Chapter 178-The Manga Pariah's Guide to Self-Salvation

Wen Jian was at the altar on the east side. In thirty minutes, Percy would make contact with Wen Jian's people at the auditorium on the north side. Ye Zheng decided to go to the auditorium to check the situation first.

The inheritance ceremony required the use of Blood of the God. She had long speculated that Percy was a life born from the Blood of the God of Hope. Wen Jian deliberately luring Percy to the Pope's Palace must be related to the inheritance of [Mother of All Things].

Ye Zheng glanced at Percy, who was walking further away, and turned to go downstairs.

This building was used to meet guests. Those waiting for the announcement of the new Pope candidate included archbishops of the Sei Curia, as well as relatives of the Royal Family. Even Bai Muqing's family had sent people to wait. They were all enjoying fine wine and food in the room, chatting while waiting.

Knights and guards stood guard at the door of the room and outside the main gate downstairs. In the huge public space, only attendants occasionally passed by carrying drinks.

Therefore, when Ye Zheng saw a man wearing a tuxedo and a top hat walking up towards her, her footsteps going downstairs stopped.

She held the handrail on one side of the stairs, her fingers gently rubbing the patterns on it. She looked down at the man who was lifting his foot to walk up the stairs and asked softly, "This gentleman, are you also a guest today?"

The man in the tuxedo looked up, took off his hat and bowed in greeting, replying with a smile:

"Answering Your Highness the Saintess, I am not a guest. I am a performer for the guests—a Magician."

As the man spoke, he put his top hat back on. The shadow of the brim covered his eyes, leaving only his pale lips visible.

Ye Zheng laughed. "The Pope really knows how to treat guests, arranging even a performance."

She walked down the stairs step by step until she was one step away from the man. She looked down at him and said, "Unfortunately, I have important matters and no time to appreciate your performance."

"That's not necessarily true. My performance time is always short, but enough to leave the audience with—Ah!"

Ye Zheng kicked the man away expressionlessly. The man screamed as he rolled down the stairs. She walked down the stairs, turned her head to glance at the man lying motionless on the ground, and walked indifferently towards the main gate.

But in the next instant, the man wearing the top hat suddenly flashed in front of her. There was not a trace of raggedness, and his bright red mouth hooked into a smile.

Ye Zheng was forced to stop. looking sideways again, the "man" lying on the ground was clearly a wooden puppet dressed in clothes.

"Are you satisfied with my magic performance?"

"Your Highness the Saintess is actually more impressive than me. Do those commoners who support you know that you are such a violent person?"

The man claiming to be the Magician shrugged, teasing with ease.

Ye Zheng didn't answer his question. She stared at his reddened lips with interest and said, "Your magic performance is considered sincere. Not only can you change into a wooden puppet, but you also remembered to touch up your makeup. Your current lip color looks very nice."

What lipstick? The man wiped his lips with his hand and found bloodstains on the back of his hand. His composed demeanor instantly stiffened.

When he fell down the stairs just now, he had actually accidentally bitten his lip.

The man looked up abruptly and crashed into Ye Zheng's deep eyes. She pushed him away, her tone carrying a faint mockery. "I have seen the famous [Magician]. There is no need to watch it a second time."

There were quite a few ability users in the empire who walked in the gray areas. Their abilities were not used to protect the country and the people, but to serve the selfish desires of the rich. The [Magician] had some fame among these bounty hunters. It was rumored that he came and went without a trace, always able to solve any trouble for his employer silently, with abilities that were weird and unpredictable.

But Ye Zheng had already tested out this person's ability with just one kick. The element of bluffing was far greater than his actual level. He wanted to create a sense of mysterious and unpredictable oppression, yet he couldn't even control his own reaction when falling down the stairs.

Clearly, he could have used the wooden puppet to take the damage for himself, but his reaction was so slow that he probably remembered it only after rolling twice on the stairs.

The man's face was stiff, his eyes solemn under the brim of his hat. He understood that he had already fallen into a disadvantage in front of Ye Zheng. He liked to create psychological suppression on his opponents. As long as the other party panicked, his magic had countless possibilities to break through the opponent's flaws.

Damn it, he had clearly been paying attention to the other party's energy fluctuations. Who would have thought that this Saintess would be so rude as to kick directly? It caught him off guard.

"Wait!"

He tried to call out to the leaving Ye Zheng. Through the window, he discovered that guards outside had noticed the commotion inside and were about to come in to check.

He had prepared several wonderful magic tricks for the widely admired Saintess, but Ye Zheng was about to walk out, and the people outside were about to come in. This situation no longer allowed him to continue engaging with Ye Zheng. The employer specifically said not to attract attention.

Seeing Ye Zheng's hand already on the gold-plated door handle, the man reached out and grabbed the top hat on his head, gritting his teeth and shouting, "Wait, Saintess, the secret of the inheritance!"

"Do you want to know the secret of the inheritance!"

Halfway through the man's shout, Ye Zheng let go of the hand pulling the door and turned her head in surprise.

The moment Ye Zheng turned her head, the man pulled off his top hat and threw it at Ye Zheng. The black top hat instantly turned into several white pigeons, flying towards Ye Zheng!

Ye Zheng's pupils tightened. She immediately dodged, but she didn't notice a feather falling on her sleeve.

The white pigeons crashed into the main gate and turned into several white statues falling onto the ground, making several crisp sounds.

Ye Zheng stared at the small statues on the ground. They were white carrier pigeon statues, the symbol of the Colonna family.

In a flash, a string in Ye Zheng's mind tightened instantly. She understood what the other party wanted to do!

She looked up at the tuxedo man who revealed a relieved expression. The next moment, her figure vanished from the spot in the blink of an eye, like an evaporating water droplet, leaving only a floor of white statues.

"What happened? We heard something strange in here."

The main gate was suddenly pushed open. The statues on the ground were pushed behind the door by the two opening doors. The knights who entered didn't notice them, nor did they find any figures.

"...Strange." Why was no one here?

The knights walked into the hall and checked roughly, finding nothing unusual, except for a small wooden puppet and a feather inexplicably placed on the ground.

In a certain corner of the garden, the man in the tuxedo suddenly flashed into existence. He wiped the sweat from his forehead. Although he failed to cause harm to that Saintess as per the employer's request, he at least completed the most important task.

His [Magician] had a total of three magic tricks. First was transformation, such as turning a small wooden puppet into his appearance, or statues into living pigeons, lasting for fifteen seconds. Second was suggestion; any sentence could become inductive. Third was object transfer.

For example, at the moment of injury, swapping the positions of his main body and the small wooden puppet placed in the center of the hall. Or, for example, exchanging the positions of Ye Zheng and a feather he had prepared in another place.

That was a strange place, a place the employer meticulously prepared for that Saintess. If the employer didn't intend to move the ability, the Saintess might be lost inside for a lifetime.

The man wiped his face. When he saw the tall shrubbery maze not far away, his heart jumped abruptly.

He remembered that last look Ye Zheng gave him.

No panic, no hostility. Her eyes curved slightly, the light smile like ripples raised by a breeze skimming over a lake surface. There was only an understanding that showed no surprise, and a cunningness that made one flustered.

The man paced somewhat anxiously on the spot. Either her control over the human heart had become instinctual—remaining calm when crisis loomed, making the opponent panic instead—or she knew their trap in advance!

The tuxedo man thought for a moment. He decided to tell the employer about Ye Zheng's strangeness. Although his task was over, his order must be completed perfectly.

In the blink of an eye, he disappeared from the spot again.

Thick and magnificent colonnades surrounded the open-air tall altar in a circle. The pedestal of the altar was carved with reliefs of the God of Hope in various heroic postures: a holy posture of smiling and preaching, a thundering state of glaring at monsters, and a relief where two people were standing and talking in front of a weeping God of Hope.

"Your Holiness the Pope, is there anything else I... can do for you at the very end?"

The young man with red-brown long hair asked softly with some sadness.

A burst of heart-wrenching coughing echoed in the empty altar. The old man hunched his body. Only after the itch in his throat disappeared did he reply slowly.

"I can only accompany you to this day. After inheriting it, you must shoulder the responsibility of the Pope, eliminate heresy, and rebuild a holy and pure Hope Sei Curia..."

"Must [Mother of All Things] be inherited today? Without Ye Zheng's threat, you don't need to be so anxious."

Wen Jian pulled at the dry skin clinging tightly to his bones. A trace of mockery flashed across his face that looked like withered tree bark. If his lifespan didn't end today, he must... Wen Jian cleared his throat and comforted the young man.

"The world will be handed over to you young people sooner or later. I believe you will do better than me."

Gazing at the Pope's concerned and appreciative eyes, Riley felt a mix of sorrow and joy in his heart. He rejoiced that he could be valued openly by such a big shot, and sorrowed that he would leave him forever in a few hours.

He was the illegitimate son of the Colonna family. His mother was favored but timid and weak. Because she was afraid that Mrs. Colonna would target him for the sake of her two sons, she announced to the public that he was a girl. He was forced to live as a girl and hole up in a small villa with his mother.

His mother lost favor within a few years. Fortunately, because of his outstanding ability, he was noticed by his father.

If Mrs. Colonna's two sons were the light side of the Colonna family, inheriting the family glory in the most orthodox and open manner, then he was the dark side of the family, responsible for weaving the dirty spider webs hidden underground by the Colonna family.

But his destiny was reversed because of the appearance of Pope Wen Jian.

In another four hours, he would surpass his two high-and-mighty brothers and become the pinnacle of power in the Colonna family!

From then on, Riley, the daughter of the Colonna family who could not see the light, would marry far away to the remote Middle District and disappear completely. The empire's youngest Pope would rise in the Upper District!

Thinking of the future scene, Riley's hands trembled slightly. He replied to the Pope with a firm tone, "Rest assured, I will always remember your teachings."

Wen Jian nodded and asked again, "By the way, how is it going with the Saintess?"

Riley smiled confidently. "At this time point, she has already entered my domain under my arrangement."

"...Don't relax your vigilance. She is a cunning and vicious monster."

"Of course, I will pay attention. Currently, everything is within my plan," Riley replied.

Wen Jian suddenly turned his head, his gaze piercing through the column to the depths of the colonnade, his turbid eyeballs flashing with a shrewd light. "Oh, is that rat eavesdropping on our conversation also within your plan?"

Riley's expression changed. Following Wen Jian's direction, he saw a man raising his hands and walking out from behind the stone pillar.

"Mr. Employer, I just wanted to come and tell you that the Saintess has already taken the bait. I didn't mean to eavesdrop."

The man in the tuxedo made a respectful gesture and walked towards the two.

There was nothing to be guilty about. Actually, he didn't hear anything. What inheritance ceremony, Mother of All Things? He didn't know what these things were at all.

Moreover, the employer had explained that if there were accidents in the mission, he could come to the altar to find him.

Riley saw that it was the person he hired and immediately breathed a sigh of relief. Seeing his expression, the man also relaxed and greeted him with an enthusiastic smile.

However, in the blink of an eye, before the two could even realize what had happened, a sharp steel needle suddenly rose from the ground. The man in the tuxedo widened his terrified eyes. The steel needle had already pierced through his head, pinning him firmly to the spot.

Riley looked at this scene in disbelief. The man was skewered comically by the steel needle like a kebab, but he couldn't laugh.

He turned his head and watched the old man walk out from behind the altar, asking in a lost voice, "Why did you activate the trap? He was my man, we have cooperated more than once..."

"He knew about the inheritance ceremony and the Mother of All Things, Riley. You also know that the higher the position, the more ruthless one must be to sit securely."

"I'm very sorry, child. When he didn't choose to show himself immediately but eavesdropped on our conversation, he should have died."

The old man's tone carried a sigh of helplessness, but cold light flashed in his eyes.

No, the moment he asked Riley to tell that person—if Ye Zheng didn't take the bait, tell her you know the "inheritance ceremony"—from that moment on, this person was destined to die.

Disappointment flashed in Wen Jian's eyes. He thought this Riley would be ruthless enough. Now it seemed he was still too immature.

Forget it. His ability had potential, he was ambitious, had a powerful enough family behind him, and was easy to control and manipulate. These advantages were enough.

He narrowed his eyes to check the time. Ye Zheng had been trapped. Next, he just had to wait for someone to bring Percy over.

The key to the inheritance ceremony was Blood of the God. Blood of the God would guide [Mother of All Things] into the body of the next inheritor. But for some reason, Wen Jian felt that the [Mother of All Things] in his body was exceptionally restless and out of control. He had a premonition that even with the guidance of Blood of the God, [Mother of All Things] might not obediently enter Riley's body.

Wen Jian needed more "Blood of the God".

With the hidden danger of Ye Zheng solved, as long as Percy came, he could start the inheritance ceremony.

Percy patrolled a round with the guard squad. As soon as he checked the time, he immediately asked the captain for permission to leave the team. The captain pointed at him, a well-connected person who came and went as he pleased, and cursed grumpily for a while before letting him go.

Percy touched his nose and left awkwardly. He had just joined the Colonna family's guard squad according to the requirements of the letter. Although he didn't understand why it was the Colonna family—did their family have a cooperation with Pope Wen Jian?

He walked on the road to the north side auditorium, touching the white statue in his pocket. This was also specifically required to be carried in the letter.

The sunlight was transparent. He took out the white carrier pigeon statue and observed it under the light for a moment. There was nothing special about it. He didn't know the purpose of the other party asking to bring it, perhaps it was used to prove identity.

Wen Jian would send someone to meet him at the auditorium. Percy didn't know his purpose. From the moment he stepped into the Pope's Palace, alarm bells in his heart had been ringing constantly. He always felt that something bad was going to happen, but he had to go and clarify the other party's purpose.

Heavy thoughts lowered Percy's head. He walked with his head down for a good while, then took a deep breath to discard distracting thoughts. Looking up, the auditorium was already close at hand.

The auditorium was painted with red paint, not quite matching the holy style of the Pope's Palace. It looked more like a grand auditorium in the Lower District where free plays were occasionally shown, very popular.

Percy tightened his grip on the white statue in his hand and pushed open the red door.

He looked around. In the empty auditorium stood a white figure, wearing the symbolic white robe of the Sei Curia, with their back to him so he couldn't see the face.

It should be the person sent by Wen Jian to meet him, Percy thought, and he quickened his pace.

"Hello, I am Per—"

"Percy?"

Not far away, the figure with their back to him turned around, revealing a gentle and concerned face.

She tucked her short fragmented hair behind her ear and chuckled in a low voice: "Faster than I expected."

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