Chapter 293: Entering
The base.
A white-haired priest, holding an oil lamp, lit the torches one by one, following the usual routine.
“Merciful, great Moon Goddess, your loyal followers pray to you here, may there be a next life…”
“God said: The earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep.”
“He said: ‘Let there be light,’ and there was light…”
The apprentice priests passing by mostly cast strange glances at him, as if he were an oddity.
The gods have already fallen!
The Moon Goddess is no exception.
The former Holy Sanctuary took it as their mission to resurrect the goddess, but after hundreds of years of effort, they found nothing.
And now.
The power of the gods from other realms has already penetrated, and still clinging to the so-called goddess is nothing more than self-deception.
As early as decades ago, the top echelons of the Holy Sanctuary had already given up on resurrecting the goddess, turning instead to finding other ways out.
Of course.
There are always some people who still cling to the so-called ‘faith,’ and these people have gradually become marginalized.
“Mentor.”
A young man lighting lamps ahead turned around:
“Will God really save us?”
“First comes self-salvation, then comes God’s salvation.” The old priest, hearing this, grinned and replied according to scripture:
“God will not save those who are self-indulgent and have lost hope. When facing despair, if the heart does not change, miracles will naturally appear.”
“Is that so?” The young man’s eyes were filled with confusion:
“They all say the goddess is already dead, we should convert to other gods, and nothing can be gained from embracing stone and clay idols.”
“Nonsense!” The old priest’s expression darkened:
“Only mortals die, gods never do.”
“Moreover, we believe in the gods not to seek anything, but because the gods’ instructions are correct.”
“Only evil gods will use benefits to tempt people. The true gods seek peace of mind, mercy, and justice.”
“Yes.” The young man lowered his head:
“Mentor is right.”
The old priest shook his head gently. He knew that his words could not convince the other party. Since a seed of doubt had already been planted in his heart, sooner or later it would take root, sprout, and lead him down an evil path, just like the other apprentices who had once followed him.
Alas!
The Holy Sanctuary is no longer the Holy Sanctuary it once was. It will not guide people towards the sublime, but will only lead them to hell.
“Hiss…”
Just then, a priest in black robes, leading two Desecrated Beasts, walked towards them, blocking their path.
The stench and hissing of the Desecrated Beasts made the young man instinctively hide behind the old priest.
“Fran!”
The black-robed priest’s face was cold and stern:
“According to the order signed by the Second Elder, I am now arresting you on the charge of ‘colluding with evil gods.'”
“Colluding with evil gods?” The young man was taken aback and hurriedly said:
“Senior, isn’t there some misunderstanding? Mentor has never left the base, how could he collude with evil gods?”
“Swish!”
The black-robed priest flicked his wrist, revealing a scroll with portraits of a man and a woman on it.
“Fran, do you recognize them?”
“Jerry, Nicole.” The old priest nodded:
“I know them, they are good children, still holding firm to their faith in these times.”
“That’s it then.” The black-robed priest sneered:
“Let’s go!”
“This…” The old priest was stunned, as if he had thought of something, a helpless and bitter expression appearing on his face. He nodded and said:
“Okay.”
“Mentor.” The young man was terrified:
“No!”
Although he was young, he knew what the black-robed priest’s clothes represented. The Holy Sanctuary’s enforcers only took action against those who violated the ‘faith,’ and once they did, it was almost certain they would not return.
“Hmph!”
The black-robed priest snorted coldly:
“You’re coming with me too.”
“What?” The old priest’s expression changed:
“He’s just a child, he doesn’t understand anything.”
“Whether he understands or not is not up to you.” The black-robed priest’s expression was cold and stern:
“Come back with me and we’ll see!”
◈◈◈
The old priest’s body trembled, his expression changing, struggling, unwilling, angry…, ultimately turning into helplessness.
“God, please bestow your grace!”
To his lament, the black-robed priest sneered. Just as he was about to reach out and grab him, his movements suddenly froze.
“Who’s there?”
He suddenly turned around, looking towards a dark corner. The two Desecrated Beasts beside him roared and pounced forward.
“Swish!”
◈◈◈
Two intersecting cold glints suddenly appeared out of nowhere.
Holy Cross Slash!
“Bang!”
The two Desecrated Beasts cried out pitifully and were thrown away, and the black-robed priest’s expression froze in place.
A cross-shaped crack appeared on his body.
“Tear…”
The crack expanded, splitting his body into four pieces, blood splattering from the cracks, causing the scene to fall silent.
“Go!”
A female priest holding a sharp sword stepped out of the corner, signaling to the old man and the young man:
“Leave here quickly.”
“Josie.” The old priest’s face was moved:
“It’s you.”
“Go quickly.” Josie’s face was grim:
“The base is under surveillance by the evil gods. While the Second Elder and the others are not here, let’s leave quickly.”
“That’s right.” The young man reacted faster, nodding quickly:
“Mentor, let’s go quickly.”
As he spoke, the two Desecrated Beasts pounced again, swinging their claws and fighting with Josie.
The Desecrated Beasts had the strength of legendary knights, not fearing death or pain. Moreover, because of the evil god’s bloodline within them, they could recover at an extremely fast rate unless they suffered severe injuries such as dismemberment or decapitation.
Therefore, fighting them was much more troublesome than fighting ordinary legendary knights.
Josie was a relatively outstanding priest in the base, but even she had difficulty completely eliminating them for the time being.
“Go!”
Swinging her sword to knock away an attacking Desecrated Beast, Josie shouted:
“Go!”
The three of them fought and fled, and just as the exit was in sight, two burly figures blocked their path.
“Mechanical Puppets!”
The young man’s face showed despair:
“We’re done for!”
The Mechanical Puppets were creations of the Creator’s Followers, made of hard metal, with their entire bodies covered in lethal weapons. They also possessed the strength of the legendary level.
“Alas!”
The old priest’s body trembled. He shakily drew the short sword from his waist, his eyes revealing a trace of determination:
“For the faith!”
“Boom!”
He thrust out his sword, and the two Mechanical Puppets in front of him exploded, causing the three in the scene to be stunned.
“Mentor.” The young man blinked:
“You’re so powerful.”
“…” The old priest opened his mouth:
“It wasn’t me.”
In the place where the Mechanical Puppets had been, flames outlined a door covered with strange patterns, and a hand was reaching out from that door.
Karl stepped out of the Gate of Flames, glanced at his surroundings, and shook his head gently:
“Why am I at the base entrance?”
“This…” Nicole’s face showed embarrassment:
“I was afraid that if something went wrong, we might need to escape, so I had Old Fran open the Gate here.”
“Alas!” Karl sighed:
“Never mind.”
He stepped forward and roared at the two Desecrated Beasts that were pouncing at him:
“You beasts!”
“Stop now!”
The aura of a high-level Pale Wing bloodline emanated from his body, and the Desecrated Beasts’ movements froze, stopping in place.
“You guys go to the place where the Desecrated Beasts are kept.”
Karl took out a dozen or so things that looked like rattles from his body and handed them to everyone present:
“They can control the Desecrated Beasts. With the help of the Desecrated Beasts, you can temporarily control the base.”
This was the result of his research over the past year.
Based on the Holy Sanctuary’s technology and bloodline magic, and the Three Plates Technique, he could intercept the Holy Sanctuary priests’ control over the Desecrated Beasts.
Of course.
It could only be low-level control. If he encountered himself or the Holy Sanctuary elders, it would be limited.
“Yes!”
“Let’s go!”
This was the agreed-upon plan. Everyone took the rattles and nodded in agreement.
“Fran?”
Karl looked at the old priest:
“Take me to the location of the Pale Wing’s right hand.”
