Industrial Cthulhu, starting from the island lord

Chapter 743: Industry Eliminates the Extraordinary
"Hmm, I've dealt with them quite a bit. I have two at home now, and one of them has even become a legendary doctor," Hughes thought to himself.

However, these things are not easy to say. It's not that I doubt Beatrice's loyalty, but mainly that neither the Gwen sisters themselves understand whether they are the "Named Ones".

"As for Lina, she once tried to infiltrate Castel as a Firemoth, but Chloe found out and she escaped, leaving behind only a shell. Then she went to the North and tried to incite Bazel to attack Castel. You know the result."

Beatrice nodded, about to say something, when suddenly her eyes narrowed: "Lina left behind a body?"

“Yes.” Hughes was taken aback. “Is that strange?”

“It’s strange. Lina is indeed difficult to deal with. She has escaped from the Vatican’s encirclement several times, but she has never left behind a physical body.”

Hughes blinked.

Thinking about it that way, it does seem a bit strange.

Hughes didn't know the combat power of the [Named Ones] before. Now that he thinks about it, Lina was only discovered by Chloe and Isaac. Based on her subsequent performance, she could easily have won a head-on battle, let alone escape from those two.

When the Fire Moths fled to Castel, there were only a few cats and kittens left, but Lina was able to hold her own against the full force of Candlelight.

If we exclude the Banshee, Lina could basically take on the entire Castel at that time by herself; if we include the Banshee, Lina could also easily escape—the Banshee's tracking ability wasn't particularly strong.

hiss.
Beatrice and Hughes exchanged a glance, both seeing the unease in each other's eyes: there was something strange about that body!
Hughes immediately activated the telepathic link: "Does anyone know where Lina's body was when she was caught? @Everyone"

"I know, at Test Site Seven!"

"Ah, I'm at Test Site Seven. Isn't Gaia using that body for the human modification experiments she's conducting over here?"

"It shouldn't be. I remember that body was sealed by the Fire-Chasing Moth; she was probably using the one left behind by the Pirate King."

Hughes stood up: "That body is at Test Site Seven. Let's go there together."

The modification technology used in the Mechanical Sanctuary wasn't considered too dangerous, at least not enough to cause any catastrophic consequences, so it wasn't moved.
The two walked out of the room together and entered the elevator. Hughes had already contacted Gaia through the Banshee. When he and Beatrice stepped into the testing ground, Gaia and the others were already waiting on the side.

"What has happened, my lord?"

“We want to see the body Lina left behind; I suspect there might be something wrong with it.”

Gaia paused for a moment, then realized what was happening. She looked at the few banshees who had approached and her expression turned serious: "Should we evacuate any unrelated people from the area?"

"That's not necessary."

The banshees wielded dragon breath cannons, some even capable of holding six. The firepower of four or five banshees was stronger than that of a twenty-five-man squad from the Candlelight Society. With Beatrice, the legendary fountain, added to the mix, Hughes felt very confident.

—Little Gwen hasn't told Hughes yet that the [named one] isn't afraid of the pollution.

Soon, the container sealing Lina's body was brought over.

The banshees also donned heavy armor and took their weapons; everything was readily available at the testing ground.

Hughes examined the sealed container; in his original imagination, it should have been something like a coffin—this was probably the correct way to use a coffin.
The tools that were moved over were not square or rectangular; judging by their shape alone, they somewhat resembled the Iron Maiden.
The sealing device, made of an unknown material, did not leave much room for movement; instead, it was fitted very tightly to the human body.

If I had to put it in a way, it's somewhat like a terracotta army, with a real person trapped inside.

"Why do all the things from your Fire-Chasing Moths seem a bit eerie?"

"Really? It's alright." Gaia looked at the terracotta warriors, her expression somewhat puzzled. "These kinds of extraordinary ritual items are all sorts of strange and unusual."

The effects of extraordinary rituals are usually quite mediocre and rarely have a significant impact, so major churches don't pay much attention to them, let alone improve their appearance. They just make do with what's available.

Hughes glanced back at the banshees. Besides Ash, there were several other banshees nearby, all of whom were now ready.

"Open it and take a look."

Gaia nodded, placed her hand on the terracotta warrior's head, and then used her other hand to flip through the booklet and read the instructions.

Hughes: "."

"Aren't you a superhuman from the Moth Chaser? How come you're so inexperienced?"

"I'm also in charge of industrial technology and research and development in the Fire Moth. Who would want to learn these outdated rituals? They're not very useful and they're tedious. Just follow the instructions."

Gaia said without looking up.

Hughes was completely speechless. Indeed, the best thing for superhumans to do to become stronger now is to stop honing any superhuman skills.

Galahad, despite his exceptional martial arts skills, was still struck and thrown by the train.

Despite her advanced age and declining physical condition, the old woman was still able to fight the Investigator head-on with the Dragon Breath Cannon.

Unfortunately, Castel's technological development was too rapid, and supernatural powers couldn't keep up.
It is said that the "Buried One" path has now become the most sought-after way to transcend, and the priests of the Silent Sanctuary who remain in Castel spend all their time in the testing grounds without worrying about any danger.

They won't die.

At worst, they'd die like Nora, falling into several pieces.
Thinking of this, Hughes looked at Beatrice with pity. As an Investigator, the side effect of her ability was bad luck; no testing ground would allow her to enter.
Gaia spent a long time fumbling with the instructions, but managed to complete the ritual, albeit with some difficulty.

With a slight cracking sound, the terracotta warrior shattered into pieces, disintegrating into a pile of mud and dust.

"Is this thing disposable?"

"Yes, when it needs to be sealed, just apply holy clay, inscribe the ritual, and bake it dry."

Hughes's eye twitched. It really was a terracotta warrior.
As the dust settled, the shape of the shell was revealed to everyone.

"hiss"

Beatrice gasped, drawing everyone's attention.

"My God, it's exactly the same as the illustrations in the banned books. I mean, do you know what it feels like to have someone from a book illustrated hundreds of years ago appear in front of you?"

Hughes nodded. He hadn't seen Lina much, but he had seen this body before and even studied it with Chloe, but unfortunately, they hadn't gained anything.

After thinking about it, he sent someone to find Big Gwen again; perhaps she could discover something.

Beatrice was the first to approach Lina's body and began to examine it closely.

She reached out and touched it a few times, then her eyes lit up. She used her supernatural abilities to do something, and finally plucked a hair and put it in her mouth to chew.

"So, what did you find?"

(End of this chapter)