Chapter 256
The Sixth Apostle, the Messenger, glanced at the Eighth Apostle, the Witcher, beside him with a look of shock as if the other was spouting nonsense, his voice rising an octave.
"Of course! Why aren't you afraid?"
"Do you think Lilith is the only one who has angered White by attacking him? Lilith sent a threatening message, which means they have already met on the 28th floor, and must have also met Hill and Little Sheep on the lower floors. Do you think those two will tolerate you going against White?"
"The light of the goddess of fate always shines upon the world. The Black King is an evil god, ruling the entire Black Tower. Do you think you're living too comfortably, trying to harm White right under their noses?"
"Most of the members of the Apostle Guild have already entered the game, including former members like Stephen. They are die-hard fans of White. Moreover, White is from Middle-earth and has long been a formal member of the elite. Those guys are known for being fiercely protective of their own."
"The fifth brother recently said that he wants to settle old scores with White. Anyone who dares to interfere before that is just asking for trouble. Don't blame him for turning against you."
"The crow is determined to find White and find out where the second brother is. He cares about White just as much as he cares about the fifth brother. If White were to have an accident during the fight and lose his memory again, how crazy do you think he would go?"
As the Sixth Apostle was speaking, he couldn't help but shudder with lingering fear and glanced over.
That look seemed to ask: Aren't you afraid? You dare not be afraid?
The Eighth Apostle's fierce and fearless face suddenly deflated like an inflated balloon, turning pale and then red. He reluctantly lowered his hand, which had been gripping the Demon-Slaying Bow with great force, and awkwardly touched his nose.
"Even without mentioning these premises, I'm really curious, why do you think you can beat White? Even if his divine power and level were completely wiped out due to the shattering of his soul, with the blessings of the gods, it wouldn't be any more difficult for him to cultivate again than for us."
The sixth apostle approached casually and communicated with them telepathically, in a way that only the two of them could hear.
[Also, can you still sense the presence of those three traitors, Lao Jiu and the others?]
Upon hearing the word "traitor," the Eighth Apostle's eyes suddenly sharpened.
He turned his head and stared at the Sixth Apostle for a long time, his whole body suddenly bristling with cold, sharp edges, his tone dark and menacing: "What do you want to say?"
The Sixth Apostle helplessly spread his hands: "Don't get so agitated. I just couldn't help but say that people who betray morality usually don't have a good ending."
The Eighth Apostle scoffed, "Morality? So why don't you dare to oppose White? Is it because of your own morality, because you can't beat him, or because you're afraid of being retaliated against by those who support him?"
"Both, but more often it's out of a sense of morality."
The Sixth Apostle said, “White did his best to uphold the righteousness he upheld until the very end, and that is why I was willing to obey him.”
“I know you and Raven have a lot of complaints about him in private, and White does sometimes act too just and coldly, but when it comes to upholding morality, I don’t think anyone can slander him.”
The Eighth Apostle was also moved, saying with sarcasm, "I never expected that you, who usually offends no one and doesn't befriend anyone, and seems like an opportunist, would actually be such a loyal supporter of White."
The Sixth Apostle: "I wouldn't call myself a staunch supporter, but I quite like the meaning of the identity of an apostle—[not an apostle of God, but an apostle who saves the fate of the world, and also an apostle of self-belief]. Do you know how shocked and frightened I was when I first heard this?"
Having worked together for so long, even if our identities are kept confidential, we can still glean some traces of our past from our words, actions, and habits.
The Eighth Apostle frowned slightly: "Is it because of your hometown..."
The Sixth Apostle was quite frank: "Yes. The people in our small town are so devout in their faith that they're almost fanatical. The High Priest holds absolute power, and every family has to make regular monthly offerings. If they can't pay, they have to pay with a person. A simple proclamation ceremony can decide a person's life or death, even if that person is truly innocent."
“I once saw someone disrespect the high priest and be gagged and thrown into a snake pit, with everyone, including children, watching. I was about twelve years old at the time, and I still remember the way that poor guy died.”
The Sixth Apostle winked and said sarcastically, "So you're all amazed by my good early adaptation and suspect I'm a psychopath. But for me, the Infinite Game and reality are no different."
But that was before he became the Sixth Apostle.
He couldn't remember which life it was, but because he was found to have extremely high combat potential, he was taken in by the high priest as a guard.
However, the difficulty of the Infinite Game at that time far exceeded the normal level that humans could compete with, and the world was vast, not just their remote corner. The high priest's usual domineering prestige and power in the village were all rendered meaningless, and the other players simply did not respect him.
With no one to help them, they were chased by the insect soldiers and ran into White's team in a panic.
Seeing the high priest venting his anger on them, the other players either watched silently or tried to persuade him with kind words, but left dejectedly after failing to persuade him.
White was very direct. Seeing the high priest grab the maid by the neck, she walked over expressionlessly, raised her long, straight leg, and kicked the high priest away!
The high priest's imperious face was slapped flat by the hard combat boots, and his teeth and blood spurted out.
That incredibly impactful scene seemed to coalesce into a resounding bell, ringing deafeningly in the Sixth Apostle's mind.
After that, White took over their group and, after they passed the test, led them to undergo a new eligibility assessment.
Those with potential will be recruited into the organization as apostle reserves, while those without potential will be properly placed according to their personal wishes.
Through snippets of conversation with the administrators, the Sixth Apostle learned that the Infinite Game had looped several times, and that they had always died at the start.
This time, White used an exhaustive approach to explore each path and try to trigger side quests, which led him to rescue them by chance.
The manager spoke of White with a meaningful tone, as if White should be grateful to his savior.
But from the moment the High Priest died, the Sixth Apostle became very confused and his mind wandered.
He didn't have any strong feelings about the reality of being rescued or about the person who saved him.
Not long after, his probationary period ended, and he passed the ability test to become a formal apostle.
The oath-taking ceremony that day was very solemn, and it felt to him like a tribal sacrificial ritual, where someone could be dragged out to their death at any moment.
Serious and solemn gazes were cast upon the Sixth Apostle from all directions. He felt as if he were being pricked by needles, cold sweat pouring down his back. The suffocating feeling he hadn't experienced in a long time surged into his heart once again, and he belatedly began to tremble.
He kept telling himself: I can't make a mistake, I can't make a mistake, I absolutely can't make a mistake!
Who would have thought that the very first sentence was wrong?
“We are God’s apostles…”
"You're wrong, it's not 'yes,' it's 'no.'"
The young man's voice rang out beside him, and the Sixth Apostle looked up in alarm: "What?"
The young man repeated his slip of the tongue, and he quickly corrected himself.
But if he were to do it again, he would still subconsciously say "I am," as if the shadow of the nightmare from the past had long been embedded in his soul and was deeply rooted.
Many inspectors immediately frowned, their already serious gazes sharp as knives.
The background check and screening process has already been completed, so the oath-taking is usually just a formality.
But if even this small interlude can become an insurmountable inner demon, one can imagine how devastated this person would be if they encountered a mentally polluting instance later on.
The young man paused, seemingly realizing his mistake, and stopped trying to correct him.
The momentary silence and quiet gaze made the Sixth Apostle's heart pound.
Under the gaze of the other person's clear, mirror-like eyes, he seemed to see his own panicked and bewildered reflection.
He opened his mouth in fear and trembling to defend himself, but because he had been enslaved for so long, he could not speak fluently and his tongue made a lot of noise.
He was almost scared to tears. He grabbed the young man's shoulder and tried to kneel down, but the young man subtly pulled his body with golden light, preventing his knees from bending even an inch.
The young man patted him on the shoulder reassuringly.
There was no contempt, no pity, and not even a word was said.
The young man turned to the inspectors and pleaded, "Perhaps we can let him change his oath."
"Change the oath?"
"Yes, change the first sentence."
"This is against the regulations!"
"No, this is stipulated in our written regulations, which mentions special handling for special circumstances. If we always adhered to formal regulations, the Apostles' Guild would not exist. Similarly, what we pursue is the belief in our hearts, not these few words of oath."
The inspectors still had reservations, but the young man overruled their objections.
The latter turned to look at him, a slight smile on his calm and solemn face: "Come on, let's choose a vow that you can accept. Let me make it clear first, I can sense your true emotions. If your belief is not firm enough, you won't pass the test."
...
The Sixth Apostle touched the apostle's emblem on his clothes, his eyes filled with an indescribable gentleness.
Thinking of the current situation, the smile on his lips suddenly turned cold: "It's a pity that the Apostle Guild is no longer as pure as it used to be, and some people have even forgotten where they came from."
"Eighth Apostle, I haven't sensed the system's power imprint on you, so I'll ask you one last question." The Sixth Apostle raised an eyebrow, "Are you now the Eighth Apostle, or just a lackey of the system?"
The eighth apostle did not speak.
Just then, voices came from below the arena.
"Gentlemen, are you ready to accept the challenge?"
The two apostles looked over at the same time and found that there was only one person who had spoken, and his companions who had been with him had all tacitly retreated to the outside of the safety line.
The Eighth Apostle looked at him suspiciously: "Just you?"
It wasn't that he looked down on the young man, but among the current 300 million players in Infinite Game, the number of people who could defeat him single-handedly could be counted on two hands.
But then the Eighth Apostle discovered something strange.
Why did the top members, who were originally planning to challenge the level, suddenly put their weapons away? Are they not going to fight?
Only Yan Chuyi remained calm: "Yes, just me."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com