abnabooks Chapter 133 The New Goal That Must Be Accomplished
Chapter 133 The New Goal That Must Be Accomplished
Chapter 134 The New Goal That Must Be Accomplished
The person who appeared at the center of the magic circle was not the superior she had expected who was in charge of receiving the items, but their organization's intelligence officer, the cold-blooded Vidis who always hid behind the scenes!
Vidis slowly stepped out of the magic circle's light. He wore a well-tailored dark wizard's robe, had a thin face, and sharp eyes like an eagle.
He glanced at Ralph's corpse on the ground, then at Lilith's pale face and Hughes's tense expression, a cold smile tugging at the corner of his lips. His voice, as always, was icy and hard: "Why can't it be me? Your mission is far from over. Without the latest instructions and 'tools' I brought, how will you find what the higher-ups truly want?"
"Vidis! What do you mean?!"
Lilith immediately exploded, her eyebrows furrowed and her voice rose.
"What do you mean the mission wasn't completed?! We found this using that broken compass you gave us, going through countless hardships, even—we almost didn't make it back! What? You want to deny it now?!"
After working myself to the bone and living in fear for half a year, I finally managed to complete this damn task, only to be dismissed with a casual "not done"?
Faced with Lilith's almost fiery questioning, Vidis simply waved his hand dismissively, his tone calm yet undeniably authoritative: "This is the latest assessment and directive from above; I'm merely relaying orders. This corpse is not the ultimate target."
"you--!"
Lilith was so angry that her entire mental energy field vibrated slightly, causing fallen leaves to move without wind.
"Alright, Lilith!"
Hughes quickly stepped forward, tugged at Lilith's arm to calm her down, then turned to Vidis, his expression grave, and asked, "Vidis, the compass was clearly pointing to this corpse before. Now that the target has changed, you need to give us a new direction, right? Without the compass's guidance, we're like blind men; how are we supposed to continue searching?"
Vidis didn't speak, but glanced at Hughes with his cold eyes, then slowly walked to Laf's body and squatted down.
He stretched out his right hand, fingers spread, and hovered it above the corpse, beginning to chant an extremely strange, tongue-twisting incantation that seemed to belong to no known language.
As the incantation was performed, a strange and indescribable energy fluctuation emanated from Vidis's hand, slowly enveloping Raf's corpse.
That energy was neither the power of death nor the energy of life; it was more like a peculiar rhythm—pure, used for tracking and sensing.
A moment later, Vidis suddenly opened his eyes, a knowing glint in them.
He quickly took out a strangely shaped, black metal vessel resembling a compass base from his pocket, then pointed his fingers like a knife and rapidly drew several runes in the air.
Guiding the barely perceptible, strange energy fluctuations extracted from the corpse, he suddenly injected them into the compass, a magical artifact in Hughes's hand that had already returned to calm!
Buzz!
The compass suddenly emitted a deep hum, and the entire compass vibrated violently. After the pointer on the surface spun wildly for a few rounds, it finally locked onto a completely new and different direction!
The pointer tip emitted a brighter and more stable glow than before, clearly infused with a brand-new tracking power!
Vidis withdrew his hand, not even glancing at Lilith, whose face was ashen and who was on the verge of exploding, or at Hughes, whose expression was extremely solemn. His tone was cold and condescending, carrying a businesslike quality: "Admit it? Lilith, when did you become so naive? When has the Sanctuary ever paid for the process? All we ever want is the result."
He pointed to Laf's completely worthless corpse on the ground, a cold, unfeeling smile curving his lips.
"This corpse? Hmph, at best it's just a landmark, a cheap container that has been used by the real target and is about to be discarded."
Its sole value lies in helping us further confirm the unique texture of that power, and—pointing us to the true direction for the next step.
His gaze fell on the compass in Hughes's hand, which had become active again and was pointing firmly into the unknown depths of the dense forest.
"Wherever the compass is pointing now, that's where your next mission objective will be. As for how to find it—"
Vidis chuckled, his mockery undisguised.
"That's your problem to solve. The church has invested valuable resources and authority, not to listen to your complaints and grievances."
"Vidis!"
Lilith could barely contain her boiling rage; the pink mental energy field around her began to fluctuate violently and erratically, and the surrounding air seemed to thicken.
"Do you know what we went through before? That one who wielded the fire of death—"
"I know."
Vidis interrupted her coldly, his eyes sharp as knives, as if they could pierce through one's heart.
"Because I know what you've been through, and I know of the existence of that local wizard who wields the foreign flame, that's why—I've given you a potentially feasible shortcut."
He paused deliberately, his cold gaze sweeping over their faces, which instantly turned to surprise and uncertainty, as if he were enjoying their caught-off-hand expressions.
"The higher-ups are extremely interested in the local wizard who has mastered foreign fire—to an extraordinary degree."
He spoke slowly and deliberately, each word like a heavy lead weight striking Lilith and Hughes's hearts.
"Therefore, with special approval, you are permitted to attempt limited, monitored secondary contact and cooperation with him when necessary."
"Cooperation?! With that monster?! With that guy who controls the flames of death?!"
Hughes cried out, his face filled with disbelief, resistance, and deep fear.
"Vidis! Do you even know how fierce those flames were—"
"I know its horror far better than your limited experience suggests!"
Vidis suddenly raised his voice, his icy aura instantly overshadowing Hughes's words. A deep sense of apprehension, perhaps not even fully realized by himself, flashed subtly in his eyes, but it was quickly replaced by an even colder, unquestionable command.
"But this is an order! A direct order from above! Now, you only have two choices:"
Either you figure out your own way, using the new compass's guidance, to find the deeper-hidden target and retrieve it. Or you can try to utilize the wizard's power and his connections!
"Since he had the ability to help you find the first container," perhaps he also possesses methods or information unknown to us, enabling him to locate the "true master's" hiding place!
He took a step closer, emanating a palpable pressure: "Don't forget, the price you're willing to pay—far exceeds the knowledge and materials you previously promised. As long as that Hick truly demonstrates the corresponding value and ability, the Sanctuary's secret treasury can be opened to him at a deeper level to achieve this top priority goal. The prerequisite is that he's worth it."
Lilith and Hughes fell completely silent, as if frozen by invisible ice.
Vidis's words were like a bucket of ice water at minus 100 degrees Celsius, mercilessly extinguishing the illusory sense of relief they had just felt from "completing" the task, replacing it with a deeper, suffocating pressure and a chill from the unknown.
Go back? The mission wasn't even completed, and the objective has changed.
Continue? The road ahead is an unknown and perilous one, as indicated by the compass, and it is very likely that we will have to actively confront that nightmarish Heath and his deathly fire once again.
Vidis seemed quite pleased with the two men's bewildered and helpless reactions. He took a step back, his figure becoming blurry and distorted, clearly preparing to end the mission and leave.
"I've given you the new coordinates and tracking information. How you proceed is up to you. I only need the final result."
His voice gradually became erratic, as if it came from a very distant place.
"Remember, we don't have much time left. If our target fully awakens and adapts, or if other forces that have also sensed the danger preemptively seize the opportunity—you should understand the consequences."
As soon as he finished speaking, his figure disappeared completely into the thick shadows of the hills and forests, like ink spreading into water, leaving no trace.
In the place, only the faint light emanating from the gradually dimming teleportation array remained, along with the worthless, cold, and stiff corpse of Ralph on the ground, and the compass in Hughes' hand that suddenly seemed to weigh a ton, was icy cold, and whose pointer was fixedly pointing into the unknown and dangerous depths.
The remaining light from the magic circle shone on Lilith and Hughes' pale and complex faces, the light and shadow shifting and changing, just like their turbulent, struggling, and fearful emotions at that moment.
After a long while, Hughes, as if having exhausted all his strength, opened his mouth with great difficulty, his voice dry and hoarse like sandpaper: "—What—what should we do now?"
Lilith bit her lower lip so hard that she could taste a distinct, rusty, bloody flavor on her tongue.
She suddenly raised her head, her gaze fixed on the direction the compass needle pointed to—a dense forest that seemed even deeper and darker, capable of swallowing everything. Struggle and fear flashed in her eyes, but ultimately, all these emotions were replaced by a desperate, all-or-nothing ruthlessness.
"What else can we do?"
Her voice was unusually hoarse from tension, yet it conveyed a resigned determination.
"First, get rid of this useless, worthless corpse! Clean it up thoroughly! Then—"
She took a deep breath, as if summoning all her courage, and squeezed out the name that sent shivers down her spine: "—Go find that Hick!"
"—But, the flames, and him—"
Hughes's voice was filled with hesitation and fear.
"No buts!"
Lilith interrupted him sharply, her voice shrill, as if she was not only trying to persuade Hughes, but also forcibly suppressing the fear within herself and giving herself the courage to act.
"Since we can't avoid it, we can only face it! At least—at least he seemed willing to communicate last time! He even kept his promise! That's better than us wandering around like headless flies, heading straight into that unknown place the compass points to, where who knows what kind of monsters are hiding!"
Hughes looked at the decisiveness in Lilith's eyes, then at the deadly compass in his hand, and finally, as if all the strength to resist had been drained away, he nodded heavily.
They had no other choice!
Ahead might lie an abyss, but retreating would undoubtedly result in the Holy Temple's merciless punishment, which was not what they wanted either.