New Gods of North America.

Chapter 697 Opportunity
Since those involved in the operation already knew about Jason Wohrz's situation in advance,
Therefore, when faced with a "physical evil spirit" that is almost impossible to kill or get hurt, people generally prefer to defend and stall, with the main goal of wearing down its stamina and endurance.

After the initial volley of fire, the monks and agents who approached him in small teams began to employ their various skills.
They started using a righteous gang-up with an annoying "Come on, hit me! Hey, you can't hit me" and "Don't even think about running away, go back home" style.

From Wayne's perspective, the group was somewhat like a pack of wolves surrounding a slow-moving bison.

When the target tries to break through, the people facing them will gather together to block them, and when the target has their back to them, they can take the opportunity to unleash a fierce attack.

This opportunity to freely test the effectiveness of one's extraordinary abilities is rare even for agents who have been bounty hunters.

Connor, who usually enjoys fighting, stands out as particularly audacious, even deliberately pushing forward under the protection of his guards to try and defend against and deflect Jason's attacks, reveling in the thrill of "dancing on a knife's edge."

Sanders also seized the opportunity to briefly engage Jason in a physical contest, pulling on the ropes thrown out by the monks to drag Jason, who had strayed from his position, back to the center of the encirclement.

The monks' extraordinary abilities were truly revealed. The most eye-catching thing at night was a "light energy shield." Most of the time, the monk acted like a matador, always keeping himself in Jason's "front line."
Corresponding to him was another cultivator who also belonged to the "cold weapon group." That person's weapon was a light energy scepter that was slightly taller than a person. However, at this moment, he used the seemingly weightless scepter as a spear, responsible for finding opportunities to stab people from behind from the pointed end. His style was like that of a violent mage who did not care about martial ethics.

The situation on the scene was not entirely one-sided. Although the cultivators had tried their best to set up the torches at high places and shorten the length of everyone's shadows,

However, since the light source could only be placed on the outermost edge, and everyone's goal was to keep the surrounded white-masked Jason in place, everyone's shadows on the ground would extend in Jason's direction.

This would, at certain moments, fulfill the "shadow" condition required for Jason to teleport, and even though the shadow was still within the encirclement, it almost caused the members attacking from behind Jason to be hit by the "teleportation slash".
The monk who used the light-energy scepter thus went from "holding a large two-handed weapon" to "holding a warhammer in one hand and a rapier in the other"—unexpectedly, he couldn't simply summon a new one like the other's "light-energy shield."

To avoid friendly fire, once the other groups began close-range interception, those at a slightly farther distance on the perimeter largely ceased firing, with only occasional bursts of gunfire from Inessa's bolt-action rifle.
Wayne took the opportunity to join the front and middle ranks of the group responsible for the encirclement. His pockets were filled with a bunch of gadgets, from pebbles to glass marbles, and from small metal objects to rubber and wooden blocks. He infused each of them with spiritual power and then threw them over to test their combat effectiveness.

Judging from the results, it seems that "hard and shatterable" materials are more effective. Although the bullet infused with spiritual power did "vibrate" after being hit, it didn't seem to be as effective as the shattering of glass spheres. No wonder the demon hunter bullets also use a similar material.
Jason, who theoretically felt no pain, instinctively touched himself after being blown up, and afterwards made Wayne his primary focus.

"It seems he's almost done. He's used his teleportation ability to its maximum four times, and his movements have noticeably slowed down. His stamina is probably nearing its limit. He should be ready to take control."

"Yes!"

Having already executed a "Great Flash" in mid-air, Brother Merlin blended into the encirclement group after successfully interrupting Jason's teleportation attempt.

At his command, the surrounding cultivators quickly adjusted their formation, and various items such as candlesticks, shrouds, and Great Saint emblems were pulled out.

Jason, at this moment, is more like the person Wayne and Sanders first met—he seems to be standing still.
However, his "immobility" did not mean he had completely lost his ability to move. Relying on his agility, Connor helped to probe before the monks got close. It felt like he had touched a stretched-out bear trap, and Jason almost smashed his head into a rotten watermelon.

Then, in front of everyone, Connor performed a "public kneeling" act—he actually raised a small shield with both hands at the crucial moment, bent his knees, and bent backward to deflect the swift force of the downward slash, then immediately rolled to the side to dodge. The movements looked fluid and elegant.
However, this did not stop some of the agents from jokingly telling him on the spot that "if you can't beat someone, you should kneel down."

Even Wayne burst out laughing.

The three monks holding candlesticks were now chanting scriptures around Jason. Besides the monk who had already unwrapped the shroud and was holding syringes, there was another monk raising a withered, shrunken hand.

The former looks fairly normal, while the latter's style is somewhat reminiscent of a necromancer. However, Brother Merlin takes a moment to explain that it's a sacred hand left behind by someone, presumably a special legacy from some ecclesiastical elder. And now, the most crucial and intense part is about to begin…

The revolver Wayne held in his hand, poised to fire a demon-hunting bullet that had just been imbued with spiritual power.

Some of the agents who had received instructions in secret were now carrying out small actions that looked different but actually had the same goal.

Because the church had a thorough understanding of Jason, and Brother Merlin and his companions were well-prepared,
The righteous brawl ended relatively peacefully, with a few close calls and a slightly thrilling experience.

However, this makes Wayne's attempt to silence him seem somewhat abrupt.
We should have added more water earlier...

But it was at this moment that a sudden change occurred.

Jason, who seemed to have no choice but to surrender, suddenly made a move again.

The shadows of the three monks chanting sutras around him, cast by the surrounding light, extended inwards, forming a trident-like pattern resembling the Mercedes-Benz logo.
Even now, everyone remained vigilant, but they never expected that Jason could teleport again when his entire body was bathed in light and only his feet occasionally touched other people's shadows.

After enduring half a night of line-contaminated vision, Jason's body seemed to be swallowed by a wormhole that instantly expanded from the singularity to cover his entire body, and then he immediately appeared in front of one of the chanting monks.

The machete was already raised high above his head, and it looked like a "close-range kill" was about to happen.

Merlin's voice was surprised and urgent: "Oh no! That teleportation that was interrupted just now might not have counted as a 'true use'!"

Wayne didn't have time to say anything and leaped over to pounce.

The chanting monk, who was desperately trying to block the greatsword with his candlestick, was pushed aside. The greatsword, with a whooshing sound, struck Wayne's shoulder, producing a cracking sound as it traveled through his bones.

Wayne had nowhere to grab hold of in mid-air, but the muzzle of his gun was already almost pressed against Jason's eye.

"boom!"

Wayne's body, carrying the force transmitted from the blade, was deflected and slammed downwards.
Jason's body rapidly dissipated as he leaned back, the evaporating lines seemingly rising into the void before being absorbed by a "wormhole".

Opportunity truly favors the prepared mind.
Wayne touched his bloodied shoulder, where the machete was no longer attached, and then sat up, supporting himself on the ground.

To be fair, the predetermined goal has been achieved.
But oh crap, it hurts so much...

I wasn't planning on getting cut. (Ｔ▽Ｔ)
(End of this chapter)