Mystery: Survival from the Secret Doll

Chapter 380, Page 379: "The Black Emperor"

The Sea of ​​Mist, deep within.

On the cold, deep black island, a blood-red moon hangs suspended in the distant sky.

There is no daytime here, only endless darkness, white mist, a black sky, and a red moon held high in the sky.

This is not a world that ordinary people can set foot in. Roaring waves and all sorts of strange and extraordinary creatures surround this nameless island that no one can set foot on, isolating it from the world and making it impossible for outsiders to easily enter.

On this abnormal and bizarre island, a huge, black, irregular, and twisted mausoleum stands in the center, shrouded in layers of mist, yet peacefully "enjoying" the illumination of the blood-red moon overhead.

Withered trees and various deformed and decaying creatures roam the island. Skeleton monsters with half their bodies missing, various animals with their entrails scattered on the ground, rotting dragons, and blind and frenzied aquatic species—all sorts of creatures seem to have lost their minds and are forever stuck here, worshipping some unknown creature that they should not worship.

Surrounding the island are twenty-two enormous, pitch-black stone pillars that seem to reach into the clouds. Each pillar is carved with an unknown language that humans cannot understand. They seem to be guarding the mausoleum in the center of the island, or they seem to be imprisoning it, preventing anything inside the mausoleum from leaving.

The creatures living on the island exist in a state of both life and death.

They are both rational and insane, both kind and evil; the boundaries between life and death are broken, and all kinds of rules are twisted into incomprehensible things.

This is an unnamed island where the rules have been completely distorted.

The blood-red moon hung in the sky as if it were eternal. The blood-red moon, which looked as if it was about to drip blood, seemed to be soaked into real blood as time went by. Even though there was an immeasurable distance between them, that bloody, new life force seemed to be right at their noses, so thick that they could not breathe.

From within the massive black mausoleum, the sound of something breathing could be heard.

The power of the Blood Moon has reached its peak, and it is about to erupt.

Then, a ring appeared in the sky.

The enormous halo was composed of countless dazzling crystals, dreamlike and seemingly not existing in the real world.

The ring rapidly expanded, encircling the space above the mausoleum. Then, a clock appeared within the ring, its hands made of transparent insects composed of twelve links. The clock expanded rapidly, and the ring extended outwards along with the hands and the clock, until a carnival of dazzling crystals enveloped the entire island, at which point it stopped expanding.

when--

Like the tolling of a bell from the oldest time, it resonated around everything on the island. The halo began to shrink, the clock hands reversed, and all the events that had occurred on the island began to rewind. Everything flowed back to its constant day as the "mistake" occurred.

The dead are resurrected, the living sleep eternally, and everything returns to its original state.

The moon, seemingly eternally fixed in the sky, emitted a scarlet hue. The blood moon, nearing its peak, struggled against this irreversible flow of time. Soon, as time reversed, the blood-red moon also gradually turned crimson.

The blood moon quieted down, and the unknown, terrifying, and insane babbling finally subsided for a moment.

The moon's influence on the island is waning, and with the barrier still in place, the Fallen Mother Goddess cannot forcefully intervene in the workings of the real world.

He tried to exert further influence, but the power of deception, error, and distorted rules resonated with the barrier, keeping out all divinity that could prevent the reversal of time.

Even though the barrier is shattered, it can still block the invasion of most foreign gods.

The permeation of the blood moon has temporarily ceased, and the dark mausoleum, once again shrouded in the crimson moon, is now just as dark as before.

"A new day has begun."

The person sitting on the throne leaned back in the high-backed chair, with crimson moonlight constantly bursting out from his body, only to be forced back into his body due to the suppression of his own sequence.

Just now, the blood-red moonlight almost pierced his spirit, completely corrupting him into an indescribable shape.

Everything returned to calm once again, but the daily cycle of stability to collapse and back to stability was torture for everyone.

Looking at his current state, the figure on the throne remained motionless for a long time.

Ah, thinking about it, I don't know how much longer I can hold on.

The body can recover its state by turning back time, but the mind cannot.

The eternal torment erodes humanity, and the figure on the throne is uncertain whether he can hold out until that moment arrives.

"What time is it now?"

He suddenly asked.

A sliver of light suddenly appeared in the dark mausoleum as someone lit a match, slightly brightening the interior and preventing it from becoming too gloomy.

"1349, July 10."

The figure on the throne revealed a glimpse of its true form in the light of the match.

He had long, slightly wavy chestnut hair, blue eyes, and wore a dark red coat. His expression was serious and solemn, exuding the air of someone in a superior position.

However, this place is neither the royal palace hall nor the consul's study; it is the center of all power.

Here, there are only cold, hard stone bricks, and only a dilapidated black emperor.

"1349..."

Russell Gustav muttered to himself, his mind clearly sinking into a deeper level of confusion.

"I don't even remember it being this long..."

"This is a very normal situation. St. Peter's Psychiatry Clinic cannot cure the root cause. The part of your crazy spirit that I cut off is being treated in the hospital while you are simultaneously being influenced by the Fallen Mother Goddess. Both are happening at the same time, so there are gains and losses."

Tang turned up the brightness of the match a little and said.

Russell remained silent for a long while, then leaned back in his high-backed chair, his azure eyes fixed on Tang, and asked, "Your plan succeeded..."

He stopped recalling what he had just learned, staring intently at the young man before him, and asked again, "The plan succeeded, didn't it?"

"Pretty much. Everything is going according to plan. If nothing unexpected happens, things will continue to go smoothly until the end of the world."

Tang walked up the steps, and as if remembering something, said to the man sitting on the throne, "Oh, by the way, Bernard came to see me today."

"She wanted me to check your belongings for anything that might be of concern. I remember you put a blasphemous card in there? Was it for Bernard to wear?"

"Bernardaine..." Upon hearing this name, Roselle was momentarily dazed before remembering that Bernardaine was his eldest daughter. "No need, you handle it yourself. If you give it to her, with her quick wit, she'll definitely figure something out."

As a father, Russell murmured, "She must have grown into a beautiful young woman."

"Yes, very beautiful and self-reliant. Before, the secret organization Dawn of Elements fought against the Morse Penitentiary, which saved me a lot of time in dealing with the Morse Penitentiary."

Tang walked up to Rosell with the matches in his hand and said, "She came to me to clear things up for you. Even if you don't tell her what the Black Emperor's ascension ritual is, she will still come to you in the end. She wants to save you, doesn't she?"

“I didn’t stop her. Although you told me not to let her come to you, I felt she would definitely come here, so I didn’t want to stop her for the time being.”

"Yes, she is my proudest child."

When Bernarde was mentioned, Russell's usually serious face softened with a tenderness rarely seen in recent years.

“However…” Rosell’s expression quickly returned, revealing his exhaustion, “It’s best not to let her come. This isn’t a good place.”

He looked at Tang, his somewhat muddled consciousness clearing slightly, "How is the situation with the Fallen Mother Goddess now?"

"Although it is not a complete pillar, with neither the Lord of Mysteries nor God currently settled, it is difficult for us to achieve anything by confronting Him head-on. And if we want to carry out that plan, He is the biggest problem."

Tang lowered his eyes, just as he had once said to Russell: "So, I think that a Mr. 'Door' plus the 'Mother' card is not enough to catch Him."

Russell let out a long breath, his expression beginning to wane as his mind struggled against the pollution within him.

"That's right. In the process of fighting against the power of the Fallen Mother Goddess, I also realized what the so-called pillar really is."

“But just for that reason alone, I still want to punch you the moment I see you, Tang.” He waved his hand. “Alright, you can go now. I need to rest.”

Russell told him to leave, but Don looked at him with an expression that said, "How could you do this?"

"But don't you need me to talk to you or something? Staying here alone can easily lead to a mental breakdown or something, can't it?"

“I don’t need the mastermind behind this to pity me.”

"Oh dear, Tao Tao, you really hold a grudge."

Rosell: ...

Who can forget a grudge? Which saint are you talking about? Tell me! I'll grab you and beat you with all the things that hurt me, and see if you want to beat him to death!

Seeing that Rosell remained silent, Don added, "Or should I say something like, 'The taste of a witch'..."

The dejected man's face flushed red, his head spun, and he couldn't help but roar out:

"roll!"

Don Eggers, you bastard!
"Alright, alright, you don't look too good, I'm just trying to liven things up."

Tang took two steps back to avoid getting a "righteous iron fist" in the face.

After the joke, Tang's expression calmed down: "Don't worry, Huang Tao, the plan will definitely proceed as scheduled."

"All of this is both predetermined and our inevitable destiny."

Everything we do is to protect what we cherish.

-

During the Tarot reading, Mr. "Mistake" informed Ms. "Justice" and Mr. "The Hanged Man" about the true Creator God Child who appeared in Tingen City.

"It is a product of malice and madness, born from madness and countless sacrificed lives, and now it is in Backlund."

Mr. "Mistake" spoke in a tone as if a mouse had entered his own garden, which filled Miss "Justice" with dread.

"The true creator's divine child is currently in Backlund? Does that mean the dock explosion last night is related to this?"

She made the connection quickly, and with some doubt, cautiously asked Mr. "Mistake":
"Mr. 'Error,' haven't the official extraordinary beings taken any action against this divine child of the true creator?"

As a native of Backlund, Miss Justice did not want such an uncertainty to exist within her area of ​​activity.

This is horrible.

Mr. "Mistake" leaned back in his high-backed chair, his voice unchanged from his usual gentle tone:
"The official Beyonders stationed in Backlund have already dispatched demigod-level Beyonders, but unfortunately, the divine child of the true creator escaped. To this day, there is no news of the divine child's whereabouts. Perhaps he is hiding in some corner."

The demigod went to ambush the divine child, but the divine child of the true creator escaped.
Miss Justice felt a chill for a moment; a hidden danger that even demigods couldn't solve had now appeared inside Backlund.

"I think the Church, the military, and the angels of Miskatonic should be mobilized soon."

Alger, the "Hanged Man," keenly sensed the seriousness of the problem. He carefully chose his words and said, "After all, Backlund is the capital of Loen, the capital of all cities, a truly great city. If the divine child of the true creator is allowed to run rampant in the city, it will cause incalculable serious consequences."

He looked at Mr. "Mistake," but saw that Mr. "Mistake" didn't react, and for a moment he didn't know if his guess was correct.

"Indeed, if the true creator's son is still in Backlund, it will definitely have incalculable serious consequences for Backlund. Neither the church nor the military should sit idly by."

Miss Audrey, the "Justice," also thought Mr. "The Hanged Man" made sense, and her gaze swept over Mr. "Strength" opposite her almost imperceptibly.

She wondered if Mr. "Power" could take on a commission. If things were still not peaceful in Backlund, she wondered if she could ask Mr. "Power" to see if he could get rid of that divine child.

Or perhaps, she could ask Mr. "Power" for protection? Compared to the issue of her identity being exposed, Ms. "Justice" felt that the personal safety of her family members was more important.

"Power" Gal Bly was somewhat tempted, but he quickly received a warning look from Mr. "Error".

Gar, if you dare to kill the true Creator's Son of God, if you kill that Son of God today, I will tie you up tomorrow and make you serve as the true Creator's Son of God.

Gal Blair, who received the message from Mr. "Error": ...

Okay, okay, whatever you say.

(End of this chapter)