Exorcist's Self-Cultivation

Early in the morning in Switzerland, the sky had already brightened.

However, a short while ago, there had been a sudden downpour of extreme intensity.

Um...

It was during that time when the bus passed by.

As a result, the recent weather in Switzerland has been somewhat gloomy.

On the street leading to the Church Headquarters of the Dusk Bell Church.

An old man staggered along, his clothes ragged and filthy, as if he had crawled out of a pile of garbage, his appearance that of a beggar.

Even in such a wretched state,

The beggar was still wearing a hood, concealing his entire face.

Yes.

Matthew had returned.

As the leader of the Dusk Bell Church, he was a hunter who had merged with something akin to the Blood of Jesus, making him extremely powerful.

Matthew was truly strong.

He was so far the strongest known hunter, even Ferran, the Papal Hunter of the Church, who probably hid much of his strength, was likely not stronger than Matthew.

After all, Matthew's life, as well as his combat experience and worldliness, surpassed that of others.

So he fought against eleven.

"Cough cough... For eleven people from the Vanity Sect to gang up on me, how utterly shameless,"

Matthew coughed up a mouthful of fresh blood.

His current disheveled state was all thanks to the Vanity Sect.

He had suffered a crushing defeat.

No matter how fierce a fighter he was, he couldn't beat eleven opponents not much weaker than himself.

He had merged with that thing, and so had the others.

It was just that the Seventy-Two Pillars Demon Gods behind them were not the same, and their abilities were different.

Therefore, the adversaries did not have too much of an advantage over him.

In fact, one member of the Vanity Sect had half his body torn apart by Matthew.

That fierce fight made the Vanity Sect willing to negotiate with him.

Thinking about this, Matthew wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and said, with a sense of helplessness, "For the time being, the Dusk Bell can only lay low in Switzerland, but it's not without its gains, at least the people from the Vanity Sect won't be active in Switzerland for a short period."

"This would allow the Dusk Bell a chance to catch its breath."

"Unfortunately, the one who cast the curse from behind the scenes remains hidden in the shadows."

Matthew felt a headache coming on whenever he thought about the curse.

He himself was fine.

For some reason, perhaps because his body could now withstand the curse, he had not suffered from vomiting or diarrhea.

Otherwise, during the tough battle with the Vanity Sect, his combat effectiveness would have definitely plummeted more than just a notch.

"It shouldn't be His Excellency the Duke's doing. He is from the same era as me. Although I have never had contact with him, having only heard of his legend, his character would not stoop to such despicable acts."

Matthew's thoughts turned to His Excellency the Duke.

A hint of complex reminiscence flickered in his eyes.

"To think that I would encounter an old acquaintance from the Victorian Era, but why did he only start to emerge in this century?"

"Could it be that this is the final act of resistance?"

Matthew knew that the present era was the most terrifying one.

Though most people lived a very good life,

The chances to resist the Seventy-Two Pillars Demon Gods were diminishing as the number of hunters dwindled.

Those conceptual beings were overwhelming just to think about.

After all, it was no longer the peak era of hunter activity.

He felt,

The appearance of His Excellency the Duke might be an attempt to seize this last opportunity to launch a rebellion against those formidable beings.

But hope was slim.

All they were left with was despair.

Such resistance was merely the final struggle of relunctance.

Even now, Matthew did not understand why they resisted.

It seemed as if resistance had become an instinct.

An instinct as natural as eating and drinking.

No matter how Matthew thought about it, he couldn't understand the meaning behind the Duke's actions.

In his perception, the Duke was much weaker than him.

There was no reason for the Duke to be confident in accomplishing something he couldn't do.

He was completely baffled.

Because from the beginning, he had taken a wrong turn.

His Duke was preoccupied with his own troubles, entangled with three demon gods, and if his girlfriend was also involved with demon gods, that would make four.

Saving the world had nothing to do with this "Duke" whatsoever.

…

In the end,

Matthew gave up on continuing to ponder and arrived at the doorstep of the Dusk Bell Church Headquarters, the cathedral.

Looking at the grand cathedral,

Matthew managed a feeble smile.

"I'm finally back,"

But no sooner had he spoken than a figure in a white lab coat emerged from the cathedral entrance, carrying a roughly made signboard - looking as if it was hastily nailed together with bed planks, labeled with "Hill Psychiatric Hospital Branch".

Matthew's face immediately darkened.

"Ryan, what the hell are you up to?"

He recognized Ryan at a glance.

Upon hearing this,

Ryan shivered, stood still, and turned his head to glance back.

Then, he sighed with relief, "Get lost, you beggar. Can't you see Chef Ryan is hanging up the hospital's sign? Don't fucking mess with me!"

Matthew, unable to contain his anger, retorted, "Did you just call me a beggar?"

Ryan's eyes widened as he scrutinized Matthew, and confusedly replied, "Don't you look like one?"

Matthew sneered, "I am the leader of Dusk Bell."

Ryan had a realization, "Oh, I remember who you are now, you owe me twenty billion. It's good that you're back; pay up the medical fees quickly."

Continuing, Ryan said smugly, "But I know you're a broke-ass. You can't pay, so it's okay, I won't ask you for it."

"Because the Dusk Bell Psychiatric Hospital now belongs to me, Ryan!"

"See this sign? You're old now, and I hereby declare unilaterally that you have been fired."

In Ryan's worldview,

Matthew now had nothing to do with the Dusk Bell... oh no, the Hill Psychiatric Hospital Branch.

Therefore, that so-called curse might no longer affect Matthew.

However…

Matthew was amused to anger.

He felt it was beneath him to argue with a lunatic.

So, he walked up to Ryan and kicked the signboard labeled "Hill Psychiatric Hospital Branch" in half.

"Ridiculous."

Having done that, Matthew snorted coldly and walked straight into the Dusk Bell Church.

Ryan stood behind, with a blank expression on his face.

It took a while before

He whimpered, "Matthew, you... you're too much. I'm definitely telling the director, you bullied me! I'm going to snitch on you, you're done for, you're absolutely finished!"

Heaven knows, just making that sign had cost James his bed.

He went through so much trouble, only for it to be kicked apart.

How could he not be upset?

If it weren't for the director telling him how terrifying Matthew was, Ryan would have had the mind to kill him.

The next second,

Suddenly,

Matthew's figure appeared in front of Ryan.

He spoke with a somber tone, "Why do you know my name? Who told you?"

Ryan said angrily, "I won't tell you. You're finished anyway. I'm going to write to the director right now. I'm going to snitch on you."

Matthew narrowed his eyes, "Who is the director? The only one in this world who knows who I am is His Excellency the Duke. Is the director you're talking about him?"

With a sound of realization, Ryan exclaimed, "The director is His Excellency the Duke? He's actually a noble too? Fuck! My director is actually a Duke?"