Chapter 608: The Pollution from the Crimson Moon
The phantom of the Earth Mother Goddess exploded mid-air.
This scene brought unimaginable shock to the worshipers kneeling and praying below.
Had the deity they believed in fallen just like that?
The members of the Ruen royal family were even more terrified; this scene was all too familiar.
King George III had also exploded here while giving a speech, and then he fell.
Was the Earth Mother Goddess about to meet the same fate as George III?
This scene also fell into the eyes of Hastur in the Hall of Stars. He had just been contemplating whether to target the Earth Mother Goddess.
He wanted her to walk the same path George III had, but before he could take action, the phantom of the Earth Mother Goddess that had descended upon Backlund exploded mid-air.
Although this was not the true form of the Earth Mother Goddess, such a drastic change at this critical moment indicated that her true form was facing an extremely terrifying threat, leaving her unable to attend to this divine descent.
Hastur's gaze swept across the starry sky. The Mother Tree of Desire showed no signs of movement, so it could only be the Fallen Mother Goddess with such capability.
The long-dormant Fallen Mother Goddess had severely injured the Earth Mother Goddess with one strike.
It was evident that the Fallen Mother Goddess was unwilling to watch the Earth Mother Goddess increase her followers and stabilize her divine kingdom in this manner.
So she chose this critical moment to strike.
"Fallen Mother Goddess, you're in a hurry."
Hastur smiled faintly, with no intention of intervening, preferring to observe the Fallen Mother Goddess's methods.
The awakening of the God Almighty
greatly heightened the Fallen Mother Goddess's sense of crisis, forcing her to take such extreme measures.
As the Earth Mother Goddess suffered a severe blow from the Fallen Mother Goddess, the crimson moon that should only appear at night flashed with a deadly, alluring red light, manifesting from the starry sky.
The two extraordinary pathways that the Fallen Mother Goddess lost in the real world were currently controlled by the Earth Mother Goddess Lilith. As she made her move, the Moon and Mother pathways began to break free from the Earth Mother Goddess's control, flying towards the starry sky to return to the Fallen Mother Goddess.
Both sides engaged in a fierce struggle on the crimson moon, and Hastur could even sense the presence of the Mother Tree of Desire, who had deliberately remained dormant.
She also did not want to see the Earth Mother Goddess stabilize her divine kingdom, but she was not as urgent as the Fallen Mother Goddess, so she could sit back and watch the tigers fight.
Ripples of red radiated from the crimson moon continuously.
This scene was particularly enticing to the worshipers in Backlund, especially those devoutly praying to the Earth Mother Goddess.
Under the crimson moon's light, their bodies began to swell inexplicably and then exploded like overinflated balloons.
Some mutated into mounds of flesh, while others went mad, turning into irrational monsters.
Various terrifying things were happening to them, and this scene looked like the most horrific hell to others.
Those who had devoutly believed in the Earth Mother Goddess and praised the miracle of life were now fleeing in panic, screaming and wailing, their cries echoing throughout Backlund's sky.
This was not a divine miracle but divine punishment, a curse, a pollution!
Leonard witnessed this clearly, seeing the streets, where snow had just melted, flowing with bright red blood like streams and rivers.
Leonard's voice was dry and trembling as he asked, "Old man, what on earth is happening? Why did this sudden catastrophe occur?"
Pales remained silent for a long time before sighing, "This is pollution from the starry sky."
"You should leave Backlund quickly. Staying here too long will put you in danger."
"I can't resist the pollution from the starry sky either. Staying away is the wisest choice we can make right now."
Leonard's heart sank. He looked at the crimson-lit world before him with reluctance and hesitation.
In this crimson world, more and more people were mutating, with blood, flesh, eyes, tentacles, and unutterable deformities appearing...
His spirituality was frantically warning him, his arm's skin began to itch, and it felt like invisible worms were wriggling inside, trying to break through the skin and sprout.
"Go quickly," Pales urged again, his tone serious.
Leonard no longer hesitated and ran away from Backlund at full speed, joined by many other extraordinary individuals with the same idea.
A nearby extraordinary individual, just two meters away, was running in terror one moment and the next, his head separated from his body. Blood-red tentacles grew from the severed head, resembling a red squid, while the remaining half of his body ran a few more meters before collapsing.
Witnessing this horrifying scene, Leonard felt his scalp tingle, his mouth dry, and his whole body itch as if countless tiny bugs were trying to crawl out of his skin.
"Pray to the stars or the Fool quickly!" Pales sensed something was wrong and reminded Leonard again.
In this mutation, the followers of the Earth Mother Goddess and the Goddess of the Night were most affected.
Leonard's extraordinary pathway was the Night pathway, and even if he fought with all his might, he could not resist the pollution from the starry sky. Only great beings like the stars or the Fool could resist and purify this pollution.
"The Fool who does not belong to this era."
"The mysterious ruler above the gray fog."
"The king in yellow and black who wield good luck."
Leonard ultimately chose to seek help from Mr. Fool, not just because he was a member of the Tarot Club.
There was another reason: the stars were Hastur, his friend. Praying to the stars for help made him feel uncomfortable.
Above the gray fog, Klein appeared within ten seconds of hearing the plea for help.
"Leonard? Isn't he supposed to be in Backlund?"
Klein's gaze followed Leonard's plea for help and saw that Leonard was surrounded by a faint crimson glow.
The crimson glow seemed to contain some polluting power, continuously infiltrating Leonard's body, and Leonard was fleeing desperately, trying to escape, but his speed was insufficient to get out of the dangerous area quickly.
Was he on a dangerous mission?
Wait, the streets around him looked familiar—Backlund?
Klein's expression changed, and he stopped thinking further. Helping Leonard was the priority.
He quickly crafted a paper angel and sent it to Leonard's location.
As Leonard fled, he saw an angel with holy radiance flying toward him in his mind.
The angel's radiance dispelled the cold in his body, purified the polluting power, and replaced the itching with a long-lost warmth.
"Thank you for Mr. Fool's merciful help. I will pay the necessary price."
Leonard had learned the Tarot Club's principle of equivalent exchange and planned to find some Roselle's diary pages to offer to Mr. Fool once he was safe.
Klein did not immediately respond but carefully observed Leonard's surroundings, confirming it was indeed Backlund.
Wasn't that a place under divine observation?
How could there be such widespread pollution?
Where did the pollution originate?
Full of questions, Klein saw Leonard's condition improve significantly and tentatively said, "The pollution is spreading."
"Yes, the pollution from the starry sky is spreading throughout Backlund!"
Starry sky pollution... Klein instinctively wanted to look up at the sky but quickly restrained the impulse.
"Today was supposed to be a day of divine descent to dispel the extreme snow, but the phantom of the Earth Mother Goddess exploded mid-air, the crimson moon mutated, and the pollution spread from the starry sky to Backlund..."
Leonard explained briefly to Mr. Fool while fleeing.
Divine descent, Earth Mother Goddess, crimson moon, pollution... Klein accurately extracted the keywords from Leonard's words and quickly pieced together the situation in Backlund.
Could the pollution from the starry sky be Hastur's doing?
Probably not. Even if Hastur wanted to deal with the Earth Mother Goddess, he wouldn't harm the innocent people of Backlund, where he had lived for many years.
Reassured by this thought, Klein felt slightly relieved.
As fellow transmigrators, he hoped Hastur would not be someone who would stop at nothing to achieve his goals. As humans, they should uphold certain moral boundaries.
"Leave Backlund."
After a moment of contemplation, Klein gave Leonard a reminder and suggestion.
With such a major incident in Backlund, it would become a storm center, and Leonard and his old grandfather would easily be targeted by Amon again.
"I will follow Mr. Fool's guidance."
Klein observed for a while longer, ensuring there were no abnormalities around Leonard, then ended the conversation and sat alone at the bronze table, deep in thought.