Chapter 1483: Dawn Church of the Randall Valley

"Good morning, Doctor."

Although the distant city of Tobesk had welcomed the early spring rain, Wednesday in the Randall Valley was a long-awaited day of fine weather.

There was no snow, no earthquake, and certainly no outbreak of a massive epidemic; even the gray mist that had smelled of rotten eggs throughout the entire winter had vanished.

More than half a week had passed since that great earthquake, and the lives of the Randall Valley citizens were gradually returning to the right track. After all, everyone had to eat and support their families. It was not that people would not mourn the departed, but the living were more important.

And so, on this sunny morning, in front of the Dawn Church in the northeastern part of the city, on the west bank of the Ailong River, Xia De waved to Doctor Shi Nai De with a light step.

The Doctor had clearly arrived earlier than Xia De. He was sitting on a long bench on the riverbank, directly facing the entrance of the Dawn Church, reading a local newspaper. An old man leaning on a cane sat on the other side of the bench, bending over to feed pigeons, while a middle-aged gentleman on another bench nearby was brushing dirt off his child's knees.

"Oh, Detective, good morning. The weather is truly wonderful today; this is what spring should look like."

Doctor Shi Nai De put down the newspaper, stood up, and said with a smile. Xia De shook his hand enthusiastically:

"How has your sightseeing in the Randall Valley been these past two days?"

"Very good. Ever since I started running my clinic, I haven't been able to come out for a walk in a long time. Perhaps I should take a short trip every year; it helps a psychologist like me keep a pleasant mood."

The Doctor replied, folding the newspaper and stuffing it into the outer pocket of his overcoat, then lowered his voice to remind him:

"Turn up your collar, Detective. The marks on your neck are too obvious."

"Oh!"

Xia De hurriedly lowered his head to look, then realized it was difficult to see his own neck, so he had to turn up his collar. Fortunately, the weather was still cold, so such attire would not seem strange.

"Then let's go. I hope that Priest Mo Feisi—I mean, Bishop Mo Feisi—is in the church today."

Saying this, the two walked together toward the bustling crowd at the church.

The church faced the riverbank, separated from the gas street lamps, benches, and rectangular wooden flower beds on the bank by a very wide road. After crossing the street along the river, they entered the small square in front of the church, followed by the steps.

Because it was adjacent to the riverbank, considering the summer flood prevention issues, there were thirteen steps in front of the local Dawn Church, which made the church look even more imposing.

Although it was a weekday morning, after experiencing the great disaster, the citizens were clearly more willing than usual to pray to the gods and seek peace. This was not about placing their own safety on external forces, but because they truly had no other way.

Brushing past those truly devout believers, Xia De adjusted his collar while asking:

"Speaking of which, Doctor, has there been any big news in the Randall Valley these past few days?"

"Of course there has. Hotels all over the city are checking the identities of outsiders. I was even checked three times in two days just because I have the appearance of a Delarion."

Speaking of this topic, the Doctor seemed quite unhappy, then lowered his voice and muttered in the Northern language with a Tobesk accent:

"These Southerners, they just discriminate against Delarions."

Xia De did not ask how the Doctor had avoided the checks, nor did he remind him that "Southerners" was also a discriminatory term, but instead smiled while walking up the steps:

"Such checks are bound to happen. I am more curious about how the newspapers explained the landslides, fireballs, and such that happened before dawn on Saturday?"

Although the final battle was outside the city, whether it was the battle between the Ringed Shushi and the Guardians, Yin Luna's Earth Energy Cannon, or the subsequent battle between gods, the sound and light effects could be clearly observed in the city. The girls from the Wang Erde Opera House could prove this.

"These are all secondary disasters caused by the earthquake. The landslides were the earthquake, the fireballs were underground flammable gases being ignited, the singing was a hallucination, and the sky light was an unknown astronomical phenomenon similar to the aurora before an earthquake."

The Doctor said. The people around them did not look sideways because of their conversation, because this was a topic everyone in the city had been discussing these past few days.

"I see..."

Xia De nodded, reached the end of the steps with the Doctor, and then followed the crowd into the main entrance of the Dawn Church.

The church's imposing metal double doors were clearly wide open, but upon crossing the threshold, one immediately felt that the indoor temperature was at least ten degrees higher than outside, and the air was filled with a comforting scent of incense. Coupled with the stained glass windows in the main hall, the religious murals on the walls and dome, and the influence of miracle elements on the psyche, a sense of holiness in the church arose spontaneously.

"Then how are the monsters explained? Fossil creatures and fallen elemental spirits also appeared in the city, right?"

Xia De asked in a low voice. The Doctor looked at him with surprise:

"That's a strange question. Explained? Why explain it? The newspapers didn't even mention it. Detective, these things you mentioned are just rumors among the common folk. I think these were all hallucinations produced by people who were panicked during the earthquake, in fear and worry. Plus, it was night, which easily amplifies fear, making people see normal things as monsters. Through the process of hearsay, it was exaggerated, which is why there are stories like urban legends."

He said very seriously:

"As a licensed professional psychologist, I want to give you a piece of advice. If you encounter such patients, you can introduce them to me for treatment. 'Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder' after a great disaster is a frontier hot research direction in psychology in recent years, and I am very happy to provide help to these patients... My fees are very cheap."

Hearing him say this, Xia De nodded knowingly. Clearly, the parts that could be explained were explained by the City Hall, and the parts that could not be explained were met with silence. After all, in this already superstitious era, people would be very happy to find a reason they could accept for themselves.

The local unicorn legends, elf tribe rumors, and the stories of the Randall Valley that Xia De had come into contact with were mostly formed this way.

Only this land could remember the truth of all stories; it was like this before, and it is like this now.

"Excuse me, sir, are you a psychologist?"

Xia De and the Doctor did not stay in the main hall, because that was clearly not a place to talk. They walked toward the interior of the church while talking in low voices. Although Doctor Shi Nai De believed in the Zhengshen Sect 【God of Nature and Evil Thoughts, Lord of All Things】, Xia De at least ostensibly believed in 【God of Light and Shadow, Mr. Dawn】, so the two originally planned to let Xia De pray first.

But they had just passed through the main hall where a collective confession ceremony was being held and arrived at the side corridor. Before they could enter the side prayer hall, an old man who walked out of the prayer hall curiously interrupted their conversation.

He was wearing clerical robes, and his age looked even older than Priest Ao Gu Si. Although his hair was white, his spirit looked quite good. When speaking in the Kaisenrike language with a slight Randall Valley accent, his tone had a very charming cadence.

"You are..."

Xia De examined the old man's attire. Although it was the style of traditional clerical robes, the details such as the trim of the robes still indicated his identity. Xia De knew Bishop Kanas Ouwenzhu of his own parish and was very clear about the bishop's attire:

"Are you Bishop Mo Feisi?"

Neither he nor the Doctor expected that they would find the person so easily. Originally, they thought it would take some effort.

"Yes, two friends from the North. I am very sorry to interrupt your conversation."

The old man said with a smile. It happened that there was no one in the corridor for the moment, so the three of them talked in the corridor.

The Doctor introduced himself:

"I am a psychologist. May I ask if there is anything?"

"Yes, after the earthquake last week, there were significantly more believers coming to the church to pray than usual. Although I am very happy that people can take my Lord as a spiritual reliance, sometimes, some small psychological techniques can also help those poor people get rid of those terrible memories as soon as possible."

Bishop Mo Feisi had the appearance of a typical Southerner, and his cheekbones were quite high, but the bridge of his nose was slightly lower. Like Doctor Shi Nai De, his eyes were blue, but perhaps because he was older, the color of this old gentleman's eyes was somewhat dim.

"Psychology can indeed play a role in this situation. I have always believed that the priests of the church should study psychology in addition to theology. Unfortunately, this discipline is far less recognized by people than 'Mechanical Manufacturing' or 'Business Studies'. For people who have suffered a great disaster, after ensuring their life safety, psychological counseling is also very important. The Delarion Psychology Society has conducted statistics and surveys. After major disasters such as earthquakes, tsunamis, and storms, the suicide rate will show a significant peak. By the way, the surveyed population included both the poor and the middle class, and the results are very rigorous."

The Doctor talked about his professional field very seriously, and then talked about the differences between Delarion's psychological research and Kaisenrike's.

This not only involved the difference in funding for higher education institutions between the two countries but also related to the different perceptions of psychology among the people of the two countries. The arrival of the steam age had comprehensively promoted the development of society, and the changing times meant that people could not immediately accept all changes.

But clearly, Bishop Mo Feisi was quite interested in the topic of psychology and chatted with Doctor Shi Nai De for a full twenty minutes.

When this topic was about to end, Xia De finally spoke about the real purpose of his and the Doctor's visit today:

"Bishop Mo Feisi, we actually have something to ask of you."

He took out a letter, which Xia De had gone to the Dawn Church to ask Priest Ao Gu Si to write after leaving the Jia Lin Na Manor this morning:

"The Doctor and I are actually both from Tobesk. Before we left our hometown to come here, an old priest from the Tobesk parish asked us to deliver a letter to you." ===== CHAPTER 1484 =====