World Occult Usage Guide

Chapter 173 Returning to the International Bridge
Things went more smoothly than Lin An had imagined.

He anticipated that Joshua would unconsciously follow due to the mystic's fluctuations, but he did not expect that Joshua's amnesia was too severe, to the point that he even forgot his own power and identity.

But that's alright, Lin An just has a "test" to fully develop his remaining value.

The next morning, Lin An and Joshua met at a coffee shop near the International Bridge, which was also the place where he first met Wendigo.

The cold weather gradually warmed up, the cold wind disappeared, and white seagulls flew across the sky, landing in twos and threes on the riverbank near the International Bridge. A hunched old woman pushed a cart, scooped out grains from it, and scattered them to these greedy birds like feeding chickens.

The café is open 24 hours a day, and breakfast includes crispy bacon sandwiches, bread dripping with butter, and a variety of coffees.

Joshua ordered a table full of various breakfasts, which cost Lin An a whopping $55.

It's alright, it's your salary after all. Lin An thought.

While Joshua was eating, he had the system open his panel, and green data appeared before his eyes.

[Name]: The Encyclopedia of Mystery
[Rating]: Source Grade B

Radiation level: 9.6%
[Pollution Level]: 20%
[Medium]: The seeker of knowledge

[Inventory]: Seeker of Knowledge x4, God of Truth x1, Dreamer x1, Prophet x4, Chief Judge x12, Nature Priest x4, Mother of Desire x11, Emperor of War x4, Goddess of the Lantern x1, Lord of the Earth x3, God of Agriculture x5
The media reserves are still quite sufficient.

After being consumed, the radiation level is about to break into double digits.

The higher the radiation level, the clearer the second button for the venting mode became. Lin An estimated that the system would unlock a new function after the radiation level reached 10%.

"The Seeker of Knowledge" is not a suitable medium for direct confrontation. To this day, the system only has two attack methods: wrapping its entire body in data streams to slightly block energy attacks and displaying data to disrupt others' vision.

It is far removed from the mediums that are good at fighting.

Based on past experience, the most powerful fighter is the all-powerful "Lord of Dreams," followed by the "Chief Judge," with the "Mother of Desire" and the "Emperor of War" ranking third combined.

Lin An originally intended to gradually gather information about Doris's abilities and formulate a strategy, but Joshua's unexpected assistance prompted him to take action. He was never one to be timid or hesitant.

After finishing breakfast, the two walked to the riverbank, and Joshua couldn't help but ask.

"Teacher, what should I do now?"

Lin An gave him a half-truthful account of the Mysterious One's origins, but deliberately changed the keywords, such as calling "Comers" "Insect Arrow," "Mysterious One" "Stand User," and "Radiation" "Stand Power."

This completely eliminates the possibility of Joshua regaining his memories.

Lin An told Joshua that because Stand users were a minority, the authorities did not disclose them publicly, but instead established a special management agency.

Lin An claimed to be a member of the organization and had reported Joshua's situation, but before he could be recruited as a full-time employee, his superiors required Joshua to complete an assessment to prove his Stand ability.

"This is a trial."

Lin An casually made up a story: "Before we accept you as a member of the organization, you need to complete a novice task."

"Okay, teacher."

During his amnesia, Joshua wandered around the Eagle Kingdom, enduring people's cold stares and contemptuous looks. Yesterday, he was on the verge of death, and only survived thanks to the help of the person in front of him. Therefore, he trusts Lin An completely.

Moreover, he had a premonition that this person was closely related to the mission that lingered in his mind.

Lin An retrieved the IP address of "Dream of Domondo" on the World Tree Forum, entered the port address into the navigation, and handed it to Joshua.

It is the largest harbor north of Dietrich, consisting of multiple cargo terminals. Generally speaking, the most valuable cargo is steel, as well as ore, coal and cement handled by tonnage.

However, due to the transnational nature of Dietrich, extraordinary transactions occurred at this time.

"Steve, your mission is as follows..."

Lin An used Ruan Ruyun's nickname, attached the GoPro camera he bought online to Joshua's head, put a Bluetooth headset on him, and manually achieved a "100% accuracy" field of vision. He explained the uses of the two devices to Joshua, whose eyes lit up.

"This is so high-tech!"

Generally speaking, it's far inferior to your X. Lin An thought to himself.

"Listen carefully, everyone you are about to face is one of our staff. Their acting skills are just a test to see if you have awakened your 'Stand user' and whether you can control your 'Stand ability'."

Lin An solemnly raised his finger.

"You must follow my instructions completely."

"I understand."

Watching Joshua's figure disappear, Lin An glanced at the synced surveillance video on his phone, then spoke a few words to him through the Bluetooth headset to confirm that the equipment was in good working order.

With no one around, Lin An immersed his consciousness in the Philosopher's Stone, waiting for the "Dreamer" witch to descend upon Elysium. A full five minutes passed, and nothing happened.

It seems that the basilisk's gem has undergone too many evolutions of "The Art of Transcendence" and has been constantly refined and evolved by alchemy, losing its original foundation. Even the witch can no longer detect the lingering aura of her companion.

Sigh, it's a pity I couldn't get in touch with her.

After thinking for a moment, Lin An sent a text message to Ruan Ruyun, asking her to go to the library to study with her senior, hoping to distract her and prevent her from joining the gatherings of the free-spirited mystics recently.

Because Lin An participated in the foundation's video conference last night, the research and direct confrontation departments, based on various materials from the administrative departments, formulated a series of formal plans for the witch extermination campaign.

The operation will begin today.

Before meeting up with them, Lin An looked at the surveillance footage again and found that Joshua had already approached the destination.

The ship's engines creaked rhythmically, waves crashed against the harbor walls like bombs, and the air was thick with the pungent smell of fish.

The city hall bells rang at ten o'clock, and sunlight poured down from the sky, creating a dazzling reflection on the water.

The first thing that caught Lin An's eye was rows of tall, heavy shipping containers, stacked like mountains, contrasting beautifully with the blue sky, like building blocks in a city. They were covered with various colors and labels, which probably represented the types of goods and the logistics companies to which they belonged.

"Ugh——!"

The sound of horns accompanied the faint black exhaust fumes rising slowly. Giant ships docked at the pier, and workers busily moved, loaded, and unloaded cargo, paying no attention to Joshua who was strolling around.

As the navigation mileage gradually decreased, Joshua stopped at a harbor.

In front of him stretched the boundless sea, while behind him were rusty, low-rise houses with several cars parked in front of the door.

The workers here seemed unusually relaxed, occasionally casting prying glances, quite unlike the indifferent sailors.

Is this...the place?

Joshua asked a tentative question from the other end of the Bluetooth headset.

“That’s right, just do as I say,” Lin An instructed. “I will be watching your every move on the monitor. I hope you can pass this test that the organization has assigned to you smoothly.”

"I will do my best, teacher."

After giving Joshua his instructions, Lin An put his phone in his pocket, hailed a taxi, and went to the meeting point designated by the foundation.

This was once an abandoned factory or warehouse, very well hidden. After verifying Lin An's identity, the guard at the door let him in.

Of the employees in the direct confrontation department, only half were old acquaintances of Lin An. Apart from the Reagan quartet, he only knew the new control team and the punishment team stationed in the branch. The remaining 14 faces were all strangers.

After meeting up with Simon and the others, they made a few inquiries and discovered that these mysterious strangers were actually employees of the foundation that had previously been stationed in southern Michigan.

After headquarters resolved to "encircle and annihilate" the witch and her free-spirited followers, the Direct Division mobilized all its forces located in Dietrich.

During this period, the branches in the three neighboring states will temporarily be responsible for handling mysterious events within Michigan.

Lin An counted that the foundation had recently expanded its recruitment, and the number of people in the Direct Relationship Department had exceeded 30, including Simon, a Myth-level, Mishi, another Legend-level, 7 Disaster-level, and 20 Mystery-level.

They were all full-time employees, excluding newcomers like Sangsang.

Each member here has accumulated a certain amount of radiation value and knows how to control the mysterious and cooperate with each other. As a non-aristocratic force, St. Anilov can indeed be considered a behemoth.

Entering a state of mental blankness, Lin An still couldn't find the legendary Chairman Emmanuel.

He was supposed to join the operation too, wasn't he?
However, Lin An was glad that the "prophet" didn't come, otherwise he wouldn't have been able to maintain his clear logic.

A loud clap broke the murmurs of the crowd, and Reagan Modicridge stood on the wooden crate, speaking in a firm and resounding voice.

"Thanks to everyone's efforts, we have successfully transported Alpha-001's Thunderbird to headquarters and also permanently extinguished Alpha-002's Ghost. Now we will once again join forces to hunt down Beta-001's Witch of Bavomet."

"This evil enigma has been active in Dietrich since April of last year. She is personally powerful and has repeatedly escaped the Foundation's pursuit by using the 'Visionary's' ability to travel through space. She has not yet been brought to justice."

"Moreover, her leadership and appeal are quite terrifying. In just one year, she cultivated a group of fanatical followers. They call themselves the so-called 'mysterious liberals,' wantonly trample on life, never put the law in their eyes, and are a group of vicious antisocial and anti-order thugs."

Reagan looked around and loudly announced the start of the operation.

"For the sake of justice, peace, and the stability of order, the St. Anilov Foundation will spare no effort to kill [the Witch of Bavomet] and all her followers!"

Some members of the direct-department staff raised their hands and loudly echoed their agreement.

"God bless the Eagle Nation!"

(End of this chapter)