Lord of Prayer

It was a lazy afternoon at a corner coffee shop.

Zhou Chen ordered an iced coconut latte and a ham and cheese sandwich. He ate while waiting for Marvin to arrive.

To avoid causing any unnecessary commotion, he made a Prayer to apply a layer of "Existence Weakening" to himself. Unless he initiated a conversation, most people wouldn’t notice him. Even if he did speak to someone, they would quickly forget and overlook him.

A few minutes later, a figure walked into the shop and went straight to the seat opposite Zhou Chen. This person had also activated some kind of Ability similar to "Existence Weakening," and no one paid him any mind.

After sitting down, Marvin, his face disguised as one of the East Continent People, sized up Zhou Chen in surprise. He clearly recognized him and asked, bewildered, "You’re not even using a disguise?"

"There’s no need. If you wanted to investigate me, you’d find out sooner or later, so it’s better to be upfront." Zhou Chen shrugged. The news was still covering the Feng City incident on TV. Marvin ran an intelligence agency; if he really wanted to find out, he definitely could.

"I like your honesty. If only all my clients were like you," Marvin remarked with a sigh.

He then adjusted his posture, sitting up a little straighter. "Alright, tell me the mission details."

"The guy’s Abilities are all on here. I can’t disclose any other intelligence." Zhou Chen pulled a folded white paper from his Storage Artifact and handed it over.

The moment Marvin touched the paper, he finished reading it with his Spiritual Power, his expression turning to one of clear astonishment. "This many Abilities?"

"Yeah. He’s a tough one to deal with." Zhou Chen pointed to the TV in the coffee shop. "He’s the one who caused last night’s incident in Feng City."

The folded paper in Marvin’s hand automatically disintegrated into a pile of dust, which he dumped into the trash can. He was silent for a moment before saying, "The mission is just to make sure you don’t get killed, right?"

Zhou Chen thought for a moment. "Half-dead isn’t great either."

"So we run the moment we run into him?"

"Pretty much."

"Then there’s no problem." Marvin was quite confident in his escape skills. Even as a new Tier Four, he was certain he could save Zhou Chen’s life from an enemy.

"If there’s no problem, then confirm it," Zhou Chen said.

After accepting a mission, it had to be confirmed in the Prayer System, which would then generate a Soul Contract to signify the mission was officially accepted. The Soul Contract would only be dissolved once the mission poster confirmed its completion. If either party violated the contract during this period, they would face a corresponding punishment based on the severity of the violation. A minor infraction would result in a deduction of Prayer Value, while a major one could lead to a death sentence—of course, for a Tier Four like Marvin, inflicting a death sentence from a distance was somewhat unrealistic.

Marvin immediately tapped "confirm" on his Prayer System Panel. The next second, a transaction contract appeared in both of their Souls.

"Pleasure doing business with you," Marvin said, extending his hand.

"Likewise," Zhou Chen replied, shaking it.

As Marvin successfully accepted the mission, he received thirty percent of the payment as a deposit. Seeing this amount of Prayer Value, he couldn’t help but feel a pang of bitterness. As a Tier Four Ascender, the total Prayer Value he had saved up to this point didn’t even reach three hundred.

He couldn’t help but ask curiously, "How did you save up so much Prayer Value?"

Zhou Chen smiled. "Since you recognize me, you must have watched the Sword Forging Competition."

"Of course. But I bet on Yao Hu and Renie. SIGH. Lost thirty thousand US dollars on that." The memory made Marvin sigh. He had placed a heavy bet of thirty thousand US dollars on either Yao Hu or Renie to win, but it all went down the drain. He had to scrimp and save for a long time afterward and almost couldn’t even pay his company’s rent.

Zhou Chen explained, "I obtained a Ruby that symbolizes the ’Santa Claus’ identity. With this identity, I can accumulate Prayer Value very quickly."

"Santa Claus..." Marvin muttered. "That makes sense."

Santa Claus can openly give people gifts, and he knows exactly what they want in their hearts. The Prayer Value must be rolling in.

This was a method that couldn’t be replicated. Even knowing about it, Marvin couldn’t copy it. He could only stare on in envy.

·

「That afternoon.」

Just as Zhou Chen was preparing to head to the city where "Ghost" was currently located, he suddenly received a message from the Feng City Life Church, telling him to come over.

They didn’t say what it was about over the phone, so a very confused Zhou Chen rushed to the Church. He happened to see an empty bus pulling away from the entrance just as he arrived.

He went inside the Church and found a group of doctors in white coats had arrived at some point. Just as he was wondering what was going on, he heard the sound of light footsteps behind him.

Zhou Chen spun around.

"Ta-da!"

Erin spread her arms toward him with a brilliant smile, as if presenting him with a surprise.

Zhou Chen froze. "What are you doing here?"

"I’m here for an internship assignment." Erin gave her usual ladylike smile. Her soft, golden hair was draped over her shoulders, shimmering brightly. Her clear, spring-water blue eyes brightened considerably in front of Zhou Chen, as if they were glowing, causing several doctors in the distance to whisper among themselves.

"A large-scale spiritual pollution event just happened in Feng City, so interns from nearby cities were all transferred over. We’re preparing to provide psychological therapy for the victims, and I’m here to learn."

"Feng City is dangerous," Zhou Chen said, frowning.

’The higher-ups at the Life Church must be out of their minds,’ he thought. ’They know "Ghost" might return to Feng City to launch another attack, yet they still transferred so many interns here. If "Ghost" seized the opportunity to do something big, the losses would be catastrophic.’

"The Star Association and the Church have both dispatched Ascenders here. I heard there’s even a Holy Knight stationed at the Church, so it should be fine," Erin said.