Chapter 1450: Chapter 153 Consciousness Restoration_5
When they arrived at the north gate of Tai Ang City, they were drawn by a large crowd of onlooking civilians. The civilians were gathered around the city wall near the gate, staring at something unknown.
Ah Dai exchanged a glance with Mie Feng and said, "Shall we go check it out? It might be related to the warehouse that I destroyed."
Mie Feng nodded, and the two squeezed their way into the crowd. Both of them had profound energy cultivation, and wherever they passed, ordinary civilians felt their bodies sway, involuntarily letting the pair through. They pushed their way to the center of the crowd and finally saw what had captured the people’s attention—a notice. Black text on white paper, emanating a stern and grave aura. The two focused on the words written on the paper, but it wasn’t about the destruction of the warehouse. Instead, it read, "Holy Church Decree: Due to the recent rampant activity of Dark Forces, His Holiness the Pope has decided to command all followers of the Sky God to search across the continent for traces of Dark Forces. Any discoveries must be immediately reported to the Church. Accurate information will be rewarded with the title of White Robe Priest and ten thousand diamond coins. The Dark Forces include the Winged Tribe, Dwarf Clan, Half-Beast Clan, and any other peculiar-looking races." After reading the content of the notice, Ah Dai and Mie Feng looked at each other in dismay. Ah Dai thought to himself, it seems the Church is serious this time.
The two emerged from the crowd, and Mie Feng asked, "What do you make of this notice? Why would the Church suddenly be searching for Dark Forces? Aren’t the Dwarf and Winged Tribes peaceful races?"
Ah Dai shook his head and replied, "It’s not as simple as you think. Doesn’t your Thieves Guild usually have reliable intel? Didn’t you know the Church was severely hit over half a year ago?"
Mie Feng was startled and said, "I’ve been with you this entire time for the past half-year. How would I know about that? What’s going on exactly?"
Ah Dai sighed and said, "Let’s walk and talk." With that, he took the lead and headed out of the city gate. Mie Feng hastily followed his footsteps. After leaving Tai Ang City, Ah Dai briefly recounted the incident where the Church was ambushed by numerous Dark alien races.
After hearing Ah Dai’s account, Mie Feng frowned and said, "If that’s the case, then the Church is in serious trouble! It’s already May 998 of the Sacred Calendar, less than two years away from the millennium. If there really is a millennial catastrophe, the Church will be in grave danger."
Ah Dai commented, "It’s strange. It’s been half a year, and the Church still isn’t pursuing those Dark Forces."
Mie Feng rolled her eyes at him and said, "Aside from your high cultivation, you’re so oblivious about everything else. The Church probably isn’t refraining from hunting them down—they likely haven’t been able to find any trace of the enemies at all. Otherwise, why would they issue a public notice, commanding all followers to search for the whereabouts of Dark alien races? Given the Church’s power, for them not to find any clue after six months, it seems these Dark alien races are truly skilled!"
Ah Dai frowned and said, "You sound almost like you’re taking pleasure in their misfortune. Don’t you understand the consequences if the Dark Forces come to dominate the continent?"
Mie Feng snorted disdainfully and said, "I’m a thief; my very existence is already categorized as part of the Dark Forces. How the Church fares doesn’t concern me. As for Dark Forces taking over the continent, I doubt it’ll pose any threat to us."
Ah Dai turned his head away. In his heart, he thought silently, it’s been half a year already, yet the Church has made no progress—could the Dark Forces really be so challenging to deal with? He shook his head forcefully, dismissing thoughts of helping the Church. He told himself repeatedly that exterminating the Assassin’s Guild was his top priority now. As for the Dark Forces, that was the Church’s responsibility. What Savior? What could one person like him possibly achieve? Ah—Prophet Pu Lin, he wondered how the Prophet was now—whether he had awoken from his coma. Prophet, I’m sorry. I may end up disappointing your expectations of me after all.
Three days later, Ah Dai and Mie Feng arrived at another stronghold of the Assassin’s Guild. Upon their arrival, they were shocked to find the place completely abandoned, devoid of people. A thick layer of dust blanketed all the furnishings, evidence that the stronghold had been deserted for a long time. This bizarre phenomenon left the two deeply perplexed. From previous experiences of hunting the Assassin’s Guild, Ah Dai knew that Mie Feng wouldn’t deceive him, yet the fact remained—there was no one here from the Assassin’s Guild. What was going on? He was unwilling to give up just yet. Under Mie Feng’s guidance, they spent half a month locating five consecutive strongholds of the Assassin’s Guild. But in each case, the result was the same. In these two weeks, they hadn’t even encountered a single assassin.
