Chapter 181: The Moonlight Stock Skyrockets

“Demon...” Dorrin murmured. Rather than giving a direct answer, she said, “The demon has to be dealt with, but how are you going to do that when you aren’t even as powerful as I am?”

She shook her head. “Go. You funded the Church of Moonlight before. I don’t see you as an enemy.”

Wayne was surprised. “Since you’re not controlled by a demon and actually loathe them, why work with one and turn on the High Reverend?”

“It’s not for you to know. If I say it, I’ll have to kill you to silence you. Are you sure you want that?” Dorrin said in a soft, tranquil tone with no hint of threat.

“I’m a detective,” Wayne said with a noble look. “I’m willing to die for the truth.”

“The Church of Moonlight can’t grow stronger in Windsor. Among the Life Alliance, the Church of Nature was the most successful, but look what happened. The Darkness Knight appeared, and the effort the church had put in for the past few hundred years became obsolete overnight.”

Dorrin stated it like she was convinced that the Darkness Knight had something to do with the Ministry of Magic. “The High Reverend is well-respected and powerful. It’s said that she’s approaching Legendary rank...”

“But so what?”

“Even if she were a Legendary-ranked mage, she wouldn’t be the Darkness Knight’s match. Moreover, the Death Knight is also infringing on Londan.”

“The Ministry of Magic will not allow the Life Alliance to expand, and the Church of Heavenly Father is the target of all these manipulations and machinations!”

“For the Church of Moonlight to expand in Windsor, outside of the external pressure, we also need an absolute powerhouse to spearhead our operation...”

Dorrin spouted self-contradictory nonsense. “The High Reverend isn’t powerful enough, but if she dies, the repercussions will make the royal family give up their current strategy.”

Wayne frowned throughout her explanation. Frankly, he didn’t really understand what she was getting at. She seemed delusional, and her plan was flawed and illogical. She showed the telltale signs of someone who had lost her grasp of reality.

She raised her fingers like a blade, gathering moonlight to send Wayne on his way to the underworld.

“Wait, let me say something else.” Wayne raised his hand and stopped her, as if he only hoped to hear an answer before his possible death. “Who is the absolute powerhouse you talked about? A legendary mage from the Church of Moonlight?”

“No, he’s always been in Windsor.”

“How can it...” Wayne’s heart sank, his mind supplying a possibility. He asked tentatively, “Is it a legendary mage from the Ministry of Magic?”

“Mr. Wayne, it’s not your business.”

“Please, I’m going to die!”

“Even so, no.” Dorrin smiled, swinging her fingers down. The moonlight she gathered had almost taken concrete shape, and the goddess’s vague silhouette could be made out. It was a grand send-off for Wayne.

“Just wait, I have more to say!” Wayne pressed his hands together and tilted his head. “To tell you the truth, your adoptive daughter, Kristen, and I have sworn ourselves to each other, and we’ve consummated our relationship. Please, give me a clear answer before my death.”

“Don’t be ridiculous, Mr. Wayne. Kristen is a proper, pure girl and hasn’t been tainted by you.”

...Tainted? Hey, you old hag, who gives you the right to talk like that!

Wayne huffed. “I haven’t gone to home base with her, but it doesn’t mean we haven’t touched a few bases. There are many ways for a couple to get intimate. If you don’t believe me, just ask her if she’s done it with me.”

After a pause, Dorrin’s expression became gravely dark. Overwhelming killing intent swept toward him and locked down the space around him.

You know your metaphors, Priestess!

Wayne’s eyebrows jumped up. He had reasons to believe that Dorrin had personal experience. He continued to taunt her, “I get it now. He, the legendary mage from the Ministry of Magic, is your lover!”

Boom!!

Moonlight condensed into thick mist, circling Wayne without leaving any gap. The blades of cold light weaved into a large, crisscrossing net and sliced up the space. In an instant, the number of attacks surged to such a height that they could no longer be described as

numerous

, but

dense

. The deadly move would kill anything and everything in the range.

“Kristen is no longer pure. She can’t be the vessel for the reincarnation. The ritual must be stopped!” Scowling, Dorrin turned to stalk away, but before she could take more than two steps, a hardened voice called out to her.

“Hey, you. What do you mean by ritual and reincarnation? Where’s Kristen?”

Wayne stepped out of the thick fog with Death energy swirling around him. His icy eyes glowed with a grey light, his expression chilling.

“Death?!” Dorrin cried out in shock. “You’re a student of the High Reverend of the Church of Nature. Why would you know the faith magic of Death?”

And it was advanced enough to resist a Gold-ranked mage’s killing move!

“Answer me. What do you mean by ritual and reincarnation?”

Wayne marched toward her, his Death energy unfurling like grey tentacles. Wherever they swept, all lives wilted. Nothing could escape the fate of being rendered ashes, be it tangible or intangible.

Intimidated by his presence, Dorrin took several steps back reflexively. When she recovered her calm, she took the moral high ground and said, “Nature’s High Reverend has colluded with the Church of Death. The alliance won’t let that slide. You and your master are dead.”

“Worry about your survival first!” Wayne splayed his fingers, sending violent tides of Death energy rippling and rolling toward her with deadly shockwaves. Her eyes widened with shock and disbelief; her vitality barrier failed to stop the Death energy.

“Impossible!” Dorrin couldn’t believe it. She had clashed with many mages from the Church of Death, some of them in their Gold rank. When their ranks were equal, neither could do anything to the other.

Wayne’s control over Death energy was simple and direct, almost rudimentary. He wasn’t even skilled enough to work as an errand boy for any of the Gold-rank mages, who made their magic an art form, and his power shouldn’t be able to shake her barrier.

Clack!

Her vitality barrier cracked, close to falling apart.

The situation was too dire for her to dwell on her question. Cutting a dark crevice into space, she extracted a curved bow of silver moon and conjured arrows with pure mana, shaping them with her thoughts to create endless possibilities. She took a shot at the depths of the grey mist.

The arrow sliced through the mist like a pair of scissors shearing cloth. The glowing arrows scattered and formed a magic circle in the air.

She had wanted to disperse the Death energy, but underestimated its mass. She wasn’t facing Death magic, but Death itself, which was higher in hierarchy.

The

Book of Greed

didn’t devour her magic since it was too bland for its picky palate. Tracing the magic to its source, though, the book captured the Law contained in the magic to sate its hunger.

What it gave Wayne was written in the starry cosmos of the Milky Way and countless stars. It was the ultimate truths that mages devoted lifetimes to pursue—knowledge!

The

Book of Greed

was, of course, a book, and undoubtedly, what was written in a book was knowledge.

Magic could defeat magic, but it could never shake knowledge. Although the knowledge Wayne had mastered was limited, it was enough for him to overcome rank differences and suppress a Gold-ranked mage.

The scattered moonlight dissolved after only a few seconds. Dorrin could not defeat Death, but her wealth of battle experience allowed her to retreat in the split second and escape the area of effect with difficulty.

Several silver stripes emerged on her face, making her delicate, graceful face seem even holier. She looked at the writhing cluster of Death energy. Imbued with surging mana, the bastion of Death increased dramatically in size, brandishing dozens of tentacles, each roughly a hundred meters long. They swung around, granting an absolute ending and bringing about an eternal peace.

In the center of the tentacles, a fiendish eye of Death opened. It radiated no negative emotions or psychic corruption, only tranquility.

Shocked, Dorrin suddenly had an absurd thought: she sensed the pursuit of the faith of Moonlight in that tranquility. It resembled the new moon, which represented serenity and helped followers disperse their negative emotions and fear.

Since when did Moonlight and Death share anything in common?

Dorrin couldn’t imagine the two goddesses sitting down and having tea. What would that strange world be? She shook away the absurd thought in her head. The silver stripes between her brows glinted, guiding cold moonlight to pour down and manifest the image of the goddess raising Her bow.

As she unleashed her Gold-rank mana, the Goddess of Moonlight’s figure gradually became more and more concrete. Her hood fluttered despite the lack of wind, and the pair of steely silver eyes on her sacred face slowly opened.

Boom!!

The divine might swept through the area, the cascading will unrivaled in supremacy. With the large full moon’s amplification, the force destroyed the Death energy with a strong enough momentum to cleanse heaven and earth.

The grey mist was gone, all retracted back into Wayne’s body.

A deity’s authority could not be challenged. He wasn’t yet strong enough to confront a Gold-ranked mage’s divine art head-on.

The

Book of Greed

perked up. It smelled the inviting aroma of food from the light of the full moon. It urged him impatiently to feed it. What it ate would benefit him, too; they were best buddies.

Who’s your buddy?!

Wayne cursed silently. A Gold-ranked mage had too many tricks in their repertoire and made the fight against them a high-level one. Without using the Death Knight disguise, he would have to merge with the

Book of Greed

to match Dorrin’s power.

White foamy flesh writhed. He turned into a faceless figure with pale limbs and dancing tentacles behind his back. A vertical line emerged on his chest, and a giant single eye opened, greedily absorbing the light of the full moon.

The Gold-ranked mage’s divine art brought not only the divine might of the Goddess of Moonlight, but also Her energy. Even a goddess’s fart would be potent, so to speak.

Under the crushing presence, the more the

Book of Greed

ate, the smaller the pressure on Wayne. He had successfully sneaked under the goddess’s dress and latched onto her leg, becoming one of Hers.

The Moonlight stock skyrocketed, overtaking Darkness.

Dorrin stared at the abomination before her in shock. Her first thought was to wonder what exactly had tainted Kristen—no, her first thought was to wonder what exactly Wayne was. He appeared to be a corrupted mage.

That answered her question about the source of his strange power. He had to have luckily caught a glimpse of the Gate of Truth, which corrupted his thoughts and body. Somehow, he regained his sanity. Everything made sense now.

“What an ugly form. You’re lucky to have recovered your sanity. You should’ve been sent to the Great Prison of the Forgotten, but you know too much...”

Dorrin nocked an arrow, guiding moonlight down from above. A silver pillar of light slammed into the ground, forcing the space to make way for its immeasurable divine might. While shimmering with blinding light, it fell upon Wayne.

The moment the light hit, he stilled.

The

Book of Greed

belched with satisfaction.

Already done? Can’t you eat more slowly?

He chided the book for its bad table manners, but the book disagreed. Blame Dorrin for serving so little food. After finishing everything, it was time to flip the table.

Boom!

The ground collapsed, and Dorrin lost sight of the abomination. Surprised, she quickly conjured her vitality barrier to shield herself.

With divine art protecting her, she would effectively be fighting under the goddess’s watchful eye. She didn’t believe that the abomination would be able to harm her, but the tentacles were so repulsive that she wouldn’t want to come in contact with even one of them.

Splat!

When Wayne appeared in her view, his white body was plastered against her—against her vitality barrier. Dorrin blanched. Facing the large chest eye from such a short distance disturbed her thoughts, and the low murmurs in her ears made her head ring.

It was noisy, but not enough to make her lose her composure. She should’ve been able to reject its advance with her vitality barrier. However, the most terrifying part was that the abomination managed to bypass the goddess’s pressure; more accurately, the goddess hadn’t stopped the abomination from attacking her.

The divine might that should have covered the entire area was gone.

“Kekeke—”

Hearing the eerie, terrifying laughter, she raised her bow and made a shot. The arrow of cold light pierced through white flesh, flying far into the starry sky.

She hit her target but did no damage. Moonlight’s precise strike never came for the abomination, proving again that the goddess was turning a blind eye.

“How?”

Dorrin lost her calm and her ability to think normally. As a Gold-rank mage, she still had many cards to play, but Moonlight’s heartless abandonment terrified her, preventing her from reacting properly.

Faith made one strong, but it could also make them crumble instantly.

Dorrin’s precarious vitality barrier crumbled in her panic. The white foamy flesh closed in on her, and the tentacles curled around her to suspend her upside-down, revealing the curves under her long robe.

One tentacle wrapped around her neck and bit into the fair skin. The murmurs in her ears overlapped as she looked toward the faint projection of her goddess with dim eyes.

The goddess remained unmoving as a tentacle monster grappled her disciple. What a terrible scene to witness.

“Goddess, why did you give up on me?”

Dorrin broke down. She looked up at the sky blankly, as if she had forgotten the situation she was in.

“Isn’t it simple? Your goddess didn’t give up on you.

You

betrayed Her. The moment you attempted to kill the High Reverend, your faith is no longer steadfast!”

One tentacle hovered in front of Dorrin. The tip morphed into a mouth and a tongue to manipulate her thoughts, striking where she was most tender while her faith wavered.

Dorrin struggled to deny it. Her purpose wasn’t to murder the High Reverend, and the High Reverend wasn’t indispensable to the Church of Moonlight anyway. Everything she did, she did it for the future of the church.

A living high reverend couldn’t change anything. Only a dead one could be a martyr!

She had bled for the church. She wanted to explain everything to the goddess in person.

𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚

“Stop struggling. Why would the goddess bother with you? Open your eyes and see the truth for yourself. You’re a traitor, and I’m the judgment the goddess brought down on you.”

The maw of the tentacle closed before it suddenly dove into Dorrin’s mouth. White tissue leaked out of her nose, ears, and eyes.

She struggled but failed to bite down on the tentacle. A dignified voice scattered the whispers in her head and boomed, “Blasphemer, under the goddess’s grace, you’re given one last chance. What is the ritual and the reincarnation, and where is Kristen?”

“Above Legendary... demigod...”

“The child has divine blood...”

Dorrin had already lost herself, her thoughts corrupted and her body unable to maintain her elven traits. As she lost control over her mana, the divine art deactivated. The goddess’s projection faded away, leaving only the soft, ordinary moonlight behind.

After disintegrating Dorrin’s thoughts, Wayne dove into her body for answers. Half a minute later, the writhing white flesh reemerged from her body and reassembled into Wayne. With a wave, he sent his tentacle to retrieve his pants. The Gold-ranked mage was too powerful for him to beat without undressing.

Behind him, Dorrin lay prone on the ground with tears and snot running down her face. Her limbs spasmed irregularly, and her widened eyes wouldn’t close. Her dim gaze signified the collapse of her thoughts. Looking more closely, one could see that her physical being had been corrupted. Her long hair had turned into white tentacles clumped up in strands, squirming with a mind of their own.

“You may have adopted the children for nefarious reasons, but you have raised Kristen,” Wayne said calmly. “Judging by your actions alone, you have done her some good. I’ll spare you for her sake...”

“If you have any excuse or protest to make, let the High Reverend be the judge!”

He put on his pants and walked away without looking back.

“Obed, Vice Minister of Magic...”

“Divine blood...”

“Even I don’t have the heart to tease her, but you dared to make a move against her? Alright, I’ll make you bleed until your blood forms a river today!”

“Also...”

“The Thousand-Eyed Demon, you’re still alive!”