Chapter 52: The Trump Card

「The Trump Card」

When a semi-divine artifact capable of threatening the safety of faith falls into the hands of the Grand Inquisition Court, do you think they would share it with players to help them uncover trial clues—even for just a few hours?

The answer is obvious.

No.

But after obtaining the dagger, Mo Qiusi did not immediately put it away; instead, he held it up as if displaying it to the fearless crowd gathered around.

When Fang Jue saw this, his gaze tightened.

This didn’t look like boasting over a trophy.

A judge from the Grand Inquisition Court had no need to be so ostentatious.

If not for that, there was only one reason he did this:

He was fishing!

Fishing for the killer with the weapon!

Mo Qiusi clearly wanted to see who in the crowd showed interest in this object.

Even if he couldn’t catch the killer, catching a few like Cheng Shi would be better than nothing.

Unfortunately, his intent was perhaps too obvious—no one dared defy the Grand Inquisition Court’s authority by acting now.

Du Xiguang clearly understood this scene too; both he and Cheng Shi lowered their heads, avoiding Mo Qiusi’s gaze.

After waiting a while and seeing no further developments, Mo Qiusi spoke with a hint of disappointment:

“A relic of a lesser deity, stained with the divinity of [Defilement] and [Death]—this, is the source of calamity!

That filthy heretic used this relic of a lesser deity to orchestrate slaughter and panic.

Though we did not capture that rat today, you need not fear any longer.

For he has now lost all capacity to desecrate the God of [Prosperity].

Rest assured, under the watchful eyes of the Grand Inquisition Court, no sinner can escape judgment.

It may simply take a little time.”

With that, he tucked [When Fear Comes] into his robes and left the inn without hesitation.

Watching Mo Qiusi lead away the judges and enforcers, Cheng Shi sighed quietly.

At this moment, players had lost the best opportunity to seize the dagger.

This also meant the clue had slipped away from them once more.

And this time, unlike before, there was almost no chance of turning back.

“The surge of Life Light is now unsealed, but Yongzhan Town remains closed to entry and exit. We hope you will stay in town longer to witness the [Order]’s judgment and the criminal’s punishment!”

The town’s autonomous alliance elders announced the unsealing order, but Cheng Shi felt no help at all for their current situation.

This unsealing order felt more like a heavy shackle, locking the players inside the inn.

Unsurprisingly, the Grand Inquisition Court was closely monitoring which traveler would be the first to leave the inn.

For anyone with guilt in their heart, this inn—so heavily watched by Mo Qiusi—was clearly no safe hiding place.

“He” likely desperately wanted to find another place to hide.

And this, precisely, was Mo Qiusi’s plan!

Retreat to advance; shift from open to hidden.

From now on, no one would know where Mo Qiusi was or where he was looking.

With their greatest advantage lost, the true culprit behind the scenes could only live in constant dread, doing everything possible to clear their own suspicion.

Yet any unusual action might be spotted by sharp-eyed judges, leading to imprisonment in the Grand Inquisition Court’s death cells!

The situation spiraled uncontrollably into the abyss, with not a single glimmer of hope visible.

After the crowd dispersed, Cheng Shi, despite his physical discomfort, cast two healing spells on himself, then dragged his numb body toward Fang Jue.

Though the [Order] believer had no desire to continue cooperating with him, he still needed to understand what had happened downstairs.

This time, Fang Jue did not refuse Cheng Shi’s questions; perhaps sensing the trial’s urgency, he truthfully revealed everything about the “pursuit” of the “Bard.”

“It wasn’t a ‘person’—it was a puppet, a puppet crafted from flesh, devoid of thought or consciousness.”

A puppet?

Cheng Shi froze, suddenly recalling the Desire Puppets he’d encountered in a previous trial.

Such things were precisely the kind of technique the [Defilement] believers excelled at.

Could the killer truly be the players’ “target”?

Du Xiguang added beside him:

“Since it was a puppet, no memories could be extracted.”

As soon as he finished speaking, Cheng Shi’s brow furrowed.

He wasn’t disappointed again from lack of clues.

He realized Du Xiguang was lying!

The sentence was short, and the only possible lie was this: he had extracted the puppet’s memories.

But chose to conceal them.

Why?

Cheng Shi glanced at Fang Jue without expression, only to find the [Order] believer showed no suspicion of Du Xiguang’s words.

Fang Jue didn’t know Du Xiguang was lying—he too had been deceived.

The situation grew suddenly more complex.

Interesting. The situation had deteriorated this badly—why would someone still refuse to share the only clue?

Could it be...

He received a [Memory] directive and uncovered my identity?

That didn’t make sense.

Even if so, he could have shared the clue with Fang Jue—[Order] believers were the most reliable players, and that had never changed.

Besides, more minds meant better solutions; collective thinking was always better than solitary struggle.

So why conceal it—and what exactly was he hiding?

Cheng Shi glanced at Du Xiguang, but Du Xiguang didn’t notice—he was frowning in deep thought.

Clearly, he wasn’t thinking the same thing as Cheng Shi.

But that was fine—at least there was another clue. Keeping an eye on Du Xiguang might still offer a sliver of hope.

Cheng Shi nodded, thanked him, and turned to leave.

Before he could take a step, Fang Jue asked again:

“What happened in the room before we came up?”

Cheng Shi never lied, so he answered honestly:

“The Ascetic reached [When Fear Comes] before me, but he seemed unable to control this semi-divine artifact.

I tried to help him, but he refused me.

After that, you all saw what happened.

He died in Mo Qiusi’s hands, and we... lost the clue.”

Fang Jue stared into Cheng Shi’s eyes for a long time, found no deception, and nodded in acknowledgment.

Cheng Shi smiled indifferently and walked away.

He had two things to do now:

First, get out of Du Xiguang’s sight, then quietly follow him whenever he moved.

Second, “interrogate” those few “Bard” friends—he’d been drinking with them for days; how could they not have noticed even one puppet?

After Cheng Shi left, Fang Jue sighed and said to Du Xiguang:

“It seems we can’t find any clues in reality—so, Mr. Memory Traveler, show us your trump card. We need it badly.”

Du Xiguang adjusted his glasses and smiled meaningfully:

“[When Fear Comes] is in the hands of a [Order] believer. You, too, are a [Order] believer—shouldn’t you be the one to reveal your trump card first?”

Fang Jue fell silent for a moment, then spoke sincerely:

“I do have a trump card—but I cannot tell you what it is.

You may consider it a cheat opportunity: even if we lose every clue in this trial and suffer until the final second, I can still walk out unharmed and survive.

So...

Du Xiguang, I’m helping you. In this situation, I still can help you.

As a [Order] believer, I’ve always upheld the laws and morals of the human world before its collapse.

And this is precisely why, despite not inviting you to perform the [Order]’s decree, you still receive my blessing.”

Du Xiguang’s eyes widened in shock; he frantically checked himself, but found no blessing on his body.

Remember, that public [Confession] last night wasn’t a Singer’s blessing—it was a Lawgiver’s output technique, requiring no teammate to follow the [Order]’s decree.

Fang Jue saw his confusion, sighed, and waved his hand lightly—a faint glow erupted on Du Xiguang’s body.

Now, Du Xiguang saw it.

[The Faint Light of Order], an S-rank Faith Talent: within a certain range, when a target adheres to the same Order as you, they share your physical state—a state invisible to the target.

“!?”

“See? You can share my Faint Light—this proves you are not a twisted player; you, too, uphold the old Order!

That’s why I still want to help you.”

Du Qiyu was first stunned, then smiled in understanding.

"No wonder I've felt my physical condition improve so much—I thought it was due to the effect of 'Bloom Until Withered,' but the real source was here."

Thank you, and thank myself.

Good thing I'm a good person."

"So?"

Du Qiyu quickly pulled a ticket, resembling a movie ticket, from his pocket and shoved it into Fang Shiqing's hand, whispering mysteriously:

"At three tonight, right here—let's embark on a journey through memory!"