"Yes, Mr. Fisher, you can call me Cardinal, or ’David,’ or ’David One.’ I can specifically recognize the name you address me by, so don’t worry."
Why does it sound not like a person, but like a serial number for some device?
Could it be that the one conversing with me now isn’t the Cardinal himself, but a machine with his will?
Fisher chewed over this title, spit out by the other party, in his mind. According to the Creation Society’s categorization of so-called owners of the Completion Manual, it was very likely that the other party was the owner of the "Cardinal Completions Manual."
He silently raised his guard to its maximum. One must always be vigilant when dealing with owners of the Completion Manual, especially after the other party had demonstrated those unique aspects of the Completion Manual.
The room was filled with the stench of blood. The choking smell came from the scattered chunks of corpses everywhere. At the edges of the corpse pieces, Fisher spotted several completely inactive small tentacles, clearly Erwin’s doing. After a more thorough inspection, Fisher also saw a severed arm with the tattoo of the Nali Overseas Secret Bureau on the ground.
They seemed to have been sliced by some kind of sharp, scorching weapon. The splattered blood on the walls and floor emitted a smell of being scorched, making the air as repulsive as a pot of burnt meat soup.
Next to the room, a Cloud Cat Species stood like a doll, just blankly watching Fisher inside the room, appearing like a doll without consciousness.
The terrifying offensive weapons and unknown methods of mental control seemed to be just the tip of the iceberg of the mysterious figure known as "Cardinal."
Fisher glanced around and then redirected his gaze to the Annihilation Prototype floating in mid-air,
"So, these Cloud Cats were yours from the start. You had them appear before me not to connect with the Iceberg Queen but for me?"
The machine-like giant eye gently swayed its body, as if nodding in response,
"Ah, this was just a small tactic to get in touch with Mr. Fisher. We heard you have a special interest in demi-humans, so I specifically borrowed the bodies of these Cloud Cats from Mia Territory in the Northern Realm for a while to catch Mr. Fisher’s attention. I will return them later, and they won’t remember anything..."
Hearing the Cardinal’s flat words, although there was no strange sarcasm or jest in his tone, Fisher’s face involuntarily darkened.
What does it mean by having a special interest in demi-humans, as if my preferences are so bizarre.
He felt a need to clarify that his interest in demi-humans was purely academic.
"But just as the Cardinal of Destiny predicted, your understanding of the Completion Manual is very limited, and you are unaware of our Society’s composition and goals. I am tasked with reaching out to you for this reason, and that was my main purpose today. Next, I will briefly introduce our Society’s situation and the Life Minister’s issues, and try to form a stable, friendly collaborative relationship with you."
The Cardinal’s voice was very mechanical and lifeless, making Fisher truly unsure whether he was speaking to a living person or a machine,
"Mr. Fisher, according to our information, you seem to possess a Completion Manual unknown to us, correct?"
As the conversation shifted to the main issue, Fisher concentrated intensely on the other’s words, cautious of falling into the traps set by the Creation Society.
The two members of the Creation Society he had encountered so far had left a very deep impression on him, which gave him a very negative view of this Society. Who knows whether this Cardinal, and the Cardinal of Destiny and Erwin, and Philone mentioned by him, are any different.
But when he had met Erwin, the Creation Society had already indicated they were aware of the Completion Manual he possessed. Thus, regarding this point, Fisher chose to remain non-committal.
After receiving Fisher’s response, the mechanical glow on the Cardinal intensified,
"Erwin went against the Cardinal of Destiny’s orders, attempting to take two Completion Manuals from you and to defect from the Society. Hence, I received orders from the Cardinal of Destiny to settle accounts with him, and encountered him by chance in the Schwali Territory, leading to a battle."
Fisher raised his eyebrows after hearing this. Erwin’s life form was so bizarre that even Elliog of Mythical Rank couldn’t kill him completely. Only a conceptual weapon like the "Death Rune" could cause effective damage. Did this Cardinal have some other means to deal with Erwin?
"Although I suffered heavy losses, Erwin also sustained severe injuries as a result. His soul’s core was hit by a special Cardinal Weapon I made, causing a rift. And, due to the unity between the soul and the body, it inflicted temporary irreversible damage to his body..."
"But, as the Cardinal of Destiny said, every problem in the world will have an answer. Faced with such a problem, Erwin also thought of a solution... He attempted to use the power of the Spirit Realm to heal the wounds in his soul and obtain a higher quality of soul, which was also why he originally intended to take the Soul Completion Manuals from you."