Chapter 8

"Very well, since the direction and time are suitable, let's follow him. If we can't catch up, we'll go straight to the church. I can't let myself go hungry on the first day in this new world. I shouldn't think like this, or I'll start feeling sorry for myself."

Xiaode, with this "simple" thought, gathered his things and set off, following the man along the low wall by the street.

To avoid being discovered, although the fog in the city grew thicker as evening approached, Xiaode still dared not follow too closely. He was well aware that he lacked the skills for tailing someone.

Naturally, after about ten minutes, when they turned around the back wall of a milk delivery company and entered an alley, Xiaode completely lost sight of the man.

"Ha~ Should I say, as expected, I lost him."

Standing in the alley, he looked around blankly, confirming that he had indeed lost his target, and then shook his head, giving up on further searching. He didn't dwell on it; since he had lost the man, he would go to get the "relief food." However—

"Where am I?"

In a completely unfamiliar city, while trying to avoid being discovered, Xiaode had no time to remember his route. He only knew that he was now in a narrow alley with a terrible smell.

On the left was the outer wall of the milk delivery company, and on the right was the side wall of a three-story apartment building. On both sides of the walls, besides the rusted pipes connecting in different directions, there were layers of obscene words and graffiti. At the bottom of the walls, there was garbage and feces everywhere.

Only near the alley entrance were a few thick, rusted steam pipes, abandoned by someone.

"Let's check the name of the milk delivery company and find my current location on the map."

Xiaode had an idea and no longer cared about the person he wanted to follow.

He turned and retraced his steps along the alley, being careful not to step on the indescribable filth. As he was about to exit the alley, he cautiously avoided a group of police officers in uniform who were running down the street in front of him.

The tall, middle-aged man at the end of the group, with a face full of stubble, glanced at Xiaode, who looked back at him with an innocent expression. The police officer ignored Xiaode.

"What's happening over there?"

Xiaode stood at the alley entrance, looking in the direction the police were running. Since he didn't know which street this was, he couldn't identify what was there.

"Not my business."

He said softly, holding his notebook and walking towards the entrance of the milk delivery company. This was not a factory, but an office building for the delivery department. The yard surrounded a two-story yellow building, and a somewhat old dog was lying at the entrance.

The dog looked at Xiaode as he approached, but seeing that Xiaode only stopped at the entrance without entering, it lazily stood up and moved to a spot where the sunset could reach.

The name of the milk delivery company was "Silver Parrot," a strange name, but it was indeed on the map. The previous detective had even noted that a murder had occurred here three years ago.

The murder case had nothing to do with Xiaode. As he walked forward with the map unfolded to a quarter, he constantly confirmed that his location was correct.

There weren't many pedestrians on the street, and walking with his head down wouldn't cause him to bump into anyone. Unconsciously, he followed the direction of the white steam pipes along the wall, reaching the end of the street. Ahead was a five-way intersection. According to the map, taking the street with the pastry shop to the left diagonal would be a shorter route.

However, the intersection was almost blocked by a crowd. Near the mailbox on the east side was a silverware shop, with a clean sign, but something seemed to be happening there. The group of police officers Xiaode had seen at the alley entrance were maintaining order, preventing people from getting too close.

As he paused to observe, more four-wheeled carriages arrived from behind and other intersections. In just a few minutes, more police officers appeared, and even some people who looked like scholars from a school got out of the carriages, though it was unclear what they were doing.

Xiaode didn't intend to join the crowd; getting the relief food was the most important thing. But because the crowd was so large, he was inadvertently pushed to the front while trying to cross the intersection.

He wanted to move back, but the people behind him wouldn't let him. The police in front kept shouting, telling people to disperse, as there was nothing to see.

Perhaps noticing that Xiaode, who had been pushed to the front, wasn't trying to get closer, a young police officer with a pen in his chest pocket kindly warned him to be careful of pickpockets.

This made Xiaode nervous, and he subconsciously touched the ten-shilling note in his pocket. After confirming it was still there, he noticed a group of armed police officers escorting three men in civilian clothes into the silverware shop.

The tallest man was exceptionally muscular, the young man in the middle had the air of a scholar, and the last man looked familiar to Xiaode. It was the missionary who had given him a flyer in the afternoon.

"Do missionaries in this world also work part-time in the police force?"

He thought of a conclusion he didn't really believe, gripped the coin and pocket watch in his pocket, and decided to leave quickly, or he would be late.

Just as he turned to push his way back, a strange warning sounded in his heart. Before he could understand the cause, he heard a sound—

Boom!

The explosion took everyone by surprise. The deafening sound made people in the crowd scream. Although there was no visible fire, the glass windows of the silverware shop immediately shattered, and the walls seemed to tilt, causing the metal pipes on the walls to make a screeching sound.

Fortunately, the police had not allowed the crowd to gather at the shop entrance, so no one was injured when the panic cries began.

The crowd dispersed like a flood. Xiaode, standing at the front of the crowd, tried to stay calm and leave, but he saw a brown-haired middle-aged man running towards the shop entrance:

"I'm a reporter! I'm a reporter! What happened here?"

He held a notebook in one hand and waved a badge in the other, more excited than anyone else, but was quickly stopped by the young police officer:

"Gas pipe explosion, sir, please do not approach."

Xiaode didn't believe this conclusion at all. A gas pipe explosion couldn't possibly—

Boom!

Another explosion, almost stopping hearts, sounded in the silverware shop, and the shock wave pushed people back.

This time, even the second-floor windows of the silverware shop shattered, and the falling glass forced the police maintaining order to temporarily retreat. As Xiaode stepped back, he saw through the window that two people were fighting in the second-floor explosion, and one of them seemed to have a glowing fist.

The distance was too far, and the fog from the sunset was reducing visibility, so Xiaode couldn't see clearly.

"Extraordinary?"

He thought.

"Yes."

The woman's voice startled Xiaode, but knowing she wouldn't explain further, he didn't ask and quickly left the area.

"The three people who entered must be from the church. And since this happened after they entered, it's likely that the church in this world is an extraordinary force, closely tied to the kingdom's order. This means the probability of the orthodox church being trustworthy has greatly increased. I wonder if I have a chance to access the church's channels."

Now he had two options: not just the psychiatrist, but also the five churches in the city, which could help him contact the extraordinary and understand the voice in his head.

"But, how could I just happen to witness this?"

He followed the dispersing crowd in the direction he had planned, and the woman's voice in his head repeated:

"Observe his ring."

Although he still didn't know who the woman in his head was, Xiaode knew she had no obvious ill intentions. He immediately followed her advice and looked around, and to his surprise, he saw the young man with the pebble ring and the suitcase walking not far ahead.

"How could this be a coincidence? Wait, could the explosion have anything to do with him? Why would I have such a thought? There's no evidence at all."

With this thought, Xiaode didn't want to follow anymore. If the man could create an explosion like the ones in the silverware shop, following him would be like repeating the tragic fate of the previous detective.

"No, no."

Xiaode slowed his pace, hoping the man would naturally disappear from his sight. But unexpectedly, the young man also stopped, took out a map like Xiaode had, and then entered a nearby alley with his suitcase.

"Follow or not?"

The woman's voice in his head had mentioned the ring three times, so it couldn't be out of boredom. But Xiaode, who knew almost nothing about the world, had to be cautious.

He continued on his original route, passing the alley where the young man had turned, and naturally glanced inside, seeing the man turn a corner ahead and disappear.

"Follow or not?"

He asked himself again, suddenly realizing that the next decision would affect his life for a long time.

"Follow or not?"

He asked the woman in his head, hearing a laugh and a whispered answer:

"The path of fate lies before you, stranger. Do you choose to remain ordinary, or do you yearn for immortality? The world is like an ocean. Do you have the courage to explore the terrors beyond the safe islands? The path of fate lies before you, one leading to the extraordinary, the other—"

"Follow!"

Xiaode bit his lip, pressed against the wall, and entered the alley.