It must have been that before the battle began, someone from either side cast some kind of spell that made their activities undetectable to ordinary people. Brian Cooper acted swiftly and decisively, and since it was already close to 2 a.m., no ordinary person noticed the fight at all.

Having narrowly escaped death, William Brooks was so overexcited that he shouted, “Hey, buddy, I knew you’d show up at the critical moment when I needed you most! I can’t thank you enough—my admiration for you is like a mighty river, endless and unceasing!”

“Cut the crap. Next time, if you can’t handle it, don’t stick your neck out. I always have to clean up after you.” Brian Cooper replied grumpily, not giving William Brooks any face at all.

At this moment, a woman’s voice with a foreign accent sounded, helping William Brooks out of his embarrassment: “Thank you both for your assistance. On behalf of the Church, I thank the Daoist cultivators of China.”

The two young monster boys, who had been bickering, hadn’t forgotten the beautiful woman they’d just heroically saved. Before William Brooks could reply, Brian Cooper jumped in: “Hello, we are indeed from the Longmen Daoist Sect, the only two inheritors of the Southern Red Lotus branch. Since you, miss, are upholding justice in the human world, you are a fellow Daoist of Longmen. May I ask why you were attacked by these monsters? Is there any way we can help?” His tone was so sincere that even William Brooks almost believed it—his friend was truly a messenger of justice, the embodiment of purity.

But the Western beauty who heard this reply clearly wasn’t strong in Chinese and couldn’t grasp the subtlety in Brian Cooper’s words. She saw that both young men possessed extraordinary strength—especially the one who arrived later, whose power was so overwhelming that even the Pope might not compare. It was simply unfathomable. Catherine decided to win these two over to help her; otherwise, judging by tonight’s events, not only would she fail her mission, but her chances of making it back alive were slim.

“I am Catherine. I assume you both already know my background, so I won’t elaborate.” Catherine had barely finished speaking when someone objected.

“I don’t know.” Brian Cooper was completely clueless about the woman’s background. He wasn’t about to let her skip the introduction.

“You don’t even know about Christianity?” William Brooks mocked.

Seeing Brian Cooper nod in confusion, even Catherine found it hard to believe.

But it wasn’t Brian Cooper’s fault—he had been cultivating in Mount Shouyang for five thousand years, while Christianity had only been around for a little over two thousand. How could he possibly know about it?

After Catherine’s explanation, Brian Cooper got a general idea of the situation and learned that Catherine’s mission was to investigate the recent use of genetic engineering to create artificial monsters—like the ones they’d just fought. The targets had disappeared in this city, and she guessed the base wasn’t far away. She hoped William Brooks and Brian Cooper would help with the investigation.

To destroy this artificial monster base.

“We’ll definitely help, but since this is happening in China, it should be handled by us.” William Brooks was no fool—this was a matter for the Chinese branch of the Anti-Demon Alliance, and there was no need for the European Church to take the lead.

Catherine couldn’t help but show an awkward expression, but as one of the current Twelve Paladins of the Church, having earned this honor before the age of twenty-seven, she was by no means a coward. She was usually proud and unyielding, never submitting to anyone. Now, finding it hard to back down, she said coldly, “If you two don’t want to help, I won’t force you. I can investigate on my own.”

At this point, William Brooks found it hard to continue arguing. After all, he wasn’t human himself, and sometimes his words lacked force. In the eyes of some radical human cultivators, he himself might be considered a monster to be eliminated. Members of the Chinese Anti-Demon Alliance had to be human, and he wasn’t qualified. Usually, his actions to eliminate monsters harmful to society were personal. But he couldn’t lose face in front of Catherine.

Not wanting to see his friend embarrassed, Brian Cooper chimed in: “If that’s the case, we won’t insist. I’ve heard that European knights are skilled with lances. I’d like to present this ‘Water-Fire Splendor Halberd’ to you, miss, as a token of respect.” With a casual wave, a long halberd appeared out of thin air in his hand. With a twist of his wrist, he planted it at his feet. The two people beside him stared in amazement, unable to see where he had produced such a massive weapon.

The ‘Water-Fire Splendor Halberd’ was also a divine weapon that Brian Cooper had obtained from the underground palace. Nearly three meters long, its shaft was forged from Taiyi refined gold, and the crescent blades on either side bore two talismans: the Pure Water Talisman, which could heal wounds, and the Fiery Talisman, which could dispel evil. While not much as a magical tool, as a weapon it was top-tier.

As the saying goes, “You don’t hit someone who brings a gift.” With this, the atmosphere immediately eased.

Catherine also knew that if she had her usual knight’s lance in hand, she could have handled the earlier situation with her skill. This halberd felt just right. But such a thing was impossible to carry around, and seeing their enthusiasm, she didn’t know how to refuse.

William Brooks, ever the quick-witted one, immediately realized his old friend was giving him a way out. He quickly stepped forward and said, “This ‘Water-Fire Splendor Halberd’ is considered the treasured heirloom of our Longmen Daoist Sect. It can change size at will. Why don’t we go to our place first, and I’ll teach you how to use it, big sister?”

He had just learned the treasure-receiving technique and was showing it off. Walking over, he grasped the Water-Fire Splendor Halberd and, with a twist, turned it into a strangely shaped ballpoint pen, handing it to Lucy Fisher.