Offspring

A smile spread across Valentine's fearsome face as he turned and charged forward.

With Valentine and the men he brought, the team's advancement speed increased significantly.

The second team captain was practically a meat grinder in his berserk state; any mutated creature that stood in his way was torn to shreds.

Lu Yuan followed in the middle of the group, silently marveling as he watched Valentine's frenzied combat style.

Transcendents of the Eerie Pathway not only had fast recovery speeds, but they were also truly formidable against mutated creatures of the same level.

After crossing several streets, the Nightwatchers base finally appeared before them.

There were signs of battle around the perimeter, with several corpses of mutated creatures lying on the ground, but overall there seemed to be no major issues; it appeared the base had held.

Before the group could even get close, the base gates had already swung open.

Several Nightwatchers came out to meet them, as the scouts had clearly discovered their movements long ago.

"Captain Alice! You're back!"

"Marcus is heavily injured, the Arbiter is scrapped, take them in first!" Alice gave the order directly without any nonsense.

The Nightwatchers acted immediately, carrying the unconscious Marcus and the nearly falling-apart Arbiter into the base.

Valentine's body began to shrink, his keratin layer gradually receding. He took a black suit that had been prepared for him, straightened his sleeves, and returned to his elegant, noble appearance.

He pulled a handkerchief from his pocket, wiped the black blood from his hands, and wore his usual composed smile.

"Welcome home, everyone."

"Where is Old Morgan?" Alice wasn't in the mood for pleasantries and asked directly.

"In the command room."

Alice strode inside, with Lu Yuan and the others following closely behind.

Inside the command room, Old Morgan was standing in front of a map.

The black overcoat he wore was tattered, and there were several unhealed wounds on his face; he had clearly experienced a fierce battle not long ago as well.

Hearing the footsteps of the group, he turned his head.

The moment he saw Alice and the others, a flash of relief crossed his cloudy eyes.

"It's good that you've returned."

"Old Morgan." Alice stepped forward and gave a brief report of the events at sea.

After listening, Old Morgan nodded and began to explain the situation in Gelimu Port.

"The moment you left, the Deep Sea Church launched an attack."

He pointed to the markings on the map.

"The timing was too perfect. It's as if they knew our main force was away."

Alice's gaze turned gloomy. "It seems someone is tired of living."

"The range of the internal mole has been narrowed down, and I have people watching them," Old Morgan nodded. "But now is not the time for an investigation."

He pointed to several areas marked in red on the map.

"The Deep Sea Church is going all out this time. Attacking by sea and land simultaneously, and even releasing pollution sources on a large scale..."

Old Morgan's voice grew heavy.

"A lot of civilians have been contaminated. Some mutated on the spot, while others are still in the incubation period. I truly don't know where they got this kind of pollution; that is the real headache."

"Agglomerates have also emerged from the sewers. Fortunately, we did a sweep before, so the numbers aren't too high and we can temporarily keep them suppressed."

He sighed and continued.

"The Nightwatchers can currently only ensure the security around the base. The situation at the Holy Church and the Ascension Society is a bit better, but they are also stretched too thin."

"The Viscount has deployed the inner city garrison, but it's a drop in the bucket."

"What about the Holy Armored Army?" Lu Yuan suddenly spoke up. "Weren't they supposed to come?"

Old Morgan gave a bitter smile.

"They're still on the way. Moving imperial troops takes time, though I've urged them several times."

"However, according to the latest news, they should be arriving soon."

After listening, Alice said to Old Morgan, "I'll go arrange the follow-up; Gray and the others also need to rest."

Old Morgan nodded.

Alice turned to leave, and Gray and the others followed her out.

Only Old Morgan and Lu Yuan remained in the command room.

The moment the door closed, Lu Yuan hesitated slightly before taking out the holy water bottle from his coat and placing it on the table.

The bottle contained a deep red liquid that emitted an eerie glow under the dim light.

"This was taken from the heart," Lu Yuan explained.

Old Morgan's gaze fell upon the bottle.

His pupils suddenly constricted.

"Don't move."

Old Morgan's voice was very low as he reached out to tap a mechanism at the corner of the desk.

"Buzz—"

The entire room suddenly lit up.

The runes on the walls began to flow, and a layer of pale gold light surged from all directions, enveloping Lu Yuan.

That was the Nightwatchers' Purification Probe Array.

A device specifically used to detect pollution and mutation.

"Don't misunderstand." Old Morgan stared at the direction of the rune flow, his tone calm but serious. "This isn't something you should have been able to touch. I need to confirm your state."

Lu Yuan stood in place, letting the golden light sweep over his entire body.

He knew he was fine.

After a moment, the light of the runes gradually dimmed.

There was no alarm.

There was no abnormality.

Looking at the test results, Old Morgan's tensed shoulders relaxed slightly, but his brow furrowed even deeper.

"How is this possible..."

He walked up to Lu Yuan and looked him up and down several times, as if looking at something incredible.

"You're actually fine?"

Lu Yuan didn't explain, but only asked, "Old Morgan, do you know what was sealed on that island?"

Old Morgan was silent for a long time before slowly speaking.

"After you left, I requested files from headquarters to check the background of the Deep Sea Church."

He walked back to the table and picked up the glass bottle, his expression complex.

"This church has existed for a long time—exactly how long, no one knows. Furthermore, their movements are unpredictable, and there aren't many records of their evil deeds..."

"But one thing is very strange."

Old Morgan paused, his voice dropping a bit lower.

"Wherever they appear, ominous events eventually follow."

"Vanished towns, polluted sea regions... their shadow is behind all of it."

Lu Yuan's eyes narrowed slightly.

Old Morgan continued.

"As for that island... there are records in the archives. It is suspected that one of the offspring of some ancient existence of the deep sea is sealed there."

"Even if it is just an offspring, and even if it is sealed and in a deep sleep..."

"In theory, it is absolutely not something you and Marcus could have approached based solely on a burst of courage."

Old Morgan looked at the glass bottle in his hand, his brow locked in thought.

"So either... the thing recorded in the archives was never on that island in the first place."

"Or you were caught in some kind of illusion at the time and only thought you had taken the blood."

He paused and added.

"Of course, there is also the possibility that the thing intentionally let you take it."

After Old Morgan finished speaking, he fell silent.

Of the three possibilities, none were good news.

He stared at the deep red liquid slowly flowing inside the bottle, trying to discern something from it, but that eerie aura made it impossible for him to judge.

After a long while, Old Morgan sighed and placed the bottle back on the table.

"Forget it. If we can't figure it out, we won't think about it for now. Since we have it, we'll store it first."

He pulled a brass key from his waist and placed it before Lu Yuan.

"Go to the Deep Warehouse; the protection there is the strictest. This kind of thing will eventually corrode its way out if kept in a normal container."

"I will report this matter to the higher-ups, but the right to use it remains yours." Old Morgan looked at Lu Yuan. "This is merely a form of protection for you."