained?

You can't exactly say that smashing those scrolls was to enhance the visual effect and disguise the Horcruxes, can you?

“He’s quite rich.” Li Moran sat down at the bar and explained to the child according to his own understanding: “He spent a lot of money to order a huge number of top-level magic scrolls and holy artifacts. He threw all kinds of high-level magic scrolls at them. It’s normal that that rabble couldn’t withstand it.”

Gerson: (；一_一)

real or fake?

Does having money mean you can do whatever you want?!

"So what magic scrolls did you use? I looked at them over and over again, but I still can't think of any magic that could so accurately blast a mid-level Executor into a cloud of blood mist in an instant! The effect is amazing! Where did you buy the scrolls? Can you recommend some to me?"

Jiang Chen twitched his lips and said with a wry smile, "Actually, I was too nervous at the time. I just randomly threw all sorts of scrolls at each other and have long forgotten which types I used. I guess some of them had overlapping effects."

The holy light was so bright during the video recording that it obscured the visual impact of the other scrolls. I threw away a lot of scrolls at once back then.

"They threw away a lot?" Gerson was speechless. "Wow...you're really rich! All five major bandit groups are just throwing away scrolls. Do you own a magic stone mine in the Abyss?"

Li Moran tapped on the bar to interrupt, saying, "I have something important to discuss with you today. Hurry up and finish mixing the drinks so we can get down to business."

"It's still so boring. It's really not easy for you to find a friend." He muttered a couple of times, turned around and took out an exquisite wine glass, added some ice cubes and an unknown purple powder into it, then held it with both hands and muttered something under his breath.

Then Jiang Chen witnessed the moment when a miracle occurred.

Bubbling began to rise from the glass, the purple powder growing increasingly concentrated, swirling and shimmering like stars. As Gerson chanted the incantation faster and faster, a cool aura mixed with a rich aroma of alcohol slowly rose from the glass.

"Alright, it tastes best when it's cold!" Gerson put down his glass and threw in some light blue, unidentified object, which instantly dissolved in the wine, swirling and shimmering.

This was a remarkably beautiful glass of wine, making Jiang Chen's eyes light up. "What kind of ability is this? Can it brew wine out of thin air?"

"It's just a pretty useless talent skill." Gerson wiped his hands and gestured, "How does it taste? It's made with the finest magic powder and my exclusive collection. There's a chance it'll enhance your superpowers."

Jiang Chen's eyes lit up immediately; wine that could enhance magic power was indeed a good thing!

He picked it up and took a sip. The aroma was strong, and a cool sensation rushed straight to his head, instantly making him feel much clearer. Next, he had a magical feeling. Countless stars seemed to appear before his eyes, constantly twinkling, and he could vaguely hear celestial music swirling and echoing in his mind.

Sensing his resonance with the magical brew, Gerson frowned. "Such strong soul power? How come he's only awakened the lowest level of superpower? That's strange..."

"Is he very strong?" Li Moran could only vaguely sense that the child had entered a strange state of enlightenment, and asked in a low voice, "How strong can you sense? Will drinking a few more drinks improve your strength?"

Gerson's scarred face twitched noticeably. "At least for now, his soul resonance is no worse than yours. He's clearly a promising superhero, so how could his strength be so low? Did something go wrong with the potion the church was concocting?"

Chapter Twenty-Two: Are you kidding me?

"The church won't take the blame for this." The sudden, clear voice made Gerson and Li Moran stand on high alert, as if facing a formidable enemy!

None of the layers of restrictions and protective barriers inside the tavern were lit up.

But then a sudden voice rang in their ears. The other guests were still chatting and drinking and obviously didn't hear anyone speak. The other party was coming for them!

Li Moran glanced at the tense-looking Gerson, then looked at the child still immersed in the soul resonance, and slowly clenched his right fist.

"Don't be so nervous, Monument Hero, I'm not here to fight."

"Squeak!"

"Ring ring..."

As soon as the voices faded, the wooden door of the tavern was pushed open, and a young man with an unfamiliar, handsome appearance, dressed in a pure white suit embroidered with gold patterns, walked in.

"Who are you?" Gerson squinted, ready to activate the magic circle in the tavern to stall the other party for a moment so he could escape. "I'm sorry, my tavern only serves members, and I do not serve strangers."

The young man seemed not to have heard him at all, casually strolling in with one hand in his pocket. He looked curiously at Jiang Chen, who was immersed in the soul resonance, his violet eyes flashing with an unusual light. "His soul state is a bit strange, as if some kind of great change has occurred. A word of advice: don't let him drink too much demonic brew, otherwise his body won't be able to withstand the powerful soul force, and it could kill him."

"Hello, my name is Mi Wu, nice to meet you all." He sat down and patted Li Moran on the shoulder, laughing, "Relax, don't be so tense. If you throw that punch, I definitely won't die, but the others will be in trouble."

And you, Mr. Gerson, to be honest, the decor in your tavern is a bit outdated; it won't do you any good against me."

Miwu took out two gold coins from her pocket, tapped them on the bar, and said in a light tone, "Could I also have a Magic Brew, with extra ice?"

"You have the scent of holy light about you. Are you from the church?" Li Moran sensed no malice. He slowly loosened his right fist and said coldly, "Is the church still not satisfied with my resignation and has to come here to resolve it?"

Gerson stared at the other person without saying a word, seemingly lost in thought.

A holy light suddenly enveloped Mi Wu, then dissipated, and she blinked her violet eyes as a sly smile appeared on her lips.

"The Holy Son?!"

Li Moran and Gerson exclaimed in unison, then quickly fell silent and turned to look at the other customers in the tavern.

Miwu waved her hand and laughed, "Don't worry, I created a barrier when I came in, so they can't hear or see me. Respected Lord of the Strange, Mr. Gerson, could you help me brew some magic wine? I've already paid you."

“You…” With his identity exposed, Gerson turned pale, his hands trembling slightly. He grabbed a wine glass and muttered under his breath, “Today has been truly unbelievable!”

Li Moran still stared at him warily. "It seems the Church already knows Gerson's identity. Is the Holy Son here to eliminate him?"

He didn't know much about the Holy Son.

All Li Moran knew was that the church claimed he was the chosen one, possessing absolute purifying power, but he had never seen him make a move during the dark period, so he didn't have a good impression of this holy son.

Given the strength that Mizu has shown so far, it is definitely not as simple as purification. Could it be that the Church is hiding its strength in the dark?

"Relax, I already said I'm not here to fight, so why are you so hostile towards me?" Miwu propped her chin on her right hand and looked intently at the bubbling bubbles in her wine glass, explaining, "I don't represent the church, so my knowledge of his identity is not the same as the church's knowledge."