Luo Shu hadn't expected Jianjia to falter so quickly. His original plan—relying on Unobservability to stay hidden while whittling down Prester John—was too cautious.
Now, with Jianjia on the verge of being converted, he had to act.
Double the Suppression.
He flipped to Page 45 of the Anomalous Item Archive—Jianjia Cangcang.
One wasn't enough? Fine. Let's stack it.
The reeds thickened, their swaying more violent. Where Jianjia alone had suppressed Prester John to Tier 3-4, the doubled effect now pinned him firmly at Tier 3.
The mental pressure on Luo Shu lessened. Jianjia gasped in relief.
Prester John's gaze snapped toward Luo Shu—this was the greater threat.
Yet instead of hurling another bone spear, the king continued his prayer:
"...Dwelling in eternity, the heart unchained. In earnest inheritance, no more defiance..."
If he finished, Jianjia would fall. Then Luo Shu.
Time for Plan B.
You think you're the only charlatan here?
Luo Shu flipped to Page 21—SCP-012 ("Unfinished Composition").
Martyr's Radiance.
A holy war of lies.
Visual cognitohazard vs. Tier-3 reality bending.
Collateral Damage
The first casualty wasn't Prester John—it was White-Eyes, kilometers away.
The clairvoyant operative collapsed, clawing at his own skin until blood streaked his uniform.
This was why Luo Shu had hidden beneath an overhang.
He couldn't risk satellite surveillance capturing his ability's effects.
Barbie reacted instantly, knocking White-Eyes unconscious.
Not Prester John's doing. Luo Shu's.
Another hidden power.
She glared at the satellite feed, but Luo Shu remained out of frame. Only Prester John's turned head hinted at the battle's location.
Dilemma: Intervene now? Or let Luo Shu weaken the king further?
Her hesitation stemmed from one miscalculation:
The thriving reeds suggested Jianjia was fine.
She didn't realize Luo Shu was propping them up.
The Stalemate
Prester John's prayer slowed, his cadence warping into the melody of "On Golgotha's Hill."
His mechanical hands—forged by Sarkic flesh and Broken God steel—turned against himself.
Gears scattered. Hydraulic fluid spurted.
But Keter-class durability held.
This was no fatal wound—just a distraction.
The real danger:
Luo Shu was burning through stamina, maintaining three abilities simultaneously.
If Prester John finished his prayer, Jianjia would break.
Then the suppression would halve, reverting him to Tier 3-4.
A death spiral.
Centuries of zealotry vs. one man's memetic hack.
Luo Shu was losing.