mtl008 Chapter 4235 Possession by Evil Spirits (5)
Chapter 4235 Possession by Evil Spirits (5)
Chapter 4235 Possession by an Evil Spirit (Fifteen)
Very well, Bruce was now certain that something was definitely wrong with this place. If Aunt Kane might be feigning ignorance, then this seemingly simple-minded girl in front of him didn't seem to possess that kind of acting skill. They genuinely didn't know what coffee was.
Bruce chatted with Patricia for a while longer, and then discovered that she had the exact same symptoms as Aunt Kane: she knew nothing about hospitals, tea and coffee, modern devices like televisions and computers, and not even magazines. Her entire understanding of books came from religious texts; she possessed no skills whatsoever, except for "religiously friendly" activities.
So-called "religiously friendly" activities usually involve cooking, eating, doing housework, grooming, and family and friends chatting together. Generally speaking, only some extremely conservative religions mention this concept.
Moreover, these activities have very strict requirements: no alcohol, no greasy food, no use of modern electronic devices such as mobile phones, computers, or even television.
There are also very strict requirements for the topics. You can only talk about religious matters, praise God and believers, boast about family life, and express care and love to each other. Other than that, you basically can't say anything.
It sounds plausible, but it's actually quite absurd. This kind of strictly enforced socializing isn't socializing at all; it's a performance. No one can satisfy their social desires through this kind of socializing; it's merely a herd mentality, making them follow the crowd.
This girl named Patricia was the same. Logically, someone so young and beautiful should have been a popular figure at school, with many suitors. Such people are often confident and outgoing. But Patricia showed none of that.
She seemed somewhat timid, excessively gentle, to the point of appearing somewhat foolish. While not every pretty girl is necessarily a social butterfly, Bruce just felt there was something strange about Patricia.
Then Bruce heard some shocking news: Patricia was not only married, but also had a two-year-old son. Bruce's mind went blank when he heard this. He had a deep understanding of how to judge age by a person's physique—Patricia didn't look that old.
The reason he initially judged the girl's age was because she was slightly fuller-figured than the average girl. This led Bruce to misjudge her development, and now it seems that this was very likely due to childbirth.
In some states in the US, it's not only legal but also very common, but that doesn't apply to children this young. What's the situation with a two-year-old now?
Bruce demanded to see the child, and Patricia actually took him. Desperately, the facial bone structure revealed that the child was indeed Patricia's biological son.
The girl, however, looked blissfully happy, cradling and kissing the child. Bruce took a deep breath. The world he lived in was already messed up enough, but he never imagined that even Gotham's bottom line could be lowered further. At least in Gotham, child marriage was illegal, and medical records from child pregnancies would be directly uploaded to Brotherhood, resulting in either Gordon or Batman taking drastic action.
Bruce tried hard to convince himself that this world was fake and that he shouldn't get angry about it. But deep down, he knew all too well that in some corner of the real world, or even many corners, such things were indeed happening.
The thought of this made Bruce even angrier, and he had to do everything he could to suppress his anger.
Just then, Aunt Kane came in, praising her with a loving expression, "Lily is a good mother. She did a wonderful job during childbirth, and the elders all praised her. The baby is also growing very well, and she'll be able to see her little brother soon."
Bruce glanced instinctively at Patricia's stomach, and he couldn't help but clench his fist. The hypothermia, fever, and the psychological trauma inflicted by the stimulants were nothing compared to these few words.
With all his willpower, Bruce suppressed the urge to punch Aunt Kane. He gritted his teeth and said, "Really? What about her husband?"
"Husband? What husband? You mean the father of the child? He's still in church. Lily was supposed to have his 13th child, but we both thought that number was unlucky. So, we managed to have the baby before his other child was born. It's the 12th one."
With a loud bang, Bruce slammed his fist against the wall, startling both of them. Bruce knew he shouldn't ask "how did you do that?", but in his extreme anger, he calmed down.
"Really? That's a medical miracle," he exclaimed deliberately.
“Yes, the prayers worked.” Both mother and daughter looked devout. Aunt Kane continued, “The elders gave us this opportunity…”
Bruce was about to press the elder for details when he heard the bells ring. He glanced at the clock in the room; it was ten o'clock in the morning.
"Ah, it's time for group prayer. Come on, let's go to church together."
Bruce's anger had indeed affected his emotions to some extent. His goal had shifted from cautiously figuring out what was going on to finding the culprit as quickly as possible and striking him hard. So, without thinking, he said, "Okay, take me there."
Bruce suddenly realized that the thought that had just popped into his head seriously violated the rules he had set for himself. He thought with a touch of self-mockery that if Clark had come with him and known what he was planning, he probably wouldn't have thought he was hypocritical.
Indeed, when people encounter real beasts, they realize that they were born to be butchers.
Bruce followed the mother and daughter, winding through the town until they reached the church. As time seemed to be running out, the two hurried inside, oblivious to Bruce's presence. Just as Bruce followed them in, a dark figure suddenly appeared behind him, covered his mouth, and dragged him to a nearby flowerbed.
Bruce didn't even have time to react, and the person holding him was incredibly strong. Bruce even doubted that what was holding him was human, so he struggled even harder.
"Stop struggling, it's me."
A familiar yet unfamiliar voice appeared in Bruce's ear. He turned his head sharply and saw Schiller Rodriguez, the one in black.
"Why are you here?!"
“I came in before you,” the other person said in a flat tone. “I came here after I was stabbed by that cursed doll at the bank.”
"You mean you came here before even entering town? Why?"
"It might be related to that doll, but it could also be related to my own abilities. You should have already realized that this is not the real world."
"This is where?"
"The spiritual world. You can think of it as a virtual world composed of the spirit and supernatural forces. Someone has created such a space by using supernatural forces."
“Of course, I’ve already discovered it.” Bruce sighed deeply, then said, “There are many strange things about this place. What exactly is going on?”
He looked up at the hunter. The hunter shook his head and said, "I don't know."
"You came in so early, didn't you do any investigation?"
The hunter shook his head again and said, "Because I can see it, I can't look at it, otherwise it will discover me. But it could be anyone, so I can't look at anyone."
This was a bit convoluted, but Bruce understood. He said, "There are 'ghosts,' right? You saw a 'ghost,' so it discovered you, and you have to hide."
"I suppose so, but you'll soon realize that it's not a concrete thing, but rather the will that controls this world. You can think of it as 'God'."
“God?” Bruce scoffed, his tone dripping with coldness and sarcasm. “A God who only dares to persecute children in his own constructed dream?”
The hunter didn't speak; he simply said, "You can't see it, and it won't notice you. So you can investigate here, but remember, never pray."
Bruce stared at him. The Hunter offered no further explanation, so Bruce pressed, "You say I can't see it, so it won't detect me. But if this is a world it controls, how could it not detect my arrival?"
“You’re not the only one who came,” the Hunter said. “You’ll find out soon enough.”
The two of them waited outside the church until the prayers ended, and then the crowd began to pour out of the church. Bruce then realized that there were quite a lot of people; two or three hundred people had already come out, and they were still leaving.
The town they had seen earlier seemed to have only a few people left. So everyone's here now?
Thinking of this, Bruce was suddenly startled: If the deserted town outside is reality, then the fact that the real town is deserted means that all the people have actually entered this place.
He immediately recalled a piece of information he had received earlier: Daxi Valley Town used to be a tourist attraction with many visitors and residents, and it was very prosperous. Yet, such a town had completely declined. Wasn't that strange?
Generally speaking, it's difficult for a town whose pillar industry is tourism to decline to this extent, especially since the tourism resources of Daxi Valley Town are natural landscapes. As long as the natural landscape remains unchanged, there will always be tourists, which naturally requires supporting service industries. For such a small town, the service industry is already the easiest and most profitable sector. Even if some young people leave, the remaining population is enough to maintain the town's size. How could it have developed for decades and now be deserted?
Bruce felt he had found the answer: the town outside was deserted, most likely because everyone had come to this strange world's town.
Then Bruce realized he had been too naive. After observing the people coming out of the church more closely, he discovered that most of them were not from the town.
Bruce has traveled the world for many years and has met all kinds of travelers. He can easily tell where a person comes from and what kind of life experience they have by observing some subtle details in their movements.
For example, the elderly white man he saw was wearing a shirt and looked very refined, but Bruce knew from the details of his walk and the way he exerted force that he was probably not an office worker, but more likely a hiker or a field researcher.
And then there's the Black woman walking on the far side. She's dressed like a housewife, carrying a grocery basket, and looks like a typical American housewife. But she's more likely not an American at all, but a pure-blooded African, which can be seen from her skeletal development.
Even the mother and son next to them, dressed very plainly, but the way they talked to the people around them and their actions suggested that they were more likely from the upper class.
The old woman at the back was even more obvious. She spoke with a standard transatlantic accent, but looked very poor. She didn't even take care of her white hair, which was obviously abnormal.
Bruce felt a chill run down his spine. This world was likely filled not only with townspeople, but also with tourists from all over the world.