Chapter 221: Pre-Exorcism Discussion Meeting
William turned his head and found it was Mark, the one operating the equipment. He narrowed his eyes, confirming he didn't know the other party.
"A curious yet guarded look; it couldn't be..."
Seeing Gail walking towards him aside, William instantly understood in his heart.
"This situation seems to have happened last time too..." He shook his head with a wry smile.
"Father... William?" Gail asked tentatively.
"Ms. Gail, long time no see." William smiled slightly.
Getting the other party's confirmation, Gail's eyes brightened again.
"You..."
She had a bunch of things she wanted to say, but didn't know where to start.
After the exhibition incident last time, the Anomaly Council demoted Gail under the pressure of public opinion.
Gail also blamed herself; due to her negligence, many people almost became blood sacrifices for the Satanic Cult, and she spent a low period because of this.
During this period, she had been looking for someone.
According to the Anomaly Council's internal report, Gail was found in a coma, and happened to be right in the center of the sacrifice ritual.
But when she was rescued, she only had one obvious wound on her body. However, when investigating the victims of that day later, they all claimed that everyone in the entire hall was affected.
If this were the case, Gail would have definitely been sacrificed long ago.
After all, when she woke up, she was surrounded by pieces of the cultists' corpses.
From this, it could be seen that someone must have saved her.
Originally Gail also thought it was that mysterious expert.
But no such big shot came to Philadelphia at the time.
So Gail guessed it was someone else who saved her.
A young and handsome face immediately surfaced before her eyes.
Although they only had a brief encounter, Gail felt that priest was somewhat special.
Not only did he reject her goodwill, but he also didn't show any enthusiasm.
This gave Gail a feeling of being treated equally.
After all, whether for the identity of the "Head of the Anomaly Council" or desire for her appearance.
Those men who approached Gail always had some purpose.
Later, through the Council's means, she learned that priest's name—William.
Gail had visited the West District Community Church more than once, but every time she returned without results.
That priest seemed very busy, constantly handling exorcism commissions.
Later, the Church's Exorcism Institute intervened in the Anomaly Council, turning the latter into one of their subordinate agencies.
Due to conflicting ideologies, Gail chose to quit.
At that time, she happened to bump into Mark; their elders were old acquaintances.
Gail came from a family of mediums, naturally possessing the ability to communicate with spirits, and she inherited her mother's exorcism incantations when she grew up.
And Mark's father was also a technical expert, dedicated to solving the problems of evil spirits and demons with advanced science.
Influenced by his father, Mark planned to found an organization.
He wanted every ordinary person to be able to live equally in the world, free from the harm of evil, and not needing to be loyal to a certain belief for safety.
Gail was moved by this philosophy, so she agreed to join Mark, which led to the later "Light of Humanity."
Later, she was busy with affairs and didn't go to the church again.
But Gail always wanted to find William and ask him clearly face to face.
And right now, she finally had the chance.
"Long time no see. Can I... talk to you alone?" Gail's eyes were full of expectation.
William looked beside him.
Everyone from different forces was still arguing; that Sheriff kept wiping his forehead, and the dwarf wizard constantly persuaded among all parties.
It seemed this lively scene wouldn't end in the short term, so William nodded.
When the two walked out side by side, Mark and Betty unanimously watched them from behind.
The former was scratching his ears and cheeks in his heart, trying his best to suppress the urge to step forward and ask clearly.
The latter stood on her tiptoes, gesturing the gap between herself and that beautiful, tall lady.
"Father William, I still keep the holy artifact I bought last time."
Gail took out an amulet as she spoke, tied with a quaint grass rope.
"During the exhibition back then, it was the Holy Power on this that protected me from the evil invasion. You sold it at too much of a loss."
She revealed a charming smile.
"The Lord bestowed holy artifacts upon us precisely to protect innocent people. Money is not important."
William smiled.
But inwardly he thought: "Yeah right!"
Gail was slightly stunned, admiring this priest even more in her heart.
The two then talked about this commission.
After that, Gail finally stated the real reason for calling William over.
"Father William, back then on the venue stage... were you also there?"
William gulped.
"Oh no, she couldn't have found out it was me who knocked her out, right..."
For William, who always prided himself on justice and mercy, this would undoubtedly ruin his reputation.
So after thinking for a moment, he said with a look of lingering fear: "Yes, that time was really dangerous. Luckily, I had good luck to come out alive."
Gail's face showed joy, and she hurriedly asked: "Was it really you who saved me?"
William was slightly stunned; so it wasn't about that matter.
"Saved her... in a sense, I guess so." He thought secretly.
So William nodded, feeling a little guilty.
At the time, he just wanted to leave quickly, otherwise, he wouldn't have knocked out the lady in front of him.
"Thank you so much..."
Gail told William about the situation at the time, and then asked:
"Then you must have seen that gentleman who cracked the sacrifice ritual."
Gail also once guessed—whether that person was William.
But she quickly rejected this idea.
The sacrifice ritual was very dangerous, and William was too young.
Even if he possessed three Brands, he couldn't possibly have such strength at this age.
William raised an eyebrow; so it was for this matter.
He shook his head: "I did see him, but that person had his whole body wrapped; couldn't see his face clearly at all."
Hearing this, disappointment flashed in Gail's eyes. She still wanted to try inviting that person to join Light of Humanity.
At this time, the tent flap was lifted, and someone walked towards William and Gail.
"Gail, I just found some more data."
Mark had a "Just happened to come out" look.
He handed over a piece of paper, then casually stood very close beside Gail.
"This is...?"
Gail opened the paper and saw that these were not "New Discoveries" at all; they were clearly the same old data from just now.
She couldn't help shaking her head helplessly, stepping back slightly. Mark didn't notice this detail; he was still staring straight at the priest opposite.
"This is Father William... a friend I met when I was at the Council."
Gail thought for a moment and still decided not to mention the matter of being saved.
"So you are that priest from the Vatican?"
Mark smiled, proactively reaching out his hand.
"I am Mark, the heir to Divia Industrial Company. Of course, recently I co-founded Light of Humanity with little Gail..."
Feeling the force coming from the hand, William smiled slightly: "Father Wilton is the Vatican messenger; I am just responsible for leading the way this time."
Mark put on a surprised look upon hearing this: "Sorry, I didn't know about this."
"First using words to express closeness with Ms. Gail, making it seem like I am the 'Outsider', and then using my background to foil the status of the 'Heir of a big company', huh..."
William felt somewhat speechless inside.
"This trick is a bit too clumsy."
He didn't expose the other party, just quietly watching Mark perform.
When the several people from the Church entered the tent just now, it was clearly Wilton leading the way.
And among the three, only his attire fit the Vatican messenger the most.
Even based on preconceived notions, no one would mistake him.
Mark's thoughts could be imagined.
Seeing this, Gail aside couldn't help frowning: "Mark, is something the matter?"
"Uh."
Mark was momentarily speechless. He knew Gail saw through his trick, and his special trip out was nothing more than to "Declare Sovereignty."
In a moment of desperation, he had a flash of inspiration.
"We should mediate the argument inside as soon as possible. Those teachers and students don't have much time."
Gail nodded seriously, then looked at William: "We'll have to trouble you with the Church's side."
William didn't agree directly, just said he would do his best.
The three returned again, Mark specially squeezing between William and Gail.
Inside the tent.
Under the efforts of Wizard Lombane and Sheriff Roberto, the scene finally went from a four-way argument to a stalemate only between the Church and the Lord Knights.
Knight Henry insisted on a frontal assault, completely cutting off the evil on the hostages.
They inherited the knightly spirit and could indeed achieve this.
But Wilton stated that 333 teachers and students were all invaded by evil. Purifying them one by one was not only inefficient but would give the evil spirit a chance to exploit. Therefore, they must set up an exorcism magic array covering the entire school and purify the evil at once.
One side cursed "Reckless Swordsman," while the other yelled "Cowardly Turtle." Neither was willing to yield.
William rubbed his chin.
Although Wilton's method looked safe, the area of the entire school was too large; the consumption of magic array offerings alone would be huge.
Plus the Holy Power required to maintain the magic array, the trapped people in the school probably couldn't wait that long.
And before this, there was another problem...
"There is one thing I am very curious about." William said and stepped out.
Everyone's gaze turned to him.
"As long as one steps into the school's range, they will fall into a deep sleep. Have you considered how to solve this problem."
He spread his hands.
"After all, you have to get close to that place when exorcising."
Everyone present was instantly stunned.
They really hadn't considered this question.
Exorcists all have their own beliefs; encountering this kind of thing, isn't firm belief enough?
Seeing everyone's reaction, William knew the result.
This matter was too common in American Horror.
Possessed by evil?
What is there to be afraid of!
On the brink of a life-and-death crisis, the Lord will always send down His power.
This is also why the Church in the original works was always criticized, not coming out to work until the end of the film.
This was of course the director's arrangement, but right now William was really going to face these terrifying monsters, naturally he couldn't pin his hopes on some "Screenwriter Director."
Moreover, there were failure cases for this too.
William clearly remembered that in a certain original work, there was a situation where an evil spirit reversely exorcised a priest.
Ultimately, the belief in the latter's heart was driven out.
And the evil spirit also successfully possessed him, sneaking into the upper echelons of the Church.
At this time, even though William explicitly pointed out this risk, there were still people who scoffed at it.
"Hmph, the Ancestors of Knights will naturally protect his followers. You are indeed a bunch of cowardly guys." Henry's eyes were full of contempt.
Wilton stared at William with a cold gaze, then spoke:
"Ignorant rumors! The Lord is always in our hearts. As long as we pray to Him devoutly, we can gain the power of protection."
"Father William, your theological practice is too shallow; you don't need to participate in decision-making matters."
But William directly ignored the other party.
"Have you tried it already?" He asked rhetorically.
Henry and Wilton both fell silent; they had never thought about this kind of thing.
William continued: "Since that's the case, how did you reach the conclusion that it is 'Feasible'?"
"Rude and cowardly guy!"
"Watch your language! Priest."
Both were angry inside.
William shrugged: "I just raised a necessary consideration."
"How to avoid being interfered with, how to set up evacuation routes, possible emergencies, and countermeasures..."
"These must all be considered, otherwise we will face the risk of being invaded."
"Once that kind of scene occurs, the 333 trapped people inside will be in danger."
After he finished saying these things, the tent fell into a rare silence.
Gail's eyes were bright, full of surprise.
She didn't expect Father William to consider things so thoroughly.
Winona leaning against the wall also couldn't help turning her head.
She had remained silent just now, but this priest was obviously very different from those "Self-Righteous" guys.
Also staring at William was Sheriff Roberto.
"So this is the one who can actually get things done!" He was excited inside.
Pence squatting aside looked curious.
This priest didn't look much older than him, but seemed to have a lot of exorcism experience.
"It seems I still have to work hard!" He made up his mind secretly.
Although Wilton and Henry were unhappy inside, they couldn't find any refuting arguments for a while, so they could only turn their heads away.
At this time, Gail also stepped forward.
"I think Father William has a point."
"We tested the energy field there; currently no equipment can shield it. Am I right, Mark."
Hearing Gail mention himself, Mark's heart instantly lifted.
But thinking that she was speaking up for that priest, he felt a bit depressed inside again.
"Yes, I am setting out to solve this problem." Ultimately Mark still nodded.
Lombane also chimed in: "After all, it concerns the lives of so many people, we still have to cooperate."
Seeing everyone speechless, Sheriff Roberto hurriedly came in front of William.
"Father... William, do you have any ideas!"
At this time, the situation of the scene had changed; William had clearly become the decision-maker.
"I still need to understand the situation inside the school." William looked at the Sheriff and said.
"Of course!"
Roberto immediately took everyone to a tall building nearby.
This was the edge of the cordon; any further would be affected by that power.
And the position on the roof happened to overlook the inside of the school.
Everyone stood on their tiptoes and narrowed their eyes, trying to see more clearly.
Only William took out a monocular telescope.
Roberto couldn't help thinking inwardly: "This is what you call professional."
He immediately talked about the situation observed over the past three days.
"The trapped civilians are mainly concentrated on the sports field, right there."
William looked in the direction, and sure enough, many people were lying on the ground.
Most of them wore graduation gowns, their belongings scattered all over the ground, looking like they suddenly fell into a deep sleep.
"Every once in a while, a trapped civilian will die."
Roberto's tone became serious.
"Their state of death is extremely bizarre. Some are disemboweled, with a large amount of blood gushing upwards. And some actually merged with the ground..."
Accompanied by the Sheriff's voice, everyone saw those tragic scenes.
Everyone finally realized that falling into a deep sleep was an extremely risky thing.
"Wait one more day, maybe I can find a way to avoid the influence of the energy field." Mark said with a serious face.
But William said: "The situation has changed now; we might have to proactively enter the dream world."
Hearing this, everyone focused their gazes on him.
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