Chapter 126
Anyway, if I draw a cultist, unless the game explicitly states that I must protect the church, I will definitely use the power of other players to destroy it. If you want to pursue high returns, the pinnacle is to replace the saint, which is impossible.
Based on the Clown's actions, Yuki Repulsion this hint shouldn't exist, since the Clown treated the residents like human Bonsai.
Let's talk about the dungeon instead.
Yuki withdrew his attention from the players and, through the girl's description, basically understood the assembly process.
The entire session lasts one hour. The first twenty minutes are dedicated to sermons, reciting scriptures that are difficult to understand. Then, the saint will take those who wish to be baptized back to the church for preparation.
The others remained in the square and dispersed on their own after forty minutes. During that hour, whatever happened in the town would not affect them.
"I finally understand what hint 2 means." Yuki sighed.
[Tip 2: The town usually holds a gathering in the square at noon every day, at which time God's gaze will become focused and last for one hour.]
"God is focused on the baptisms in the church; the rest of the town will become irrelevant." Moon Bow also got the answer, and all three main clues were now revealed.
"Yes, at that time, players will be able to move freely, which will also be the best opportunity to deal with the believers."
Even among the residents of a small town, there are different categories. Just like when night falls, true believers go out to patrol the streets, while ordinary people stay at home and live normal lives.
Yuki was somewhat troubled. The church wasn't stupid; how could they expect him to slaughter the entire patrol without killing the fanatics, not to mention whether he could even complete the mission?
"Without weakening the evil god, even a purple-robed priest would be difficult to defeat. How can I possibly contend with the entire church?"
This is a chicken-or-egg question, which reminds Yuki of a joke:
Go wipe out the entire church.
How can I wipe out a powerful church without killing the fanatics?
Then go kill the fanatics!
With the church so powerful, how could I possibly kill fanatics?
Yuki scratched his face, which made the girl feel a little smug. This man knows how to have a headache, huh? Anyway, I'm an 'Undercover,' destroying the church is none of my business.
"Stop gloating. Don't forget Pan Zi and the others are still around. They'll definitely use the church against us." Yuki saw right through her thinking and shrugged, "At worst, I'll just hide in the Garbage Mountain."
"Admitting you were gloating?"
"I already said I didn't."
Yuki, too lazy to argue with her, said slowly, "The game ends in fifty hours, which is exactly three hours after the third gathering. Do you think the Reincarnation Game is just being ridiculous and making us stay for three more hours?"
With just one sentence, Yuki made the girl's breath catch in her throat. It was clear that the third gathering was the real killer move, and that something unexpected would definitely happen then, as the dungeon would reveal its true fangs.
Da da da.
Before she could think about it carefully, footsteps approached, and the old woman came up the stairs.
Yuki and Moon Bow ignored her, deciding to play dumb. But the footsteps grew closer and stopped at the doorway.
The room fell silent, an eerie silence. Yuki listened to the old woman reciting unknown scriptures, when suddenly she said:
"Out-of-towners, go to the square at noon tomorrow to attend the gathering and listen to the voice of God."
After saying that, she slowly turned around and went downstairs again.
Yuki and Moon Bow exchanged a bewildered glance. Wasn't this just relaying a message? Whose message? Could it be that the gods had already noticed?
It felt like ants were crawling all over me, and I looked around suspiciously, as if someone was watching me.
"Looks like we don't need to wait for the third gathering; the anomaly has already occurred." Yuki quickly realized this, suppressing the urge to activate the Demon Eye. "I told you, the dungeon won't let you get away easily, not only with the players, but also with the Church."
"Uh, what if we don't go?"
"How should I know? Most likely you'll become a heretic and be hunted down by the entire Yadu Town. If you can survive the last two hours, you can give it a try," Yuki continued, shrugging.
If I were that powerful, would I be scratching my head like this with you?
The girl gritted her teeth slightly, but had no intention of retaliating. She herself found it strange that she was no longer afraid of this man lately.
'No, I have to hide. Undercover to attend the villains' gathering? That's suicide!'
Before she could even test the waters, the door downstairs was opened, and Rick walked in looking dejected.
"You... how did you get back?"
Rick was hiding in the Garbage Mountain, communicating with them via Walkie-talkie. He figured he only had one day left and could endure it without food or water.
Seeing the girl stand up in surprise, the young man gave a smile that looked more like a grimace, "I've been found. They told me to attend the rally tomorrow at noon."
The townspeople found him!
This effectively extinguished the last glimmer of hope. Rick was hiding in the Garbage Mountain, where even the dogs couldn't find him; how could he possibly be dug out?
Yuki it strange, but he had observed the Garbage Mountain with his Demon Eye and found that it did indeed have the aura of an evil god, while only the graveyard remained clean.
"Good news and bad news, which do you want to hear?" Yuki suddenly interrupted, then answered his own question:
"The good news is that the church hasn't discovered our identities, otherwise he wouldn't be able to return. Because of the rules, we can't use the process of elimination to kill all the players in a dungeon."
"The bad news is, we have nowhere to hide in the town."
He didn't mean to scare them, and the two fell silent as he spoke, while Yuki lowered his head and gently stroked his chin.
This is a deliberate tightening of the noose; since they can directly command the town's residents, they can use their subjective will to influence the development of the instance.
The town usually holds a rally in the square at noon every day.
So, how should we describe abnormal situations?
Chapter Twenty-One: Someone's in a Better Hurry
The residents of Yadu Town possess innate tracking abilities, which is meant to provide protection, at least preventing hostile players from taking action in broad daylight.
But the church, which had been relatively inconspicuous until now, began to act, creating an impenetrable net that placed all players under surveillance.
As night fell and the city lights came on, the happy family began to have dinner together again. Yuki coldly watched the man and woman inside the house, having no desire to go downstairs.
"Please go to the square at noon tomorrow to listen to the voice of God."
He'd heard those words at least twenty times today, and he couldn't ignore them no matter what. You can choose not to listen, but you'll have to bear the consequences.
"Relax. This proves that the opposing players can't influence the Church's will. Otherwise, we wouldn't be sitting here unharmed. If they really had a way, they wouldn't be keeping the intelligence to themselves."
Yuki always manages to find good news in dire situations, easing the tension somewhat.
That's true. If rival players could solve the problem simply by informing on others, they wouldn't need to appear at all. They could easily eliminate several people with just their words, and there would be no need for the game to have four different identities.
"Because of my identity?" Rick asked, his overall demeanor quite unwell.
He had been betrayed, and even though Pinto had paid a bloody price, the sense of loss was etched into his mind like a carving knife.
"That's only one aspect. I guess the 'believers' are able to get close to the church, but can't gain complete trust."
Yuki rubbed his chin. He had repeatedly verified with the townspeople since the beginning of the game that 'cultists' would definitely have an advantage, but they couldn't break the rules.
In a sense, the entire Yadu Town is populated by religious believers; only fanatical followers can truly become their henchmen and possess Transcendental Grade powers. This reminds me of the old man's words:
[Going to church and being baptized is the first step. As for the second step, once you are certain that you have surrendered your heart and soul to God, the saint will tell you.]
"It's baptism. Yumichika. Out of so many people in the square, only a portion received baptism, and a special ceremony was held for it." Yuki took a deep breath. This was crucial information, and his mind cleared instantly.
Why does the 'Judge's' prompt mention fanatics, and even suggest that identification is more important than killing? Otherwise, Yuki could have simply burned down the town and killed everyone.
"From a player's perspective, baptism is a very dangerous act, tantamount to entrusting one's life to the dungeon."
"Yes, no player with a modicum of sense would choose to undergo baptism. It's too easy, and therefore the most dangerous." Moon Bow nodded slightly. What she could find out, other players must also know.
Otherwise, who would immediately side with the church and latch onto its powerful backers? How would the other players compete then?
"So, making the players gather at the plaza tomorrow at noon is a forced baptism? No matter what their identity, they can't escape it?" Rick realized what was going on; wasn't this just being a scoundrel?
"Very likely. Now you know why the mission requires fifty hours, right?" Yuki spread his hands and gave a wry smile. "If you go, you'll take a huge risk. If you don't go, you'll face the entire town hunting you down after the baptism."
How could Undercover agent possibly hide his identity after participating in the baptism!
Moon Bow and Rick were somewhat bewildered. Others might have a solution, such as Li Dan, who could choose the second path and rely on his strength to endure for two hours.
But what can they do? They can't hide, they can't escape, they have no way to survive.
The two looked at Yuki simultaneously. This man wasn't exactly kind and approachable, but he could provide the most scarce sense of security.
The mystery is almost solved now, and the final battle will be tomorrow noon. At that time, the 'Undercover' identity will no longer be able to be hidden.
"So what should we do?" Moon Bow gripped the armrest tightly and held her breath.
"Wait."
"Wait?" The girl blinked, somewhat confused.
"That's right. What I need most right now is the content of the baptism, how focused the evil god will be, and whether he will truly be completely unaware of the outside world." Yuki already had a rough plan in mind. He paused for a moment, "Of course, I would be extremely grateful if you two were willing to take the time to find out."
Without the slightest hesitation, Moon Bow and Rick shook their heads vigorously. Investigating this information meant venturing deep into the church—wasn't that suicide?
Tsk, as expected, she's not as useful Hayasaka and Senpai. Even knowing her future is bleak, she's still afraid of dying.
Yuki pursed his lips, suddenly missing the two of them. He had plenty of freedom in this instance, but without help, many of his plans couldn't be implemented.
If my senior were here, we could have used our special ability to sneak in around noon today. It's a trade-off, I guess.
'I wonder how they are doing now. Even with Hiyori with them, I'm still worried.'
Yuki glanced at the ceiling, sighed softly, and quickly brought his attention back to what was in front of him.
On the bright side, I have no worries now, and with my strength having undergone a qualitative change, the danger has decreased significantly.
Without worries, there is no pressure. He gently patted his face, about to say a few words of comfort, but his mouth froze.
Ding ding--
The church bells rang abruptly, and the three players visibly tensed up, looking around in confusion.
Why would they ring a bell so late at night?
The church bells only rang during the midday assembly, and soon they realized something was wrong.
"Oh, this family has gone out."
Yuki, the townspeople, who had only eaten half of their dinner, got up. They didn't clear the table; instead, as if by reflex, they did the following:
I put on my coat, opened the door, lit the torch, and went outside.
Yuki instantly went to the window, looked outside, and his pupils contracted.
One by one, lit torches emerged from different huts and converged into the alley, like burning streams. The 'streams' then gathered together again, flowing like a river of fire towards the square.
This was a silent, burning river, but the footsteps of thousands of people gathered together, creating a powerful scene that reminded Yuki of a famous scene from a certain empire.
"Isn't the meeting supposed to be at noon? It's 7 p. m. now, what kind of meeting is this?" Rick also came to the window, unable to understand the scene before him.
Yuki remained silent. He had been worried about something during the day, and now it had become a reality.
"Try reading hint 2 a few more times." Yuki without turning his head.
"The town usually holds a gathering in the square at noon every day, at which time God's gaze will become focused." Rick read it several times, then suddenly slapped his thigh. "Usually! That means..."
"In other words, there are still abnormal situations, such as all-out war between players, where some of them will use the power of the dungeon." Yuki gave him the answer, then turned to look directly at the two of them.
Moon Bow held her breath, unable to utter a single word. Against the backdrop of the flickering firelight, the young man's gaze was firm, showing no sign of panic.
Whether it's an act or not, at this moment, it's enough to calm people's hearts.
Amidst a strange sense of panic, Yuki still had the mind to ask, "Guess why we're having a gathering in the middle of the night?"
This...
No one knew what the church was thinking, but Moon Bow, who had participated in the entire gathering, suddenly looked up and asked, "Is it a baptism? Is that why they're gathering the residents together for a baptism?"
Good, you reacted quickly.
Yuki cast an admiring glance at him, which brought up the essence of baptism: why do so many people need to gather together and sit idly outside while the baptismal ceremony is taking place?
Eyes, assembly, baptism, church.
Keywords flashed through Yuki's mind, and drawing on what he had seen and heard at the Demon Hospital, he seemed to have grasped a pattern.
In the hospital, the demons were summoned, and the mastermind behind it all, Director Fukawa, was essentially a puppet, just one that combined most of the demons' power.
Could it be that there are no gods in this town, or at least not in the same space?
Yuki proposed a hypothesis, but the problem was that there was no way to verify it. Acting on a hypothesis would be gambling with one's life, so it was better to procrastinate until noon tomorrow.
"It must be a baptism, but the key question is who's getting baptized? Those two wouldn't be trying to take me down with them, would they? That's too much to ask," Yuki muttered to himself. As the crowd receded, time was running out.