This is why the fake Holy Crusaders only have three hundred men left. After capturing Ginkgo Town, the players turned south and repeated the above steps, successfully Seizure Blackthorn Town.
In this way, Ed now controls four towns: White Wax Town, Weeping Willow Town, Ginkgo Town, and Blackthorn Town, effectively taking over almost half of the entire Aduolin Province.
Of course, this is only half in number. In terms of area, Fir City and its surrounding areas occupy a very large area of the entire province, so this capital cannot be taken over gradually in the current way.
However, that's not what players need to worry about right now. They're only concerned about whether the bishop will bring them new surprises later today, or at least something more creative with the design of the Aberration plants.
While the players were already used to what was about to happen, Jerry was undergoing a reshaping of his values.
If he was angry when he learned the truth about the Stained Ones, he was completely shocked when he saw the Soul Returner take over two towns without bloodshed.
In Jerry's view, even though most of the Tree Worship Church had become corrupt and decadent, those Stained Ones should still be as skilled in battle as Grand Knight Motley. However, the bishop of Ginkgo Town completely shattered his idea.
The town's bishop, already Stained Ones, was surprisingly weak in combat, unable to withstand even a single charge from five hundred Soul Returner on his home turf, the church.
Faced with irrefutable facts, Jerry's worldview was finally completely reshaped.
He realized one thing: whether a Tree Worship Church Bishop could fight had no direct relation to whether he was Stained Ones.
Motley is Stained Ones, but that's not why he's powerful. Rather, it's because he has diligently studied and practiced for decades, making him one of the strongest individuals in Fir City.
Having figured this out, Jerry personally shattered the last shred of illusion he held about the Stained Ones.
Depravity is depravity, betrayal is betrayal; there's no room for ambiguity.
Thus, Jerry, who considered himself to be steadfast in his beliefs, had unknowingly fallen into a special state known as convert fanaticism.
He began to look forward to the Second Holy See's early occupation of Aduolin Province, to the fact that his choice was correct, and to the fact that the Stained Ones had received their due punishment.
A few hours later, later that day, a somewhat chubby-looking town bishop finally succumbed to the interrogation techniques from another world and collapsed at some unspeakable hurdle.
Ginkgo Town, Blackthorn Town, and now Chinese Pine Town...
When [ Zhongde ] once again held a sapphire Territory Secret Pact in his hand, a new pop-up window appeared in front of him:
[Detected that Soul Returner has obtained the rare item Territory Secret Pact. The Second Holy See now controls more than 50% of the Territory Secret Pact in the Aduolin Province. The hidden side quest content for the large-scale long-running quest [ Bloody Night ] has been revealed.]
[ Zhongde ] looked at [ Gill's Cuisine ] beside him in shock:
"Dude, did you... see that?"
[ Gill's Cuisine ] nodded in surprise at this moment:
"I see! If it weren't for this notification, I would have almost forgotten about hidden side quests. What was the last hidden side quest again?"
"It's about rescuing those experimental subjects beneath White Wax Town."
"Oh right... several months have passed in the blink of an eye, I almost forgot about it."
[ Gill's Cuisine ] said, looking around and noticing that many players were already standing still, staring blankly ahead.
Of course, this was only how they perceived it from the perspective of the natives. As a player himself, he immediately understood that the notification was server-wide, and everyone was probably looking at the so-called hidden side quests.
Thinking of this, he opened his task list and found [ Bloody Night ], which had unknowingly accumulated a large amount of contribution points.
After a somewhat otherworldly unlock animation, the current state of the long-running quest [ Bloody Night ] was finally fully revealed before his eyes:
[Large-scale, long-term quest - Bloody Night
Mission Description: A battered merchant brings news of an impending Corpse Tide. As one of the Calamity of this World of Disorder, the Corpse Tide, formed from Blood Corpse, will sweep across every inch of land it passes through like a hurricane. Pick up your tools and weapons and survive the coming Corpse Tide.
Current progress: Main storyline stage 3 (activated, not completed), hidden side quest (conditions met, activated)
Main Quest - Phase Three: Thanks to the tireless efforts of all members of the Second Holy See, a marquis on the verge of resurrection has finally returned to where he belongs. During this time, the Soul Returner have accumulated rich experience in combating the Blood Corpse. Please use this experience flexibly to ensure that all Blood Corpse within fifty kilometers of the Second Holy See's borders are under our control! Specific tasks: Ensure that all Blood Corpse within fifty kilometers of the Second Holy See's borders are in one of the following four states: marked, imprisoned, enslaved, or dead.
Hidden Side Quest - Two-Front Battle: As the Tree God's last weapon, the Second Holy See shoulders an even more important mission. Even the arrival of the Blood Corpse Tide cannot stop our march to reclaim the Aduolin Province. Under the threat of the Blood Corpse, our enemies have temporarily sheathed their claws. Do not miss this opportunity. Details: Conquer all human settlements in the Aduolin Province except for Fir City, capture all the Stained Ones and obtain all Territory Secret Pact, and make Fir City an isolated city before the Corpse Tide retreats!
After reading the updated information on the task panel, [ Gill's Cuisine ] swallowed hard:
"Honestly, I'm not exaggerating, this is pretty much what I guessed, but... this is way too ambitious. Can we really handle it?"
[ Zhongde ] fell into thought upon hearing this, and [ Gill's Cuisine ] continued:
"I've been thinking about this for a long time: what would happen to the game's storyline if players failed to meet the requirements of such large-scale missions, such as successfully protecting the Second Holy See?"
"I've thought about it, and I've even wanted to try it."
[ Zhongde ] expressed his agreement again, and [ Gill's Cuisine ] looked at him in shock:
"And then what? Did you actually try it?"
[ Zhongde ] shook his head, and said with a hint of sadness:
"No, during that time my team was in charge of making a coffin for an old man who had passed away. From the funeral to the people's reactions, everything was impeccable. At that time, I felt that this game was too realistic. If I had to deliberately lose a mission and watch those NPCs being bitten to death by Blood Corpse, I feel like I would have nightmares afterward."