Chapter 36: Highly Useful Merits
Su Xiao leaned against the bedside, bare-chested. His talent had been successfully awakened, lifting a heavy burden from his shoulders.
Now, as long as he completed the main mission, this derivative world would essentially be over. Unfortunately, he couldn't execute the main mission just yet.
Numerous signs indicated that most contractors within the Holy Grail World had already been killed, at least judging by the derivative world's contact platform.
Aside from Su Xiao himself and Umbrella Brother, the contact platform was as quiet as a haunted house. This was the first time Su Xiao had encountered such a situation. In previous derivative worlds, the contact platform was lively, with enemies provoking each other and many seeking collaborators.
If what Umbrella Brother said was true, then only four contractors remained in this derivative world. Su Xiao wasn't considered a contractor; he was a Hunter.
Setting aside the ultimate goals of those three, their actions showed they were clearing the field. If Umbrella Brother died, would Su Xiao be next?
Su Xiao didn't believe those three high-rank contractors would let him off. So, before they made a move against him, he needed to gather all the power he could.
Checking the time, there were still four and a half hours until his meeting with Umbrella Brother. After a moment's hesitation, Su Xiao led Bubu Wang and the others out of the villa. The group set off under the cover of night toward the center street of Fuyuki City.
...
Nighttime Fuyuki City was eerily silent. Dim yellow streetlights illuminated the roads. Due to recent multiple home invasion murders and missing persons cases, Fuyuki City at night resembled a ghost town.
A car drove into the center street. Su Xiao was at the wheel, Bubu Wang sat in the passenger seat, Sakura Matou was in the back, and as for the Berserker Kariya Matou, Su Xiao had stuffed him into the trunk—that was the "VIP seat."
The car stopped in front of the grand cathedral on center street. Su Xiao got out and knocked on the church door.
Thump, thump, thump...
Su Xiao knocked for a long time with no answer. Just as he was about to use special means to enter, footsteps came from behind the door.
"Who is it?"
The old priest's slightly tired voice came from inside.
"It's me."
Su Xiao's voice made the old priest inside perk up.
"Could it be..."
The old priest hurriedly opened the door. He was wearing pajamas, with a bit of sleep crust in his eye sockets.
"You... entered Ryuudou Temple?"
The old priest stared at Su Xiao, disbelief in his eyes.
"Mm."
"Come in and talk."
The old priest stepped aside, gesturing for Su Xiao to enter the church. Once inside, the old priest hastily washed up. When he reappeared before Su Xiao, he was noticeably more alert. The two sat facing each other in the church.
"That place..."
The old priest hesitated. Su Xiao pulled out a necklace and placed it on the wooden table in front of him.
"This necklace."
The old priest's voice was hoarse, his hands trembling. He tried several times to pick up the necklace to confirm, but seemed to lack the courage.
"Huss is dead."
Su Xiao's words struck the old priest like a heavy hammer. The old priest's eyelids drooped, and his once bright eyes became lifeless.
"Did she... suffer when she went?"
The old priest covered his face with one hand, his voice choked. Clear liquid seeped through his fingers.
"When I killed her, she had already become a monster. Orphan of Resentment: Huss. As for whether she suffered... it was bearable."
"Orphan of... Resentment."
The nearly sixty-year-old priest choked up, barely able to speak.
"Can you tell me about the situation then? Did she still have... human features?"
Seeing the old priest's state, Su Xiao recalled Huss's human form. At that time, Huss had been rational, whether in human form or monster form.
"No human features. When I saw her, she was already a monster. No rationality, unable to speak. Perhaps her consciousness had long died."
"Is that so... as long as she didn't suffer too much... that's good."
"She ultimately died under that spear. After death, she turned into a beautiful woman with green hair, looking about twenty years old. Very beautiful."
The old priest said nothing more, just covering his eyes with one hand. After a long while, his emotions calmed somewhat.
"If back then... no, there are no ifs. This is the fate of people like us. I'm just one of the lucky ones."
The old priest stood up and returned to the church after a while. By then, he was much calmer, though his eyes were still a bit red.
"Sorry, I lost my composure. My relationship with Huss... we were lovers. Hoo~"
The old priest let out a long sigh.
"I'm surprised you managed to infiltrate Ryuudou Temple and kill Huss. What about the other Resentment Beings?"
"They died fairly peacefully."
Actually, Su Xiao wasn't telling the truth. Those Resentment Beings died horribly, vaporized into gas by high temperatures.
"All dead?"
The old priest was stunned, as if seeing Su Xiao in a new light.
"Well... I've already blown up Ryuudou Temple."
"Huh? What do you mean?"
The old priest sat up straight, as if hearing something absurd.
"Literally."
This time, the old priest couldn't stay calm. He stood up with a whoosh. The importance of Ryuudou Temple was beyond words—it was the core area of the Fifth Holy Grail War.
"Is the mountain under Ryuudou Temple fine? Did anything abnormal happen? Like mana erupting or..."
Su Xiao waved his hand.
"The underground mana is fine. I sensed it when I closed the spirit barrier."
The old priest visibly relaxed.
"Father, I've solved a problem for the Holy Church, haven't I?"
Su Xiao tapped the wooden table with his finger.
"Yes. Huss was once an Executor. This matter should have been handled internally by the Church, but those bastards from the Mage's Association suddenly interfered, saying the Resentment Being had research value. Their brains must be full of water."
The old priest handed Su Xiao a list. It was made of fine parchment, with the Holy Church's emblem on the back.
[Tip: Hunter has triggered the "Kirei Church" merit exchange mechanism. You can use Holy Church merits to exchange for items on the list. Current Holy Church merits: 2219 points.]
These Holy Church merits were all Su Xiao's gains from blowing up Ryuudou Temple. Aside from Huss, none of the Resentment Beings inside dropped treasure chests.
Su Xiao took the list, and a column appeared.
[Soul Crystal (Large) ×1]
Quality: None
Category: Pure concentrated essence of souls.
Rating: None
Introduction: Soul crystals are rare items, the hard currency of any world. For dark races like Abyss Demons, a Soul Crystal (Large) can even make them temporarily set aside their dignity and become your hired thug.
Exchange Price: 1000 Holy Church merits.
...
[Holy Water · Medium Bottle (99% Concentration)]
Origin: Holy Church
Quality: Light Gold
Type: Consumable (usable twice)
Effect 1: Upon drinking, restores 80% HP and 80% MP, and rapidly heals injuries.
Effect 2: If splashed on an enemy, deals 800 points of holy damage + 300 points of true damage to dark-type enemies, and forces a purification/incineration effect on them.
Rating: 300
Introduction: Drink it or splash it—this is a difficult choice.
Exchange Price: 800 Holy Church merits.
...
[Soul Hunter]
Origin: Holy Church
Quality: Light Gold
Category: Crossbow
Ammo Capacity: 1
Durability Attack: 73~135
Equipment Requirements: Strength 30, Agility 50, Intelligence 10, Basic-type Ranged Skill LV.25 or above.
Equipment Effect 1: Mithril Crossbow Bolt (Passive) - If Soul Hunter is empty, it generates an energy bolt within 1 minute. Generating an energy bolt consumes 50 MP. The energy bolt has Mithril special effects.
Equipment Effect 2: Silent Hunter (Passive) - Crossbow bolts fire silently and block a certain level of perception. Bolt penetration +9, armor piercing +8.
Equipment Effect 3: Hunter's Mark (Active) - After activating this skill, you can mark any ranged target. If the bolt hits the marked target, the Mithril bolt will explode inside the target, causing 1~3 seconds of stun or mental confusion.
Tip: Hunter's Mark (Active) lasts 10 seconds.
Tip: Hunter's Mark (Active) consumes 100 MP.
Tip: Hunter's Mark (Active) cooldown is 2 hours.
Rating: 280
Introduction: The hunt begins.
Price: 81,000 Paradise Coins
Exchange Price: 500 Holy Church merits.
...
Besides these three items, there were other equipment or items on the list, but none as valuable as these three.
Su Xiao wanted all three items. Exchanging for all of them would cost 2,300 Holy Church merits, but he only had 2,219. Awkward.
Su Xiao looked at the old priest. The old priest noticed Su Xiao's gaze and raised his eyes to stare at the ceiling.
"Father..."
"Cough, cough, cough..."
The old priest coughed dryly as if having an asthma attack.
"Sigh~ At my age, I'm useless. What did you say just now?"