The defeated saint is also on the way to tame the evil god today

"..."

Xing Mo was confused by this series of riddles. Obviously, the girl in front of him would not tell him her true identity.

So she told the truth:

"Yes, it's the 'Steam Man' that's troubling me. It's elusive, like a ghost. It attacked three people who were far apart in a short period of time. One of them was still at the Nefera Beta Magic Academy."

"According to the instructor, that thing is at least six-stringed, possibly even close to being a demigod. If it gets out of control, half of the academy city might suffer."

After Xing Mo finished speaking, the store manager was silent for a while, then spoke softly:

"You said it looked like a ghost. What if it is a ghost?"

The store manager's words exploded in Xingmo's mind like thunder. She frowned and thought about this possibility.

A ghost... could indeed reach three locations in a row without anyone witnessing it, even bypassing Nefera Beta's string magic warning...

"But I've seen it, it does have a physical body..." Xing Mo said, "It's impossible for a ghost to disappear with its physical body, right?"

"What if it can superimpose the transformation between entity and ghost?" The store manager's voice was like a stream.

"This sounds... too incredible..." Xingmo murmured.

At this time, a pink-haired maid came over with a tray and placed a cup of coffee in front of Xingmo.

"Thank you." Xing Mo nodded in thanks. The maid smiled at her and left.

Xingmo picked up the coffee and took a sip. The sweet and bitter taste flowed across her tongue, and the warm touch felt like silk.

She even added sugar according to my taste... How did she know...

Xingmo put down her coffee, and the store manager opposite her continued:

"The truth is actually hidden in the fragments. False deductions are nothing but impurities. If you want to see the truth, then eliminate the impurities and seek the source."

Eliminate impurities...Search for the source...

Xingmo lowered her head and began to sort out the details again.

She excluded many things: Prince Austin, Bishop Frye, the coming of the evil god, and simply focused on the concept of "Steam Man".

First, let's assume that the "Steam Man" is a ghost.

If it is indeed a ghost, then it is possible for it to appear in three places in a short period of time. The speed of movement of the spirit when it emerges from the shell is indeed very fast.

But the problem is that if there is no body, no matter how far the spirit moves, it is just a kite that has been released and it cannot materialize out of thin air.

Not to mention that the Nefera Beta Magic Academy has a string magic barrier, and it is impossible for ordinary spirits to get into the academy from the outside.

So, if the "Steam Man" is indeed a ghost, then it needs some kind of power to anchor it from its spiritual state to reality.

This power needs to be strong enough to condense into a body on the material plane.

This power must be able to pass through the barrier of Nefera Beta Magic Academy, otherwise it cannot explain how it teleported from the White Tower area to the back garden of the academy to attack the instructor.

And, this power must be everywhere.

"..."

Xingmo's brain was working at high speed, building a logical chain.

After clearing away layers of fog, suddenly, a flash of light appeared in front of me.

"...!"

Xingmo's emerald green eyes widened and her hands trembled.

Yeah...why didn't I think of that before...

"Curse!"

...Prince Austin has, of course, been spreading the "curse" throughout the Citadel, from the South City to the North City...

...Nefera Beta's students come from all over the city, and among them are naturally those who carry the "curse," bringing that dark power into the magic academy...

...like Master Noble Sunlight...

...And when the power of the "curse" is strong enough, it will naturally gather into a physical form when the "Steam Man" needs it, thus receiving its spirit...

...which is why it's always preceded by a faint puff of steam...

...The string formation used to extract the "curse" in the Sunflower Underground Baths was shaped like a "Tree of Life." The body provided by the "curse" was clearly shaped using the power of "life"...

...it's connected, everything is connected...

Xing Mo took a deep breath and said quickly:

"The 'Steam Man' relies on the 'Curse' spread throughout the Citadel to travel at such high speeds! As long as the concentration of the 'Curse' in an area is high enough, it can travel through it in its spirit form, then manifest itself using the power of the 'Curse'!"

"The curse is caused by people's negative emotions, so the North City was the first area where the Steammen began to spread. The workers in the port area live in hardship, and the thick negative energy has created a breeding ground for monsters."

"You're very clever, Miss Xingmo," the store manager said with a gentle smile. "That's right. To be precise, the 'curse' forms a probability cloud. The higher the concentration, the greater the probability of the 'steam man' appearing. Its random appearance with such probability naturally lacks any pattern."

"...So that's how it is. I never thought of it before. Thank you for providing your perspective..." Xingmo murmured.

However, new problems emerged:

First of all, how did Prince Austin gain control of the "Life" domain? After all, Aurora and Xingmo were together, so it was impossible for them to give that guy similar power.

Secondly, if the "Steam Man" is moving quickly in the Academy City relying on the probability fog formed by the "Curse", then how does the controller behind it control it?

That hunting list was obviously purposeful and not random.

Finding the means to control the "Steam Man" is the real solution to it.

After all, you can't defeat a ghost that's everywhere.

Xing Mo pondered for a moment, then asked:

"So, if it's a ghost, how does the person behind it control it?"

"You'll have to find it yourself," the store manager said with another mysterious smile, "but I can give you some clues."

She turned her wrist, and a gray-white photo appeared at her fingertips and fell on the table.

Xingmo picked up the photo and saw that it was a large factory located on the seaside.

"Go here and you will find the clue." said the store manager.

"This looks like a building in the port area..." Xingmo murmured and put the photo away.

"Oh, by the way, there's this."

As the store manager spoke, she flipped her wrist again, and a cloudy white crystal fell from her fingertips. It was then bound in the air by a thin silver chain, swaying slightly.

"This is... what you would call a 'holy object', called the 'Astrological Pendulum'."

"Just deposit a sample of the 'Curse' into it, hang it up, and it will point to the nearest allotrope."

"If used correctly, you could use it to trace back to the Steam Man."

Xing Mo took the pendulum handed over by the store manager, looked at it blankly, and said subconsciously:

"But I have no money."

Xingmo was afraid that the store manager would suddenly ask her for money! She didn't have enough money on her.

However, the store manager just smiled:

"That's okay. Just bring me two more stories as a reward next time you come."

Stories as payment? That sounds pretty poetic...

Hearing the store manager say this, Xingmo didn't say much. After all, this pendulum sounded really useful.

So, she put away the photo and the pendulum, and smiled slightly:

"Thank you, Miss Manager."

The store manager also smiled:

"As a Guardian, you've already done everything you can, so you can relax and don't put too much pressure on yourself."

Her tone was gentle, like mountain water falling into a stream, ethereal yet powerful.

Xingmo nodded gratefully:

"I don't know why you're helping me, but...can you let me know your name?"

On the one hand, this was out of courtesy, and on the other hand, Xingmo wanted to ask her tutor to see if she could find out the true identity of this "Miss Know-It-All".

After all, she even knew that Aurora was an evil god. Although she was currently acting like a friend, Xingmo had no idea whether she had any real purpose.

After hearing Xing Mo's words, the store manager was silent for a moment, then said softly:

"of course can."

She curled the ends of her pure white hair with her fingers, her blood-red eyes sparkling:

"You can call me, Perlis."

......

6) Steam, Whale Song (Part 5)

After finishing the coffee, Xingmo said goodbye to the store manager and left the cafe.

After pushing open the door, a strong wind blew, and Xingmo inexplicably felt that she had walked a long way.

She walked along Fram Street for a distance, then took out the pendulum, activated her clairvoyance, and checked whether there was any spell cast on it.

After a series of routine checks, Xingmo confirmed that there was nothing wrong with the pendulum.

It really is a free gift... Xingmo exclaimed, hanging the slender silver chain around her neck and hiding it in the lining.

She strolled to Shuihua Street, had a quick lunch, and then in the afternoon she set off for Xicheng District near the college and went into the library.

"..."

It was not until the sun kissed the horizon that Xingmo raised her head from the book and stretched.

"Hmm~ So tired..."

She spent the entire afternoon verifying whether her previous guess with the store manager was correct, and she flipped through at least a dozen books for this purpose.

The conclusion is very simple: it is entirely possible.

"It's time to go to the Xinghai Mass."

Xingmo put the books back on the bookshelf and picked out a few more to take home and read.

After registering with the librarian, Xingmo left the library.

It rained in the afternoon, and the evening wind was mixed with a few strands of moisture, which made Xingmo feel extremely comfortable.

Taking the steam rail car, Xingmo arrived at the "St. Auros Cathedral" in the northern city area and pushed the door open and walked in.

At this time, the "Star Sea Mass" had already begun. After Xing Mo closed the door, he found a seat in the back row and sat down, watching quietly.

As the golden starlight filled the air, Sister Lilitz chanted scriptures on the bulletin board, her voice ethereal and ancient.

Xingmo felt the "Tree of Life" mark on the back of her hand burning, and she knew that this meant that Aurora was absorbing a large amount of faith power.

Where did that guy go?

Xingmo looked around, searching for Aurora among the praying crowd.

When she saw Aurora, her pupils shrank and she almost stood up.

——That guy was wearing a nun's uniform and was leading a group of little nuns to splash golden light everywhere!

Next to Aurora was Alia, who was wearing a nun's uniform. Behind Alia were other little girls wearing nun's uniforms. They were all short, with the tallest not exceeding 1.6 meters.

What's this? Lolita nuns? Where did they recruit them from?!

No, no, why are you acting like a nun from the Star Sea Goddess? Are you serious?

Across the crowd, Xingmo saw Aurora's face filled with a happy smile.

The worshippers on the side marveled at the piety of the little nun. She smiled so happily while serving the gods, and her body was even shaking with excitement.

But only Xing Mo knew that it was that guy who was madly absorbing the power of faith and was feeling so good!

"..."

As if sensing Xingmo's gaze, Aurora looked towards her and winked slightly.