Camus, who had just loaded the Purifying Bullets into his revolver cylinder, heard a sharp sound of static in his mind.
Before his eyes, the world seemed to separate from him, a chunk of transparent glass forming a barrier between him and reality. Under the Wraithâs Shriek, cracks appeared on the glass, extending into the Spirit Body.
A faint shattering sound reverberated in the ears of Lumian, Rhea, Lugano, Amandina, Robert, who had just crawled out of the ground near the altar, and the other naked men frantically dodging. It brought sharp pain to their eardrums, blood to their noses, and agony from the depths of their souls.
Almost everyone froze in place, like fragile porcelain caught in an invisible storm.
The naked men, who appeared ordinary, fainted without a sound. Blood seeped from their eyes, nostrils, mouths, ears, and skin. However, Lumian, who had advanced to Sequence 5 Reaper, suffered the least damage and recovered the fastest.
Thin ice crystal arrows shot at him, their arrowheads flickering with a cold light.
In an instant, Lumian made a decision.
He didnât transform into a shadow creature or enter the shadows to dodge the damage, nor did he attempt to duck.
Instead, blazing white flames ignited over his body.
He transformed into a burning-white spear and hurled himself towards the stained-glass window closer to the door, facing the ice crystal arrows.
Padre Cali, with his dark brown skin and sinister expression, stood there.
Amandina was the second to recover from the Wraithâs Shriek. She witnessed the majestic blazing-white flaming spear collide with the ice crystal arrows hurtling towards them.
Silently, a portion of the ice crystal arrows facing the blazing-white flaming spear evaporated into sizzling white gas, while the surrounding ones quickly melted and turned to steam.
White mist caused by water steam filled the air. Although the blazing white flaming spear had dimmed significantly and stopped burning violently, it still pierced through and headed straight for the stained glass that revealed Padre Caliâs figure.
Similar ice crystal arrows pierced through the white mist, striking Amandina, Camus, Rhea, and Lugano. However, they either melted or shrunk significantly, reducing their speed.
Amandina and Camus, who had just escaped the Wraithâs Shriek, easily dodged. Although Rhea and Lugano couldnât react in time and were hit by the ice crystal arrows, they only felt a slight pain, as if a child had hit them with a snowball. It was a little painful, but mostly wet and cold.
They seized the opportunity to snap out of their daze, almost at the same time as Robert at the altar.
The blazing-white flaming spear struck the stained glass, shattering it into countless pieces. However, Padre Cali had already leaped onto the window that Lumian had pried open, narrowly escaping the attack.
As the flames of the burning white spear dissipated, Lumianâs figure emerged from the fading light.
Without hesitation, he ignited white flames once more, transforming into a majestic spear that shot towards the window where Padre Cali had appeared, determined to pursue his enemy.
He deliberately refrained from teleporting and repeatedly transformed into a flaming spear, hoping to lull Padre Cali into overlooking such possibilities. Then, at a critical moment, he would unexpectedly appear beside him and use the Spell of Harrumph, catching the Wraith off guard.
Otherwise, it would be challenging to catch a Wraith that could constantly jump through mirrored objects, using them as portals to evade capture.
Furthermore, Lumian knew that Wraiths could be considered spirit world creatures to a certain extent. They could also use the spirit world to complete teleportation, although they couldnât compare to spirit world creatures specialized in this area. Nevertheless, it wasnât an ability to be underestimated.
As the fireball spear hurtled toward the window Lumian had pried open, Robert rolled to the side of the altar where their clothes were, intending to retrieve the ingredients used for spirit channeling.
An arrow pierced the stone bricks in front of him, forcing him to change the direction of his roll at the last moment, narrowly avoiding the projectile.
As soon as Rhea regained her composure, she aimed at Robert and launched an attack.
Both she and Camus believed that Louis Berry could handle Padre Cali on his own, so their mission was to restrain Robert and capture this key figure, preventing him from interfering in the battle.
As a gunshot rang out, Padre Caliâs figure vanished from the stained-glass window, leaving no trace of his presence.
The eyes of Amandina, who was nearby, reflected the image of the naked fallen padre.
Amandina wanted to resist, but her body quickly turned cold, gradually defying her will as an unknown force took control of her actions.
Amidst the sloshing sounds, Lumianâs blazing-white flaming spear pierced through the stained glass and landed outside the cathedral, three to four meters away from Amandina, its heat radiating in the cool night air.
As the flames dissipated, Lumian appeared, clad in a golden straw hat, a white shirt, and a black vest.
At that moment, Amandinaâs hands had already âinvoluntarilyâ risen. The corners of her beautiful face curled into a sinister and smug smile.
Amandina would be the first to be injured and die. If the body canât protect me, I can still jump and shift positions in time!
Padre Cali was wary of Amandinaâs ability to forcefully pull people into dreams, a power that could easily turn the tide of battle. This time, he chose to possess her instead of Louis Berry, an enemy at a higher Sequence, hoping to use her as a shield against Lumianâs attacks.
As Padre Cali manipulated Amandinaâs body with a sinister and smug smile, he saw Louis Berryâs lips curve into a radiant smile.
As a Wraith, Padre Cali had a strong spiritual premonition, and he suddenly sensed extreme danger.
A pale-yellow light burst forth from Lumianâs laughter and landed on Amandina, who stood three to four meters away, enveloping her spirit and Padre Cali, who couldnât use Mirror Blink in time.
Lumian honestly found it a pleasant surprise.
You know about Nightmareâs abilities, but donât you know how to guard against the Spell of Harrumph?
Oh, you really donât. You donât know this ability, nor do you know that Iâm capable of it.
However, as a Wraith, you can continuously âmirror- jump,â yet you insist on attaching yourself to one of my teammates and remain within a few meters of me. What kind of belief is this?
Donât you have enough combat experience?
Even if you didnât know the Spell of Harrumph, you have to guard against abilities like Psychic Piercing!
Oh, you think Camus is far away, so thereâs no need to worry about it. As a Sequence 5 of the Hunter pathway, how would I know this? Are you hoping to use me to quickly kill Amandina?
Havenât you considered the existence of mystical items?
My original plan was if I failed to finish you off after using teleportation to deliver the Spell of Harrumph and Cull, I would feign a strategic retreat and find a small space to set up the Bottle of Fiction. Then, when you caught up, I would fight you in a cramped and sealed space, just like how I dealt with Hisoka back then. To my surprise, you delivered yourself to meâŚ
As Lumian criticized wildly, Padre Cali and Amandina fainted and collapsed to the ground.
Had it been during his battle with Hisoka some time ago, Lumian would have hastened to follow through with the subsequent steps. This was because the Spell of Harrumph couldnât render a Sequence 5 enemy unconscious for long. However, now that he had advanced to Sequence 5, his Spell of Harrumph had become significantly stronger. The time he could control a Wraith had increased, although it was still limited to a few seconds.
Lumian retrieved a few special bullets from his Travelerâs Bag. They had been purchased through Camus from the patrol team.
Two Exorcism and two Purification Bullets, both golden in color.
Lumian swiftly loaded the four bullets into the cylinder of his revolver and aimed at Amandina, who lay on the ground.
Catching sight of this from the corner of his eye, Camus jumped in fright and shouted, âWhat are you doing?â
âSaving her,â Lumian replied calmly.
Then, he pulled the trigger.
The golden Exorcism Bullet struck Amandinaâs shoulder, causing her to bleed and emit a golden sunlight.
Amandina woke up in pain, and the apparition of Padre Cali detached from her body, his face warped under the âsunlight.â
Originally, with the strength of the Exorcism Bullets, it would have been impossible to expel a Wraith from the victimâs body in an instant. However, Padre Cali was unconscious and unable to react effectively.
Lumian raised his gun, his eyes reflecting the color on the surface of Padre Caliâs Spirit Body. He locked onto the pallor that had become evident.
A golden Purifying Bullet, imbued with Cullâs power, struck the Wraithâs forehead.
The apparition of Padre Cali froze as he âsawâ the bullet shatter on its own, transforming into balls of golden holy flames that spread throughout his body, igniting dust and his soul.
The bright, sun-like golden flames swiftly enveloped Padre Cali, causing him to let out a tragic scream.
This wasnât a Wraith Shriek, but it still made everyoneâs heads and ears hurt.
Lumian endured these sensations and calmly said to Amandina,
âDrag him into a dream and inquire about the source of the Dream Festival.â
Padre Cali had already been subjected to Cull and was severely weakened, teetering on the brink of true death. Amandina could effectively restrain him!
âButâŚâ Amandinaâs shoulder and head ached, but she didnât dare complain when she saw Louis Berryâs cold and calm expression.
Lumian turned to Lugano and said, âTreat her gunshot wound.â
âAlright.â Lugano winced from the pain in his eardrums, but he still rushed over.
At that moment, Padre Cali, purified by the Cull, instinctively withdrew from his Wraith state and transformed back into a human to escape the ongoing damage.
Seeing this, Amandina took a deep breath, clenched her fists, and closed her eyes.
She and Padre Cali entered the dream at the same time.