The Church of the Black Night

The protest at Crown Square ended in tragedy.

According to on-site investigations, fire and explosions erupted almost simultaneously from three different directions, though no actual burn marks were found. The incidents triggered massive panic, causing nearly ten thousand people to flee the square. This led to a large-scale stampede that left over a hundred dead and hundreds more injured. Bodies littered the city center, and the protest itself simply fizzled out.

The consequences were severe. Police from the Hall of Order arrived on the scene immediately, special forces from the four major churches took action, and various organizations, both public and covert, began to move quietly.

Hundreds of blue uniforms cordoned off the entire square. Every officer wore a grim expression, and the air was thick with the brewing storm. Anyone remaining in the square, whether merchant or passerby, injured or unscathed, dead or alive, was detained on the spot. The dead were taken to the Hall of the Departed, while the living were sent directly to the Hall of Order, where they would face lengthy interrogations, scrutiny, and a mountain of endless trouble.

However, this no longer concerned Lynch. The grim-faced police officers were currently forcing awkward smiles, led by a man in a black suit rumored to be the chief, who respectfully escorted him past the blockade and personally guarded him all the way to the Black Night Cathedral before departing in relief.

Of course, to be precise, they were escorting the elderly man he had encountered. Lynch was merely an 'accompanying person'.

The old man had lied; he was not actually a bishop of the Church of the Black Night.

He was the head of the Rhine diocese of the Church of the Black Night, Archbishop Trinlais.

He had been blocked by the protest while traveling from home to the cathedral and, having met Lynch who was also headed to the Church of the Black Night, had brought him along.

A scepter, bearing a black that shimmered with iridescent colors—this was the emblem of the Goddess of the Black Night, hanging high above the entrance to the cathedral.

This was the sacred Black Night Cathedral.

The black dome was dotted with tiny golden points, symbolizing the boundless night sky.

Beneath the dome, a statue of the deity held the scepter high, overlooking all living things. Its face was blurred, signifying that mortals could never truly grasp the meaning of a god.

Knowing Lynch was not a believer of the Black Night, Trinlais did not take him to meet the goddess, instead leading him straight into a guest room to read the letter of introduction Lynch handed over.

The old man had already changed into a black cassock, fastened with a ribbon adorned with five gold stars. From an ordinary, relaxed old man, he had instantly transformed into a dignified elder radiating religious aura.

Lynch looked at him with curiosity. After all, he had never imagined that in this extraordinary world, a high-ranking official managing a diocese would be an ordinary person.

Not only did the voice in his head confirm it, but Trinlais himself had verified it: he was just an ordinary old man who knew only a few insignificant physical techniques.

"There is nothing to be surprised about, child. Many churches have bishops like me. What the church values is a pious heart toward the goddess and who can best serve the goddess and the church. Combat is merely one way of serving. Just like the events outside, the subsequent direct handling is naturally the responsibility of the Nightwalker Agency, but how it is handled depends on one's pious heart toward the goddess."

No, I think it depends on experience and political maneuvering, not piety at all.

However, what he said did make sense. Those who hold military power are not necessarily at the top of the hierarchy; it all depends on how they balance each other.

Therefore, Lynch nodded and said gratefully, "I am fortunate to have been with you. Otherwise, I expect I would have been entangled by those police for days, unable to do anything."

"Heh, the Lord watches over every child with a kind heart." The old man looked up from the letter of introduction and gave a playful wink. "Especially a child who secretly shielded others from the surrounding crowd along the way—they are even more worthy of the Lord's favor. Besides, this child also helped me recover a strange mystery relic."

"That mystery relic... what exactly happened in the square? Such a large event erupted so suddenly."

"I do not know yet, but the impact will certainly be severe. It is likely related to the protest and the Bester Tunnel incident. The tunnel affair involves the power struggles of many factions. Child, do not ask further. As a living being about to step into the mysterious world, curiosity is your greatest enemy. Remember this: curiosity is the highway to the underworld, and it never has traffic jams. As for the interrogation, rest assured, yours has ended along with mine; it will not affect your business."

Trinlais explained while closing the letter of introduction and returning it to Lynch. In truth, this item was not meant for him—he was several levels above—but he was willing to read it, which was even better.

"Praise the Silent Night. I am aware of your situation. As fellow guardians of regional stability, under the guidance of the goddess, we are willing to walk side by side with the Watchers. I believe all churches that serve the gods should share this attitude."

That meant he had agreed, right? Lynch breathed a sigh of relief.

After obtaining the letter of introduction, he had been constantly anxious, though he disliked showing it. In films and literature, churches were always depicted as groups of rigid, stubborn fools, and Lynch had feared they would not recognize the letter.

Only now did the stone in his heart finally settle.

"Child, do not imagine us to be overly pedantic. This is the era of steam and technology. Even the most conservative churches have many secular people like me."

Indeed, Lynch felt that aside from occasionally being indirect in his speech, the old man was no different from any other worldly elder.

"The times have changed. To maintain regional stability and the firmness of popular faith, we do strictly guard forbidden knowledge and the secrets of the gods. We will not be like those irresponsible secret societies that leak forbidden knowledge and mysterious power just to recruit members. But after all, we do not live in a world of gods; we are mortals of the present world and must know how to be flexible, unlike the rigid dogmas you imagine."

Lynch smiled awkwardly and nodded. "Then, thank you very much."

"You are welcome. In fact, we are very happy to have young people like you who are both talented and moral join the ranks against the mysterious. People always hold great fear toward the world of the Soul Severers, and even those with talent often choose to stay away. It is not easy to replenish high-quality fresh blood, and there are not many warriors left who are willing to spend their whole lives following the guidance of the gods to fight against the mysterious."

"Because of the threat of madness and loss of control?" Lynch recalled Natalie's previous words.

"Yes, that is the primary reason. The dual abnormality of spirit and body is what people fear most. Their concerns are actually quite reasonable; after all, this is a one-way ticket. Once you begin, you can never stop."

"Hm? Why?"

"Because soul alienation is a very special technique. We currently use it to fight the mysteries of the Dreamlands and the evil gods, but in the beginning, this technique did not exist."

The old man checked the time on the mantel clock and explained slowly,

"At the end of the First Era, the Mythological Age, the gods fell. Living beings lost the protection of the gods and had no ability to resist the evil gods and mysteries of the Dreamlands."

"Apologies for interrupting, but what exactly are evil gods? I only know there are cultists who worship them." Lynch could not help but ask the question that had been weighing on his mind most.

The old man's expression turned ugly; he clearly did not like this topic, but he explained nonetheless: "Just like the gods of the present world, evil gods are high-level existences from the Dreamlands. It is just that they do not possess perfect godhood or complete authority like the true gods, so their power is far inferior to that of the true gods. However, after the fall of the gods, they took advantage of the emptiness of the mortal world to steal a small portion of the divine authority, posing a huge threat to the present world."

"Are they dangerous?"

"Extremely dangerous, of course. Even if they are merely 'weak' evil gods, they are still high-level existences and are themselves the embodiment of the mysterious. By their true names and images alone, they can cause one to fall into eternal madness. Their existence is simply something the fragile present world cannot withstand. Once their true form is guided into the present world, it causes immense destruction. In more serious cases, it causes large areas to fall into distortion, leading to the extinction of all life, and in even worse cases... heh, in any case, they are extremely dangerous. That is why the cultists who serve them are among our greatest enemies."

"In the Second and Third Eras, when the gods had fallen, living beings were unable to resist for tens of thousands of years. It was not until the Fourth Era, the Age of Dawn, that the twelve true gods returned from their slumber one after another. They guided humanity onto the path of the Soul Severers, and only then did humanity have the ability to fight against the mysterious. Although we still lose more often than we win, at least there is hope."

"Returned one after another?" Lynch felt a stir in his heart, seemingly realizing something. "Only these twelve gods have returned? What about the other gods? Will they return one after another as well?"

"The other gods are all fallen gods, still slumbering in the Dreamlands. At least for now, they have not returned. As for the future..." The old man looked at Lynch and said sternly, "Child, do not attempt to understand the will and state of gods. It is not terrifying to fail to understand; what is terrifying is truly understanding. Gods are higher-level existences. The moment you have the thought of 'attempting to understand,' you are only one step away from madness and loss of control. Once you unfortunately succeed in understanding, the forbidden knowledge can instantly and completely destroy your sanity, whether you are a Soul Severer or not."

Lynch's mouth twitched. Thinking of the feeling he had when he first heard the voice in his head and tried to understand the way the 'voice' existed, his suspicion about his Travel Companion's identity became more certain.

However, he could not reveal these thoughts to the old man. Lynch asked impassively, "Very well, I roughly understand what evil gods are, but what do you mean by the alienation not being able to stop..."

"According to the theory of evolution proposed by a lay scholar some years ago, after tens of thousands of years of fighting the mysterious, the souls of ordinary people have developed a faint resistance. That is why most ordinary people are now unaffected by the mysterious; they may go their whole lives without ever encountering it, unless an accident occurs that breaks this resistance. But Soul Severers have alienated their own souls, and that resistance has automatically vanished. From then on, they are in deep contact with the mysterious at every moment. The erosion of the mysterious is resisted entirely by the strength of the soul. The longer the time, the easier it is for the soul to be twisted and assimilated by the mysterious. Therefore, to ensure safety, a Soul Severer must move forward as quickly as possible, undergoing the next alienation to make the soul stronger, but this leads to a major problem."

The old man drew several concentric circles on the coffee table:

"Every alienation makes the entanglement between the soul and the mysterious deeper, and the erosion suffered more severe. One can only continue to rush toward the next alienation, forming a very dangerous cycle—a cycle that cannot be stopped."

In Lynch's mind, the phrase 'drinking poison to quench thirst' immediately surfaced.

"So, you should know about the crisis and the responsibility now, child." The old man finally smiled. "Even so, do you still wish to become a Soul Severer?"

"If I may ask, sir, why are you still an ordinary person?"

"Not everyone has the talent to alienate their soul. I am destined to be an ordinary person for this life, but it is said that you possess this talent."

"Yes, I do, and I have no other choice."

Lynch closed his eyes and pondered for a moment, then nodded with a serious expression: "Then what should I do?"

"First, you need to identify the god that resonates with your inner self. Because it is your own soul that is being alienated, if the soul and your inner self do not resonate after the alienation, there is no need for the mysterious to even erode you; you will have a mental breakdown in a few days. You can understand that logic, right?"

Lynch nodded. Like an immune rejection, transmigrators understood this well.

"The method of confirmation is very simple. Which true god do you worship?"

"Huh?" Lynch was stunned. "Must I have a faith?"

The old man was also taken aback: "You intend to follow the footsteps of the gods and imitate the authority of the gods; naturally, you must have the approval of the gods. This is not even a condition—it is merely the basic requirement for a true god's Soul Severer to alienate their soul."

"But I have no faith." The vein on Lynch's forehead throbbed. He said hoarsely, "I have never worshipped any god."

"Then that is troublesome." For a moment, the two stared at each other. The old man said in distress, "How could there still be someone in this world with absolutely no faith?"

But I am a soul not of this world.

Lynch knew he had encountered the most unsolvable crisis since his transmigration.