Chapter 423: Mountain Shadows and Reckless Encounters

Ugh……

The modified car sped along the bumpy mountain road, almost flying off the track.

Before its rear even touched the ground, it spun sharply, plunging headfirst into a narrow passage flanked by towering peaks, its shadow completely blocked by the slopes on either side. At that moment, Lu Xin turned and softly laughed at the doll by his side:

“Here comes the fun. Now, you can put away your influence.”

The doll, rattled by the speeding car on the mountain road, clutched the seatbelt with a tiny, trembling hand.

Upon hearing Lu Xin’s words, she turned her head in surprised wonder.

Greeting her was Lu Xin’s reassuring smile.

……

Rumble, rumble……

Sunlight bathed the recently rain-washed mountain forest in a tranquil glow.

Dew lingered on the grass blades, scattering hues as it refracted the sun’s light.

But suddenly, a violent shudder of air rippled through the mountains.

Nothing appeared, yet the tall trees erupted in a crashing, rustling roar.

Some even swayed wildly, as if toppled by an unseen force.

Wild grass on the ground was swept up in clusters, fluttering like paper money during Qingming.

Compressed air quivered in clusters, transmitting an invisible pressure forward, visible only as increasingly dense ripples.

One after another, mental monsters surged crazily into the passage, greedily climbing forward.

Yet on this road, which conveniently blocked the sunlight, they saw nothing of their target.

All they noticed was a clear tire track winding along the long road ahead.

To them, tracks meant nothing; what they pursued was that maddening scent.

But that scent was fading, almost disappearing, sending them into a panic.

They scrambled fiercely along the passage, jostling and clawing to move forward.

Finally, deep in the passage they reached a massive boulder rolled down from the mountaintop. There, they spotted the modified car – now empty, its door flung wide open – still exuding remnants of mental energy.

Countless mental monsters pressed desperately against the car, greedily vying for that lingering power…

The relentless compression of air even made the car rock slightly.

Crack, crack……

The car’s glass suddenly cracked, the fissures spreading until it shattered into a shower of fine fragments.

Such residual mental power was never enough to satisfy them.

In a burst of agitation, mental monsters – whether squeezed into the car or left outside – suddenly lifted their heads.

Hundreds of eyes that seemed to sprout over their bodies flashed with avaricious gleams.

On a once-smiling face, countless fine mouths erupted in an irritating cacophony of shouts.

“Hey……”

But just then, a voice rang out from above.

All the mental monsters looked up to see a young man crouched on the mountaintop.

Beside him floated a girl holding a parasol and clad in a heavy black dress.

Although the girl appeared to have masked the maddening power she possessed, the tracking monsters still sensed that she was the source of a magnetic allure.

Their eyes blinked frantically as delighted expressions spread across their faces.

Yet none dared rush forward, for the young man was crouched beside her.

He smiled as he looked down, his chin nodding slightly as if counting the monsters.

Then his smile broadened as he looked into the distance: “Now we can be sure they won’t escape, right?”

“Click, click, click……”

Elegant, crisp footsteps echoed from behind the passage, as if someone in high heels were striding over the hard road.

The sound was subtle yet sent a genuine shiver through every mental monster.

In the next moment, the valley seemed to grow increasingly dark.

Although the valley was already shadowed by adjacent mountains, the daylight still shone abundantly.

But now it felt as if the very light was being slowly drained away, the scene turning gloomy under an ever-deepening shadow that shifted from gray to nearly black.

“Hee hee……”

A strangely whimsical laugh rang out: “Big brother, are all these my toys?”

“Stop fooling around.”

The young man on the mountaintop chided her, correcting, “These are clearly our toys…”

Who knows what others might think, but the mental monsters bursting into the passage suddenly felt an odd, eerie sensation.

So unnerving…

……

The priest briskly left the village, treading a weed-choked country road on his way toward Happy Town.

The sun hung overhead, yet it cast an oddly cool light.

Perhaps it was the breeze from the open wasteland or the faint echo of footsteps following him.

Whenever he moved forward, it felt as though someone trailed him.

But when he turned his head, there was nothing but the empty wasteland.

From this vantage, the priest seemed remarkably optimistic.

He neither looked back nor brandished his double-barreled shotgun; he simply hurried onward.

With a silver case in one hand and the shotgun in the other, he even lightly patted his leg as he walked.

It was as if he were humming a little tune in his heart with each step.

The soft, scattered footsteps behind him continued their steady follow.

But aside from that and an eerie sense of being shadowed, there was nothing.

No hand suddenly rested on his shoulder, nor did a bullet fly toward his vest.

It was as if someone was merely trailing him, watching silently.

……

Step by step, his footsteps thumped softly as the priest gradually left the village and entered the wasteland.

A rural road, once two meters wide, was now little more than a shallow, weed-covered path stretching into the distance. A few hundred meters away, a seven- or eight-meter-wide river spanned by a stone bridge came into view.

This countryside bridge seemed to possess a remarkable durability – thirty years later, it still spanned the river firmly.

Beyond the bridge lay the route to Happy Town.

But when the priest, after crossing overgrown paddy fields, reached the bridge, he halted.

On the bridge sat a small child cross-legged in the middle. Dressed in the clean clothes typical of those from High-wall City, he had a simple folding table set before him, upon which rested a notebook computer.

Though he looked very young, he wore large, round glasses.

At that moment, he sat there alone, intently tapping away on the keyboard.

Beside him were two others.

One was a short-haired woman leaning on a motorcycle, clad in a sleek combat suit that accentuated her striking figure.

She sported a large pair of sunglasses and held a gun in her hand.

Another was a young girl in a school uniform.

Appearing to be about seventeen or eighteen, she sat on a bridge pier, clutching a thermos cup.

Noticing the priest’s approach, they all turned, their gazes calmly fixed on him.

……

When the priest halted, the following footsteps quieted.

The priest smiled gently and slowly advanced, looking up at the child on the bridge with a warm expression:

“Is this the plan you from Qinggang devised?”

His voice was polite as he patted his right chest in a salute.

Yet when he raised his head, a hint of derision flickered in his eyes: “Frankly, you haven’t given me much to be surprised by.”

“Technology Church… Wish Priest?”

The short-haired woman leaning on the motorcycle straightened, her graceful figure and calm tone evident as she said:

“Now, we suspect that you – a missionary of the Technology Church – have done something harmful to Qinggang. That’s why we’re here, waiting for you, hoping you’ll come with us for an investigation. If you plan to resist, then let’s settle it after you make a move.”

“……”

“This…”

A slow smile crept across the priest’s face, genuinely delighted. He saluted once more and said softly, “I apologize for my earlier arrogance—it’s just that a shadow kept trailing me, and it put me in a foul mood.”

“Now, I formally pose a question.”

“Is Qinggang really ready to stop us Technology Church?”

“Perhaps we can negotiate. For instance, I could grant each one of you a wish in exchange for your concession…”

“……”

“No room for negotiation.”

In a low voice, the short-haired woman said, “After all, you’ve already killed many of our Qinggang people.”

“When you treat the lives of our fellow Qinggang colleagues as worthless, there’s no room for discussion.”

“……”

“Heh heh……”

While the short-haired woman spoke, the priest slightly lowered his head, seemingly too afraid to meet her gaze.

He kept smiling, though his tone hinted at something unusual as he softly said, “I must admit, Qinggang has changed a lot in the past four years—but I’m equally curious what has given you such courage…”

“That you dare appear so directly before me?”

“……”

The short-haired woman paused, then understood what he meant.

Her expression grew slightly displeased as she said calmly, “Time is short; we don’t have time for roundabout schemes.”

“Waiting for you here, capturing you—that’s our entire plan.”

“If you take this as an insult, I apologize.”

“After all, in our eyes, you’re nothing more than a criminal!”