World Occult Usage Guide

Chapter 104 After the war
After repeatedly confirming Efron Ruben's death, Simon landed and announced the news using his communication device.

The members of the Direct Response Department, who had scattered in fear after the battle, ran back. They first approached the corpse on the ground timidly, then surrounded it and began to clean up the mess.

Lin An saw Simon looking down at the Bluetooth device in his hand from afar, and quickly buried himself in the sand to play dead.

Not long after, he felt the straw shed covering him being lifted, and a voice exclaimed, "Holy Mother above, you are so badly injured..."

Lin An had to pretend to be injured during the previous few times he watched the battle, but this time there was no need to pretend at all. The scars, bloodstains and dust left after the battle with Efron all testified to the previous carnage.

Without the Healing Gem, this person would probably have lamented, "What a terrible death!"

"let me."

A holy, purifying light fell upon Lin An. Although he had already healed most of his wounds with the healing gem, bathing in the angel's lunar energy, Lin An felt as comfortable as if he were soaking in a hot spring.

This must be the captain's secret technique.

"Lord of Dreams" is truly a medium for a hexagonal warrior.

Several members of the direct response team worked together to drag Lin An out of the rubble. He pretended to be unconscious for a while, then slowly woke up and sat up from the ground.

"I'm still alive..."

"Don't worry, you're completely safe, Lin." Simon nodded to him, a kind smile playing on his lips.

"Oh my god, I almost thought I'd never see you again."

After putting on a show of surviving a near-death experience, Lin An looked around and noticed that Barry was there. Not wanting to take any risks, he went straight to the point and spoke up before anyone else could ask.

“When I was riding with Deacon Efron Ruben earlier, I noticed that he was taking increasingly remote routes, so I kept an eye on him and turned on my phone's navigation. My vigilance reached its peak when he drove past the last bar on the map.”

Lin An gestured vaguely, glancing at the crowd with their varied expressions, especially Barry, observing their changing expressions.

"And what he's saying is getting increasingly strange..."

“That’s right, just as I just told you, Deacon Efron Ruben is taking us on a journey to death.”

Upon hearing Lin An's tentative words, Barry indeed chimed in.

"If Lin hadn't sensed the danger and used his wand to escape through the air, attracting Deacon Ruben's attention, I would have almost been in his hands. Fortunately, the deacon was too busy to pay attention to me and abandoned the car to chase after Lin, which gave me the opportunity to come back and report the news."

It turned out that Barry later drove that old car back to the foundation.

Lin An hesitated for a moment, then exchanged a knowing glance with him.

The gist is that they cooperate with each other; Lin An will not mention that Barry was invited by the inspection team, and the latter will also remain silent about the various anomalies that occurred when Lin An escaped.

The future course of events will not be discussed for now; they have reached a temporary agreement.

"And then?" Simon looked at Lin An and asked in a calm yet sincere tone.

"Even though I got there first, I still couldn't escape Deacon Ruben's pursuit. He's terrifying; being targeted by someone like that is practically a death sentence."

Lin An hugged his shoulders and shivered.

Half of his performance was genuine; Efron was indeed the most formidable opponent Lin An had ever encountered.

Even if he later mastered the illusions of the mind, ending his life would still require considerable effort.

"I hadn't run far when he knocked me to the ground. While the butler was floating in the air, I quickly hid in cover. I was too weak and soon passed out. Before I lost consciousness, I saw the butler walk in that direction."

Lin An pointed out the entrance to the headquarters of the "Lady Ava's Séance" and introduced it in a half-joking manner.

"There is……"

Simon operated the communication device in his ear, asked a few questions in a low voice, and then addressed the group.

"According to the report, the basement is occupied by the forces of Gamma-002 [Blind Granny]. Five survivors of the Séance have been discovered so far, and they will soon be placed under Level 4 control. The logistics department has been notified to conduct further interrogations and investigations."

Lin An suddenly realized what was happening, and the staff in the department also caught on, starting to discuss it amongst themselves.

"Fortunately, Deacon Ruben was eager to make a contribution and rushed into the Séance of the Gods, where he faced off against 'Lady Ava,' the heir of an ancient family that had been passed down for over a hundred years in New Mexico."

"He must have been betrayed by this high-ranking 'prophet,' which led to an increase in the level of pollution... I grew up hearing about the organization's great reputation, but I never imagined that one day those magical powers would become a reality."

"Not only did he blatantly build his headquarters next to the foundation, but he also nearly caused Deacon Reuben to lose control. This cult leader probably summoned Solomon's demon from demonology to be so fearless."

“New report: [Blind Granny] is confirmed dead,” Simon added. “There were two puncture wounds, one in her chest and one in her forehead. Preliminary tests indicate that the mystical magic that caused the fatal wounds was rated around mythical level, which is probably the work of Deacon Ruben.”

The direct confrontation department breathed a sigh of relief; after their battle with Efron, their opinion of Lady Ava had reached its peak.

Hearing that they wouldn't have to fight her again, everyone felt a weight lifted from their hearts.

They were New Mexico residents who already held a deep respect for the long-standing, clandestine organization in Shafi.

Yes, you guys are absolutely right. Although the "seekers'" analysis has certainly revealed that Lady Ava is a supernatural figure, how they explain it is none of my business.

After all, according to my publicly available files in the Foundation, let alone fighting against the mythical-level Efron, with such low radiation levels, even encountering Lady Ava would be a certain death.

Lin An thought to himself, but said aloud, "I guess Deacon Ruben thought I was dead... or not a threat. When I woke up from my coma, I managed to call the captain, and then I lost consciousness again. What exactly happened?"

He made a pained expression and covered his throbbing forehead.

"Why is Butler Efron Ruben suddenly hunting me down? Where is he now? Could I have made some mistake unintentionally?"

“If that were the case, we wouldn’t have gone to all that trouble to rescue you,” a captain said. “Judging from the orders we received, the cause of this incident seems to be a disagreement at headquarters about how to deal with Thunderbird.”

"As for Mr. Efron Ruben, he has gone to heaven. May the Lord bless his soul." Simon made the sign of the cross.

If you still want to go to heaven, then the ten Kings of Hell will take turns deep-frying you.

Lin An frowned, looking around in bewilderment.

"What does this have to do with Thunderbird?"

"Some members at headquarters believe it should be killed to eliminate any future trouble, while others still want its information. The former is mainly composed of the inspection team, and they were at a disadvantage in the last voting meeting."

The captain continued to explain.

"President Jericho thought the minority would give up, but Deacon Ruben took the extreme step of annihilating your team members to stop the Thunderbird from reaching San Francisco."

"annihilated our squad?" Lin An caught the key phrase. "Could it be that everyone else besides me was in danger? Captain, you told me earlier that we were being hunted down..."

“To be precise, it wasn’t me, it was Melissa.” Simon sighed. “Don’t worry, she’s fine. Let’s not talk about this now.”

"Who wants to kill her?" Lin An asked, ignoring what Lin An was saying.

“Chapter President Adenauer. I appreciate your curiosity, but you're tired, Lin. We have to meet three very important people tomorrow.”

“That’s right, colleagues in Dietrich, let’s go back to the foundation facilities first,” the captain said. “This is really not a good place to chat.”

Simon gestured to Lin An before heading towards the basement of the Séance headquarters, as he had other tasks to complete. Lin An, led by Barry and the captain, then walked towards the parked helicopter.

"I still don't understand anything..." Lin An asked the person in charge of the department.

“We reported your colleague’s feedback to headquarters, and they responded immediately, stating that given the butler’s several serious violations of the Employee Handbook, we must stop him at all costs, if the risk level becomes too high…”

The captain gripped his tie, trying to hide his unease.

"Won't killing the inspectorate's deacon cause trouble?"

After a pause, the captain said helplessly, "It's just following orders from headquarters... It's nothing. We don't have enough authority to decide whether I can reveal more to you."

He opened the helicopter door with a "whoosh".

"Upon arrival at the facility, civilian staff will provide guidance. Around 9 PM, please check your email; an email will list the upcoming arrangements. X will also make a notification."

"Ok."

Lin An and Barry boarded the helicopter. The captain said a few words to the pilot, then closed the cabin door. The wings whirred and the helicopter carried the two away from the deserted area covered in yellow sand.

As the distance increased, the captain's figure completely disappeared from the ground, and Lin An and Barry exchanged another glance.

It's not the right time to speak yet.

Leaning back against the back of the seat, a feeling of exhaustion washed over Lin An. He closed his eyes halfway and felt the rumbling vibrations of the airflow.

"Do you think we're safe now?" The system's voice suddenly sounded in my mind.

"It should be counted."

Although the system's voice has become somewhat "human," it remains silent as long as Lin An doesn't speak, and at crucial moments it still uses its mysterious magic as before.

He thought that as long as he didn't talk to it, he could ignore his level of pollution and live a life no different from before.

Unexpectedly, the system spoke on its own initiative.

What kind of mischief are you planning now?

"So, I can finally enter 'hibernation' mode."

"...?"

"This system will be shut down for maintenance for a period of time."

"...!!!"

Thank you to Dilos for the reward, thank you to readers 20210613212411730 and Lu Wei for the monthly tickets, and thank you everyone for your recommendations and subscriptions :-D
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(End of this chapter)