Ed patted him on the shoulder:
"It's alright, just do your best. Also, some of your companions were seriously injured in the battle just now, and some even lost limbs... If they are willing to stay, I have a way to make them whole again."
"Of course, this is not a bargaining chip, but a blessing bestowed upon us after our redemption."
Duolin opened his eyes slightly, looking at the boy in front of him in disbelief, an unprecedented sense of doubt welling up in his heart.
Limb regeneration... This is something only Middle Tier divine magic can do. A bishop of the lowest rank like myself simply cannot accomplish it; only an archbishop who governs a province can do it.
But the boy before me confidently claims he can regenerate severed limbs. Who is he? Or rather, what is his true identity?
The one-eyed young man seemed to read Duolin's mind. He pulled Duolin up from the ground and spoke in his previous gentle tone:
You'll find out who I am later; there's no need to ask now.
"But rest assured, how could someone without real skills possibly start supporting the Tree Worship Church all by themselves?"
[ The Good Times Don't Last ] After moving a pile of seemingly usable wood to an open space at the village entrance, just as he was about to greet Ed who was passing by, he saw that Duolin had been freed from his restraints and was stretching out his arms and legs at the edge of the open space.
"Splash..."
The piece of wood fell to the ground, and [ the Good Times Don't Last ] he drew his axe from his waist with a "whoosh," shouting to Ed at the same time:
"My Lord, the apostate is trying to escape!"
A chorus of exclamations erupted from the surrounding villages as players quickly gathered around.
The previous battles and capture missions had already given them a good meal, and if these apostates dared to run away again, they wouldn't mind exploiting this bug to earn even more silver coins.
Ed stepped forward, reached out and pressed the axe down, then addressed the players who had rushed over upon hearing the commotion:
"Although these five warriors had previously sided with the apostates, they were actually completely unaware of those blasphemous acts and therefore did not violate any precepts."
"Now that the misunderstanding has been cleared up, they will become our companions, joining us to restore order to the world!"
As Ed spoke, he mentally adjusted the vision filters for the players.
So the players who came after hearing the news saw this scene—
As Ed explained how the two sides had reconciled, the outlines on Duolin and the four rice dumplings changed from red, symbolizing danger, back to green, representing their shared allegiance.
"Huh? No more missions, how boring..."
[ Zhongde ] immediately lost interest.
"Hey buddy, is the mission all you've got on your mind?"
[ Howling Pothos ]'s large hand reached out:
"I have an idea, do you want to hear it?"
"What?"
Hearing that even his steady companion had come up with a rare idea, [ Zhongde ] was naturally happy to listen.
"You should know we're in a vegetative state, right?"
"While that's true, your bluntness reminds me of some unpleasant things."
"Don't worry about it. After I was injured in the previous battle, I kept observing. I not only observed the BOSS's move list, but also the actions and abilities of those five traitors—no, I should call them friendly NPCs now."
"I discovered that they are in a vegetative state just like us, and they can alter their bodies to a certain extent. The injured ones can only transform into two forms at a time, while the one who has been untied can even transform into three: a knight's sword, an axe, and a long-range launcher."
"So what?"
"So, this is what skills are all about! Now that they're on our side, does that mean we can learn skills from them?"
[ Zhongde ]'s eyes lit up when he heard the part that interested him. Yes, wouldn't he also like to use the knight's sword that his right hand had transformed into?
If I could increase my trust level with these NPCs, would I be able to learn their family skills?
"That's so true, buddy. So why are you only telling me?"
[ Howling Pothos ] smiled and said:
"Because... learning skills will most likely cost money. If you can lend me money so I can be the first to learn it, I'll take you to grind monsters and make you the second person to master the skill as soon as possible."
"Gurgle~"
[ Zhongde ] subconsciously swallowed – second in the entire server, me?
His heart suddenly stirred, and when he turned to look at [ Howling Pothos ], he saw a knowing smile on the other's face.
The two exchanged a glance, grinned mischievously, and then nonchalantly continued moving the wood, waiting for the NPC to finish what he was doing.
"This is outrageous! Let me go! Let me go!"
Duolin was explaining the situation to his other tied-up companions. As a well-trained and hot-tempered man, Duolin's men were just as hot-tempered as him, though their intelligence seemed to be inversely proportional to their strength, showing varying degrees of decline.
So when he and the other witnesses who had seen Yiden meet the previous night shared the information they had received from Ed, they almost immediately chose to believe him after a brief moment of hesitation.
With firsthand witness testimony, the old captain's guarantee, and a complete chain of evidence, if anyone still doesn't believe it, it can be basically confirmed that they are in cahoots with the apostates.
Some of them even went into a frenzy after learning of the existence of heretics within the Tree Worship Church. The vines on their bodies were even stretched open with gaps of all sizes. They only wanted to rush back to White Wax Town and cut off Yiden's head in front of the Tree God statue, completely forgetting that they now only had one leg left.
"Don't rush, everyone, don't rush!"
As the crowd began to grow anxious and agitated, Duolin quickly calmed his men down:
"As I just said, the Holy See needs armed forces, and the Second Holy See, which was established to uphold the Tree Worship Church, needs armed forces even more. I have accepted Bishop Adrian's invitation, and from now on we are true partners, and those Elite Warrior are our brothers and sisters!"
"From now on, whatever we do, we must consider it from the perspective of the Second Holy See. We are currently outnumbered and outmatched, while the apostates are deeply entrenched. Only through caution can we achieve final victory!"
"Yes, sir."
Several seriously wounded guards eventually suppressed their anger and, after being reassured by Duolin, chose to Ed's side.
Duolin found Ed watching the villagers rummaging through the ruins.
"My Lord Bishop."
"Speak."
"I have fulfilled my mission and lived up to your expectations. The Duolin Guard Squad from the Holy City is now under your command!"
Ed turned to look at him, snapped his fingers, and the vines that had been tightly binding the four men quickly unfurled, freeing the guards.
" Duolin!"
"Please give the order!"
"Your first task is to lead your team to help the villagers pack up what they need to take with them!"
"Yes!"