He is the leader of the Tantric sect in Chagdu.

Chapter 88: He's a fighter!

-pain.

My whole body aches terribly.

Pain, darkness, groans, thick blood dripping from the scalp, covering the eyelids.

Naji opened his eyes with difficulty and instinctively wiped his face. The sensation on his hand was a bit strange. Something wet slid down his arm, and then something hard cut his palm.

—What————

His hazy consciousness made it difficult to think. He held his palms up in front of him, staring blankly at the festering sores and the yellow, viscous fluid that had dissolved after being corroded.

—I'm injured.

The flesh splattered with blood had been completely corroded. Naji touched the protruding bone fragments exposed on both sides of his cheeks and felt that he was not in good condition.

"There seem to be living people here."

A voice, seemingly out of place with the surroundings, sounded leisurely and relaxing, carrying a hint of cynical chuckle, and sounded somewhat familiar.

Najib raised his head as if it were common sense, and he saw a familiar face: it was the unfortunate man who had been eaten by the Holy See five days ago.

"Tsk, but looks like he's about to die?"

-I?

He tried to speak, but neither his throat nor his lungs gave him any response. Najib raised his hand to touch his neck.

The place is completely rotten now.

He was not dead yet, because of the tenacious vitality of the fish-men—those gills that he had once regarded as cumbersome organs were now taking over the function of lungs, providing the last fuel for this dying body.

-yes.

Najib suddenly felt relieved.

I'm dying.

A tall figure crouched down in front of him, and a voice tinged with a light laugh rang out once more: "You are—that favorite of the Holy See?"

Ai waved his hand in front of him twice.

Do you recognize me?

-No.

Just like answering questions with thought, Naji looked at this shadow and there was no doubt that the original Womikochi was dead. The one in front of him—this body contained something beyond their understanding and control.

An indescribable shadow, a mysterious silhouette—something that, without even showing itself, drove the Holy Church and its members to the brink of destruction.

That chilling gray—

—You belong to the far suburbs.

Najib is convinced that you are that person's shadow.

—Besides the Foundation, the Holy See's hypothetical ultimate enemy, an unspeakable being, has painted its influence onto the very fabric of the Nest.

Only apprentices who study the art of the invisible can understand just how terrifying "that one" in the remote suburbs is, even though he is also a tantric practitioner without a lineage.

The Holy See regarded it as a rival in the lower city and was always wary of the outskirts. But only now, until the Holy See himself has turned into mincemeat, have his disciples tried to witness just how insurmountable the gap between the mystical is.

—However, unexpectedly, this "shadow" was more unconventional than Najib had imagined.

"Your jail is huge, it looks like everyone's dead there—"

Without diverting her attention to the mangled body on the ground, Ai Yi created a field of silence beneath her feet and silently looked into the distance.

The Holy See was splattered everywhere, and looked as if he were dead beyond dead, yet it was similar to the situation he had expected.

The play has finally entered its second act: the hidden boss he has been waiting for is finally beginning to change phases.

"Is that the snake god you worship?"

Ai squinted at the elegant and beautiful silhouette in the night. She transcended the limits of human description; every curve and arc was like an allure planted in the heart. Even a casual glance would leave an impression that would be etched into the depths of the soul.

-This is----

Ai instantly understood—the essence of the intangible substances emanating from the girl's serpentine body.

"Influence"

Although it was far too weak to bear looking at compared to the gaze of a crow.

But the essence of these things is still "influence"—its original characteristic is "the driving force formed by the interweaving of power and presence." It is a silent ripple, an invisible vibration—it does not require seeing with the eyes or hearing with the ears. As long as the vessel is in this place, the red liquid will be "interfered" by this "wave".

"Just woke up, and he doesn't look like someone to mess with—"

Ai murmured.

The quality called "influence" is an "interference force" that can only be obtained by climbing to the second level. It is an intangible thing, but it can cause real disturbances to entities in the real world. Moreover, when it is out of control, its manifestation is usually a disorderly overflowing "field", just like an electromagnetic field, which almost ignores physical obstacles and directly affects everything in its range.

For a specific reference, there was the "Light Erosion Disaster" that broke out after the "Outbreak in the Suburbs". This was also a kind of "field" form of "influence" - a very small part that leaked out from the grand ceremony of intercalation, but it also brought huge losses to the entire lower city.

The snake god in front of me, who seems a bit grumpy when he wakes up, has definitely reached the second tier in terms of his level of advancement, regardless of his actual combat strength.

"Boss."

Xiao Qi's expression was serious, and she said somewhat uneasily, "How about you leave the scene first, I'll take care of things here."

"Tsk." Ai Yi tilted her head and clicked her tongue in dissatisfaction.

"Do I look like the kind of heartless boss who runs away and leaves the employees to fill in?"

—When it comes to fighting bosses, you can't be a lone wolf; you have to team up.

Ai rolled her eyes and chuckled, "Don't worry, wait for the reinforcements I found for our team—judging by the time, they should be on their way by now."

—Before this—

"Hey, are you still alive?"

As she watched the "Serpent God" in the distance carry out a brutal massacre of his followers, Ai shook her head, then indifferently lowered her head and kicked the monstrous fish-man.

"Can you hear me? Your ears seem to have melted too. Your holy seat is practically a walking, talking pool of sulfuric acid—"

The pain was instantly overwhelmed by the numbness, and irregular black blobs began to appear at the edge of Naji's vision, spreading little by little as time passed, slowly engulfing his limited field of vision.

—I'm going to die.

He pondered this matter over and over again, his usually sharp mind becoming as stiff as a stuck gear.

After a long while, he suddenly realized:

—After all, even the Holy See is dead.

Najib belatedly recalled that when he first joined the Holy See—before he became a core disciple—he had listened intently to the Holy See spreading the Gospel among the crowds.

The Holy See once said that he was immortal because of the protection of the serpent god: but now he is dead, and not even a complete body part can be seen.

In the doctrines of the Church of St. Naracco, the serpent is the master of betrayal, which may not be a "good" symbol, but for Najib at that time, it was precisely a betrayal he longed for.

It was once a nighttime fantasy: Naji craved revenge, a decisive, uncompromising betrayal of Hallownest—an act of defiance against the oppressors, the remedy for the lost.

He has no family because the union of fish-men can almost only be internal—due to environmental issues, "wild" fish-men make up the majority of the population. Here, "wild" means "uncared for," perhaps the result of a one-night stand or alcohol and drug addiction, or simply discrimination and disgust towards sexual characteristics.

Random reproductive characteristics, such as those of "fish-men" or "rats," while not "degraded species," are still met with aversion.

Irresponsible or incapable parents are unwilling to bear the "rigid legal requirements" of raising offspring, so these children are sent to orphanages—of course, few orphanages are willing to accept fish-people, so the more straightforward option is "destruction at birth."

Najib recalled that two weeks ago, he had brought a carload of snacks and supplies to visit the only nursery in the North River area that still accepted merfolk cubs, only to be told:

—The original director was demoted due to mismanagement.

—The regulations have been updated.

This orphanage no longer accepts murlocs, and murloc cubs that were not adopted during this period were all euthanized in accordance with the Hallownest Minor Protection Act, where there was no way to ensure adequate jurisdiction and no one was in charge.

Why is it only "we" who have to suffer these things?

Blood flowed into his cheeks, and a feeling of suffocation slowly rose within him.

As consciousness descended, it became increasingly clear.

Najib thought hard:

—It is precisely because we are so weak that we place all our hopes and desires on others.

—The Holy See—He is the greatest being I can imagine, and I believe he will bring us new life, the promised ascension—and eternally end our past misfortunes.

But he failed, like a stray dog, easily crushed, and even what he left behind, his so-called faith, could be easily overwritten and replaced.

—And then there's that monster—that serpent that devoured countless lives and souls—we worship it as sacred—but we forget that even that serpent god revealed its power by stripping other lives of their weight.

—He was also the one who plundered and deprived.

Same as those in positions of power —

-robber.

—In that case, what is the difference between the changes we bring about and the misfortunes we suffer?

As if convinced that his thoughts could be "heard" by the being before him, Najib supported his body with his arm bent at almost a 90-degree angle, inserted the broken bone fragments into the ground, and raised his head high with an almost solemn attitude.

He looked up at the messenger of light—

He frantically conveyed his will, which he had tangibly manifested:

—I understand, I understand—

We are powerless to change anything.

His face was hideous and extremely ugly:

—You, you are greater than the Holy See, you—I beg you, apostle of the Father of Light, only you can change this shit-like world, making it even just a tiny bit more reasonable—

—Please—

The silence continued.

"Little Qi————"

Watching the guy on the ground's chest suddenly cave in until he stopped breathing completely, Ai stroked her chin, tilted her head, and said, "You mean—what was he trying to tell me by sticking his neck out like that?"

"I don't know," Xiao Qi replied crisply.

"Never mind, it's not important."

Ai gave up on the pointless question after only two seconds of thought, nonchalantly stepping past the corpse with a wicked grin, leaving behind a casual whisper, "Like a dead fish with its head tilted back—"

"Tsk, it looks incredibly stupid."

"That's disgusting."

Ai yawned, and in the next instant, his body collapsed into the night, and soon, a young man with black hair and gray eyes replaced the original Womikochi.

"Xiao Qi—find a place to hide, and don't come out without my orders—don't worry, I'm a staff member of the foundation, it's normal for me to join a group."

Heavy footsteps, accompanied by a blinding searchlight, as a group of tall figures moved with effortless ease through the complex architectural complex, encircling from all sides—

—It's finally here.

Ai narrowed her eyes and smiled like a fox.

"Boss, I'm off to boost my performance metrics!"

Almost the instant the uninvited guest entered, the unusual commotion attracted the attention of the "Serpent Goddess." Smooth scales rubbed against the corpses scattered on the ground, crushing everything into dust. She raised her body high, and her serpentine half, which had been coiled on the ground, finally stretched out completely, reaching an astonishing length.

She hovered in mid-air, her face, sculpted by a god, possessing a poisonous innocence and beauty. A snake, descending from above, cast a divine gaze, its narrow, vertical pupils flowing with a rigid yet alluring crimson light—

The next moment, as the influence suppression field unfolded invisibly, the entire area within a radius of several hundred meters was incorporated into the battle zone.

What greeted her first was a high-speed spinning electromagnetic armor-piercing projectile.

"Buzz"

An invisible arc of light tore through the night sky.

Even though the actual strike distance exceeded three thousand meters, the "Support" model of the Cleaner still completed the attack perfectly with the help of the combat implant chip.

The slender bullet struck the bullseye, the attack, invisible to the naked eye, exploding into a ferocious cloud of blood mist right in the center of her head. The airburst blasted half of the girl's head into dust, which scattered across the ground like raindrops.

"Confirming the results of the strike —"

After a few seconds of silence.

A sharp screech tore through the night sky: "Hiss—"

'

The snake girl coiled her body high once more, a thin red membrane covering her cracked skull. In her broken eye socket, half of her eyeball was exposed, and a thick, unsettling crimson color rose from it.

Tentacles, seemingly appearing from nowhere, acted like blood vessels supplying nutrients. With a spasm, the shattered flesh was instantly filled by a rapidly expanding tumor. Redundant flesh grew at the wound like tree roots. In a mere five seconds, the "snake's" flawless body returned to everyone's sight once more.

"Target condition — good, damage not obvious."

The other side of the battlefield.

"A living body —"

Ronan's expression turned grave. He took a deep breath. "A second-level living being—this is not a normal life form at all. The things that make up that thing are pure life force."

A monster formed from flesh and soul, she doesn't possess any so-called "physical vitals" like other mystics of the same level. She is virtually impossible to destroy by physical means until the life force accumulated within her body is completely depleted.

Unless we can deliver a devastating blow that completely overwhelms her with its mystique—which the "correction" authority could certainly do, but well—

Support capable of crushing second-level units is ridiculously expensive.

"You can give it a try first."

After a moment's thought, Ronan decided to proceed according to the original plan.

Although the living body possesses powerful vitality, as a mysterious creature created by human hands, it has extremely low intelligence, its behavior is often rigid and predictable, and the mysterious power it possesses usually does not exceed expectations.

Once you figure out her attack methods and behavior patterns—

Another team of cleanup workers, unafraid of exhaustion, will serve as the vanguard.

Can fight!

"Once the protection team goes up there, turn up the power of your cognitive filters and silent barriers to the maximum. Don't expect it to be effective in killing it, just test out its capabilities."

"Support Team————"

Ronan hesitated for a moment before issuing the order, "Attack her abdomen, keep attacking, don't stop the remaining assault team, suppress her with firepower, reduce her vitality, and continuously compress her space to move."

"As for us."

Ronan took a deep breath. As one of only two mysterious apprentices on the field, he glanced at Mia beside him, opened his mouth, and said, "We—"

"Hehehehe————"

The antler-clad girl stood with her hands on her hips, head held high and chest puffed out.

"Fuck her!"