Florida, just outside of Miami.
Florida is one of the most fascinating states in America. It boasts the most diverse range of geographical environments in the country – you can find just about any type of terrain here.
It's also a prime destination for invasive species. Don't be surprised to see any kind of animal here; that's just Florida for you.
And the mindset of Floridians is particularly... unique. There's a famous saying online that pokes fun at their tendency to do things their own way:
"Florida doesn't raise any slackers."
Just as Roy won his first elimination round, on the outskirts of Miami, Florida's second-largest city, a white-robed nun wearing a black eye patch was walking down a secluded path.
It was far from the city center, surrounded by dense tropical jungle. You could faintly hear the sounds of nocturnal animals.
But the white-robed nun didn't seem scared at all, steadily walking deeper into the forest.
After walking for an unknown amount of time, a wooden church covered in moss and vines appeared before the white-robed nun.
This wooden church looked like it had stood there for ages. The tropical climate had taken its toll, and the building was quite dilapidated, but it still maintained a relatively intact structure.
The white-robed nun walked up and gently pushed open the church's wooden door, causing it to creak.
The church interior was empty except for a black-robed nun kneeling in front of a crucifix, silently praying.
The white-robed nun watched the black-robed nun's back for a long time. The other nun didn't react at all, as if she hadn't noticed the white-robed nun's arrival.
After a while, the white-robed nun spoke in a cold, clear voice.
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"Michael, don't you have anything to explain to me?"
The black-robed nun's body trembled slightly.
"Y-yes, I'm sorry! Lord Michael is currently asleep!"
A gentle but somewhat timid voice answered the white-robed nun.
This caused a ripple in the white-robed nun's otherwise placid expression. In the Vatican, she had only found the other nun's location and didn't know what had happened.
"Why has it come to this?"
The black-robed nun fell silent, her entire body starting to tremble slightly, seemingly terrified by the white-robed nun's imposing presence.
However, since the black-robed nun had been chosen by Michael as her human vessel, she naturally possessed some excellent qualities.
"I... I can't say!"
The white-robed nun sighed.
"Isabella, do you think that by not speaking, you can hide it from Uriel's eyes?"
Uriel, the angel of wisdom, whose eyes can see the past and the future. Very few things can escape her gaze.
Isabella closed her eyes. Although her body was still trembling somewhat, her attitude remained firm.
"I... I promised Lord Michael that I wouldn't say anything, no matter what!"
Uriel scrutinized Isabella with an expressionless face. As the absolutely rational angel of wisdom, she wouldn't get angry just because the other nun refused to tell the truth.
In fact, very few things could cause Uriel's emotions to fluctuate greatly.
"Even if God himself were here, would you still not speak?"
"Even if God himself were here!"
Isabella's meaning was very clear. Uriel nodded slightly.
"Not bad. You are a person who keeps her promises. However, even if you don't speak, I can still find the answer."
With that, Uriel turned and left.
Uriel indeed couldn't see what had happened to Michael before, but as the angel of wisdom, she wasn't just good at peeking at answers.
Although some force had obscured what had happened to Michael, she could still indirectly deduce the truth through other events.
It would just take some time.
Feeling Uriel's departure, Isabella let out a heavy sigh of relief. She hadn't expected the pressure from the angel of wisdom's presence to be so overwhelming.
Was that how it felt when her body was controlled by Lord Michael?
As soon as she thought of Michael, Isabella's thoughts couldn't help but drift to a certain boy, causing a slight ripple in both her heart and her body.
But as soon as this ripple appeared, Isabella immediately suppressed it, clearing her mind of all distractions and focusing on praying to God.
However, once a ripple is created, it will always slowly spread. Even if the surface of the water looks calm, there are already undercurrents flowing beneath.
The scene cuts back to Los Angeles. After the match, Roy had a simple celebration with Heather, Penny, Dahlia, and Mary.
Well, it was really just a celebration, because tonight was the latest episode of "Night Owls." Keller's simp, Andy, had mentioned that Jack was doing some kind of special program recently, which Roy was very interested in.
At exactly 10 p.m., the "Night Owls" reality show officially began.
The opening still had that Golden Age stage performance style, which was perhaps one of the few remaining old-school elements Jack had kept.
Roy and his younger friends had absolutely no interest in this kind of performance.
In the living room of the suite, the four women were chatting quietly, while Roy opened his laptop, chatting with Jennifer and Needy while Browse recent events in Los Angeles.
Penny was discussing studio matters with Heather. She was genuinely enthusiastic about Roy's studio and had been studying very diligently lately.
As for Dahlia, she was sharing her childcare tips with Mary. They were both the kind of women who were good wives and mothers, and they had similar family values.
Finally, after ten minutes of boring song and dance, the host, Jack, officially appeared.
Tonight's show was a bit strange. After Jack came on stage, he didn't invite any guests, which seemed different from the usual format.
This made Roy feel like something was off.
After a bit of meaningless banter, Jack finally got to the point.
"Everyone must be wondering why it's just me here tonight without any guests. Has this terrible show finally gotten so poor that we can't afford any?"
Jack had a funny expression on his face, which caused a burst of laughter from the audience.
"Okay, just kidding! Director, please don't dock my pay! Actually, we do have a guest tonight, but the guest's entrance is a bit special. He won't be appearing on stage, but rather—take a look at our live feed!"
The large screen behind Jack started playing a video, and at the same time, a split screen appeared on the TV.
What came into view was the face of a young man with medium-length hair and a familiar goatee. Wasn't this the fake pastor Max who had been on the show several times before?
Roy was very surprised.
So this was pre-recorded, and Jack and Max were going to have a live video call.
What kind of stunt were they going to pull this time?
"Hey, Jack, can you hear me?"
Max's big face was right up against the screen, as if he was looking at the camera.
"Yes, of course, I can hear you! It would be even better if your face was a little further away! We can already see the pimples on your face!"
"Pimples? No way! I just checked! Cough, cough!"
Max took a few steps back so everyone could see the environment behind him.
You could tell that Max was inside a villa. The interior decoration was quite luxurious.
Behind Max, a woman was sitting in a chair with her head tilted. Her body was restrained, almost like she was in an electric chair.
Next to the woman stood a man who looked about the same age as Max, also wearing a pastor's robe.
Seeing this scene, Jack started making fun again.
"Oh, Max! Before recording today, you suddenly said you had a surprise for me. Is this your surprise? Good heavens! My show is for all ages. Please don't do anything weird!"
Jack suddenly went off-script, causing another round of laughter from the audience.
Max suddenly put on a very serious face and said that famous line from the Deputy Goat.
"This will be the last time you disrespect me! People have always said I'm a fake pastor. Today, I will personally demonstrate the most authentic church exorcism method. Take a look here!"
The pastor behind him turned the woman's chair so that her face was directly facing the camera.
You could see that the woman was wearing dirty clothes. Her face was a very sickly pale, and she had very exaggerated blue veins on her skin, like varicose veins.
But if there were such extensive varicose veins, it would definitely be incredibly painful. However, this woman didn't react at all; she just kept her head tilted, looking at the ground.
If it weren't for the fact that the woman's eyes were open, Roy would have thought she was asleep.
Jack continued talking to Max.
"Alright, so what are you going to do?"
"Witness this!"
Max turned his back to the camera. First, he took out a towel embroidered with a cross and placed it on the back of the woman's restrained hand.
This action made Roy a bit confused. Was this the most authentic church exorcism method?
Then, a line of text appeared at the bottom of the screen: Vatican-produced towels, blessed by the Holy Land, now only $19.99 each!
Damn it, so it was an ad!
Roy couldn't help but roll his eyes. He thought this Max was going to do something real, but it was just another show.
And a towel in the supermarket only cost a few bucks. This Max guy was actually selling them for several times that price. What a ripoff!
Afterward, Max held up a crucifix to the woman who was strapped to the chair.
"In the name of the eternal God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, I hereby declare war on the devil! Devil, the cross of Christ has overcome the power of death! Now tell me your true name!"
Although the towel placement earlier was purely for advertising and seemed a bit nonsensical, this part of the process wasn't wrong.
However, the devil obviously wouldn't be foolish enough to directly reveal its true name. The woman just shook her head and muttered, a low chuckle coming from her mouth, completely ignoring Max.
So, Max put down the crucifix, took a transparent glass bottle from his assistant, opened it, and suddenly splashed the contents onto the woman.
The woman, who had been giggling just moments before, suddenly let out a low growl, like a wounded beast, and a large amount of white smoke billowed from her body.
This scene also caught the attention of the four women who had been chatting. They stopped talking and focused their attention on the TV screen.
Roy frowned slightly. This scene was indeed quite startling, and even the live audience of the reality show on TV gasped.
However, Roy, who spent a lot of time online in his previous life, knew that this kind of effect could be artificially created. But with two screens between them, Roy couldn't tell what Max's trick was.
Watching the woman struggle in pain, Max once again held the crucifix to her head.
"Silence! Unclean spirit! In the name of Jesus Christ—King of Kings and Lord of Lords—I command you: reveal your name and leave this temple of God! The precious blood of Christ has broken your chains, and the fire of the Holy Spirit will burn away all your schemes!"
The woman was still struggling, her body joints twisting in unnatural ways. It looked incredibly painful to an outsider.
And Max, holding the crucifix, stepped closer and closer to the woman. As he approached, the woman's struggles became even more violent.
Finally, the woman spat out a name from her throat.
"Mos...ti...ma..."
Mostima?
Roy knew that name. This guy was originally the commander of the Watcher Angels, but later, for some unknown reason, he became a fallen angel, a symbol of "hatred," "hostility," and "persecution."
After obtaining the devil's true name, Max immediately picked up the Bible and began to recite loudly, pressing the crucifix against the woman's forehead.
"Mostima, I bind you, spirit of hatred, fallen one, by the authority of the Holy Trinity, I cast you out to the wilderness appointed by Jesus! This body is the dwelling place of the Holy Spirit; you have no right to defile it!
I declare: Lanley's soul and body are now in the peace and freedom of Christ!"
The pastor's assistant next to him also recited the exorcism words along with Max.
"Lord Jesus, we ask that your light fill this place and protect your children from evil!"
Amidst the continuous recitation of the two men, the woman strapped to the chair let out a piercing scream. Finally, her whole body went still, as if she had fainted.
Max stepped forward to check on the woman's condition, then returned to the camera.
"This exorcism was successful! I have once again saved the soul of an innocent woman!"
To be honest, Max's exorcism routine was quite realistic, to the point where Roy was starting to doubt if his previous judgment was wrong.
Could it be that this Max was actually a formally trained exorcist pastor?
But Max's behavior didn't seem like that of a proper pastor at all. It was quite bizarre.
On the show, Max and Jack bantered and joked with each other, using the conversation as a way to advertise things like crosses blessed by Max, limited edition Bibles signed by Max, and the holy sash he wore around his neck.
Just as Jack and Max were exchanging various bridging remarks across the screen, the camera captured a shocking scene.
The woman, Lanley, who should have been unconscious, suddenly sat upright.
This action was clearly unexpected by Max's assistant. He was startled and then tried to block the camera, not wanting it to capture this scene.
Then, an invisible force flung the assistant completely out of the frame.
If the previous scene only made the live audience laugh a little, then the next scene captivated everyone.
Lanley's neck rotated three hundred and sixty degrees in front of the camera!
"What's wrong? Why have all your expressions changed like that?"
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