I changed the world.

Page 328

Deliver us from evil.

Because of the nation, power, and glory.

It's all yours.

Until forever…

Only after the group finished praying did all the unusual signs on the burly man who had turned into a tree completely disappear. Overwhelmed by a mix of emotions—awe, elation, lingering fear, and excitement—the man instantly collapsed to the ground. Beside him, his companions only then realized that the mysterious old man had vanished without a trace, and the surrounding mist had also dissipated.

"squeak!!!"

Just then, a loud screech of brakes rang out. It was the last black sedan that had finally found them; it had been circling less than fifty meters from the other two cars...

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承和三十七年2016年4月2日00:25格兰德首府西黛市国际机场

"Boom!"

A huge vortex of jet exhaust roared overhead. Through the terminal's alloy floor-to-ceiling windows, a white medium-sized commercial airliner flew away, almost skimming the air above the terminal. Its massive fuselage loomed over, creating a sense of oppression, like a scene from a blockbuster movie.

The security checkpoint was still in chaos, with a large number of people crowding there. The security lanes had long been rendered useless, and everyone was trying to rush through the security area towards the boarding gate.

"Help! Don't leave us!"

"Go back immediately!"

"Ah! Don't push, you'll be trampled to death!!"

………………

Security personnel were completely unable to maintain order, and the boarding gate was forcibly closed. Those in front were forced to retreat desperately, but the bewildered crowd behind continued to push forward, and the scene instantly descended into chaos.

Father Simon was hiding in a corner of the security checkpoint, watching all this with a worried expression. He had naturally heard the terrorists shouting, and the phrase "The Rekja people need freedom" clearly revealed their origins.

These people are most likely members of the Rekia resistance organization. As a colony of Grand on the Black Continent, the Rekia colony is rich in resources, producing a variety of rare non-ferrous metals, many of which are not found in large quantities on other planets in the solar system. However, the native Rekia people have always been fierce and brave, and their resistance has never ceased due to conflicts over the distribution of local resources and the heavy pollution caused by the mining industry.

However, over the years, the Grand government has been cracking down on and dividing these resistance forces. In his memory, it had been a long time since a terrorist attack had been launched in Cid City, the core city of Grand.

As Father Simon pondered, he noticed the gunfire in the distant hall subsiding, wondering if the police had brought the situation under control.

Sure enough, while he was still guessing, the announcement in the waiting area began: "Attention passengers! Attention passengers! A sudden attack has just occurred in the waiting area of ​​Terminal 1 of the airport. The situation has now been brought under control. To reiterate, a sudden attack has just occurred in the waiting area of ​​Terminal 1 of the airport. The situation has now been brought under control."

"This airport has sufficient security personnel and contingency plans to handle all kinds of emergencies. Please remain calm!"

"Boarding is currently suspended. Passengers gathered at the security checkpoints and boarding hall in Terminal 1, please return to the departure lounge. We will be reorganizing security checks and assessing any loss of persons and belongings. Your cooperation is appreciated..."

Father Simon felt a sense of relief upon hearing this. Clearly, the surrounding crowd stopped pushing and shoving after hearing the announcement. As the announcement was repeated and some staff members began to guide the flow of people, the crowd slowly began to move back towards the waiting hall...

"Today's been quite an eventful day," Father Simon sighed, stood up, glanced at the suitcase beside him, and subconsciously reached into his pocket. Then, his expression froze.

His pockets were empty. His heart tightened, and he hurriedly reached for his other pocket, but it was still empty!

I felt around in both pants pockets, then the clothes pockets, and even took out and felt the dirty clothes that I had put in the bag before, but still nothing!

His necklace has disappeared!

Father Simon felt a chill run through him and was at a loss for what to do.

How could it have disappeared?!

When exactly was it lost?!

Ignoring what was being said on the radio, Father Simon, dragging his luggage, frantically searched his way back along the route he had come from...

"Excuse me, could you please move aside?"

"Please make way..."

"Sorry……"

He searched all the way, following the path he remembered. The surroundings were extremely crowded, and in order to see the ground clearly, he had to push and even bump into some passengers, which drew angry stares and curses, but he didn't care at all. Even so, when he returned to the waiting hall like a headless fly, he still couldn't find his necklace.

There's a saying that goes, "The feeling of having something and then losing it is more regrettable than never having had it at all."

Father Simon stared blankly at the passengers and hurried security personnel in the waiting hall, overwhelmed with mixed feelings, feeling as if he had lost something of utmost importance in his life.

"Child, is this what you're looking for?" Just as he was feeling utterly hopeless and at a loss for what to do, a voice came from behind him.

Father Simon turned around and saw an elderly man with neatly groomed gray hair and a short beard, wearing a black woolen suit, a silver crown brooch on his chest.

At this moment, the old man was holding a necklace that looked familiar to him. The bronze crown pendant made him recognize at a glance as the necklace he had lost.

"Ah, this is it!"

Father Simon took the necklace somewhat flusteredly, held it in his hands, and almost immediately realized that it was the necklace he had lost.

Chapter 649 Side Effects?

"Thank you so much! May I ask your name...?" He then belatedly realized how rude he had been and how he had slighted the kind old man. So he looked up to ask the man's name and express his gratitude further.

However, when he looked up again, he found that there was no trace of the old man. He craned his neck and looked around, but no matter what he did, he could not see the old man anywhere in his field of vision.

"Sir, is there anything I can help you with?" Perhaps his looking around was too conspicuous, attracting the attention of two uniformed police officers nearby. Presumably because such a horrific incident had just occurred, there were a large number of armed and uniformed police officers in the lobby questioning and checking people.

"Oh, it's nothing. I just lost some luggage, so I'm looking for it," Father Simon quickly explained.

The two officers nodded, clearly finding the reason justifiable; many people had lost their luggage in the chaos. After checking Father Simon's identification and confirming he was a priest, their attitude softened further. One of them even kindly reminded him that if he couldn't find his lost luggage, he could register at the designated checkpoint at the airport terminal and likely receive compensation.

***

承和三十七年2016年4月2日00:38格兰德首府西黛市第7区

While Father Simon was somewhat distracted dealing with the two police officers, Zhang Jing was strolling through the rainy night in Cid City.

Zhang Jing had a fairly clear understanding of the power struggle surrounding Father Simon; it was obvious that the Rekja people were being manipulated behind the scenes. It wasn't that these people were in disguise, but rather that they had been constantly being watched.

From the start of their operation until it was brought under control, the entire process did not result in any major casualties. In Zhang Jing's view, the real purpose of those people was probably to use this incident to cover up the theft of Father Simon's "relic".

It's obvious that some people in the Grand government couldn't resist getting involved. However, they were also worried about the Church's hidden influence, since what is unknown is what is most dangerous, which is why they staged this charade.

Now that everything has temporarily come to a stop, Zhang Jing is not in a hurry to return home. The rain is quite comforting to him, so he takes a leisurely stroll in the rain.

As a renowned metropolis in the Western Continent, the capital city of the Grand Republic, Cid City, boasts a long history and numerous buildings from various historical periods. Zhang Jing had never been here before, and now, walking along the quiet streets, admiring the exotic architecture on both sides, he found himself quite intrigued.

The rain grew heavier, and through the misty air, Zhang Jing's senses extended far in all directions. His figure became increasingly blurred in the rain, sometimes in front, sometimes behind. Gradually, his power and perception became connected with the rain.

To outsiders, he appears to be a ghost walking in the rain, seemingly moving slowly, but if someone is watching him closely, they will find that he has disappeared in the blink of an eye.

Fortunately, there were very few people on the streets at this time, and even those who were there were hurrying home with umbrellas in hand; otherwise, there might have been some supernatural rumors...

Although it was called a stroll, Zhang Jing was actually moving very fast. He went wherever he pleased, and in just over ten minutes, he had already crossed the Mondello River and arrived at the area of ​​the 1st district from the 7th district.

The city of Cidé is divided into districts by numbers. Districts 1 and 7 are separated by the Mondello River and are both traditional old towns.

Standing on the banks of the Mondero River, Zhang Jing took a special look at the night view of the river. In many modern poems circulating in the Western Continent, the Mondero River is a river that is frequently mentioned. In fact, it is also considered to be the mother river of Xidai City. The earliest Xidai City was built along this river and then gradually expanded to more distant places.

In some of the poems he knew, the Montero River was often described as romantic and elegant. However, in Zhang Jing's view at this time, the Montero River was turbulent, and there was a lot of garbage on both banks that had not been cleaned up. Some of it could be seen that it was left by homeless people, and there were even many traces of people sleeping outdoors.

Even after becoming a republic, the gap between the rich and the poor in Grand remains quite severe. Zhang Jing has discovered that there are many homeless people sleeping on the streets in Xidai City, a number even greater than in the imperial state of Dazhao, which he is more familiar with.

Feeling somewhat disappointed, Zhang Jing didn't want to look any further and headed towards District 1, intending to take a look at the most famous buildings in Westdale City.

However, at that moment, Zhang Jing suddenly stopped as if he had a premonition. He checked the direction and looked eastward. In the midst of the rain, his senses were rapidly extending and expanding. He could feel that something unusual was happening there.

Could it be... a side effect? ​​After a moment's thought, Zhang Jing made a judgment. His previous wishes had not produced any new side effects, but now, there was a high probability that the "side effects" of the wish book had been triggered once again.

Fortunately, based on the points he had spent making his wish, Zhang Jing had a rough estimate in mind. If it really was a side effect triggered by the wishing book, then the intensity of the event should be within his control. Especially since he still had the "good luck" bonus.

Therefore, there was no need to dodge. Zhang Jing checked the direction and disappeared from the spot.

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承和三十七年2016年4月2日00:39格兰德首府西黛市巴拉迪尔国立博物馆

The National Museum of Baladir is a world-renowned museum. Originally the private palace of the Grande royal family, named François Palace, it houses a large collection of royal art.

After the establishment of the Republic, King Balladur II, in an effort to enhance the image of the monarchy among the people, announced that the palace would be opened as a museum and donated a collection of artworks and artifacts to the nation. Thus, the former François Palace became the Balladur National Museum. Although the ownership of most of the exhibits remained with the royal family, the public was free to visit. This proved to have brought considerable praise to the monarchy.

Chapter 650 Embezzlement by the Guard

It was already past midnight. Due to the special nature of the Baladur National Museum, which houses a large collection of royal artifacts, in addition to regular security personnel, a team of armed royal guards were on duty outside the museum. Furthermore, its location in the heart of Cidade, surrounded by numerous government institutions such as the Grande Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Parliament Building, ensured that security at the Baladur National Museum was generally quite secure, with no incidents of theft or loss of artifacts reported.

According to statistics, the Baladil National Museum houses over 30 artifacts across nearly 200 exhibition halls, the largest of which is over 200 meters long. Besides national art treasures, it also contains numerous artifacts and artworks from around the world. Therefore, the people of Baladil have divided the museum into several galleries for separate exhibitions: the Eastern Continent Art Gallery, the Western Classical Art Gallery, the Indigenous Culture Gallery, the Painting Gallery, and the Sculpture Gallery.

It's fair to say that such a huge museum cannot be fully explored in just one or two days. In fact, the museum operates on a rotating opening schedule, with only half of the exhibition halls open on each opening day, while Wednesdays are closed.

It was well past the maintenance period after closing time, and the museum was quiet. Two guards in security uniforms were walking along the long corridor of the museum, waving flashlights from side to side, looking around to see if there were any unexpected situations.

It was late at night, and the museum lights had long been turned off, with only the beams of flashlights providing a faint illumination. Walking in front of each exhibit felt like traversing a long stretch of time; for the average person, the atmosphere was somewhat eerie.

For the two guards, however, this was clearly a routine task they were quite familiar with. They exchanged quiet conversations and occasionally let out lighthearted laughter.

However, if someone listened carefully to their conversation, they would realize that something seemed amiss.

“Sean, I think we’re being too cautious. If we go to an art gallery, whether it’s religious paintings or Impressionist works… any one of them could easily sell for tens of millions.”

"Foolish! Don't you know how many people are watching those works? If we actually touch those things, we'll be discovered within a week, and then we'll all be in trouble!"

"Okay...maybe you're right. I just feel like making money is too slow if I'm always taking those little things..."

“Hubert, you have to understand that for us, security is the most important thing. Those big shots won’t care about some unknown little stone statue that’s been swapped in the indigenous cultural museum, you understand? To them, it’s just a dispensable collection, and even His Majesty might not know that he has such a collection.”

"But if they've swapped a Renaissance painting or a Classical sculpture for it, then we're in big trouble. No one can hide that because they're too famous. They'll search for every clue, inch by inch, and we'll be found and thrown in jail..."