Chapter 152: A Destined Encounter

Chapter 152: A Destined Encounter

The Loen military demigod with golden eyes nodded in agreement.

“That is indeed the case. It resembles the style of certain fellows from the Intis intelligence agencies.

“However, only a few seconds passed between him taking the soil and Tutanthis II’s mummy disappearing. He should not have had time to complete a ritual.”

The woman in the evening gown lowered her head and glanced at the thorn crown inserted into her neck. Her reaction was somewhat sluggish as she said, “Perhaps he—or they—had already completed the other steps of the ritual. The moment he Teleported back, he immediately threw that clump of soil into the altar and completed the final step.

“Of course, it may not necessarily have been a ritual. It could also have been a sealed artifact capable of achieving some effect through bodily fluids. There are far too many possibilities in this area.”

Although the main effects and negative effects of sealed artifacts generally followed the sequence traits of the twenty-two pathways, and researchers could barely make certain guesses, sealed artifacts were like people with different personalities. Depending on what they had merged with, the environment in which they formed, the aura of a possible higher-level being, or the curse of their original owner, they each possessed all kinds of strange and peculiar traits. Without actual testing, no one could anticipate and list them all in advance.

The golden-eyed demigod pulled out a chair, sat down, and said, “This direction is very difficult to investigate. We can temporarily set it aside. However, you missed another investigative angle just now.

“Do you still remember that tornado? It lifted Tutanthis II’s coffin, causing the ritual materials inside—his bodily fluids—to leak out, and making the mummy roll out, thereby obtaining the condition to turn into a living corpse. In short, it laid the foundation for the later developments. Therefore, we can completely confirm that this was done by that mysterious person or by his helper.”

The scattered look in the evening-gowned woman’s eyes faded slightly. She slowly removed the thorn crown and said, “You mean that the Church of Storms controls the high-Sequence formulas and most of the Beyonder characteristics of the Sailor pathway. Beyonders or mystical items outside of them capable of creating a tornado will not be many. We can pursue this line?”

The golden-eyed demigod nodded.

“And I remember that not long ago, a case occurred in the East Borough. Mr. X of the Aurora Order was killed directly inside the gathering he had convened. At the scene, Lightning Storm and Tornado were both used.

“This drew great attention from the Church of Storms, which has been searching for clues ever since.

“In the same district, two tornadoes not belonging to official organizations have appeared within a short period of time. That cannot be coincidence. I believe we can preliminarily confirm that there is an internal connection. The people who killed Mr. X and the people who stole the mummy are very likely the same group. We need to investigate jointly with the Church of Storms.”

The woman in the evening gown set down the thorn crown, thought for a moment, and said, “That is a very good direction.

“Also, from their purpose and motives, we can analyze some circumstances. Someone who simply wants the mummy as living corpse material would not take such an enormous risk to steal it. I suspect that, to that group, Tutanthis II’s mummy carries additional and important meaning.”

“A key to a ritual?” the golden-eyed demigod said after weighing his words. “Judging from the situation at the scene, the person holding the special item and attracting the mummy to chase her should have been a Wraith, or had a corresponding mystical item. Combining that with their purpose and motives, I have one guess…”

The woman in the evening gown’s heart stirred, and she blurted out, “The Temperance faction defectors within the…