"But why did they do this?" Sean fell into deep thought. "If you didn't want everyone to know about the existence of the Judas Ring, you could just not have reported it in the first place."
As a journalist, Sean quickly came up with his conjecture: because he later discovered the dangers of spreading reports.
“The comprehensive ban on the Judas Ring was probably added later.
"In 1904, relevant news could be reported.
"After that, perhaps the Divine Palace discovered some kind of danger. In order to protect the public, it added a silence requirement, and the previous newspapers were deleted because of this..."
"Could it be that..." Sean raised his head in disbelief, "knowing the existence of the 'Judas Ring' will bring about some bad luck?"
This is something unheard of, but in Newlandel, a city filled with mysteries, Sean believes that this conjecture is not unfounded...
He smiled bitterly and shook his head: "Is that why my luck is so... special?"
Although there is no conclusion, at this moment Sean has to connect his "special physique" with this matter.
However, it was impossible for him to interrupt his pursuit of Aaliyah just because of a conjecture.
After browsing through the old newspapers in the collection, the information about the "Judas Circle" is still limited: "The Judas Circle was an organization formed by two apostate saints. At the end of 1904, it was completely wiped out by the Holy See...
"After disappearing for twenty years, he suddenly reappeared and kidnapped Aaliyah..."
"What's so special about Aaliyah? How can a resurgent rebel organization go to great lengths to ensure control?"
Sean frowned and had a new guess: "Does she also have divine roots?"
However, he could not confirm: "They did not try to kidnap me, but wanted to kill me. It should not be for the sake of divine roots..."
Although he knew it was not because of divine roots, Sean guessed that there must be something special about Aaliyah: "That's why she can wander around in the spirit world with evil spirits without encountering danger, so she appears again and again. In the dream of various symbols..."
"The investigation has made progress anyway. Although the breakthrough is not big, I still obtained a few pieces of 'puzzle'. I believe that after obtaining other clues, I can gradually piece together the full picture...
"For example, after learning that the Judas Circle is an organization that rebels against the Salvation Church, it can be determined that the Utopia missionary recording in the album "Midnight Elopement" is their handiwork. And the Utopia is most likely created by them, using Come against the religion of salvation.
"For example, the propaganda of the Holy Palace is inconsistent with the facts. The remnants of the Judas Ring are still acting secretly and have not been completely annihilated."
"Moreover, they must be planning something big, and kidnapping Aaliyah should be related to this big thing.
"This matter is most likely related to the anti-Salvation cult, but it is unclear what they need Aaliya to do...
"Since it involves the resurgence of the anti-Savior organization, can I use the power of the Holy Palace to fight against the Judas Ring to rescue Aaliyah?" Sean fell into deep thought.
Soon, he shook his head: "There are too many variables if you do this. God knows what the Holy Court will do to Aaliya during the process... To be on the safe side, it is better for me to conduct an independent investigation.
"However, from a standpoint, with a common enemy, Shenting and I are considered 'friends'."
"Next, we can only wait for Bill's side to provide the results of Kennedy's investigation."
Sean paused his thoughts and turned his head, and suddenly found that the old man with the lantern beside him was no longer staring at him.
He raised his head at this moment, his eyes widened to the point where they were about to burst, staring at the ceiling.
"What's there?!" Sean suddenly felt something was wrong, and the ectoplasmic tentacle once again pulled out the pistol in his hand.
Looking up at the sight of the old man holding the lantern, Sean only saw the silent chandelier and the dark ceiling. There was nothing strange.
He looked down again and found that the old man's sight was unfocused.
His eyes seemed to see through the five-story ruins of the old book cemetery, through the Explorer Center above the library, and stared straight at the sky above the building.
There was obvious fear in those eyes.
"Be careful!" The old man suddenly roared, the voice was so loud that Sean felt a chill in his heart, "Be careful!"
He searched around hysterically, found a table and got under it, making the table and chairs jingle with his panicked movements.
"What's wrong?! What are you careful about?!" Sean, who was shocked by the old man's actions, asked loudly.
"Sky... sky! Sky!"
Sky? Sean frowned, is this old man afraid of the sky?
He had heard of many phobias, but this was the first time he saw someone afraid of the sky: "Is this why he is hiding underground?"
Sean walked over and observed with his spiritual vision, he found that the other party's spirit body was completely filled with black fear...
"Maybe..." Sean looked at the trembling old man under the table with some pity, "He used to be a wise and knowledgeable sage.
"After experiencing a very terrible thing, my mind became abnormal and I hid underground without seeing the light of day."
Sean was speechless and sat on the floor. He could only accompany the old man with the lantern through this unbearable fear...
After a while, the old man's frightened murmurs gradually subsided, and he seemed to have fallen asleep, with his forehead leaning forward and touching the lantern above his head.
He seemed to be burned by the lamp wall, and he woke up with a hiss.
His eyes looked around and became particularly clear.
"Finally, I woke up again..." The old man stood up straight, his temperament completely different from before.
If he was a neurotic and crazy old man just now, now he looks more like a wise sage.
He stood up and patted his dusty clothes: "What's your name?"
"Misty."
Seemingly dissatisfied with the explorer's habits, the old man said seriously: "I meant my real name."
He didn't look at Sean, he just slowly sorted out the messy clothes on his body: "I can know even if you don't tell me. Based on your behavior and motives, I can know your true identity with just a little investigation.
"Although you tried your best to hide it, your accent and speaking habits show that you are from Leon and have not been in New Zealand for a long time.
"Your soul is very powerful, but you use a very ordinary pistol when you encounter a crisis. It shows that you are a new explorer with talent but little qualifications and accumulation."
"You came here to read the newspaper, obviously looking for some banned news, and there are only a few banned news. I can roughly guess which organization you are looking for. But I'm sorry, for that organization , I don’t know more than you, so I have nothing to tell you.
The old man's series of words left Sean speechless.
"I don't have much time," the old man took off the ridiculous lamp stand, put the lantern on the table, straightened his back, and seemed to be talking to himself, "the time I have to wake up is getting shorter and shorter..."
"My name is Edgar Pompey." He turned to Sean, "What's your name?"
"Sean Dickinson."
Pompeii's brows moved, as if he remembered something, but he didn't say anything further.
"Thank you for saving this old bone of mine." With his back to Sean, Pompeii stretched his limbs, as if he had just taken over the body and was still not used to it. "If you hadn't appeared, that pile of books would have been my tomb... Although I am a person who should have died long ago, but it seems that God does not want to see me yet.
"I can also read a few more books because of this..."
Sean was a little curious about Edgar Pompey's identity: "Why were you in that state before?"
"Neurosis is the enemy of all thinkers - but when I was most vulnerable, I was interfered by a powerful existence, so I..." Pompeo seemed not to want to mention his past anymore, "My story has already been told. Returning to dust, there is nothing more to say. The key lies in the future.
"You are a very good reader." Pompeo raised a finger with confirmation in his eyes, "You have a natural hunger for knowledge and information."
It is precisely because of this appreciation from a scholar's perspective that Pompeo, who was in a semi-crazy state, stood next to Sean and observed him reading the newspaper.
"Sean, which god do you believe in?" Pompeii sat opposite Sean, his outline illuminated by the firelight, his expression very serious.
Sudden questions.
Sean answered truthfully: "Although I went to church when I was a child, I am not a believer."
Until now after joining the Quest industry, Sean has not been able to determine his "faith" and has not received free "faith gain".
He vaguely knew why this was the case - he had read a lot of books and thought about a lot of things, so he had more questions than others.
It also explains a lot of his life choices. If he had no doubts in his mind and just believed in a certain god devoutly, it would be impossible for him to choose to become a journalist.
He never mentioned this to anyone else. In this age where gods dominate the world, his ideas are a little dangerous.
However, he felt that he could tell this to the old man in front of him.
He felt that the other party was the same kind of person as himself - in the dark night, everyone was asleep, only they were the ones with bright eyes looking at the starry sky, thinking about history, imagining the future, questioning...Shh! Sean stopped his train of thought.
Pompey asked Sean if he had read a few books, some books by the sages Wenmu and Golisi. Sean replied in the affirmative.
After briefly talking about their understanding of the thoughts of ancient sages, the two started chatting about some taboo topics.
About the relationship between God and man, about the reality and illusion of history, about the possibility of the development of the times...
Sean once felt a sense of alienation from being able to fit in with the crowd at a gathering of believers in Melinas.
Faced with the free "belief gain", he has never been able to decide what he believes in, but he is full of energy when digging for the truth and defending the truth he firmly believes in.
When everyone thought that being protected by God was a blessing, he was the only one who stayed put and chose to rely on himself.
When everyone thinks that knowledge is a curse, only he knows that human desire and ignorance are...
Those ideas that were incompatible with most people now resonated greatly with the old sage in front of him.
Pompeii was silent, his eyes flickering in the firelight, and a satisfied smile on his lips - he seemed to be enjoying the conversation.
Amid the firelight, he was silent for a long time, and then raised his cloudy but sober eyes: "You know, Sean, no matter how many books you read or how many things you think about, when you get old, you will always... More or less, you will begin to believe in fate.
"For example, you came here today and rescued me from the pile of books, and then we talked about these things, and I think this is the inevitable fate.
“I don’t know when I’ll be sober next, so I have things I want to do that I can only do in the moment.
"Sean." Pompeo's voice was firm, "I want to invite you to join the club."
Join? Sean was a little surprised. Why did he join?
"The sage of Golith, Socrates of the Riverside, established a secret organization at the beginning of the 'Period of the Gods', which was later carried forward by his disciples. After the 'Holy Return' occurred, it gradually declined...
"We are not a naturally rebellious organization, and the connections between our members are not close. Perhaps it is precisely because of this loose and lack of clear-goal temperament that compared to the Spirit Craftsmen who once stood in front of the curtain, those who claim to represent God Very little interest in us…
“The only thing that holds us together is two things.
"The same rational spirit and..." Pompeo clicked on the table, "books."
“We are readers and thinkers.”
“We originate from history, go down the long river of history, continue to this day, and try to secretly guide the times in a brighter direction.
"The name of this association is..." On Pompeii's neck, the copper pendant of books and candlelight reflected the light of the lantern...
"Candlelight Reading Club."
