Condensing Light Stone

Bang!

The wooden door slammed shut.

After enduring countless hardships, Colin and his group finally returned inside before nightfall.

The moment the wooden door closed, Colin leaned his back against it, feeling a profound sense of something called security.

Having deactivated Hunting Moment, his temperament reverted to its original gentle state.

This expedition took four hours; although they were on the verge of disaster multiple times, they ultimately returned without any real harm.

Of course, despite the many dangers, the harvest this time was extremely bountiful.

Colin had obtained a large amount of resources and important items, and even his two subordinates had improved; these gains were enough to put him ahead of the vast majority of people.

But before that, Colin threw himself onto the wooden bed, his taut nerves finally able to relax.

But he was both exhausted and hungry.

He couldn't rest just yet.

Meanwhile, the two servants, who had been panting ever since they ran into the house, finally recovered.

During this escape, just to keep up with Colin's speed, they had used every ounce of their strength, and even then, they had nearly been left behind several times.

The Lord was too intense; the two of them could barely handle it!

At this moment, the three people in the room simultaneously felt a sense of palpitations. They looked out the window in unison, only to see the Gray Fog world, which had previously held some light, suddenly turn dark.

The Gray Fog seemed to come alive, writhing outside the window, with low growls and faint screams occasionally drifting from within the mist.

Inside the wooden house, a dim yellow light, originating from an unknown source, flickered to life.

[Black Night has arrived. You briefly judge that it will last for at least twelve hours.]

Twelve hours. The daytime is also twelve hours, which suggests this world likely follows a twenty-four-hour cycle. We must have been transported here sometime in the afternoon.

Colin's thoughts wandered, but then he suddenly felt a jolt of palpitations and quickly withdrew his gaze.

"Stop looking, eat some porridge."

Colin kicked aside the pile of rotten wood by the bed and brought out the table and chairs he had "salvaged" from the church today.

"It's a bit big."

Colin looked at the wooden table, which occupied nearly one-fifth of the room's area, and shook his head. "Forget it."

He had also brought a bench, but it seemed there was no room left for it in this house.

He took out the stone pot and stone bowls, then took out the bread and water, combining them directly into porridge.

Then, Colin began the inventory process.

Level 3 Water: 20 liters.

Mildly to moderately rotten meat from various animals: 12.

Treasure Map Fragments: 3.

Hunter Title.

Axe and Hurricane Lamp set.

Benches: 4.

Black Bread: 8.

Thorns of Suffering: 4.

Kadish's Wooden Wheel.

Condensing Light Stone: 2.

Dim Filthy Blood: 107ml.

Ordinary Filthy Blood: 71ml.

Bones, wood, stone.

Various materials had almost filled his backpack. Colin took out the basic materials like wood and stone and instructed his two subordinates to stack them neatly at the foot of the bed.

Then, Colin's gaze fell upon two items in his backpack, and he fell into deep thought.

One of them was the Condensing Light Stone obtained from the female survivor, and the other was the wheel obtained from Father Kadish.

"Condensing Light Stone: A special ore that emits a faint white light."

"Note: Using it can dispel negative effects such as fear and confusion, deal damage to undead creatures, and accelerate the healing of wounds for ordinary living beings."

[Hint: You feel familiar with it. You recall seeing similar power on Father Kadish's Wooden Wheel. You vaguely feel that if you were to absorb this power, it might allow you to master a unique ability.]

"Master a unique ability."

Colin's heart rate quickened. "This thing is definitely a treasure."

He hardly needed to think to feel that this item had a certain connection to the underground passage of the church.

This conjecture was confirmed when he subsequently examined the wooden wheel.

After the little girl used it to commit suicide, Colin discovered that its name had changed from "Blood-stained Broken Wooden Wheel" to "Kadish's Wooden Wheel".

At the same time, its description had also changed.

"'Kadish's Wooden Wheel': If the holder enters a state of rage while holding it, they can trigger the residual power within the wooden wheel, causing it to emit a holy light."

"Remaining uses: 3."

[Hint: As one of the thirteen saints of the Church of Suffering, Father Kadish was known to the people as the "Saint of Light," but within the church, he was always ostracized and isolated by the other saints, which seemed to be related to the power he wielded.]

[The church believed that the "light" used by Father Kadish was not a "miracle" bestowed by the Mother of Suffering and Thorns, but an evil power exchanged for his soul from a demon, capable of bewitching people's hearts.]

[During an incident unfavorable to him, the church used this as a pretext to execute all of Father Kadish's devout followers, strip him of his title of saint, exile him back to the place where he first manifested his "miracles," and forbid anyone from following him.]

"This church is definitely the big villain here."

Colin thought of the aberrant monster lying on the ground and couldn't reconcile it with the "Saint of Light" mentioned in the hint.

Thinking about what the church had done versus what the priest had done, it was clear who was good and who was evil.

Without dwelling on it, Colin turned his attention to the last paragraph of the hint: Father Kadish had been exiled back to the place where he first manifested his miracles.

This place was likely behind the underground passage of the church.

No, there should be more than one way to enter the church.

The "Condensing Light Stone" on the female survivor was a clear indication that she had once explored an area filled with special power.

This area should be in the same direction as the path leading from the church.

"There are incredible treasures there, but I really can't beat that monster."

Colin hesitated; the Lord-level Aberration had undergone a certain degree of qualitative change, and he truly couldn't defeat it, not even with "Hunting Moment" activated.

"Sigh, to be safe, I'd better grow stronger before heading over there."

Colin shook his head, stopped overthinking, and opened the Parchment.

He saw a blood-red quest added to his quest list:

"Quest Name: 'Majesty of the Arbiter'."

"Quest Requirement: Survive until the eighth day."

"Quest Description: Your actions have disturbed the stability of the game environment; you will face a sanction from the system."

"Quest Reward: Hardened Black Bread *3"

"Note: It's not too late to commit suicide now."

[Given your current strength and progress, you feel like you're done for.]

Looking at the red text that seemed as if it were dripping blood, along with the hint's undisguised commentary, Colin felt the pressure.

For the first time, Colin felt a substantial desire to become stronger.

This made him think of the church once again.

Only by mastering special power would Colin have the confidence to confront the sanction in seven days.

But the problem was, the Lord-level Aberration was blocking the way.

"What a headache." Colin rubbed his temples and fell asleep amidst a heavy sense of exhaustion.

The night passed just like that.

Early the next morning, Colin was awakened by a message that appeared directly in his mind.

The Parchment has added a new function.