Chapter 553: Someone Else’s New Story

Chapter 553: Someone Else’s New Story

After learning about her current situation, Liliya had already resigned herself to it. Since it was an established fact that couldn’t be changed, the best thing was to accept it properly. It wasn’t like she would lose a piece of flesh, and this dragon couldn’t make her grow an extra piece either.

Moreover, because of this matter, she had uncovered some truths. Liliya thought this resolution was pretty good. Being constantly gloomy wasn’t the answer; she needed to find some real enjoyment for herself. That was better than wearing a long face all the time. Instead of wallowing in self-pity, it was better to think of ways to gain something for herself: “What exactly are you, to be able to ignore the entanglements of the Threads of Fate…”

Any living being could not avoid the entanglement of the Threads of Fate, including beings like Witches. So, an exception like Zheng Yichen, who had none at all… her curiosity was about to explode. What was going on? No, no, how was this possible!!

“This? It’s a secret,” Zheng Yichen said with a laugh. Liliya glared at him. “Everything between us is a secret now, and you still choose to hide this from me!?”

“Well, this matter is too important, so I can’t just casually tell an outsider,” Zheng Yichen continued with a light smile. He gently tapped his finger, catching Liliya’s attention, and went on, “Later, find a chance to go to the Containment Zone. Dan Marina is looking for you.”

“What?” Liliya was stunned. Dan Marina was looking for her? She thought for a moment, somewhat conflicted, then nodded. “I understand. After the matters in this town are resolved, I’ll find a way to go.”

The trap was set by Dan Marina, even if it was through Zheng Yichen’s hands. Now she still wanted to find her. Liliya wasn’t opposed to this situation. Her condition was not good at all; otherwise, she wouldn’t have fought for this chance to come to the town to contact Zheng Yichen and try to find a way to solve her own problems.

But this guy turned out to be a huge letdown. He actually had no Threads of Fate entangling him. Such a stepping stone was meaningless to any Prophet. They couldn’t gain any advantage from Zheng Yichen, and the Contract was completely wasted.

If Zheng Yichen could ignore external forces, he could use his own characteristics to trick all Prophets, as long as all those Contracts included a confidentiality clause.

The matters in the town showed progress on the third day. After eliminating the irrelevant places, the remaining locations were what The Church was looking for. However, some accidents occurred during the search. Zheng Yichen had no time to pay attention to these accidents for now. He finally received Loris’s reply.

Although the content of the reply was simple, once he got it, the little unease in Zheng Yichen’s heart completely disappeared.

“Where are you?” Zheng Yichen asked Loris’s location through the Magic Weapon Summoning Book.

“On my way back… it might take a few days,” Loris replied. On one side of her face, there were faint black patterns. These patterns weren’t like tattoos; they seemed alive, constantly changing, trying to invade areas not covered by the black patterns. However, the ends where the black patterns were eroding were being dissolved by another dark red power. Where they met showed a withered color, making her appear as if she were being split apart.

Witches were not invincible… Derivative Witches couldn’t truly be easily and bloodily crushed. Otherwise, her actions wouldn’t have left desert remnants…

“Are you hurt?” Zheng Yichen asked.

“… Yes, it’s a minor thing. It’ll be fine after some time,” Loris replied. “It won’t take more than a week. Don’t worry, it’s nothing.”

“Then the communication won’t be cut off?”

“No, we can contact each other anytime.”

Zheng Yichen took out a Compass from his pocket. The power linked to the Threads of Fate on it had dissipated, meaning the last Derivative Witch wandering outside had been eliminated. Now, only the Soul Perception Derivative Witch being chased by The Church and the one with infinite revivals remained.

Oro looked at the timid little girl in front of him and rubbed his temples. Well, the Prophet’s Prophecy Art was quite reliable; they really successfully found the legacy of the Undying Witch. It was just that the timing was a bit late. This legacy had already been triggered by someone else… the person who triggered it was the little girl before him.

The girl named Nana from an ordinary family in the town. She had triggered the legacy of the Undying Witch completely unaware. By the time The Church’s people rushed over, it was too late. The Undying Witch’s legacy had completely merged with her.

Because the Undying Witch no longer existed, this wasn’t a soul-possession type legacy. Without the Undying Witch’s control, this legacy had changed its original nature, becoming a kind of ownerless opportunity. But even so, it was still the Undying Witch’s legacy, something related to a Witch. To put it simply, it was a kind of Forbidden Power.

Now this power had been obtained by this unaware little girl. This unawareness was the most terrifying. It might not show anything now, but that power would eventually subtly influence her. No matter how ordinary she was before, she would become extraordinary in the future… and might even bring harm!

Due to her physical condition, that power was still lying dormant. After all, her body was too weak; that power was not something she could bear. Dormancy didn’t mean sleep or being Sealed; it still worked, and then one day in the future, or stimulated by some sudden situation, it would suddenly erupt.

Even if it didn’t bring a disaster similar to a Witch Awakening, corresponding disasters would still occur. If the eruption wasn’t timely, she might very well have her will forcibly altered by the Undying Witch’s legacy power. Both her thoughts and personality would move closer to the Undying Witch, even becoming more extremely dangerous than the Undying Witch, as this was a phenomenon of forced distortion.

The little girl named Nana was also not a Witch.

As for removing this power? That was impossible. The Undying Witch’s legacy still mainly involved the Soul. A slight mistake and this child would die instantly, the kind that couldn’t even return to the River Styx. So since this was already an established fact, what The Church could do was prevent such a situation from happening, turning this little girl Nana’s current encounter into a real opportunity.

This wasn’t too difficult. After obtaining the Undying Witch’s legacy, as she became extraordinary, not only her physique but even her Talent would improve. Although it was related to a Witch, as long as the changes in her personality and consciousness could be suppressed, it would become something belonging to her.

The Church had ways to deal with such situations.

“I’ll go talk to her parents,” Oro said. Noticing Nana’s gaze was fixed in one direction, Oro looked over. It was a little boy he also remembered. The boy was hiding behind a corner, watching the situation here, his eyes frequently falling on the little girl.

Childhood sweethearts? That’s really a pity. You two should have had a good future.

No matter what, given the little girl’s current situation, she could not be left to wander outside freely. Even if The Church didn’t intervene, once some people learned of her condition, they would act, especially the Dark Church. They would definitely not miss this little girl. After they took her away, she would undoubtedly be trained by the Dark Church to become a kind of Dark Saintess. Unlike The Church’s Saintess, that kind of saintess was a pure combat tool…

So she must be taken away by The Church, whether for her own sake or to prevent the Dark Forces from gaining another powerful “tool” material.

…

“This child…” Old Rock looked at Rock’s gloomy face and shook his head helplessly. He glanced at the sky where the sun was gradually setting and sighed. After The Church’s people talked with Nana’s parents, her parents agreed almost without any further consideration!

This wasn’t selling their daughter; it was just that The Church’s weight was too heavy. Now The Church’s people actively said your daughter has remarkable Talent. If she stays, not only will this Talent be wasted, but she will also be targeted by some evil beings. Both you and your daughter will be in danger.

Now The Church wants to take your daughter to The Church for training. When she grows up in the future, she will return, of course, as a member of The Church.

There was nothing bad about this!! Nana’s parents even showed great support for this. What The Church’s people said almost explicitly stated that your daughter’s Talent is so good, she’s absolutely bound to become a powerful Professional!

Since they put it that way, how could they not support it? Even the little girl’s somewhat resistant behavior was suppressed. Her parents certainly knew the reason for her resistance, but compared to their child’s future, they didn’t pay attention to that resistance. Their daughter was destined to be extraordinary; why keep her here?

Besides, sending her away now didn’t mean they couldn’t meet again in the future.

Rock’s mother also looked at her son with concern. Regarding Nana’s matter, she was equally helpless and even a little envious… One could imagine what kind of good life Nana’s parents would lead when she returned to this town in the future. Even now, because of The Church’s actions, her parents were received by the town mayor and had moved away from here before nightfall.

They left very decisively, even abandoning everything in their original home. After all, nothing was valuable… it didn’t matter if they lost it.

“Forget about Nana. From now on, you two won’t be in the same world,” Rock’s mother said softly as she walked to his side. Rock remained silent, looking at his mother, his young face tense. He didn’t speak but lowered his head to look at the utterly ordinary Ring on his finger.

The Church’s people discovered Nana’s extraordinary “Talent” and took her away. After this separation, who knew how many years it would be before they could meet again? In The Church, she would undoubtedly meet more outstanding peers. Would she still remember him then?

Rock felt utterly discouraged at this moment. He clenched his teeth tightly. He… wasn’t ordinary either, right? No, it must be so!! He tightly gripped the hand wearing the Ring left by that mysterious Black-robed Man. Zheng Yichen’s words from back then had clearly become his last straw to cling to.

“No! I will be like her!!” Rock said through gritted teeth, clenching his fists tightly. When he first started school, he had an extra worry—the fear that he wouldn’t study well and would let down his family’s expectations. After all, his family sending him to school was already a “big gamble.” For the young Rock, this was a pressure.

“… We will support you,” Old Rock said after a moment of silence, coming to Rock’s side and placing a hand on his head. “After all, we have no ability ourselves. The only hope we can place is on you. Yes, this is the pressure left by your useless father…”

It was pressure, but also support and trust!

These weren’t words Old Rock could have said himself; they were what his father had said to him. Unfortunately, he couldn’t become what his father hoped for and instead followed the old path of his family’s poverty. Old Rock’s father had once suggested he go to school too, but back then he chickened out and didn’t agree.

Now the burden of changing the family’s circumstances had fallen onto his son. Old Rock didn’t take it for granted; he felt more ashamed!

After Nana was taken away and most of The Church members stationed here withdrew, this town called Jora Town returned to its original daily life. The difference was that there would be a small branch of The Church here. After all, Nana’s situation required a sufficiently stable maintenance point, not just for where she would live later, but also for the place where she used to live and where her parents were.

Having one more small branch didn’t affect The Church much. Instead, it could give some new members of The Church more experience. After all, not everyone in The Church was skilled in combat; some had management or other specialties. Not to mention, this town could be said to have a certain level of “legendary” status. A Derivative Witch related to the Undying Witch had appeared here, a special dragon active on the Continent had acted here, and an ordinary girl who triggered the Undying Witch’s legacy had appeared here.

In terms of backstory, Jora Town in this aspect already far surpassed most towns of the same scale.

On the journey taking Nana away, Oro’s new appointment order had already arrived. Oro, who had long been mentally prepared, slightly twitched his mouth. His life was carefree enough, but that didn’t mean he was carefree about this. He would rather, with ten times the efficiency or even ten times the effort, resolve in one day what would normally take ten days, and spend the remaining nine days happily relaxing. He didn’t want to get involved in events like this that clearly couldn’t be rushed and required a prolonged battle to resolve.

Also, the Prophet Liliya in the team joined Oro’s team heading to the Containment Zone. In Jora Town, Zheng Yichen was almost the last to leave. But since nothing was happening here anymore, whenever he left, The Church, besides monitoring his movements, had no extra reaction. After all, when they left, they had repeatedly confirmed that there were truly no additional legacies in the town.

“Heh… a resentful young boy and a reluctant young girl. Tsk tsk, the beginning of someone else’s new story…”