Carter decapitated the Terror's throat and killed it. Another Peak Terror was executed.
[Synchronization +2.0%]
[Current Synchronization]: 198.3%
He turned over and saw Piper and Neros had already finished the remaining Terrors.
The entire horde was cleaned by them.
For weeks, they had been killing Terrors like flies. They killed more than any group of Invokers could and almost eradicated them from Barena, the city that Carter stayed in.
People in Barena even began to go out in the night now because Terror was so rare these days.
"Holy shit…" Neros breathed heavily. "This must be it. The last large horde inside Barena."
Piper nodded, "We really did eradicate them all."
Carter sheathed his sword with a 'click'. He came over to the two Invokers and put his hands on their shoulders.
"Good work, you two. Now I need to cleanse these Terrors to make sure they don't come back."
"Of course, Zen. Do your job. We'll watch your back." Neros said.
"Hold it right there!"
A group of hooded men approached them.
Carter raised an eyebrow.
The hooded man in the front pulled his hood down, revealing a bald head with a tattoo on his head. A particular religious symbol. Three circles intertwined with each other.
"Why do I owe the pleasure, Priests of Manaca?" Carter said.
Priests of Manaca, or Priests for short, were a group of trained religious practitioners with the ability to 'cleanse' Terror. They mostly operated in a different part of Hexilia and rarely collided with Invokers.
The Priests were way weaker than Invokers in terms of power. But they were much better in making Terrors disappear.
"The pleasure is us, Zeneros Blackburn." The head Priest smiled, "I am Priest Xalak, and these men with me are also followers of God. We're here to meet you."
"Well. You should have arranged a meeting with me in the day. I am really busy at the moment." Carter squatted down and absorbed a Terror.
[+1 Minor Terror Shard (Awaken)]
"So that is how you cleanse a Terror." Xalak widened his eyes. "You don't even use the Gold Stream. How weird."
"The Gold Stream?" Carter frowned.
He suddenly remembered the gold river that he saw in the Wolfhead's memories.
"The river of all life on this planet. It is how we cleanse Terror. Let me show you."
Xalak knelt down beside a Terror. He began chanting words that Carter didn't understand. However, he noticed a power that wasn't from this world.
'This is… An entirely different supernatural power?'
The Terror disintegrated. Its energy seeped into the ground and disappeared.
"At first, I thought you were a crook, Master Blackburn." Xalak said. "But I saw you cleansed that with my own eyes."
"Have you satisfied your curiosity, yet?"
"Unfortunately, yes." The priests started to scatter and surrounded the group.
"What's the meaning of this, Priest of Manaca?" Neros shouted.
"Terrors are also a form of life. With the Gold Stream, the life force of Terror could be reincarnated into something good and beautiful. It is the way of life."
Xalak pointed his hands at Carter. "But you are ruining this cycle. Your existence is a blasphemy to God!"
Carter stood still. He wasn't even threatened one bit. None of these Priests were an Elite.
'New skin for me!' He thought.
"Careful what you're asking, Priest Xalak." Carter said. "The Gold Stream is not the river of life. It is the origin of Terror."
Neros and Piper widened their eyes. They had a feeling they were listening to something they shouldn't.
Xalak laughed, "What do you even know about the Gold Stream?"
"I know a lot. Because I've seen it." Carter unsheathed his sword. "It is an evil reincarnation and it feeds on the power of the Terrors."
"Blasphemy!"
"Heretic!"
"Liar!"
The other priests shouted.
"You do know that Manaca's teaching stated that the Gold Stream is the place of God, right?" Xalak squinted his eyes, "To dirty its name is to dirty God's name!"
"Neros! Piper!"
"Yes, sir?"
"Stay out of this."
"But…"
"I said. Stay out of this!"
"Yes, sir…"
Neros and Piper put their brushes away and distanced themselves from Carter.
Carter pointed his sword at Xalak, "The Gold Stream is a disease. We're Eldritch Knights fighting Terrors to eradicate them. You bring them back to their birthplace in the guise of cleansing.
You are the liars. Your God is a false God. And I will not have it."
Xalak's breath hitched. He couldn't believe the words he was hearing.
The truth was, Carter didn't know if the Gold Stream was evil. He only saw Wolfhead born out of it. But Carter couldn't stop turning Terrors into Shards, that would prevent him from gathering more power.
So he just thought of a lie to fit the context and painted the Gold Stream as evil.
And the Skin System agreed with him.
[Synchronization +1.7%]
[Current Synchronization]: 200.%
[Eldritch Knight Token Acquired]
[Token can be used as a sacrifice in Skin Graft]
Piper turned to Neros, "You bring your phone with you?"
"Yeah, why?" Neros said.
"Record everything. We must make sure the world knows the truth."
Neros took out his phone immediately.
"You're delusional, Zeneros Blackburn. The Gold Stream is God's heaven. It is our salvation. You cannot destroy Terror's life force!" Xalak screamed.
"Do you even hear yourself?" Carter smiled. "Destroy Terror's life force? I will destroy everything that is Terror. I vowed to protect the innocent, strike down evil, and vanquish the deceptor.
While us Eldritch Knights risk our life to destroy Terror, you lie to the public and reinforce evil. Have you ever wondered why Terrors in your area never lowered? Or do you already know the truth but ignored it?"
The last sentence struck a core inside Xalak. "I… No… Terrors are a force of nature. They naturally occur."
"Lies!" This time, it was Carter that shouted. "I dedicated my entire life to becoming the best Eldritch Knight ever lived. I saw my friends die. My mentor sacrificed herself. And those that were much more honorable than your God!
The citizens of Barena are able to see the stars just because of their sacrifice. I cleansed the Terrors and they disappeared for good."
Xalak took a deep breath. He understood what Carter was saying. That their entire religion was a lie. His reasoning was solid too. But Xalak couldn't accept it.
Because if he's right, then Xalak's entire life was a lie.
"We can't let you live, Raven Knight." Xalak said.
"Then may the best man win. En Garde."