Lord of Prayer

The Maple City Star Gathering.

Zhou Chen, having just rushed back from Fish City, was stopped by a nurse the moment he stepped into the medical department. She led him to the office of Sasha’s attending physician.

"The comprehensive DNA scan is complete. We still haven’t found a match—not even any relatives," the attending physician said, handing him a stack of documents.

"That’s impossible." Zhou Chen frowned.

The New Era’s systems for household registration and personnel tracking were detailed beyond imagination. A Star Association Operator could take a blood sample from a random person on the street and, within minutes, find all their blood relatives—even those who were deceased.

"A case like this is extremely rare. We couldn’t even find a match among her deceased relatives." The attending physician paused. "It’s as if she materialized out of thin air."

’Materialized out of thin air...’ Zhou Chen pondered for a moment. "Have you checked for any residual traces of Alchemy or Extraordinary rituals?"

"We ran a preliminary scan, and the results were negative. We haven’t done an in-depth analysis yet. Are you suggesting Sasha’s body might have been created through Alchemy or an Extraordinary ritual, and that it isn’t her original one?"

The attending physician considered Sasha’s condition and mused, "That’s certainly possible. Her soul is damaged and her memories are fragmented. It’s very likely something went wrong when her soul was transferring to a new body, causing the injuries..."

Highly skilled Alchemists and Blacksmiths could create brand-new physical bodies, allowing Ascenders who had lost their flesh and were left with only a soul to merge with a new vessel and be reborn. This was no longer a particularly rare occurrence in the Extraordinary Realm. The Alchemy Workshops received many such orders each year—all handled through clandestine transactions, of course.

They also secretly offered customization services, allowing clients to design their own faces, add alchemically modified prosthetics, enhance organ functions, and increase muscle and bone density. While the vast majority chose to model their new bodies into handsome men or beautiful women, some opted for a complete change of identity, making drastic modifications to their new forms.

If they didn’t use blood from their original body and also significantly altered their height and facial features, they would undoubtedly become one of these "people who materialized out of thin air," untraceable by any major database.

"I’ll arrange for Sasha to undergo the relevant examinations right away," the attending physician said.

·

「In the hospital room.」

Zhou Chen watched Sasha, lost in thought.

Sasha noticed his gaze and stared back with a serious expression, perfectly still, as if challenging Zhou Chen to a contest.

Stare...

Zhou Chen finally broke the silence, puzzled. "What are you doing?"

—Wish Points +0.5.

"Yay!" Sasha suddenly threw her hands up in excitement. "I won!"

Zhou Chen couldn’t help but chuckle. It turned out Sasha thought they were playing a "whoever moves first loses" game. ’Definitely a child’s logic,’ he thought.

"Sasha, can you remember anything about your past now?" he asked.

The happy expression on Sasha’s face instantly vanished. Her body gave a few involuntary, fearful trembles as she shook her head and whispered, "I don’t remember."

Erin, standing beside them, tugged on Zhou Chen’s clothes and mouthed, "Don’t ask about that."

Sasha was imprisoned and abused by Ghost for so long. Her memories of the past are filled with pain. Now that she has finally escaped that nightmare, making her relive it would be too cruel.

Zhou Chen sighed softly. "I just have a feeling things aren’t that simple."

"But I’m sure it has nothing to do with Sasha."

Erin lifted Sasha high into the air and held her in front of Zhou Chen. The sudden movement startled Sasha, and an adorable look of confusion spread across her sweet face as she blinked her big eyes at Zhou Chen.

"See? Sasha is adorable, and she’s just a little kid. What harm could she possibly be?" Erin affectionately nuzzled Sasha’s cheek, making her giggle.

Seeing how happy the two of them were, Zhou Chen didn’t say anything more to spoil the mood.

Half an hour later, Sasha was taken away by a doctor for her examination.

Standing elegantly by the door, Erin watched Sasha leave before turning to speak. "Zhou Chen, don’t you think you’re being a little too suspicious?"

"We can’t let our guard down on matters involving a Tier Four Ascender and an Abyssal Evil God," Zhou Chen said seriously. "I always assume the worst in people, especially when it comes to situations like this."

"Then have you ever been suspicious of me?" Erin asked curiously.

"Of course not."

The corners of Erin’s mouth lifted uncontrollably, and she pursed her lips to hide a smile.

Zhou Chen then added with a laugh, "With a helpless little princess like you, I really can’t imagine what there would be to worry about."

The smile on Erin’s face instantly froze. She puffed up her cheeks and shot Zhou Chen a "fierce" glare, but in his eyes, she just looked like an adorable little hamster that he couldn’t help but want to pinch.

Zhou Chen barely managed to suppress the impulse and quickly changed the subject. "Are you planning to continue your internship in Feng City?"

Erin shook her head. "Feng City is in a sensitive state right now, so it’s not a good idea for us interns to stay. We’re being transferred to Spirit City. The shuttle leaves at noon the day after tomorrow, so we have the next few days off."

The defection of Ke Feng, the Bishop of the Feng City Life Church, was bombshell news—enough to rock the entire Extraordinary Realm. Although the information had been suppressed and was known only to a few, it put the Life Church in Feng City on high alert, making it indeed inappropriate for interns to remain there.

"Spirit City... That’s not too far from Jinzhu," Zhou Chen remarked with a nod.

"Are you planning to head back to Jinzhu?" Erin asked, looking at him.

"Not just yet. I’ll stay here with you for a while," Zhou Chen said with a smile.

With Ghost dead, his mission was essentially complete. As for Sasha’s origins and Ke Feng’s whereabouts, those matters didn’t really concern him; he could leave them for the Life Church and the Star Association to handle. But he certainly couldn’t head back right away—not while Erin was still here.

"Oh, right, Sister Xiye just sent me a message," Erin said out of the blue, making Zhou Chen jump.

She continued, looking a bit puzzled, "She said she bought me a gift and that it’s on its way. Do you have any idea what it is?"

’A gift?’ Zhou Chen was taken aback. He thought for a moment before replying, "I can’t guess. Maybe clothes, a handbag, or cosmetics?"

Erin thought for a moment. "When we went shopping before, I really liked a limited-edition dress, but I couldn’t buy it because it was out of stock. You don’t think it could be that, do you? If it is, I’ll need to buy her a gift in return."

"It’s too late today. Let’s go tomorrow. I’ll help you speedrun Feng City during your vacation," Zhou Chen said with a laugh.

"Mhm~" Erin beamed, her smile full of happiness and anticipation.

·

An hour later, Sasha’s test results were in.

There were no traces of an artificial body, nor any residual signs of an Extraordinary ritual.

The possibility that her body had been replaced was ruled out.

"How strange," the attending physician muttered. In all his years of practice, he had never encountered such a bizarre case.

Zhou Chen comforted him, "Anything’s possible these days. Just relax. Look on the bright side—you might even be able to write a unique paper about this for the industry."

"I’m going to contact a few experienced old colleagues," the attending physician said. "They might have some leads."