Chapter 23
Ango set up her sniper rifle on the mountaintop, its barrel gleaming coldly in the setting sun. She couldn't hear Xisen's voice, but she could see through the scope and observe the situation on the rooftop.
When she saw that only one priest appeared on the roof, she felt a little relieved, unaware that danger was quietly approaching.
Suddenly, a message popped up on her computer—it was Du Lang! The shock of the message broke the silence, and her fingers quickly switched between the sniper scope and the computer.
The man who claimed to have been arrested had not contacted her for several days. When he came this time, he told Ango a bombshell news.
"I know where I am now," Duran's message sounded tense. "I heard they say this is Ibilene Island, a secret MAA experimental base. Many people have mysteriously disappeared here, captured for human experiments."
Ango looked at the news and analyzed Duran's credibility.
Xisen told her that there were pagan activities on the island of Ibilene, and Archbishop Owen reminded the school to participate in the extraordinary ability competition here. Various mysteries shrouded the island, making it a dangerous place.
"You must come and save me! Sangria! I can only rely on you now!" Through the screen, Ango seemed to be able to see Duran's panic.
Through the sniper scope, Xisen once again handed the dagger to Ian. Although the Archdeacon was courageous, he was clearly no match for "Shadow" Xisen. Ango was distracted by the conversation on his laptop and didn't pay much attention to the situation on the rooftop.
"I understand, but since that island is quite dangerous, you must put more chips on the line," Ango replied. "Tell me everything you know."
Du Lang obviously has other secrets, and she needs to get more information.
"Sangria! I don't have time!"
Ango ignored it and waited patiently for a few seconds, and sure enough, new news came.
"Well, if you really want to know, then I'll tell you about the shipwreck."
Ango thought Duran would reveal more information about MAA or the "snatching" ability, but she didn't expect him to change the subject and return to the death of her parents.
"Wasn't it Ghost Commander who did it?" Ango responded calmly, his heartbeat quickening. "In the recording you emailed me, he personally admitted it. I even used technical means to verify the recording's authenticity."
Those words still echoed in Ango's ears. The Ghost Commander said clearly: "Sangria will never know that the shipwreck was planned by us."
"Yes, he was the mastermind behind this, but do you know who the person who did it was? It was someone you know very well!"
Ango's heartbeat quickened: "Who is it?"
"Think carefully, who else joined the group after you? You're a family member of a victim, so the group took the initiative to sponsor you. But what about that person? He came to us on his own initiative! He was just a child at the time. Why did the group make an exception and accept him?"
An ominous premonition came over Ango.
"He must have done something sincere." Ango's voice trembled slightly.
Ango has always been confused as to why Xisen suddenly joined the Interhead Group. How could such a young child, who had extraordinary abilities but had not yet made a name for himself, make such a choice?
"...You mean, 'Shadow' Xisen?" She could hardly believe it.
At this moment, a cold object pressed against Ango's forehead, and a woman's voice rang out excitedly: "I finally see your true face, Sangria."
Ango's heart skipped a beat. Her hand instinctively reached for the weapon at her waist, but it was too late. She felt a cold, dangerous breath behind her. She knew she had fallen into a carefully laid trap.
At this time, Ango was wearing a gray casual suit and a shell necklace given by Irene hanging around her neck - this was far from "Sangria's" usual outfit, but her face was not covered by the face-changing mask, revealing her green pupils and sharp facial features.
This face is well known to the public, and the enemy can quickly identify her.
"Put your hands up," the woman threatened, increasing the pressure on her hands. "Don't try any tricks."
Ango slowly raised his hands: "Who are you?"
"Hmph." The woman sneered with contempt, holding the gun horizontally, walked up to Ango, and pointed it at her forehead. "Take a good look at this face that is about to take your life."
Ango saw that the woman was wearing a silver robe with purple patterns embroidered on the cuffs and hems. He immediately understood her identity and his face turned pale.
"It seems you recognize me." Dai Li raised the corners of her lips.
"No," Ango replied, "I don't recognize him."
"But you recognize my clothes. I am a relative of Lin Guang."
"A user with the ability 'Purification'." Ango said.
In the "Purification" route, C-level and D-level ability users only have the "weakening" effect, which can weaken the power of extraordinary ability users and can only play an auxiliary role in combat. However, B-level ability users are the nemesis of the transformation system and can make her inventions ineffective, and the A-level above can even silence natural ability users within a certain range.
To be able to sit in the position of Silver Robe Priest, one must have strength above B level, which is enough to make her secret weapon ineffective.
The person in front of me is not easy to deal with.
"You really want to see me?" A puzzled expression appeared on Ango's face.
"Of course." Dai Li answered quickly, with a hint of pride in her tone. "Ian guessed it right, which is really a pleasant surprise... I didn't expect you to be here, alone. As long as I kill you, I will become the pride of the family."
Ango looked at Dai Li's face. The lady's eyes sparkled, as if she had seen the long-awaited prey. Ango could see that the silver-robed priest in front of him regarded himself as a lamb to be slaughtered - after all, Dai Li took the initiative and had the ability to restrain herself.
"No, you will let me go." Ango said firmly.
"Why?"
"Because..." Ango whispered, "You can get more this way."
Dai Li was stunned for a moment, and before she could react, Ango quickly grasped the barrel of the gun with one hand, tilted it inward, and grasped Dai Li's wrist with the other hand.
With a "bang", Dai Li pulled the trigger and the bullet shot out, but because the barrel was tilted, it did not hit Ango.
After the gun went off, Ango's hand holding the gun barrel suddenly twisted upwards, while the other hand still tightly clamped Dai Li's wrist. Dai Li's fingers hurt, and she screamed, and instantly released her strength, and the gun fell into Ango's hands.
Dai Li reacted quickly as well. She bent down, tried her best, and rushed towards Ango's abdomen regardless of anything.
With a powerful lunge, Ango fell backward, his gun dropping to the ground. The two of them rolled several times down the slope of the hill. The coarse rocks on the road scratched Ango's right cheek, and the earphones in her right ear fell out at some point.
They stopped in a panic. Dai Li was the first to see the gun and rushed over to grab it. Ango grabbed her and punched her in the face.
Dai Li was beaten so hard that blood oozed from the corner of her mouth, but she refused to give in. She picked up a stone nearby and smashed it on Ango's head with one hand.
The blood blurred Ango's eyes and she couldn't see clearly for a moment. Dai Li took advantage of this opportunity to pick up the gun that fell on the ground.
When Ango heard the sound, although he couldn't see clearly, he still took out the soul-hunting gun from his waist based on his feeling.
Just now they were too close, and the other party would shoot as soon as she made a move. But now there was some distance between them, and fighting in this situation, Ango didn't think he would lose.
"Sangria, you know, the first thing anyone in our family who awakens their abilities does is hide. Because of your research, countless people have come to us, kidnapping, murdering, and taking our blood... The Interhead Group, the Black Market Research Institute, the pagans... Everyone wants us."
Ango didn't say anything, but his expression changed slightly.
Dai Li now looked miserable, as if she was trying to show Ango how difficult her childhood was.
"In order to be able to take blood for endless research, my relatives were kidnapped and lived a life worse than death." Dai Li's eyes were faintly filled with madness. "So the people in our family have known since childhood that if we can see you in our lifetime, we must kill you."
"I'm not..." Ango wanted to explain herself, but she didn't know what to say.
Her original intention was certainly not to bring suffering to people, but such a thing happened because of her, because of human greed.
"You are nothing!" Dai Li took two steps forward and pressed, "You didn't do it, did you? But this is all because of you! Besides, it was Lin Guang's death that made you glorious. It was his blood that gave you success."
Ango's face paled. Her research had indeed been built on Lingguang's life. Even if she hadn't done it, and even if she couldn't tolerate the cruelty of the Interhead Group, could that wash away her sins?
At the same time, she thought about the other crimes committed by the group, the victims who were killed, the victims who were forced to participate in human experiments, and the colleagues she had lost.
At this moment, Ango's hands were shaking and she was wavering.
It was this moment of hesitation that was seen by Dai Li.
The young silver-robed priest seized the opportunity and shot Ango in the thigh. Ango's legs went limp and he fell to the ground with his back against the tree trunk beside him.
Dai Li said condescendingly: "It would be too easy for you to just end it directly."
Against the light, Ango couldn't see her expression, but she could vaguely see that the silver-robed priest took out a bundle of hemp rope, then wrapped it around her twice and around the tree trunk twice. The hemp rope was rough and tightly tied around Ango's wrists and upper arms, making her unable to move.
"What are you going to do?" Ango asked.
Dai Li's lips curled up, her eyes seemed to be burning with fire, and her hands were indeed burning with fire - she prepared a flint, lit it, and threw it at the bushes beside Ango.
"Of course, I will judge you in a religious way."
"Judge me." Ango lowered his head and murmured, "For what crime?"
"The traitor Sangria dared to use his own power to perform the duties of God, bringing disaster to God's servants. Therefore, God sent this wildfire as punishment to appease his anger."
Ango looked at Dai Li in confusion. Her pious look puzzled Ango: "What makes you believe in him so much?"
Ango used "he" to refer to the god that Dai Li believed in.
Dai Li smiled contemptuously: "Our family is blessed by God and has been glorious for generations. As the servants closest to God, we should be loved, not like now, where everyone is in danger."
"Then...if I stop the experiment, what about those ordinary people who are not favored?" Ango asked again, questioning sincerely, "What about those who are still starving, in war, and in poverty?"
"Everyone has his own destiny. It's their fault that they have such bad luck." Dai Li opened and closed her lips, coldly announcing the fate of ordinary people.
"Life...?"
At this moment, Dai Li's face overlapped with countless faces he had seen before - Archbishop Owen who exploited the poor, the conceited Hewel, the arrogant and rude aristocracy... those who relied on their innate talents or family power to commit evil and bully others. Ango's brain suddenly became clear.
She came from an ordinary family and had no talent at first, so her parents boarded a boat in search of hope, and were separated from each other ever since.
Her experiences and the ordinary people she saw told her that the moment of birth seemed to be a watershed in life.
Ango wants to break this watershed.
She also has her own mission, and the road that must be followed to the end is the destiny she has arranged for herself.
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