CHAPTER 973: CHAPTER 166: TRUST THE PROPHET

"Did the prophet make a mistake in the prophecy..."

Puxiu’s swaying tail halted.

"Perhaps... not... now," Ophelia said.

Puxiu quickly comforted the changing state of Lu Li: "Yes, Mr. Luli, remember the prophet said it wouldn’t be a bad ending? We must trust him."

"Is there water in hell."

Lu Li’s gaze fell on the basin in Hades’ hand, shifting attention.

"I won’t ask your secrets, so don’t ask mine," Hades didn’t intend to tell him.

Since Puxiu awoke, they planned to take him away. Learning of Puxiu’s departure, Hades rarely showed reluctance: "You should let the little guy rest a bit longer."

"I want to follow Mr. Luli!" Puxiu shouted.

"Alright... when children grow up, they always resist the arrangements made for their good by elders."

Hades seemed very sad, like a disappointed old man, making Lu Li feel more clearly that this was twenty-four years later.

Puxiu tried to comfort him again, but not just to comfort; it hoped Hades could return to the surface to help them as an exorcist.

"Go back? I don’t want to. Besides, I’m no longer an exorcist," Hades refused, even with Puxiu by his side.

Lu Li inquired with a glance at Merchant Anthony, who could discern who was an exorcist.

"He’s not an exorcist," Merchant Anthony replied.

"See? Even the merchant says so."

Then Lu Li suggested buying some bullets.

Vena Ice-Free Port had assembly line factories but no blueprint for bullets. It would take some time to make Silver-plated Bullets for the Spirit-Calling Gun.

"The surface still uses such outdated weapons? Never mind, it doesn’t concern me, and don’t tell me about things above, 100 shillings per bullet," mentioning transactions, Hades always habitually showed his gold teeth and proactively shielded any messages from above.

"Deal."

Bullets stored in the dry, scorching hell might still be usable, perhaps. Hades didn’t allow their use here and once sold bore no responsibility.

Lu Li still used shillings, worthless to him, to buy two boxes of Silver-plated Bullets from Puxiu.

"Mr. Luli, have you found a way to resist the curse?" Puxiu asked expectantly.

"Wait! Wait until I’m far away before you discuss!"

Hades exclaimed, moving away with an umbrella from Lu Li and them.

"No."

"What then?"

"I can’t... tell you... yet."

Leaving hell, Puxiu’s consciousness would continue to be beguiled by heretics; Lu Li and their plan had to be kept secret from those heretics.

"Then... what should I do?" Puxiu asked.

"Remain in ignorance," Lu Li said.

"Oh..."

Puxiu seemed to understand.

The merchant soon left hell. Lu Li and others would remain in hell for a while, waiting for Merchant Anthony to return, bringing back messages that would determine their next phase of action.

"Why... does this person... live... in hell."

Ophelia observed Hades from afar. He climbed the city wall overseeing Inferior Demons moving stones.

"He believes hell is safer than above."

From the current results, it’s not a wrong decision.

Evidently, Hades harbors secrets. Like his firm belief in their world’s destruction and power to withstand hell’s pervasive erosion of the soul.

But Hades didn’t want to reveal, and Lu Li was uninterested in knowing.

The merchant brought back good news shortly afterward.

They should leave.

Gazing at the dark red land in the distance, the mountain peak at the Rift Valley’s end is as majestic as the Spine of the World Mountains, with heat waves from the lava sea rising into the clouds, creating a stunning scene.

He still had some grudges in hell not yet resolved.

But not now.

Giving Puxiu medicine brought back by the merchant to make him fall asleep, they traversed the Gates of Hell from heat to cold.

Shadow Church members were no longer seen on the streets; the Insect Path leading to Belfast was beneath their feet.

...

Snowfall in Belfast like ocean waves never ceased.

The fog-borne presence leaving footprints in the snow did not vanish either.

Lu Li and them left the Insect Path, bypassing Agate Lake’s environs to enter Belfast.

Twisted Vine Church did not send believers to escort them, or rather, didn’t plan to send believers for an escort—though a Vine Church believer awaited them on the street.

The silent believer who sent them out of Belfast a few days prior.

"Have you been waiting for us all along?"

Lu Li noticed footprints extending from the house behind the silent believer.

It should have stayed here long enough.

"The prophet... knows... you’ll return, also knows... our... journey... outcome, right?"

"He told me to give this to you."

The silent believer didn’t answer, just handed Lu Li the Parchment.

Under the oil lamp’s glow, the edge of the Parchment shimmered, revealing conversations that had happened, or not yet happened.

[Lu Li: Have you been waiting for us all along?]

["Just as you thought"]

[Ophelia: The prophet knows you’ll return, and also knows our journey outcome, right?]

["I glimpse everything along the river of time"]

[Ophelia: Why don’t you tell us?]

["Knowing the future means altering the future, which would only make the ending worse"]

[Ophelia: I don’t think so]

["You would step your right foot first instead of your left, the distance between each step changing, altering the time of arrival, experiencing different circumstances, dialogues skewing... an avalanche triggered by an insignificant snowflake"]

[Lu Li: What’s our plan?]

["You suspect the existence captivating Puxiu shares origins with the one who captured Katerina, letting the Shadow Church follow you to Watch Town to bring Puxiu back, have the merchant seek cooperation with the Twisted Church, together to lure out the heretics and rescue the captured Katerina"]

[Ophelia: What’s the result?]

["Remember what was written before? I can’t tell you"]

[Lu Li: Who captured Katerina?]

["That can’t be said either"]

Lu Li’s gaze left the end of the Parchment.

The questions not yet asked indeed arose as new questions each time he heard a previous question. Ophelia should have felt the same.

Lu Li understood the prophet’s avalanche analogy, like "the story of the missing horse hoof nail," just that being concealed and manipulated felt uncomfortable.

Even though they knew the prophet only observed, and because of Lu Li’s past assistance, guided the outcome, like the author of a book.

Now, they could only trust the prophet, that He stood with them.

Lu Li now had only one question.

"There’s more... on the back."

Katerina suddenly pointed to the faintly visible text on the back of the Parchment.

Lu Li flipped the Parchment, looking at the back.

It was the last question.

[Lu Li: What can you tell me about Anna?]

["I’ll say again, it’s not a bad ending"]