Translator: Exodus Tales Editor: Exodus Tales

Translated by XephiZ

Edited by Aelryinth

—

“I only know he often visits a private research lab. He brought me there once when I was younger. It was the place where he taught me a lot of strange things, but I forgot where it was,” Lily said.

“Can’t you remember?” Mo Fan pressed her.

The private research lab was obviously where the evil herbalist conducted his experiments. It might be the exact place where he had invented the Frenzy Liquid and the Rain of Destruction!

“I don’t remember, but when I went back to the village recently, my aunt told me they invited a master here from China. If things go well, the village’s status in South America will rise significantly,” Lily told him.

A master from China?

Mo Fan frowned. What was the Black Vatican up to this time? Was the master one of the few remnants of their branches in China?

Salan was from China in the first place. She might have lost her influence in her homeland, but it was still flourishing in other countries. Many criminals treated her as their goddess in places the government had no control over.

“Are you sure you went there when you were younger?” Apas asked.

“Yes, but that was more than ten years ago,” Lily said.

“I can help you recall it.” Apas walked up to Lily and placed her hand on Lily’s forehead. She added, “Memories are hidden in everyone’s mind. They might fade away as time goes by, but they won’t disappear completely. I can help you recall your past in the form of a dream. You just focus on remembering every minor detail you can think of.”

Lily looked at Apas in astonishment.

“She has the Psychic Element… It’s not suitable doing it here on the stairs. Let’s head inside first,” Mo Fan said quickly.

He did not think Apas had the ability to help someone recall their past. He was lucky that he had picked her as his Contracted Beast!

——

Mo Fan asked for a room when they went inside the Magic Association.

Zhao Manyan and Mu Bai both gave him a call. They seemed to be in a hurry.

Mo Fan asked them to meet him in Norzak City so he could also share his great discovery with them.

Mo Fan asked the worker not to disturb them after they were allocated a room. The worker looked at Mo Fan like he completely understood what Mo Fan was up to. His strange grin stuck in Mo Fan’s mind for a few seconds even after the door closed.

What is wrong with people nowadays?

He could have just gone to a hotel instead. Why would he come to the Magic Association? What was wrong with being a proper teacher?

Apas proceeded to help Lily recall her past. Mo Fan could only sit at the side and wait.

Lily’s eyes sprang open before Mo Fan felt bored. Her eyes were filled with fear.

“How was it?” asked Mo Fan.

Lily stared at Mo Fan for some time before saying in disbelief, “The private research institute is right here.”

“Where?” Mo Fan was confused.

Was she referring to the Aorus Sacred Institute, or Norzak City?

“Where we are right now,” Lily clarified.

“You mean this Magic Association?”

“Yeah!”

Mo Fan almost jumped out of his seat. He was almost afraid to set foot on the ground, as if it was covered with strong acid!

“The Research Union of this Norzak Magic Association is the herbalist’s lab. Norzak City has developed rapidly during recent years, so the lab was replaced by the Research Union,” Apas added. She had also seen Lily’s dream.

Mo Fan was dumbfounded once again!

He was so close to the Black Vatican!

Was Salan’s influence in other countries so ridiculous that even an important department of a Magic Association was her secret drug factory?

On second thought, even the Enforcement Union had spies from the Black Vatican in it. It was not surprising for the Research Union of a Magic Association’s branch to become the Black Vatican’s secret nest, either. Salan’s people were always good at disguising themselves. They were just like ordinary people as long as their identities were not exposed, especially those with a vital role in society. They might even be the cleaners on the streets of a city.

It was not difficult to condemn evil, but not every bad guy had a label on their head. They were not as ostentatious as the bad guys in Western movies, committing crimes like robbing banks openly.

As long as their cover remained intact, they could easily cover their wicked hearts with gentle smiles!

—

Mo Fan was not in a rush to leave the Magic Association. As long as he was undercover, the Black Vatican would have no idea the three of them were going after it.

Mo Fan even asked Zhao Manyan and Mu Bai to meet him at the Magic Association.

If the Black Vatican enjoyed disguises so much, they would simply discuss how to erase its existence in its own nest.

Zhao Manyan and Mu Bai arrived in no time. Mu Bai purposely checked to see if the room was bugged after entering.

Mo Fan was not worried at all. Those things would not work as long as Apas was around.

“I have a great discovery!”

“Guess what I found!”

Mu Bai and Zhao Manyan blurted out at the same time. They immediately glared at one another.

“Seriously?” Mo Fan did not believe all of them had found some important clues.

“Mo Fan, the students who destroyed the wet fields with Advanced Spells are indeed fishy. I purposely spied on the village that plants coral and investigated their fields. They weren’t planting coral, but the Frenzy Poppies. The students knew we would pass by the village, so they destroyed the wet fields before we arrived. The villagers who came asking for compensation were only putting up an act with them!” Zhao Manyan declared confidently.

It was an important clue!

“I went deeper into the mountain behind the village that plants succulents. It turns out the area enclosed by the fences are only a small part of the plantation. There’s a base that belongs to the Aorus Sacred Institute further up the mountain. The whole place was planted with Frenzy Poppies. The amount was more than ten times greater than the olive grove in Crete. If we had come half a month ago, we would have seen them harvesting the Frenzy Poppies, but they were all gone now. Mo Fan… the Black Vatican is definitely up to something. Those Frenzy Poppies are more than enough to cause a calamity of the same scale as the Calamity of the Ancient Capital!” Mu Bai declared.