Love, Gun, Cupid

The ice cave looked up, and Jianlan smiled and said, "Just to be safe, I set up a surveillance system at home, but I didn't expect to capture some interesting things."

Ice Cave's face flushed red instantly. Sword Orchid said, "Should I give it to Lin Jiade? Lin Jiade hates it when people he cares about lie to him about things he cares about."

Kapok was considered one of the sisters in our family. She was Lin Jiade's lover, but because she deceived Lin Jiade, he left her with a scar that would never heal and would bleed every month.

The kapok tree still lives in regret, and perhaps Lin Jiade will never forgive it in his lifetime.

As we all know, Lin Jiade is now your last refuge. If I hand it over to him, can you imagine your future?

Don't rush into martyrdom. There's no absolute choice between the Holy Land and your personal happiness. Perhaps now you think sacrificing yourself for the Holy Land is a cool idea, but afterwards you'll live in regret, constantly asking yourself why you didn't think it through more.

The light and shadow in the office subtly shifted. Gladiolus used witchcraft to enhance the environment, putting even greater psychological pressure on Ice Cave, while the young Ice Cave's forehead dripped with sweat, and his breathing became heavy.

The water dispenser was right next to her, but Gladiolus used witchcraft to hide it. She wouldn't give the ice cave any chance to breathe; she wanted to plant fear in the heart of this innocent little girl, causing the ice cave to collapse, and thus planting the seed of a submissive race in her consciousness.

Unexpectedly, Ice Cave, looking disheveled and struggling but with extraordinary determination, raised his head and said to Sword Orchid, "I refuse."

No extra chapters were added because RNG lost the match.

On the 21st, FPX vs LNG, vote, bonus chapter for a victory.

Chapter Fifty-One: Brainwashing

After speaking, Bing Dong was a little scared. According to the plot of the TV series, when the villain couldn't get the protagonist to talk through verbal persuasion and coercion, he would then resort to other means.

As expected, Gladiolus left his seat and got closer and closer to her, his astonishing height creating a visually imposing presence.

The air grew cold and thin, and the feeling of lack of oxygen forced the ice cave to open its mouth wide, like a fish being slapped ashore. She tried to get up, but the invisible pressure held her in her seat, making her unable to move.

She struggled to move her eyes and saw Jianlan open the door, call Lin Jiade over, bend down and hug the young man tightly as if she were eating her prey, and then take out her phone.

Ice Cave's heart was in her throat. She was afraid that Jianlan would expose the truth that she had used magic on Lin Jiade. However, Jianlan had only called Lin Jiade over to have him order two lunches.

After closing the door, Jianlan sat back down. Just as Bingdong breathed a sigh of relief, a hand landed on her shoulder from behind. She shuddered, trying to turn around but was held firmly in place by an invisible force.

"Who is it?" she asked.

"In a sense, he is your master... Don't be angry, this is not taking advantage of you, nor is it humiliating you, it is just the truth."

The person behind released a wave of energy, which triggered a response from the sacred power within the ice cave. The blissful feeling of being washed by warm water echoed in the ice cave's heart, and the chill brought by the sword orchid had completely dissipated.

Compared to the previous northerly wind, the sun behind her now seemed exceptionally warm, making the ice cave feel alluring. The feeling was somewhat familiar, as if she had seen it somewhere before.

She began to rewind her memories, recalling them, finally settling on the moment when she and Lin Jiade went out to investigate Teacher Yang's house, the aura emanating from the black-haired woman who passed by overlapped with this moment.

"You're the one who lives at Lin Jiade's house, the one who..."

Ice Cave couldn't recall the other person's name, and now she felt a sense of absurdity, because there was a room in Lin Jiade's house that had never been open to her, and the two sisters who lived in that room had never introduced themselves, nor had Lin Jiade intended to describe the sisters' situation.

"The one from Lin Jiade's family? Hmm, that's an interesting way to put it. Lin Jiade would probably be very happy to hear that." Du Juan's voice drilled into the ice cave's ears. "But it also means that you'll offend the person in front of you. She's terrifying when she's angry."

"Aren't you... all in cahoots?" the ice cave asked.

The phrase "outwardly united but inwardly divided" is perfectly applicable to our relationship. We have come together here for the same interests.

Du Juan said, "You should be able to feel that I share the same power as the sacred land you are meant to protect."

"?!"

"Is it strange? The Holy Land is essentially a celestial observer, which is the place where the gods fell in mythology."

However, in rare cases, when multiple gods engage in a fierce battle on the same battlefield, and the powers or treasures that house the gods' strength fall to the same location, that location may form a semi-enclosed, semi-independent space... just like the sacred land you are protecting.

Now, I'm back, and I have two purposes for approaching the Holy Land: first, to retrieve my things; second, to find out which individuals' belongings, along with mine, fell into the City of Reconstruction, forming the Holy Land we see today.

Du Juan didn't present any evidence; it was just her one-sided account. However, under the influence of the energy fluctuations that Du Juan constantly emitted, the Ice Cave felt that Du Juan's words were convincing.

The final blow to the ice cave came from a vision shown to her by the cuckoo: before the city of Fuxing was established, when this place was called Troy, the Celestial Agents, who acted as leaders of human tribes, waged a ten-year war.

Agamemnon, Hector, Achilles… these renowned heroes take turns appearing, wielding power beyond human limits. Humans accompany them, recording events and distorting the facts according to the will of the celestial agents, passing them down as mythology.

"You are Diomedes and Athena, a hero and a goddess. You wounded Ares as a mortal and defeated Ares and Aphrodite as a goddess."

You sheltered the Greeks, yet after your victory you left them destitute and wandering, because one of them raped Cassandra, the priestess of Apollo, who was hiding in your temple.

When hatred was settled, calamities were quelled, and the satisfied celestial agents returned to the heavens, Athena finally helped Odysseus return to his homeland, and then vanished without a trace…

Ice Cave's eyes were lifeless, and she uttered words she was destined to forget in a dreamlike tone. Sword Orchid said, "What's this? If you wanted to brainwash her, you should have done it in the first place."

“I am waiting for an opportunity. First, when her relationship with Lin Jiade is at a point of distance rather than rapid growth. Lin Jiade could not accept her passionate confession to him, and she also felt embarrassed. In this way, if I make a move against her, Lin Jiade will not notice it too quickly.”

Secondly, I had to wait until she was on the verge of a mental breakdown and emotionally unstable to activate the technique, so as not to cause her to lose her mind or memory. Only today have you fulfilled the prerequisite for me.

"What is she to you, just a new tool?" Jianlan asked.

“In ancient terms, she was my chaste woman, or a priestess.”

Jianlan asked in surprise, "Isn't your priest Lin Jiade?"

This struck a nerve with Dujuan. She did want to take Lin Jiade as her priestess, but Lin Jiade was already the Queen of the Forest (Diana's priestess) appointed by the Moon Goddess, and she didn't want to clash with Diana without being sure of her chances.

So she jokingly replied, "My priestesses and virgins have always been pure maidens. If you're willing to have Lin Jiade undergo gender reassignment surgery, I might consider it."

Jianlan shook her head and said seriously, "That won't do. Back in the Mirror Realm, I had already planned our lives together. I need his high-quality seeds to nurture our offspring."

Du Juan looked at her meaningfully for a while, patted the ice cave's head, and her hair slipped into the ice cave's clothes, going in from the edge where the ice cave's chest met the pillar of light, making the cross-section of the pillar of light more tightly bonded to the ice cave's flesh.

"What is this?" Jianlan asked.

"The broken spear that locks her body is the remnant of a replica of the weapon I used in my last battle. Now, it is the energy source for this child to cast holy spells."

However, her energy reserves are limited, and once depleted, she will revert to a normal human. Since she is useful to us, I wrote down another way to replenish her energy, which I think she would be quite happy to do.

Chapter 52 Arrangement 1

When Lin Jiade brought lunch, he saw Bingdong and Jianlan chatting happily. He closed the door, then opened it again. Feeling that he hadn't opened it correctly, he closed and opened the door once more. Bingdong was already standing by the door.

“Stop fooling around,” she said.

"How did your talks go?" Lin Jiade tried to say. "It seems...to be going well?"

Jianlan rubbed her temples: "She's very stubborn. I made several oaths and used oath-keeping magic to guarantee that she would reluctantly agree to be our intermediary and coordinate matters with the Holy Land."

Ice Cave said sadly, "I didn't want this either. The Holy Land Guardians have played too much of a mowing game. Faced with new enemies and new changes, they are powerless. They... including me, are a bunch of useless trash. We must change, even if it means seeking help from outsiders."

Lin Jiade was a little angry: "I won't allow you to talk about yourself like that. If you're a piece of trash, how am I supposed to squeeze any surplus value out of you?"

Ice Cave kicked Lin Jiade, took the lunchbox, and asked, "Have you eaten?"

"I ate it before I bought it for you... Ice Cave, are you alright?"

Ice Cave blinked in confusion: "I'm fine. The matter of the Holy Land was a weight on my mind, but now half of it has disappeared."

"That's good," Lin Jiade waved his phone. "I'm off then, I have an exam this afternoon."

After he closed the door, the cuckoo's figure reappeared, the ice cave's smile disappeared, and it became solemn, its eyes filled with fanaticism and worship.

Now, she realizes that her power comes from the power that the cuckoo has lost, and therefore considers herself a follower of the gods, and the holy land as the cuckoo's rightful possession.

Therefore, Du Juan's attempt to open the Holy Land would no longer be an invasion, but a return; her interference in the Holy Land would no longer be subversion, but transformation.

“Your brainwashing is too effective,” Jianlan complained. “When you’re not around, she’s still that ice cave. But when you’re around, she’s like a fanatical believer ready to die for you at any moment.”

"Because the Holy Land Guardians, this organization that inexplicably took my authority and developed, uses methods similar to religious brainwashing to control its members."

Just think about it, what a terrible job it is to be a guardian of the holy land. There are no social insurances or housing fund, no salary, no subsidies, no chance for promotion or wealth, and you have to go to work once a month at times that violate human sleep schedules.

Since material means are not an option, the only way for this organization to retain new blood is to tame its members through spiritual means.

She spent seven years inside the ice cave, and while her personality wasn't particularly resolute, what sustained her as a guardian through long-term spiritual discipline was justice and her yearning for the holy land.

"Simply put, the ice cave needs a reason to keep her alive, and religious doctrines and the sense of justice based on self-sacrifice and self-pity provide her with a sufficient reason?" Jianlan asked.

Du Juan nodded: "She is someone who needs to rely on faith to live, because she can't find any meaning in her life except for that."

Lin Jiade once had the opportunity to become her faith, after all, when she was in trouble and her original faith was in crisis, only he extended a helping hand. The ice cave casting a spell on Lin Jiade was also a manifestation of her unease and desire to find someone to rely on.

Unfortunately, Lin Jiade ignored, or rather rejected, the Ice Cave's kindness, and also gave up his chance to become a god in the eyes of others. But it doesn't matter, with me here, the Ice Cave's once-off track will eventually rejoin Lin Jiade's, becoming a series of fitting footnotes in my thesis.

“It’s hard to imagine you doing something like this, and even writing papers,” Jianlan said.

Du Juan feigned ignorance: "What are you talking about? I am Cupid Stranger. Everything I am doing now is for my contractor, Lin Jiade, to connect him with his destined one."

"What about Hehuan and Yang Xuemeng?"

"The former is trying to please Lin Jiade, but her affinity with Lin Jiade remains unchanged, so I think she is actively approaching him for the sake of her family."

Hehuan knew very well that the resources available to Lin Jiade as an ally were completely incomparable to those available to Lin Jiade as family. In the end, she might just have to come to me for help.

“What if that really happens?” Jianlan asked.

"She said some very interesting things. If she were still alive, I might help her out... After all, her beautiful appearance is not of much value to me."

Jianlan sighed, "How pitiful. She was acting for her family, but at the end, we all knew it was hopeless."

Du Juan didn't detect much sympathy from Jian Lan. She continued, "As for Yang Xuemeng, she's not a big threat. Lin Jiade can handle her alone. At most, she can only provide a little fright."

Next, I'll take her to open the Holy Land and see how many of those guardians who treat my authority as their own are actually usable. As for you, just keep an eye on the hospital.

As Jianlan looked at the map of West Ham Hospital, at the same time, the Greek bishop Agamemnon and the White Dragon Ragnar Sigurdsson were gathered at the Greek headquarters.

The moon over the Holy Land remained full, and the belatedly aware guardians of the Holy Land finally returned to defend, plugging the gaps in the defenses and preventing the Greeks from turning more monsters into upgraded versions that could appear in reality.

But the Greeks did not come away empty-handed; after a well-planned ambush, they captured one of the guardians of the holy site, a young girl codenamed "Rosa."

Taking advantage of this, the Greeks were able to conduct another experiment: whether the guardians of the Holy Land could switch sides. For this purpose, the ordinary people who had previously been captured and imprisoned in the dark side of the Holy Land—half of whom were still alive—were temporarily spared the experiment, given a chance to prolong their lives.

These energies were channeled to fight the Guardians of the Holy Land, but the results were far from ideal. Because the Guardians' power was restrained by the dark side, the Greeks' experiment on corruption only strengthened Rosa's faith.

After realizing that it was difficult for the guardians of the Holy Land to fall into corruption, Ragnar made his move. He first beat Rosa severely, then cast a spell on her to mentally control her, creating an obedient but dull tool.

This has its advantages and disadvantages. The advantage is that Rosa was not forced to fall because she accepted the power of the dark side of the Holy Land, so she will not arouse suspicion immediately when she returns to her companions.

However, if this continued for a while, her abnormality would alert her companions, so Ragnar would hypnotize her to maintain her normal outward personality. Only when certain conditions were triggered would Rosa be able to "wake up" and quickly complete the instructions given to her by Ragnar.

This is safer; however, it means Rosa's tactical uses will be limited, and she will not be able to directly achieve her objectives. Therefore, the Greeks and Ragnar will need other helpers.

Now, they have come together.

Chapter 53 Arrangement 2

The Greeks and Ragnar used the same technology to train their forces; the former were the brothers and sisters of the black cat (Iphigenia), while the latter, whom Ragnar affectionately called the offspring of the white dragon.

Both the Greeks and Ragnar were realists who did not care about names and pursued effectiveness. As a result, the code names of the black cat's siblings and the white dragon's offspring were all kinds of strange. However, the Greeks promised that if these created children could achieve merit, they would be given the names of heroes.

The miniature snowman once shook the little melon and fought alongside it, but in an old, abandoned church in a blank area on the outskirts of the city, he sits on the left, signifying that he is Iphigenia's brother.

Sitting next to him was Takiya Zero, because the Greek laboratory staff made a mistake in gene editing when creating her, causing her to be over-aged and her appearance to directly become that of a thirty-year-old woman, with a look and figure that resembled Henrietta, the leader of the Holy Land Guardians.