The scales of victory began to tip after Yiden, the vine-man, lost a leg, and then tipped completely in Ed's favor after he lost his other leg.
When facing an enemy that far outnumbers you, once you lose your superior position in attack and your speed advantage, defeat is only a matter of time.
The vine giant crashed to the ground, and the players, like a swarm of army ants attacking a large insect, began their final, tearing attack.
Feeling the last layer of Aberration Boston Ivy beneath him and the remaining portion of stone he could still control, Yiden finally conceived the idea of escaping.
His strength has been reduced to less than one-tenth by the enemy's attacks, but as long as he can escape and report this to the Archbishop, thousands of Stained Ones will come to White Wax Town.
That experimental subject will surely die a horrible death!
By then, even if that living saint or pope is not himself, the new generation of Holy Scripture will surely record that "Priest Yiden of White Wax Town awakened the sleeping god!"
He wanted to escape! He wanted to report it! He wanted to go down in history!
Yiden retracted the vines and focused on defense, manipulating the roots beneath her to move the massive stones.
He knew that there was a large, intricate network of caves beneath the church, and that once he entered the caves, no one could find him!
With the added enhancement from the Territory Secret Pact in hand, escaping White Wax Town was a piece of cake.
A hole large enough for one person to pass through quickly appeared beneath the vine giant, who had been cut into human sticks.
Yiden gathered up a few vines for self-defense, but her eyes fell on a hand covered in dragon scales and stained with what she couldn't tell was blood or flames, reaching out towards her!
It's too late!
Yiden was fully confident in his speed. His life-saving vines instantly unleashed tremendous power, propelling his body through the opening and into the cavern beneath the church.
It worked!
As Yiden watched the hand recede further and further away, feeling the brief relief of freefall, a smile involuntarily appeared on his aged face.
Thump!
The next second, Yiden's aged body slammed onto a cold, hard surface, which was very much in line with the texture of a cave, but...
Why did such a loud and ethereal voice enter my head?
Why are the walls around me so smooth?
Why is the experimental subject who helped him escape also smiling?
A flame lit up the cave entrance, and Ed and the players' faces appeared above Yiden at the cave entrance where rubble was still falling.
By the light of the fire, Yiden saw her own blurry silhouette reflected in the "wall" beside her.
He finally understood everything, and Ed's sarcasm came at just the right moment:
"Archbishop Yiden, have you become so devout that you've forgotten the location of the church bell?"
Realizing he had exhausted all his options, Yiden cried out in despair and collapsed backward, utterly falling into hopelessness.
He was skilled at manipulating soil and rocks using symbiotic plants, and could even make a church rotate, yet he had forgotten about the bell tower that hadn't rung for decades.
During his previous full-force manipulation, the bell tower and its large bell had already sunk underground as the church flipped, and now they struck him like a boomerang.
Yiden lay inside the brass-colored bell as if dead, and the health bar of [ Yiden, Lord of the Gloomy Sanctuary, Apostate] in the players' view officially reached zero.
"Ooo...
"We've won!!!"
"Awesome!!!"
"Idiot BOSS, hahahahahahaha!!!"
The cheers, like waves, broke through the stone wall, startling the guards outside, including Duolin, and the experimental subjects who had finished eating the jerky. At that moment, the hope in the eyes of the priest prisoners who had been locked up by Aoda and Xilǐ'er was completely extinguished.
Inside the sanctuary, Ed stood atop the decaying remains of the giant and looked at the players excitedly, saying:
" Soul Returner, I, Ed Adrian, hereby declare that the White Wax Town, ravaged by apostates for decades, has finally returned to the embrace of the Tree God!"
" White Wax Town, completely liberated!"
Another cheer erupted, and a new change appeared in the players' taskbars:
[Large-scale, long-term quest - Reclaim White Wax Town:]
The final stage has been successfully achieved; overall group rating: S+
The mission's final phase has begun; the mission will officially conclude and rewards will be awarded upon completion of this phase.
Wow, there's an epilogue?!
Someone exclaimed in surprise.
"That's normal. The battle is the climax, but it's not the end. A game this realistically wouldn't ignore that."
"Will there be a reward for watching the ending?"
"There will likely be some, but compared to the previous three stages, it will probably be just a drop in the ocean."
"Then you guys do it. I'm going to find a place to rest for a bit. My stamina is almost gone, and I can't even regenerate my health."
"No, no, there's no need to do that. Everyone, don't rush off yet. Logically speaking, there will definitely be a cutscene at the end. I've already prepared my screen recording. Watching the animation will give you a reward—isn't that great?!"
"That makes sense. Let's wait and see, they won't stab you yet."
"Oh, there's such a saying..."
The players dispersed in small groups, those willing to clean up the battlefield picking up severed limbs, and those wanting to rest or eat something finding quiet corners, but their gazes did not stray too far from Ed's location.
Only the professional stalker [ Zhong Lele ] remained in the crowd, secretly taking pictures not far behind Ed, showing no intention of resting or cleaning up the mess.
Ed was certainly aware of the other party's actions, and he even tacitly approved of them, since players need fragmented storylines as material for later reflection and discussion.
As a game producer who relies on others for everything, he naturally wants to make the most of every free opportunity.
So now, the transitional scenes that mark the end of the story begin.
Having completely given up resistance, Yiden was pulled out of the bronze bell by Ed, who tied her up like a dumpling and placed her in front of him.
Upon seeing this, players immediately exclaimed in surprise:
"Holy crap, there really is! Old Deng is still alive!"
The next second, his mouth was covered by his companion, signaling him not to do something as immoral as making loud noises in a movie theater.
In the center of the sanctuary, Ed felt that the old man in front of him was in a state similar to the Boston Ivy ivy growing from his body; having given his all but still lost, the old man's eyes had long lost their luster.
Seeing the man's ruthless demeanor, Ed clenched his right fist, and the vines binding Yiden instantly tightened, causing Yiden to let out a wheezing sound.
What do you want to do?
The old priest finally stopped pretending to be dead and looked at Ed with a resigned expression.
"I want you dead, do you think that's okay?"
Yiden shook his head sincerely:
"That's inappropriate. Every official priest of ours preserves a Soul Tree in the Holy City. The Soul Tree reflects each person's physical condition. The death of every priest requires three verifications from the diocese to the Holy City. If you kill me, the Holy City's investigators will arrive within ten days."
You think I wouldn't dare kill you?
Ed looked with interest at the old man who still believed he could survive, wanting to know if the man's confidence was just based on that illusory Soul Tree.