Formerly United States, New York State, Thousand Islands region.

The reason why it is called Yuan is because this country, which was once the world's superpower, was still unable to restore order after the disaster. It was completely divided due to internal and external troubles, and several states have already declared independence.

Without the coalition government, New York State was forced to become an autonomous region, especially the world-famous New York City, which has become a paradise for capable people and various militants. Gotham City is considered a civilized city in comparison.

In the Thousand Islands area, in a dilapidated hotel, four people from Akimiya Yue surrounded a beautiful and dejected white girl in the middle.

Fortunately they are all women, otherwise this scene would have looked like some kind of turn-taking poker game.

The white girl's name is Ellie, she is a native American and a senior killer of the Shadow Religion.

Although Qiu Gongyue has announced to draw a clear line with Yue Yue and others, as a pragmatist, she does not object to borrowing things from the Shadow Sect.

In order to recover the power of the Shadow Goddess, Yue Yue once sent a large number of killers to various parts of the world to conduct investigations, including the saint race of the Goddess Religion.

After years of investigation, we have already mastered a large amount of information about the Saintess race.

After Xu Cheng left, Qiu Gongyue took the others back to the Shadow Sect and intercepted the information about the Saintess race. Then the four of them crossed the ocean and came to North America. According to the Shadow Sect's joint code, they found the person responsible

Ellie investigating the saint race.

After the two parties met, Ellie suddenly realized that something was wrong and subconsciously wanted to escape, but was captured by Qiu Gongyue and others.

"Why are you running?"

Qiu Gongyue asked: "We are the messengers sent by the Shadow Sect to contact you, and are specially responsible for investigating the saint race. Why are you running away?"

I believe you as a ghost.

Ellie cursed in her heart. She could tell at a glance that these people were not the killers of the Shadow Sect at all, but under the threat of death, she did not dare to speak out her suspicions, lest they be killed and silenced.

Dinah stood on a chair and looked at her condescendingly: "Sister, could it be that you betrayed the Shadow Sect and ran away when you saw us?"

Seeing that the little girl in front of her, who was obviously underage, actually complained first, a flash of anger flashed in Ellie's eyes.

However, she knew that her life now depended on the attitudes of these strangers in front of her, so she could only swallow her anger and explained: "If I betrayed the Shadow Sect, I would not come. I was afraid that you were lying, so I

Choose to run away.”

Yin Tenglixiang smiled slightly: "Then do you think we are real or fake?"

Ellie could only say without conscience: "You are true, I admitted my mistake, and I am very sorry."

After the disaster happened, she cut off contact with the headquarters. Now these people are coming here according to the headquarters' signal. No matter whether they are true or false, they should save their own lives first.

Yin Fulin observed Ellie's expression and knew that she had given in, so she asked: "What is the current situation of the Saintess race? Tell us everything you know."

Ellie didn't resist and answered the questions honestly.

She has been investigating the Saint Lady clan for many years, and no one knows this family better than she does.

After the disappearance of the Shadow Goddess, the Saintess tribe left Guangming Mountain and followed the original European pioneers to settle in North America.

This family has a very long history, and has maintained a good relationship with the founding figures of the United States in private.

During this period, the Saint Lady tribe was divided because of their beliefs.

One of the tribes continued to believe in the Shadow Goddess. They left North America and settled in Japan. This tribe later became the Moon Tribe.

The Saints who stayed in North America changed their beliefs. They began to believe in the moon, believing that a great god lived on the moon. They created a religion that believed in the moon. Therefore, they should not be called the Saints now, but should be called the Saints.

Be a believer in Luna or a believer in the moon god, Luna is the moon goddess in Greek and Roman mythology.

Believers pursued the origin and greatness of the moon to a very crazy level, and even used family connections and spent huge sums of money to push the U.S. government to conduct lunar exploration.

So far, 24 American astronauts have landed on the moon, of which at least more than 15 are Luna believers.

However, the moon landing did not bring any gains to the Moon God believers. They spent huge sums of money and connections to land on the moon continuously, but found nothing on the moon. The whole family seemed to have fallen into some kind of madness, and

began to decline.

Entering the 21st century, Luna believers are already a small religion and family that few people know about, and even the number of members is very small.

After the disaster, they collectively moved to the Thousand Island Lake area in New York State and adopted a secluded attitude to isolate themselves from the outside world.

After listening to the story, Qiu Gongyue asked: "Have they not found the heir of the saint for many years?"

"It's not that I haven't found it for many years, it's that I haven't looked for it for many years."

Ellie corrected: "They no longer consider themselves followers of the Shadow Goddess, so naturally they will not choose a saint."

"What about the inheritance of the saint?"

Qiu Gongyue frowned. The inheritance of the saint is a derivative of the power given by the shadow goddess. It will not disappear out of thin air. Even if the holder dies, it will always remain in the world.

Ellie shook her head: "I don't know. After all, the last heir to the saint was already a hundred years ago."

Yin Fulin interrupted: "Then what are you investigating here?"

In her sharp gaze, Ellie did not dare to lie: "I just want to investigate the inheritance of the saint, and this is also the task assigned to me by the headquarters.

"

Yin Fulin then asked: "How many Moon God believers are there now? Which level is the most powerful among them?"

What she was thinking was that if the strength of the Moon God believers was weakening now, maybe they could directly arrest all the Moon God believers and force them to find out the whereabouts of the Saintess' inheritance.

"There are only more than a thousand people, and there may be more, but they are all bloodlines left outside. The most powerful one is a superpower. But according to my investigation, she is not using the inheritance of the saint, but

It is the mysterious power gained after believing in the moon."

Ellie explained, and suddenly understood the meaning of Yin Fulin's question, and said hurriedly: "Don't mess around, these Moon God believers are now a group of lunatics, if you mess around, who knows how they will react.

And I have found some clues about the inheritance of the Saint, please don’t let me waste all my efforts.”

"What clue?"

"The last heir to the Holy Maiden disappeared about a hundred years ago. I am investigating the secret family history of the Moon God believers and looking for the whereabouts of this heir. I have already got some clues."

Seeing Qiu Miyazuki and Yin Fulin deep in thought, Yin Tenglixiang also asked: "If we want to conceal our identity and enter Bolt Castle, what can you do?

Bolt Castle is now the settlement of Luna believers, located on Heart-shaped Island.

"impossible."

Ellie shook her head: "The Moon God believers are very exclusive now. Only people with the same bloodline as them can be allowed to enter and settle there."

"Then how did you get inside them?"

"Because I am a descendant of Moon God believers."

This is also the reason why the Shadow Sect specially sent her to investigate within the Moon God believers.

Yin Teng Rika and others immediately looked at Akimiya Yue.

She is a direct descendant of the Moon Clan and a branch of the original Saintess Clan, so she can definitely blend in with the Moon God believers.

From the reactions of these people, Ellie immediately understood something. She raised her head and looked at Qiu Gongyue in surprise. She did not expect that there was also a member of the same race among them.

"Wait a minute, why are you Asian?"

And she's so pretty, so this is so unfair.

Akimiya explained: "My ancestors are the branch that left North America and settled in Japan. After years of mixed blood there, can mixed blood also pass the test?"

"Then it depends on your blood concentration."

Ellie said with some sourness: "I see that your race has changed, so there is a high probability that you will fail the test."

Dinah tilted her head and looked at her: "Sister, I smell jealousy from your speech. Are you jealous that Sister Yue is prettier than you?"

"No!"

Ellie immediately denied that she was not jealous, just envious.

Qiu Gongyue ordered: "Anyway, we are going to enter Bolt Castle next, please make arrangements for us."

If they want to find the inheritance of the Saint, they must work with Ellie to investigate the whereabouts of the heir a hundred years ago.

Ellie raised her hand and pointed at the other three people: "What about them? Do they also have the blood of the Saintess race?"

She also pointed at the Snow Wolf God: "Don't tell me this dog is too?"

"You don't have to worry about it. You just need to tell us the detection method."

Ellie was forced to sign a soul contract with Yin Fulin, and was unable to do anything unfavorable to the four of them before being let go.

Two days later, she finally made arrangements and took everyone by boat to Heart-Shaped Island.

Heart Island is a small island in the St. Lawrence River. It is the most famous one among the Thousand Islands. There is a Bolt Castle on it. It was originally a tourist attraction and was later occupied by Luna believers.

The boat sailed in the river, Qiu Gongyue and others stood on the bow, looking at the heart-shaped island in the distance.

As the distance got closer, Bolt Castle above finally came into view.

It was a huge white and red building, as if transplanted from a German castle. The towering spire, magnificent arches, and exquisite balconies all revealed a kind of romance and luxury.

This castle also has a story about love and death. In order to surprise his wife Louise, the first owner Bolt spent a huge amount of money to build this spectacular castle and planned to dedicate it to his wife on Valentine's Day.

.

But just one month before Valentine's Day, Louise died of a heart attack. Mr. Bolt was so distraught that he ordered the construction of the castle to be stopped.

The castle was abandoned for 73 years until 1977, when the Thousand Island Bridge Committee took over the castle and turned it into a museum and tourist attraction.

After listening to Ellie telling the history of this castle, none of the three adults were interested. Only Dinah hugged the Snow Wolf God tightly with both hands, and a trace of sadness appeared on her young face.

Yin Tenglixiang touched her head: "What are you thinking about?"

"Mr. Bolt, he must love his wife deeply."

Dinah whispered: "If Archer builds me such a castle, then I would rather die in his arms."

While speaking, she also looked at Qiu Gongyue and Yin Fulin with her small eyes.

Neither of them had the same experience as this dead girl, but only they knew what they were thinking.

Yin Tenglixiang laughed: "That Mr. Bolt really loved his wife, but he married another wife the second year after his wife passed away."

"ah?"

Dinah's face fell: "Then forget it, the adult world is really dirty."

Is there such a thing?

Ellie looked at Yin Teng Rika in confusion, but was warned by her eyes, so she had to keep silent and not disturb her to attack the innocent romance of the little girl.

The ship soon arrived at Heart-Shaped Island and was questioned by the guards.

Ellie came here to settle down with the Luna believers. She was already a familiar face here. She quickly passed the security check and arrived in front of Bolt Castle.

The castle is very vast, with some stag statues on the top, surrounded by a green garden, a fountain that sparkles with water drops in the sun, and a rose garden that exudes a refreshing fragrance.

After passing the strict security check again, the group entered the castle. Along the way, they could see many young people with happy smiles and some children attending classes in the classroom.

Compared with the chaotic world outside, this place seems like a peaceful and happy paradise.

Soon, Ellie took Qiu Gongyue and others to find a priestess of the Moon God believers, who was also the director of the castle and was responsible for the daily life of the entire big family.

"Ms. Mia, these are the descendants of the family that I told you yesterday."

Ellie introduced Qiu Gongyue and others to a middle-aged woman named Mia: "They are living in a difficult situation outside and hope to return to the family."

This is the false identity that Ellie arranged for them, pretending to be the descendants of the Moon God believers left behind. This is the easiest way to pass.

Ms. Mia wears thick gold-rimmed glasses and looks like the kind of woman with a very old-fashioned personality.

She looked at the four outstanding-looking young women in front of her with an interrogation gaze. Her eyes focused on Qiu Gongyue's face for a long time, and then she said in a tone of ridicule or doubt: "I don't know yet.

There are actually Asians among Luna’s ethnic groups?”

Ellie's heart suddenly rose. If Qiu Gongyue and others were found to have problems, she would also be implicated.

"Madam, I wonder if you still remember that a branch of the family once left North America and settled in Japan."

Qiu Gongyue explained calmly: "We are from this branch, and our ancestor is George Justin."

Only then did Ms. Mia's eyes show a hint of surprise. The family branch left North America for Japan. This is a history that many people know, but the key figure who decided to leave with the branch is rarely known. His name is

George Justin.

If it is a branch of the family that settled in Japan, there will indeed be Asian descendants.

Qiu Gongyue's identity couldn't be more real, so she acted extremely confident and had no flaws at all.

"Huh, what you say is unfounded."

Ms. Mia pushed up her glasses with her hand: "Let's pass the blood test. Nina, take them for examination."

"Okay, Ms. Mia."

A girl who looked like a secretary stood up and bowed slightly to everyone: "Everyone, please come with me."

Several people followed Nina and left. After they were all gone, Mia suddenly stood up, left the office quickly, entered a secret passage next to it, and walked quickly in the secret passage.

After passing through a maze-like tunnel with twists and turns, Mia came to a secret room.

She raised her head and looked at an oil painting hanging on the wall of the room, and her body began to tremble slightly.

The composition of the oil painting is a bit like the Mona Lisa's smile, depicting an extremely beautiful Asian woman.

If Qiu Gongyue were here, she would be shocked to find that the Asian woman in this oil painting looks exactly like herself.

At this time, Mia's face was full of shock, which she had suppressed not to show when she was in front of Qiu Gongyue just now.

"Is this... a coincidence... or..."

Mia murmured to herself that she had seen this painting since she was a child. Her mother, her grandmother, and even her great-grandmother had also seen it, because this painting was hundreds of years old.

Hundreds of years later, a girl who looked exactly like the person in the oil painting suddenly came to the door.

Is this a coincidence or fate?

…

Under the leadership of Nina, a group of people came to the medical department in the castle. A female doctor gave everyone an injection and used the syringe to draw blood samples for testing.

"No, I'm afraid of injections, no!"

Dinah started fussing like a little kid who was afraid of injections, and the Snow Wolf God held in her arms howled reluctantly.

While everyone's attention was attracted, Yin Fulin secretly controlled the shadow and exchanged the blood drawn by the doctor.

The blood that was replaced was Qiu Gongyue's blood mixed with their blood, with different proportions.

Soon, Dinah was "comforted" and the blood was drawn honestly. Then, Nina, as the secretary, took them to a place to wait. They needed to wait for the blood test results to come out before deciding whether they could stay.

Live in this castle.

After Nina left, Yin Fulin immediately asked Ellie: "Didn't you say that people here are crazy?"

The rest of the people also looked at Ellie. She had said before that these Moon God believers had fallen into madness, but along the way, they saw all normal scenes. They even thought they had returned to the peace before the disaster.

Era.

Ellie didn't know how to explain it, so she could only say: "They behave normally now, but the fifteenth of every month is the time to sacrifice to the moon. Then you will know why they are crazy."

"Did you notice something?"

Yin Teng Rika suddenly said: "The number of men here can only be a little small."

She didn't need to remind her that besides Dinah, Qiu Gongyue and Yin Fulin had already discovered it.

From the moment they landed on Heart-Shaped Island, most of the people they saw along the way were women. The number of men was extremely rare, and only one or two could be seen occasionally.

Everyone looked at Ellie again, feeling that she was hiding a lot of things.

"The Moon God has always been regarded as a deity exclusive to women, so Moon God believers tend to reject men."

Ellie had to explain: "Anyway, there will be a lot of weird places here. If you want to investigate here for a long time, you will see it soon. You must be mentally prepared in advance."

When night fell, Nina brought them blood test reports, and everyone passed the test.

Ellie held the report in her hand and looked at Qiu Gongyue with surprised eyes. How high was her blood concentration? After being mixed with other people's blood, it could still pass the test.

"Everyone, welcome to join our big family."

Nina looked at everyone with a smile, and her eyes stayed on Qiu Gongyue's face for a few more seconds, remembering Ms. Mia's instructions: "I have prepared the room for you, please come with me."

The four people were assigned to four rooms juxtaposed together, not far from where Ellie lived.

"Everyone can live in the castle indefinitely from now on without paying any fees, but occasionally you need to accept some tasks assigned by Ms. Mia, such as cleaning, or trimming gardens, etc. You need to apply to go out, and some places that need to be kept confidential cannot be approached.

Otherwise, you are free."

Nina tells us about the rules of living here. They are indeed very loose. Compared with the chaotic outside world, it is like paradise.

"correct!"

Nina, who was about to leave, suddenly turned around and looked at the four of them: "No matter what noise you hear at night, it's best not to leave the bedroom."

The four of them took her instructions to heart and began to wonder if there was any secret hidden in this.

After Nina left, Qiu Gongyue entered her own room. As soon as she entered the door, with her years of experience, she immediately noticed that there was a pinhole camera hidden in the room.

She didn't act rashly and walked to the other three rooms, only to find that there were no pinhole cameras in their rooms.

Qiu Gongyue didn't know whether this was a coincidence or intentional. If it was intentional, why was it only directed at her?

Dinner was eaten in the collective cafeteria. Qiu Gongyue and the four of them caused a sensation as soon as they arrived because their looks were so much above average.

Most of the people in the cafeteria were young women. They were like meeting transfer students at school. They excitedly surrounded the four people and asked questions. Moreover, everyone's attitude was very friendly and enthusiastic, and they could not tell Ellie at all.

Said madness.

The four of them had never encountered this kind of situation before, and they were all a little disturbed. Even the Snow Wolf God was so embarrassed that he was treated like a husky.

After finally finishing their dinner, the four of them and one dog escaped from the cafeteria and hid in their room.

Reunited in a room without a pinhole camera, the four people began to discuss what they had seen today.

This place is more like a girls' school than a big family. Most of the members are women, and everyone seems innocent, warm and friendly.

"But, is this possible?"

Yin Fulin crossed her hands and said with a calm voice: "There are intrigues everywhere. After all, there are only a few enthusiastic and cheerful people. In a place, everyone has a warm and cheerful personality. Don't you think it's strange?"

Yes, this is also the strangest part. Except for a few people, such as Mia or Nina, most people seem to be carved out of the same personality template.

But neither Qiu Gongyue nor Yin Fulin could see any trace of disguise. They seemed to be born with this kind of personality.

As for the religious atmosphere, I didn’t see any symbols or decorations about the moon. Can this be considered a family that believes in the moon to the point of madness?

Because Ellie's statement was somewhat inconsistent with the real situation, everyone did not trust her and did not bring her in to discuss it.

The discussion could not produce any results. Seeing that the night was getting late, Qiu Gongyue could only announce that the meeting was adjourned.

Yin Tenglixiang suggested: "Ayue, do you want to go out and check it out tonight?"

Qiu Gongyue thought for a few seconds, shook her head and said: "Forget it, don't attract attention on the first night."

After the meeting, she returned to the room where the pinhole camera was installed, pretended not to know, lay down directly on the bed, closed her eyes to rest, and thought about today's experience.

Suddenly, she felt a significant change in temperature, and there were subtle footsteps in the corridor outside the bedroom.

She immediately opened her eyes and looked at the clock hanging on the wall, with an expression of surprise in her eyes.

It’s already two o’clock in the middle of the night?

She and Yin Fulin and others went back to their rooms separately, which was at 11 o'clock in the evening. It was probably less than half an hour after lying down. Why did time go so fast?

Qiugong Yue thought for a moment that the clock was malfunctioning, so she immediately got up to check and found that there was no problem with the clock.

The temperature is still dropping. It is obviously spring now, but the temperature is gradually dropping to close to zero.

There were subtle footsteps again outside.

Qiu Gongyue immediately walked behind the door and gently opened it a crack. She noticed that there was no light outside and the pale moonlight shone in through the window.

A woman in pajamas with disheveled hair staggered past the corridor.

Qiu Gongyue thought of Nina's instructions today, telling them not to go out no matter what noise they heard at night. Is this the reason?

Just when Qiu Gongyue was about to close the door, she suddenly stopped and her eyes fell on the wall opposite the room. There was a picture of the moon hanging on the wall, which was obviously not there before.

Even if someone came secretly to hang this painting, she would definitely hear the movement, but except for the footsteps of the mysterious woman passing by just now, she heard nothing.

This painting appeared out of thin air.

At this moment, Qiu Gongyue changed her decision not to attract attention on the first day, gently opened the door and stepped out.

The moment she stepped out, she felt as if she had passed through an invisible barrier.

In the gloomy corridor, the walls on both sides are hung with various pictures about the moon, showing the moon's waxing and waning phases.

Akimiya Yue came to Into Rika's room next door and knocked on the door, but no one responded.

She immediately opened the door to the room, and it was immediately empty. She went to other rooms, and the same was true.
Chapter completed!