Edrick had never seen such a terrifying sight.
A fifty-foot-high dome hung upside down and was adorned with stalactites covered in flesh-like mucus. Droplets of liquid dripped from the stalactites' tips, forming dark red channels on the ground that wound along stone bricks engraved with inverted triangles.
Twelve petrified statues with gouged-out hearts were embedded in the cave walls, and flickering ghostly flames resembling the eyes of a demon god were embedded in the hollows.
The floor was adorned with twelve radiating patterns made from plaster mixed with holy bone ash. At the center of each pattern was a shattered fragment of a sacred statue with rusted iron chains winding around its edges. The chain ends were deeply embedded in the cracks of the dome, forming inverted cages covered in mystical runic seals.
Beneath the dome, dozens of human bones were scattered everywhere. Some had completely decomposed, while others still clung to flesh.
Torn clothing and hair lay around the bones. Edrick recognized them as women's garments. They seemed to be all unfortunate sacrifices.
What pained Edrick the most was how small these skeletons were. They couldn't have been older than Miryam.
Looking at the skeletons, Edrick thought of the recently active human trafficking group, Broken Barrel, and the Fogport Ravens. He wondered why Scamps was trying to frame the Croft family. Perhaps their target wasn't Hannah, but Miryam.
Edrick had no time to dwell on such thoughts. His attention was drawn back to his surroundings. While the bones were unsettling, he had seen similar remains at the San Bernardino Bone Church on Earth. What truly filled him with dread were the two figures at the center of the scene.
A half-charred arm extended from the center of the sealed array. Its skin peeled like parchment, revealing intertwined tendons and phosphorescent finger bones. The wrist was bound by three bronze chains engraved with biblical proverbs, and the fingertips dripped black, viscous fluid that ignited upon contact with the ground. The fluid burned into charred inverted triangles on the plaster insignia.
The moment he saw the charred arm, Edrick felt a familiar, repulsive aura—the same one he had felt in the textile factory, only more intense. "It's a wraith. It seems that the Divine Authority of the Master of Murmurs manifests itself in this world in the form of wraiths."
Bishop Lacus knelt in front of the altar. Edrick had seen her before when he attended church. She was the highest authority in the Stellaxis parish, so high that even the king had to show her respect. Why would such an important person be fighting on the front lines?
The gold thread on her cloak, embroidered with the complete chapters of the Luminous Canon, was stained with blood and phosphorus powder. Yet, the golden weave remained as bright as the stars.
Three deep gashes exposing bone were torn across her left chest, bleeding profusely. Beneath her shattered holy robe, the contours of her breasts were faintly visible.
Edrick wiped his eyes and looked more closely at Bishop Lacus's half-exposed chest. Memories of this bishop began to surface. In this world, where supernatural powers exist, physical strength does not give men an overwhelming advantage over women. Therefore, women hold a higher status than they do on Earth. The title "Bishop" was not exclusive to men.
It seemed that the wraith had realized for the first time that this bishop, who was always wrapped in thick priestly vestments, was a woman. It let out a shrill sound like a rusty millstone being turned by force. "I didn't expect the noble Bishop Lacus to be a woman."
Bishop Lacus held the broken crozier in her hand. The holy crystal embedded in the crozier's tip had split into three pieces, yet she still struggled to hold up the hemispherical light shield. After briefly tending to her wounds with her free hand, she tore off the golden mask covering her face. A pale yet delicate visage was revealed. Sweat and blood mingled on her high, straight nose and elegant cheekbones. Her blue-gray eyes burned with an unyielding light.
Golden curls clung to her temples, and a few strands of damp hair were dusty. Her lips were slightly pale from blood loss, yet her resolve and beauty shone through. A fresh bloodstain marked her forehead, and her face bore signs of both exhaustion and strength.
Edric watched the scene before him, his emotions gradually calming. It was the first time he had witnessed such a breathtaking sight, leaving him momentarily speechless. Now, he began to analyze the situation and speculate about the identities and motives of the opposing parties because this would determine his course of action moving forward.
The three chains on the wraith's charred wrists tightened simultaneously, and the sacred runes engraved on the chains flickered in the black mist. The bishop took the opportunity to slam his crozier into the ground. Seven beams of holy light burst forth from the gaps between the broken runes and pinned the wraith's arms to the center of the sealing array like giant nails.
Suddenly, however, a roaring sound of gears turning erupted from under the rotten flesh, and the three finger bones snapped, revealing a mechanical shaft core flashing with a blue light. The shaft core's surface was engraved with inverted triangular patterns that formed a stark contrast with the holy emblem at the bottom of the bishop's crozier.
Seeing this, Edrick concluded, "This guy must be up to something sinister."
The Wealth-Scattering Lad was stunned. "How do you know?"
Edrick and the Flower Maiden looked at the Wealth-Scattering Lad with pity, deeply regretting his lack of intelligence. Finally, Edrick kindly explained, "The largest church in the city of Stellaxis, the Cathedral of Luminous Pragis, has such a thing locked up underground. That in itself is very sinister."
The Wealth-Scattering Lad was naive. "Couldn't the bishop be kindhearted and using the church to suppress evil spirits?"
The Flower Maiden slapped the Wealth-Scattering Lad on the forehead. "Who's sick in the head? Use your own home to suppress evil spirits? Something so dangerous should be thrown as far away as possible!"
Seeing that the Wealth-Scattering Lad still didn't understand, Edrick added, "If the church really sealed this wraith to eradicate evil, then Bishop Lacus shouldn't be fighting alone. If he's really that righteous, with just one order, plenty of people in the diocese would help him fight. Not to mention, the fighting power of those heroes cannot be underestimated."
The Wealth-Scattering Lad nodded thoughtfully. Edrick looked at the man and the wraith fighting fiercely in the distance and suddenly had a question. "Right. When I read novels, there are always scenes where some peerless demon is sealed away. I don't quite understand that. Isn't it better to just kill it? Why seal it away? No matter how you look at it, locking it up is more difficult than killing it."
The Wealth-Scattering Lad was excited to hear this question. "I know the answer to that question! Generally speaking, there are only three situations in which someone would choose to seal it away.
The first is the easiest to understand. The target has an immortal characteristic that can't be eliminated from the real world, so it can only be temporarily sealed to wear down its power.
The second situation is when the target's crime is not punishable by death, so they are sealed for a few hundred years as punishment. For example, a monkey was sealed for 500 years. The third situation is the most common..."
The Wealth-Scattering Lad hadn't finished typing when a new development occurred in the battle between the two sides.
Bishop Lacus made a hand gesture that Edrick had never seen before. Suddenly, a force mobilized by the bishop began squeezing the wraith's arm, which was fixed by the holy light prisms. Clumps of ghostly flames of various colors were sucked out of the arm and continuously gathered in the bishop's hand before disappearing.
She was absorbing the power of the wraiths!
"I guess this must be the third situation..." Edrick felt that this was nothing like the first two situations. "There is some kind of value that can be extracted over time from the sealed object."
"Each ball of ghost fire is worth hundreds of Faith Essence Points!" the Wealth-Scattering Lad said in pain. "It would be so much better if we could use them to open blind boxes. It's such a waste to let that old thing absorb them."
Edrick thought more deeply. He realized that today's infiltration had many flaws, yet the night patrol monks showed no signs of alertness. "No wonder the church's night patrol monks ignore all sounds. They've grown accustomed to it."
The bishop was obtaining power that didn't belong to her. Even without knowledge of the occult, Edrick knew this violated church regulations.
The wraith arm did not sit idly by. Suddenly, the black mist surged and turned crimson. The remaining knuckles of the wraith arm curled into claws and tore violently at the holy light prism.
The bishop's temples throbbed, and blood dripped from his nose onto the holy emblem. The gilding on the holy emblem's surface peeled off at a visible speed. "You!
How dare you use the power of the Crimson Tide! You will die too!"
"Bastard! Let's see who dies first!" The wraith roared, and the crimson mist surged like boiling steam, crashing into the holy light prisms. Faced with such a reckless attack, the prisms collapsed one after another.
When the last prism collapsed, the bishop used his last ounce of strength to stab his crozier into the ground. The holy crystal emitted a dying shriek and unfolded a translucent holy shield above the sealing array.
Both sides panted in the cave. The bishop's crozier clanged to the ground, and the holy crystal shattered completely, leaving only the holy emblem on the base glowing faintly.
The black mist of the wraiths condensed into a vague human shape, and the blue light at the mechanical axis dimmed. Its arms hung limply on the cracked runes, and the rose window glass on its fingertips shattered into dust.
Spiderweb-like cracks covered the lapis lazuli tiles on the ground, and black mist continued to seep out of the crack in the center of the sealing array. However, it no longer had the power to break through the fragments of the holy shield.
The bishop collapsed beside the remains of the holy image. Through his blurred vision, he saw the wraith's outline gradually dissipate, leaving only the mechanical axle, which trembled slightly.
He knew this battle had exhausted both sides' last ounce of strength. Although the sealing array had not completely collapsed, it was teetering on the verge of collapse.
Edric hid behind the bronze gate and stole a glance at the badly injured wraith and bishop. He quickly considered whether to jump out and take advantage of the situation now or wait and see.
"That wraith is the embodiment of the Divine Authority of the Master of Murmurs. Hurry up and get closer so you can absorb it!" Flower Maiden urged. "We're rich! This Divine Authority is worth at least 100,000 Faith Essence Points!"
Edrick's heart raced, but he didn't lose his composure. He had estimated its value at two or three thousand before entering, but now it had jumped to ten thousand, meaning the danger had increased exponentially.
He smeared the filth from the ground over his face. In this dark underground, others wouldn't be able to see his features clearly. "Do you think they've already noticed me?"
"Don't worry. This Mama has used the divine authority of the Sanctum of the Village Deity to shield you from detection. Unless they find you through physical means, such as sight or sound, you'll be fine." The Flower Maiden boasted about the Sanctum's power, looking pleased.
With everything ready, Edrick gathered his courage and strode through the bronze door.
This time, he didn't hide his footsteps, and the wraiths and the bishop, who had already quieted down, immediately noticed the uninvited guest.
"Lost lamb, it's so good that you've come! Quick, help me completely seal this evil wraith!"
"Help me! I've been imprisoned by this hypocrite! I may be a wraith, but I've never hurt an innocent person!"
Bishop Lacus and the wraith cried out to Edrick at the same time.