Ed looked closely into Yiden's eyes, watching the hope in them gradually fade with his judgment, eventually turning into unspeakable fear. Suddenly, he felt a sense of clarity.
The anger and resentment that existed in the fragments of the original owner's memories completely dissipated at this moment, and Ed felt a sense of relief.
Yiden, who was in the form of a caterpillar on the ground, had begun to wriggle frantically:
No, you can't!
"I gave you everything, and you've deceived me!"
You're making me sound like a jerk...
But when Ed thought about how his attitude towards Yiden perfectly aligned with the principle of "not taking initiative, not refusing, and not taking responsibility," Ed realized that it might actually be true.
The boy's lips twitched, and he snapped his fingers casually.
"Ugh!!!"
Before Yiden could even utter a sound, a thick vine had already shoved into his mouth.
The constantly wriggling plant tissue instantly filled his entire mouth. Yiden's old teeth were completely helpless against the tough surface. With a "crack," his jaw dislocated on the spot, and he could no longer utter a single meaningful syllable.
Ed loosened the vines binding Yiden slightly, then swiftly severed his hands and feet in two quick movements. He then turned to look at [ Zhong Lele ]:
"Help me throw him in the corner."
This isn't the first time the cyber historian has been mentioned; the last time was when he was part-time HR in another world helping Ed draft the employment agreement between him and Xilǐ'er.
This time, it was clearly just a simple matter of moving things.
[ Zhong Lele ] just recorded the whole thing, but unfortunately the conversation between the two seems to have been muted. All the onlookers had no idea what Yiden and the guide were talking about. They only saw the other hand over one treasure-like item after another, but still couldn't get forgiveness.
But perhaps it would be useful for the guides to spare their lives?
Thinking this, [ Zhong Lele ] agreed and jogged forward, picked up Yiden, who had been cut into human stumps, and walked towards the corner full of priests' severed limbs. Several quick-handed players had already sorted the severed limbs and organs there. At this moment, it looked more like a butcher shop in a vegetable market than a battlefield.
Ed strolled to the center of the Gloomy Sanctuary, mentally revising the current model of the entire church, while simultaneously reaching out to the remaining Boston Ivy that had shown him kindness.
Although these plants lacked the capacity for thought, they could roughly distinguish between the weakened Yiden and the rising Ed, and quickly chose to vote with their feet.
"Holy crap, what's that under my ass?!"
"It's alive! The Boston Ivy is alive!"
Amid the players' gasps, the plants that still existed on the ground, walls, ceiling, and in the cracks of the stones began to move swiftly along the trench like tiny insects, quickly gathering at Ed's feet and weaving a large net once more.
Ed's single eye has turned emerald green again, and the Little Green above his ear is growing wildly. The Emerald Bishop character card is back online.
When the roots of those Aberration Boston Ivy climbed onto Ed's flesh, a tsunami of life force surged into the surviving plants. These plants, which had submitted to Ed, were rewarded; they began to divide wildly, their roots re-entering every crevice. Along with the reward came a command from their new master.
The green net began to stretch out again from Ed's feet, covering the dozen or so half-dead priests, climbing up the surrounding walls, and finally engulfing the entire ceiling.
Whether it's psychological or just a fact, [ Zhong Lele ] always felt that Ed's Boston Ivy looked much better than Yiden's.
As a player, she felt a strange sense of familiarity with the plant network that had re-overlaid everything around her.
Beside Ed, the players watched as the Boston Ivy gathered again, then scattered once more as if it had been incorporated into their ranks, their mouths agape as they awaited what would happen next.
Not everyone is a plot-driven viewer; some of them completely disregard Ed and Yiden's interactions and simply want to see if there will be any more spectacular scenes worth the price of admission.
Soon, their wish came true.
Ed turned and looked around at everyone, smiling as he reminded them:
"Everyone, keep your balance."
After speaking, Ed's body rose into the air, and the entire church began to shake violently. The players saw the stones, which had been infiltrated and wrapped by the Boston Ivy, begin to rearrange themselves once again.
The plants are moving, the stones are moving, the entire church is moving!
It felt like being in a waist-deep, turbulent river, where players were pulling each other to maintain their balance while observing the changes around them.
A ray of dazzling sunlight pierced through the narrow gap into the Gloomy Sanctuary, and then the gap widened. The players all turned off their night vision and watched as the sanctuary was being reshaped by an invisible hand.
The clamped stone wall unfolded again, the Shattered door was pieced together by Boston Ivy, and the tables, chairs, and benches were all repaired.
Delicate vines carefully pieced together the Shattered stained glass, then re-inserted them into the empty window frame.
The collapsed Shattered icon was once again covered in gold leaf and stood once more at the end of the Great Prayer Hall.
Even the bronze bell that had fallen into the underground cavern was pulled up by sturdy vines and kept rising, and a church exactly the same as before was being restored little by little in front of the players.
The players watched all of this intently, a sense of regret welling up within them.
Why don't I have eyes on the back of my head?
To be able to see such a grand scene from only one direction is an absolute waste.
Amidst gasps of surprise, the entire church seemed to rewind time, returning to the scene before the battle began.
The smooth walls and floors, the spotless tables and chairs, made it seem as if the previous battle had never happened.
The moment the icon stood upright again, the reassembled doors and all the windows that could be opened swung open simultaneously, and melodious bells rang out from the bell tower at the top of the church. Only then did the players realize that they were sitting on the wooden benches of the Great Prayer Hall, and they all sat down with a great sense of satisfaction.
The tolling of bells echoed above the town, sending a chill of unease through its inhabitants.
It was already past noon, and they had all known about the situation in the town, sooner or later, to varying degrees.
Although I don't know the specifics, it's best not to get involved in these kinds of things.
Who wins and who loses has nothing to do with the tree species they belong to.
However, the bell tolled incessantly at midday until everyone in White Wax Town realized that the sound was calling them.
So the townspeople peeked out from their doorways, and in small groups, they discussed as they walked toward the church.
At the church entrance, Duolin was already overwhelmed with emotion!
This is the Son of God, this is the Saint, this is the power of the Tree God!
As a member of the Tree Worship Church from the Holy City, Duolin knew, of course, that the move Ed had just used did not contain much power.
But the level of detail in restoring everything is something many Middle Tier Tree Worship Church members cannot achieve. The ability to perfectly recreate a church as if time had reversed—doesn't that demonstrate the Tree God's favor?
only...
Why is this clock constantly ringing? That's not right...