After wandering around for a while, the streets remained empty.
Mu Xuan walked up to the front of a shop, his brows furrowing.
Although the town had returned to its original state, it was like an empty shell, with not a single soul in sight.
However, the shard he was holding continued to tremble without pause.
The tremors weren’t strong, but just enough for Mu Xuan to feel them.
After glancing around once more, Mu Xuan decided to go inside and take a look.
Guided by the shard’s pull, Mu Xuan slowly made his way to the counter.
He reached out and pulled—an overwhelming stench surged forth as a corpse rolled out from behind the counter.
He quickly stepped aside to avoid contact with the body, and as he looked at the counter, Mu Xuan’s brow tightened even further.
A faint light of divine power surged out, flowing into the counter. Slowly, he drew another shard from within.
As the shard was retrieved, the entire shop instantly collapsed into ruins.
As expected…
This town was only being maintained by the artifact shards…
Mu Xuan hesitated as he fused the newly obtained shard with the one he was carrying. If the town was being sustained by the shards, was it really right for him to turn it into ruins?
Moreover, this place should also be bound by the rules… The shards might be able to counteract the power of those rules to some extent.
If he took all of them, Mu Xuan wasn’t sure if something terrible would happen.
Still, now that he had confirmed the reason for the town’s existence, even if he wanted the shards, it could wait. He still had to go to the church and check on Millie.
No longer hesitating, Mu Xuan set off quickly toward the direction of the church.
With the town restored, the roads had become clear again. Even if he didn’t know the way, as long as he followed the general direction, Mu Xuan would be able to find the church.
Along the way, there was no one—no living thing at all… The whole town was eerily silent.
Soon enough, amid this unsettling silence, Mu Xuan arrived at the church’s entrance.
Looking at the slightly dilapidated but still intact church, Mu Xuan couldn’t help but recall yesterday afternoon, the curious look in Millie’s eyes, and Father Ander’s excitement.
His feelings were complicated. After a sigh, Mu Xuan pushed open the doors and walked inside.
The interior of the church was just as quiet, not a sound to be heard.
“Tap—Tap—”
In such stillness, Mu Xuan’s footsteps echoed loudly. With each step, his heartbeat involuntarily quickened.
Mu Xuan’s gaze searched around the church, but Millie was nowhere to be found.
Now, Mu Xuan was certain…
Perhaps, due to the artifact shards, the timeline of this story had shifted once more.
Making up his mind, Mu Xuan followed the pull and retrieved the church’s shard. Watching as the church turned to ruins once again, Mu Xuan let out a sigh.
For now, gathering the artifact shards came first.
Mu Xuan moved swiftly. With nothing else to worry about, and guided by the pull of the shards he already had, he swept through the entire town in no time.
The whole town, after Mu Xuan’s sweep, was once again reduced to ruins.
“Hiss… Isn’t this a bit inappropriate?”
Gazing at the town, now returned to ruins, Mu Xuan couldn’t help but feel a twinge of guilt. But he quickly pushed the thought aside.
For one simple reason.
The collected shards, drawn to one another, erupted with golden light. Amid the twin lights, the shards continually fused together.
Soon, they formed a ceremonial rapier.
The material of the blade did not resemble any known metal of this world; it was more like it was forged from solidified “light” or “crystal,” giving it a semi-transparent sheen.
At the center of the blade’s spine, a thin golden rune stretched from guard to tip, pulsing like a living vein, shining and dimming at a slow rhythm, as if silently breathing.
The crossguard was simple yet sacred, shaped like a pair of gently folded wings.
At the very center of the crossguard, a teardrop-shaped gem was set. Clear as a cloudless sky, yet within it swirled a liquid-like radiance.
Depending on the viewing angle, it shimmered with aurora-like ripples of color.
The hilt was wrapped in some unknown silvery-white leather. As Mu Xuan gripped it, he was surprised at how comfortable it felt.
At the end of the hilt, the pommel was set with a tiny fragment of the same main gemstone as the crossguard, the two gems echoing each other, sustaining the sword’s peculiar brilliance and balance.
The entire sword was pristine and spotless. Even though it was formed from countless shards, at this moment it gleamed as if brand new.
Mu Xuan gazed at this holy sword—one of the three sacred artifacts of the Church—with awe in his eyes.
Compared to this, his own, though certainly magnificent, staff was simply no match for the holy sword!
What’s more, holding it, Mu Xuan could clearly sense that this holy sword was not a violent weapon; its form was more like a work of art forged by a deity.
The blade was long and flowing, radiating a soft, silvery-white glow like moonlight from within.
Simply put: both beautiful and practical.
Its form was more fitting for a ceremonial sword symbolizing the Church’s light, but in terms of destructive power, the holy sword was by no means lacking.
However… Mu Xuan could sense that nearly ninety-nine percent of the sword’s divine power had already faded.
Even so, the strength of the holy sword was nothing to be trifled with.
At the very least, Mu Xuan was satisfied.
“My holy sword!!!” Unable to restrain himself, Mu Xuan raised the sword and struck a chuunibyou pose.
But in the next instant, countless black mists descended from the sky, instantly enveloping the already ruined town.
Tch… I just wanted to show off a bit…
Still, Mu Xuan understood that the shrouding of black mist was always the final fate of this town.
He didn’t find it strange. With a sigh, Mu Xuan felt a trace of relief that his current location was still within the church.
But Mu Xuan also made a surprising discovery. Within the black mist, it was nearly impossible to see the path ahead—sometimes, even his own feet were obscured.
Yet from the holy sword in his hand, that moonlike silvery-white radiance pushed back the darkness around him, making it much easier for Mu Xuan to make his way into the church.
He didn’t need to fumble about blindly or rely on his own divine power.
The whole town was in ruins for some unknown reason, and of course, the church was no exception.
However, the church’s main structure remained intact.
Mu Xuan stepped inside. Before he could even get a clear look at the interior, a figure rushed toward him, tackling him to the ground.
Feeling the softness against his face, Mu Xuan’s cheeks immediately flushed red. At the same time, he wrapped the holy sword in divine power to prevent it from harming the “girl” in front of him.
“Your Grace Mu Xuan! You’ve finally returned!”
Perhaps due to overwhelming excitement, Millie didn’t care about anything else, clinging to Mu Xuan and rubbing against him.
But this left Mu Xuan in quite a predicament.
After all, compared to his own not-yet-developed form, Millie’s figure was, to put it mildly, rather ample.
As a result, that softness pressed repeatedly against his face, making Mu Xuan’s blood rush and his mind go dizzy for a moment. The disguise he maintained with divine power vanished in an instant.
Mu Xuan returned to his true form—a fluffy white-haired ball barely a meter sixty tall.
haha how can this pope act so cute