Cthulhu America, I can see the kill line.

The silver arrow grazed Kong Jiu's cheek, bringing with it a chilling, sharp wind, leaving a thin trail of blood on his cheekbone.

Then, with a muffled "thud," it pierced the wall behind it.

The bloodstain was very shallow, and hadn't even had time to gather into a blood bead.

In the next instant, the wound closed, healed, and disappeared at a speed almost imperceptible to the naked eye.

Her skin was as smooth as ever, as if it had never been cut by a sharp weapon.

As her wounds healed, the fighting spirit in the demon hunter's eyes faded rapidly, like the receding tide.

"Not even a trace of burn on the skin?"

She muttered to herself, the crossbow bolt in her hand drooping, "Really not a bloodline?"

Her tone carried a hint of confusion and uncertainty. She frowned slightly as she scrutinized Kong Jiu: "Knows blood magic, can heal himself, but isn't one of those vampires?"

As she spoke, she released her grip on the crossbow.

The crossbow bolt seemed to have appeared out of thin air from her hand, then began to etherealize again, vanishing into the air in an instant without leaving a trace.

Does it matter whether I am of bloodline or not?

Kong Jiu pulled the silver arrow, still warm from his body, from the wall, tossed it casually, and met the eyes that still held a trace of wariness.

He had heard Sophie mention the bizarre and fantastical religious landscape of this new continent.

The name of the Anointed One has been upheld by countless religious sects, many of which still retain the tradition of medieval armed missionary work.

The largest Protestant denomination even played a bloody and crucial role in the war against the evil Native Americans.

The woman in front of us, dressed in a nun's habit but wielding a weapon, clearly belongs to a world that is difficult for ordinary people to access.

But on the night he spoke with Abel, he also mentioned the existence of such organizations.

"They call themselves 'God's agents,' and the anti-psychic ICE department I founded is an imitation of the church's agents who hunt demons."

Therefore, after Kong Jiu saw the nun's robe clearly, he knew where this person came from.

"Very important."

The nun's voice was brief, but the hostility had indeed lessened somewhat. She still maintained a certain wary distance, only slightly relaxing her crossed arms.

"Xinxiang, the richest place in the entire United States, have you heard of it?"

Kong Jiu nodded.

"The Iron Curtain there," she paused, her gaze fixed on Kong Jiu's face, which was shrouded in some kind of power and appeared as nothing but chaos to her, "was destroyed three hours ago."

Was the Iron Curtain in Xinxiang destroyed?

Kong Jiu's face darkened.

This topic instantly sparked a flood of thoughts in his mind.

A ritual that uses the spirits of the dead to unleash a psychic storm and shatter the Iron Curtain; irresponsible ICE; the ritual behind that serial murder case with its uncertain consequences...

He had a vague feeling that he was touching the edge of a huge and dangerous vortex.

"Has the Iron Curtain been destroyed in Xinxiang?"

Although Kong Jiu had anticipated this, he still tried his best to pretend he knew nothing about it.

The witch-hunting nun nodded, her expression growing even more serious: "Last week, a passenger plane traveling between Xinxiang and Hills crashed. Apart from two high-ranking members of my Quaker Church, everyone in the region returned to the ground through some kind of psionic means. Have you heard about it?"

As she spoke, her gaze never left Kong Jiu's face, trying to catch even the slightest flaw in that blurry expression.

However, Squich's blessing acted as a perfect barrier, locking all emotions behind that chaos.

"Never heard of it."

Kong Jiu forced himself to remain calm and spoke.

Have I heard of it before?

My friend personally exerted all his strength at an altitude of 10,000 meters, made a deal with the devil, opened a passage in subspace, and sent the more than 300 terrified souls back to the ground one by one, leaving himself almost exhausted.

You asked me "I've heard of it before"?

The nun was clearly unable to penetrate that layer of chaos; she only saw a calm, expressionless face, as if she had never heard of the matter.

"It's strange, but although most people made it back to the ground safely..."

The nun, oblivious to the flaw in Kong Jiu's expression, said with a puzzled tone, "But the remains of the two pilots were brought to the entrance of the Hills Police Station the next morning. They were just placed there on the steps, like some kind of... provocation."

provocative?

Kong Jiu's brow twitched.

He was with fourteen survivors, along with himself and Mina, struggling to leap into the void from the disintegrating cabin. In the raging winds at ten thousand meters altitude, they searched for a spiritual energy node to land on, almost exhausting all his strength.

As for those two corpses, he expended a great deal of effort to use subspace to carry them smoothly across the Sea of ​​Nothingness, and finally, under the cover of night, quietly deliver them to the entrance of a police station in a nearby city.

He believed that this was providing clues and giving an explanation to the families who had lost loved ones.

You're telling me this is provocation?

"just in case……"

He suppressed the inexplicable surge of emotion, striving to maintain a calm facade. "Was that not a provocation, but rather an attempt to assist the police in solving the case?"

"Unlikely."

The nun calmly flipped up her wrist, revealing a pager that looked like a miniature watch.

She pressed a few keys and looked at Kong Jiu with an "innocent" gaze.

"The forensic autopsy of the two individuals, who were spiritualists, showed that the residual spiritual energy in the fatal wounds on their necks was caused by blood magic."

Blood magic?

Kong Jiu's heart sank suddenly, and a bad premonition instantly swept through his body.

"Based on the passenger list from that day,"

The nun's gaze became somewhat meaningful. "There is a bloodline named 'Mina.' This case will be temporarily classified as a blood feud between bloodlines."

Mina?

A revenge killing?

Kong Jiu's emotions became increasingly agitated.

"A blood feud?"

He spoke with difficulty, his voice still controlled, but the suppressed emotions made his tone slightly tense.

The patriarch of the Stuart family, Eller, once said that although he was not involved in worldly affairs, he had quite a few connections with the bloodline still walking in the present world, and they all had good relationships.

In old Eller's words, "I'm so glad I let Mina go out and make her way in the world, thanks to my old brothers and comrades."

Is there such a thing as vendettas among blood relatives?

"Aren't the bloodline members known for their unity? How could they be engaged in a feud?"

"Does anyone know what kind of social values ​​those perverts who like to drink blood hold?"

The nun was clearly unaware of the turmoil in his heart. She calmly tore off the skirt suit that was clinging to her body, her movements as casual as if she were changing out of her work clothes after get off work.

"Anyway, the church said that as long as blood descendants are not involved in the destruction of the Iron Curtain, it's fine. As for others destroying it, that's not within my scope of responsibility."

As she spoke, she took out a cigarette from the small bag at her waist, lit it deftly, took a deep drag, and exhaled a wisp of smoke.

"Anyway, the church said that as long as no one of bloodline is involved in destroying the Iron Curtain, it's fine. If others are involved in destroying it... that's not within my scope of responsibility."

As she spoke, she strode past Kong Jiu at a brisk pace, yet exuded a casual and languid air, as if the tense standoff just moments before was merely a misunderstanding.

"I'm leaving. I've already called that old man Yaken. Do whatever you want."

They just left like that?

Kong Jiu turned around, watching the departing figure, and finally couldn't help but speak:

"But I'm here to destroy the Iron Curtain. Aren't you the one responsible for guarding it?"

"With your self-healing ability, you're either a bloodline or a werewolf."

The nun's elegant voice echoed down the corridor.

"I didn't bring any wooden stakes today, so I can't deal with the werewolves. Do whatever you want. My job is just to prevent the bloodline from destroying the Iron Curtain."

Kong Jiu stood there, looking at the empty doorway, and for a moment he didn't know what to say.

What is this?

strike?

Or is it... too much lenient handicap?

Looking at the cool silver arrow in his hand, he suddenly felt that the logic of this witch-hunting nun was even more unfathomable than the crossbow bolt that had vanished into thin air.