The battle had already begun, with the church still a considerable distance away. It was unknown what awaited them on the remaining path.
With the situation as it was, there was no choice but to press on.
Stepping over the threshold, Lin Yuan caught a faint floral scent.
He was wearing a gas mask, yet he could still smell it.
What kind of flower possessed such a potent aroma?
Lin Yuan crouched down, examining the area closely. The garden was illuminated by large candles, allowing him to see quite clearly.
The flowers in the beds were all pale red, resembling unopened Lycoris radiata, but lacking their mystique.
When viewed against the candlelight, a faint mist could be seen rising from the blossoms, dissipating into the air a few centimeters above them.
The entire garden was not fully enclosed; the ceiling above was designed the same as the corridor outside.
Stone trellises were covered in vines, allowing these twisted plants to serve as protection from wind and rain.
As a result, the air inside was not filled with the pale red hue of the petals; it was normal.
These strange flowers gave Lin Yuan a bad feeling. Coupled with the irrigation device fashioned from a wine barrel nearby,
the viscous crimson liquid within clearly wasn't any ordinary fertilizer.
After observing for a minute, Lin Yuan left the garden.
Less than a minute after he departed, the flowers in the beds abruptly turned, swaying gently in the direction Lin Yuan had gone.
After walking for a few more minutes, Lin Yuan encountered no one and no diverging paths. His sense of direction within the manor had become extremely poor, rendering his compass useless.
A faint light filtered in.
The shadows overhead disappeared, and the vine-covered corridor was finally behind him.
Lin Yuan looked up. The church on the mountainside was still lit, noticeably closer now.
It was good he hadn't taken the wrong direction.
Ahead lay a three-way intersection. The signpost pointing left indicated: Cafeteria.
The signpost pointing straight ahead indicated: Scenic Lake.
The signpost pointing right indicated: Amusement Park.
The Scenic Lake and Amusement Park were out of the question. Both locations had the feel of areas where minor bosses might appear.
He decided to head to the cafeteria first.
This route would likely involve skirting the edge of the manor and heading towards the foot of the mountain.
"One step at a time," he muttered.
After speaking his resolve aloud, he quickly proceeded to the left.
He desperately needed to capture someone for information. Having already killed two people in the garden, being discovered was only a matter of time.
He might as well go all out, using the shortest possible time to ascertain Lin Junhui's actual location.
Of course, this was merely his thought process. In reality, as long as he could find any clue, he would try to buy himself more time.
Hm?
Suddenly, Lin Yuan's gaze was drawn to a small flower by the roadside.
This flower looked nothing like the ones in the garden. It was shaped like a common morning glory, trumpet-shaped.
Strangely, it lacked the climbing vines and stems; only a single flower grew alone on the ground.
After staring for a long time without discerning anything, Lin Yuan stopped paying attention to the flower.
But the moment he took a step, before his foot had even landed, a whistling sound from behind exploded in his ears.
His superior reflexes allowed Lin Yuan to detect the danger in advance, and he immediately leaned back, dodging the sudden attack.
With a skillful roll, he quickly got to his feet. In the faint light, Lin Yuan clearly saw the face of his assailant.
It was a massive vine, as thick as an adult's arm, dotted with the trumpet-shaped flowers he had just seen.
To Lin Yuan's surprise, the vine did not engage further. After missing its strike, it retreated directly.
No, if it escaped, his location could be exposed.
With this possibility flashing through his mind, Lin Yuan drew the short spear from his back and threw it.
The training within the investigation team had significantly improved the hit rate of its members, let alone a "super-soldier" like Lin Yuan.
In the blink of an eye, the short spear caught up to the retracting vine, pinning it to the ground.
"Hiss!"
Being struck by an object that countered it, like a meteorite, was not a pleasant experience. The vine writhed violently, emitting sounds of pain.
Lin Yuan: "??????"
WTF?
How could it have developed sentience?!
Seeing the vine about to sever its own limb to escape, Lin Yuan's killing intent intensified. He charged forward, brandishing his knife.
Sensing an approaching enemy, the vine's contortions grew more violent.
Finally, before Lin Yuan could deliver a blow, it managed to sever the vine pinned to the ground.
Retreating into the shadowy greenery, Lin Yuan did not get a clear view of its path.
"Damn it! So close!"
Frustrated by his failure, Lin Yuan quickly regained his composure.
He pulled out his short spear, buried the severed vine tissue, and quickly moved away from the scene.
...
The church on the mountainside.
Just as Lin Yuan attacked the vine, within the church's library, a languid figure suddenly opened its eyes.
Concurrently, a maid rushed in, saying, "Lord Harthol, the Flower of Life just fluctuated. An intruder has breached the premises."
"I know. Stay here and guard. I will go and see for myself," said Saint Harthol.
"But, the Holy Mother said that you should..."
The maid dared not speak further before finishing her sentence, utterly unable to withstand the gaze of the woman before her.
"I said, retreat!" Harthol's eyes blazed like burning rubies.
The maid, head bowed, stammered, "Yes!"
Disregarding the maid's subsequent reaction, Harthol opened the monastery window and leaped out.
A cliff of one hundred meters!
But this did not impede her progress. Mid-air, countless blood threads sprouted from Harthol's back, weaving into a pair of blood-colored wings.
Flapping them vigorously twice, her speed reduced. She glanced in a direction and flew downward.
In less than five minutes, Harthol landed at the location where Lin Yuan and the vine had just fought.
Harthol observed carefully. The blood-colored wings on her back dissolved into scattered blood threads, capturing scent molecules in the air.
"It is indeed a stranger, but not like Andrea. Who could it be?"
Suddenly, Harthol's left eye turned scarlet, creating a stark contrast with her right eye, which shone like a bright ruby.
A voice, entirely different from hers, spoke.
"Wang Xiaoxin, we should immediately inform Mother that someone has invaded!"
"My dear little sister Harthol, I told you long ago that our Mother doesn't care about us at all, you understand? She only ever thinks of herself!"
"Damn you, I won't allow you to speak of Mother like that! She is trying to resurrect my brother! Not for herself!"
Harthol's roar was only audible to Wang Xiaoxin. If anyone else were present, they would only see their "Saint Harthol" talking to herself.
"You will see soon enough. You will see how your brother is resurrected~" Wang Xiaoxin deliberately emphasized the word "resurrected."
Unexpectedly, Harthol did not retort further. The scarlet hue in her left eye dissipated. This was the first time she had actively withdrawn without Wang Xiaoxin's suppression.
"It seems you have grown considerably."
Looking at the disturbed soil on the ground, Wang Xiaoxin knew very well that vine tissues were buried beneath. She made no move, merely staring intently in the direction of the cafeteria.
"Since someone is causing trouble, I will help you, Andrea. I hope you are strong enough; time is running out."
"Flap flap."
The sound of beating wings gradually diminished until it disappeared.