Dream world.
Within a desolate city.
Thud!
A humanoid monster with three heads fell to the ground, its blood and flesh melting like water, continuously flowing in one direction.
In a dark corner, Lin, clad in a black trench coat, raised her hand and began extracting.
Eventually, large pools of blood transformed into a single drop of 'Red' essence, which landed in her hand.
After completing all this, Lin immediately hid in the darkness and disappeared.
At this moment, several mutants arrived late...
'The path of 'Red' is dangerous... no... any path of spiritual awakening is dangerous...'
In the gap of the corridor, a pool of dark red was continuously shifting.
Lin's thoughts wandered slightly. She thought of the Black Sun Cult and Ike, who had become increasingly unfamiliar after joining.
'The Black Sun Cult is the same. Ike... has he been corrupted by that presence?'
It must be said that over this period of time, the little girl had truly grown up, and her mystical knowledge had been continually increasing.
Any path of spirituality must have a source!
Mere mortals tracing the source will naturally be influenced and polluted by it!
This is not even something those sources do intentionally but a natural change and transformation that infiltrates the body and mind!
'Only the Spirit of Delusion... can purify this pollution... It... what kind of deity's path is it?'
Lin, as a pool of red, seeped through the door crack, entering a sealed room.
This room seemed to have been a storage room, now cleaned out, containing a permanent altar built with candles, rituals, and obsidian...
swish-swish!
The red substance surged and transformed into the figure of a little girl.
She appeared taller than before and now reverently lit the candles, beginning her prayer:
'Wandering Spirit of the Unknown...'
'Absolutely Neutral Existence...'
'Silent Observer...'
'Your devotee prays to you, beseeching you to open the gates of your realm, to descend with radiance... imploring you to purify my body and mind, and to accept the offering I present!'
While conducting the ritual, Lin placed today's harvest, a drop of 'Red' essence, onto the altar.
She had performed such prayers and rituals many times, but not every time did she receive a response.
But this time, the situation was different.
Blaze!
The candles burned fiercely, and countless visions emerged.
Lin heard sounds that surpassed human comprehension as she saw countless orbs of light floating, forming a grand door at the center.
With a soul-shaking sound, the door burst open, and endless light spilled out.
The light enveloped the offering, making it vanish in an instant.
'Thank you for accepting the offering.'
Lin exclaimed with joy, as this was the first time the Spirit of Delusion accepted her offering, signifying satisfaction.
'Hmm... your offering this time is quite good...'
Alan appeared before Lin, speaking indifferently.
Since he couldn't respond to prayers and rituals from a great distance, he had followed Lin for some time, prompting her to establish a fixed altar for communication.
This way, as long as Lin prayed here and if he was present, they could 'connect' again.
As for the times when Alan was offline or exploring other places?
Well, there was no avoiding that.
But that was normal. After all, which deity could respond to every prayer?
A god not answering prayers was quite a common occurrence, wasn't it?
In comparison, Alan was already quite considerate.
Just keep trying, and eventually, you'll catch him when he's present.
At this moment, he held the drop of red essence, feeling the different powers surging into his body, his gaze shifting: 'It seems, having her attempt to offer spiritual sacrifices has had some effect...'
'Through rituals and sacrifices, having followers offer their powers... it might be useful to me?'
While Alan was relishing the item brought by the offering, comparing how it differed from his own mysterious units, he suddenly felt the trace of red spirituality disappear.
'No... not disappear, but...'
Alan couldn't wait to return to reality to feel the difference, his heart exceedingly thrilled.
But he forcibly suppressed himself, knowing that if he ran away now, there would be no mixing later.
'My Lord... I want to save my brother, I seek your protection and assistance, and I will certainly strive to present more offerings...'
Below, Lin was pleading.
She knew that even if she rescued her brother, it would be futile. Ike had already been contaminated by the Black Sun Cult, just like her back then. Perhaps his situation would be slightly better, but still limited.
Only the purification of the Spirit of Delusion could restore his sanity and true personality!
Moreover, the Black Sun Cult was also a formidable foe; thus, the rescue mission must be approved by the Lord.
'Save him, with what head should I save?'
Alan listened to the prayer, secretly complaining to himself: 'I'm just a lowly spirit, if it weren't for the ritual connection, I wouldn't even be able to intervene with you... how can I fight the Black Sun Cult?'
After considering for a moment, he spoke directly in Lin's mind through the ritual's mystical link: 'Now is not the time to grant it!'
Yes, if faced with an unmanageable task, attribute it all to fate.
It's not that he wouldn't save; it's just that the timing isn't right.
And after a while, perhaps Ike would die, so there would be no need to rescue him.
'My Lord...'
Lin bit her lip and suddenly said: 'I am too weak...'
She didn't expect such a great existence to personally assist an ant like her, and thus continued to blame herself: 'My power is still too small, but I would like to ask your permission to establish a cult that worships you!'
She wanted to gain strength, aside from enhancing herself, another way was to recruit others!
'A cult? I don't even know what path I can open...'
'However, I can let Lin recruit people. No matter what path they take, they are all welcome...'
Alan was happy to see this.
Although he was still quite weak, he had one useful aspect, which was the ability to dispel pollution from terrifying presences.
'Extraordinary beings in this world are too easily influenced and polluted by higher presences... I can help them maintain sanity... With this benefit, I can attract extraordinary beings from any path, thus obtaining more secret rites and knowledge...'
Thinking of this, Alan said directly: 'Yes!'
Then he took the initiative to cut off the connection and logged off to the real world, eager to verify certain hypotheses.
'All glory to my Lord!'
Sensing the Lord's departure, Lin finally offered a prayer and respectfully left.
To her, this place was the Lord's sanctuary and possibly the future headquarters of the cult.
'Oh no... I forgot to ask the Lord what the new cult should be named... and what image and symbols He favors...'
Lin smiled bitterly: 'However, the Lord probably doesn't care about such trivial matters... even the altar is very rudimentary, without a statue or special marks...'
She thought for a moment and made a decision: "The Lord is the only light in the end times, the new cult shall be called—'Light of Redemption'!"