Witch, Fireball and Steam Evil God

Chapter 222 Disease
No matter what others say, Xiangwei still considers himself a staunch believer in the Old Gods.

To look at the world with wisdom and to make the most rational judgment at all times was a doctrine that she wholeheartedly agreed with, but now, it was their master who violated these beliefs.

She found the "historical text" in the Western Continent and deduced the grievances between her master and humans before the First Era.

She pulled out a mask and handed it to Ethan.

"If you openly become a candidate, it may cause unnecessary damage to your reputation."

This is the same mask that Ethan used in Hearth Bay. "Please follow me, Mr. Heisenberg."

For Xiangwei, this may be the last battle of her life. Although the punishment imposed by the master has been resolved, this will be her "last life". Once she dies, she will never wake up in the Pool of Rebirth again. She has never seen the master so angry. It is foreseeable that everything that follows will be difficult.

Seeing the two leave, the innkeeper expressed his most sincere blessings to Ethan.

Although the time they spent together was very short, he got a lot of inspiration from Ethan. He still had many new business plans that he had not had time to discuss with Ethan. For example, there were fewer and fewer newcomers in the dungeon, and the hotel industry was getting worse and worse. The grand occasion this morning suddenly gave him an idea.

Maybe, he could turn the inn into a fast food restaurant and carry forward the recipes Ethan taught them.

The boss doesn't know what the outside world is like right now, but these simple and delicious foods will definitely be popular in the dungeon. If the transformation is successful, he can also unite every innkeeper he knows to form a restaurant chain.

The boss was very excited about the plan, but his only regret was that a big shot like Ethan was destined not to stay in his store for long.

He silently memorized the names of Ethan and Miss Chloe in his heart. If one day they developed the catering industry and even opened branches outside the Abyss, he would definitely add Ethan's name to the founding team.

On the other side, Xiangwei's plan unexpectedly encountered many obstacles.

When the top executives of the consortium heard that she was going to recommend a new candidate, their eyes widened.

In particular, the person she recommended was a man they had never heard of, named "Heisenberg".

Only a very small number of believers whose businesses are related to Hearth Bay know that Heisenberg opened a magic scroll shop in Hearth Bay, which is able to produce elemental magic scrolls with very high purity. His recent strategy of transforming into magical technology has also been a great success. He is indeed a person worthy of attention.

But that's it.

"Rattle, do you know what you are talking about?"

One of the senior executives laughed in anger, "Let an outsider be a candidate? Don't you know what the festival means?"

Rattle retorted, "I made this decision precisely because I know the importance of the festival. Once the War Council or the Dream Eclipse candidate wins, it will inevitably bring about a huge change in the development path of the dungeon."

In the eyes of Xinkalo believers, the believers of Father of War and Father of Heaven are a group of meaningless beings.

The former always stir up some meaningless disputes, shouting slogans of iron and blood, but in fact squandering manpower and material resources. Even if they win the war, they usually cannot reap spoils commensurate with their investment. And those fanatical believers who always talk about God are even more freaks with abnormal thinking, performing sacrificial rituals every day that others cannot understand at all.

Even the believers of the old gods thought those people must be crazy.

If these people were allowed to take power, the future of the Abyss could only be described as bleak.

"In that case, why do you recommend an irrelevant person?"

"Because Dream Eclipse found the Winter Witch."

Just one sentence made the top executives of the consortium fall silent.

When the news spread, many of the candidates they recommended backed out.

It is certainly glorious to become the master's chosen one and replace Flor, but that also requires life. The festival is not a game between children. Among the three candidates who enter the rift, only one can return to the dungeon in the end, and the other two will become sacrifices for the arrival of the chosen one. This has been the tradition of the abyss.

The candidates felt a little scared when they thought that their opponent was the Winter Witch.

Different from the traditional followers of Bazatos, Winter is a real cold-blooded killer. She never makes inexplicable sacrifices, and once she decides to take action, she will never hesitate. They also heard that the complete failure of Ophira's plan was closely related to the Winter Witch.

Rattle continued to ask the top executives, "Or are the people you recommend confident enough to deal with Kane?"

There was another moment of silence.

There has been too much bad news for the followers of Xinkalo recently.

They didn't know why Kane suddenly appeared here, but they had a lot of grudges with the incarnation of the old god.

The elite team guarding Kane in Ophira was completely wiped out, without a single survivor, which was enough to show Kane's anger towards them.

"What about him? Is he sure he can handle these two guys?"

someone asked.

Today, except for those who witnessed the Ophira incident, most senior executives still don't know Heisenberg's background and the relationship between him and Ethan.

The team that visited Ophira has been almost wiped out, and now only Flor and Rattle are left, having woken up from the Rebirth Pond.

"of course."

Xiangwei's unhesitating response caused the top executives to fall silent again.

After some mental struggle, someone said, "Let's hold a meeting and decide the final candidate by voting."

Xiangwei had long expected the top leaders to say this. The vote was the most unfavorable outcome for her. No one would cast important votes for an outsider they didn't even know.

But she had already thought of a solution, "In that case, let Mr. Heisenberg stay here first."

This was another best proof of the chaos within the Xinkalo believers. With less than three days left before the festival, they hadn't even finalized the number of candidates.

Rattle could foresee that if Ethan had not arrived, even if they confirmed a candidate, he would just be going to die.

In her opinion, only Ethan can bring changes to the current consortium.

He thwarted Flor's conspiracy in a head-on confrontation and proved with practical actions that he was a better decision-maker. Xiangwei also found out some news that Empolis, Ionem and Ethan were very close, and it would not be an exaggeration to even describe them as friends. Residents of the imperial capital witnessed a miniature octopus monster living in Rowena's mansion.

Most people thought it was just a pet picked up from the sea, but as an eyewitness to the incident with Ophira, she guessed that it was most likely an incarnation of Ionem or Empolis - exactly the same as Kane's situation.

However, Flor returned empty-handed at the negotiation table. Not only did he fail to establish friendly relations with Ambrose, but he angered him and was sent back to the Pool of Rebirth by him.

The current chaotic situation of the Lophik Group reminded her of the imperial capital not long ago.

Henry VI was critically ill, Pope Julius monopolized power, and anyone who dared to resist him would be labeled a follower of the evil god. Everyone believed that the empire would fall apart, but Ethan's arrival brought new life to this dying "giant".

The Lofik Group also needs such changes.

The cancer must be eradicated!

How can we develop a consortium if we work with this group of cancerous people?

She stopped in front of a house, took a deep breath, and made a decision.

This will be Ethan's temporary residence. The living environment is much better than the hotel in the downtown area. More importantly, it is very close to her residence. In the next few days, she can discuss important matters with Ethan here.

"Mr. Ethan, please guide me."

Rattle was full of determination.

Today's Lofik Group is like a real Hydra, with nine heads having nine different ideas. Each head is biting each other, and the result is that in the end it can't get even one thing done.

At this moment, Ethan was sure.

Xiangwei really intends to launch a religious reform, although it always sounds a bit strange coming from the mouth of a follower of the evil god.

This made him further worried about Lao Xin's situation.

Lao Xin was the first old god he knew that even his followers could not stand.
Not only is he usually mocked and bullied by other old gods, but even his believers openly disobey him. Perhaps it is precisely because of such an environment that he has become such a gloomy and twisted person.

No one liked Him, and every dog ​​that passed by would bite Him.

Ethan could more or less understand Xinkalo's impulsive behavior in the inn. He had been backstabbed by the God of Trickery once, so when Rattler had the same thought, he suffered from PTSD.

Seeing Ethan remained silent, Xiangwei asked, "Who should we start killing? The person who raised objections just now is the head of the Imperial Reserve. By the way, the head of the Imperial Military Industry is also here. I heard that he is secretly brewing a plan to destroy the empire."

This is related to the death of his son, Esoke.

Even though Flor had warned him not to cause trouble again after Isoko "died of illness" in Gear City, how could he swallow his anger after raising a child like Isoko?

He would be most pleased to see Flor's fall, as it meant that no one could suppress him anymore, allowing him to unleash his revenge plan against the empire.

"His name is Wilson. How about I make an appointment with him in private?"

This is undoubtedly the most urgent problem to be solved at the moment. Wilson is like a wild horse that has broken free from its reins, dragging the consortium along with him towards destruction.

He was not even interested in who would become the new leader of the Lofik Group.

"You're a little too aggressive."

Ethan said.

This rattle seems to be about to assassinate all opponents right away.

“… Radical?”

Xiangwei was stunned for a moment, with a strange look in his eyes.

The methods she proposed were all the same ones that Ethan had used in the Reformation Empire. Pope Julius and his followers were sent to the stake one after another, and their names were nailed to the pillar of shame. After that, it took a month just to redress the victims who had been falsely accused by the Church as followers of evil gods.

The royal family built a memorial tower for the victims, and Queen Margaret personally came out to observe a moment of silence for them.

For those relatives who managed to survive, the compensation is another considerable sum.

With the staggered implementation of multiple policies, people's anger has been somewhat comforted, but it will take a long time to completely heal the damage left by the Vatican.

"Ms. Rattle, have you ever heard of PTSD?"

Ethan changed the subject from the perspective of a psychiatrist.

"PTSD?"

"The scientific name is post-traumatic stress disorder. The main symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder are trauma re-experiencing, increased alertness, and avoidance or numbness. Some patients also have accompanying symptoms such as sleep disorders, depression, and drug abuse. Memories of the people, time, and place where the traumatic event may have occurred can cause patients to experience mental pain or physiological stress reactions."

Xiangwei was a little confused by this series of professional terms.

Seeing her confused look, Ethan went into the house, took out paper and pen, wrote down the key information, and handed it to her.

Xiangwei read the information on the paper several times over and over again. "I don't understand. Are you implying that this is the current situation of the Lofik Group?"

"No, this is a mental illness your master suffers from."

Ethan said, "How much do you know about your master?" This was a sharp question, which made Xiangwei fall into a long silence.

How much does she know about her master?

The embodiment of wisdom.

Together they created the Abyss and he is one of the old gods with the most followers in the dungeon.

Church members look at the world with eyes of wisdom.

How to make the most beneficial decision for oneself is a science, and it is also the standard she has always practiced.

If this was a seminar for Xinkalo believers, Xiangwei felt that she would be able to say a lot, and even sit on the podium and talk about how she had used the methods taught by the master's church to get to her current position step by step, but she felt that this was not what Ethan wanted to hear.

But it's about the master, or Xinkalo himself.

What kind of old god is he? What are his personality and preferences?
Why did he suffer from PTSD, and why did he break with the God of Trickery before the First Era?
These were questions that Xiangwei could not answer. In her mind, Xinkalo had always been an abstract concept. She gained enlightenment and strength from the teachings. Like all devout believers, she bestowed all the beauty they could imagine on Xinkalo.

But in reality, she never cared about Xinkalo and had no interest in what happened specifically.

Even those old grudges that happened before the First Era were only learned by her after Ophira's failure and when her interests were infringed.

"……I have no idea."

After a long moment, Rattle spoke.

"Well, let me start with the version I know. This is the version I heard from Lao An. As for what exactly happened between Xin Kalo and the God of Trickery, I'm afraid only they themselves know."

As Ethan was speaking, in the temple of the consortium, Flor gradually loosened his grip on his head.

The sharp and intense whispers suddenly left him.

These whispers that penetrated his eardrums and reached his mind were almost driving him crazy. They woke him up from his sleep early in the morning and continued to this day.

The whispers were filled with anger.

He was surrounded by the temple's stone statues, where every past Chosen One was displayed.

The dark flames that did not belong to this world burned in the brazier, reminding him every moment that this was an order given by the Demon Lord Xinkalo himself.

The instructions were simple and straightforward, and didn't seem to require much planning.

——Killed Rattler.

She was a traitor who went against her master's beliefs.

Flor could also sense demons gathering outside the dungeon, but they seemed to be wrestling with Bazatos's creations.

These were scenes he had never seen before, and no similar scenes were ever recorded in the scriptures.

Because this is a dungeon, a habitat designated by the great old gods for humans in the bottomless abyss. Correspondingly, everything here is under the watchful eyes of the old gods. They never need to use the means of certain people or creatures to kill traitors. They only need a thought to destroy the betrayers who break in here.

What's more, Flor knew Rattler, who was his secretary. He didn't like fighting and was not good at it, so he was not a difficult character at all.

He didn't understand why his master wanted him to get rid of the rattlesnake himself.

But he had to do it.

There was a dark fire burning in Flor's eyes. This was the first time that his master had personally conveyed orders to him after Ophira's failure. He locked himself in the temple every day just to be closer to his master.

And now, his prayers over and over again have finally been answered.

The master decided to give him a chance, perhaps his last chance.

The rattlesnake must be removed.

"Master, I will obey your orders."

Flor muttered to himself. In fact, even without this order, he had planned to do so a long time ago.

The reason why he ended up in this situation today was because Rattle betrayed him.

Defining Ophira's actions as an unprecedented failure, the top leaders of the United Consortium impeached him, leaving some people with unrealistic fantasies who believed they could find a new refuge in the Western Continent.

It's really short-sighted.

It's not just the empire that is about to be destroyed. In the Seventh Era, the seal will be broken, and the old gods will return to this world. By then, no matter where they are or how far they have fled, they will be played around by the old gods.

They have always had only one way to go - to become followers of the old gods and welcome this doomsday carnival together.

At the end of the world, the master will make arrangements for them.

This is the right path.

"Please rest assured, I will make her feel the most extreme pain before she dies!"

A gloomy smile appeared on Flor's face. He could even sense that Rapunzel was in the consortium at the moment, very close to him. It wouldn't take much effort to pull her out, and by then -

A gloomy smile froze on his face.

Flor only felt an irresistible force and flew backwards.

The black energy lashed at his body, causing him to knock over the brazier used for offerings and slam into the hard statue.

"……Owner?"

Flor's face was full of disbelief. Whisper appeared again, but it conveyed to him an order that was completely opposite to the previous one.

Who told you to kill the rattlesnake?
You have to protect her!

He also sensed that the demons gathered outside the dungeon suddenly stopped fighting with Bazatos's creations, dusted themselves off, and stood up to go back to their homes.

???

Flor seriously suspected that he was mentally ill, as he heard two opposite commands in a short period of time, but obviously, the latter was real.

Because he was knocked away.

When he had the idea of ​​"getting rid of Rattler", the master punished him with actual actions. The black shadow whipped his soul, and the burning pain could not dissipate for a long time. This was the master's punishment for him.

Then, Flor saw an even more incredible sight.

When he moved his blurry vision to the stone statue in the temple, he suddenly saw liquid in the eye sockets of the statue.

The tear-like substance left two dark marks on the face of the statue, and the owner's attention seemed to be completely not on him at this moment, but drifted to somewhere in the consortium.

Oh my god, someone understands me!
Flor actually heard such a meaning in the whisper.

This must be an illusion.

He was extremely convinced.

He must have stayed in the temple for too long and became mentally disturbed - Flor soon found the crux of the problem.

The first thing that is certain is that the omnipotent Demon Lord would never issue such confusing orders, so the problem must be that there is something wrong with his own brain.

However, although his mind had begun to deteriorate, he was still able to understand the last order given to him by his master.

The rattlesnake must be protected.

Although there is no way to know the reason, this is his next mission.

……

the other side.

Ethan's story came to an end.

Half of this story comes from Lao An's oral narration, and the other half comes from the documents he read in the Mage Tower. As the story progresses, he senses that the restless energy of the consortium has gradually subsided.

Rattler lowered his head and remained silent for a long time.

She really didn't expect that there was such a hidden secret.

No, to be more precise, she claimed to be a devout believer, but she had never taken the initiative to understand these things. She knew her master far less than Ethan, an outsider.

And now, she got a message.

Their owner was suffering from severe PTSD and was in a serious condition.

The master's interpersonal relationships are also very bad. The other old gods don't like him very much, and he seemed to have been beaten by Bazatos just now.

The believers were divided and were planning rebellion.

Although I don’t know where He is now, He must be feeling very uncomfortable right now, right?
Could it be that the little pearls fell where no one could see them?
Xiangwei could understand this situation very well. When she was a child, she was bullied by others and could only shrink into a corner to lick her wounds.

"Anyway, this is what I understand about the condition."

Ethan said.

The conversation was about to end here because he heard the footsteps of an uninvited guest, heading straight here.

It was a tall figure, whom he had just seen when Xiangwei was confronting other senior executives of the consortium.

The man didn't seem interested in who the candidate was. When he heard the name "Heisenberg", he kept staring at him.

"Mr. Heisenberg."

The half-open door was pushed open. The man didn't seem to intend to knock on the door, nor did he intend to follow these red tapes. "I didn't expect to meet you in this place."

The man grinned, his eyes were bloodshot, and his smile was particularly creepy. "Let me introduce myself. My name is Wilson. I'm Esoke, my son. I heard about the magic scroll you drew."

His intentions were already very clear.

Even more obvious were the followers of Xinkalo who came with him.

"I want you to come with me. I want to show you something."

(End of this chapter)