"Are you crazy?" Vex whispered, unable to hide his disbelief. 'Why did I even bother coming here before hearing his explanation first?'
"What?" Ast replied, feigning innocence.
"What do you mean 'what'? You want to rob a Church? Aren't Churches a big deal? Your father leads one, and he's ridiculously strong!" Vex felt like pulling his hair out. The idea of facing a possible Exalted made his stomach churn. Even unranked opponents were beyond his comfort zone. He was barely a second-stage pre-Adept cultivator and had only just ascended.
When Vex started cultivating a Myth-quality method, all his progress in the magic path was destroyed. If he wanted to nurture his magic path again, he'd need a Myth-quality method.
Having a high-quality method was both a curse and a blessing.
"Relax. This Church is... special," Ast replied.
"How so?" Vex asked, his skepticism evident.
"Because this Church doesn't worship a god, but a man. A man who couldn't care less," Ast said with a grin, patting Vex on the back.
The duo crouched in the shadows outside a dimly lit building. Through the grimy windows, they saw two men sprinkling a strange red powder over a lifeless human corpse—a scene both grotesque and surreal.
"What are they doing?" Vex asked quietly. He never saw such a scene. It was bizarre and inconsequential. The red powder felt revolting.
"They're experimenting with blood sacrifices," Ast answered, his starry eyes turning cold. "Killing people in this already barren city... it's the worst crime someone can commit."
"Blood sacrifices?" Vex muttered, his curiosity piqued. "Are they summoning demons or something?"
"No. If it were that simple, it would actually be fine," Ast said, his voice grim. Vex blinked in disbelief—was this lunatic saying summoning demons was _fine_? "Instead, they're trying to communicate with the world itself."
Vex frowned deeply, struggling to make sense of Ast's words. "And... what's so wrong about that?" he asked.
"This world is utterly rotten. It devours itself, only to regrow and feast on its own corpse in an endless, disgusting cycle. The root of all evil is the very ground we're standing on." Ast's cold, distant eyes betrayed a flicker of anger as he chuckled bitterly. "And the culprits? Foreign gods."
"I see," Vex replied with a slow nod, though he wasn't sure he fully grasped it. 'So... it's like praying to some evil deity or something. Got it.'
While they were talking, the people inside finished pouring weird powder on the corpse. One of them took out a notebook and began writing, while the other drew a knife from his pocket.
Ast didn't hesitate. With a sudden, thunderous kick, he burst through the door, startling everyone—including Vex.
"Stop it!" Ast shouted.
'This damn idiot.' Vex hesitated, debating whether to bolt and leave Ast to his madness. But the thought of who Ast's father was made him stay. Sighing, he stepped forward with a wry smile.
It was two against two. The catch? Both enemies wielded knives. Vex's stomach sank as he saw the second man toss the notebook aside, a glinting blade appearing in his hand.
Meanwhile, Ast and Vex were unarmed.
'Dammit,' Vex cursed inwardly. 'First these lunatics, and now this. I've got to figure out how to get back to Earth. This place is insane.'
The two men didn't waste time with questions. After exchanging a glance, they charged at the duo.
Vex's mind blanked as his attacker closed in, blade gleaming. The man pulled his arm back, ready to slash, leaving Vex mere moments to react.
Instinct screamed at Vex to jump back, but he crushed the thought. His shorter frame already left him at a disadvantage—retreating would only make it worse.
But it was fine.
After all, while the man was a mere mortal, Vex was a second stage unranked cultivator. It didn't count for much in the awakened world, but it helped just enough for Vex to swiftly duck under the man's knife before punching in the gut.
The blow connected with a thud, forcing the man to fold in pain and stumble backward, gasping for air.
Straggling to maintain balance, the man coughed and coughed. Vex could swear he saw blood coming out of the cult maniac's nose.
'Weird. This strength feels closer to fourth stage than second stage,' Vex thought, his gaze darting around. He didn't trust Ast—what if an enemy had already taken him down? Or worse, what if Ast was planning to betray him?
No such thing happened.
Instead, he saw Ast clutching a knife, his opponent lying on the floor with wide, horrified eyes.
"Thank you," Ast said with a smile that nearly sent shivers down Vex's spine. He crouched and drove the knife into the man, ending the life instantly.
No longer bothering to look at the other fight, Vex glanced back at his own opponent.
Shivering legs, terrified, almost despairing look, and a trembling hand that somehow still held onto the knife.
"Spar—" The man's plea was cut short as Vex lunged forward with startling speed, landing a punch that shattered several bones in his face.
With a casual glance at the broken man beneath him, Vex let out a dry chuckle. "He's dead."
Ast's lips curled into a knowing smile. "Look again."
'Tch.' Vex clicked his tongue in annoyance. So much for extracting information. With a sigh, he stomped on the cultist's stomach with all his strength.
After confirming the man's death, Vex closed his eyes and clasped his hands in prayer.
"Even in death, may you burn," he muttered.
"So the ancient spirit still hasn't died outside." Ast nodded from the side. Then, he clasped his hands and prayed as well.
"Ancient spirit?" Vex asked, confusion evident on his face.
"Just an old story. Don't worry about it," Ast replied, grabbing the notebook and tucking it into his pocket. "Also, I know you don't trust me—and that's fair. But believe me, I'm acting in the best interest of humanity. The humanity inside the dome."
'And if it's in the best interest to kill me?' Vex wanted to ask that, but something stopped him. He felt as if he already knew the answer. Instead, he decided to enquire about another matter. "So, what's the real reason we're here? Don't tell me it's just to rob these lunatics."
"There's a war between Churches right now. It's—" Ast began, but his words trailed off as his eyes widened slightly.
As Vex discreetly pickpocketed the dead man, he asked, "What's wrong?"
Coughing lightly, Ast smirked. "Nothing—just didn't expect you to go from praying to robbing a corpse so quickly."
"What? You don't want the spoils?" Vex asked, his eyes lighting up with mock enthusiasm.
"Of course, I want!" Ast exclaimed, his voice almost comically childish as he rifled through the other corpse's belongings. Then, his tone shifted as he added, "There's an actual war going on."
Vex wasn't surprised. The Abandoned World was a bloodthirsty place, and the unnamed city he was in seemed particularly vicious.
"Your role in all this is to help our Church prevail." Ast continued while grinning from ear to ear, looking at two essence crystals he found.
"How can I help you?" Vex wondered. 'And why should I?'
"It's a fair trade—you bring resources from your world and beyond, and we'll provide everything you need for your awakening path," the teenager explained, his eyes fixed on the crystals in his hands.
Vex grinned as he uncovered three crystals. Casting a smug look at Ast, as though daring him to find better loot, he asked, "What resources can you give me?"
Seeing there was nothing left to loot, Ast sighed in disappointment before tossing the two crystals he'd found to Vex. "Take this as a down payment."
Two crystals were a lot. In fact, Vex couldn't understand why those men, clearly mortals and not even unranked, had such wealth.
Well, It didn't matter.
"Do you have magic path advancement methods?" Vex asked, greed flaring within him as a sudden realization hit—he could cultivate multiple paths at once.
"Yes." Ast nodded. "In fact, we have something no one else does."