Aboard the ship heading toward Bikini Beach

"Hehe, despite some hiccups, this mission was a big success!"

From the Rose School base, they obtained the potion formulas from Sequence 9 to Sequence 4 of the "Aberrant" pathway, along with a large quantity of extraordinary materials. Among them, the extraordinary characteristics and mystical items of the "Wraith" were given to Quinn, who planned to use them as alchemical materials after advancing to Sequence 4 "Alchemist". The remaining items, however, did not interest him much.

"This thing is just a bit troublesome..."

Quinn raised his hand and touched his eye socket. In the dark, cramped double cabin, no one could see the madness twisting within his pupils.

His Sequence 8 "Physician" ability allowed him to stitch souls, so he could clearly feel his spirituality being inevitably polluted by the Sealed Artifact "Cradle" and the mystical eye item of the Wraith Jun Jankowitz.

Fortunately, the effects of this pollution were not severe. If he could keep his emotions stable and not overly exhaust his spirituality, he could hold out until they returned to Bikini Beach to seek the Goddess's help.

They spent a quarter of a day traveling from the Rose School base to the ship, during which Quinn continuously suppressed the rampant desires within him. He vaguely felt a call from the distant stars, a call that felt kind and instinctively made him want to merge with its source.

At this moment, he thought of Father Utolavski, who was lying silently on the upper bunk, and a repressed smile appeared on his face.

"Poke~"

Sitting on the upper bunk, the burly Father Utolavski, who seemed about to crush the bed under his weight, was praying with his head bowed. Suddenly, he felt something sneak through the gap between the bedboards and poke his butt, then quickly retract.

He immediately understood who was playing tricks and helplessly said in a low voice:

"Bishop Quinn, please don't mess around."

"Hehehe..."

"Messing around?"

Suddenly, Quinn's voice came from the top of the cabin, making Father Utolavski jerk his head up.

Half of Quinn's face slowly appeared above him, with his features replaced by writhing ironwood, intertwined with remaining flesh. His mouth opened and closed, revealing a blood-red membrane flower in place of his tongue, blooming and closing in rhythm.

Faces emerged from all directions—front, back, sides, below—filling the air with a nauseating mix of iron-blood scent and floral sweetness.

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"I'll take your flesh!"

"What?!" Utolavski's pupils shrank suddenly, unable to believe his eyes. A Sequence 5 "Druid" had silently turned into a monster.

He opened his mouth, trying to utter "Dawn" quickly, but then heard Quinn's hearty laughter.

The terrifying faces dissipated into nothingness, and Father Utolavski seemed to understand something, his expression turning helpless.

"Hahahaha... Sorry, to fight the madness, I have to make some jokes to divert my attention. Hehe (з)-☆"

Why didn't I need to do this when fighting my past persona? I feel like you just want to mess with me... Father Utolavski almost wanted to break Quinn's legs to prevent him from doing more outrageous things.

But considering the possibility of him being a disguised runaway, he didn't dare to completely relax. He leaned down, seriously staring at Quinn, and asked slowly:

"Bishop Quinn, do you still remember the Goddess's sacred name?"

"Sigh, what a hassle." Quinn sighed. How could he forget the Goddess's sacred name? He fluently recited:

"Goddess of Origin"

"Mother of All"

"Foul Hive Mother... huh?"

Utolavski's pupils instantly shrank to pinpoints. Without hesitation, he used his Sequence 6 "Knight of Dawn" ability, summoning a set of "Dawn Armor" onto himself. Grasping the solid "Sword of Dawn" in his hands, he swung it forward like a hurricane.

At this moment, a terrifying aura erupted from Quinn's body!

The aura swept away everything, shattering Utolavski's "Dawn Armor", dispersing his "Sword of Dawn", and sending him flying through several cabin walls. Despite his extraordinary physical endurance, he couldn't withstand it and passed out.

This was the aura of a deity.

Quinn clearly felt that the unknown entity, using their connection, was trying to descend into this world through his body! He and the unknown entity seemed to originate from the same source!

"He" gradually transformed, his spirituality turning dark from the aura, a giant female shadow emerging behind him!

"I won't... let you... succeed..."

Using the connection with the unknown entity, Quinn mustered all his strength to maintain a shred of consciousness. He slowly pulled out a golden talisman hidden in his crotch and rasped, "Wuhu... take off!"

His body, lifted by an unknown force, penetrated the cabin walls and shot toward the vast sea.

At this moment, the deity's aura temporarily stopped affecting the ship, halting the crazed growth of its wooden structure. The ship, covered in twisted, horrifying plants, floated like a rainforest on the sea, with the fate of its occupants unknown.

"Return... to my embrace..."

The deity's words echoed from the distant stars, and a blurry shadow appeared before Quinn's eyes—an entity rooted in space, spewing endless dark power, scattering seeds of spirituality into the dead cosmos.

Pop! Pop! Quinn forced two vines from his head, squeezing and crushing his own eyes! He didn't hope this would resist the deity's whispers, only that the pain would bring a moment of clarity.

Pain, excruciating pain—despite the agony piercing his brain, he couldn't shed a tear from his empty eye sockets.

Fortunately, the soul-rending pain brought back a bit of his consciousness. The icy touch from the pitch-black world told him he was sinking into the ocean's abyss.

Through the deity's whispers, some information seeped into his chaotic mind.

His consciousness drifted among the ancient stars, about to merge with the unknown entity. In that moment, he understood its name—

Fallen Mother Goddess!

As he was about to be assimilated, he realized why simply reciting the sacred name had summoned her: he was a part of her separated thousands of years ago!

As he sank into the deep sea, he felt the familiar yet foreign power returning to his body, overwhelming sadness engulfing him as he lost his sense of self. Yet, not a tear could he shed.

In his final moments before darkness consumed him, Quinn Fleury used his last strength to recite:

"The Fool who does not belong to this era..."

"The Yellow and Black King of Good Fortune..."

"The Mysterious Ruler above the gray fog..."