Mystery: Big Alarm Clock Ghroth Path

Chapter 384 Demon Swarm (Check-in, thanks to Aaaaaaaab for the Qidian Coins donation)
Roger and Grace stood up together and walked towards the door, then followed the platform to the ground floor hall of Reading Town subway station.

“Miss Morgan, where do you live? I just need to call a carriage. If it’s on my way, I can take you home.”

Grace paused for a moment after hearing Roger's words, then said:

"Then why are you embarrassed..."

"You're welcome. I'm going to the Steam Church Chapel on St. Carlos Street. If it's on your way, we can go together."

Roger glanced quickly at the huge map of Reading Town hanging on the station pillar, and then spoke.

Although Grace had not previously stated where she lived, he was still able to determine her location using the information he already possessed and the methods of the "Black Prophet".

"Ah... that seems pretty close."

Grace was taken aback. In fact, the steam church was just across the street from her home. Her father had chosen to buy the house there because the whole family were steam believers.

"That's why you're so polite."

Roger smiled and then, very gentlemanly, made a "please" gesture, indicating that Grace should go first.

"Then I'll trouble you, Mr. Jones."

Grace's feelings for Roger grew stronger at this moment, and seeing how enthusiastic he was, she felt it would be impolite to refuse again.

The two walked together to the street outside the station, where Roger flagged down a carriage. After telling them the destination, the carriage took them toward the steam chapel.

As they approached the steam chapel, Grace announced that she had arrived and then got out of the car.

"Thank you very much, Mr. Jones."

Grace waved her hand:
"Would you like to come to my house for a while?"

"No need, I have an appointment."

Roger smiled and politely declined Grace's invitation, then watched her return home before leaving once again.

Upon arriving at the steam chapel, Roger paid the fare, then looked at the young coachman and gave him some instructions:

"Brother, go home early tonight and don't linger around here."

Hearing this, the coachman was a little confused, but just as he was about to ask a question, he suddenly remembered the recent missing persons cases in Reading Town.

He had originally thought that this place was relatively safe because it was close to the steam chapel, but after hearing Roger's words, the coachman became a little apprehensive.

After saying this, Roger didn't explain further, but turned and walked into the steam chapel.

Because Reading Town is not large, there is no church of the Church of the True God here. Only the Steam Church and the Church of the Night have chapels here, which are managed by two or three priests. Normally, these priests are low- or mid-sequence extraordinary beings and do not have the ability to fight against cultists. All they can do is report the case to the higher church of the Steam Church or the Church of the Night when the local police ask for help with extraordinary events.

However, since there are only four missing persons cases in Reading, none of which involve any important figures and no bodies have been found, these incidents have remained at the police level and have not alarmed the church.

If Roger hadn't possessed the ability to "predict hidden clues," he wouldn't have been able to detect the signs of demonic activity in Redding Town so quickly.

"Sir, the chapel is about to close for the day. Please leave."

After Roger entered the chapel, a middle-aged pastor wearing a robe embroidered with a triangular emblem and glasses spoke up to him.

“Hello, I am a friend of Bishop York Weeks and Archbishop Jennings. My surname is Abraham.”

Roger nodded slightly. Upon hearing this, the other person paused for a moment, then quickly walked behind Roger and closed the chapel door.

"What advice do you have for me, Your Excellency Abraham?"

The pastor asked with a solemn expression.

“There are signs of Blood Worship Cult activity in Reading Town. I will handle this for you today, but after tomorrow, I will no longer be involved here.”

Roger spoke calmly, his tone as casual as if he were going to the market to buy a fish to kill at home.

Upon hearing this, the pastor's attitude finally turned serious:
What is the highest rank of the opposing team's members?

"There should be members at the demigod level."

Roger shook his head:

"Remember, it's fine if only you know about this, but don't contact the Steam Church or leave here before tomorrow morning."

After saying that, he glanced at the faint darkness around the steam chapel and gave some instructions.

"clear."

The pastor nodded. After a pause, he asked:
"Your Excellency Abraham, is there anything I can do for you?"

"Have."

Roger nodded slightly, then said:
Are there any restaurants in Reading that don't have long queues?

"……Have."

The pastor silently admired Roger's nonchalant attitude for a second, then pointed to the opposite corner of the street:
"There's a specialty barbecue restaurant there."

"Thank you."

Roger drew a triangular emblem, then nodded slightly, turned and left the chapel.

……

By midnight, the entire town of Reading had quieted down, and even the number of police patrols on the streets had decreased.

On the one hand, Reading's population structure is relatively homogeneous, consisting mainly of local elderly people and few outsiders. On the other hand, the recent mysterious disappearances have made the police reluctant to stay out too late.

However, the lights in the Morgan house were still on, and through the silhouettes in the windows, one could vaguely see the figures of two women moving about.

This was Grace and her sister Sally. The two sisters had always been close, and since they hadn't seen each other for almost a year, they had so much to talk about that they even opened a bottle of beer each and chatted as they drank.

However, just as the two were getting into a lively conversation, Grace suddenly heard the sound of wings flapping.

She glanced at her frosted glass front door with a somewhat strange look:

"What is that?" "Never mind, probably a bat."

Sally shook her head, looking unconvinced.

However, just as she finished speaking, a banging sound suddenly came from the door.

"boom!"

The sound of the impact startled Grace and Sally. They both looked in that direction with tension and saw a streak of red and yellow liquid on the frosted glass, as if some creature had crashed into it.

Immediately afterwards, the sound of flapping wings began to echo throughout the entire house, and the sounds of impacts came from the wooden walls, attic, and roof, creating a cacophony of crackling sounds.

At that moment, Roger was standing across the street from the Morgan family home, wearing a beige trench coat and a wide-brimmed hat. Because of his view, he could clearly see what was happening at the Morgan family home.

There were thousands of winged, bat-like abyssal creatures that were constantly bombarding the Morgan family's house, seemingly trying to intensify the two sisters' fear in this way.

However, because Roger had "enhanced" the concept of darkness around him, he was not noticed by these abyssal creatures at this time.

What's even stranger is that even though these bats made such a huge noise, the surrounding residents seemed to have no reaction at all, and no one got up to check.

Soon, the abyssal creatures in the sky quickly gathered together, seemingly preparing for a major attack.

Roger shook his head, walked silently through the darkness, and stood before the Morgan family's house.

Even so, he was still not noticed by these creatures. The next second, Roger raised his hand and aimed it at the bat-like creatures that were charging at him with bared teeth and claws.

A ray of dawn shone in the night sky, and the bats, like moths drawn to a flame, were swallowed up and ignited by the light, turning to ashes. Painful screams rose and fell; they didn't even understand what had happened to them before they were completely wiped out.

The air was thick with the smell of sulfur. Roger shook his hand, revealing the "Demon Hunter" ability he had replicated using "Mystic Presentation." As a long-time user of "Demon Slayer," this ability had become part of Roger's secrets.

At this moment, the strange noises, which were heard from the Morgan family, finally ceased. Grace and Sally exchanged glances, and after a long while, the latter finally spoke:
"Would you like to go out and take a look?"

"No, sis."

Grace shook her head; she was somewhat frightened at this moment.
“Reading Town hasn’t been peaceful lately, and besides, what happened just now was too strange.”

"If you won't go, I will. Even just going to the balcony to take a look would be helpful."

At this moment, Sally seemed to be bewitched, responding to some kind of call, and insisted on going upstairs to take a look. She took a few steps upstairs so fast that Grace couldn't stop her.

However, at that moment, she suddenly stopped, as if she had been frozen in place.

The next second, Sally went limp and seemed to have completely fallen into a coma.

Grace wanted to scream, but she also felt her consciousness beginning to blur.

Immediately afterwards, Grace also collapsed onto the soft carpet and lay down next to Sally.

"Looks like it's all sorted out."

At that moment, Roger, standing outside the Morgan family home, glanced back to confirm that the two sisters had been hypnotized before looking into the depths of darkness.

There, amidst a cacophony of growls and howls, the demons lurking in the shadows finally discovered Roger, who had previously hidden himself there.

They simply couldn't understand why they, with their "malicious perception," hadn't noticed the man hiding in the shadows, waiting until the crucial moment to strike.

This is one of the manifestations of the "Black Prophet's" abilities, because "malicious perception" is also a kind of ability belonging to the secret side, so when the object of their perception is Roger, this perception is "reversed".

At this moment, Roger knew the location of every demon. He instantly entered the demon horde and then, by using the authority of the "Chaos Sea" tributary and the abilities of the "Dream Weaver," sent fear into the depths of the hearts of the surrounding demons.

Boundless darkness exploded within their hearts. They had previously become numb to fear, but at this moment, they still felt dread.

That was not the darkness of the "Abyss," but rather the darkness from the depths of the starry sky. The ultimate terror hidden in the darkness erupted from the depths of these demons' minds.

These demons roared in agony as their heads exploded, and a beam of dawn light burst forth once more in the demon horde, completely reducing these forcibly restrained demons to ashes.

In the end, only a Sequence 3 "Whisperer" and a Sequence 6 "Demon" remained in the darkness. Roger glanced at them and was surprised to find that the two seemed to be related by blood.

They were very similar in appearance and mystical state, which made Roger realize that this seemed to be a high-ranking member of the Blood Cult protecting his descendants for advancement, while the other demons that had been eliminated were there to "observe" the ceremony based on some kind of worship custom within the Blood Cult.

"Is it because the influence of the reformists has gradually grown to the point that the conservatives want to use this method to unite people's hearts?"

While Roger was rapidly analyzing the situation, the "Whisperer" had already launched an attack on him.

His lips moved, and one after another, words representing the filth of the "abyss" popped out. The sound carried a maddening quality and was clearly one of the most typical attack methods of the "Whisperer".

However, Roger remained completely unmoved, and he too moved his lips and uttered a string of obscene words.

This was the demonic language spoken by Roger through Jason Belial, the "Apostle of Desire," but he elevated it to a level close to the "Dark Side of the Universe" through his understanding of the "Abyss."

The meaning of those words was very simple: "Kneel down."

Due to the suppression of their positions, the Sequence 3 "Whisperer" and "Demon" simultaneously knelt down with a "thud," their eyes filled with shock.

From that moment just now, they clearly felt a pressure comparable to that of a demon overlord!
"Sir, who exactly are you?"

The "Whisperer" spoke in trembling demonic language, never expecting that he would encounter someone with that aura here when he was merely helping a junior advance.

"I only helped Fabti."

Roger uttered those words casually, but the "demon" could not bear the weight of the name. Upon hearing the word "Fabuti," it vanished into nothingness with a roar.

The "talker" began to kowtow repeatedly as if by conditioned reflex. His whole body was trembling and he was covered in cold sweat. He couldn't understand why he was doing this. It seemed that he had only started to show obedience as a conditioned reflex because he had heard that taboo name.

This demonstrates the strict hierarchy of the "Abyss" pathway, where those of higher rank possess extreme power to suppress those of lower rank. Roger, who had truly witnessed the truth of the "Abyss" and fully mastered the "Abyss" pathway, demonstrated his corresponding rank simply through the "Mysterious Manifestation."

"I ask, you answer."

Roger spoke in a difficult, demonic language, then stepped on the back of the "Whisperer":

Tell me about the 'reformers'.

"No detail is too small to be overlooked; if you lie, you will die immediately."

(End of this chapter)