Mystery Paradise: Wishing Power Demon
Chapter 385 - 384 - : The One That Got Away

Chapter 385: 384 Chapter: The One That Got Away

"My name is Ailuodi," the angel replied succinctly. "Are your injuries not serious?"

"Just some flesh wounds. They think such pain can make me yield, but it pales in comparison to the wrongful deaths of my family," Franwick patted his chest, even though the action made him wince slightly. "Speaking of which, this is the first time I’ve heard the name of the Paradise Sect. May I ask when you started taking an interest in City of Defense?"

"Wherever suffering arises, the Paradise Master can sense it. However, His name has not yet spread widely, which means there aren’t many prayers for Him to respond to, making divine intervention less immediate."

"I’m sorry, I’m not accusing the divinities of being too slow to respond. After all, even I couldn’t protect my own family," Franwick forced a wry smile. "I just want to learn a little more about you all... the fight is far from over. Bariff is dead, but Governor Haiboman is still alive, and he surely won’t let things rest. City of Defense is likely to witness a whirlwind of blood and violence. I’ve heard that one can receive the divinities’ protection by making a contract with you. May I do so?"

"What is your wish?"

"I implore the gracious Paradise Master to appear once more and eradicate Haiboman and his lackeys. Only by eliminating the corporate executives can their madness be stopped."

"If his wishing power is not enough, we are also willing to offer all of our wishing power!" Enkui stepped forward and said.

"And us too!" The others echoed in agreement.

"How about it?" Ailuodi asked.

"Of course we refuse," Chaoyang stated without hesitation. "What divine intervention, the real work is up to you. Even if we reap a great harvest this time, we can’t use all our wishing power just to deal with the company. The Evil God is still lurking in the shadows, and that is our real enemy. And..."

He paused.

"And what?"

"I can’t sense any of his wishing power, not even a trace," Chaoyang said after a moment’s scrutiny. "Maybe this isn’t his true wish, or perhaps he has never thought of praying to the divinities—at least not until now."

"The Paradise Master hopes that it is you who will overthrow the company’s rule because it is always the local people who create Paradise on earth. But don’t worry, the divinities will not abandon their followers. I will guide you in continuing to resist until Ransu Company completely collapses," Ailuodi translated Chaoyang’s thoughts to the crowd.

"Is that so..." Enkui was momentarily disheartened then quickly rallied. "But you are right, as long as we are united, we cannot lose to the company. Besides, Mr. Franwick still has an ancestral relic that can be used against them."

"A relic?" Ailuodi raised an eyebrow.

Gazing at the eyes fixed upon him, the elder nodded slowly, "Seems like you’ve kept it in your heart. Be it as it may, I will speak plainly. My family dates back over six hundred years, before City of Defense even existed—there was only a band of hunters who had migrated here. They received divine protection, and my ancestor was among them. According to the ancient texts passed down through my family, they carried a divinely bestowed artifact named the Immortal Heart. It was with this that they established their foothold here and eventually built City of Defense."

"The Hunting Divine Heart?" Ailuodi whispered to herself.

"It matches the information provided by Duke Rosha at least. Ask him where the heart is now."

"Has this relic come into your possession?" the angel asked.

"You seem rather unsurprised... befitting of Your Excellency the Divine Envoy," Franwick said, slightly taken aback. "Indeed, the long-circulated rumors within City of Defense aren’t purely fabricated. The locals have heard, more or less, that we fishermen are the children of the Hunting Divine, though few connect it to my family. As for your question, I regret to say I have not seen the relic myself; otherwise, I would have used it against Ransu Company long ago. But I do know where it is."

Enkui trembled, covering her mouth, "Could it be... the thing the company is digging up is..."

"You guessed right. The object buried behind those metal walls is the divine relic given to the fishermen! Of course... the walls themselves are ancient ruins that have existed long before, merely utilized by my ancestors to protect the sacred treasure. I don’t know how Ransu Company found out about it, but the thing they are trying to seize is definitely the Immortal Heart!"

Everyone was abuzz with conversation.

No one had expected the rumors they had heard for so many years to actually be true.

"Are we really supposed to hunt for the Hunting Divine Heart in this world too?" Ailuodi murmured under her breath.

"It’s better than having no leads at all. But wasn’t Ransu Company looking for new energy sources... Could this relic be turned into a First-Rank Miracle Construction related to energy?"

At least in Bariff’s work diary, it was plainly recorded that the company’s goal in coming here was clear. In other words, their information was even more accurate than the locals, and they had even planned what to do with the relic.

"Yet Duke Rosha said it’s used to break through the defenses of The Divine Country... Now we have three different purposes for the heart," the Angel joked half-heartedly.

"After all, it’s an object that has been passed down for hundreds of years; some discrepancies are to be expected," Chaoyang said casually, "I just don’t understand one thing, if it’s something the divinities bestowed upon them to establish themselves, why not keep using it, why hide it away instead?"

After all, cheating is fun for a while, but constantly cheating is continuously fun... They had no reason to discard it and not use it.

Ailuodi voiced this question for Chaoyang.

"...To be honest, I don’t know either. But our ancestors chose to do this for their own reasons. Likewise, since they left writings to inform their descendants, it shows that in times of crisis, those who come after also have the right to use it to fend off enemies."

"Since your ancestors were able to place the treasure inside, they must also know the way through the wall..."

"Sorry, Your Excellency the Divine Envoy, I am equally ignorant on this matter," Franwick said with regret, "The books do not mention anything about doors or secret passages. Perhaps hundreds of years ago, the entrance was still clearly discernible, but with the repeated washing of the sea, the passage has been thoroughly buried."

So in the end, they still had to find a way to break through that metal wall.

"In that case, I suggest none of you return to your dwellings," Enkui stated firmly, clenching her fist, "Those who ran away will certainly have gone to warn the Governor’s Mansion by now, and it won’t take half a day before the company retaliates. They might bombard the Lower City District with their cannons in a fit of rage, and they will certainly send troops to seize back this beach! Conversely, if we hold our ground, we can prevent the enemy from breaking us down one by one!"

"What if the enemy sets up cannons and bombards the beach?"

"Then we retreat into the caves; they are very deep and the cannonballs won’t reach us! Once they cease firing, we can quickly retake our positions. You could say this place is suited for both offense and defense... and we still have plenty of food in the camp to hold out for five or six days!"

"I still feel like holding out here isn’t a good idea..." Ailuodi muttered quietly, "Lacking supplies and without a way out, if we’re surrounded by the company’s troops, it’ll be hard to break out."

"That’s true for a regular army," Chaoyang knew the Angel’s analysis was correct, but these people were not really soldiers, and once they scattered back to their own streets, they’d basically become uncoordinated, and it would be nearly impossible to rally them again. By then, the company and the gangs would cooperate to cleanse every street, inevitably leading to a bloodbath. "If they band together here, however, it would be easier to lure the enemy out, and then we can—"

"What’s wrong?" The pause was too unnatural, making Ailuodi instantly alert.

"No... Nothing, maybe I’m just seeing things," Chaoyang said, shaking his head in mild self-derision. Just a moment ago, through the Angel’s perspective, he had seen a familiar girl.

If he wasn’t mistaken, that was Sweet Potato’s sister. She stood far from the crowd, her eyes riveted fixedly on this area, as if something here had captured her attention completely.

But when he looked in that direction again, there was no one there.