Chapter 451: The Headless Knight

"The thief's theft is probabilistic; you can pair it with a Fate Path seal item," Leiketon said with a light laugh, offering a suggestion.

Yuedeson rolled his eyes wordlessly, speaking in a flat tone:

"Fate Path items are already rare; even if you happen upon one, a crowd will scramble for it. I lack the capital to bid, and I can't rely on my own extraordinary abilities to steal—it suppresses a thief's power too much."

Leiketon tapped his right index finger on the table, chuckling mischievously as he spoke:

"The Life School recently split; many of its Fate Path extraordinaires either joined the Primordial Moon camp themselves or did so by bringing extraordinary traits and wondrous items."

"Suddenly mentioning the Primordial Moon—are you trying to drag me in? Are you targeting the Primordial Moon believers around Pas River Valley? It can't be just that."

Yuedeson crossed his arms, murmuring softly in a thoughtful pose.

Matina, the Earth Church bishop of the Dongbailang Region and overseer of Southern Continent affairs, arrived secretly at Pas River Valley with two senior deacons of the church.

They did not appear directly in the city or crowded places; instead, they marched along the river, continuously clearing the increasingly proliferating strange mushrooms.

The two Earth Church deacons, clad in clerical robes embroidered with wheat, flowers, and spring symbols, surrounded from both sides a headless knight clad in black armor, whose body seemed fused with the warhorse beneath him.

Matina lingered far behind, moving silently like soldiers under the headless knight's command, rhythmically matching his steps.

Where they passed, black ink‑like tendrils spread silently, cloaking everything in darkness, masking all colors as if pulling reality into a black‑and‑white painting.

Amid the monochrome, many strange mushrooms emitted faint blue glows; they seemed ill‑suited to the desaturated world, wilting at a visible pace, and when a mournful wind blew, they shattered into powder.

As the headless knight traversed more ground, his hollow neck suddenly oozed thick black liquid, like blood, gushing outward.

A sour‑tinged creaking sounded from the black, gleaming armor on his chest and abdomen; on both sides of his torso and at his navel, the armor showed varying tears and twists, as if something struggled to emerge.

"Almost at the limit," Matina, lingering at the rear, murmured softly.

Her words seemed to trigger a response in the headless knight; he halted instantly, the upper half of his warhorse twisted 180 degrees, and he stared silently at Matina, who had spoken.

The sour metallic creak from his torso grew louder, soon cracking three openings—one large, two small—emitting a faint glow, like a grotesque face sprouting from his chest.

Before it could open its mouth, Matina reached into her bosom, retrieved a tattered cloth doll, and tossed it onto the twisted, grotesque headless knight.

A tranquil, pitch‑black curtain suddenly descended, enveloping the headless knight; his movements became unsteady, like a sleep‑deprived person on the brink of collapse.

Thick vines erupted from the ground, snaking around the tattered doll and the nearby headless knight, engulfing them into a massive emerald cocoon.

Matina nodded toward the two church deacons guarding the emerald cocoon, then turned back toward the path they had come.

As she stepped forward, specks of emerald light radiated from her, and a mighty life aura cleansed the surrounding black‑and‑white zone.

Soon the monochrome faded, restoring the original colors, though the countless mushrooms—big and small—had diminished.

Radiating vibrant life‑energy to revive the area took considerable time; after finishing, Matina brushed away nonexistent sweat from her forehead—a habit she had adopted; even as a demigod, expending so much spirit left her somewhat weakened and uneasy.

A towering deacon bearing an oversized greatsword, clearly of giant lineage, looked at the thick emerald cocoon beside him and spoke:

"Matina, although 2-373 can to some extent suppress 1-92's awakening, this is not a lasting solution, and we cannot create conditions sufficient to seal him; how shall we bring him back to the Natural Cathedral?"

"I don't know either, but since the Mother God hinted we could use him, there must be something in Pas River Valley capable of sealing him; we only need to wait patiently."

Matina whispered her answer to the deacon while recalling information about 1-92 in her mind:

ID 1-92, designation: Headless Knight; a living being, extremely chaotic, wildly insane, incapable of communication, first discovered in early Era Five, suspected to have evolved from a rogue Black Knight or a Tri‑Headed Sanctum, sealed jointly by the Church of Knowledge and Wisdom and us.

Before the War of the Broken Oath, personnel of the Church of Knowledge and Wisdom studied him and concluded that his mind and soul form a stitched amalgam, with his thoughts constantly battling; whichever notion gains the upper hand manifests as his trait.

Former Knowledge Church Archdeacon of Fenebot City, Otantus Nicholas, once evaluated him: all his thoughts are mad, for only sufficiently strong, sufficiently insane ideas can endure prolonged conflict.

Everything around him inevitably falls into corruption, gradually merging into a pool of black, viscous matter; he can fuse and warp this with surrounding shadows, animating monsters to forge his own army, and he also wields extraordinary powers over death, shadow, decay, flame, and life.

His abilities grow stronger with his awakening level, eventually capable of covering an entire metropolis like Beckland; at that point he will be fully awakened, and even angels will struggle to reseal him.

He also possesses the paths of Secret Prayer, Corpse Collector, Hunter, Cultivator, and Reader; the latter two stem from the casualties of the two great churches during his sealing, further amplifying his power and deepening his madness.

The sealing method is to place him in an environment saturated with purifying power and devoid of darkness, causing eternal slumber.

(Note: each use weakens the seal, eventually rendering it completely ineffective.)

Classified: Bishop; Danger Level: Grade 1 (fully awakened danger comparable to some Grade 0 seals); can be used with limits, but requires at least one archbishop, two senior deacons, and the appropriate seal artifact present.

Matina stared solemnly at the rippling river surface, quietly worrying that, at the current pace, the special mushrooms in Pas River Valley remain uncleared, and 2-373's temporary seal on him will fail.

She soon gathered her thoughts, closed her eyes, and restored her spirit through meditation.

After about ten or twenty minutes, Matina reopened her eyes and gently nodded to the two deacons quietly guarding nearby, saying:

"Let's continue."

As she spoke, she walked straight toward the headless knight encased in the thick emerald cocoon; the green vines seemed to come alive, quickly loosening and retreating back into the ground.

The peacefully slumbering headless knight had returned to normal; his upper body had somehow turned back, the cracks in his chest armor vanished, and the previously gaping neck no longer leaked black fluid.

A deacon with a thick teal beard and metal‑glinting gloves reached out and removed the tattered cloth doll hanging on the headless knight.

He examined the doll closely; though abstract, it roughly resembled a chubby little girl in a floral short dress.

The doll's floral skirt was speckled with black stains; he tried to wipe them away, but they wouldn't come off, as the pattern was woven into the fabric.

He furrowed his brow and said with concern:

"2-373 has also been contaminated; if it mutates, we cannot use a temporary seal on 1-92 to lower his awakening level."

"Tack, keep a constant eye on 2-373's contamination level; within 1-92's influence zone, even if we don't use it, pollution cannot be avoided."

"Denis, stay on guard; when the seal shows issues, that's our most dangerous moment, and the hidden Primordial Moon believers are waiting for it."

Matina spoke calmly, her tone steady.

"Yes, Bishop Matina!"

The deacon known as Tack responded gravely, then placed the tattered cloth doll 2-373 into his chest.

Denis reached for the silver greatsword strapped to his back and said, his voice brash:

"I will consign those filthy things to vanish in the dawn's storm!"

The headless knight astride the black‑armored warhorse also changed then, beginning to walk forward as if sleepwalking; his steps were slow but long, so his pace was not sluggish.

Tack and Denis kept their previous formation, flanking the headless knight, while Matina trailed slightly behind.

At dusk in the Knowledge Church, Leiketon stood by the clergy lounge window, watching the faintly emerging red moon and feeling a strange premonition.

"Is it about to begin? The time for the blood clan's appearance is almost here."

He whispered to himself, then turned his head to look at Yodson, who was helping him organize the books copied by the Knowledge Rabbit, and Yodson spoke in a low voice:

"Tonight won't be too calm; you'd better follow Edwina, she has enough ability to protect you. You thieves are total noobs before Sequence Four."

When Yodson heard Rakton tell him to follow the captain, the corner of his mouth just twitched into a smile, but the following words made his face fall.

"I am already a Sequence Five Dream Thief, same sequence as the captain. Moreover, what do you mean our thieves are total noobs before Sequence Four? Could it be that after Sequence Four thieves can leap to become the strongest sequence?"

"Heh, after Sequence Four, thieves can change their name to A Meng, naturally they are stronger than most extraordinary beings of the same sequence."

Rakton chuckled mockingly, ignoring Yodson's somewhat stiff face, casually tossed a milky-white die into the air, then reached out and caught it.

Then he opened his palm, the Probability Die lay still in his palm, six pips facing up!

"Heh, looks like today's luck is not bad."

Rakton sighed softly, his body instantly turned transparent, in an instant transforming into sparkling starlight points that surged and darted into the spirit world.

(End of chapter)