Chapter 110 Origin
“Light up the dark night, guide the blind.”
This is an admonition carved directly above the abbey’s main gate.
This historic building is much larger than Li Wen had imagined. After entering through the main gate, one finds the ritual hall where prayers and church ceremonies are held.
The vast hall is brightly lit, with wall-mounted candelabras placed every few steps. The candlelight flickers with the cold wind invading from outside, but despite this, the sufficiently warm and bright light offers ample solace and peace.
Li Wen seemed to faintly hear the singing of children, a sound that seemed both very close and very far.
This is not surprising, as this abbey serves the dual purpose of a church and a seminary. Nearby residents send their young or unsupportable children here to lighten their family burdens.
These children are educated and raised by priests and nuns. Once they reach an age where they can support themselves, the abbey allows them to choose whether to leave or stay to serve Glor.
The vast majority choose the latter, as they were able to grow up normally thanks to the blessings of Glor and the Church.
“I didn’t even know there was a church here.”
Bailu said a little uneasily, her voice very quiet, likely not intending to talk to Li Wen.
But Li Wen heard her. Instead of correcting the distinction between a church and an abbey, she asked in confusion, “Moen Abbey is Glor’s territory in Leicester, second only to the Grand Evangelical Cathedral. You’ve been here so long, how could you not have heard of it?”
What’s more, Li Wen knew about Moen Abbey because the logistics minister had spoken to her about this place in her previous life.
But Bailu shook her head in confusion, “I really didn’t know.”
Li Wen was about to ask more, but before she could, all the stained glass windows in the abbey shattered, and then a cold wind swept through the abbey, extinguishing all the candles in an instant.
Almost immediately, Li Wen drew her Raven Feather Dagger and entered combat.
She was about to warn Bailu, but when she imbued her dagger with Spell-less Arc Light to serve as illumination, she realized that Bailu was no longer by her side. The entire ritual hall was empty, with only her present.
The smell of burning oil still lingered in the air, proving that the previous scene of flickering candlelight was not an illusion.
Li Wen cautiously observed her surroundings. She noticed that the faint singing of children she had heard earlier had become louder and clearer, until the entire ritual hall was filled with the chanting, as if a group of invisible children were gathered in the hall, singing loudly in praise of Glor’s blessings and grace.
What should have been a sacred scene became eerily strange in this environment, the stark contrast causing unease.
Just then, a series of hurried footsteps sounded from outside. Li Wen turned her head and saw several people dressed as priests entering from the shroud of rain.
They mostly ignored Li Wen’s presence, walking right past her, except for one white-haired, bearded priest who nodded apologetically at Li Wen.
The priests gathered in the main hall, lit a candle together, and began praying.
As the solemn and unified prayers began, the children’s singing slowly faded and then disappeared.
Afterward, the priests stopped praying, relit the extinguished candles, and then left through side doors to destinations unknown. Only one person remained in the ritual hall, the white-haired old priest.
With a kindly and solemn expression, he spoke in a low but firm tone, “They were just a bit playful. I hope they didn’t cause any trouble for our guest.”
Li Wen, naturally, did not ask who “they” were. In this world flooded with mystery and where knowledge holds power, nothing that happens is surprising.
“You are…?” she looked at the old priest as if asking, although she had already speculated about his identity.
“I am Laun, one of the current priests of the abbey.”
As expected.
Li Wen was not surprised. She calmly said to the priest, “My companion was affected by someone else’s magic and needs your assistance. But just a moment ago, she suddenly disappeared here. Do you have any leads?”
“Disappeared?”
Laun appeared very surprised. He pondered for a moment, then said apologetically, “I’m sorry, such a thing has never happened in the abbey. They might get playful when they’re lonely, but they would never do anything to harm people… I don’t know where your companion has gone either.”
If even the old priest didn’t know, then perhaps it could only be said that this was Bailu’s own trouble and problem. It’s not like she was forcibly logged out of the game because her home internet was down, right?
Li Wen thought carefully and found it quite plausible. Not by being offline, but by being forcibly logged out of the game.
To prevent players from becoming too addicted to the game, the World Tree: Origin game console only supports continuous play for approximately 48 hours of real time. Once this time is exceeded without logging out, the game will forcibly log out, and logging in again will be prohibited for at least the next three hours.
Could it be that her minister simply didn’t pay attention to her online time and was forcibly logged out after exceeding the 48-hour limit?
In all likelihood, especially considering Li Wen had found Bailu doing a quest when she met up with her, after which she was tricked into being bait for the Wolf Pack Club, and then they traveled to the abbey.
Considering Bailu’s reclusive nature, it wouldn’t be surprising if she had already been online for a considerable time before this.
Li Wen was speechless. No wonder Bailu looked so shifty and guilty when they arrived at the abbey. She probably realized her online time was about to exceed the limit but didn’t know how to explain it to Li Wen, and then coincidentally logged out forcefully at that exact moment.
“Alright, I think I know where she’s gone.” Li Wen looked at Laun and apologized, “She’s probably fine, but she won’t be back anytime soon. In that case, I’ll take my leave. I hope Mr. Priest won’t be bothered by our impolite intrusion.”
“It’s no trouble at all. Moen Abbey welcomes anyone who needs help.” Laun smiled kindly, then his gaze sharpened as he noticed the glowing dagger in Li Wen’s hand, “Is this… Arc Light? No, it’s Spell-less Arc Light…”
“You recognize it?”
Li Wen raised an eyebrow. Even Mog, who had given her the Path of Light Chasing, or rather, the demon Tilroghzakh, had not recognized the divine ability she wielded. Moria had recognized the Path of Light Chasing, but that was because Li Wen’s divine ability was something he had never seen before, leading him to make a guess.
This Priest Laun was the first to recognize the spell of the Path of Light Chasing at a glance and state its name.
“More than just recognizing it…” Laun sighed, “The abbey and it have quite an origin.”
