Chapter 642: Selection
At noon, Whale Oil, who was left behind at the workshop, brought lunch to everyone.
The Detective Agency members didn't eat a single bite, giving everything to the monks and police officers who were still busy at the scene. Then, the freight wagon could finally drive off openly, and the group planned to have a meal back at the workshop.
The individual who summoned the Feathered Serpent Coatle's phantom was theoretically the highest-ranking among those cultists.
But unfortunately, that person didn't even leave a corpse, let alone any extraordinary materials. It's unclear whether he became the price for summoning Coatle or if he was taken away by the Wise Sage along with the Feathered Serpent phantom.
Therefore, the additional extraordinary materials obtained by the Detective Agency actually came from the other cultists who were in the house at the time.
It was no longer clear which piece came from whom, but there were four in total.
According to the Hunter Association's theory, ranks 0 to 4 are collectively referred to as 'low-tier,' while ranks 5 to 8 belong to 'mid-tier.'
Without corresponding special extraordinary abilities or specific detection methods, under normal circumstances, it's not always possible to tell the difference just by looking at living people.
However, when viewed as extraordinary materials, the differences become quite obvious.
Despite coming from the domain of death, one of the extraordinary materials looked as if it were 'alive.' When Lina, wearing her openwork gloves, pulled it out, it had already passed through a simple barrier and was 'biting' onto other extraordinary materials...
Goodness gracious!
I haven't even picked up my knife and fork, and you've already started eating!
Seeing this, Inessa silently pulled out her dagger and gently pried open the asphalt, which had already half-enveloped a piece of 'cured meat' and a section of 'soft tube.'
Staring closely at the asphalt, one could vaguely discern patterns resembling mystical symbols, yet they weren't clear enough, like a fleeting illusion. Then Inessa covered the asphalt with a cloth.
The death domain primarily features shades of gray, but there are differences in intensity among them. The parts of the 'cured meat' and 'soft tube' that were previously enveloped were stained with a slightly deeper gray ring, but the area within the edge was a bit whitish.
Everything was quickly laid out. The asphalt, playing dead like a steamed bun under the cloth, should be the highest-ranked among them. The remaining 'cured meat,' 'soft tube,' and 'pebble' didn't show clear distinctions in rank.
So the question of distribution was asked again by Wayne: "How should we divide them this time?"
Logically, a normal person would, of course, choose to pick out the best for themselves first.
However, Wayne's mana bar had been oversaturated for some time and hadn't increased, and he was still a bit full from helping with 'healing' these past few days. Plus, he had experienced exploding himself from absorbing too much, so it was better to listen to the advice of experienced individuals.
"I still have that temporary unsealing emblem from the church as a backup, so my current needs aren't that great."
Inessa was always generous in this regard. "But I suggest that this distribution should be cautious, as they may all have been influenced by Coatle. Even if only a trace of its aura or will remains, it might lead to the absorber losing control."
Wayne thought for a moment and still decided to let Inessa choose first. "Inessa, you've used up all the injections you brewed before, right? You are now the Detective Agency's last safety net, and I believe it's necessary to prioritize replenishing your supplies."
Inessa pondered for a moment. "That's fine. However, the effect of my injection formula is limited. It only requires the characteristics of extraordinary power from the death domain, and the requirement for rank is not strict—to be precise, its duration is not proportional to the rank of the extraordinary material used in its brewing—so just leave one for me after you all have chosen."
Upon hearing this, Wayne couldn't help but make a connection: "I remember you said before that when you encountered that magic circle impact last time, the restraints on you seemed to have weakened?"
"Indeed, at that time, the restraints on me subtly showed signs of loosening. However, the Exorcist Association's restraints are very stubborn. When I was in the rubber warehouse, I used another injection and also absorbed the chaotic, faint spiritual power from those rats. The equilibrium of the restraints was affected multiple times in a short period, but it gradually stabilized again instead."
Inessa's expression looked a bit tired. "If we infer based on this result, then simply relying on impact to break free from the restraints might not be feasible. I might not be able to withstand an impact strong enough to completely destroy the restraints."
Hmm...
Wayne's idea of using that ritual handbook to find a solution was hindered... It seems he'll have to find another way.
While the two were talking, Lina had already begun examining the extraordinary materials one by one. Peter the Spider was as lively as a husky seeing its owner preparing to feed it dog food.
The originally unremarkable grayish pebble was the one she held up and examined the longest. "Then I'll choose this one."
"What's your reason for choosing it?" Wayne asked curiously, as Lina was quite convincing in some aspects.
Lina even held it up to the light to confirm. "It's very special, its material is close to crystal. Although its rank isn't the highest, its texture seems very solid, and its potential for divine status shouldn't be low. Moreover, that extraordinary material just now didn't even dare to try to devour it. This person, among these few, should be the most favored by Coatle, perhaps having received Its 'blessing' or 'gaze.'"
Favored by an evil god...
The hidden danger that the church worries about has actually become an advantage for you...
It feels like if there weren't conflicts of faith and the potential for 'raising a tiger to suffer from it later,' Lina might even try to cooperate with the church, specifically responsible for the 'harmless disposal' of evil god-related items or something.
Peter the Spider carried the pebble and hid back on Lina's body. After a brief consideration, Lina's gaze turned to Wayne:
"You haven't been able to break through to mid-tier before. Based on my own experience, you now have two choices.
"First, temporarily stop accumulating extraordinary power, wait for your own extraordinary power to integrate, and find a suitable opportunity to attempt promotion."
"Lina." Inessa called out to her at this point, seemingly wanting to interrupt her next words.
After saying "First," Lina herself hesitated a bit. Wayne, seeing the situation, could only proactively continue to ask, "And the second?"
"Sigh... The second method is the one we commonly use in our relief agency."
Lina carefully glanced at Inessa, then reached out and pushed the lump of asphalt covered with cloth towards Wayne. "Using an extraordinary material of a higher rank than oneself to attempt a breakthrough has been proven in practice to be potentially successful. But the Detective Agency is not a relief agency after all, and you don't necessarily have to choose between 'failed promotion' and 'being eliminated' for now."
